Transcript:

Eric Turbedsky: Hey, thanks for tuning in. This is Eric Turbedsky, Director of Communications with MarkKPrater.com. 

Mark Prater serves as our Executive Director, and this morning I want to ask him about our Council of Elders meeting coming up next month, first week of November—but look back first: 

We had quite a Council of Elders meeting back in August, the special one. So Mark, fill us in: Thoughts on the Council of Elders meeting in August, especially as a couple hundred of us are preparing to attend and participate in another one here in November? What would you take away from August?

Mark Prater: What I took away from August: 

I thought there were a number of encouraging things from a strictly polity standpoint. I think the meeting was an illustration that our polity is working. I'm so grateful for that. Even though we're still learning our polity, the polity is working, and what I mean by that is that the council (where you've got 74 guys there debating and making decisions and voting) is I think functioning in a very Presbyterian way. There were votes and the votes were so clear and decisive. 

I think the other thing coming out of the meeting is that we have a lot of clarity and I think some momentum coming out of the special Counsel of Elders meeting. So from a polity standpoint, I was really, really encouraged. 

In terms of the nature of the meeting or the essence of the meeting, if you can say it that way, I thought it was probably our best meeting that illustrated how we're learning to debate in a godly manner. I thought guys were very gracious with one another, even though they strongly disagreed at some points. I think our meeting overall would have pleased God because of that. So I'm really grateful for that. 

The second thing is, along with that, I saw a number of guys, who hadn't went to the mic before, go to the mic. And I just want to keep encouraging that. And it was a mix of ages. That really encouraged me. So if we can bring more of that into the Fall, I think that'll be really, really great at our November meeting. 

Eric Turbedsky: Hey, Mark, if I may interrupt you right there, what percent of the Council of Elders, do you think, were part of Sovereign Grace for 30 years and this is all brand new? Half?

Mark Prater: I'd say half. Yeah, probably half would be my guess. 

Eric Turbedsky: So to get up to the mic, when, for three decades there was no mic (there was one mic, a few folks speaking at the meetings)—there's just a radical departure in just a few years. Now we have a broad participation: people making presentations in our Leadership Council setting. So that is an evidence of growth and change and maturity for us as a denomination. 

Mark Prater: Yeah, it is. And the guys in, you know, different age groups. Some of them came with prepared comments, some came to the mic with comments that were spontaneous. But I think in every case they were shared in a gracious way, which I think you want in a Council of Elders meeting in Sovereign Grace. 

One of the things I took away in terms of where we need to maybe grow (and I put it in the area of growth because I think we're just learning our polity—we're only six years in, and to be able to do what we've been able to do I think is rather remarkable and God's kindness towards us)—but I think we have to learn how to debate better. 

This particular meeting was a hard one to use as a litmus test, so to speak, because we were talking about issues that had an emotional component to them. So you know, you're going to have guys that are feeling strongly about what they believe, which isn't wrong. You can't remove emotion from debate. I think that'll always be there. But I think we've got to learn to debate a little bit better. 

That would include just presenting perspectives in a thoughtful way that then somebody can understand and then respond in a thoughtful way. I'm not saying that there were thoughtless conversations. But I just think it's something we'll just learn to do better in the years to come and hopefully that'll happen in November. 

Eric Turbedsky: Yeah. What do you tell the guy who walks away from the meeting saying, "Man that one vote didn't go the way I wanted it to go. And how do I process that?"

Mark Prater: Yeah. Well, I mean, on any eldership you're going to be a part of a meeting where you lose a vote or you're the minority voice. And you walk away—of course you're gonna be disappointed—but I think you've got to learn to trust the men that are around you and entertain the idea that you could be wrong, which you have to do. And maybe these men are right, and I can just follow them in that. Or entertain the idea: What if I'm right and they're wrong and we made the wrong decision? I'm going to own this with them. And if it turns out it was the wrong decision, I'm not going to play the card of "I told you so." I just think that's the right way to think about losing a vote. 

Eric Turbedsky: It might be harder to do it this way than just someone roll out all the decisions, because we all got to, we all got to walk out. Everyone walks out with some compromises and it's a little difficult with the heart—and probably a little bit better results (or much better results) with the collection of wisdom from many men. 

I'm looking at the agenda for the Council of Elders. There're some exciting things. Roll call... A rules committee... 

What are you anticipating for November? Are we kicking off the 2019 Sovereign Grace Pastors Conference with a roll call and the rules committee? 

But the Council of Elders: What do you anticipate with this one coming up? We've got some guys maybe coming in a little gun shy. There were some fireworks in August.

Mark Prater: What I'm excited about with the Council of Elders meeting is it does give me the opportunity to give the state of the union, and I've been thinking a lot about that. And I just want to point us forward and help us to sort of lift our eyes off of all of our troubles and what we might be distracted by and just look at what God is doing (and I believe will do) in and through Sovereign Grace Churches. 

So I'm really excited to cast vision for that, basically. Hopefully that will happen by the grace of God at the Council of Elders meeting. The other thing that I think is unique this year is there are only five BCO amendments. And before, I think in the years previous, which is somewhat understandable, there were anywhere between 20 and 25, roughly. So I think it tells you that we're refining the BCO over time and now it may need less refinement. It'll always need some refinement, maybe less refinement. 

And I'm really excited about the last three sections of the Statement of Faith being presented. Even though it'll be given provisional approval before (with the theology committee saying let's do the final approval next year—which I think is really wise) I still think it's going to mark a moment for us as a council to say, "Man we worked all the way through the Statement of Faith." 

And now we've got to just work through it again and sort of clean it up a little bit so it's consistent in the way it's presented. But man, we've got a good Statement of Faith and, and celebrate that a bit. 

Eric Turbedsky: Oh, that is very encouraging. Thanks for how you lead those meetings. I'm looking forward to that moment. You've got a body of men that are around the globe who have written a new Statement of Faith. We don't do that very often in our churches (thank the Lord), but it's going to be finished and that is something to celebrate. That'll be a moment in that room. Thanks for chairing it. 

Do you like chairing the Council of Elders sessions? Is this one of your favorite parts of being Executive Director? 

Mark Prater: I wouldn't say it's one of my favorite parts, but I'm learning to do it. I don't know how good I am at it, but I'm learning to do it and I'm glad to serve in that way. 

Eric Turbedsky: Now you have led us through some of the most important ones, the first ones. So thanks, Mark. 

Mark Prater: Yep. Good to talk to you.

If you have questions or comments, Mark, would love to hear from you. For more videos like this, hit subscribe on YouTube or by email at markkprater.com.