The General Conference Session has a general tone of celebration....
The General Conference Session has a general tone of celebration. The reports from church leaders and regions around the world do note challenges, but focus more on how these challenges are being overcome and how the work of the church is progressing in its many facets.
To a significant extent, this is because there are so many good stories to be told from around the worldwide church. But occasionally one wonders if there is an element of triumphalism in this focus. While not wanting to dwell on the negatives, there are negatives that can perhaps be the most inspiring moments. It can be almost refreshing to pause at times to consider the less-than-glossy side of the life of the church in the world.
The mission focus of the afternoon program of July 2 provided a number of these moments. Of course, there were many stories of success from the church growing internationally. But the program also took time to honor the family of Australian missionary Lance Gersbach, who was murdered while serving in the Solomon Islands in 2003, and the Session crowd gave standing ovations to two pastors who each have served lengthy prison sentences for sharing their faith in defiance of restrictive government policies in their respective homelands.
Great things are accomplished through lives of faith, but perhaps suffering is endured with still greater faith. In the real-life experiences of church workers around the world, Session participants were reminded—in the words of world church vice president Dr. Michael Ryan—that “mission costs—and sometimes mission costs terribly.” Or as Jesus explained it, following Him is about taking up one’s cross (see Luke 9:23).
In the treasurer’s report given on Friday and in the other mission-focused programs, much has been made of declining mission offerings worldwide. Addressing this issue both corporately and individually is vitally important for the progress of the mission of the church around the world. But perhaps there is a step before that.
Musician and humanitarian campaigner Bono urged the crowd at U2’s Live8 performance in London this weekend, “We’re not asking you to put your hand in your pockets but we are asking people to put their fist in the air.” Important as it is, mission is not primarily about money; the continued progress of the kingdom of God in our world is about each of us “putting our fists in the air.” It’s about standing up for what we believe, committing our lives in a variety of real and practical ways to our respective roles in being the church.
The testimonies of those honored on July 2 remind us of the importance of such a commitment.