By Mark A. Taylor
One angle unreported in this week”s lead story is the unusual cooperation that made it possible.
The April Indianapolis AIDS conference was jointly sponsored by two ministries headquartered in the same town and seeking (competing for?) financial support from the same fellowship of Christian churches.
I suspect offerings to both ministries will increase, however, because of their shared initiatives described this week. Not only did they cosponsor a conference; now they”re working together on continuing strategies to address the needs presented by the AIDS pandemic.
Their combined voice receives more attention than either of them speaking alone. And their willingness to restrain individual promotion for the sake of a greater cause adds weight to its validity.
Notice that CMF and FAME are not merging in order to combat AIDS. One is not absorbing the other. Neither is going out of existence. Instead, each is simply contributing its own unique strengths, experiences, contacts, and knowledge to a battle too pressing to fight alone.
Think what could happen if more would follow this example.
Walk through the aisle of parachurch ministry displays at either of our national conventions and ask yourself: Is each of these truly unique? Does each accomplish a distinctive mission that justifies its existence?
Even when we can answer “yes” to those questions, we must ask another: “How well is the cause of Christ being advanced by each of these always working independently?”
Our world continues to suffer from the results of an affliction even more devastating than AIDS. It”s called sin, and reaching folks with its prevention and control and cure is a challenge even more pressing than the fight against physical disease.
Jesus came to address both problems. His plan is to do his work through us. And the scope of his vision for our world is too large for any individual or local congregation or particular mission to understand and undertake alone.
Both Greg Taylor and Paul Williams this week underline a truth the leaders of CMF and FAME are illustrating: We need each other. Not to organize as a denomination. Not to compromise our commitment to any truth of Scripture. But, compelled by a desperate world, to subdue our egos and step outside our comfort zones to find the right strategies for working together.
Surely this example isn”t the only one among us. We”re ready to hear and report how this is happening in other places.
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SEE THESE RELATED ARTICLES:
“Your Church and AIDS: A Conference to Dispel Darkness” by Debbie Legg
“The Human Side of HIV/AIDS” by Judy Fish
“Hope Partnership: A Way to Get Involved in HIV/AIDS Ministry”
“Learning to Share Hope” by Tom Moen
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