Greetings from the Moderator                                                    FEBRUARY 2025

Grace to you and peace!

As I began learning about my role as the Moderator, a couple of phrases came up quite frequently… “decently and in order,” and “efficiently and effective.” As many of you know, “decently and in order” is a reference to 1 Corinthians 14:40. The Greek word used here is euschémonós. In a school setting, we would consider this a character word, as it means much more than just doing something a certain way, it describes how we should live our lives.. “well-behaved” or having “noble character.” Living a life that is pleasing to God.

Why is this character word so important in our form of government? And are we truly doing this? It comes down to more than just following Robert’s Rules of Order at our Presbytery Meetings, and it ties into being efficient and effective. As we extend hospitality to one another, as we get to know one another and respond to each other with the love of Christ, we become more decent to one another. Does that mean that the entire body will need to agree on everything and see everything the same way? No, but we must respect one another and work together as we express our thoughts and desires for God’s church. We must hear and truly listen to those speaking so that all voices are heard.

We also need to use caution and not set up roadblocks. Many of us are used to Robert’s Rules, but there are others that may have never heard of them or attended a meeting where they were followed. For those people, the way we conduct business may be foreign or seem less than warm and welcoming. I also heard from some people at the Moderator Conference that our use of acronyms/abbreviations can be confusing, leading to people feeling like they are out of the loop or less intelligent.

So how are we supposed to be decent and in order AND have efficient and effective meetings? We need to be mindful of those around us as we represent ourselves with integrity and humility. We need to be prepared by reading all the materials/reports before the meeting begins. And we need to truly participate and not just attend.
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Speaking of participating, the Council had their retreat on January 14th, and I had the pleasure of participating in that retreat. You have some fabulous people giving of their time and talents on the Council. Individuals that are actively engaged in helping this Presbytery, and all the people within it, to realize and achieve its vision for the future of Central Florida Presbytery. I was truly energized and excited when I left that retreat.
In closing, I challenge you to practice euschémonós in your daily life so that it truly becomes part of who you are. Get engaged in what Central Florida Presbytery is doing. Support and encourage those that are doing the work and listen to the quiet voices that need to be heard so that all are able to participate. Let us connect with our fellow siblings in Christ so we can live out our faith and Glorify the Lord together!

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Commissioned Ruling Elder Nicole Gower