District Diaries April 2024 Edition
​​by Marvin Penner
 
I think I was 14 years old when I first encountered the Biblical story of David going crazy (1 Sam 21:10 -15). Sunday School had already familiarized me with the accounts of David’s ability to dodge spears while playing the harp, as well as his gracious sparing of King Saul’s life. I found these stories interesting, so I began reading 1st & 2nd Samuel for myself. I was fascinated by the idea of David feigning insanity to save his own life. I was thinking about this the other day while attending a National EFCC board meeting. I was thinking about how David had the ability to be a very different person as the context demanded.
              I found myself feeling and thinking about some important issues in very different ways. I’m not talking about changing my mind. It’s just that things can look very different depending on which room I am in. Let me explain.
              When I was in the pastor’s study I would often receive mail from the EFCC mission (Serve Canada now). When I saw that it is yet another appeal to support one project or another, I would carefully consider whether the project would fit well with our church. Often, I would just drop this mail in the garbage. We could barely meet our own church budget, let along finance missions efforts in our community.  I am sure each of these people and projects were well worth funding, but it was discouraging to our congregants to get asked over and over.
              Another room I’ve often sat in is the district board meeting room. From time to time the same mission opportunities have been discussed by the APD board. In this room the whole issue feels quite different. The district board is not asked to budget support for individual EFCC missionaries or projects, but they are aware that our churches often decide between supporting the national projects or the district initiatives. It can feel like a competition for the generosity of the district churches.
              As a board member in the EFCC national board room I recently found myself voting to approve some inspiring new missionary projects. I knew that approving these projects would require fund raising among our churches, but I could see clearly that God was at work and leading us in the EFCC to get behind these people. Somehow my priorities seem very different when I have access to different information, relationships, and responsibilities.
              I found myself paraphrasing 1 Cor 9:22-23, “When I was a local church pastor, I put the wellbeing of my local church first so that we could bring our neighbors to Christ”. I led my church to support the district and home office, as much as was possible, without weakening ourselves. When I was on the district board, I tried to balance the needs of the district with the vision of the EFCC home office. I understood that both have a role to play in supporting our churches and international missionaries. And when I sit on the national board, I do my best to support and provide kind accountability to the home office staff and Serve Beyond personnel. I know I have not always balanced these priorities correctly, but I only pray that in every context God will be glorified and Jesus Christ will be known in our EFCC churches, districts, and around the world.
              I guess what I am trying to say is, be cautious before judging the motives of those who sit in rooms you have not sat in. Even if you never gain the point of view of some of the other rooms within the EFCC, pray that Jesus Christ will be made known by all.