January 22-23, 2010.
Throughout the week, we saw God’s hand at work in the smallest of details; we sat amazed even at how God opened the door for 2 young teenagers to continue their schooling. As the Bible Conference approached, we were blessed by the week’s events and looked forward to the weekend with great anticipation.
The Bible Conference lasted from Friday morning until late Saturday evening. Twenty eight churches were invited to bring their pastors, church leaders, and potential future leaders. Over the course of 2 days, we had 244 people register. Though registration began 9:00 am on Friday, the first attendees eagerly walked in at 7:30am and were greeted by the youth of Torre Fuerte and were given a cup of coffee and a bowl overflowing with delicious fresh fruit. The setup crew and kitchen help began at 4 am that morning. They faithfully served great lunches and dinners throughout the conference as well.
The topic of this year’s conference was “Unity”. We had seven speakers from different countries, cultures, and generations, yet God in his sovereignty broke down the barriers and by his Spirit united those who attended the conference. We all left with a better understanding of God’s call on our own lives concerning “Unity in the Spirit” and our responsibility to live this out in the Body of Christ.
Pastor John gave us an illustration called the “donut” of Christianity to help us understand barriers among the Church. In the center of the donut are the core beliefs or the “dogma”; these are the non-negotiable essentials of the inerrant Word of God and our Christian faith. In the next ring are the “doctrinal beliefs”; these are some of the different ideas we have such as baptism, communion, etc. The outside ring includes the “preferences”; examples of such preferences include song choice, type of music, dress, etc.
We are called to be “unified” in the Spirit and yet our carnality often gets in the way of this. Over the course of the 2 days, the speakers were able to break down the teachings of Scripture in order to help us understand how this is played out in our everyday life. Topics presented include Unity in the Church, Unity among Pastors, Unity in Leadership, Unity among Women in Leadership, Unity in Marriage, Unity in Worship, Unity in Small Groups, Unity in Discipleship, and Teaching the Word Inductively.
Sitting in the back row gives a person a perspective that one cannot receive from the front row. As I observed from the back seat, I was able to watch the people walk in with great expectation. The conference opened with awesome worship and it softened our hearts in preparation to hear the Word of God. As the speakers began, the people listened intently and fervently wrote their notes so they wouldn’t forget what was said. One would conclude that there was a “hunger” for the Word of God! The conference ended with a beautiful time of worship, testimony, and communion; and we were able to catch a glimpse of God’s divine hand at work among the nations.
Prior to the conference, there was much prayer and planning. At one point, there was a discrepancy of what elements would be served for the Lord’s Supper. The leaders were faced with the challenge of uniting cultural barriers as well as doctrinal differences. These men bowed before the Lord and they all came to the same understanding that the ‘how’ and ‘what’ they serve is not the “essential”, but that they need to put their differences aside in order to 1) bring “Unity” among the believers, 2) cross the cultural differences, and 3) break down the denominational separation. As these men sought the Lord, they were able to agree on how the Lord’s Supper would be served. Also, the main speakers met the day before the conference for prayer and coordination of the topics and the Lord united their hearts to go in the same direction led by his Spirit. I believe the Lord sought favor and in turn blessed them and this conference. Our Lord sent His Spirit to work in the hearts of the people – hearts were broken, chains were smashed, hope was given, and lives were changed – all because of Jesus Christ and Him crucified.
It is our prayer that you catch a glimpse of the mighty work our Lord and Savior is in the business of doing. May all glory and honor be His for ever and ever and may we continue to obey His call, to “go” and “make disciples”.
Blessings ~ Betty