“Can we as Christians in the East and West, the South and the North, engage as partners in God’s reconciling mission in spite of all the differences and distances between us?”
This question, articulated by CRWM missionary Ruth Padilla Deborst during an evening plenary session, was the driving force that brought 254 people from all over the world together at the Calvin College Prince Center in Grand Rapids, Michigan from June 7-10.
The participants in this Assembly of World Wide Christian Reformed Church Partners included staff, volunteers, board members, and partner organizations from many CRC agencies including the Back to God Hour, Calvin College, Home Missions, World missions, CRWRC, Calvin Theological Seminary, the Office of Social Justice and Hunger Action, and the CRC Denominational offices. Also represented at the conference were participants from Worldwide Christian schools, Foods Resource Bank, and Partners Worldwide.
Together, this group of diverse people hoped to find a way to unite in a global ministry that would enable the Christian Reformed Church to build meaningful partnerships with churches and organizations around the world and have a lasting impact on the spiritual and physical lives of people in need.
“We need to covenant for justice together and be partners both in presenting the good news of our Lord Jesus Christ and in creating a more just world,” explained Rev. Dr. Setri Nyomi, the General Secretary of the World Alliance of Reformed Churches.
Workshops were held on a variety of topics including Christian education, reconciliation, justice and advocacy, discipleship, economic empowerment, and the use of technology for missions. These workshops were reinforced by daily plenary sessions led by international speakers who encouraged the CRC agencies to come alongside international churches as equal partners in ministry.
“I’ve been called to plant churches,” said Rev. Barnabas Mam, Director of Ambassadors for Christ Cambodia. “Navy [Chann, CRWRC-Cambodia] was called to build their capacity to transform their communities. What a partnership!!”
He urged other agencies to form similar partnerships, remembering to keep Christ at the center. By working together in this way, he said, Christians would be able to reach further and have more success at complete spiritual and physical transformation than if they all work alone. “Netting catches more fish than hooking,” he concluded.
Ideas, next steps, and suggestions from all of the workshops and sessions were collected at the end of the conference and will be used by CRC Agencies to form their plans and visions for the coming years.
To read summaries of workshops and plenaries, click here.
(Photos by Karen Huttenga for The Banner, www.thebanner.org)
