Stories of resilience…
If you signed up for pastoring, thinking that it would always be the same you were surprised when the pandemic hit, and your world was upended. You pivoted to virtual services, virtual visits, virtual evangelism, virtual small groups, virtual board meetings, and virtual contributions. In a flash you were forced to become technology experts, while still preserving the human spirit. And that was just the prelude!
Next came illnesses, deaths, and grieving; some of you helping hundreds families say goodbye to their loved whose lives were stolen by COVID.
Then came the realization that you were pastoring a diverse congregation, separated by views on racial equity, masks, vaccines, eschatology and epistemology. How do you hold a congregation together that is tearing apart at the seams?
And through all of that you showed remarkable resilience. You adapted and continued your mission. One of the descriptors for the Core Qualities of Effective Ministry is resilience. The dictionary defines resilience as “able to withstand or recover quickly from difficult conditions.”
During our worship sessions in the Rupp arena, we will celebrate resilience by telling stories from the distant past, from the recent past, from the present, and we anticipate future stories of resilience in your ministry.
…from the distant past…
Filmmaker extraordinaire, Jason Satterlund returns to the CALLED convention to tell a Bible story in a contemporary setting. If you attended the 2015 CALLED convention you were moved by his cinematic retelling of the story of the call of Isaiah in the lives of three contemporary people. Jason will repeat his magic with a new story inspired by the resilience of Elijah. Watch the trailer here.
…from the recent past…
Resilience has always been a prerequisite for ministry as shown by the latest historical research by Michael Campbell. Michael has found some untold extraordinary stories of resilience lived out by some of the early Seventh-day Adventist pastors. In the midst of research, he writes about some of his discoveries:
“W. H. Littlejohn—An Adventist pastor at church headquarters during the 1870s and 1880s. What makes him unique is that he was blind! He was able to still be a very successful pastor and became probably the first “settled” pastor bringing stability at church headquarters. His story is particularly unique in that he became discouraged and gave up ministry for a while, but later returned, and had an overall significant impact—probably many pastors can relate to becoming discouraged and either wanting to or even giving up ministry for a period of time.
Eri L. Barr—Based on new research this man was the first African American Millerite preacher who later also became Sabbatarian Adventist. I think his story is a significant one that has not really been told and shows how there was much more racial diversity in early Adventism than previously known.
Lou Whitman—Successful Adventist female pastor in New England. Reports document that she was the most successful soul winner in her conference and one of the best examples we have of a successful female pastor/evangelist. Some reports say she did as much work as all the rest of the other men combined.
Sarah Lindsey—First female licensed Adventist pastor, also considered one of the most successful Adventist pastors/evangelists in Pennsylvania and western New York. She has some great human interest stories with her call to ministry, interaction with Ellen White, and other pioneers.
Charles M. Kinney—Widely regarded as the first ordained Seventh-day Adventist minister who made a significant impact in the American South. He is a role model for early Adventist ministry.
Mystery Pastor—
…from the Present…
Those who attended the 2015 convention watched intimate interviews with pastors such as Steward Lozensky, Rodlie Ortiz, Richie Halverson, Pranitha Fielder, MyRon Edmonds, Matt Axford, Marvin Wray, Lori Farr, Jaime Pombo, David Franklin, and Abraham Jules, who bared their souls to share their unique call to ministry. This time we will turn our cameras to stories of resilience with pastors including Dan Martella, Carlton Byrd, Shawn Brace, Tricia Payne, Therezinha Barbalho, and more. Sit down with them as they relive their stories of rebounding from incredibly difficult setbacks in ministry in these short documentaries.