Bishop Mike Lowry

Among the various actions taken by General Conference was an overwhelming vote (originally on the consent agenda) to end guaranteed appointments for ordained elders in the United Methodist Church.  In brief, “under this new legislation, bishops and cabinets will be allowed to give elders less than full-time appointment. The legislation also would permit bishops and their cabinets, with the approval of their boards of ordained ministry and annual (regional) conference’s executive session, to put elders on unpaid transitional leave for up to 24 months. Clergy on transitional leave would be able to participate in their conference health program through their own contributions.  Each annual conference is asked to name a task force to develop a list of criteria to guide the cabinets and bishops as they make missional appointments.  The cabinets shall report to the executive committees of Board of Ordained Ministry the number of clergy without fulltime appointments and their age, gender and ethnicity. Cabinets also will be asked to report their learnings as appointment-making is conducted in a new way.” (Taken from UMNS, May 1, 2012)

I am always surprised by the amount of anxiety this issue seems to engender.  The involvement of the Board of Ordained Ministry in conjunction with the Cabinet safeguards against misuse based on gender, ethnicity or freedom of the pulpit.  It does assist in proper placement of associate pastors and general effectiveness accountability.  It places Elders in the same accountability relationship as Licensed Local Pastors.  In reality, it will have very little effect on most Central Texas Conference clergy and churches.  Denomination wide, there is an estimated excess of only 784 Elders across the whole connection!  When you couple this with a retirement tsunami that will peak in the CTC in 2018 (we are currently on the beginning edge of that huge wave), we will actually desperately need new clergy in the next 10 to15 years.

As we wrestle with our deep need to make mission field appointments, the challenge will be to make the proper fit between pastor, church and mission field.  Furthermore, the deeper pressure we are experiencing a clergy deployment system is being driven by pensions and health insurance.

So, relax, for almost all this will make little difference.  It will protect churches and clergy from deep ineffectiveness and aid making mission field appointments.

When my son turned 15 we took him and a friend to Six Flags – Fiesta Texas in San Antonio in celebration.  He couldn’t wait to try what was then the world’s largest wooden rollercoaster.  Staring at this monster (called The Rattler), the friend decided he didn’t want to go on it after all.  (His friend is now in the Marine Corps!)  It was just too scary.  Well, trying to be a good Dad, I got in line to ride with Nathan.

My bravery reached its zenith as we slowly rode to the top of the first monster drop.  It was exhilarating!  We towered over the visible world.  Then we dropped!  To paraphrase Bob Weathers, I rededicated my life to Jesus three times in the 30 seconds it took us to hit the bottom and whip around the first of many hairpin turns.  (My son reports that I kept saying, “Jesus save me!”)

With the start of General Conference, I was reminded of riding The Rattler.  We opened with an inspiring, thrilling, God-moving, Spirit-filled worship.  The music was awesome; the preaching great; communion a joy.  It was and is the church at her best, praising God and leaning forward in faithful attentiveness and anticipation.

After worship we broke for lunch and then came back for the first business session, the setting of General Conference rules and procedures.  Two and one half (yes, 2 ½) dis-spiriting hours later, we adjourned without completing our business.  From the mountain peak we had plunged into the messy bogs of legislative wrangling.

We awoke the next morning to receive the Episcopal Address given by Bishop Pete Weaver of the New England Episcopal Area.  We shot back up to the heights!    Entitled The Resurrection Revolution we were brought back to Easter morning. Said Bishop Weaver:  “Before any of us were delegates, we were disciples.  Before any of us were bishops, we were believers.  Before any of us were members in caucuses, we were members in Christ Jesus and therefore, members of one another.  Before any of us had a resolution in our hands to vote on, we had a resolution in our hearts to devote ourselves to the living Christ.”

That afternoon we whipsawed back into debate over the rules.  And so it goes.  General Conference is a rollercoaster ride.  Yet in it all is the presence of God; sometimes encouraging, sometimes brooding, sometimes cheering.  Bishop Weaver recalled the first episcopal address ever given to a Methodist General Conference in America two hundred years ago by Bishop McKendree.  When challenged, Bishop McKendree suggested that we handle the new things brought before us with this seminal piece of advice:  “Do everything as in the immediate presence of God.”

This is great advice for Christians of any place and every time.  We are always in the immediate presence of God!

Today the Council of Bishops held its own worship service passing the gavel as president from Bishop Larry Goodpaster to Bishop Rosemarie Wenner.  As we finished communion we sang “On Christ the solid rock I stand; all other ground is sinking sand.”  As the words washed over me, I recalled getting off The Rattler.  It was good to stand on solid ground.  As the ride continues, may we as a church cling to rock.

Do everything as in the presence of God

The stated mission of the Central Texas Conference is to energize and equip local churches to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.  Local churches make disciples who engage (both individually and collectively) in world transforming ministry. The Conference energizes and equips.

There is good news, really good news on how we are doing.  Randy Wild, Executive Director for Mission Support, developed the following report:

Every category save one is up!  They are not only up but up substantially.  Well done thou good and faithful servants!  The member churches, both lay and clergy leadership, are to be congratulated.  Represented within this report are the five practices: radical hospitality (profession of faith, baptism), passionate worship (worship attendance), risk-taking mission (mission team & community ministry in Outreach, Justice and Mercy), intentional faith development (baptism, confirmation class), and extravagant generosity (Connectional Mission Giving).  It is worth noting that 285 of our 305 chartered churches have completed their Vital Congregations sign up.  Narrative is crucial and must be yoked with metrics.  The two go together like salt and pepper.  I am proud and blessed to be the bishop of the Central Texas Conference!

Today (Friday, January 27, 2012) I have the joy of representing the Central Texas Conference and The United Methodist Church at the installation of Dr. Fred Slabach as the 20th President of Texas Wesleyan University. I believe the Trustees have chosen well. President Slabach is already engaging the church in the ongoing ministry of “uniting the two so long divided: knowledge and vital piety.”

Tomorrow (Saturday, January 28, 2012) I will share with my esteemed colleague and friend Bishop W. Earl Bledsoe in a Memorial Service for his granddaughter Hannah Moran. The tragic death of young girl so full of hope and promise hits us all hard. I ask you to lift up Bishop and Leslie Bledsoe and their entire family in prayers and love. I am deeply grateful for the love and care of the gathered and scattered church at such a time as this. Dr. Tim Bruster and the staff at First UMC, Fort Worth have been especially helpful and grace-filled.

Monday, I will fly to Monterrey, Mexico with Rev. Randy Wild (Executive Director for the Center for Mission Support) and Dawn Phillips (Director of Missions) to meet with the Methodist Bishop of Mexico. Our two conferences have long had a covenantal arrangement of missional support and engagement. We hope to explore how we together might serve Christ and especially our neighbors in need in the future. This is an adventure in service and sharing that I look forward to being a part of!

The following Saturday (February 4, 2012), Jolynn and I will travel back to Dallas for a regular meeting of the South Central Jurisdiction College of Bishops. As we look forward to General Conference, the bishops of the South Central Jurisdiction are exploring together how we lead this great church through our current period of change. We seek to be open to the Holy Spirit and attentive to God’s guidance. We remain committed to the core mission of making disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.

The lead article on the Central Texas Conference website is entitled “What are Your Plans for Christmas Sunday Services.”  I want to strongly encourage pastors, directors of music, and other local church leaders to carefully read the article.  Hopefully it will spark thinking for advanced planning for Advent, Christmas and especially Christmas Eve services.

Prominent on every local church website (and yes, I will check about 20 to 30 websites) should be information and an invitation to Christmas Eve services.  Christmas Eve is the number 1 attended service by non- or nominal Christians.  The service should be planned in the light of radical hospitality to those who do not know Christ in any vibrant way.

In other news, currently I am attending the Council of Bishops meeting Lake Junaluska.
Yesterday we strongly affirmed the Call to Action report along with the Vital Congregations emphasis.  Much has already been written on this subject and much more will be shared as we move forward.  Potentially, we are on the cusp of a turning point in the life of the United Methodist Church.  I am enthusiastically supportive of the proposals.  With courage, now is the time for far reaching change as we seek to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.

As we live into the Exodus Project, I remain deeply committed to the Cluster Group concept as a central tool for learning together and moving forward into the new future the Lord is calling us to.  One of the initial learnings has come from Cluster Group #28, the large worship churches.  Using the kind of initiative and insight we want to encourage, they decided on the need for a convener/facilitator/coach.  Independent from their insight, we received similar advice from the Healthy Church Initiative (HCI).

The Cabinet is working on how we move forward and apply this learning to cluster groups.  We are currently drafting plans to run some pilot cluster groups that  incorporate facilitation/coaching.  We will be using the HCI model of Pastoral Leadership Development groups, Lay Leadership Developments groups, and Small Church Initiative workshops.

Things are in the development stage right now, but we are listening and we are learning – together!

A good friend of mine, Bishop Paul Leeland, says, “When the caravan is moving, the dogs are barking.”

As we have wrestled with appointments and are going through transition at the Conference office, I am reminded of Bishop Leeland’s pointed phrase.  It is one thing to know intellectually that Christendom is over, that we live in a post-denominational world.  Of this much we are clear.  Yet the struggle of wanting to operate as if that is not the case is still present.  Pastors walk a delicate balance of guiding and challenging their churches to serve Christ in new ways in a new age and yet still minister to those who signed on in the old order.  It is not easy. 

Recently I visited with a layman who has, by any measurement I know, an excellent pastor and yet wants him/her moved because they have introduced too much change.  I think I can get in touch with the fears this man expresses.  Yet I know, if these changes don’t take place, if the church does not engage in new ministry reaching out to a new generation, it will die.  Jesus has it right.  “For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it.” (Mark 8:35)

The dogs are barking and the caravan is moving.  It is both glorious and tough at the same time.

In the run up to the Thanksgiving holiday, I attended two informative events.  While distinctly different from each other, each is evidence of the creative reflection taking place across the United Methodist Church.

Saturday, November 20^th I attended “Can We Talk?” and took part in a Bishops’ Panel during a Q& A time.  “Can We Talk?” focused on “Effective Leadership … Changing Our Reality” in the African American church.  (An annual event, this is my 3^rd year in attendance.)  Rev. Ronnie Miller Yow, pastor of Wesley UMC, Little Rock, Arkansas, gave a powerful address on new ministry in new ways.  Some nuggets of his address:

• Dead worship will not bring anybody to Christ.
• No pay, no say – if you are not tithing you should not have a say in the direction the church is taking.
• The reason this church is dying is that pastors don’t know how to pray.

There was more but the listener (and hopefully reader) can grasp the cutting edge of Rev. Yow’s connection between spiritual formation and congregational fruitfulness.

 The second event took place on Sunday evening, November 22^nd.  I attended The Texas Methodist Foundation’s dinner recognizing special medallion honorees, Rev. Leighton Ferrell and Tom Graves.  Dr. Bill Enright a Presbyterian clergy and President of the Lake Institute for Faith & Giving, spoke on trends in stewardship.  Giving is down (as the economy would suggest).  Significantly though, major giving is much more focused than it used to be.  Instead of giving to (say) 7 or 8 causes, those sharing larger gifts are choosing to focus on a few causes (say 2 or 3).  The driving question is: How can I make a gift of significance?  Put differently, what difference (play on words intended) will my gift make.  Meaning, purpose and engagement are driving giving as never before.  Churches cannot simply assume economic loyalty.  Are we places of significance in the kingdom building work of Christ?

 Both groups are leaning into a new future.  These are exciting times to be in ministry for the Lord.

Often the Apostle Paul opens his letters with a phrase like “I thank my God for you ….”  I think I understand what he was feeling.  I am constantly thanking God for the Central Texas Conference and more personally for the privilege of being bishop of the Central Texas Conference.  As we wrestled with the proposal for realignment of the conference, I found myself being grateful for the faithfulness of our consideration.  Prior to the balloting I was at peace regardless of the outcome.

I was delighted to hear Rev. Bob Holloway, Dean of the Cabinet, report that the Cabinet had lost 123 pounds (the target goal was 120).  I contributed to that weight loss and will not stop.  I intend to lose more.  The Conference is my accountability partner.

With great gratitude I learned this morning that our offering Saturday for NO MORE MALARIA stands at $6,945.46.  Well done thou good and faithful servants!  At our Cabinet meeting Tuesday, Rev. Harvey Ozmer reported that we had previously received $82,239.46 to combat the dreaded killer diseases malaria.  The total today is $89,184.92.

Sunday was for me a joy spent with Pastor Debra Crumpton and the good folks at Wellspring UMC in Temple.  Today is Cabinet meeting time.

          Another Annual Conference is behind us and I find myself struggling with the paper work which any Conference generates.  As I wrestle with an overflowing in-box of letters to answer, articles to write, and people to visit, some questions from Conference come back to me.

            In the middle of a serious and good debate about the growing cost of Pensions and Health Insurance (P&HI), someone stood on floor and asked, “If the Bishop has stated that our current Pension and Health Insurance is unsustainable, how does simply direct billing Pensions and Health Insurance solve that problem?”  It is a great question.

          Initially, an honest response is that direct billing does not solve the problem of unsustainable increases in P&HI.  A major part of any solution cannot happen at the Annual Conference level. Pensions is a denominational issue and solutions dealing with underlying issues such as contribution-defined or benefit-defined must be solved on the General Conference level.  At the Annual Conference, direct billing pushes the issue down to a local church level. 

          A deeper and equally honest response is that direct billing does force answers to the sustainability question.  Putting responsibility on a local level does offer an extremely significant partial solution. Local direct billing for P&HI forces a congregation to make priority choices around mission. It means people need to decide is the pastor and the church worth the expense.  Very few American Christians tithe.  Giving 2% of our income is usually seen as significant (verses a biblical tithe of 10%).  Direct billing forces us to confront an issue of faithfulness.  Do we practice extravagant generosity (one of the 5 practices)?

            Secondly, direct billing will have a corollary impact of raising pastoral competencies.  Why?  People won’t pay for poor or mediocre ministry.  It will not appear worth the investment.  Finances will force both pastors and churches to get more adept at reaching out to a new generation.  Churches that turn inward to survive (a huddle and cuddle strategy) will die.  Church that turn outward in mission and ministry will thrive.

           All this gets me to thinking even further out.  Is God using the economic crises to reform our church practices?  I think so.  I think the Holy Spirit is in the P&HI crises – not as cause but as a divine use.  Do you remember Joseph’s response to his brothers? “Even though you intended to do harm to me, God intended it for good, in order to preserve a numerous people, as he is doing today.”  (Genesis 50:20)  God is at work here. That is really good news!