Nearly 500 leaders from all levels of the Seventh-day Adventist Church gathered for the North American Division Adventist Ministries Convention in Greensboro, North Carolina from Jan. 8-11, 2023, for the purpose of restoring energy and passion and reconnecting for ministry after the past few difficult years following the Covid pandemic.
The three-day convention, starting with a reception and evening general session on Jan. 8 and running through the morning of Jan. 11, was bookended by the Adventist Radio Convention on Jan. 6-8, the Adventist Women Leaders luncheon meeting on Jan. 11, and the NAD Children’s Ministries Retreat on Jan. 11-14.
Under the theme of “Replenish,” a variety of speakers presented practical ways of refilling one’s cup physically, emotionally and spiritually to be prepared for fulfilling God’s purposes in the ministry He gives to those He calls. The opening keynote was given by Elder G. Alexander Bryant, NAD president, who spoke about God’s Oasis. Other presenters during the convention spoke on Leading in Crisis, Post-It Note Peace, and Step Out of the Traffic, which was a call to developing the practice of setting aside time for solitude and silence amidst the busyness of ministry.
In addition to the general sessions, attendees also participated in breakout seminars on specific topics including leadership development, team building, finances, communication, community services, emotional health, church revitalization, prison ministry, intergenerational ministry, public campus ministry, grief recovery, refugee and immigrant ministry, and working effectively with volunteers.
Rest and renewal
Everyone was invited to participate in a service project of assembling personal hygiene kits to be distributed to local refugees and homeless individuals. There was also ample time to visit the exhibit hall where nearly 50 booths displayed information about their ministries and specific resources.
The group Watchmen 7 presented a musical concert and The Skit Guys added a generous dose of humor during a late evening session. A Sonscreen film screening featured “Those Were the Good Days,” which emphasized the importance of nurturing one’s family members. A number of excellence in ministry awards were presented to individuals from all around the division for dedicated and outstanding service in their chosen fields of ministry.
Off-site bonus activities included opportunities for hiking and a visit to the International Civil Rights Center and Museum.
“This was a time to reconnect with colleagues, meet new people and find new resources for church ministry,” said one attendee from Mid-America. “We worshipped together, laughed together and also learned about Adventist history from the podcast guys,” (referring to Michael Campbell and Matthew Lucio who gave a five minute look at an important part of Adventist history before each general session, titled Historical Replenish).
During an on-stage interview at the close of the convention, event organizer Wendy Eberhardt, NAD vice president for church ministries, stated that God impressed her to choose the theme Replenish and Jeremiah 31:25 as the featured Bible verse. In the Message Bible, the verse is simply: I’ll restore tired souls. “Christ had to teach His disciples what replenishment is about,” said Eberhardt.
She added that the chapter in The Desire of Ages by Ellen White title “Come Rest Awhile” points out how the disciples were in jeopardy of thinking ministry was about them. They needed to come away and spend time with Jesus. “Depletion is an open door for the devil…and it keeps us from doing what God calls us to do. We have to make receiving replenishment a priority,” concluded Eberhardt.
