Emerge 2005

A group of thirty-five BIC pastors and general church leaders took part in a leadership event titled Emerge 2005 to discuss potential ministry opportunities and outcomes for the Brethren in Christ by the year 2020.

According to Bishop Craig Sider, the denomination’s point person for Leadership Development, Emerge ’05 was designed to “bring together some of our emerging leaders from across the North American Church. In so doing, we sought to foster partnerships among these leaders and the broader church as well as to provide and receive input on vision and direction for the future of the BIC.”

This leadership gathering was held on the two days preceding the Leadership Summit held each August in Chicago at the Willow Creek Community Church which provided an opportunity for continued interaction within a learning environment.

“[Emerge ‘05] achieved the objectives of fostering partnership and providing and receiving input,” adds Sider. “It was an open atmosphere that provided the free exchange of ideas and perceptions regarding the present and future state of the BIC. This exchange occurred within a context of respect and honor. I came away very grateful for emerging leaders across the BIC.” These participants included women and men from each of the regional conferences, who have a wide range of ministry experience with the BIC, from six years to as many as 26!

The group wrestled with issues such as having “significant kingdom impact, what a “healthy” congregation really looks like, and what we can do to encourage healthy congregations,” reports Alan Robinson, senior pastor of Carlisle BIC, in Carlisle, PA, as well as, “how we should organize and structure ourselves for God-honoring, effective, missional ministry.”

With a passion for evangelism, Kim Lester, associate for church development in the Canadian conference, resonated with the discussions on “missional” churches. “One of the key issues we discussed,” she says, “was the importance of our churches being held accountable…to bring the redeeming love of Jesus to our communities around us…to disciple those that come in…and in turn send them out to reach others.”

Nate Yoder, pastor of Palmyra BIC, in Palmyra, PA, commented that “some challenges identified at Emerge ‘05 included: funding for ministry, leadership expectations, and communication.” He reflected that “all church leaders -- denominational, regional, or local -- will make the most impact for God's kingdom when we focus on making changes that will help us fulfill our God-honoring vision rather than on making changes that simply solve existing problems.”

Bishop Brian Bell later shared in his newsletter that “after two days of intense discussion and interaction…one thing was clear: leadership is understood to be key in helping to meet the challenges of the future for our churches.“

Emerge ’05 was sponsored by the Shaping Leaders for Tomorrow endowment, which provides financial support for this and other leadership development initiatives within the Brethren In Christ. It was also linked to Eqiupping for Ministry Impact course offerings and provided pastors with lifelong learning credits for credentialing renewal (see related article).

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