Get Involved

There are many things I love about being part of a small, rural church. I love the friendly, family atmosphere. I appreciate the steadfast faith of the older church members. Their unshakeable trust is a great example to the younger generations. I enjoy hearing the children sing songs about Jesus at the top of their lungs and dancing to the tunes with great joy. Their unhindered worship is a great example to those of us who have allowed the world to stifle our passion and desire to scream the Good News from the top of our lungs. Yes, there are many great things about small, rural churches like BCC, the one I grew up in, and the others I’ve worshiped with over the years.

Any church regardless of size and location has struggles. Small, rural churches are not exempt from this, but I’m pretty convinced we don’t have to let struggles distract us from loving God and loving our neighbors. In fact, I’m growing more and more convinced that those struggles may be the greatest opportunities we can give God to make his name and glory known to our community.

Small, rural churches have an abundance of potential for amazing ministry to be done. One of the great struggles in these churches is that they rarely come close to reaching their God-given potential. There are various reasons that contribute to this, but it would take far too much space and time to explore them in a single article. Instead of looking at the reasons why, I would rather invite you to be a part of the solution. In order for any church to reach its God-given potential as a
congregation, it requires everyone to get involved. Every one has gifts, talents, and abilities. Everyone can do something. No matter you age, IQ, health, or stature. God wants you to partner with Him in doing His work.

So here is the invitation: find the things you are passionate about, that you enjoy doing, or are good at, and do them with a ministry heart. You can cook. Cook some meals for people recovering for surgery or for our church dinners. You love kids. Teach a Sunday School class or volunteer at JAM. You like to build and fix things. Help the neighbors with broken steps or spend a few hours every couple weeks helping us tackle some things around the building. If you don’t volunteer because you are waiting to be asked, THIS IS THE ASK!  God already told us to go serve. God already gave us instructions about all the parts of the body working together. Get in the game and help our church family be the church that God has called us to be.

We have worked hard this year to create new ministry teams and develop our existing teams. We have had individuals step up to be Ministry Team Leaders, so that we can do our part in the Kingdom work God has called us to do. Below you will see two lists. The first list consists of teams that currently have Ministry Team Leaders and are looking for people to serve alongside them in those ministries. The second list are the teams that we are hoping to find leaders for in the next few months. Which one catches your attention? Which one makes you excited about what God could do through that team? Which one includes gifts and talents you have? If you aren’t sure, give me a call or stop by the office. I would love to help you discover how God is desiring to partner with you!

Contact the Team Leader to get involved           
Finance Ministry Team (Doug Umbanhowar)        
Maintenance Ministry Team (Clair Springett)         
Care Ministry Team (Kathy Hodgman)           
Children’s Ministry Team (Sarah Johnson & Lisa Springett)   
JAM Ministry Team (Becky Springett)           
Student Ministry Team (Janice Cauvel)           
Adult Bible Studies Ministry Team (Sarah Johnson)       
Church Family Meals Ministry Team (Debbie Streeter & Becky Miller)
Missions Ministry Team (Julie Zecklin)
Outreach Ministry Team (Debbie McPike)          
Sunday Worship Ministry Team (Jeremiah Johnson)       
Tuesday Worship Ministry Team (Lisa Springett)
Worship Support Ministry Team (Becky Springett)


Contact Sarah to get involved
Transition Ministry Team
Housekeeping Ministry Team
Grounds Ministry Team
Decorations Ministry Team
Encouragement Ministry Team
Fellowship Ministry Team
Community Group Ministry Team

Year End Reflections

I have always found that the end of the calendar year draws me into a time of reflection. What were the highlights of the last year? What were the struggles of the last year? How did I see God move and reveal himself to me? Where did I see his faithfulness? Where did I see my faithfulness to him? What needs to shift in order to live a more surrendered life? How did I love well? How do I need to love more?

Despite the highs and lows in life, as disciples of Jesus we are always striving to live a life that puts God on display to those around us. We are allowing God’s spirit to shape and mold us into greater reflections of Jesus. During this Advent season, I’m asking God to show me how he is desiring to work in and through me. I want to invite you to join me in that same prayer as we prepare to celebrate the birth of our Savior.

We started this year spending a great deal of time exploring what it means to be the Church and what that looks like for us as a local church family. I would like to invite you to use part of those studies as a tool as we ask God to speak to us. Remember, as a church family we have stated that we are committed to LOVING God and loving our neighbors by WORSHIPING together in unity; EQUIPPING Christians to serve others; and LEADING others to a deeper relationship with Jesus Christ.

• How did you love God well in 2016?
• How might God be calling you to love him more deeply in 2017?
• How did you love your neighbor well in 2016?
• How might God be calling you to love your neighbor more deeply in 2017?
• How did you worship together in unity 2016?
• How might God be calling you to grow in your worship with one another in 2017?
• How did you equip others to serve during 2016?
• How might God be calling you to equip other people to serve in 2017?
• How did you lead others to a deeper relationship with Jesus Christ in 2016?
• How might God be asking you to continue to lead others with a deeper relationship with Jesus Christ in 2017?

Lord give us eyes to see, ears to hear, and hearts to understand your Spirit as you reveal yourself and your will to us in this Advent season.

Rhythms of Rest

Jeremiah and I have just returned from a much needed three day personal retreat. We spent our time resting our bodies, renewing our souls, and reconnecting with God. I cannot tell you how good and healthy and necessary this is. The past several months have felt very much like a whirlwind running from church events to doctors appointments to camp planning meetings to family events and other work and personal obligations. Thinking about all of these things as I type them is exhausting. These are all good things. I want to fill my time with good things, things that make a difference and have an impact. I love filling my schedule with things to do.

Our culture, especially in the Midwest, is great at promoting and glorifying a “busy” life. We praise people for their productivity, hard work and full schedules. I have often been complimented for this. One friend once told me, “You get many miles out of life.” I think it is important to use time wisely and be productive, especially in our Kingdom work. However, I fear we have put way too much emphasis on this side of the spectrum and have neglected the equally important opposite end of the spectrum, rest.

From the very beginning it is clear that we were created to rest. God creates Adam and Eve on the sixth day of the Creation poem. They are created in God’s image and their first full day of existence is spent experiencing rest with God on day seven. We read over and over again in the first chapter of Genesis the phrase “evening and morning.” It is backwards from how we think about time. The Bible describes the idea of day as starting with the evening. What do you do in the evening? Rest! This pattern seems to indicate that our work comes from out rest, not the other way around.

Let’s be honest with ourselves, this is not how we think. We work hard all day so we can leave work to go home and rest. We work long hours to earn extra money so we can retire early and rest. I think this perspective of work is very dangerous. It is backwards from what God has laid out for us. He commands us to rest and Jesus models this and teaches us that “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.” (Mark 2:27) God invites us to rest with Him, to trust that He is enough, to trust that our value and identity is in God alone and not our work.

I have found when I make rest the priority, my work is better. I’m more effective in ministering to others. I am more present with other people. I have a better attitude about those things I don’t really like doing. In these times my work has come from my rest. I have answered God’s invitation to rest and I can better do the work He has called me to do. But when I make the work the priority, things get messy. I struggle to concentrate. I miss things. I have a bad attitude. My work is sloppy. I’ve rejected God’s invitation and I make the work about me or something else other than God. And eventually I crash because I’ve been living outside of the rhythm in which I was created to live.

Think of it like the pendulum on a clock. It swings back and forth in a steady rhythm. When the pendulum swings properly the clock functions properly and keeps the right time. When that pendulum gets off balance, the clock doesn’t keep the proper time. It runs fast or slow. The rhythm of rest and work in our lives is just like that pendulum. When the rhythm is off we aren’t living the way God created us to live.

We have to intentionally manage our time to include daily rest (good sleep and time spent with God), weekly rest (Sabbath, a full day of rest), monthly rest (a day or two set aside for extra rest and renewal), and yearly rest (a vacation or retreat). This will not just happen. Perhaps you have heard the saying, “If you don’t manage your time, it will manage you.” God did not intend us to live like that. What do your rhythms of rest look like? Does your work flow out of your rest or is your work dictating your rest? Brothers and sister, we must be obedient in this. God is offering us an invitation to rest in Him and trust in Him. How will you answer that invitation?

Perspective and Attitude

 

I’m currently sitting in the allergist office waiting my mandatory 30 minutes to make sure I don’t have reactions. It is actually a very annoying weekly ritual, but it is for my own safety and in the long run makes me stronger. The waiting room tv is playing an interview with a woman who has diabetes. She just shared that many of her friends started to pray that God would take away diabetes. She responded by asking her friends to stop praying because diabetes saved her life. I thought that was a peculiar response so I listened a little closer. She went on to explain about how unhealthy and sick she felt until the discovered the disease and now she felt strong and healthy. She was grateful for the diagnoses, because of how it changed her life.

Now this might seem like a stretch, but it immediately caused me to think about the things around us that we are constantly asking God to take away because it is annoying or hard. What if God is allowing those things to be present in our lives to make us stronger, healthier or even greater reflections of Him? If that is the case, shouldn’t my attitude be one of thanksgiving instead of one of complaining.

Paul shares some similar thoughts with the church in Corinth. We don’t know exactly what the thorn in his flesh is, but he begs God to take it away three times. God chooses not to and teaches Paul, “My grace is sufficient of you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” (2 Corinthians 12:7) Paul changes his attitude and decides to be grateful for this weakness and struggle. He discovers and explains in his letter that when he changes his attitude, “Christ’s power may rest in me…For when I am weak, then I am strong.” (2 Corinthians 12:9-10)

In Genesis, we discover Joseph seems to have embraced a similar attitude.  His brothers have plotted to kill him, but end up selling him as a servant. After serving in Potiphar’s house, he is falsely accused and thrown in prison. When he is finally reunited with his family and saves them from suffering during a famine he says to them, “You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.” While I’m sure there were several times Joseph was frustrated and struggled with his circumstance, he allowed God to shape and mold him during the process.

Our God is very good and does not harm us, but he does desire to use the brokenness around for his glory. We have to be willing to allow his Spirit to work through us in that way. Are there things in your life that are causing frustration or hurt? What is your attitude toward those things? What might God be trying to teach you? How might he be trying to shape you through these circumstances? How might God be using this as an opportunity to make himself known to you and those around you?

Simplicity of Discipleship

As a Discipleship Minister it probably comes as no great surprise that I am passionate about discipleship and get really excited when I see it in action. I asked Jeremiah to snap this picture during service because I thought it was a beautiful picture of the simplicity of discipleship. Far too often we make discipleship into this massive task that is far too difficult to even talk about let alone try to do. The more I study discipleship and disciple others, the more amazed I become at the simplicity of it.

I used to think discipling others meant I had to be perfect at following Jesus. Wrong! Not one of the disciples we see in Scripture was perfect and they went on to start churches all over the world.

I used to think discipling others meant I had to have all the answers. Wrong! The disciples in Scriptures wrestled to understand the Text. I love Paul’s story because we see him mature and grow throughout the book of Acts.

I used to think discipling others meant lots of formal meetings where I would teach what I knew about Jesus and the Bible. Wrong! Jesus disciples others as they are doing simple every day things like fishing, going to the Temple to worship, eating meals, gathering water at a well.

Paul tells the church in Corinth, “Be imitators of me, just as I am of Christ” (1 Corinthians 11:1 NASB). We read that and freak out because we know we aren’t the best imitators of Jesus. Paul is not saying he is a perfect imitator. He is simply telling the Christians in Corinth, “I’m following Jesus. Come follow Him with me.” Do the things I do in following Jesus so you can learn how to follow Jesus too. It sounds so simple, because is many ways it is.

Annette follows Jesus and worships Him by singing praises and making music for His glory. She invites Evelyn to do the same. So Evelyn learns to follow Jesus by worshiping Him through singing and clapping. There was no long lecture. Annette just followed Jesus and invited someone to do it with her.

Now I’m not saying the process of discipleship is always easy. That certainly is not the case. Often simple things aren’t easy. Try not eating that amazing bowl of Sherman’s Ice Cream or your favorite dessert placed right in front of you; simple but not easy. I do want to challenge us not to make discipleship more challenging than it should be. Let’s keep following Jesus and inviting others to do that with us.

It starts with an invitation. Jesus says to his apostles, “Come follow me.” Who can you say that to by inviting them to come to church with you or joining one of our Fall Bible Studies. It is a simple start to a beautiful journey.