WBC IN THIS ISSUE REPORT ANNUAL. A Thank You... AND MORE! Special Annual Edition! LEARN TOGETHER. SERVE TOGETHER.

Transcription

1 A Thank You... We have seen rich moments of grace this past year. The newsletter highlights many of them ministry by ministry. The reset of our Benevolent Ministry. Another class of Stephen Ministers graduated. A new youth ministry hire (Josh O Donnell) already in place as Luke moves on to graduate school. The list goes on. Even the hard moments the passings of Rich Allen, Dan Ducey, Henry Pratt, Tage Toll, Barb Schweigert, and now Shirley O Donnell have been marked by a very real release of grace. One of the foremost grace moments in my mind is the one I missed. Easter Sunday. 39 individuals publically marked their commitment to Jesus with baptism. There were other workings of grace that were not so visible. Ministry carried forward with no audience. Often times these out of sight efforts are like seeds being planted. Eventually, at an appropriate time, we will see a harvest. One of the most significant of these unseen workings began almost two years ago when the Elder Board began a complete review of our approach to congregational ministry. After over 30 years and with a new generation of leaders emerging we thought it was time. We are just now beginning to see the first fruits of that effort. First, there is the renewed affirmation of our Elder-led structure, disciple making purpose, and foundational core commitments. These are all being reviewed with the congregation through our spring sermon series. The review process proved both refreshing and confirming for the Elders. Our hope is that it will prove the same for our family of faith. Second, is an intentional commitment to relational discipleship. We are convinced that the most effective way for us to make disciples is through Godward relationships in the context of a growing family of faith. We have found that if we are not WBC ANNUAL REPORT 2013 intentional about that, especially as our family of faith grows larger, it does not happen. Because of that we are returning to the foundational emphasis on small groups that we have had at various times in our past. Since January we have been running a variety of Exploratory Small Groups in a low key, behind the scenes way. The goal was to field test some different group patterns in order to see what fits us best at this stage in our congregational history. The results have been encouraging. Very encouraging. We are now in the process of recruiting leaders and arranging training for the launch of a Community Group system this coming fall. Most of this review has been happening out of sight at the Elder level. Hard questions, extended discussions, Biblical reading, focused prayer, and deliberate decisions. It is nice to be through that stage of the process and be to the point where we can engage the congregation with a renewed sense of direction. I want to thank our Elder Team for their diligence in this process. In a recent conversation with one of our members concerning the work being done by our Elders, mention was made of the Core Commitments that guide our Family of Faith. The comment was simply: It is clear that they really matter to somebody. The inference was that our Elder board is that somebody who presses the importance of our Core Commitments. That is correct. They wrote them. They live them. They call us to them. For that I say thank you. ~Larry Kroon, Senior Pastor IN THIS ISSUE Special Annual Edition! Adult Ministries Benevolent Ministry p. 2 Extended Ministries Look what God is doing! p. 3 Youth Ministries Check out our 2013 Summer Trips! p. 5 Music Ministries Looking back... p.6 Children s Ministry FISHing Crew... p. 8 Support Ministry Baptism p. 10 Resource This Past Year p.11 AND MORE! MAKING DISCIPLES AS WE WORSHIP TOGETHER. LEARN TOGETHER. SERVE TOGETHER.

2 ADULT MINISTRIES Benevolent Ministry is Ramping Up! Near the end of the Gospel of Matthew Jesus tells his disciples to Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, immersing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. (Matthew 28:19-20) In the Gospel of Luke Jesus says this about himself: For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost. (Luke 19:10) Jesus was a disciple maker and as his followers, we at Wasilla Bible Church seek to make disciples through Christ-centered, Godward relationships in the context of a growing family of faith. This we will do. Yet, as we watch Jesus minister we cannot help but see his desire to meet the needs of those around him, a very natural response for one who loves people. Mark tells us: at sundown they brought to him all who were sick or oppressed by demons. And the whole city was gathered together at the door. And he healed many who were sick with various diseases, and cast out many demons. (Mark 1:32-34) We also read that Jesus fed the 5000 because he had compassion on them. (Matthew 14:14) Among the various ministries at Wasilla Bible Church the Benevolent Ministry stands out with the mission focus of meeting the basic needs of people as we disciple them Godward. This is a big and often complicated task. Because we wish to excel in benevolent ministry WBC has established a Benevolent Ministries Team. This team is currently made up of seven members who meet regularly to oversee the benevolent ministry of our church. The team s primary goal is to see that WBC is using the financial and personal resources that God has given us as a church to appropriately meet the needs of our family and neighbors. We hope to be able to encourage and enlist members of the WBC family to become active in benevolence. The Benevolent Ministries Team discusses ways of engaging the congregation and tracks the benevolent ministries conducted by our church. As part of our goal to encourage and enlist members of our family of faith to become active in benevolence, we are seeking those who wish to identify themselves with particular skills and resources that they are willing to make available to others in an effort to meet their needs. Are you skilled in providing meals, helping in housing needs, auto care, carpentry, plowing, or another area that can benefit those in need? If so, please make yourself known to Pastors Jim or John as we begin to compile a resource list. As a family of faith we intend to care for those in need as Christ did. Join us as we give of our time, talent, strength, skills, and resources to further the kingdom of God. ~John Doak, Adult Ministries Pastor Women s Ministry 2012/13 This has been a full year of Bible studies offered to the women of WBC. Women walked together through the pages of Scriptures including Genesis, Ruth, the Gospels of Luke and John, and the letter of James. Oftentimes there were as many children in midweek childcare as there are in Sunday morning FishingCrew and GrowZone. The Wednesday evening and the Tuesday morning classes were well attended and represent a great way to connect with women and the Word of God. In addition to regular Bible studies, women have connected through the focused mentoring ministry of Apples of Gold. This seasonal opportunity for young women to be mentored personally by older women is a perennial offering at WBC that has blessed hundreds of women for over a decade. This spring they celebrated their annual Applesauce Reunion bringing former participants together with current participants for a time of fun and fellowship. Future of Women s Ministry As I look ahead to the coming year of ministry to and by women I am very excited. I am reminded of my grandma s percolator coffee pot. Now, we are in an age of instant everything. Our coffee comes to us quickly! But I remember the steady burble sound of the pot in her kitchen. It took more time but eventually there was a quality cup of coffee. Likewise, we have been percolating some new plans for the women of WBC. Plans have been perking quietly and in the background, but I believe the aroma of something very wonderful is coming to us in the fall. A new Women s Ministry Team of women leaders will be serving the women of WBC developing their own teams and plans in the coming months. The aim of their efforts will be making female disciples through Christcentered, Godward relationships in the context of a growing family of faith. You can expect to see more information this fall. In the meantime, I invite you to pray for what is percolating! May all we do...further the praise of God s glory by making women who are disciples. ~Merry Doner, Women s Discipleship Director PAGE 2 SPRING 2013

3 EXTENDED MINISTRIES WOW! Look What God is Doing... Wow. Every once in a while the only word I can come up with is wow. It happens when I m leaning back on the hood of my car looking up at the Northern Lights. It happens when I crest a hill and see a reflective lake or river cutting through the tundra. It happens when I get a close look at God s creation, like the club-winged manakin. It also happened just now as I looked back at God s work within Extended Ministries this past year. Wow. As well as faithfully supporting our regular ministries (Gortons in Asia, Brubakers in Rwanda, Cohens in South Asia, Kellers in Philippines, Heppner in Rwanda, Isakovs in Russia, Marquez in Mexico, Victory Bible Camp, Mat-Su Young Life, and HeartReach Center) we participated in a host of short-term adventures in missions. Wow. Carrie Lambing visiting the Kellers in the Philippines We assisted Michel Lewis, Michelle Tingstom, and Cait Pianalto as they joined their colleges in missions in America and foreign lands. We helped as Amber and Brian Shea, John Doak (me), Robert Katsur, Jared Schachle, Troy and Jami Postischek & family, Tia Shira, Sarah Maffee, and Nathaniel Nielsen traveled to Mexico to build a Sunday school room for our sister church in Rosarito. We helped support and pray for Stephanie Berta in Panama, April, Christine and Vince Sanderson, Carrie Lambing, and Tosha Cypher in the Philippines. We even had our own Pastor Larry in Rwanda at a pastor s conference. Wow. It has been a busy year for Extended Ministries here at Wasilla Bible Church. So, for next year we hope to step it up a bit. Lord willing, we ll start out in July with a visit from the Brubakers from Rwanda, then the Gortons from South Asia, then in September a visit from Sasha and Natasha from our sister church in Vladivostok, and then in January we ll host a Perspectives on Missions class for the valley right here at WBC. and then we will send you to?? Wow! Let s see how God will work through us in 2013/14. I m excited. Stephanie Berta in Panama April, Vince, & Christine Sanderson in the Philippines Pastor Larry in Rwanda. Making Disciples As We...Worship Together, Learn Together, Serve Together. PAGE 3

4 YOUTH MINISTRIES FY2012 WBC Annual Meeting Youth Ministry Report This Last Year: Thank you for the opportunity to serve you and the teens of Wasilla Bible these past three years. I love you all and will greatly miss my time with fellow staff, time with youth and leaders, and time worshiping with you all on Sunday mornings. You all have blessed me enormously and I am epically bummed to say goodbye to you. As for this past year, the teens have worshiped, served, and learned together. From our youth-led worship team to our teens leading small groups, to student-led Bible Studies, the youth ministry has been committed to making disciples for the furtherance of God s glory by enabling teens. I hope and pray this continues to be the foundation of this ministry. Let me exhort you with my final words. Paul tells the Corinthians, And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is Spirit. (2 Corinthians 3:18) Beholding is becoming. Take your attention off yourself and look to Jesus. Lose your concern for how others perceive you, banish it from your thoughts, and concern yourself with perceiving Jesus. Look to Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith. And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. Philippians 1:6 This Summer: Whether it s contemplating the Lordship of Christ while rafting a remote Alaskan river, studying and practicing Christian service in sunny Fairbanks, or seeking to hear from God through his Word while sea kayaking in Canada, our summer trips are intended to seek the Holy Spirit s work. Please pray that our youth would be filled with the knowledge of God s will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God. (Colossians 1:9-10) This Fall: This next year the heart of our ministry will remain the same. We will continue to engage students in small groups and large group settings. We will invest ourselves in the lives of students and in the truth of Scripture. We will continue to be devoted to the Core Commitments. And we will pursue partnering with families to make disciples of the next generation. Much will remain the same. However, we will see two particular changes about which I am excited and expectant. First, in order to better partner with families and parents we will be moving middle school and high school youth group to the same night. Crosswalk and Crossfire will continue to be separate programs meeting in different rooms, but next year they will meet at the same time in our building. I am excited for this change because it supports families. Families with youth will no longer have two separate nights of the week to be involved in youth activities. Furthermore, in partnership with the Adult Ministries, Wednesday nights will be an excellent opportunity for mothers and fathers of youth to participate in dynamic Bible studies as both their middle school and high school youth are meeting. Second, although I am sad to bid farewell to Luke and Heather, I am excited to be working with our new Youth Pastor, Josh O Donnell. Let me just briefly share three things that most excite me about Josh coming on staff. First, he is devoted to Scripture. Every conversation with him drips with love for God s Word in a way that is natural and honest. Second, he and his wife, Audra, have two young children, and I have been very impressed with the godly father s and husband s heart he displays. Third, he is passionate about discipling youth and training up lay leaders to disciple youth long-term. Josh desires to lead people Godward in the most effective way possible, and I m excited for how this will impact the students and leaders of our Youth Ministry for years to come. This next year is going to be the start of an exciting new chapter in the WBC Youth Ministry. STUDENT CALENDAR High School (Crossfire) May 19 Senior Sunday May 22 End of the Year BBQ 6:30pm-8:30pm May 25 Bondservant Workday June 1 Bondservant Workday ~Ashley Brown, Executive Pastor ~Luke Tegeler, Young Men s Discipleship Pastor Middle School (Crosswalk) May 19 Last Sunday School May 21 End of the Year Party 7:00-8:30pm June 2-4 8th Grade Adventure PAGE 4 SPRING 2013

5 YOUTH MINISTRIES (Summer Trips) Gulkana June 8th - 14th This year s trip for the freshmen class will be a fun-filled adventure of camping and rafting on the Gulkana River. This 7-day trip will be packed with amazing scenery, team building, great adventures on and in the water, learning about servanthood, time with God, and awesome memories with their friends. Students Going on Gulkana: Kiara Fleckenstein, Alex Armstrong, Noah Sessom, Blake Smith, Cody Buzby, Micah Maffe, Josh Davis, Peyton Murphy, Kea Bekkedahl, Andrew Bydlon, Lacy Smith, Tyler Moss. Beyond Malibu July 10th - 19th The Junior year is, in many ways, the pinnacle of our Summer Trip Program. At Beyond Malibu, our 11th grade young men and women will be challenged to own their faith and solidify their commitment to Christ as they are spiritually and physically stretched to new limits while serving one another. Our hope is that they will experience all of these things and more while kayaking for 8 days along the beautiful deep blue inlets that are nestled among the spectacular Coastal Mountains of British Columbia, Canada. Students Going on Beyond: Ruby Acord, Miranda Aiken, Cheyenne Drumm, Tia Shira, Faith Nelson, Andrew Nelson, Cole Anderson, Thomas Doak, Aaron Inks, Daniel Morse, Malcolm Toll, Ben Winter, Jasmin Marty, Stering Maffe G.R.I.M.E. June 16th - 23rd G.R.I.M.E.: Grace Received & Imparted thru Ministry Extended. Our sophomore class will be spending 5 full days (3 extra travel and adventure days makes 8 total) extending grace at Camp Li-Wa in Fairbanks, Alaska. These days will be slam-packed full of fun, service, growing in their walk with God, and making memories with their friends and leaders. The students will be extending God s love to his people. Students Going on G.R.I.M.E.: Victoria Parsons, Amber Pell, Ashton Lund, Carson Dodd, Kathryn DuHadway, Harrison Menard, Kessler VanSickle, M.E. Meyerhofer, Trenton Drumm, Zachary Zmuda Senior Getaway May 27th - 29th Our Seniors will be spending a long weekend together with their leaders, encouraging one another to run hard after God. We plan on spending this 3-day weekend at the base of Alyeska laughing together, remembering the fun times, and encouraging one another to run hard after God. This weekend will be a culmination of the past few years and a transition into the next. Students Going on the Senior Getaway: Emily Willson, Maryann Zmuda, Peter Kelly, Orion Lust, Aili Davenport, Daisey Davenport, Eve Moss, Ryan Stahle, Matthew Stahle, Ethan Burson, Kaylie Lucia. youth workers wanted for hazardous journey. No wages, fear of mutiny from ruffians, long months of complete darkness, constant danger, safe return doubtful, honor and recognition in case of success. *Paraphrase of Ernest Shackleton As we prepare for next fall we are looking for those brave souls out there willing to take on the challenge of being a middle school or high school youth leader. If you are interested in seeing if you have what it takes and want to volunteer to be an important part of the lives of our students, please contact Brittney Kroon at youth@wasillabible.org. Making Disciples As We...Worship Together, Learn Together, Serve Together. PAGE 5

6 MUSIC MINISTRIES Looking Back As I look back over the past school year, many ministry highlights come to mind. Here s a brief highlight from each month. September: On a Saturday morning, volunteers from all different areas of the worship ministry met to pray for each other and for the worship ministry. God is still answering with grace to these prayers. October: As Larry took us through a sermon series on Jude, we consistently affirmed together through song the encouraging last two verses of Jude. Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy, to the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen. November: At our annual Thanksgiving service, Katie Straley, one of our long-time worship ministry volunteers, shared how she came to know Jesus. Every other Sunday, Katie is back in the sound booth expressing her love for Jesus by making sure the lyric slides are accurate and up on time. It was beautiful to hear why Katie is so passionate about Jesus. December: In our Christmas service, as a congregation (with much help from the choir), we actually sang the final portion of Handel s Hallelujah Chorus to the accompaniment of a banjo! After that morning, I ve come to the conclusion that if the banjo had been around in Handel s time, he probably would have written it into his score. Although as much as I enjoy the rich diversity of instruments in our worship ministry, my biggest highlight from that morning was ending O Holy Night a cappella and hearing our family of faith sing with all their hearts to Jesus. January: The first Sunday of the New Year, in our Christ at Center Communion Service, Andrea Sandefur sang the poignant song What Do I Know of Holy? by Addison Road. There was hardly a dry eye as we proceeded to take communion together, contemplating the utter holiness of our God. February: All year long I am encouraged by our elementary school age worshippers as they gather for Fishing Crew and lift their voices together to God. When their worship leader Willy Shelton s son was diagnosed with leukemia, it was particularly encouraging to hear of their response of faith, hope, and love. March: Good Friday is always one of my favorite times of congregational worship and this year was no exception. My highlight from that evening was standing around the cross singing Highly Exalted to our Lord after reading the crucifixion account and remembering Him through the taking of communion. Easter Sunday this year was equally rich. I still hear Jason s saxophone bringing us into Amazing Grace after watching so many of our people express their commitment to Jesus through baptism. April: On April 7, we had a memorial service for Tage Toll. It was hard, but a beautiful time of worship. Psalm 46 tells us that in times of trouble, God is very present with us and that He will be exalted. His presence was felt in powerful ways that afternoon. And He was exalted as His Son, Jesus, was proclaimed and worshipped. May: Our church s five core commitments are explained in five well written paragraphs. It is moving to hear them read by our people, young and old. The core commitments videos this month are definitely highlights for me from our times of congregational worship. Looking Ahead In June, Naomi and I are headed to Dallas for a training called Arts for a Better Future. The trip grew our conversations following one of the Perspective sampler classes that our extended ministries hosted here. Arts for a Better Future is designed to equip people to better encourage indigenous art and music for worship in the local church. While we sense it will be beneficial in continuing to develop indigenous art and music here at WBC, we feel it may have some extended ministry applications as well. As far as the summer worship ministry, there is not any less congregational worship at WBC during the summer, but it takes some different shapes. The Crossfire band and Crosswalk worship leaders take a break, but the youth come together for focused times of worship on all their various trips throughout the summer. Our Fishing Crew worship teams take a break, but the VBS band forms and our elementary school-age kids spend a focused week dancing and singing before the Lord at Vacation Bible School. It is also a joy to have the kids join us upstairs for Sunday worship all summer long. I am looking forward to a great summer of worshipping together! ~Joel Stamoolis, Worship Pastor PAGE 6 SPRING 2013

7 MUSIC MINISTRIES CONT. WORSHIP LEADER PROFILE: Andrew Gumley What do you enjoy most about running the soundboard? I guess I enjoy it most knowing I m helping people enter into worship - or maybe just helping eliminate some common distractions to worship. From a strictly mechanical aspect, I do enjoy learning a new task and figuring out the puzzle of how each aspect of the music kind of flows through the circuitry of the amps, board, sound processors, etc. It s something of a puzzle that intrigues me. What is one of your favorite verses related to worship? Whatever you do, do it with all your might as unto the Lord. (Colossians 3:23) What are some of the things you have learned through serving in this capacity? Regardless of what is going on, there will always be someone who asks a random question that I have no idea the answer to. A common misconception is that the sound booth is an information kiosk - haha. Don t get me wrong - I m happy to help when I can. So keep asking. Someday I might actually know the answer. How long have you been running sound and how did you become interested in it? I was first hired as a sound tech in college by a touring vocal ensemble. It was a group of just 8 vocalists, mostly a cappella stuff. The simplicity of the actual sound tech part of the job really allowed me to be able to focus on equalizing individual voices and customize the sound for each venue we performed in. I guess that s when I really learned how to listen and be analytical about what I was hearing. Lots of different environments with essentially the same show - sometimes three per day. That s been over a decade ago now. What are some of the biggest challenges you face when running the soundboard? I m one of those types that s always critiquing. So for me, I think my biggest challenge while running sound is doing a better job than the last time. I stress out about it! Worship needs to be seamless to a certain degree. So if I have the guitar so loud that people can t focus, or if the piano is too quiet and part of the melody falls apart, I m kinda preventing the congregation from entering worship. I m supposed to be facilitating that not preventing it. So I get worked up about trying to make everything as good as I can possibly make it. I never quite hit the nail on the head though. It s a work in progress. Andrew at Worshp practice Making Disciples As We...Worship Together, Learn Together, Serve Together. PAGE 7

8 CHILDREN S MINISTRIES FISHing Crew We ve been focusing our Large Group time on how to be like Jesus and on the promises of God. If you make your way downstairs to the Fishing Crew Room, you ll see the promises displayed proudly on our wall hanging from the fishing net. We ve been blessed by various speakers this year to teach on this topic: Tom Ryan, John Doak, Mark Doner, Cindi Dupuis, to name a few. The worship teams commit to doing 2 of the same songs we re doing up stairs every week. It s neat to hear the kids learning the same worship songs as the adults. They love getting in a BIG circle with Mrs. Amber and acting out the songs it helps with their wiggles too! We were blessed this year to be staffed with some amazing volunteers. Thank you to each one of you! Easter Tea What an event we had this year! This was the first year we extended it to middle school and high school and the results were FANTASTIC! It was SO neat to see the generational connect of a sweet 4 year old little girl with her high school sister and mom and then to grandma. This is truly enjoying life. We had LaeRae Lacrosse speak this year about God s love. We ve decided to work through the fruits of the Spirit over the next few years so it was fun watching the girls express what God s love looks like to them. GrowZone As most of you know, we have a serious commitment to your children s knowledge of scripture. This is true for FISHing Crew and it s true for GrowZone. Our little ones are absorbing God s word like sponges. When you stop by on a typical Sunday, you would witness a RaeAnne Lacrosse creating an ark out of an upside down table and bulletin board paper for her 3 year old class, Mary Mueller bringing in her sewing machine to create pillows for her 2 year old class, and Nina Furman amazingly getting a class of 1 year olds to sit still and learn a lesson. It can be done!!! We are SO blessed by these, and many more, wonderful volunteers. Events We ve had 2 awesome volunteer potlucks already this year where we got to ask questions to see what our volunteers needed to be the best they could be. This is a new thing for us but I see it quickly becoming a tradition. It is so nice to have a time to hang out together as a team. VBS GET INVOLVED!!! This year we re doing Babylon. Come find out what God has in store for Daniel. This is a BIG production and we need lots of volunteers. It s the first week of June 3rd-7th from 9am- 12pm, Mon-Fri. Call Children s Ministry for more information or to sign up (and know that if you call, you will be signed up! Haha) The 1st Annual Potato Launch. This was a raging success! It was so cool to see families come together to build the catapults and trebuchet. We ve already got lots of ideas going for next years event. God s Girls This was such an amazing time to see mothers and daughters connecting. We had Merry, Johanna & Heidi Doner as our special speakers. Although hesitant, they agreed and were wonderful! I ve heard several attendees talk about attempting to utilize the Doner method of scripture integration. The Doner method is: use it, even when it s uncomfortable and the kids might not want to hear it. PAGE 8 SPRING 2013

9 CHILDREN S MINISTRIES CONT. SUMMER VOLUNTEERS IN GROWZONE NEEDED! Do you have a heart for our little ones, but don t have the ability to make the time commitment during the school year? Do you have children/ grandchildren that benefit from Sunday School but you re unable to volunteer during the school year? This is your chance. We ll take you for 3 months, 1 month, 1 week! ANYTHING! Call Tonya or Beth to sign up today! Meet your staff: Linda Anderson, Children s Ministry Director. Did you know that Linda has a degree in Children s Education and used to teach elementary school? She has a love for scripture and has the deepest desire to draw our kids into the depth of Christ. Linda does a lot of our lesson writing and does all the rewrites on our VBS material to make sure that God remains the focus, not the character of the story. Fun fact: Linda likes pirates. Argh! Hmmm, what can we do with that? Beth Winter, Children s Ministry Glue. Did you know Beth is one of the busiest behind the scene people you may ever meet? She has a huge heart for Wasilla Bible Church and especially our kids. On her very full plate is also teaching piano lessons, homeschooling, leading Divorce Care, Awanas, and most importantly, she keeps Linda and Tonya organized. We know we would not function without her! Fun fact: Beth likes to ride motorcycles. Who would have thought? Amy Fischer, Mid-Week Children s Ministry Coordinator. Amy has a Bachelors of Arts in Children s Ministry with a Minor in Youth and Bible. She is the reason that we are coordinated to have mid-week childcare. We love and adore her and believe that she has one of the hardest jobs but she would never admit that. Her passion is to utilize our mid-week time with the kids as a learning time and keep it from becoming a 2 hour free play. She takes this opportunity seriously and is excited to make some changes for this next year. Fun fact: Amy is a expert in all things Super Hero courtesy of her boys. Tonya Jones, Children s Ministry Assistant Director. Tonya is the newest member of our team who is always found saying, I m quickly learning how much I have to learn. Her focus is GrowZone, Volunteer Appreciation and Events. These are all things that she is very passionate about and has been enjoying thoroughly. Getting to love on our volunteers is a pure joy. Tonya is always looking for new ideas and who knows when Pinterest will run out so if you have any suggestions, find her! Fun fact: Tonya really enjoys classical music. Not what you pictured, huh? Thank you for another wonderful school year. We appreciate you entrusting us with your little ones and we take that trust very seriously. Our volunteers all have Child Protection Training and a commitment to live out our 5 Core Commitments. If you d like to partner with us and join the Children s Ministry Team, either this summer or as one of our teachers for the coming school year (Which we would LOVE), please contact Linda, Beth or ~Tonya Jones, Children s Ministry Assistant Director Staff Transition With seasonal transitions comes staffing transitions. We would like to take a moment and send out a big THANK YOU to Kellie Sanford for her past two years of service her at Wasilla Bible Church working in the front office. We, as a family of faith, are excited to support Kellie along with her husband Matt Sanford as they make room in their weekly schedules to more intentionally engage in front line ministry through Christ-Centered Godward relationships in our growing family. The move off of staff will give the time needed to better pursue opportunities that Matt and Kellie feel the Lord drawing them to. While we will miss Kellie on staff, we are greatly excited to watch as the Lord continues to draw them deeper into the ministry through His church here at Wasilla Bible. One way we are blessed to be watching this already happening is in the context of our Benevolent Ministries. Both Matt and Kellie serve on the Benevolent Ministries Leadership team and are excited to continue to engage more deeply as they intentionally make time in their schedule towards that end. Thank you Matt and Kellie for your service to this body of faith. Making Disciples As We...Worship Together, Learn Together, Serve Together. PAGE 9

10 SUPPORT MINISTRIES Baptism It was a great joy to watch 39 people be baptized in the Easter morning services on March 31st. We are thankful that the technology worked and that things flowed so smoothly, but what really mattered was what was going on in the heart of each individual as they worshipped and obeyed God. Each person was, as Pastor Ashley explained, preaching a sermon to the rest of us. The sermon they were preaching was explained by their Yes response to two questions. The first question was, Do you believe what the Bible calls the matters of first importance: That Christ died for your sins according to the scriptures, that He was buried, that He rose again the third day according to the scriptures, and that He is alive today? (I Corinthians 15:3-8). The second question provided each one with an opportunity to profess their personal faith in Christ as they each responded to, Do you confess Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior before these witnesses? (Romans 10:9, 10) We practice believer s baptism in response to the command of Jesus found in Matthew 28: It was a great joy to see so many be baptized on one day. But, it is not the quantity of people that makes it meaningful. It is, rather, the heart of each individual person responding in obedience and with thanksgiving to their Savior. If you have not been baptized since you have placed your faith in Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, we want to help provide you with that opportunity. Please call the church office and ask to speak with one of our pastors about being baptized in the near future. Stephen Ministry We give thanks to God for our newest class of Stephen Ministers who have recently completed their initial 50 hours of training. These ten individuals have now entered into this special caring type of ministry. Galatians 6:2 says, Carry each other s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. Stephen Ministers enter into a formal caring relationship with one other individual who is carrying a heavier than normal load in their life. They meet each week for about an hour to discuss the issues that are weighing heavy on the Care Receiver s heart. As I reflected back on these years of Stephen Ministry, the word unique came to my mind. In the past six years we have trained four classes of Stephen Ministers and each class trained on a different night of the week because of their schedules. (Thursday, Monday, Sunday, and Wednesday). It is a unique ministry in that it is process oriented vs. results oriented. Each person that God has called into this ministry is unique. Each care receiver is unique coming with their own burdens and life experiences. As each care receiver and Stephen Minister enter into their formal caring relationship, they will form a unique bond of trust and care, and God will work in a personal and unique way in their caring relationship. No matter who you are or how different (or unique) you may feel you are, God cares about you individually. He wants to meet your needs. Stephen Ministry is one of the tools He has raised up to help care for people who are carrying a heavy burden in life. If you would like support and encouragement through Stephen Ministry, please contact Pastor Jim ext. 14 or jim.eller@wasillabible.org, to learn more about this ministry. ~Jim Eller, Contact Pastor PAGE 10 SPRING 2013

11 RESOURCE This Past Year Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand. (Proverbs 19:21) Entering this past year I wanted to accomplish one major objective. That all of the resources available to us, be that volunteer, staff, facility, financial would be directed in full support of our mission to make disciples through intentional relationships. I am finding that each year this plays itself out in different forms. Some years we have greater staffing needs than others. Other years, like this past year we had more facility projects to accomplish. Still other years like the one ahead are filled more with congregational efforts and focus that I pray will bear much fruit. With respect to this past year we focused the first part of the year to accomplish specific projects approved last annual meeting such as the Kitchen upgrade, Coffee House and Gym improvements, Welcome Desk, and a video recording and feed for the Gym. All these projects, as well as a few others have been completed and have greatly improved the functionality of our facility and lay a great foundation for increased ministry use and support. The second half of this past year shifted in focus from tangible projects to ministry support. The main areas that I have been working on is Staff focus on Elder direction. As staff we function as the first followers of the Elders and desire to implement well the direction they see the Lord leading our family of faith. On staff we have, over the past few months, come together in teams to work through a few areas that we will look to implement next year which I will overview in the next section. The Year Ahead Our Mission Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path (Psalm 119:105) As we look to this next year I do so with a confidence that our Lord will direct our path. It is with an understanding that The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps. (Proverbs 16:9) It is with great joy and excitement to look ahead with clear confident direction from our Lord through the Elders. Over the next year the Elders have directed us to focus on the following areas which I will briefly explain here in written form and will unpack in greater detail at the Annual Meeting coming June 1st. Sunday Service- We recognize that Sunday morning sets our family tone and tempo for congregational life. With that reality we are working to maximize the effectiveness of each Sunday for the furthering of our Lord s praise and honor. Some things that we are working is integration between mid-week ministries and Sunday morning. We are looking to better establish a unified approach to our entire ministry so that all ministries of Wasilla Bible are working towards one clear focused purpose of making disciples through Christ-Centered Godward relationship in this growing family. Starting Point As the Lord adds to our numbers day by day we understand that we are called to be hospitable. In this area we are working to better provide a clear path into our family of faith. Our desire is that we would be able to launch a Starting Point Class this coming fall that would provide a good way for new people to be brought into our family and welcomed well. Foundations Teaching As we welcome new people to our family our core desire is to make disciples. Towards that end we see a great need to establish foundational truths in those that desire to be part of this family of faith. Over this next year we will look to establish, encourage, and deploy a Foundations teaching path in cooperation with our Starting Point Class and Community Groups that will equip our family of faith with the core foundations of our faith. Community Groups We are working as you read this to establish a core of leaders that will be able to launch a number of Community Groups this coming October. We are right now working with roughly 40 possible leaders that may be able to start a Community Group next fall. We look for these groups to provide a place where we as a family live out our five core commitments. If you are interested in helping lead a group, host, or be a support role in a group please contact the church and let us know. We look forward to having an established place where we will encourage our family of faith to engage in and live our faith with each other for the purpose of furthering the praise of Gods glory by making disciples through Christcentered Godward relationships. Blessings on each of you and I look forward to our Annual Meeting on June 1st filled with fellowship and communication of where the Lord is leading our family of faith. I encourage you to all come whether you re a member or not. This will be a good time to hear where we are headed. If you would like more information on how to become a member please contact the office and we will be happy to help you. ~Jake Davies, Resource Manager Making Disciples As We...Worship Together, Learn Together, Serve Together. PAGE 11

12 WBC LIFE IN PICTURES Rosarito, Mexico 6th Grade boys gearing up for Youth Group Loren Kroon rocking the banjo. Beavers Sunday School Class God s Girls Getaway Wes Swanner helping with Sunday offering. 7th Grade Girls Silly Hair Day! Christine Sanderson with Avery & Miah Keller getting birthday flowers in the Philippines. PAGE 12 Making Disciples As We...Worship Together, Learn Together, Serve Together.