There is a song that has been sung in Black churches for decades called I am on the battlefield for my Lord. One line of the chorus says that “I’ll promise him that I, will serve Him till I die…” The Central States Conference has one of the highest percentages of young pastors in the North American Division. However, on Jan. 6, 2024, two seasoned pastors who said Yes to the call of the Lord through the CSC Executive Committee, were installed as part-time pastors in our vineyard.
Pastor George Bryant, former assistant to the president for evangelism for CSC, and Pastor Gil Webb, former
Pastor Bryant
executive secretary for the Mid-America Union, are the new pastors of the Cornerstone Seventh-day Adventist Church in Kansas, and the Emmanuel Seventh-day Adventist Church in St. Joseph, Missouri, respectively.
Pastor Bryant and Pastor Webb are two of the most humble servant leaders that one could ever come across. Moses was approximately 80 years old when he humbly accepted the call to the ministry of leading the Israelites out of Egypt and to the Promised Land. Likewise, there is something to be said for these pastors who could be enjoying the leisure of retirement travel, golf days and enjoying their children and grandchildren, but decided instead to re-engage with preaching the gospel, conducting church board and business meetings, visiting members and creating strategies to reach the lost in their communities.
Pastor Webb
In order to say “YES” to the call of pastoral ministry at this time, I believe they must have heard that same voice that Moses heard at the burning bush. They must have had a similar encounter with God like Isaiah. So that when the question was asked, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?” Pastors Bryant and Webb both answered like Isaiah “Here am I! Send me.” We cannot be more pleased and excited about them and their wives, Pearl and Pat, responding in the affirmative to the call to lead these churches and minister to the needs of the members and the community during this season.
From a broader perspective, I think sometimes we forget the words of God Himself from Joel 2:28, which tells us that the Spirit of the Lord in the last days will be poured out on all flesh, where “your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions.” What this simply means is that the Holy Spirit in the last days—of which we are a part—will use all genders and all age groups to finish the work of preaching and spreading the everlasting gospel. Pastors Webb and Bryant have the wisdom and humility to lead and disciple people. And they also have the passion to preach, give Bible studies, and grow the kingdom of God in 2024.
What a blessing it is to witness the young and the seasoned ministers working together in this part of the vineyard. The young pastors bringing the vision, new methods, and creativity, and the seasoned pastors bringing the experience and wisdom, together become a force to be reckoned with. We welcome Pastor Webb and Pastor Bryant back onto the battlefield for the Lord.
