MINNESOTA CONFERENCE
Two Pastoral Transitions in the Minnesota Conference (left) Jiwan, Rebecca, Hannah, Isabella and Jessica Moon (right) Abner and Kara Aguilar
Courtesy Moon Family
Minnetonka Church We are happy to announce that Pastor Jiwan Stefan Moon has accepted the position of senior pastor for Minnetonka Church. The Minnesota Conference Board of Trustees extended the call after the Personnel Committee and the Church Search Committee interviewed him. Pastor Jiwan started with the Minnesota Conference on Aug. 1. Communication Department: How long were you in your current position? Pastor Jiwan: I have been at the General Conference in my current position since 2014 serving as the inaugural director of Public Campus Ministries, a ministry which grew exponentially on a global perspective during my six-year tenure. I come with 25 years pastoral experience with a special emphasis on youth and young adult ministry. The world church is experiencing budgetary constraints, and as a result many positions are being eliminated.
20 OUTLOOKMAG.ORG OCT 2020
Courtesy Aguilar Family
CD: What do you see as your major role in a church that has a school? PJ: I am convicted that we as a church must raise the next generation of leaders. We must raise a new generation of Joshuas and Calebs who will finish the gospel work. The following is a quote from Ellen White that has guided me over 25 years of youth and young adult ministry: “With such an army of workers as our youth, rightly trained, might furnish, how soon the message of a crucified, risen, and soon-coming Saviour might be carried to the whole world! How soon might the end come, – the end of suffering and sorrow and sin!” (Messages to Young People, p. 193). I see myself working closely with the school board, church board and the board of trustees to see that “our army of workers” are rightly trained by giving them quality Adventist education. We must create a symbiotic and collaborative partnership between the church and school. This can be realized when we work together as a team; working together with parents, teachers, church
leaders and administrators, and even students, all as stakeholders invested in the well-being of not just one, but two important organizations that will serve our Minnetonka community. CD: In most cases church members see the pastor’s family as partners in ministry. How do you see your family doing ministry in the church and school environment? PJ: I am the son of the first missionary sent by the Korean Union Conference of Seventh-day Adventists. My wife, Jessica, is a teacher by profession and currently a full-time home school teacher busy preparing our three daughters for a life of mission and service for God and others. She majored in French and speaks four languages: Portuguese, French, Spanish and English. She loves children and enjoys teaching them about the love of Jesus and the importance of serving Him. Our three daughters, Hannah (13) and Rebecca (10) both were baptized on their tenth birthdays, and Isabella (9) is preparing for her baptism as well. Hannah wants to be a pastor, and Rebecca a missionary doctor. Isabella is still
deciding what she should do. They all play violin and piano, and love to sing as well. It is a joy to our family to use our musical talents for God. Our family motto is, “Serving God and others in reverence and humility.” As a family that is what we want to do. Living in a mission field sparked the missionary spirit in me, and I want our family to be remembered one day as a missionary family—heart and soul. Please join us in praying for the Moon family as they transition to the Minnetonka Church. Hutchinson Church Pastor Abner Aguilar has been the pastor of Cambridge and The Edge Christian Fellowship churches for nearly four years. We’re glad to announce that Pastor Abner and his wife, Kara, have accepted the call to serve as pastor of the Hutchinson Church. Communication Department: We are excited, Pastor Abner, that you accepted this call. We believe you will be able to connect well with the Maplewood Academy community. What do see as your major role?
