A presentation about the future of the Apostolic Faith work was given on the evening of July 6 during the camp meeting in Portland. Titled, “Faith in Motion: Building the Next 20 Years,” the presentation outlined the top goals for our work in the coming decades and the specific plans being implemented to achieve those goals.

The evening opened with prayer, followed by an introduction by Superintendent General Sola Adesope. He explained that when he was appointed as leader of this work, the need to move the church forward was strongly conveyed to him. While we cherish our history and remained anchored in it, we must always be looking to the future, innovating for tomorrow, and advancing our mission. With that in mind, during that past two years nine committees have been prayerfully formed to address critical areas of church life, operations, and ministry. Each committee is comprised of qualified and talented members of our church body from all around the world, and each has been given a specific mandate. Brother Sola emphasized this approach is not simply a corporate strategy, but a prayerful response to God’s leading, with the goal of ensuring that our church remains spiritually vibrant, mission focused, and impactful for generations to come if the Lord tarries.

After Brother Sola’s opening remarks, the presentation coordinator, Yvonne Wilson of Portland, Oregon, gave an overview of the evening's agenda. The committees had been grouped into four categories based on their area of focus: operational capacity, worship and community, ministry excellence, and next-gen formation. One representative from each committee was selected to share their mandate, work so far, and goals. Since the members live in many different countries, not all could be present in Portland for the presentation, but a closing slide for each section showed all their names and locations.

Operational Capacity

John Musgrave of Portland spoke on behalf of the committee for Business Development, which is charged with promoting the financial stability of our global churches. Their key initiatives involve: 1) Implementing regional tithing to headquarters so that our worldwide work is supported by our worldwide work; 2) Standardizing financial reporting; 3) Financial planning; and 4) Revenue generation through wise investments that benefit our churches and workers.

The next committee to share was Infrastructure Development, represented by Dave Andersen of Portland. That group’s purpose is to provide expertise in construction and property maintenance of our church buildings, offices, campgrounds, youth camps, and schools. When an infrastructure-related question arises anywhere in our global body, the committee will study the situation, research possible solutions, and then make recommendations. They have already helped offer guidance for improvements on the Portland campground, modifications to the new tabernacle in Nigeria, replacement of a church roof in Jamaica, reconstruction of a perimeter wall in Pakistan, and more.

Sam Fadiora of Winnipeg, Canada, spoke on behalf of the Information Technology Advancement committee. Its mandate is to help our churches leverage new technologies for evangelistic purposes. This includes supporting teams at local churches, providing digital solutions for projects proposed by the other committees, and streamlining our work on a global scale. They already have more than twenty-five initiatives underway, with projects such as generating AI translations and audio versions of our literature, streamlining online event registrations, and developing AI Sunday school tools. A preview of another initiative, the “Visitor Contact Management System,” was demonstrated by Funso Oje of Pullman, Washington, during the presentation. This app would facilitate communication between a church’s ministry team and new visitors.

Worship and Community

On behalf of the Outreach and Belonging committee, Carrie Keju of Washington DC spoke about changes in society that require changes in methods of evangelism and discipleship. The committee’s charge is listening to, learning from, and then equipping local churches with ideas and frameworks for outreach and spiritual growth. Their work to date includes surveying hundreds of our churches about current outreach efforts, conducting evangelism “innovation labs,” and beginning production of a guide for local outreach. They are also working on ways to engage new church visitors, starting small groups for fellowship, and writing a manual about spiritual growth, discipleship, and retention.

For the Museum of Faith, Catey Hinkle of Portland shared that the church archives include thousands of testimonies, photos, artifacts, and sermons that chronicle the efforts of past generations to further the Gospel. The goal of this committee is to make sure our congregation members know about their rich spiritual heritage so they can continue the same legacy. The museum that was recently dedicated is the start of this effort; in the coming year, that exhibit will be updated with more of our history. In addition, a companion website will be created for those who cannot visit it in person, and a new subscription series titled "Legacy of Faith” will allow people to hear a testimony or sermon from our archives each week.

Ministry Excellence

Gary Riler of Portland shared that the mission of the committee for Music Development is to establish shared standards and offer practical guidance to support our music leaders and encourage thriving music programs around the world. Music has been central to our work from the start, and the goal is to ensure that music never replaces truth but upholds it. The committee was formed very recently and is working on copyright resources and a training session to be given next spring.

The Ministry Development committee was represented by Bill McKibben of Seattle, Washington. Its mandate is to provide our ministers and leaders with a better understanding of our global work, and support a unified doctrinal understanding, application, and practice. It was explained that ministerial training has long been part of our work, but now it will be carried out in a more robust fashion through professional online training courses. The committee is creating courses in three key categories: doctrine, church history and practice, and practical applications. Two courses have already been created and the hope is to offer one new course in each category every year moving forward.

Next-Gen Formation

A committee for K-12 Education has been formed to explore the possibility of opening a private Christian school in Portland. Rich Barrett, who is from Portland, explained that opening a school could provide support to our own church families and an opportunity for outreach in our community. The committee has researched State of Oregon requirements for private schools and the way other private schools have managed admissions, tuition, curriculum, and staffing. It is currently conducting a survey to assess interest among local families. The survey results will help the Board of Directors to determine whether or not opening a school in Portland is feasible at this time. If the decision is made to move forward, parents and educators from our congregations would help determine the details of how the school would operate.

The final committee to present was Youth Development, represented by Randal Lee of Medford, Oregon. That group’s goal is to encourage future generations to be Christ-centered kingdom workers. They work within established church leadership to support these priorities: spiritual formation, mentorship and leadership development, evangelism, resource development, and regional support. Practically speaking, their work so far has included organizing and supporting workshops, retreats, and other special youth events; connecting young people with opportunities to serve; and developing a variety of materials to support youth development.

The next steps

To learn more about the committees and what they are doing, watch the full presentation on our website. Their work is exciting, inspiring, and also challenging. They all need prayer for God to continue to lead and bless their efforts. As we look to God, we can be sure that the One who has guided this work for the past 120 years will continue to do so until Jesus returns.

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