The following post is by Trey Harper. Trey is a CBF Fellow living in Houston, Texas. 

Trey received his Master of Music and Master of Divinity at Baylor University’s George W Truett Theological Seminary.  Trey has served churches in Georgia, Alabama and Texas.  He is married to the Rev. Amanda Wilson Harper and they hope to serve together and co-pastor in the future.  In his spare time, Trey enjoys travel, food and reality television.

Below is Trey’s reflection on the Friday night worship service at the 2013 CBF General Assembly in Greensboro, N.C.

It was the last night of a great General Assembly and people were waiting in anticipation to hear from Suzii Paynter, CBF’s new executive coordinator.

This would be the first time she would address the CBF community as a whole.

I don’t know what most people were expecting.  Perhaps a lot of pomp and circumstance and celebration of the new executive coordinator, but instead the time together was centered around the table. 

This shift in focus reminds us all that it is not about the work of one person, but the work of all of us together in communion with God.  Even the task of setting the table was done with great significance. As the dancers processed in with the linens, the cup and the bread, we all watched knowing that something important was happening.

As I think about the communion table, I think about the various tables we gather around and I appreciated Suzii’s reminder that we can be alone or we can be a fellowship together.

And really, who likes sitting at the table alone?

As a young minister, I really appreciated Suzii’s boldness in reminding the large groups to take a chance on young clergy.  Maybe the baton doesn’t have to be completely passed, but let us at least run with it together for some time.

In seminary, I was worried that young clergy might not find their place at the CBF table, but through Suzii’s vision, programs like the CBF Fellows and churches investing in young clergy, I think we are finding our place.

We are an excited bunch that have a creativity necessary to navigate the challenging terrain of the Church.

As the time for communion began, Roger Paynter, pastor of First Baptist Church, Austin, Texas, reminded us that the disciples came to the table expecting one thing and left with a different reality.

We are not too different from those disciples as we often approach the table with our own desires, agendas and expectations.  This time of worship together was more than an introduction to the all too familiar table and to Suzii, but a reminder that we are all in this together.

Before the end of the evening, we worshiped together, listened intently, filled our souls with the bread and cup, and left our time together knowing things were never going to be the same.

Yep, it was more than an introduction.