Interview with Walter Harvey

DENNIS: Greetings and welcome to the video portion of the July 2023 Creating Connections digital newsletter from the office of Ethnic Relations. I am Dennis Rivera the director of the Office of Ethnic Relations and today I am joined by Walter Harvey who serves as the president of the Assemblies of God National Black Fellowship and also serves as an Executive Presbyter of the General Council of the Assemblies of God, representing our Ethnic / Language Fellowships. Walter, I am honored to have you join me today to talk about what God is doing among the ethnic minority churches of the Assemblies of God.

WALTER: Dennis, I’m honored to be here. Thank you for the opportunity. Our God is certainly doing some wonderful things among our Fellowship as a whole. Where would we be without ethnic fellowships? They are the salt, they are the pepper, they are the hot sauce, they are the Tabasco sauce, they are the flavor of the Assemblies of God.

DENNIS: I love that, I love that. Walter, last year in June you and I worked together to host our very first “We are Better Together” conference with a focus on strengthening the partnership between the General Council, the 66 Districts and our 24 Ethnic/ Language Fellowships. All three ministry entities have the goal of serving, resourcing, and facilitating the work of every Assemblies of God local church. That is where the great commission is being fulfilled every week. The theme of our conference was based upon Solomon’s words found in Ecclesiastes 4:9-12, and I am paraphrasing, “Two are better than one, for they can help each other succeed. If one person falls, the other can reach out and help, likewise, two people lying close together can keep each other warm. A person standing alone can be attacked and defeated, but two can stand back-to-back and conquer. Three are even better, for a triple-braided cord is not easily broken.”

We used the three-fold cord to illustrate the added strength the Ethnic /Language pastors and churches bring to our movement the Assemblies of God. Walter, for just a few minutes give us your thoughts why you believe our ethnic minority churches are helping move the Assemblies of God forward?

WALTER: Dennis that’s a great question. We are in a covenant relationship. God’s a God of covenant. The first institution that He made was a marriage. It was the husband and the wife, but Jesus is the center of that. Oftentimes, He’s the invisible member. We are also in covenant in the Assemblies of God. We have our General Council and our districts. I think the invisible component is often our ethnic and language fellowships. We truly are better together. We need one another. We cannot fulfill the mission and vision God has for us throughout this nation without working and cooperating together.

DENNIS: Absolutely. Walter, this year in 2023 we are hosting some regional conferences with our Ethnic / Fellowship leaders. The theme of these regional conferences is NEXT, and our focus is to help our Ethnic churches to thrive beyond the founding generation. So, we are talking about how to engage the communities where God has strategic placed us, and how to engage the next generation who will lead our churches and ministries soon. Walter, briefly comment on why it is important that ethnic minority churches focus beyond their Jerusalem and on also on Next Gen leaders.

WALTER: We are a people of Pentecost. In the book of Acts, the church that was birthed on that day got comfortable in Jerusalem, but that’s not the fulfillment of the mission. It starts there, but it must go to Judea, Samaria, and the uttermost parts of the world. All of us, together—General Council, districts, as well as ethnics—we have the responsibility to exegete our communities well. At the same time, we have this wonderful dynamic, not just ethnic diversity, but we have generational diversity. It’s no secret that most of our credential holders are close to 60 years in age. If we don’t make an intentional shift to engage the next generation of leaders and intentionally begin to mentor and disciple them and provide them opportunities and room at the table, then I think we are missing a tremendous opportunity. There is a wave of resignations that will be coming in the next 10 to 15 years from your age group and mine. You’re a lot older than I am! No, I think we’re peers. That’s the reality. We have a responsibility, an obligation, and a privilege to engage the next generation.

DENNIS: Absolutely. Well, speaking of Next, the next major gatherings of our Ethnic Fellowship leaders and churches will take place in Columbus, Ohio at General Council, July 31st through August 4th. To continue to strengthen this three-fold cord, we will be hosting an Ethnic Language Women’s Reception, hosted by the Network of Women Ministers and Ethnic Relations on Wednesday, August 2nd at 8:00 p.m. in the Champaign Room at the Hyatt Hotel. Ethnic Relations will also host an “Evening of Celebration and Worship” on Thursday, August 3rd from 6:00 – 8:00 p.m. in the Union Station Ballroom at the Convention Center. The purpose of the Thursday gathering is to come together, celebrate by recognizing God’s work among our ethnic churches, and worship Jesus together. We will be led by worship teams from the Columbus area, and we are expecting a powerful and inspiring gathering in the presence of God. There is no cost to either event, but you must register for the General Council and in your registration, you can simply click on the box that announces these events.

Historically many of our Ethnic / Fellowship pastors and church members have not attended General Council events. In many respects, some of the strongest and fastest growing portions of our AG Family have remained unseen by most. This year in conjunction with General Council, the Nigerian, Vietnamese, Korean English and National Jewish Fellowships have moved their Fellowship business meetings to Columbus.

Let me add that the Jewish Fellowship will also host a dinner in the Hyatt Hotel on Friday evening. There is a cost to this dinner, but you can sign up when you register for the General Council.

Walter, Can you comment on why you believe our gathering together at General Council where we will celebrate God’s among us, and where we will bow our hearts and worship Jesus will strengthens both our Ethnic / Language Fellowships and our greater Assemblies of God family? Also, take a moment to personally invite people to this gathering.

WALTER: It’s such a privilege to invite people but let me tell you why people should come. Something happens when we gather in the presence of the Lord. I believe that Columbus, Ohio is a city of destiny. This General Council, like none other, will be our most diverse that I’ve been a part of in the 31 years I’ve been in the Assemblies of God. An opportunity for all of our ethnic and language fellowships to come together in one room to praise the Lord in our own language and in our own tongue, it takes us back to the Day of Pentecost. The highlight of course will be the presence of the Lord Himself as we build a throne for Him to come sit. We celebrate what He has done in our midst of our communities and our fellowships. For several years our General Council has had a theme Our Church, Our Family. So let’s come together on that Thursday night and let’s be the family of God. As we celebrate Jesus in unity, we together will go from that place back to our communities.

Dennis, I have a question for you. What outcomes are you hoping, praying, and believing will happen as a result of these events?

DENNIS: Walter, I am believing God for His manifest presence in our midst. I would love for God to smile upon and take pleasure in our unity. My hope is that our Ethnic / Language Fellowships will become more visible to the greater AG Family and that the idea that ethnic- minorities are 44% of our AG U.S.A. would not just be a statistic on a piece of paper or a website, but that our coming together will inspire all of us that we are part of a growing multi-ethnic family that is called to be a witness to everyone, everywhere of saving, healing and restoring power of Jesus Christ.

Don’t forget, Columbus, Ohio, Thursday August 2nd at 6:00 p.m.—An Evening of Celebration and Worship! We hope to see you there!