Was That Oink or Oikos? TransMin Conference Brings Home the Bacon
Registration at the 2008 Transformation Ministries Conference in Riverside, CA topped 700 as the association of churches formerly known as the American Baptist Churches of the Pacific Southwest met here for three days of seminars and inspiration.
The changing nature of the former ABC region was seen in the emphasis placed on the singular task of reaching the unreached post-Christian population. Over 400 attended a pre-conference workshop conducted by Tom Mercer of High Desert Church in Victorville, CA. Over the last 24 years, HDC has grown from 120 to over 6,000 on a weekend. The center of the church's life is expressed in the Greek word oikos (basically "extended household") which Tom believes to be central to the New Testament church's life and its evangelism strategy. HDC has succeeded in making this network of influence strategy central to its life.
[By the way, a suggestion to TransMin: put Tom's seminar on the website on streaming video for as wide a dissemination as possible.]
The evening session continued the emphasis--with wonderful worship led by a praise band of worship leaders from Hawaii to Arizona and the mass choir of Trinity Baptist of Moreno Valley, CA. Executive Minister Dale Salico spoke on the need to pass the faith baton from generation to generation, and compared the plight of Israel in Judges 2 to America, from the Builder Generation to the present. He balanced the need to act with the sovereign intervention of God.
More reporting tomorrow...
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