2008-10-15

Change to Face the Challenge-Rev.Xavier Law

Speaking of change, two recent news items come to mind.

 

First, the financial crisis. "The world has changed," the spokesman of Morgan Stanley declared. In light of a possible economic slowdown and a resulting layoff wave, experts in the field are advising people to be alert and be prepared.

 

Next, the slogan of a US presidential candidate. Throughout the election campaign, Democrat candidate Barack Obama continually emphasized his slogan "Change We Can Believe In." Recently he quietly changed his familiar slogan to "Change We Need," apparently a marketing ploy directed against John McCain and his partner Sarah Palin, presenting himself as the real reformer.

 

Setting aside the question of whether there is real content in his proposed change, how many people, in the face of a great change, are willing to accept and welcome it?

 

Let's change the topic and talk about the recent news in our church.

 

Since Rev. David Chan left his post in August, we lost a senior pastor who has led and served among us for twenty years. Besides the difficulty of finding a compatible pastor to take his place, it also takes quite some time for the church ministries and the minds of brothers and sisters to gradually adjust. The days ahead are indeed a path we have never walked before.

 

On behalf of the entire deacon board, please allow me to offer a heartfelt thank-you to all the congregations for actively voicing out your comments and inquiries in the September General Sharing Meetings. All pastoral staff and deacons felt deeply the care and concern for the church, expressed from brothers and sisters in the Lord.

 

In the last deacon board meeting on September 28, we pastors and deacons were glad to respond to the concerns and requests raised by all. After prayers and discussions, we unanimously agreed to appoint and empower a current pastoral staff member to take the position of Interim Lead Pastor, starting next year with a term of two years (January 2009 to December 2010). The person selected will be the chairperson of the deacon board and the team leader of the pastoral staff, leading and serving our church.

 

The deacon board members are now praying and seeking God's will on choosing the candidate for the position, and will make the decision on the next deacon board meeting on October 19. In the mean time, brothers and sisters, please remember this in your prayers.

 

If God so wills and provides, we also hope to hire a Family and Children Pastor within these two years. By the end of 2010, after praying and various assessments, we will appoint one person from the pastoral staff to formally take the position of Lead Pastor, leading the deacon board and all pastors to move forward and serve together.

 

Regarding the removal of the position of Mission Pastor, representatives from the deacon board and the pastoral search committee have already consulted with Rev. Chang formally and obtained his consent in the beginning of the year. In the August deacon board meeting we explored the option of hiring a mission administration assistant to share the administrative workload with him, so that he can concentrate more on mission education, Cantonese ministries, and leading short-term mission teams. After the change, Rev. Chang will still stay and serve in the mission committee and the mission department.

 

Another important related change is that all current pastoral staff will be actively involved in mission service. The sending of many short-term mission teams this year was an excellent illustration and experience of the brilliant variety in mission involvement: our mission pastor went to Mexico and led a team to Vancouver Island; our Cantonese pastor led a team to Africa; our Mandarin pastor led a team to interior BC (our English pastor had planned to lead a team to Edmonton, though it was cancelled because no one signed up for the trip). Next year, certainly all pastoral staff will match up with the plans and directions of the mission committee, giving our best to carry out the Great Commission together!

 

In fact, such arrangements are also common in the other departments and ministries of our church (for example, worship, adult Sunday school, and gospel outreach). Although every department has their own department head and pastoral staff member appointed to coordinate and promote the ministry, in the actual operation all pastoral staff are involved. After all, P (Praise and Prayer), G (Gospel), M (Mission), B (Bible), and C (Caring) are all core values which our church emphasize; we need to develop all five aspects in a balanced way. As the church pastors, we bear the responsibility.

 

Though the new structure of the pastoral leadership above and the new by-law revision of our church are accepted and supported by all the pastoral staff and deacons, these two issues will still need to pass in the annual congregational meeting by ballot on December 7. If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to contact any pastoral staff member or deacon. Let's care about our spiritual family together!