by Rev. Casey Southerland
PMU Field Director in Cincinnati, OH
the Missions Banner, Aug/Sept 2024

Each year PMU’s Annual Council Meeting sets the stage for labors for the coming year.  This year as PMU approaches our 40^th year as an agency, the meeting considered PMU’s founding and its future.  The Lord’s providential blessings have been evident.

Past and Present Servants.  While the agency hasn’t yet reached its 40^th year, we have two Councilmen whose time of service has.  Dr. John Battle and Dr. Morris McDonald were among the men who stepped up in a time of need in 1984 and worked to meet the needs of missionaries on the field by establishing PMU, with Dr. McDonald serving as the first Missions Coordinator (later Field Director) from 1985-2002.  Dr. McDonald handed the baton to Dr. Len Pine who served as Field Director from 2002-2019, and Council Member since then.  These roles, together with 7 years of church planting come to 30 years of service by Dr. Pine, who was elected to the office of President of PMU this year.  In the midst of Dr. Pine’s years of service as Field Director, Dr. Kevin Backus also served as International Field Director and continues to serve as Assistant Field Director for Myanmar. Elder Stuart Welch and Rev. John Dyck have now served PMU for 30 years.  One of our newer councilmen, Elder Don Strickland, has now been with PMU for 5 years.  We’re grateful to the Lord for these benchmarks of His faithfulness through these servants of Christ for the sake of the Great Commission.

Set Up for Faithfulness in Future Endeavors.  The focus on future service was set by Dr. Kevin Backus early in this year’s annual meeting by a presentation on three modes of service in PMU’s history.  Two in the past and one, Lord-willing, in the future.  The first mode was a season of providing a haven for missionaries already in service who were in need of a sending agency. The second mode was more reactive, with PMU responding to individual missionaries already focused on particular locations for service.  Now, serving in this Third Millennium (“3M”), PMU is preparing to enlist and send teams of missionaries to plant churches among those unreached by the gospel of Christ.  We hope you will join us in this ambitious endeavor to promote the glory of Jesus Christ where His Name is not yet known.

(pictured above: Past and Present Field Directors:  Dr. Kevin Backus (International Field Director 2010-2014), Dr. Len Pine (2002-2019), Dr. Morris McDonald (1985-2002), Rev. Casey Southerland (2019-present))