This would not have been a good Synod in which to catch a quick nap. You might have missed something big—like the establishment of a new RP denomination!

For those of us who have been through many Synod meetings, the work can at times feel routine. But each Synod is different—sometimes vastly different—from any other Synod. Even Synod delegates were amazed to hear that the Cush4Christ mission in Southern Sudan had reached a point where it could become its own denomination, a denomination of over 300 Sudanese believers. Reformed Presbyterians have labored for many years in this mission field, but it has been a comparatively short time in which to establish a denomination. That is all the more evidence that it is God’s work.

While security concerns keep a lot of the exciting news about an RP theological hall in East Asia under wraps, the Synod has continued to bolster its commitment to that critical work.

It wouldn’t have been wise to nap during presbytery reports or the Home Mission Board report, either. New churches, and church plants, and exploratory works have cropped up in many places that haven’t had an RP witness in a long time—the province of Alberta, for example, and the state of Georgia. Several states with just one RP congregation now have another RP work or congregation. And there is interest in the RPCNA from churches in Wisconsin and Virginia. Would it not be desirable to one day have an RP church in every province and state in North America, and every major city?

While the ratification of a new Directory for Public Worship might not be as exciting, it does mark the end of a careful and painstaking 20-year process to make the directory more accurate and more useful. In a day when many denominations founder because of either lax standards on worship or a failure to uphold their own standards, it should encourage us to be part of a denomination that wrestles with current issues in light of unchanging biblical truth, and that is able to gain enough unity to put its beliefs and practices on paper.

I doubt that the RPCNA is known for its ability to throw a good party. But there are times when God’s blessing compels us to celebrate. A large part of Synod’s agenda on Thursday was to join hundreds of friends of the RP Seminary in celebrating God’s faithfulness over the seminary’s 200 years. The Heinz History Center in downtown Pittsburgh, Pa., became a beacon for God’s history as people recounted how He had preserved and prospered the seminary through many generations. It was clear that the seminary has had a big influence far beyond the Reformed Presbyterian Church.

By the way, I didn’t see any Synod delegates napping during Synod. Perhaps you can see why it was so easy to pay attention.