After more than four decades of service to the Seventh-day Adventist Church across the globe, Elder Delbert Pearman has learned a simple but powerful truth:
“Money is for mission,” he said. “The mission doesn’t follow the money. The money follows the mission.”
On Dec. 1, 2025, Pearman began serving as vice president for finance and Trust Services director for the Central States Conference. In this role, he oversees conference finances, supports local congregations, and helps ensure that financial resources are managed with integrity and purpose in advancing the church’s mission.
For Pearman, the assignment is also a homecoming. Earlier in his career, he served in Central States after receiving a call from G. Alexander Bryant, then president of the conference, to help strengthen the field. Shortly after his arrival, unexpected leadership transitions left the conference without a president or secretary.
“It was a steep learning curve,” Pearman recalled. “But the Lord prepared me.” During that season, he stepped in to help guide operations and stabilize the work, gaining valuable experience that would shape his future leadership.
A global classroom
Pearman’s ministry journey began after graduating from Oakwood University in 1983. His first assignment took him to Malawi, where he served as an accountant.
“That’s where I realized my business training could support the mission of the church,” he said. “Finance is ministry too.”
From Malawi, God opened doors around the world. Pearman served in Bermuda, Sri Lanka, the Middle East, and Ethiopia, later joining the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists. Most recently, he returned to Sri Lanka to serve as president of the church. Each assignment became a classroom, teaching him new lessons about stewardship, leadership and trust.
“One thing I’ve learned is that people’s attitudes toward money are different everywhere,” he said. “But God always provides what His church needs.”
Turning dollars into souls
Working across cultures reshaped Pearman’s perspective on money. In North America, people tend to save. In countries with high inflation, money quickly loses value.
“In those places, you don’t want to hold money,” he explained. “You want to use it while it can still do good.”
Those lessons guide his approach today. “I’m not here just to save money,” Pearman said. “I’m here to spend it wisely for mission. We want to convert dollars into souls.”
Throughout his career, he has helped multiple church regions achieve their first clean audits. “When I arrived, they said they had never had one,” he said. “By God’s grace, we were able to get things in order.”
For Pearman, strong financial systems are ultimately about trust. “When members give, they deserve to know their resources are handled carefully,” he said. “Sometimes the challenge isn’t provision—it’s good management.”
Trusting God’s direction
Reflecting on his journey, Pearman points to Prov. 3:5–6 as a guiding text: “Trust in the Lord with all thine heart… and He shall direct thy paths.”
“I can see now how the Lord has directed my path,” he said. “Every place prepared me for the next.”
After years of global service alongside his wife, Curdell, and raising two daughters shaped by mission life, Pearman says it feels right to serve locally again. Following God’s leading across continents has brought him back to Central States—ready once more to help move the mission forward.
By Pastor Trevor Barnes, communication director, Central States Conference, and Hugh Davis, communication director, Mid-America Union.
