SG PERSPECTIVE

2025 EFC Expanded Executive Board Meeting

February 26, 2025

2025 EFC Expanded Executive Board Meeting in EFC NASA
By Minister Esther Ho

On April 23, 2024, Secretary General Pastor Allen Hu inquired at the North America Regional Meeting:: “Is it possible to hold the 2025 Expanded Executive Board Meeting, with approximately 50 participants, at either EFC Houston or EFC NASA?” Thus, I was tasked with exploring the feasibility. Based on the positive feedback of the 2023 Expanded Executive Board Meeting in New Zealand, the hope was to replicate the same effect in this upcoming meeting. After several email exchanges between the GA Office, District Pastor-In-Charge Pastor Charlie Hsu, and District Chairperson Youn-Sha Chan, as well as a Zoom meeting on August 14, the North America Southern District agreed to give it a try! On October 18–21, Pastor Will Chen visited the location and met with local coworkers to discuss details in person. A final decision was made during the special Executive Board meeting on October 31 that the 2025 Expanded Executive Board Meeting is to be held at EFC NASA on January 30 through February 1, 2025.

Due to the Santa Ana winds and dry climate, three wildfires broke out in Southern California on January 7, 2025, and quickly became uncontrollable. The week before the meeting, on January 21, a once-in-a-generation winter storm impacted regions from Texas to North Carolina. Historic snowfall occurred in Houston, New Orleans, and Florida, causing more than 2,300 flights to be canceled. Had the meeting been scheduled just one week earlier, the situation would have been extremely challenging. However, by God’s grace, we were able to gather on January 29. Executive Director Pastor Will and his family, along with Sister Samantha Hsu and Director Jerry Feng, were the first to arrive to prepare the venue. Sister Melody Hu carefully arranged the airport transportation, ensuring that all attendees and their families arrive the hotel safely. For dinner, we were blessed by the coworkers of EFC Houston, preparing a delicious meal and handmade desserts to nourish our hungry stomachs and relieve the fatigue from traveling – “So thoughtful!” Finally, by 11:30 PM, representatives from Toronto New Life and EFC Philadelphia arrived safely. Praise the Lord for His grace and protection!

~ Day 1 ~

The meeting began on January 30, with the hotel only 3 minutes away from EFC NASA, the GA office rented a 12-passenger van, along with other representatives who had cars to assist with transportation form the hotel to church. Thanks to Pastor Charlie’s planning, family members who came with the representatives also got to tour the city. Sister Betty (Pastor Charlie’s wife) and Sister Sandy (Pastor Charlie’s mom) accompanied all the out of towners as the local tour guides so that representatives could focus on the meetings.

Due to personal reasons, Secretary General Pastor Allen Hu was unable to make the trip, as Executive Director Pastor Will stepped up to be the host. The meeting started with a worship session singing “How Great Thou Art” and “The Old Rugged Cross.” Pastor-In-Charge Pastor Andrew Lin delivered an inspiring message based on this year’s theme on evangelism: “Declare Good News, Proclaim Salvation,” encouraging everyone to respond to God’s call to be His messengers in this turbulent age. He encouraged everyone with Isaiah’s words: “Here am I, send me!” Praying that God will call more people to be alert, be watchful, and to serve.

Following a warm welcome by Moderator Elder Kevin Chou, I gave a GA update on behalf of the office: 1) Pastor Hu’s “Secretary General’s Perspective.” 2) The last edition of “A Letter to Jesus” will be released this year, with the final theme being: “Arise, Go Beyond!” 3) The GA Office encountered a few challenges in the past year, including finding new insurance coverage for EFC churches in the U.S., selling the Prayer Garden, and the last stage of the litigation concerning EFC Agape in Taiwan. Special thanks to all coworkers and board members for their hard work! 4) During the 2024 Year of Equipping, Pastor Ekron Chen of Logos Evangelical Seminary provided guideline for discipleship training for pastors, which received great feedbacks! 5) The 2025 theme for EFC is Evangelism, and we hope that this meeting will facilitate more discussions and cooperation among various districts. 6) We thank all the regional pastor-in-charges, district pastors and chairpersons to assist with the review of various applications, to maintain smooth communications, and even plan for new church plants, we pray that we can continue to “Build a Glorious Church and to Expand God’s Kingdom.”

Pastor Will continued with updates on the current status of EFC churches, which including attendance from various districts, data uploading by churches, and pastoral transitions. He encouraged all churches to regularly update their data through the online system. After a brief break, Elder Paul Lo from the Bylaw Department led a discussion on proposed amendments to the EFC Bylaw, suggesting updates to Chapter 2 – Local Church Regulations and Chapter 1, regarding the duties of accounting auditors. These regulations need to be modified to meet the current situation of the church. The discussion also touched on other issues, and it was clear that many issues are interconnected! We hope that by the 2026 General Assembly Meeting, there will be progress in amending the regulations. For lunch, EFC NASA provided a flavorful Gumbo and fried chicken, a true taste of Southern cuisine.

In the afternoon, the New Zealand and Australia districts shared updates. District Chair Alvin Shi and District Pastor Alan Wang from New Zealand shared the current status of the churches in the district, how the EFC churches are growing steadily, and the challenges of dealing with the departure of EFC South Auckland. With an increasing number of Chinese immigrants settling in the North Shore, EFC Central Auckland plans to plant a new church there. The need for pastoral education verification was also discussed. Pastor Peter Chen of Logos Evangelical Seminary in Taiwan also encouraged churches to cultivate their own pastors, while President James Hwang of Logos Evangelical Seminary encouraged everyone to take advantage of online learning and intensive courses. There was a desire to strengthen regular communication and ensure that the major decisions of each church were understood in a timely manner.

District Chair Gary Tan from Australia then gave a detailed PPT presentation about the current status of EFC churches in Australia and to introduce new pastors. He discussed the challenges of long distances between churches, aging congregations, and the growing disconnection from the General Assembly. He suggested a few areas of development, such as English ministries, budgeting, educational requirements and verification for pastors, benefits, and real estate issues. There is definitely a need to address different needs from different regions.

After a full day of meetings, we enjoyed a delicious BBQ dinner, followed by a time of worship led by Sister Samantha. Pastor Will also led icebreaker games, which was full of excitement and laughter. At the end of the evening, we were given commemorative EFC NASA mugs and coasters with the General Assembly’s mission: “Build a Glorious Church, Expand God’s Kingdom.” That concluded a wonderful day!

~ Day 2 ~

On January 31, the morning worship was led by Sister Raelynn Huang of the GA Office. Pastor Benson Wang encouraged us with a message from John 9:35-38 and 2 Corinthians 5:19, highlighting how Jesus went to seek the lost. Board of Director Gigi Leung presented the financial report, helping everyone to understand last year’s financial statement, income from tithes, and the General Assembly’s financial status. Everyone had a clear understanding and engaged in good discussion.

Pastor KC Liu then followed with a report on the English Ministry, presenting a comprehensive PPT on the status of English-speaking pastors. The Southern California English-speaking pastors meet monthly via Zoom for mutual encouragement and support. Despite the challenges of attracting and retaining English-speaking pastors due to economic factors, cultural differences, and differing thought processes, Pastor KC is hoping to connect with English pastors from Australia and New Zealand. He hoped that more churches would empower English-speaking congregants and pastors, helping them continue to grow in Christ.

After enjoying a familiar and delicious Chinese food for lunch, we continued with the afternoon sessions. President Peter Chen from LES Taiwan shared that their foundation is rooted in the spirit of EFC — emphasizing evangelism, church planting, and building churches. Carrying the same vision to “Attempt great things for God, lead millions of souls to Christ.” President Chen thank everyone for their assistance as they have seen breakthroughs in finance and contributed greatly to theological education.

Next was reports from the Taiwan region, represented by the Southern District Pastor Ellis Tai and District Chair Sheng Lung Cheng. It was shared that with various EFC resources, churches were able to experience breakthrough and began student ministry. Pastor Ellis hopes to strengthen youth ministry, also reported that Pastor-in-Charge Andrew Lin will be speaking at a combine worship service in the South District on 6/8, along with other evangelistic meetings planned and seminarian cultivation programs. Moderator Elder Kevin also shared about his experience in past years in fostering relationships with church leaders and pastors in Taiwan.

During the North America Regional sharing, President Hwang provided a report of LES, which follows the same vision: “Attempt great things for God, lead millions of souls to Christ.” There are three sources of living water for the school, which are: 1) Lilly Endowment, 2) Asia Foundation, 3) WSCUC online accreditation. Please pray for the third phase of renovation! President Hwang reminded us to reflect on who is GA? GA was indeed all the representatives in attendance, we gather based on a shared vision.

Pastor-in-Charge for the North America Region Pastor Joe Tung shared the development of the North American ministry. He expressed his gratitude for being a part of the meeting. The North American Region is large, covering both Canada and the U.S. not including California. East District Chair Xian Zhong Chen reported on the challenges faced by many churches, particularly regarding children’s and youth ministry. District Pastor Anna Lawton expressed the challenges in recruiting pastors, and everyone prayed for many small churches in the district.

South District Pastor Charlie shared that EFC NASA is very blessed, EFC Costa Rica is being maintained by a couple of sisters, and EFC Belize’s new building is now usable. Elder Paul shared that EFC New Orleans has been without a pastor for three years, pulpit support has been done through local coworkers and online preaching, there will be a delegated pastor starting 4/1. District Chair Youn-Sha Chan shared the concerns about aging congregations, but thankful that EFC Houston does have pastors, he encouraged everyone that the relationship between the local churches and the General Assembly should be a team model and not individual battle. Elder Raymond Shih shared about EFC Chicago, they too have the aging issue. However, they are learning through the “Intentional Grandparenting” program and “Happiness Group” to perhaps start a 1.5 Generation ministry. Central District Chair Johnson Chang provided an update from EFC Toronto New Life, while facing various generational and cultural differences, Senior Pastor Joe emphasized the importance of the unity of the church and to cross generations in building up Christ-like families.

After a delicious Tex-Mex dinner, we entered the sharing from the Southern California Region. Pastor Benson Wang first shared the big picture of region, then Southwest District Pastor Stephen Wang shared many good news from the district, including EFC OC and EFC Phoenix having new senior pastors, and EFC Irvine’s new church plant. Central District Pastor Ezra Lo shared the many challenges within the district, but will continue to press on and persevere. There are also good personnel news from the Central District. As for the East District, Pastor Livingstone Liu shared updates about the stability of pastors and churches in the district, suggesting perhaps after next year’s General Assembly meeting, there could be a Youth Conference. Pastor Benson also suggests that churches can conduct or join mission trips. For Mexico Mission churches can contact Pastor KC, EFCLA will send teams to El Cajon, GLEC has mission opportunities in Kyrgyzstan in Central Asia, as well as Taiwan West Coast Summer Mission. At the end of the night, it was also decided that the 2026 General Assembly Meeting will be held in Taiwan.

~ Day 3 ~

On the morning of Saturday, February 1, the General Assembly held a special meeting with brothers and sisters of EFC NASA and EFC Houston. Worship was led by Pastor Charlie and the youth worship team. Pastor Will then shared the brief history of EFC. Pastor-In-Charge of North America Region Pastor Joe Tung shared an encouraging message on how “Evangelism Should be a Lifestyle.” It was then followed by English Region Pastor-In-Charge Pastor KC Liu sharing about the brand new Mexico Mission Center. Pastor-In-Charge Pastor Andrew Lin then responded with a message based on this year’s theme: “Declare Good News, Proclaim Salvation.” The meeting concluded wonderfully on everyone partake Communion together.

Thanks to EFC Houston for providing wonderful lunch and dessert. Because of all the support and preparation by the South District coworkers, we were able to be encouraged and strengthened in the midst of meetings, allowing EFC churches to reconnect once again. May the Lord bless all the EFC churches worldwide to experience breakthrough and to continue to grow and thrive. All glory and honor be to our Lord Jesus Christ, who sits on the throne!