Covenant News

'I Don't Know How God Works This'

OMAHA, NE (January 12, 2005) - When the Midwest Conference of the Evangelical Covenant Church prepared its January prayer list for distribution to conference pastors, the staff had no idea just how the timing of that list would impact the life of one particular pastor, Ken Busse, whose name appears on the list.

The list is distributed three times each year – each list names a portion (roughly one-third) of the pastors and full-time staff serving the 89 congregations scattered among five states that comprise the conference. The January list was prepared last September – a fairly routine task that encourages recipients of the list to pray for those mentioned in the list, as well as their ministries.

Who could have known that Busse, senior pastor at New Gottland Evangelical Covenant Church in McPherson, Kansas, would undergo quadruple bypass surgery on Tuesday, January 11? And to make it even more startling, who would have known that his heart surgery would take place on the very day – January 11 - that the list called for recipients to pray for him?

"I'm the one who put that list together," says Reva Neal, conference office manager. "It's pretty cool, isn't it? I put that list together in September – it's awesome."

What makes the situation even more awesome is some background on how that prayer list evolved. Neal says the list used to include names listed in random order – it lacked organization, as she puts it. "Now I try to put it into some order," she explains. "I alphabetize the names and then assign them a date – Ken's just happened to fall on that day (January 11). I don't know how God works this. I just thank God for using me."

Busse has served in New Gottland for almost a decade after serving Rosedale Evangelical Covenant Church in Bristow, Nebraska. He experienced heart pain on Monday – doctors discovered extreme blockage to the arteries, though no heart muscle appeared damaged. He was taken to Kansas Heart Hospital in Wichita, about an hour from his home, where the surgery was performed. Conference staff say he appears to be making a speedy recovery. "Today (Wednesday), Ken is walking up and down the hall, fighting nausea and quite groggy, but this is normal," reads an email update sent by the conference office.

Continued prayer is requested not only for the pastor, but also for his wife, Debbie, and the rest of the Busse family. For updates on Busse's progress, call the conference office at 402-334-3020 or email Neal at midcovcon@qwest.net.

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