3rd Annual Conference of the UMC de Venezuela

Bishop Juvenal Perez called to order the 3rd annual conference of the United Methodist Church of Venezuela at about 3:00 on Friday, August 6, 2010 on the Campus of the Seminario Wesleyano de Venezuela in LaPiedad, Venezuela.  Pastors and laity came from all across the country to be a part of this time of reunion, reporting, worship, celebration and business. As the afternoon session adjourned for dinner, pastors were still arriving by bus from 20-24 hours away.

Pastor Toby Victor Ramirez led the opening devotional time followed by typical spirited Venezuelan singing and worship (Oh, how I long for the Church in the US to experience such vital worship). This was followed by a few words from the Bishop and then I taught/preached on Paul's call to the church at Philippi to "Shine like the Stars in the Universe." Dean Dan Dunn translated for me and did his usual excellent work.  A short break followed (with VZ coffee!) and then pastor Carlos Pirona preached from Exodus and defined the difference between selfish dreams or visions and God's vision and the necessity of the church holding on to the vision of God for the church.  Needless to say, he preached circles around the gringo.

There followed a break for dinner and then the Conference gathered for a time of high worship at the Ondas de Pas UMC in Cabudare.  This church has outgrown its former meeting place and is now renting space in the community of Aqua Viva  Unfortunately, my intestinal bug returned and I was unable to attend.  Hopefully we can get a later report from others who were there.

Today (Saturday) the conference will worship, hear some reports about conversions and new churches, elect their second bishop and close with Holy Communion and commissioning of the pastors.  The Bishop has asked me to take the gavel for the election since he feels to preside at what  may be his own election would be inappropriate.  He has also asked me to Celebrate Holy Communion at the end of the day.

Please keep this conference in  your thoughts and prayers.  God is blessing the UMC de Venezuela with reaching a lot of lost people.  Pray for faithfulness, integrity and strength.

The Seminario Wesleano de Venezuela was the birthing room for this Conference of the United Methodist  Church and continues to provide a critical link for the connection here among the United Methodist churches and pastors across all regions of this large country.

You can help in this work by sending a gift to;
Venezuela Now, Inc.
PO Box 1655
Duluth, GA  30096  USA

Article from www.MinistryTransformers.blogspot.com

Inward or Outward Focus?

I just finished teaching for a day in a State-wide pastor's conference in Venezuela.  I was asked to teach on the Mission Church.  The invitation came from a pastor who was the Valedictorian of the first graduating class of the Seminario Wesleyano de Venezuela (www.venezuelaforchrist.blogspot.com). Pastor Wilmer Perez had taken my course on the Mission of the Church and wanted to introduce his fellow pastors to both the concept and the seminary. He stated to them that going to the Seminary had changed his life and ministry, particularly the course on the Mission of the Church.

One of the primary differences between effective and ineffective churches is the primary direction of their focus.  Ineffective churches are inwardly focused - almost exclusively. Effective churches are primarily outwardly focused.  Ineffective churches consume all given to them (leadership resources, finances, location, facilities, etc.) with centripetal power.  Effective churches multiply resources given through the release of centrifugal energy into the world. Effective churches are about "them," those outside the church.  Ineffective churches are about "us." those inside the church.

This simple comparison and contrast is worth much more examination and something I do in the Seminary course.  However, it is enough of a thumbnail sketch for one to begin to understand the basic difference between the Mission Church and the Traditional or "Chapel" Church.

The pastors in the conference in Venezuela demonstrated this simple, but profound truth in an exercise depicted in the following pictures.  I asked for volunteers and 10-12 people quickly stepped to the front. Then I asked them to form a circle and join hands.  They did what I have seen in every case where I have scores of times asked this to be done.

Then I asked them if they could still hold hands and form a different kind of circle. After some discomfort and confusion they eventually moved to the form of a circle pictured here in which they were facing outward. These contrasting ways to be in community (holding hands) are powerfully demonstrative of the difference between the inward focus or outward focus of ineffective and effective churches.

There are many ways illustrate this and/or examine objectively which one best describes our church.  However, simply asking this question is a great beginning:  "Are we primarily an inwardly or outwardly focused church?"  The answers may help us change the focus and move from ineffective, irrelevant church life to transformational ministry in a lost and broken world.