Reflections on Lausanne 4
The Congress begins
I was overjoyed when they said to me,
“Let us go to the house of the LORD!”
Psalm 122:1
Like David in this psalm, I was thrilled when Karen and I were appointed to serve as U.S. delegates to the Lausanne 4 Congress, together with LGM Mentor Germán Ricca, who was appointed to serve as a delegate from Argentina. With 5,000 other Christian leaders from over 200 countries, we were on our way to “the house of the LORD” — that is, a huge gathering of God’s people held in Seoul, Korea, in late September.
The Linden Grove Team at Lausanne 4 – Matt, Germán, and Karen
Sure, it took a lot of work to prepare, travel, participate, absorb, respond, commit, return home, and (as I write) deal with a 13-hour west-to-east jet lag. But I would do it all over again, even the jet-lagged sleepless nights, and do it with joy and gladness. Here are seven reasons why:
1. I experienced the overwhelming beauty of the body of Christ. There is no other way to describe the Congress, especially in its worship. It was beautiful: beautiful in unity of commitment to Jesus, beautiful in diversity of nation and culture, with old and young, female and male, from six continents and scores of languages.
2. I committed myself to the L4 call to “declare and display Christ together.” I love the balance of verbs here: declaring with our words, displaying through our lives and communities. And as powerful as the morning expositions in the Book of Acts were, it was at my table group and my collaborative action group that I was pushed to dedicate myself afresh to “declaring and displaying Christ.”
3. I heard a repeated and earnest cry for mentoring of church leaders. Participants from all six continents spoke to me about the urgency of pastor mentoring in their contexts. An entire morning was devoted to the need for developing leaders marked by Christlike character and servanthood.
4. I launched an active collaboration with global leaders who share a God-given passion for mentoring church leaders. On Thursday afternoon, over 80 people showed up for an hour-long session on the topic. Out of that group, a team is forming that will work together on meeting the need for mentoring in our different contexts.
5. I made new friends and connected with old. Friendship is a great gift, one that helps advance the kingdom of God. What a joy, especially for a gregarious guy like me, to build friendships across the world. I am stronger in faith because of them and their devotion to our Savior.
6. I repented of my neglect of all that Christ is doing through his Church around the world. I am a man too easily dazzled by things up close, and I dwell among a people too easily dazzled by things up close. The conclusions from the Lausanne report, The State of the Great Commission, were often referenced during the Congress. They rebuked me and challenged me to make some changes. By the way, you can download and read the report here.
7. I took renewed courage in Christ through the stories of dedication and commitment in other places. I have individual faces and names of those facing suffering and persecution for their faith in Christ. How could I, as a fellow follower of Jesus, not be simultaneously confronted and strengthened!
I end by noting that, while there in Seoul, I fell in love with Korea, just as many of my friends predicted. My heart was captured by the people, the food, the courtesies of respect and deference, the history of the Korean Church and of Korea itself. We humans are embodied creatures, and location and space unavoidably affect our hearts. So to the Great Creator and Redeemer be praise for the people, the culture, and the church of Korea.
Matt and Tim from Nigeria, colleagues in mentoring pastors
“Pastor Matt” Ristuccia is the Founder and Director of Linden Grove Ministries, an organization dedicated to the mentoring of pastors, church leaders, and their spouses across the globe. He can be reached by filling out the Linden Grove Ministries website’s contact form at the link here.
