I am a General Conference Page. What does that mean? Surrounded by thousands, we are here to serve and I have found the work to be very humbling. I can’t help but to think about John 14 when Jesus lowers himself to the place of a slave to wash the feet of his disciples. Some accept willingly and some rebel (Peter). I have to admit I have been on both sides. There have been moments where I have not accepted my task in the spirit of humility but most of the time it has been a really wonderful experience to be lowered. The job of Page is to serve the delegates and the many people (or special interest groups) who want messages delivered throughout the plenary floor, whom need to fill out appropriate forms to be cited in theDaily Christian Advocate(DCA) who need copies of anything, who just need help in any form it presents itself. I suppose most people do not realize that Pages have the great responsibility of securing their own financial arrangements to travel to Tampa. For most of us, there are many people who are working just as hard at home to make it easy for us to be here. Which means that I have paid to be a servant.
From the eyes of one page, I have found General Conference to be a place of great disappointment and grace, a place of dissention and strange unity, and certainly not a place for the faint of heart. During our first week, we were assigned to various committees who broke into subcommittees to deal with thousands of petitions that were submitted from across the world. What a fascinating experience! I have read and studiedThe Book of Discipline and The Book of Resolutionsand I can now say that I was in the room when they were discussed. I will never seeThe Book of ResolutionsorThe Book of Disciplinethe same. I will always remember the people around the room, the things they discussed, and the decisions they made. Now, for me, our legislative statements have a face.
