No one will mistake a virtual gathering for our regular Conference sessions. There were no hugs from long lost friends; no heart-to-heart discussions long into the night; no full-throated singing of “Wonderful Grace of Jesus”; and everybody had to provide their own ice cream. There were also no uncomfortable college dorm beds; no exhausting cross-country trips in the car; and no communal bathrooms. But Seventh Day Baptists showed definitively that they could gather virtually, from every corner of the Conference, to take care of business—and it wasn’t even July.
On Sunday, January 5, 2025, 122 SDBs representing 40 SDB Churches met via Zoom for our 3rd annual Winter Virtual Delegates Forum. Our primary task was to approve the 2025 SDB Conference Budget, as directed by the Conference in session last July. A big shout out to Conference Financial Officer and Treasurer, Ron Ochs, for expertly walking us through a big picture review of our finances over the past three years and General Council’s proposed Operating Budget for 2025—taking time also to help us understand the role that grants (both external and through our partnership with the SDB Memorial Board) are playing in terms of helping to fund programs that are helping us to pursue our mission together.
Participants asked a number of insightful, clarifying questions, some of which have become agenda items for General Council to consider as we move forward. Personally, I thought it was a helpful process in helping more people have a general understanding of the what and why of the budget. My observation was that several of the questions asked were the kinds of questions people might have whispered to the person sitting next to them (getting a helpless shrug in reply), but might not have felt comfortable going to the microphone to ask. From that perspective, I thought the virtual forum was helpful in helping people to better understand what they were voting on. In the end, delegates voted to approve a 2025 Operating Budget of $1,211,676.
Conference President Tom Davis made an exciting, long-awaited announcement regarding our 2025 Conference sessions. We already knew the Conference theme of “Shouldn’t it Be Obvious.” But after much searching and negotiating by Director John Pethtel (thank you, Pastor John!), we finally know that Conference 2025 will be held July 22-27 at Carthage College in Kenosha, Wisconsin. Online Conference registration should open this week. We hope to see you there.
Frank Mazza, of our Council on Ministry, also shared important information about the PULSE process for church health. PULSE is a process that assists churches in assessing their health and to take steps forward in actively advancing God’s kingdom. We encourage every church in the Conference to be involved in the PULSE process, whatever their current state of health. If your church is interested the PULSE process, visit seventhdaybaptist.org/PULSE for more information or contact Director of Church Development John Pethtel at jpethtel@seventhdaybaptist.org to get started.
For those of you who attended this year’s WVDF…THANK YOU! It is encouraging to us that so many of you took time out of your Sunday to participate with us. Our Conference does not work without your involvement. For those who were not able to join us this year, we look forward to seeing you at next year’s forum. If you can’t stand the idea of waiting that long, you can watch a recording of this year’s forum here.
