May 15, 2009

A message from Tom Taylor

Greetings to members of the General Assembly Mission Council, Middle Governing Body executives and friends,

One of the most reassuring prayers for illumination in our Presbyterian Book of Common Worship reads, in part, “God of mercy, you promised never to break your covenant with us. Amid all the changing words of our generation, may we hear your eternal Word that does not change.”

My colleague Tom Taylor points out in this month’s director’s message — which I am privileged to share with you below — that we Presbyterians are known for taking on the long-term work of change, knowing that we do so in the name of Jesus Christ, who is “the same yesterday and today and forever.”

As we on the General Assembly Mission Council change and grow together into what God would have us become in order to be most effective in our mission and ministry, it is ever our greatest source of strength to regularly affirm our faith in God’s Word, Jesus Christ, who does not change.

Faithfully yours,

Linda

Dear Friends,

I was privileged to spend time in early May with the Community of Pastors, a gathering of senior ministers from many of our larger congregations. The churches of these faithful women and men account for thousands of Presbyterians. I was really heartened by repeated affirmations of the reshaping work in which the GAMC staff and elected have been engaged over the past several months.

Many of them were aware of and genuinely complimentary of a surprising amount of the details of the reshaping resulting from the 2009 budget revisions. They were encouraging both regarding the quality and the persistence of our work. Their words of encouragement were combined with thoughtful, though never ungracious or harsh, critique and were incredibly helpful in seeing both that we are on the right track with what we’ve done so far, and in identifying areas where we can continue to do more.

Just as I relished their feedback and input, so too do all of us welcome your good words — especially those shared and spoken around the church, of the truly great things God continues to do by and through the staff and elected of the GAMC.

As you know, this summer your GAMC staff will continue to be looking for specific ways we can make our ministries and programs more strategic and efficient in the years ahead. I’m grateful to those of you on the GAMC who have agreed to assist with some of these efforts. I hope that all of you will join me in praying for the outcomes.

Presbyterians are known for taking on the long-term work of change. I close with a story that Bryce Little recently told me at one of our GAMC Mission conferences. Bryce and his wife Phyllis are longtime PC(USA) mission co-workers, currently serving in Spain and Portugal. While attending last summer’s General Assembly, Bryce and Phyllis met the general secretary from the Church of Christ in Thailand, the Rev. Sayam Muangsak. As Bryce tells it,

We had served under the PC(USA) in Thailand and Singapore between 1960 and 1969. Rev. Muangsak asked if we recognized him. Truthfully, we did not. He went on to share with me the precious reminder that I had baptized him when he was a teenager. Rev. Muangsak became a Christian through the urban slum evangelism work that I helped start in the l960's in Bangkok. Rev. Muangsak then went on to attend university. He graduated with his M.Div. degree from McGilvary Theological Seminary in Chiengmai, Thailand. After serving the Thai Church for many years he was chosen to be the General Secretary of the Church of Christ in Thailand. God gave us a wonderful surprise to see how the work we had helped start in the Bangkok slums years ago had resulted in a strong Christian who is now the General Secretary of the Thai Church.

The fruit of our labor is not always visible. It can sometimes take years or even generations to appear. But we know that the one who has begun these good works among us will bring them to completion by the day of Jesus Christ. (Philippians 1:6) Thank you for your labor in the work of Mission for the General Assembly Mission Council of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). I pray that every now and then, God will give each of you a glimpse of the fruit of your faithfulness.

In Christ,

Tom Taylor
Deputy Executive Director for Mission