John Esquivel reflects on his eight-year tenure as Texas Annual Conference Lay Leader, expressing deep gratitude for the opportunity to serve.
In his address, Esquivel emphasizes the importance of adopting a “new faith community mindset,” urging all churches, regardless of their history, to reassess their mission fields and adapt to current community needs. He calls for a shift from a scarcity mentality to one of abundance, encouraging congregations to leverage existing resources and partnerships.
Full Laity Address:
Dearest Brothers and Sisters,
As I reflect upon the completion of my second Quadrennium, I am filled with joy for the honor of being able to serve the Texas Annual Conference as you Lay Leader.
It has truly been an honor of a lifetime from the very beginning that started with the phone call from Bishop Huey asking if I would accept the nomination, through the transition of Bishop Jones and now being able to serve alongside Bishop Harvey.
Together we have had our ups and downs over the last 8 years; but yet, we continued to move forward in faith.
Certainly, our urgent need to find new ways to worship and staying connected during Covid was a challenge.
But yet, it sparked innovation in our approach to worship and sense of community. We learned to use the technology that was available in new and innovative ways. We learned to be in worship together even though physically apart. We committed to one another to remain connected.
Working through the disaffiliation of many of our churches was at times filled with sorrow.
But yet, 10 new faith communities were birthed throughout the Conference, often being led by the Laity. These new faith communities became our laboratories on new, relevant ways to share the Good News of Jesus Christ.
Three of these communities have become Church Charters. Others may not get to that point but they have certainly planted seeds that our Lord and Savior may water and nurture through other means.
We have learned much from each new community of faith. Those learnings will guide us into our future.
We give thanks for each of these communities that have the courage and faith to start something new.
My prayer is that these new faith communities inspire all our churches to have a “new faith community mindset”. Whether you are a recently chartered church or one with over a hundred year history let us all look afresh at our mission field.
Let us pause and ask ourselves what we would do if we were starting our faith community today.
How would we seek to understand the needs of our communities, what are the resources and partnerships that are available , how can we be relevant and effective in sharing the Good News with the communities surrounding us as they exist today.
So, instead of 10 new faith communities may we have 300 churches with a “new faith community mindset”.
Let all of us learn from these 10 pioneers and share the courage and faith they demonstrate to try something new.
Some things may work as expected and others may not; however, we will learn and grow together. Seeds will certainly be planted along the way that God will nurture and grow.
Another challenge we are facing together is operating with a smaller budget.
But yet, we now are rising to the challenge to see our ministries through the lens of abundance.
Let us lean into the refrain of that great hymn Great Is Thy Faithfulness which proclaims “All I have needed Thy hand hath provided- great is thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me.”
Let our eyes and ears be open to the abundant resources that God has already provided whether it be new, perhaps different, relationships with the communities that we are a part of.
Let us listen to the needs of the communities that surround our churches and seek to understand the resources that those community partners may have to offer.
Let us seek out and invite those that may be sitting in the pew next to you as to what gifts and graces they can utilize in the furtherance of our ministries.
But more importantly, brothers and sisters, let us ask ourselves as how we can use our own gifts and graces to further our mission to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.
Decades ago, my wife and I were members of a United Methodist Church that overnight lost over half the congregation and all the choir!
Those of us that remained (which at the time included a young lay couple known as Cynthia and Dean Harvey) stepped up to do what needed to be done. We mowed the lawn, we cleaned the bathrooms, we set up every Sunday for worship, we visited the sick. Everyone found something that they could do.
I look back on that experience with great fondness.
We built a greater sense of community and commitment to our church. We felt a deeper presence of God.
God turned what externally looked like a challenge (loss of half the congregation) into a great blessing- a deeper commitment to and love of the church. What God did then he will do for the Texas Annual Conference now, that is turn challenges into great blessings.
Through all the challenges we have faced as a Conference and local church over the last eight years, I know two things to be true:
God has been with us, and
all that we have needed, God’s hand has provided unto us. Great is his faithfulness.
As we move forward from here, we may find ourselves in a “liminal season”.
In her book “ How to lead when You don’t know where you’re going”, Susan Beaumont describes a liminal season as that time when it is clear that the past will need to change but the future state has not clearly emerged or defined itself.
Certainly, doing more of what we have done in the past will not get us to the yet undefined but necessary changed future.
It may feel that we are building the bridge as we are asked to walk across it.
As we move forward in this liminal season, we may encounter the stress of dealing with the uncertainties of the unknown. Let us respond to the stress of the unknown with the knowledge that God will be with us along our journey.
We may encounter a heightened expectation for immediate, complete answers. Let us respond to the expectation for such answers by prayfully seeking that next faithful step. Let us be secure in knowing that God has great plans for you and the United Methodist Church as we seek His plan one.. faithful.. step… at a time.
In this liminal season, we may encounter resistance to change. Let us respond to our resistance to change with the knowledge that our God is the God of yesterday, today and tomorrow and he will be with us in whatever new expressions of the Good News or ministries we discovery.
There is always an element of risk when we step into something new. But when has following Jesus been risk free?
When has following Jesus been without a healthy portion of trust and faithfulness?
Some of the greatest blessings in life have come when we move from fear, uncertainty and resistance to prayer, trust and faithfulness.
I also believe that this liminal season will be a time of great excitement and innovation.
A time of new beginnings with unleashed creativity, energy and passion. Let us be open to surprise!
Let us be surprised at the opportunities and resources made available to us through God’s abundance.
Let us experiment with new ways of connecting with those in our community, new ways of understanding their needs, new ways of sharing God’s love.
Let us also explore new metrics of fruitfulness that include faithful risk-taking, harvesting learnings and sharing those learnings throughout the Conference.
I steadfastly believe that God’s greatest work will be done in this season of the Texas Annual Conference and your local church.
Let us honor the past for what it was, accept the present reality and embrace the fact that the future in not yet fully defined.
Let us keep putting one faithful step in front of the other while listening to and learning from God and others around us. Let us have faith that God will lead us to our future state, one.. step.. at a time.
As we navigate the path forward, let us always remember:
God is with us, and
All that is needed, God’s hand will provide unto us. Great is his faithfulness.
One of the great resources we have as United Methodist is our connectionalism. We are connected one to another at our local church, from church to church across our Conference and to the worldwide ministries and programs across the denomination.
In a way we are like the giant redwoods which can be found along the west coast.
As you may know the costal redwood trees are some of the oldest and tallest living things.
From a seed no bigger than one from a tomato, a redwood tree can grow to well over 350 feet tall with a width of 22 feet at its base and can have a lifespan of 2,000 years or more.
New sprouts can come directly from a stump or downed tree’s root system.
These trees have survived earthquakes, landslides, floods, drought, strong winds and fire.
They are able to live so long and grow so tall without toppling because of their unique root system.
Their root system spread outwards as far as 60 to 80 feet where they seek out and intertwine with the roots of other redwoods.
They are connected one to the other.
They support each other such that if a tree is at risk of toppling over, the other trees send root structures to provide support. If a tree is in need of nutrient, the other trees send what is needed through their intertwined roots. They literally hold each other up.
Let our connectionalism throughout the Texas Annual Conference and the United Methodist Church resemble the redwood tree. With roots intertwined, we can hold one another up, share our learning, build our resilience, and grow to our full potential. And we can remind one another that the blue sky is always there.
So..over the last 8 years we have overcome the challenges we have encounter including those brought about by covid, disaffiliation and reduced budget because we know that
God is with us, and
All that is needed, God’s hand will provide. Great is his faithfulness.
As we move into our new future may we all have a “new faith community” mindset.
Regardless if we are recently chartered or have a hundred year history may we seek to understand and develop new relationships with the communities we serve.
May we renew our excitement and unleash our creativity, energy and passion for making disciples of Jesus Christ.
May we be like the redwood trees with our roots intertwined so as to hold each other up, share our learnings, and grow to our full potential, knowing there are blue skies just above the clouds.
“And now brothers and sisters, I end my final Lay Leader’s address with Paul’s prayer found in Ephesians: “And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge-that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.
Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.”
May God continue to bless you and your ministry,
John Esquivel
Conference Lay Leader