6722 Clark Rd. Paradise,
California 95969 |
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Across the Pastors Desk
“Radiate, Initiate and Co-Create” were the basic concepts around which this year’s Annual Conference centered. The worship was exciting and moving, the business of the sessions dealing with petitions was cordial and yet animated and Bishop Robert Schnase prime focus of Fruitful Congregations practices helpful. As always every Annual Conference has its unique moments, and the two that come to mind this year was a plan to directly bill local churches for their pastor’s pension, and the “changes” within our church composition. As relates to the newest pension plan, a major change took place. Prior to Annual Conference all churches through apportionments, lump such total payments (in West Sacramento) from whence the total payment is sent on to Evanston, Illinois and the Board of Pensions there. Some small churches, have difficulty paying what their pastor’s pension amount actually is and larger churches, through their apportionment payments helped fund the amounts necessary to provide for those who couldn’t afford such. This direct billing payment issue and a second, equally dramatic change, the reorganizing of seven Districts into four and the renaming those Districts, was dramatic...We no longer will be in Shasta District (49 churches) but will now be among 105 churches under the supervision of “Great Northern District Superintendent,” Jerry Smith. Importantly, Annual Conference is also where pastors are assigned to local churches and charges (more than one church on a “charge). Since every appointment is for one year, each appointment is made every year. Bishop Brown and outgoing Superintendent, Ben Silva-Netto read the appointment to Paradise, Robert R. Biehler for the eleventh year! And how grateful Nadeen and I are to be appointed to one of the very best congregations in all of the California-Nevada Annual Conference for another year! The other church “change” was the closure of three churches. When people stop attending worship and supporting their local ministry, the conference faces the difficult challenge of closing that local church. As painful as hearing about and voting on the closure of these churches was, it was necessary. I couldn’t help but think about the vision and faith the pioneers of those congregations had, surviving depressions and wars, always praying and worshipping and celebrating our life in Christ. And now worship in these buildings will be no more. It was painful to hear of the loss many felt in those specific church closures. Yet God calls us not to be about buildings, but to be a movement of God’s pilgrim people, moving across boundaries of space and time with a timeless message of God’s great and redeeming love. “In our death is our resurrection, at last a victory, unrevealed until its season, something God alone can see.”
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