 Presbyterian Leaders’ Forum  Sept/Oct, 1997 A Message from the GAC Chair “The General Assembly shall create an Assembly Council which shall have the following responsibilities:a: to cultivate and promote the spiritual welfare of the whole church….” (Book of Order, G-13.0201) The fact that this is the first of eleven Council responsibilities listed in the Book of Order is indicative of its importance. As a Council, we cannot effectively carry out this responsibility unless we have properly spiritually prepared ourselves. A few months ago, I worshiped with my wife and mother at the church where I was baptized and raised, Wayman Chapel AME Church in New Brighton, Pennsylvania. In his sermon, Rev. David U. Brown told of a newspaper report about a truck that had broken down on a highway because a rear wheel bearing had failed due to a lack of grease. Rev. Brown explained that a truck breakdown is normally not a newsworthy item. However, this one was because the truck was a grease truck that routinely made daily deliveries of grease to several lube shop customers. The company had been so busy tending to its business of delivering grease to others that it never took time to properly grease and maintain its own vehicle. This report painfully reminded me that sometimes Council becomes so involved in our mission-related, programmatic activities, that we fail to grease our own spiritual bearings. I am also reminded that a failure to properly maintain our own spiritual infrastructure can significantly impair, if not prevent, Council from meeting our first Book of Order responsibility. Romans 12:2 requires that we not conform to the pattern of the world but that we be transformed by the renewing of our minds. As Council’s leadership, Vice Chair Lynda Ardan and I have given the highest priority to planning Council activities which will cause a renewal of our minds and way of thinking together. With God’s help, this will place Council in a renewed state of spiritual readiness to carry out its first responsibility. During our September Council meeting in San Antonio, prayer will be a regular and recurring agenda item. We will be led in worship daily by local congregations. Moreover, each Council member will be assigned to a small group to cultivate and promote his or her own spiritual welfare. The small groups will meet daily for prayer and scripture discussion, and will provide reports to Council regarding their experience. Once we are spiritually prepared, we will be better equipped to “put on the full armor of God so that [we] can take [our] stand against the devil’s schemes.” (Ephesians 6:11) By strengthening Council’s spiritual infrastructure in this way and with God’s help, we will be better able to meet our responsibility “to cultivate and promote the spiritual welfare of the whole church.” – Fred L. Denson, GAC Chair |
|
Home
· The
Presbyterian Layman ·
News |