To our delegates and constituents, thank you for taking the time to read this report from the Office of Regional Ministries at the Pacific Union. We hope you will be inspired by the direction which Regional Ministries has taken over the past five years.
The director and six local area coordinators work closely together to oversee more than 65 inner-city churches comprised of more than 28,000 members and develop a union-wide coalition for effective ministries in the 21st century.
We shifted our focus and began to concentrate on training and equipping laypersons in diverse areas of ministry, encouraging the development of spiritual gifts, and inspiring evangelism throughout the union. In doing this, we have been able to target several areas that needed to be addressed and begin working to build and strengthen laypeople to meet those needs.
In 2005 and 2006, we held three lay training events that drew nearly 1,450 church leaders who were enriched, edified and empowered in their area of ministry. From the evaluations, we learned that more training is desired as well as which areas of ministry require attention and focus.
Our coordinators are forging ahead to build a stronger coalition among our churches and among our pastoral leadership. With that in mind, we brought the pastors to the table to discuss ways of working together, and the results have been astounding. For example, taking advantage of opportunities like the field study in evangelism at Andrews University, we were able to support the pre-work for two evangelistic meetings the summer of 2005 in Southeastern and Northern California conferences, and one will be supported this summer in Central California. This program brought 50 seminary students into the areas to work along with local pastors and members to help prepare the community for public evangelism. Last year’s harvest reaped 225 souls combined.
We established an education council that began meeting in 2003 to formulate a plan to establish a fund that would undergird the financial structure of our four schools—Golden Gate Academy (Oakland, Calif.), Stockton Elementary (Stockton, Calif.), Valley Fellowship Resource Center (Riverside, Calif.) and Los Angeles Adventist Academy (Los Angeles, Calif.). This support will also be available to newly-established schools and/or academies that address the educational needs of our predominantly African-American youth. Constituents will be asked to contribute to this endowment over a two-year period.
When it comes to our youth, we want to make a significant impact on their mental, emotional and spiritual development. There is evidence of a renewed commitment to youth as an increasing number of churches have hired stipend-lay pastors whose sole purpose is to build and sustain viable youth ministries. Plans are underway for a union-wide youth congress in 2008. More than 500 youth and young adults attended the nation-wide youth congress held in Atlanta, Ga., earlier this year. Likewise, a growing number of youth are committing to the experience of missions, including Heritage Missions, conference-directed and local church-sponsored events.
Effective leadership influences others to become involved, proactive and synergistic. It provides tools, opportunities and empowerment for individuals and groups to use and multiply their God-given talents and gifts to glorify Him. The staff of Regional Ministries believes that we are making a significant difference in the Pacific Union, and we are grateful for your confidence, prayers and support.
