Loving God with “all you are” was the central message during the Live the Joy of Missions WMU Conference, which was based on Luke 10:27: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind; and, love your neighbor as yourself.”
Jana McKnight, left, a.k.a. “Miss Bertha,” of Little Rock, Ark.; and Vickey Lloyd, a.k.a. “Miss Bernice” of Fayetteville, Ark., employed comedic drama that also underscored messages from keynote speakers.More than 825 participants from 35 states and Puerto Rico attended the national WMU event at Immanuel Baptist Church in Little Rock, Ark., Oct. 17-20.
Andrea Mullins, New Hope publisher, developed the central scripture passage in each general session by citing a person in the Bible who demonstrated what it means to love God with all of one’s heart, soul, strength, and mind; and what it means to truly love one’s neighbor. Keynote speakers further examined this command in depth.
During the first general session, Edna Ellison, speaker and author of “Deeper Still: A Woman’s Guide to a Closer Walk with God,” explored the first part of this command – loving God with all one’s heart – and challenged participants to examine their hearts and delve deeper into prayer.
“God calls us to go deeper in prayer,” Ellison said. She also challenged participants to let revival start with each one them. “Be prayer warriors, not problem worriers,” she encouraged. “Won’t you dare to let God change the world through you?”
The following evening, Geoff Hammond, president of the North American Mission Board, continued with a focus on prayer. “God chooses impossible situations to demonstrate his power through the prayers of his people,” he asserted.
According to Hammond, reaching the 300 million people in the United States for Christ is one of those situations that may seem daunting. Not keeping up with the population growth, greater ethnic diversity, and a climate that is increasingly religiously pluralistic all pose challenges in reaching our nation for Christ, he said.
“Will God allow us to reach the world but not minister to our own neighbor?” Hammond asked. “No. North America desperately needs a group of powerful ‘pray-ers’ to pray for our nation. We must undergird our work with devout prayer and align ourselves with the principles of God to reach North America.
“I’m praying for a spiritual awakening and church-planting movement. Nobody knows how to love and pray like godly women. I pray you will leave this meeting praying more.”
Hammond also thanked WMU for helping raise funds in 2007 for the Annie Armstrong Easter Offering for North American Missions – a record $58 million – and for “all you do to support missions around the world and here in North America.”
Norman Blackaby, co-author of Called and Accountable: Discovering Your Place in God’s Eternal Purpose, focused on loving God with all one’s strength and the importance of being faithful with all that God has entrusted to each person so that his purposes are fulfilled.
Citing the parable of the talents in Matthew 25:14-30, Blackaby encouraged conferees to consider those things entrusted to them – not just financial resources but their places of service, burdens on their hearts, talents, gifts and relationships.
“God is not only entrusting you with these things, but holding you accountable,” Blackaby continued. “Have you been faithful in the smaller things, like ministering to your community, so that God can entrust you with more, such as giving you a burden for a people group?”
“The true joy of missions comes not from our satisfaction, but because we walk with him and allow him to love others through our life,” Blackaby continued. “The challenges in missions are always overcome by joy that comes with living the mission.”
Other keynote speakers included Jill Baughan, author of “Born to Be Wild: Rediscover the Freedom of Fun”; Montira Siengsukon, NAMB field personnel; and Diana Garland, dean of the School of Social Work, Baylor University. Greetings were also brought by Emil Turner, executive director, Arkansas Baptist State Convention.