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Greetings in the name of our Lord Jesus!
Welcome to "IN TOUCH", the new CNH District e- newsletter.
| In This Issue |
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Newt's Notes
Pastors' Wives Retreat
Interim Ministry -- "Like a Bridge" by Paul Meyer
"Present Future": A Book a Lot of People are Reading
Ed Reports Some Great Ministry in the Sierras and Nevada
Steve Willweber Accepts Call
District Calendar
Pleasant Hills Refocus
"The New Normal"...an article by Joel Koerschen |
| Pastors' Wives Retreat |
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The first full weekend in February is traditionally set aside for the annual CNH Pastors Wives' Retreat. (Click on picture for larger image.)
This year was no exception. The weekend was blessed by Keynote Speaker Elise Arndt of Troy, Michigan. Bible studies and devotions were led by wives from our district. A wonderful time was had by all.
Pastors and Congregations please put the following dates on your calendar and remind your Pastor's wife that this is the date to attend the next retreat.
February 3-5, 2006, San Juan Bautista
Flyers will be sent out soon. Please encourage your wife to attend. It is a time of renewal and joy that is looked forward to by many. Congregations consider giving this event your Pastor's wife as an annual gift. The time spent there is very special. If for some reason, you are unable to send your Pastor's wife, there are a limited number of scholarships available. Watch for further information and registration forms.
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| Interim Ministry -- "Like a Bridge" by Paul Meyer |
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"Like a Bridge over Troubled Waters I will lay me down." So went the song by Simon and Garfunkel. Our glorious Golden Gate Bridge has its two towers planted on a side of the entrance to the Bay and its suspended roadway allows safe transport from one side to the other.
Our Interim Ministry display uses the symbol of the suspension bridge to portray the ministry that spans the time between the ending of one full time, long term pastoral ministry till the installation of the next full-time, (hopefully) long-term pastorate. It is a ministry designed for "the in between time".
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| "Present Future": A Book a Lot of People are Reading |
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Why is President Newton giving away copies of "Present Future" to everyone he meets? Perhaps it's because Reggie McNeal has touched on the jugular when it comes to where the church needs to be as it attempts to minister in our world.
Reggie McNeal identifies the six most important realities that church leaders must address including: recapturing the spirit of Christianity and replacing "church growth" with a wider vision of kingdom growth; developing disciples instead of church members; fostering the rise of a new apostolic leadership; focusing on spiritual formation rather than church programs; and shifting from prediction and planning to preparation for the challenges of an uncertain world. McNeal contends that by changing the questions church leaders ask themselves about their congregations and their plans, they can frame the core issues and approach the future with new eyes, new purpose, and new ideas. Written for congregational leaders, pastors, and staff leaders, The Present Future captures the urgency of a future that is literally now upon us, in a thoughtful, vigorous way. It is filled with examples of leaders and churches who are emerging into a new identity and purpose, and rediscovering the focus of their mission within new spiritual dimensions.
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| Ed Reports Some Great Ministry in the Sierras and Nevada |
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Ed Krueger shares a report on congregations in the Sierras and in Nevada.
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| Steve Willweber Accepts Call |
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Rev. Steve Willweber who is pastor at Redeemer, Lodi has annunced that he has accepted the call to Trinity, Paso Robles, as associate pastor. Details of his installation will be forthcoming.
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| District Calendar |
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Upcoming events:
- Hispanic Task Force Meeting, Ministry Center -- March 17
- Education Administrators' Meeting, Ministry Center -- March 18
- CNH District office closed on Good Friday
- Easter -- March 27
- Spring Pastors' Conference, Rohnert Park -- April 5-7
- Education Administrators' Meeting, Ministry Center -- April 15
- Interim Pastors Meeting, Ministry Center -- April 19
- Board of Directors, Ministry Center -- June 14
- Board of Directors, Ministry Center -- September 10
- Fall Pastors' Conference, Fresno -- September 11-13
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| Pleasant Hills Refocus |
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Last Saturday, the Ministry Center was alive with people interacting and planning. (Click on photo for larger image.)
The leadership of Faith, Pleasant Hill, CA, and its pastor, Rev. Tom Norris, spent the day looking at its past as they entered into the first of three summits...all part of a process called, "Refocus."
Faith recognizes a common trend: downward. But it also can celebrate the footprints of God throughout its 50+ years of ministry.
The hope is that, through this process, they will be able to ascertain God's core values for their future ministry and align themselves to it as they develop a missional culture and a new chapter of ministry.
Your congregation can be part of this exciting process. Just contact your Mission Counselor: Ed Krueger, John Whaley, or Ted Hartman. And discover what God is already working among you.
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| "The New Normal"...an article by Joel Koerschen |
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On a typical day at the end of 2004, some 70 million American adults logged onto the Internet, which represents a 37% increase from the 52 million adults who were online on an average day in 2000, according to the newly released Pew Internet & American Life Project survey of American adults. What information can schools and churches glean from the survey?
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Newt's Notes |
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Sisters and Brothers in Christ,
As we approach the holiest of weeks and reflect upon the passion of our Christ, we are reminded that his entire life was one grand mission. In His death, as in His life, we come to see the basic tenet of true Christian mission: the Kingdom and the mission of it coming into the world belong solely to God.
God's Kingdom consists of His gracious rule over all. His grace is first seen in creation. It culminates in His re-creation, that is, His reconciling this creation to Himself through the work of His Son. This re-creating grace comes to us through His means of grace--His oral, written, incarnate, and sacramental Word. As such, we remember that the mission work we do together is first and foremost God's work.
He wants all people to be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth. He told plainly that His work on earth is to seek and to save the lost. We keep that as our focus as well.
God's Kingdom comes to people. God initiates; God takes action; God closes the gap between us and Himself. Sound mission planning does the same. We must be alert to designing strategies that take the Gospel to non- Christians not strategies that assume or hope that non-Christians will come to us.
Critical for mission strategy is to remember that the power of the Word does not rest in abilities or offices. It rests in the message itself. God's mission is powered by this Word of Christ.
Many non-Christians may not respond to an invitation to come to church (if they even know what church is). Worship is a life value that belongs to those who are of the new creation, who know Christ. Non-Christians may respond to an invitation to an event that connects them to a life value of God's first creation such as family ministry, marriage enrichment, schools or other educational ministries for their children, health needs, etc. Mission strategies take seriously a community's needs and see them as natural starting places for the Lord to touch the lives of people. These starting places often become the bridges over which the Gospel will travel into the hearts and lives of non-Christian people.
No matter what the missional starting place, its end point is the person and work of our Lord Jesus Christ. His reconciling death on the cross is the missional magnet. "When I am lifted up I will draw all men to myself." God's mission has but one message: Christ and Him crucified.
In Christ,
Robert Newton For a printable version of President Newton's article . . . |
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