Asia-Pacific Region: When a pastor is elected to the office of district superintendent, they may have little understanding of what their new assignment involves. The Asia-Pacific Region is actively working to address this need.
On April 4-8, 2016, fifteen District Superintendents from seven Asia-Pacific countries participated in the latest “New DS Orientation” in Manila, Philippines. The orientation is a part of the “DS School of Leadership” initiated by Regional Director Mark Louw in response to expressed needs from new District Superintendents.
The desired outcome of the orientation, according to Louw, is that the participants will be equipped to effectively lead the churches on their districts.
“We desire a fresh clarity of understanding by all superintendents regarding what it means to be missional disciple makers,” explains Louw. “Our desire is that from the very beginning, our leaders would learn the rhythms of effective superintendency. We also want to develop relationships with each other, and establish a common language and understanding of key concepts such as “church”, “missional”, and “disciple making.” Out of that comes a sense of unity and interdependence, an understanding that we are better together than we are apart.”
Topics addressed during the Manila orientation included, “The Task of the Superintendency”, “Essential Financial Matters,” and “Vision and Mission.”
The discussions during the four-day orientation were interspersed with Question & Answer sessions, as well as rich times of fellowship and challenges from the Word.
“I would like to give thanks for all the topics that were covered, and all the people used in this DS orientation,” shared participant Rev. Mirasol Aluad, District Superintendent of the Philippine Southern Tagalog District. “It was a great value to me as a new DS. Very helpful.”
“The training was excellent!” wrote another DS. “It had the effect of building team and connecting the DS’s to continuing education resources.”
The vision is to continue the annual orientation of new district superintendents so that a strong regional understanding of our mission is firmly established, resulting in more Christlike Disciples in the Nations of the Asia-Pacific Region.
— Submitted: Rev. D. Hane
