Sharon Yoder, IMMC Conference Co-Minister, reflects on her call to ministry and the potential for cultivating a culture of call in our faith communities.
Stephen Lowe’s sermon at Spring Summit included a powerful testimony of God’s call in his youth. He shared a moving, Spirit filled message from Isaiah 43, captivating our hearts and preparing us well for the conversation about to ensue: inviting youth and young adult delegates to join our conference assemblies. His message also reminded me of my own call to ministry.
When I was twelve, I heard a voice declaring that I was called to a life of ministry. In the following decades, my call was affirmed repeatedly through shoulder tapping. During high school and college, I was asked to serve in numerous leadership roles, both in educational settings and in the congregations I joined. I was also invited to serve as a co-leader for missionary teams in East Africa, in board leadership roles, as a congregational co-pastor and hospital chaplain, and now as a conference minister. Nearly every leadership position I’ve held developed because of shoulder tapping. God moved someone to nudge me, nudges that became powerful invitations in my life. Many opportunities would have been missed had it not been for the affirming voices urging my response.
I wonder how shoulder tapping youth and young adults to join conference assemblies will change our conference meetings. I’m grateful for the opportunity to hear their voices at our tables. I’m even more thrilled to consider how this opportunity has potential to change them. How might nudges to join IMMC assemblies create spaces for them to consider other leadership opportunities?
Each of us has the power to influence. Each of us can see and hear others in a way that conveys affirmation. How are we nudging youth and young adults to embrace their gifts and respond to new opportunities? How might our nudging change their future? How might it impact a congregational culture of call? I dream for youth and young adults to be seen and heard, to be affirmed, to be in spaces where they can practice leadership, and ultimately, to feel greater ownership in the church and conference. I dream of a church that includes youth and young adults in the very tapestry of leadership and discernment. I dream of a time when more youth and young adults are nurtured to hear God’s call to spiritual leadership roles in our faith communities. May it be so.