Fourteen pastoral staff members and 10 spouses attended the 2019 USMB National Pastors Orientation (NPO) held March 25-27 in San Diego, Calif. The NPO was hosted by the U.S. Board of Faith and Life (BFL) and the nine U.S. BFL members along with nine ministry leaders and USMB staff participated in the three-day event.
The NPO was built around the question: “Where do I and my church fit into the greater Mennonite Brethren family?” Presentations by USMB national director Don Morris and district ministers Rick Eshbaugh (Central), Terry Hunt (North Carolina), Tim Sullivan (Southern) and Gary Wall (Pacific) focused on the USMB vision, three core commitments, networking and LEAD initiatives.
Tim Geddert, national BFL member and professor at Fresno Pacific Biblical Seminary, spoke about MB theological distinctives and Peggy Goertzen, director of the Center for MB Studies at Tabor College, gave a history of the MB church.
Representatives from Christian Leader, USMB Youth, MB Foundation, Tabor College, Fresno Pacific University, Fresno Pacific Biblical Seminary and Multiply spoke about their ministries.
Participants also enjoyed free time, visited attractions in the San Diego area and had an evening meal at a restaurant overlooking the San Diego Bay.
The NPO closed Wednesday morning with communion and a prayer commissioning the pastors in their ministries.
Connie Faber joined the magazine staff in 1994 and assumed the duties of editor in 2004. She has won awards from the Evangelical Press Association for her writing and editing. Faber is the co-author of Family Matters: Discovering the Mennonite Brethren. She and her husband, David, have two daughters, one son, one daughter-in-law, one son-in-law and three grandchildren. They are members of Ebenfeld MB Church in Hillsboro, Kansas.
