Reflections on the Convening General Conference
I recently had the honor of traveling to San Jose, Costa Rica, to serve as a clergy delegate at the Convening General Conference of the Global Methodist Church from September 19-27, 2024. Now that I’m back home I find myself still trying to process what it was like to be part of such a historical event. Here are a few of the things from my experience that I would like to share so that you can understand what all took place.
Passionate Worship
The presence of the Holy Spirit was palpable as the delegates gathered in worship. More than once people spontaneously sang the doxology. With every fiber of their being people lifted up songs of praise to Jesus with a zeal that felt as if it could lift the roof off the convention center. At the same time it wasn’t uncommon to see delegates with tears of joy streaming down their faces. A highlight for me was a concert of prayer in which delegates prayed and sang in eight different languages. At one point Holy, Holy, Holy was being sung in all of the languages at the same time. I’m convinced that it was a preview of what worship is like in Heaven.
Clarified Vision & Mission
The General Conference adopted an expanded mission and vision statement which includes historic Wesleyan language found in the roots of early Methodism. Here are the statements that will guide us moving forward:
• Mission: The Global Methodist Church exists to make disciples of Jesus Christ and spread scriptural holiness across the globe.
• Vision: Through the empowerment of the Holy Spirit, the Global Methodist Church envisions multiplying disciples of Jesus Christ throughout the earth who flourish in scriptural holiness as we worship passionately, love extravagantly, and witness boldly.
The Election of Bishops
One of the major pieces of business conducted by the General Conference was to elect six interim, part-time bishops to assist Bishop Scott Jones and Bishop Mark Webb in the oversight of the what will soon be over 40 annual conferences. We elected six new bishops who reflect the diversity of our denomination, among them are two Africans, two women and one African-American. They will serve until 2026 when we will have the election of full time bishops who will serve six year terms. The new interim, part-time bishops begin their work on November 1, 2024.
A Truly Global Church
The GMC is so much more than an American denomination. It is more than a group of southern, predominately white congregations. The GMC is rapidly growing in places like the Philippines and Africa. We have leaders who are Korean, Slovakian, Bulgarian and Spanish just to give you a taste of our international membership. It is good for us to be connected to brothers and sisters in Christ from around the world as we do kingdom work.
Female & International Leadership
One of the narratives that detractors of the GMC tried to create was that we wouldn’t have a place for women or minorities in leadership. They tried to convince churches in Africa and other places around the globe that their leaders wouldn’t be valued by American delegates. Those ideas were quickly set aside as on the first ballot an African and two women were elected as bishops of the church. Successive ballots included the election of another African and an African-American. No matter how you look at it the episcopal leadership of the GMC is diverse.
Africa 2026
General Conference 2026 will take place in Africa at a place and date soon to be determined. This decision was made in an effort to make sure that all delegates from around the world are able to receive the necessary visas to attend and no delegate is disenfranchised. Some of our African brothers and sisters were unable to physically join us in Costa Rica and provision had to be made for them to participate through Zoom. In 2026 we should be able to have all delegates in the room together.
Honoring the Leadership of Keith Boyette & Mike Schafer
Delegates honored the ministry of the Rev. Keith Boyette who served as the Transitional Leadership Officer for the GMC. It has been said that when the early history of the GMC is written that Keith’s name will likely appear on each page. All of those who call themselves Global Methodist owe a debt of gratitude for his countless acts of sacrificial, servant leadership that allowed our denomination to come into being. General Conference also marked a passing of the baton to Rev. Mike Schafer who is the new Chief Connectional Officer for the GMC. Mike previously served as the President Pro-Tempore of the West Plains Conference and makes his home here in Lubbock. Let’s agree to uphold Mike and Sandy with our prayers as he leads our denomination.
Lessons in Leadership from Bishops Jones & Webb
For the past two years Bishop Scott Jones and Bishop Mark Webb have divided the world between the two of them and have given oversight to 36 annual conferences around the globe. They have done yeoman’s work as they have sacrificially given leadership to our fledgling denomination. Their gifts of leadership were on full display as they presided over the general conference sessions with wisdom, grace and joy.
West Plains Delegation
It was a privilege for me to be part of the West Plains delegation. Our team of six clergy and six laity, along with several alternates spent countless hours in preparation prior to traveling to Costa Rica and then spent long days in legislative committee meetings and plenary sessions while there. I’m happy to report that four members of our delegation will serve in leadership capacities on various commissions, councils and committees for the next two years.
• Our own Sam Gregory, will serve as a lay member on the Finance, Pensions, and Benefits Commission.
• Judge Ron Enns, our conference co-lay leader has been elected to the Council on Appeals.
• Bill McQuaig, was selected as a lay member for the Ecumenical Relationships Commission.
• I was elected as a clergy member of the Global Episcopacy Committee which will give oversight to the Assembly of Bishops.
Holy Conferencing Reclaimed
Surely our time in Costa Rica was a reclaiming of what holy conferencing used to be in early Methodism. Delegates did the hard work of meeting in legislative committees to hammer out the important work of confirming our book of doctrine and discipline and establishing a constitution. If people disagreed with one another it was done so with grace and respect. This was interspersed with uplifting and inspiring times of worship. It felt like a far cry from the experiences from our former denomination. The hope for the future of this new expression of Methodism was tangible. If you have any questions about General Conference or want to discuss any of this further please feel free to reach out to me. I would be glad to visit with you further.
God’s best to you.
-Lyndol Loyd
