Proclaimer Blog
EMA: first call
It’s time to start planning to come to the EMA this year. Over the last few years, we’ve tried to focus on topics that we think are essential for evangelical preachers. We’ve dealt with the work of the Spirit, engagement, the heart, Christian identity. This year’s topic is probably the least glamorous of them all but the most important: perseverance.
Too many preachers think they will simply keep going. The reality is very different. The dropout rate from ministry is as high as it has ever been. We set ourselves (and churches set us) unrealistic targets and working expectations. We get caught up in the worldly way of thinking about career. We indulge in a spot of Messiah-complex and convince ourselves we are out to save our world/nation/city/locality (delete as applicable) single-handedly.
What is going to stop you from falling away? Unless you have your head in the sand, you need to realise that this is a real and tangible risk – a statistical reality. We’ve planned this year’s programme to address precisely this issue.
And it’s teaching that everyone needs to hear. Those nearing the finish line need help to make it over: one final push. Those in the middle years need help to lift their heads and keep the pace. Those near the start need a dose of reality and an understanding that only in setting realistic patterns will they endure the next 50 years.
And of course all of this is done by fixing our eyes on the author and perfecter of our faith. So, above all, it is a conference about looking to Jesus. And that is certainly something we all need. Book now.