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Investing in the Future
 By Harold A. Phillips

One of my best experiences during college was serving as Summer Youth Director at my home church in Nashville. I was a "good kid" who had grown up there. Everyone respected my parents. I was interested in maybe going to seminary after college. That church let me work with youth that summer (and the next two summers). I learned how much chicken to buy for a youth event. I was so naïve about a canoe trip it makes me shake now to think of all the liability issues in that river. I also vividly recall being reprimanded by the pastor about a comment I made to the youth. It all blended together to shape me for a calling into church vocation.

At the business session of the CBF of Missouri General Assembly I noted one of the great crises of the church in America is with our next generation of leaders. I believe one of the great purposes of the Fellowship in Missouri is to help churches as they nurture, call out and equip the next generation of leadership. I am convinced that preparing competent, spiritually-grounded Christian leaders to serve the Church of Jesus Christ may be a lasting gift we provide to individuals and churches who partner with the Fellowship.

I asked that group assembled in Lee’s Summit how many of us served as summer missionaries or as summer interns in a church. Several hands were raised. Many of those who raised hands are now pastors or in vocational ministry. Others are leaders that pastors know they can depend on.

• Last summer we had one Missourian serve with Student.go, CBF’s summer missions program. This summer we will have four students.

• Last July a group of interested persons gathered to talk about collegiate ministries. Because of that discussion, there will be as many as six students serving as interns in churches this summer.

• CBF of Missouri is continuing to trailblaze equipping young lay leaders. Right now there are ten lay leaders engaged in the emerge process led by Bob Perry and Marilyn Nelson. They are convinced (and so is Jeff Langford and so am I) that emerge process has tremendous possibility for Fellowship churches. Bo Prosser, coordinator of Congregational Life with CBF, is encouraging us to continue with this process.

Can you imagine if every pastor identified the top three leaders in each church for future leadership? Can you imagine if those three leaders were equipped for exceptional spiritual leadership? Can you imagine the influence of those three leaders with others?

• Finally, CBF of Missouri provided scholarships to three Missouri students at Central Seminary this past year. I heard one of those students preach recently on a Sunday morning. Another student led in the closing worship at the General Assembly.

Students serving local churches during a college summer. Students serving as summer missionaries. Young lay leaders emerging prepared for present and future service in churches. Scholarships for students at Central Seminary.

These are four tangible ways the Fellowship is serving individuals and churches as they discover and fulfill their God-given mission.

God works in the lives of young men and women when churches provide the settings for risk, failures and success.

 

 

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Cooperative Baptist Fellowship of Missouri
5 East Kansas Street     Liberty, Missouri 64068
Phone: 816.415.0009     Fax: 816.736.0122     Email:info@cbfmo.org

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