Yes, and we still find ourselves in awe of what the Lord allowed us to be part of.
We were invited to go—honestly, Marty wasn’t too eager at first, due to our work in Italy. The initial ask was to serve as translators, which isn’t exactly our strength. But it was an opportunity, and there was a chance we might be able to join the Italian delegation. So we said yes!
And so they welcomed us to come —and that’s all we really wanted to do as we longed for was simply to serve and be with like minded believers. And that’s what we did.
They placed Marty on the Movement Desk to share the Lausanne Vision and the 25 Gaps Groups. Gloria, of course, found her place at the Help Desk—where she was able to use her many languages and give attention and care for a myriad of questions.
It felt like stepping back onto the OM ships in our youth, once again part of a small international team serving a massive crowd—this time over 5,000 people from every corner of the globe.
But it was more than just volunteering. For us, it was also a homecoming. Seoul was the first city we were sent to as a family in 1991, serving in the early days of a fledgling Korean ship ministry, MV Hannah. During the conference, we reconnected with the director of that work, with South Korean brothers and sisters from OM ships, and with many others we’d known along the way. It was reunion upon reunion and with the Korean food Marty loves and Gloria ‘likes.’
During the plenaries sessions, we were mostly outside— stationed at our respective desks, talking with people, enjoying our teams, meeting old and new friends, and standing in awe of what God is doing.
Global Christianity has truly risen, and we pray it continues to advance through the obedience of faith, just as Scripture teaches for the Lord’s peope to reach and declare and display Christ. That’s what this is all about. That’s the movement. To ‘bring back the King.’
Looking back, we’re grateful for what earlier Lausanne gatherings gave us—especially a vision for unreached people groups and finishing the task. But what’s emerging now through the 25 Gaps Groups brings even more intricate and nuanced layers to what it means to reach the world for Christ.
One of those groups, focused on the aged, is where Gloria is now involved. Her years in chaplaincy have prepared her beautifully for this role. And both of us are deeply committed to the Young Leaders Generation—we see them as vital to the future of this movement.
So here we are, six months later, still humbled by the privilege. For us, it was a wonderful and timely moment—one that recharged us as we step further into these latter years of ministry.
We hope to keep serving, keep listening, and keep walking with the Lausanne Movement for as long as the Lord allows. Still giving thanks.
