“What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.”
—Oliver Wendell Holmes

This quote from the famous 19th-century writer and poet captures a distinctly Christian truth—it is the character of our belief, the nature of our values and ideals that make the difference—not only the achievements of the past or the opportunities and challenges of the future.

These are days of great challenge. The worldwide economic crisis touches all of us; some dramatically. Some congregations contain employers who have had to lay off workers in the same congregation. They sit side by side in the pew. Tent villages of dispossessed and homeless workers sprout on the west coast. Our government is experimenting with an unprecedented economic stimulus, even at risk of creating a huge debt for future generations. Global warming is melting the ice caps and Greenland glaciers. 

Our world cannot survive based upon greed, unlimited consumption and nonrenewable sources of energy. Are these realities also spiritual issues for us? Holmes had it right—what is within us will make the difference.

We in Mennonite Church USA are due a spiritual awakening. Our witness comes from the inside-out, not outside-in. The power of spiritual awakening cannot be acquired through church mergers or their offspring in churchwide agencies, area conferences or schools. The current challenges are of a magnitude that only our faith, our inner strength of conviction can address. I used to tell pastoral interns “Who you are means more than what you can do.”

God is on a tireless mission of awakening us to our inner strength through the work of the Holy Spirit. Our focus on ourselves, our institutions and congregations are not God’s “end game.” No, the salvation of creation and all that is in it, the world and all who inhabit it, happens only when our hearts are right with God; when our eyes are looking for, and joining in, what God is doing all around us. 

Risky as it may appear, this is perhaps a time not to save all of what we have acquired in the church, but to let go of anything that has become only self-serving. Transformation is about what is inside us, not what is outside us. Before resurrection always comes death.

Jim Schrag is Executive Director of Mennonite Church USA

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Mennonite Church USA Convention 2009 is only months away, and congregations should have either appointed or be in the process of appointing delegates for the Delegate Assembly. The Delegate Assembly is the decision-making body of Mennonite Church USA and meets every two years as part of Mennonite Church USA conventions.

This year’s convention will be June 30 to July 5, 2009, in Columbus, Ohio. Delegates will meet from 8 to 10 a.m. and 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. daily Wednesday through Saturday the week of the convention.

Congregations should have received a letter from Jim Schrag outlining the 10 guidelines for selecting delegates. Once the delegates have been appointed, it’s important to turn these names into Executive Leadership as soon as you can. While the previously announced deadline was April 1, there is still time for congregations to submit delegate names.

You can do this by entering your delegates on the Mennonite Directory Congregational Update Web page. See item 20 on your congregational profile and enter your delegates’ names along with their e-mail and mailing addresses. You may update this information through June 15.

Once you have appointed your delegates and submitted their names, direct them to the special Delegates section on the Mennonite Church USA Web site. As Convention 2009 and the Delegate Assembly draw nearer, delegates will be able to find important information that will help them prepare and discuss items with others in your congregation.

In addition, Executive Leadership suggests that all Mennonite Church USA delegates subscribe toThe Mennonite as a way of learning about what’s happening in the broader church and preparing for the Delegate Assembly.

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Below are three items relating to Mennonite Church USA Convention 2009 to read from the pulpit or use in church bulletins and newsletters. Thank you for inviting members of your congregation to participate in Convention 2009. For more information, contact Convention Planning staff with Executive Leadership by telephone at 574-523-3048 or via e-mail at ConventionInfo@MennoniteUSA.org.

If you will attend Mennonite Church USA Convention 2009 and have your own copies of Sing the Story, Sing the Journey or Hymnal: A Worship Book, please bring them with you to Columbus, Ohio. In an effort to conserve our natural resources, Mennonite Church USA Executive Leadership Convention Planning will not provide separate songbooks or include music in the program books. However, the words for the songs sung will be available on the screen. If you wish to purchase any of these songbooks they will be available at the Mennonite Publishing Network exhibit.

It’s not too late to register for Mennonite Church USA Convention 2009. Registration forms are available in English and Spanish atwww.MennoniteUSA.org/convention or from Mennonite Church USA Executive Leadership’s Convention Planning staff at 574-523-3048. Full-time registration and daily registration will be available on-site; but no meal plans will be available for purchase.

Are you curious about what’s happening at Mennonite Church USA Convention 2009 in Columbus, Ohio, June 30 to July 5? Check out the convention Web site for a list of seminars, worship speakers, late night events, which issues the delegates will be discussing, or how to register for this event. All of this information and more is available at www.MennoniteUSA.org/convention.

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Updated Pastor Salary Guidelines for 2009-2010 are included in this issue of Equipping. They come to you from Mennonite Church USA Executive Leadership. They were updated with counsel from a variety of people from across the church.

As you know, the U.S. and worldwide economies are in deep recession. That reality has impacted the church and its institutions in a significant way, especially those depending on endowment income from investments. Cuts in programs, salaries and staff are painful experiences affecting real people. At the congregational level the news is not as severe. People tend to maintain their giving to the local congregation even during difficult economic times. We are grateful for that loyalty and generosity. However, as our church agencies, colleges, seminaries and other parts of the church struggle financially it does not seem appropriate to generate pastor salary guidelines that call for a 3.175 percent (consumer price index average over the past 12 months) increase to the base salary and unit values. So the base salary and unit value for the 2009-2010 pastor salary guidelines has not been changed from last year’s figures. The recommended mileage reimbursement rate has been changed to 55 cents per mile, which is the amount allowed by IRS.

As congregations work with pastors in establishing compensation, they should still work through the guidelines and factor in updated information about experience, education, etc. It may be that there is still an overall increase in the compensation package.

The recommendations in these guidelines should be viewed as a minimal starting place. Since cost of living varies greatly across the country, local factors, especially housing costs, should be taken into account. The worksheet provides for “extra optional units” as encouragement to consider further adjustments to these guidelines to more accurately reflect local factors.

Health insurance continues to be a matter of great concern for pastors and congregations. We continue to recommend that congregations provide health insurance for pastors and other church employees and their families. In conferences where the Covenant Mutual Benefits Plan (COMB) is available we encourage congregations to provide coverage through this plan.

We hope you have heard about The Corinthian Plan by now, the healthcare access initiative which envisions all Mennonite Church USA congregations practicing mutual aid with one another in sharing the cost of providing healthcare insurance for all pastors. Area conferences, congregations and individuals have been receiving updates on The Corinthian Plan during the past year and the plan is scheduled to go into effect January 1, 2010. More information is available on the Mennonite Church USA Web site.

When it becomes necessary to ask congregational employees to increase their contribution to the health plan, we encourage exploration of a Flexible Spending Plan or Health Savings Account to help offset the increased out of pocket expenses that are incurred.

These materials may be copied and made available for those involved in setting compensation for the next year. They are also available here. You may also want to consult with someone from your area conference office for more information and assistance. Contact Lee Lever at leel@mennoniteusa.org or call toll-free at 1-866-866-2872 if you have questions or feedback.

We hope that these guidelines will help congregations and their pastors to arrive at a fair and mutually satisfactory benefit package and build strong and healthy relationships between congregations and their pastors.

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