The Common Call That Holds Us Together

Hey Northeast family. I pray that you are enjoying the warm weather because in northeast Ohio, we only get a few months of it. I hope you have been able to take a break and refresh for a little bit.

This is also the time when many churches ramp up their outreach efforts with sports camps, back-to-school bashes, and car washes. I'm praying the Lord is blessing your effort as you share the love and gospel of Jesus with your community.
 
As we seek to connect with our local community, I believe it’s also important for us to connect with other churches to encourage one another, especially those who are a part of our local Baptist associations.

I had the privilege of connecting and serving with a group of pastors from the Cleveland Hope Association for the ordination council of the new Senior Pastor Joe Valenti at Cuyahoga Valley Church, Broadview Heights. This moment was truly special and encouraging.
 
The council was led by CVC founding pastor, Rick Duncan, and he assembled an amazingly diverse group of pastors from the association to serve. These were pastors who served in smaller and larger congregations, pastors who served different ethnic churches, as well as pastors of older established churches, and pastors of church plants. In the midst of all of this diversity, there was unity around the Lord Jesus as we encouraged Pastor Joe.

This moment reminded me of Philippians 1, where the Apostle Paul wrote about “fellowship in the gospel” (1:5). We are in fellowship with one another in the gospel of the Lord Jesus.
On a very foundational level, everyone in the room had one thing in common that superseded any difference we had – our faith in the risen Lord Jesus.

Then, on a vocational level, we have a common call of the Lord to serve his church, no matter the size or location. The Lord has chosen us to serve in the vineyard, reaching people for Jesus, and helping Christians become more like Jesus while leading a local church —a task that is no easy endeavor.

And this common vocational calling had me thinking about Philippians 3:10, which speaks about the “fellowship of his (Jesus') sufferings”. As pastors, we will experience hardship and trials as we seek to serve the Lord and his church. But, praise God, the Lord encourages us because Philippians 2:1 tells us we have the “fellowship of the Spirit” to comfort us in Christ during those difficult moments.
 
Our time together highlights two values of the SCBO: “prioritizing the pastor” and “welcoming kingdom diversity”. The pastors came together to encourage the next lead pastor of a church in the Cleveland area. And the pastors on the council showed the diversity that is already among us, which we need if we are going to reach our neighborhood and nations for Jesus.

Let us continue to encourage one another and reach our diverse communities for King Jesus. If I can be of assistance, feel free to reach out to sowens@gmail.com