LCMS Convention Proceedings St. Louis, Missouri — 2019, Page 48

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fights the valiant One, Whom God Himself elected. Ask ye,
Who is this? Jesus Christ it is, Of Sabaoth Lord, And there’s
none other God; He holds the field forever. (LSB 656, stanza
2).”

His people and then draw them to faith by Word and
Sacrament.” “This is still part of what we do together as the
LCMS today—the spreading of the Gospel, the training of
church workers, and the planting of congregations.”

It was moved and seconded to amend the resolution by
deleting the sixth whereas, on lines 19–22 of TB 1:112,
beginning “WHEREAS, The difficult financial situation was
well known to the Synod at large...” After discussion passed
the twenty-minute mark, the chair put the question of
closing debate on the amendment; this failed [Yes: 472; No:
349]. After further discussion, the chair’s suggestion to close
debate succeeded [Yes: 673; No: 123]. The amendment
carried [Yes: 545; No: 247].

Committee 2: International Witness

Discussion continued on the resolution. It was moved
and seconded to amend by striking also the third through
fifth and seventh whereases on lines 9–18 and 23–25. The
President addressed the assembly, stressing the efforts made
on behalf of Concordia College Alabama “to find a way
forward,” efforts put in by the Board of Directors, Concordia
University System and the presidents of its colleges and
universities, the Lutheran Church Extension Fund, and the
Council of Presidents, as well as by the regents and campus
leadership, in “a context that was absolutely impossible to
face.” Harrison noted the pain, especially for those directly
connected, of losing Selma; the historical challenges of and
hardships in Black Ministry; his “feeling horrible” at the loss
of the campus “on [his] watch;” and his prayer that “we can
go forward.” He noted sadness that the “worst construction”
is being put on “what was the effort of decades to make the
thing go.” The chair proceeded with the orders of the day,
with the amendment to Res. 7-05 pending.
Recognition of 125 Years of International Mission Efforts: Africa
Region
The Rev. Gary Schulte was called forward to present on
LCMS mission efforts in French- and English-speaking West
and Central Africa, with the chairman noting that, to protect
mission personnel in West Africa, the presentation was not
to be shared beyond the assembly. Schulte concluded,
though, with the encouraging summary that “across the
generations and across the continent, the light of Christ is
being shined into the darkness brought about by the endtime enemies of the cross!”
The Rev. Shauen Trump next presented on work in East
and Southern Africa, describing an ordination service
attended by “1,000 people” in a Mozambique village—“the
joyful celebration made a huge impact on that
community”—and the dramatic multiplication of ministry
that followed, and the longsuffering eagerness of those with
a great hunger to hear the Word of God. “This is it!” they said,
“This is what we need…what we’ve been looking for!” News
spreads; pastors travel to village after village; congregations
are planted. “There is an eagerness, an openness, a field ripe
for harvest in this part of the world, where people seek out
the church, where people go to great lengths to find a pastor,
where the Spirit uses whatever mechanism He wills to reach
48 | PROCEEDINGS OF THE 2019 (67TH) LCMS CONVENTION

Committee 2 Chairman Peter Lange was called up to
continue the work of his committee, beginning with Res. 205, “To Give Thanks to God for the Work of the Office of
International Mission in the Africa Region” (TB, 1:56–57).
Having been read and introduced by the committee, the
resolution was adopted, without discussion and
unanimously, by a rising voice vote.
Res. 2-08, “To Give Thanks for Lutheran Church—
Missouri Synod Ministry to the Armed Forces” (TB, 1:59),
was read and introduced by Chaplain Steven Hokana,
assistant director of LCMS Mission to the Armed Forces, on
behalf of the committee. The resolution was adopted by a
rising voice vote. Military veterans in the assembly were
asked to stand and be recognized.
Res. 2-06, “To Encourage Support of Short-Term
International Mission Activities” (TB, 1:57–58), was read and
introduced by the committee, with prefatory remarks by the
Rev. Daniel McMiller, executive director of the Office of
International Mission. McMiller pointed out that this
resolution does not deal with Bylaw 3.8.3, with the sending
of career missionaries or funds overseas—only with shortterm mission initiatives. He begged forgiveness for
confusion that has arisen from an “ill-worded” best practices
document that “implied a desire to control or diminish
congregational short-term mission activities.” Noting that a
thorough revision is underway, McMiller continued: “We
want to support and expand the fruits of congregationsponsored short-term missions. LCMS history has shown
that when we work closely and intentionally with partner
churches and our in-country career missionaries, great
things happen on the global mission field. On the other
hand, when we fail to respect the rights and concerns of our
partner churches, to keep a keen eye on rapidly changing
circumstances in the field, to heed the divine call that came
through you to our career missionaries, to hold up our
congregations as plainly visible partners in the work of the
kingdom beyond our borders, or to share critical information
with one another that keeps people on the field safe and
secure, well, then, the devil loves to stir up divisions, and
chaos unbefitting the bride of Christ.” He noted he and his
co-workers “stand ready to support” those seeking to send
short-term mission teams, making introductions to career
missionaries and overseas church partners who “will live
with your work long after you return home.” “The Church is
at her best as a people walking in unity of confession and
harmony of practice. This is our mission: to make Christ
known to the world.”
After discussion, it was moved and seconded to close
debate; this succeeded [Yes: 753; No: 21]; Res. 2-06 was
adopted [Yes: 791; No: 18].
Minutes