The Kerusso – May | 2025
Kerusso (Greek): “To publish, proclaim openly: something which has been done.”
Feedback and Information About Our Journey Meetings By: Max Edwards As you may recall, the EMC restructured things at the 2010 General Conference, dissolving our six District boundaries so that we could meet in larger regional clusters than before. So, for the last 15 years, we’ve been hosting annual district meetings of varying numbers and locations, trying to re-ignite the involvement of local church members. The EMC was founded as a movement whose strength ultimately lies in the laity - the men and women who make up the backbone of our churches. Someone recently asked in a response survey about the purpose of our meetings – “[What is the] mission and vision for these journeys ... is it to encourage leaders? To train? To provide rest? To inform?” What a great question! And there is a great answer … In the words of EMC Discipline paragraphs ¶401 and ¶421, the goal of our District structure is to “… endeavor to strengthen and unite the churches ….” We do this regionally as “groupings of Evangelical Methodist churches, pastors, and credential holders in proximity to one another [meet] for the purpose of prayer, fellowship, encouragement, mutual accountability, unity, support, [and] group activities for renewal and enhanced ministry.” Those wonderful words flow parallel to the many New Testament “one another” commands: We are to PRAY for one another; FELLOWSHIP with one another; ENCOURAGE one another; hold one another ACCOUNTABLE; be in UNITY and SUPPORT with one another; and work with one another in MINISTRY. Our Journey meetings intend to do all of those things in varying degrees depending on the yearly program. Sometimes they are more informational, while other times, they are more about fellowship, unity, and encouragement. This year’s focus on “GOD ALONE” was intended to be more about corporate worship and unified fellowship. The four sessions in each location on Listening, Worshipping, Feasting, and Following presented by our own EMC people, were all received very well.
Pandemic Year
Samples of the kind of feedback we heard were these: “This year's Journey was transformative to me personally. It was life-giving. … the time spent with other pastors praying and ministering to one another was extremely special to me. I needed this time more than I realized.” Another person wrote: “I very much enjoy the diversity of speakers used in the sessions. Bringing in speakers from outside the EMC is fine, but personally I like to hear our [people].”
As the data in the chart demonstrates, our attendance and participation are growing, and we will continue to seek the Lord regarding how to encourage our pastors and people, and to challenge each other to greater things as we minister side-by-side.