Report of the
Conference Pastor
“The Lord is my strength and my shield;
my heart trusts in Him and I am helped;
therefore my heart exults and with my song I shall thank Him”
Psalm. 28:7
If you don’t need any there is something wrong with you. All of us need to be encouraged and pastors are certainly no exception. I am sometimes asked, “What does the Conference Pastor do?”. The simple answer is, he seeks, by God’s grace, to bring encouragement to our pastors and their families. He has a wonderful example of how this is done in the New Testament.
Woven into the fabric of the book of Acts is the quiet yet penetrating life of a brother who became known as the “minister of encouragement”. In fact, his name means, “Son of Encouragement”, according to Acts 4:36.
The young persecuted assembly at Jerusalem was literally “under the gun”. If ever they needed encouragement, it was then. They were backed to the wall and financially stripped. Many were pressed, the needs were real. In addressing this need, Barnabas gave generously.
While we experience very little persecution, the year 2009 did find many of our churches strapped financially and needing encouragement. It has been heartening to see some of our churches who were truly blessed financially being a blessing and encouragement to those churches who were in need, by providing financial assistance. Some of our pastors were helped through the love gift given by Annual Conference to the Darlene J. Mahurin Memorial Fund. We thank you for your loving expression of concern.
As the church grew in number and the need of leadership increased, Barnabas sought for and found Saul of Tarsus who was an outcast because of his former life. Before the entire assembly in Antioch, the “Son of Encouragement” gave his friend a push in the ministry.
In light of our ever pressing need for more pastors, it gives me great joy to know of our present pastors and congregations who encourage “outsiders” to seek credentials with us and become pastors in the BFC. We thank God for these new men and ask you to join with me in praying “ the Lord of the harvest to send out workers (pastors) into His harvest field.” Matt. 9:38
Through prayer, counsel, visits, phone calls, and email, as well as various structured and non-structured times spent with our pastors, the Conference Pastor seeks to be an encourager.
As everyone knows, sometimes an encourager does not have to do anything; he just needs to be there. One of our pastors remarked, “Just knowing you are there is an encouragement to me.”. There are many opportunities throughout the year to simply “be there”. Such as: Regional Pastor’s Meetings, Recognition of Ordination Services, Installation of Pastor Services, Pastor Appreciation Services, Pastor Retirement Services, Ministerial Convention, Church Dedication and Anniversary Services, Outreach Banquets, Worship Services and Pinebrook Bible Conference Center Summer Camp Weeks.
It seems with each passing year, we attend more funeral services. This year was no exception as the Lord called home four of our ministerial family: Herb Dyke, Ruth Seifert, John Dunn and Robert Smock. The families of each of these choice servants of the Lord expressed their appreciation for the encouragement they received during their time of grief.
With this report, I complete nine years of service as the Conference Pastor. I am sincerely grateful for all the encouragement I have received from our pastors, their families, members of Annual Conference and the Ministerial Relations Committee. I am sincerely humbled by the privilege to serve the Lord by serving the BFC as your Conference Pastor and thank you for your prayers and encouragement.
Your Co-laborer in Christ,
Ronald C. Mahurin
Conference Pastor