In Acts 1:15-26, Matthias was chosen to be the new and 12th apostle. In Acts 6:1-7, new leaders were added to the church. In Acts 11:25-26, Barnabas went to get Paul and add him to Antioch’s leadership. In 2 Timothy 2:2, Timothy is instructed to raise up more teachers in the Ephesus church. In Titus 1:5, Paul tells Titus to finish the uncompleted work of adding elders to the church in Crete.
What do we “see” from these examples?
1) God adds leaders through prayer and providence.
God uses circumstances—even problems—to bring about the need for additional leadership in the church. Additionally, prayer is a critical component of New Testament leadership selection.
2) Leaders are added to fuel momentum.
The church has a mission, and it’s not maintenance of the status quo. Matthias was added so that the apostolic witness would be complete and the command to be witnesses of the resurrected Christ could go forward into the world. Seven servants were added to minister more effectively to widows and to ensure the apostles could teach and pray with focus. The result? More disciples (see Acts 6:7)! Paul helped teach in a church that later became the springboard that launched Christianity from a regional to a global movement (Acts 13:1-2). Teachers and elders were added in Ephesus and Crete because when the Gospel advances, lives are touched, changed, and incorporated into the church.
This is why we celebrate our staff. When we hired them, they were an answer to prayer; they still are. The vibrant presence of staff means God is moving, God is faithful, and we are cooperating with the grace He is giving to us. Personally, few things give me more pleasure in ministry than the staff partnerships we have at RBCC. Corporately, our church is blessed by the dedication and presence of Christ working in and through our staff.
This is why I’m excited to announce that Ryan Stigile will be our new Executive Pastor (see the post, “XP: What & Why?”). He’s originally from Virginia and his wife, Emily, is from the Marietta/Atlanta area. They attended Lee University in Cleveland and have recently been ministering in Ohio. He has visited Rock Bridge twice, and gone through several interviews and conversations with our staff, elders, and church members.
Ryan emerged as our leading choice after months of elder meetings, staff conversations, and hours of prayer. He shares our vision to connect disconnected people to Christ and loves to develop systems to support big visions. The elders and I believe God has brought Ryan and Emily to Rock Bridge, and we look forward to adding another team member and ministry partner to the Rock Bridge family!
God is at work at Rock Bridge to position us for MORE … so believing that the best is yet to come, please pray for our staff, for Ryan and Emily, and for fresh zeal for God’s glory!
Matt