At the end of the service, Bishop Huie did something that our senior pastor Rev. Joe Fort said was a new thing that he had not seen done before. It has been a long time since Michael and I attended one of these services, so we will go with Joe on that one. Anyway, at the end of the service, Bishop Huie asked for all those who had recently been called into ministry to come to the altar to receive prayer for their calling and for their future ministry in the Church. Michael left our perch at the top of the balcony and went down to the altar, where he was met by our previous pastor from Memorial Drive UMC, Rev. Chuck Simmons, as well as our current pastors at Kingwood UMC. I am not sure that ANYONE knew that Bishop Huie was going to add this element to the service, and it was very powerful for Michael and me.
Here is a picture of Michael at the altar rail that was snapped by one of the Conference photographers. I almost cried again when I saw this on the Conference website because I wasn't able to get a good picture last night:
Thankfully, there were several other pastors there to take people's information and make sure that everyone at the altar was aware of the upcoming Candidacy Conference in August. Before last night, we had no idea that Michael needed to complete his Candidacy Application by TOMORROW in order to participate in the conference this August. Joe went immediately into action, and he was amazing - he helped us negotiate our way through the huge crowd to find our District Superintendent, Jack Shelton. Rev. Shelton was very gracious, and he just asked that Michael send him an email to confirm Michael's belief that he had received a calling and expressing his interest in the Candidacy program. Rev. Shelton even agreed to work with his assistant to ensure that Michael's application could be sent in without the necessary signatures.
So, the God Thing: If we hadn't gone to the service last night, and Bishop Huie hadn't closed the service in the way that she did, and if all those people had not been there to help Michael at the altar and after the service, Michael never would have found out about this deadline, and he would have tacked on about one year's worth of delay in the Candidacy process, because the Candidacy Conference is only held once each year when a new Candidacy class is formed. As soon as we got home, Michael sent his email to Rev. Shelton, and while he was doing that, we received today's Upper Room Email Devotional, which contained a reflection on I Samuel 3: 1-10 - the very same passage that Michael came across during his Walk to Emmaus that helped Michael hear and comprehend his calling. I do not believe that any of this is just a coincidence. I believe that God is continuing to confirm the path he has set for Michael, and we will continue to watch and listen for other messages from Him indicating what we should do next.
Please continue to keep Michael in your prayers. I will post more about his calling and his status in the process when we know what happens with his Candidacy Application. If you would like to read more about last night's service, you can follow the link below. And by the way, if you haven't heard Bishop Huie speak, please find time to do so when you can. Her message last night was inspiring and challenging, and she is very gifted in proclaiming God's word.
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