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Leading from the Deepest Place

Greg and Susan Williams
Greg and Susan Williams

Dear GCI Family and Friends,

When I attend National Association of Evangelical (NAE) events, I get to sit next to denominational leaders, Christian organizational leaders, and presidents of Christian seminaries. There is a wealth of experience and knowledge in this esteemed group, and I am humbled and enriched to sit among them.

In a recent gathering, I sat next to Richard Stearns, former director of World Vision. World Vision started in the 1950s and has a long history of working around the world to help hurting communities lift themselves out of poverty. Richard, who has recently retired from his position at World Vision, is also a published author and highly respected among his peers. It was unexpected that we ended up at the same table and in conversation.

During our NAE gathering, we listened to a session entitled “Leading from the Deepest Place.” It was a prompt for us to think about what is most important to us in this stage of life and ministry. Another prompt was, “How do we decompress from the pressure of our jobs?” I found Richard’s answer humorous for both questions. He said that retirement was his new stage of life and his method of decompression. That rang true for many of the attendees.

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Jesus Conversations

Greg and Susan Williams
Greg and Susan Williams

Dear GCI Family and Friends,

Back in July I had an interesting weekend involving two separate occasions with two people with whom I was able to engage in what I call “Jesus conversations.”

The first event was a Saturday golf tournament where my playing partner was an 80-year-old who was new to the neighborhood. It was a hot day, and the tournament lasted six long hours. Waiting between shots gave us ample time for extended conversations. We spoke of family, travel, fine wine, his time as a Navy aviator. Then he queried me about GCI. What kind of church is GCI? What was my seminary training? I enjoy talking about GCI, but I enjoy talking about Jesus more so.

My golf partner was harkening back to his college days when he had taken a class on Christianity and an overview of the Bible. His family of origin was Lutheran, and his wife’s family of origin was Methodist, so for most of their church-going time they went to a Presbyterian church (that makes sense). He had been stationed in foreign countries, like Japan and Saudi Arabia, so he had been exposed to other world religions. Now at age 80, he was having a heightened curiosity about Jesus and Christianity. We conversed how most other world religions require you to sacrifice and appease their gods through all sorts of ritual and idolatry, where our God took on flesh and came into our world to live and die for us.

We went deeper into the matter of salvation by grace alone. Apparently, he was impressed by how I had been treating him. He is older and, on top of that, he has had double knee replacement surgery. The course was quite hilly so often I would offer to pick up his stray golf ball and bring it to the cart. He would say, “Aren’t you a gentleman?” It was a great opportunity to turn the glory back to Jesus.

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Healthy Denomination

Greg and Susan Williams
Greg and Susan Williams

Dear GCI Family and Friends,

In February 2020 I wrote an article explaining the concept of health related to the life of a congregation. You have heard me and other denominational leaders expressing our desire to seek Healthy Church through the three Avenues of Hope, Love, and Faith.

  • Hope Avenue – Worship: A congregation where all who attend find Christ-centered worship and inspiration.
  • Love Avenue – Witness: A congregation devoted to getting outside the walls of the church to demonstrate the love of Jesus to their neighbors and to proclaim the good news when neighbors ask.
  • The Faith Avenue – Discipleship: A congregation where members, young and old, are growing in relationship with Jesus and deepening their bonds with each other.

We want to see these ministries flow from teams of believers and be guided by the careful leadership of Christlike pastoral leadership. These vibrant expressions are the pathway toward congregational health.

Our U.S. leadership team is continually asking the question, “How do we become a more vibrant expression of denominational health?” This is the right question as we work through the difficult stage of reclassification of congregations and determine how we need to shift to provide meaningful oversight.

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Reflection and Anticipation

This issue of Update is dedicated to reflecting on the past year. The image above is a word cloud, generated by combining all the 2023 Update letters from our president. A word cloud is a graphic that shows us which words were repeated frequently. The larger the size of the word, the more often it was used.

The words in the image reflect the most important GCI themes in 2023.

Read on to hear from Greg and look ahead to 2024.

Have a meaningful and merry Christmas,
Elizabeth Mullins
Update Editor


As we approach the end of 2023, there’s much to celebrate and be thankful for in our GCI journey! During my recent travels, I’ve been truly blessed to witness firsthand the remarkable ways the Spirit is moving in and through GCI and is moving us forward in unity.

Looking ahead to the coming year, I’m thrilled about the prospect of visiting four of our six global regions and attending regional gatherings across the United States. It’s a privilege to connect with many of you during these events, and I’m looking forward to sharing inspiring stories from across GCI through the GCI Update.

In addition to keeping you informed about GCI news, the letters, and stories you’ll find in the upcoming Update issues will center around our 2024 theme: Faith, Hope, and Love Integrated. This might sound familiar, as we’ve emphasized these values throughout this year.

Our ongoing pursuit of a Healthy Church involves a transformative journey to deepen our engagement with the neighborhoods where GCI congregations are present. We’re making progress, recognizing that becoming our healthiest expression takes time. It requires continuous learning, practice, reflection, adjustments, and execution—all guided by discernment of what is good to the Spirit and to us.

Throughout this period, our focus remains on a theological and practical orientation toward a holistic and interconnected approach to ministry. We firmly believe that this approach will help pastors and Avenue champions understand and execute the harmonious flow of ministry, reflecting the interdependent relationship of the Father, Son, and Spirit.

As always, Christ will be the only foundation we build from.

      • Christ’s first love given to us—because of his love we are filled and compelled to witness.
      • Christ’s faith imparted to us—because of his faith we are empowered for great commandment living and great commission sharing.
      • Christ who is our source of hope—because our hope is rooted in him, we can be the church, the hope of the world.

As we look forward to the coming year, stay tuned for the development of resources and articles that align with our Faith, Hope, and Love Integrated theme. Your continued support and participation are essential as we navigate this exciting and transformative path together.

Wishing you all a joyous conclusion to 2023 and anticipating a year ahead filled with growth, connection, and shared inspiration.

With hope and appreciation,
Greg Williams

 

Christ the King

Greg and Susan Williams
Greg and Susan Williams

Dear Family and Friends,

With the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas that began on October 7, many people are concerned. Some Christians may wonder what the prophetic significance of this war is. Is this something we need to be overly concerned about as we await Jesus’ return? Are end-time events unfolding in front of our eyes? There is much to consider.

Let’s put this conflict in perspective. Understanding that there are 32 ongoing conflicts in the world right now—ranging from drug wars, terrorist insurgencies, ethnic conflicts, and civil wars—gives a global perspective. This confirms the teaching of Christ in Matthew 24, where he says, “there will be wars and rumors of wars.” The ongoing division and resulting warring disposition of humanity is strong evidence of the fall and the brokenness in our nature.

As Christ followers, should we be aligned with Israel and seek their eventual victory? Certainly, we want the killing to stop and peace to come. But because we are Christ followers, we should be aligned with his universal atonement and be for all people, desiring goodness for all—Israel and Hamas, Ukraine and Russia, Nigeria and Boko Haram, both sides of the civil war in Myanmar, and on and on. Jesus died for all, and Jesus wants all to be saved. I believe that as Christ followers, we join Jesus in weeping over the hatred and needless bloodshed in all places around the world.

An ex-military building contractor that I know in my hometown is a sincere believer, and he continues to quiz me on what is happening to Israel. He peppers me with questions like, “Is the king of the north moving on Israel? Who is Gog and Magog, and how do they come into play?” I’m not that guy who sits with my Bible opened to the book of Revelation with all the newsfeeds open at the same time trying to match current events to Bible passages. Good luck with that. However, I assure my friend that if these truly are the final events to human history, which would indicate Jesus is returning, I am all in. In fact, there is nothing I am doing in my human life of such importance that I should desire a delay of his coming for one more minute. I tell him I trust that Jesus has everything in control and nothing this world does or doesn’t do will advance or delay his coming. What we do know is that he will come at the right time—in his time.

We are fast approaching the end—of the liturgical year, that is. This Sunday, November 26, is Christ the King Sunday, which marks the end of Ordinary Time and ushers in the Advent season. We celebrate Christ’s messianic kingship and sovereign rule over all creation. The meaning of the celebration can be summed up in this collective prayer.

Almighty and everlasting God, whose will it is to restore all things in your well-beloved Son, the King of kings and Lord of lords: Mercifully grant that the peoples of the earth, divided and enslaved by sin, may be freed and brought together under his most gracious rule; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

Considering world events, I pray that Christ the King Sunday will be especially meaningful as we celebrate in our GCI congregations around the world.

Come Lord Jesus,
Greg

Culture of the Kingdom

Greg and Susan Williams
Greg and Susan Williams

Dear GCI Family and Friends,

If our GCI culture is sourced and shaped by our central personality, Jesus, then for all practical purposes we are ambassadors of Jesus.

What do you think of when you hear the word ambassador? Does your mind think about a politician, or a diplomat who represents our nation in a far-off land? Does it feel overwhelming? Perhaps you think that’s just not me. But maybe it is you.

When we read Paul’s words in 2 Corinthians 5, we realize he is stating our ambassadorship as a matter of fact.

So, we are ambassadors for Christ, since God is making his appeal through us; we entreat you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. (2 Corinthians 5:20 NRSVA)

Because we are new creations in Christ (verse 17), and he resides in us, the natural flow is that we are his earthly representatives. We are in the mix of the reconciliation ministry of Christ.

A strong parallel thought to being Christ’s ambassadors is that Jesus came in the flesh, and in his public ministry he continuously and persistently announced his eternal kingdom (Mark 1:15). In Luke 17:21, Jesus indicated that he had inaugurated the kingdom of God by his presence — the king is among them. Since the days of John the Baptist, the kingdom is advancing and breaking in (Matthew 11:11-13). The kingdom has a here-and-now dimension that we need to tap into. I call this the kingdom culture.

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Culture of High Support, High Challenge

Greg and Susan Williams
Greg and Susan Williams

Dear GCI Family and Friends,

Culture is made up of language, habits, ideas, beliefs, customs, symbols, social organization, inherited artifacts, technical processes, and values. As I travel the world serving GCI, I observe distinct ways of being from country to country, and even region to region. However, a common phrase that I hear across our churches is, “We are GCI!” This warms my heart and speaks to the unity that can only come by the presence of the Holy Spirit.

As an organization, GCI has its unique culture. GCI culture directs our understanding to what is true, our will to what is good, and our discernment to what is beautiful. A journey through our GCI website will give you an overview of the GCI culture. Sure, you will see evidence of our branding in color schemes, symbols, and language, but most importantly you will see the triune God revealed in the person of Jesus. You will constantly see humanity held up as children of God made in his image and created for salvation, not destruction. You will see the promotion and practical support of the church. The church is highly valued, and it is through the life of the church that we best participate with Jesus by the power of the Spirit. Thank you to the media team that keeps us grounded.

In my previous Update letter, I spoke about the culture of liberation that we are growing towards. It was described through the tool of the “Support-Challenge Matrix.” It is from this matrix that we get our GCI philosophy of “High Support, High Challenge, Grace Always.” This wisdom to live by finds its genesis in Jesus Christ.

There is no higher support than the second person of the Godhead becoming flesh and blood, then going to Calvary’s cross to lay down his life for all of humanity. It was an astounding sacrificial act that changed the course of a fallen world. No greater love have we ever known or ever will.

There is no higher challenge than what Paul said in Ephesians, “…until all of us come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to maturity, to the measure of the full stature of Christ.” (Ephesians 4:13 NRSVA) Jesus desires for us to not only be saved by his love, but to be transformed into his image and to be fully alive in him.

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Culture of Liberation

Greg and Susan Williams
Greg and Susan Williams

Dear GCI Family and Friends,

In 2019, A Giant Step Forward – Toward an Emerging Culture of Liberation was published. I co-wrote this book with Rick Shallenberger and Dr. Tom Nebel.

The book was a bridge connecting the past leadership of the church under Dr. Joseph Tkach to the new era under my term as GCI President. It explained where we had come from and where we are going. By the grace of Jesus Christ, we have been on track and moving toward a culture of liberation.

The “Support – Challenge Matrix” was foundational in giving us our bearings for moving forward.

This updated matrix expands the concepts in each of the four quadrants. The quadrants of domination, abdication, and protectionism speak for themselves. They are places and spaces we have experienced, and we do not want to go back.

Let’s dig into the quadrant of liberation and capture a broader picture of where we see the Holy Spirit taking us.

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