The Church of God Division of Education has announced the 2021 Ministerial Internship Program (MIP) Commissioning Celebration will be conducted virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
However, the May 21-22, 2021 celebration will still be inspiring, according to MIP leaders. Dr. Tim Hill, general overseer, will be delivering the Commissioning sermon and leading the Commissioning prayer for the MIP candidates and spouses on Saturday, May 22, at 8:00 p.m. EDT.
During the service, Hill will be joined by other leadership, including Dr. David Ramírez, assistant general overseer and executive liaison to the Division of Education, and Dr. Michael Reynolds, director of Ministerial Development, as well as other members of the Church of God International Executive Committee.
This year’s activities will include a Friday night opening service on May 21, at 8:00 p.m. Ramírez and Reynolds will lead the service along with guest speakers who will motivate the candidates and viewers to be “The Church on Mission,” the theme for the Church of God for the 2020-2022 General Assembly period.
The Division of Education will also salute state MIP coordinators of the 38 states and regions from the USA Hispanic Education Ministry and the USA (English), as well as the coordinators from the Bahamas and Canada, as they successfully dealt with adjusting schedules through COVID-19. They, along with the 225 supervising pastors, worked to train the 538 MIP candidates and their spouses. Church of God Ministry to the Military, which is part of the USA (English) MIP operation, is especially noted for conducting MIP in three states, as well as in Germany, Italy, Korea, and the United Kingdom.
“The MIP has a long reach in preparing people for Spirit-filled ministry in the 21st century,” stated Dr. Donald Bennett, coordinator of MIP for the U.S.
Highlights of the training will be the Celebration service on Friday night, May 21, at 8:00 p.m., and the Commissioning service and prayer on Saturday night, May 22. Both services will be livestreamed on the Division of Education Facebook Page at https://bit.ly/3pcYtGD.
(Source: Church of God Division of Education)