Pastoral Couples Renew Their Vows, Church Honors Their Service

Hundreds took part in a massive vow renewal ceremony, and were also honored for their committed service in pastoring congregations across the IAD.

September 7, 2024 | Cancun, Quintana Roo, Mexico | Libna Stevens, Inter-American Division News

Inter-American Division’s ministerial retreat in Cancun, Mexico, saw hundreds of Seventh-day Adventist pastoral couples renewing their vows during a massive ceremony on Sep. 4, 2024. Dressed in white and holding each other’s hands, the nearly 1,000 couples, mostly serving in district churches across Mexico, Colombia, Belize, Aruba, Bonaire and Curaçao, committed to staying together as the three-day spiritual, educational and recreational respite event drew to a close.

“It is very exciting to see you here renewing your [wedding] vows together,” said Pastor Pedro Iglesias, family ministries director of the IAD, as he addressed the group.

Exclusivity in marriage

“When we get married, we choose exclusivity and we do so before God who is a God of exclusivity because He tells us that we should not have any gods before Him,” said Iglesias. It’s all about exclusivity in the big things and the small things, he said. “No one else should fit in our [intimate] relationship, first to God and then with our spouse. God must be first, as a shield against the temptations of the enemy.”

There might be some who have come to the retreat to get divorced when they return, he said. “I know of at least one couple, perhaps there are more,” he announced. “If any of you have come here as your last trip together, please give another chance for the Holy Spirit to help you. Fight for your marriage.”

Iglesias invited the hundreds of couples to be exclusive the rest of their lives. Couples signed a special vow card as a sign of their continued commitment to their marriage.  The special ceremony also included brief moments of prayer.

Rediscovering marriage and God’s calling

“You have spent moments here to rediscover your spouse and look into each other’s eyes for what you’ve shared for many years, some only three months and some just for three days or so,” said Pastor Elie Henry, president of the IAD. “You have also had the opportunity to reconnect with colleagues or friends you met years ago. It’s been wonderful to be sealed and anointed with the power of the Holy Spirit, as stated in Ephesians 1: 13-14),” he added.

Pastor Henry reminded pastors to remember their calling. “God called you during a day like this, gave you the wife you have for a time like this, and we must leave here jumping for joy, thankful to God as His servants, rejoicing in the ministry by faithfully sharing His Word, educating those around us and serving everywhere in your communities,” said Pastor Henry.

“Fighting the good fight”

This event has been especially designed to mark the lives of each one of our pastors, their wives, and their families, said Pastor Josney Rodríguez, ministerial association secretary and main organizer of the ministerial events. “Don’t forget to believe, fight the good fight of faith until Jesus comes for the second time,” he urged. “We want to see God’s face, we want to feel His hand, experience His power, and be anointed once again.”

Cecilia Iglesias, associate director for Shepherdess International chapter in the IAD, thanked the pastor’s wives for their selfless support. “Thank you for the beautiful work you do,” she said. “Continue to cling to God and your spouse daily with God fighting every day with the assurance that the battle has already been won.”

The closing was part of a packed day of seminars and a special morning segment where pastors and their spouses were honored for their years of service.

Honoring pastoral service

Pastor Neftaly Vázquez and wife Nancy from the Southeast Mexican union were among the handful of pastors who were honored . Both served in many parts of Mexico and said they would continue supporting the church as active members.  “I will miss pastoral visitations, the close fellowship and collaboration with the church because it fosters unity and drive in forming of leaders,” said Vázquez.

As pastors were honored with certificates of service and gifts by each of their union and local fields, Pastor Henry urged them to continue growing their ministry under the power of the Holy Spirit.

To enhance the ministry of the pastor throughout the IAD, each pastor will receive a set of  the Andrews Bible Commentary from both GEMA Editores and IAD Publishing Association. English speaking unions were gifted with a sample and will be shipped for the rest of their ministers, as well as Spanish speaking pastors will be receiving the commentary by the end of the month.

It was essential for pastors to have time to rest, regroup and be reignited to continue leading so many congregations across the territory, said Pastor Rodríguez.  “In our territory pastors usually lead four, five, ten, fifteen and some pastors even as many as 30 congregations at a time,” he said. It’s the way that it works in the IAD with over 3,000 district pastors to oversee the more than 23,000 Adventist churches and congregations.

Overseeing many congregations

In the Inter-Oceanic Mexican Union, for instance, a pastor leads an average of 14 churches with a total membership of more than 800 members, said Pastor Aáron Omaña, executive secretary of the Inter-Oceanic Mexican Union. “There’s a pastor in the Ñumi district in the Oaxaca Conference that leads 32 churches, and we have another pastor in Totontepec in that same conference that oversees 2,932 members,” he reported. That’s something seen across the union with 11 conferences that are growing each year. “With the new churches springing up, that means we need to continue with our strategies to build more churches across the region,” Omaña said.

For a year now Martín Ramírez, 49, has been overseeing 22 churches that include nearly 1,000 members in the Isthmus Conference in the Inter-Oceanic Mexican Union. The district he oversees is in the State of Oaxaca, where most of his congregations speak the Mixtec dialect. “Many mostly speak in ‘La Mixteca’ so I need to have translation when I preach,” he said. Running each congregation takes up all his time, every day, seven days per week.  “I’m supposed to have Mondays off but it’s hard to disconnect completely,” he said.

Ramírez dreams of a day when each congregation will have its own pastor. He wishes he could spend more time in evangelism, that’s what he loves the most. “I love to be part of the whole evangelism process, from neighborhood campaigns to larger public campaigns and reaching so many with the gospel, but sometimes managing the administrative part of the churches and the programs week by week take much of my time,” he said. The retreat has been an opportunity to take a few days to mingle with others and learn how pastors manage their time and congregations in Colombia and Belize, he said. “I hope that one day, each pastor can have no more than five churches under his care, because our main work is shepherding members, young people in their clubs, and so much more. In the meantime, Ramírez said the tools, the impactful messages pointing to the power of the Holy Spirit will continue to carry him through his leadership, he said.

The ministerial retreat provided presentations and seminars on mental health, marriage enrichment, healthy families, seeking counseling, stress and anxiety, depression, and nurturing relationships in the family and more. Pastors and their spouses also took part in 5K run, sports activities and more.

A second IAD ministerial retreat will take place in the Dominican Republic, where hundreds of pastors and their spouses from the Dominican, Caribbean, French Antilles Guiana, Jamaican, and Puerto Rican Unions, will gather from Sep. 9-11, 2024.

To view a photo gallery of the Ministerial Retreat in Cancun, Mexico, click HERE

Victor Martínez contributed information to this report.