A recent ordination of three pastors in the MENA region is inspiring others to consider their own call to serve God where the need is great.
People came from towns and cities across the country, some traveling for hours, to celebrate the ordination of three pastors. The church was overflowing for the worship service that morning, and the day continued with a shared meal and the ordination service itself, the excitement carrying through each part of the day.
At the center of it all: three pastors, set apart for ministry.
For all three, the path to ordination looked different from the clear, well-established track found in most parts of the world. Two of them went to start the church's work in places across a country where the church remains small and the need for workers great, learning a new language and adjusting to an unfamiliar culture along the way, and spending years building relationships as they served. The third came from a nearby country, already fluent in the language and trained in theology. He had been involved in local ministry, actively supporting the church's work, before God led him fully into pastoral ministry.
The three now join a small number of pastors already serving in the country, among them a national believer ordained some years prior, whose own ministry helped lay groundwork the newer three are now building on.
Several music groups performed during the service, representing the different communities present, including a youth group whose presence added its own energy to the room. Reflections and testimonies followed, along with remarks from church leaders — among them Pastor Denis Sand, president of the Middle East and North Africa Union Mission, and Pastor Rick McEdward, undersecretary of the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists.
Ingrid Sand spoke directly to the three spouses of the men being ordained, drawing on the story of the loaves and fishes — the miracle of a small offering made sufficient for many. She affirmed their role as nurturers of their families as vital to the ministry itself, with the assurance that however they participate, God would supply what was needed and multiply their efforts.
Pastor Rick McEdward delivered the final message of the day, speaking to the great need for more workers in ministry, and appealing especially to the many young adults in the room to consider whether God was calling them to the same road.
Two of them left especially impacted by that appeal. One, a young woman already preparing for a life of service, found herself praying with new specificity about what God was asking of her next. The other, a young man who had once studied several religions before encountering Jesus and choosing to follow Him. Now baptized and serving as youth leader in his local church, he found himself that day praying too, wondering if this same road might be his.
Three pastors answered years ago, in ways no one in the room could see at the time. Watching them ordained inspired many present, and the appeal that followed clearly reached more than these two.