The week after Easter, Pastor Stephanie headed to Indianapolis for the spring gathering of the General Board of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in the United States and Canada. At the General Assembly in Memphis, Pastor Stephanie was elected by the denomination to be a member of the board and she was excited for this opportunity. The General Board gathered to hear reports from the regions, general ministries, and recognized ministry partners such as National City Christian Church Foundation. It is important work that keeps the larger body informed and accountable to the work happening with God across discipledom.
In the National City Christian Church Foundation’s report, we celebrated the many ministry opportunities that we were a part of in the past year such as the multi-denominational prayer vigil, Moral Mondays with Repairers of the Breach, and World Pride. We also shared about the ongoing local ministries that our community sustains, such as the food pantry, Music at Midday, and the expansive ministry partners we have in our tenants who have helped us to better equip ourselves for community care. It was also a time to share about the unique challenges National City faces while doing ministry in this season.
In the spirit of reciprocity, Pastor Stephanie heard some incredible stories from ministry partners that were truly inspiring and she wanted to share, such as the way the Pension Fund stepped up to support pastors who lost access to their healthcare and the great way that Disciples Home Missions are equipping disciples around the world for the work of community, justice, and peace. In her State of the Church address, General Minister and President, Rev. Terri Hord Owens, spoke of the ways Disciples need to come together to have hard but faithful conversations about the work of justice and peace. Rev. Hord Owens also lifted up our forthcoming Kathleen Swihart Office of Denominational Collaboration, which many people are excited for. Pastor Stephanie also heard about the inspiring ways that NAPAD is growing (they plant churches with only $2,000 and they are thriving!), how our financial ministries such as CCF and DCEF are stewarding well our financial resources, and how New Church Ministries, NBA, Obra Hispana, HELM, and the Convocation are leaning into the new thing God is doing with prayerful joy. We even learned the word “propinquity” from regional minister Bill Spangler-Dunning which is a fancy word for being near one another in place, time, or relationship.
And of course, Pastor Stephanie got the whole board to say together “We Need Each Other.”
The General Board meets twice a year and so Pastor Stephanie will join the board again in the fall for their meeting and looks forward to updating the denomination on the works of National City and the ways we as the national church can support the work our wider community is doing with God.