Currently serving as senior pastor of Queenswest Covenant Church in Queens, New York, Sung will begin his new duties May 1. He will focus primarily on directing church planting and church vitalization initiatives.
Sung has planted two Covenant churches – Highrock Covenant in Arlington, Massachusetts (1999-2003), and Queenswest, which began in 2003. He has assisted in planting four other congregations.
“I am delighted and honored to have Peter join me in pursuing the movement of God here in the East Coast Conference,” Burgoyne said, noting the growth in numbers of church planters serving in cities, suburbs and small towns. “We have been praying for God to guide and provide the right person to strategically cultivate, coach and support these leaders.”
Describing Sung as intuitive, visionary and a strategic thinker, Burgoyne says, “His sensitivities and experiences will serve us well in the coming years.”
“This process has been evolving for two years,” Sung points out, with a 2006 discernment process begun by the conference board serving as a catalyst. With the year 2020 in view, Burgoyne said a task group was appointed by the conference board to think about the kinds of priorities conference ministries should be developing.
Three interwoven priorities emerged from the process – congregational renewal, church planting, and missional leadership, Burgoyne says. “Peter’s gifts, calling and experience will help us advance the Kingdom of God along these lines.”
“My great passion is to see God’s name lifted up in lives and hearts through the local church and her engagement in culture,” Sung says. “I want to see the knowledge of the glory of the Lord cover the earth as the waters cover the sea. I want to see missional, healing, real, and culturally relevant churches in our conference.
“I believe God loves our churches and his desire is to see his name be glorified through us,” he adds. “I yearn for revival in my own life and I am excited to partner with conference churches to partake of all that God has in store for us.”
Born in Korea and raised in New York City, Sung, 34, and his wife, Susie, have three daughters: Emelyn, Madelyn, and Sophia. Sung is a graduate of the University of Michigan (B.A., English Literature) and Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary. He was ordained to Word and Sacrament by the Covenant in 2006.
The East Coast Conference includes 67 member congregations as well as five church planting missions in process since 2007. Since May last year, approximately 300 church leaders from 40 congregations have explored intentional renewal through the Veritas workshops led by John Wenrich of the Department of Church Growth and Evangelism.
For more information on the East Coast Conference, visit the conference website.
