SECRETARIAT

Secretariat Report

by David Montoya, Texas Conference Executive Secretary

We begin our report by quoting the prophet Samuel from the Old Testament: “Thus far the Lord has helped us,” 1 Samuel 7:12. These inspired words appropriately summarize our acknowledgment of and gratitude to God for His faithful presence working in us, through us and for us in carrying out His work in Texas. He is our Divine Helper. Hallelujah!

After expressing thanksgiving to our Heavenly Father, we are moved to also say “Thank You” to all our church members, locally hired employees, Bible workers, teachers and pastors for your dedicated work in ministry at the local church level. The apostle Paul’s words are fitting: “We give thanks to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you … since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of your love for all the saints,” Colossians 1:3, 4.

Family Growth

We praise God whenever a person gives his or her life to God and makes this very important decision through baptism or profession of faith. When an individual accepts Jesus as Savior and Lord, he or she is one more precious person who becomes part of the family of God. We are thrilled to share the increase in church family members as shown on the graphs on pages 7 and 8. In addition to those numbers, the average church attendance for 2019 was 18,717. Even though COVID-19 greatly impacted our churches and church members, the average attendance for 2020 was 14,186.

Local Church Clerks

For us to be able to keep track of these important statistics, we need the help and assistance of our dependable and loyal local church clerks. Currently, we have a fantastic team of 322 clerks.

New Churches and New Companies

As of December 31, 2020, we have 257 churches, 62 companies and 35 groups. These congregations are organized into 182 districts with 220 pastors, associate pastors and lay pastors, all serving alongside the local leadership.

District Realignments

In 2020, we went through a process of restructuring church districts. This consisted of removing a church from one district and adding it to another district so that each church, especially lay-led churches, could have adequate pastoral support and so that all communications from the Texas Conference office could be conveyed to all our congregations in an effective manner via the district pastor. At the end of the process, we were able to coordinate 16 different district realignments.-

Constitution and Bylaws Committee

Another responsibility of Secretariat is coordinating the Constitution and Bylaws Committee. This committee periodically reviews the Texas Conference Constitution and Bylaws and, if necessary, proposes changes that will help the church in fulfilling God’s purposes in a more focused fashion. These proposed changes are then voted by thedelegates at a Constituency Session. Currently, the Constitution and Bylaws Committee is comprised of 10 lay members, representing each area of the Texas Conference, plus 10 employees, representing each area of the conference, for a total of 20 members.

Religious Liberty

Secretariat also assists with Religious Liberty and Public Affairs, working closely with the Southwestern Union Conference, North American Division and General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists regarding Sabbath observance issues. When church members have work or school issues, such as exams, during the Sabbath hours, we assist by sending letters requesting Sabbath accommodations.

Pastoral Transitions

As the work of the Lord continues to move forward and His church continues to grow, it is necessary to send workers to the different parts of God’s vineyard. As such, 17 new pastors became part of the Texas Conference team since June 1, 2019. Because the Lord sometimes directs His workers to new areas within the state of Texas, we coordinated 32 pastoral transitions so his or her spiritual gifts could be shared in a different part of Texas.

Retirements

Another very important role of secretariat is assisting our employees in the retirement process. Since June 1, 2019, a total of 26 Defined Benefits Retirement applications were processed. It is a privilege and honor to help our workers transition into their next chapter, and we commend them for their many years of dedicated service to the church.

Doxology

As we review the progress of the Lord’s cause here in Texas for the last two years, it is very appropriate to close with the lyrics of the Doxology: “Praise God, from whom all blessings flow; Praise Him, all creatures here below; Praise Him above ye heavenly host; Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost.”

Church Planting

In 2019, Texas Conference was the church planting leader throughoutthe North American Division of Seventh-day Adventists, whichincludes territories of Bermuda, Canada, Guam/Micronesia and theUnited States.Concerned as to how the pandemic would modify the church plantingprocess, we put our trust in God. To His glory and honor, 12 newcongregations were added to our Texas Conference sisterhood ofchurches in 2020. Five of these congregations are English speaking,five Spanish speaking, and two speakBurmese or Swahili languages.There is no doubt that God is in control andHe blesses His work!

Staff

David Montoya, Executive Secretary

David Runnels, Field Secretary (Quality Assurance)

Rhonda Garner, Executive Administrative Assistant

Rubi Gomez, Conference Membership Clerk