Sunday, 15 November 2015 | Bečići, Montenegro [Victor Hulbert] What do you do when you take over as leader for not only the smallest Division of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, but one compounded with severe growth challenges in a highly secularised Europe? For Pastor Raafat Kamal, President of the Trans-European Division (TED), based in St Albans, England, the answer is simple: Listen!
This was a drawn out process that helped the Division focus and select personnel based on five key areas: Leadership Development, Youth, Family, Children and Mission-Outreach. Key leaders for those teams were elected during the San Antonio General Conference Session last July, and with more think tanks since focusing on Health, E-learning, Communication and Identity, it is anticipated that the remaining leadership positions will be elected during this Annual Council.
So with all the listening, thinking and planning, what have those elected back in July got in mind?
Executive Secretary, Pastor Audrey Andersson, on behalf of the Adventist Volunteer service, spoke of mission being local as well as to far-flung parts of the planet. “The spirit of volunteerism is alive”, she said, but noted that short-term mission projects within the Division and working across departmental binderies might galvanise members into enthusiastic service for God while helping grow much needed faith communities in a local context. Teens and Community Services director, Alastair Agbaje focused on “not just Global Youth day”, but the other 364 days of the year when, with Centres of Hope, youth can become the hub for their local communities.
As each director got up to share their vision, the overlapping ideas of involvement became more and more clear. Dr Daniel Duda talked of ways to inspire creative mission, while János Kovács-Bíró, speaking from recent experiences in Hungary and Sweden stated, “I believe that the time has come that our young people are serving with passion.” He told of a young professional couple who now enthusiastically state, “We have found it far better to be an administrator of God’s gifts than to simply receive them.” He will be developing a TED Institute of Youth Evangelism, its purpose, like other TED departments, to train the trainers.
As each department presented, it was clear that a lot of thought had gone in to how to work together, how to prepare appropriately needed resources, and most importantly, how to train the trainers so that they in turn could multiply skills and activity across each Union, Conference or Mission. Among other things, Family Ministries will be developing an effective programme in issues of Biblical values and sexuality – a pilot has already been tried in Sweden. Women’s Ministries are continuing with a General Conference (GC) accredited certification programme, while developing a ‘girls for Christ’ ministry. Newbold will become a hub to train trainers for Teens leadership.
Even the Ministerial Association is getting a spruce up, with Pastor Patrick Johnson committing to practical help for pastors in areas of personal development.
As Kamal explained to the Union Presidents and invitees, “We are here to help you. We are a trainer of trainers. We want to make sure you have the right resources to do your task.”
There were questions. How, in practical terms, do you get team involvement? How do you balance training trainers within a local country context, or, from Ivo Käsk, President of the Estonian Conference, how do you simplify all these wonderful plans down into the context of a small Conference.
The mood was positive, even upbeat. At the end of the afternoon, former General Conference President, Dr Jan Paulsen, stated his joy at having spent the past few days with former colleagues and former students. It must have given him joy to now see them in leadership positions. “I like what I see and I have one word”, he concluded. “Let the Holy Spirit speak to you through the Word. The Holy Spirit is the unlimited resource of the church.”
Meetings continue until Tuesday, 17 November. Meet the TED directors and staff as they presented today by visiting our photo gallery.
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Key Highlights:
An emphasis on team work. A youth team pooling Youth, Teens, Public Campus Ministries, & Pathfinders; a Life Institute teaming Singles, Family, Health, Children & Women; while a Mission Board will cross all departments with 70% of objectives focused on Mission.
The TED to give Unions Administrative Support, to help train their trainers, and to act as a resource hub.
Following the GC model each department incorporates the ‘Reach up to God, Reach in with God, Reach out for God’ model. [tedNEWS]
tedNEWS Staff: Deana Stojković, editor
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