Thursday, September 29, 2011

Seminar at General Conference

At the upcoming general conference of the United Pentecostal Church, at 10 a.m. on Saturday, October 15, I will give a seminar titled "If God Loves Me, Why Am I Hurting: An Apostolic and Pastoral Veiw of Suffering." The seminar will be in room B104 of the south wing B Conference Center in the Kentucky Exposition Center in Louisville, Kentucky.

I have chosen to refer to this presentation as an apostolic view because I believe it is the view of the first century church, the apostolic church. This was a church that believed in signs, wonders, and miracles, which they frequently experienced. But it was also a church that recognized God sometimes accomplishes His purposes in the absence of such phenomena.

This presentation is a pastoral view because it values the role of the pastor – a shepherd’s role – in helping people prepare for and go through the full spectrum of experiences of suffering.