The NED Connection - Northeastern District

Volume 14 Issue 10
David B. Linn
Dec 2015/Jan 2016
District Superintendent
TRUE YOKEFELLOWS
The NED Connection
THE NORTHEASTERN DISTRICT OF THE C&MA
Upstate NY
In his closing remarks to the brothers and sisters at Philippi Paul addressed
someone called, in the literal translation, his “true yokefellow”: “And I intreat thee also,
true yokefellow, help those women which laboured with me in the gospel, with Clement also, and with other my fellow labourers, whose names are in the book of
life” (Philippians 4:3 KJV). Others translations say “true companion” or similar.
This is a farming picture which I had the chance to experience up close at the
Genesee Country Village and Museum in Mumford. A re-enactor walked a pair of giant
oxen up to me and began to give a talk on farming with oxen. He soon drew a crowd. I
was struck by the massive power of these draught animals, and the strong yoke which
allowed them to pull together.
This is Paul’s image for his fellow-workers in Christ. Not that he, Paul, was pulling most of the weight and they were merely his helpers. But because they were all
filled with God’s Spirit, they were all empowered and pulling together. In short, Paul
saw them as full ministry partners.
In light of that, I am overdue to tell you about a true yokefellow who has been
pulling for the district since August. Dave Murphy, who pastored for 24 years at Valleyview Alliance Church in Vestal, concluded his ministry there at the end of June. As Barb
and I met with Dave and Soni to discuss what God was leading him to do, he shared his
vision of mentoring pastors, coaching church boards on strategic planning, preaching,
and seeking to make growth happen as an encourager and resource person.
I almost laughed, and I think Barb actually did laugh out loud at the restaurant
where we were talking. On the car ride down that very day we had discussed how the
district needed exactly the things Dave said he wanted to do.
At that very time DEXCOM was discussing a role we have structured as District
Field Operator. This person would need to have extensive experience in church
planting, coaching, and in guiding churches through stages of growth from small to medium to large. The filling of that position will take some time. I am in no rush to fill it
because I believe the first thing on our plate is to move our district culture toward a collaborative, more connected way of working where everyone is involved in peer-to-peer
coaching. Perhaps when we have made progress on restoring that New Testament way
of working the Lord will provide us with a DFO. Maybe. Or maybe he will just energize
our new way of working to achieve the goals he has for us.
In the meantime, the district needs the very minNED Notices
2
istries Dave wants to do. DEXCOM has affirmed my desire to bring Dave on staff to help build the health of our
Sally’s Spot
3
churches and workers. His title is Ministry Assistant.
GCW
Dave has already done a lot of good work in our church4
Missions
es. Please give him and Soni a warm welcome as true
yokefellows.
Evangelism
5
Men’s Ministry
6
Delta News
7
Rescources
8
NED
Notices
84th Annual District
and Prayer Conference
May 2 – 4, 2016
Syracuse Alliance Church
3112 Midland Ave.
Syracuse, NY 13205
Conference business will be
conducted by use of Temporary and Standing Conference
Committees as in the past.
District Committee Reports are
due at the District Office by
March 7.
District Directory
Update
Rev. John R. Lucas
[email protected]
WELCOME!
Mr. Isaac S. and Jenna E. Kain
Pastor of Community Life at
Syracuse Alliance Church
Beginning January 1
3150 Midland Ave.
Syracuse, NY 13205
315-807-2966 cell
[email protected]
BABY ANNOUNCEMENT
Noah Samuel
son of Isaac and Jenna Kain
November 2, 2015
weighing 7lbs, 7oz
2016 District Events Calendar
click HERE
(www.nedcma.org)
Deepest Sympathy
Mrs. Barbara Boda
Mother of Mrs. Daisy B. Wallace,
GCW District Director,
Grandmother of Rev. J Spurling,
Jr, Pastor at Fulton, NY, and
Rev. Shawn F. Wallace, Special
Assignment Worker
November 21, 2015
Mrs. Penny L. McNamara
Ministry Assistant at Lakeview
Chapel, Owego, NY and
Widow of former district pastor,
Rev. Timothy R. McNamara
November 26, 2015
SAVE THE DATE!
SEEK: An Alliance
Regional Deeper Life
and Missions Event
May 20-21, 2016
Messiah College
Mechanicsburg, PA
Page 2
Alliance Life
Pastors, please remind your
congregations of the availability
of our denomination’s free magazine, Alliance Life. This excellent resource challenges its
readers to go deeper with Jesus,
affirms our greater vision, and
encourages prayer support of
our mission. You may order free
subscription cards by emailing
[email protected] or
call (877) 284-3262. Direct
online subscriptions are at
cmalliance.org/connect.
OPEN CHURCHES
SENIOR/INTERIM PASTORS
 Campbell, NY
 LaGrangeville, NY
 Ohio, NY
 Saratoga Springs, NY
 Valleyview/Vestal, NY
 Whitesville, NY
STAFF PASTORS
 Corning, NY—Youth Pastor
 Oswego, NY—Youth Pastor
 Ticonderoga, NY—Worship/
Youth Pastor
POTENTIAL HELP FOR
PASTORS
Philip Graham, dba Pinpoint Tax
Services, offers professional tax
preparation services at very reasonable rates. Phil has 12 years
experience and has achieved the
IRS Registered Tax Return Preparer (RTRP) Status with over 350
hours of Continuing Education in
tax law. He provides caring, confidential and competent tax preparation services, particularly focusing on the complexities of tax returns for pastors and overseas
workers. He may be reached at
315-491-0462 or
[email protected].
References from NED pastors are
available on request.
THANK YOU!
LIFE 2016! July 5-9
Kansas City Convention Center
http://allianceyouth.com/events/
life-2016/
“For unto you is born this day
in the city of David a Savior,
who is Christ the Lord.”
Luke 2:11
THE NED CONNECTION
Sally Fry
Ministry Specialist
“Orienting Volunteers”
“Just show up on Sunday night and we’ll figure
out how you can help.” OR. “Let’s figure out a time we
can meet before Sunday night. I’d like to share the specifics about this ministry and answer any of your questions.” There are a wide range of ways that new volunteers are welcomed into a ministry. Some are invited to
jump right in and others experience a more formalized
orientation. I would encourage each ministry leader to
consider the value of being intentional about orienting
your volunteers and don’t expect that they will simply
acquire the information they need along the journey.
New volunteer orientations can be conducted
individually or in a group setting. Scheduling time for an
orientation meeting before a larger group meeting or
training may maximize your time. As you know, new
volunteers often have questions, wonder how they will
fit into the ministry and some may want to know about
any rules they need to follow. It also provides you as the
leader an opportunity to share your vision and clarify
your expectations.
In order to know how much information should
be included in a volunteer orientation, you’ll need to
consider the experience level of your group. It’s somewhat counterintuitive but volunteers with less experience need you to share less information and in smaller
segments (in education, the term scaffolding is used to
describe the technique of sharing content in smaller
units which add together to give the full content). Volunteers who have more experience are able to connect
the new information with previous experiences or
knowledge and can retain more information.
The sections that should be covered in a new
volunteer orientation can be divided into three areas.
There is a great deal of flexibility with how comprehensive these sections need to be based on your volunteers
and ministry focus.
Connecting them socially
Depending on the situation, you may need to
facilitate introductions or provide information about
their qualifications that would help them connect to the
other volunteers. Providing information about their
background, for example, may help give them credibility
and provide a way to connect. For example, “Joe worked
as a camp counselor at Delta Lake for the past several
years.”
THE NED CONNECTION
It may be helpful to offer a time for other volunteers to provide hints and tips that they’ve discovered in
their roles. How have they worked with children who
wanted to help put away the equipment after worship?
What has worked when parents aren’t picking their children up in a timely manner after an event? What websites have great last minute group games for children?
(My personal tip for youth workers is, bringing chocolate
covered coffee beans to the LIFE conferences helps overcome that moment of sadness when you realize you are
not allowed to bring coffee into the arena.)
Information about their volunteer position
The objectives of this section of orientation include providing information about their role and tools to
allow them to be effective, safe, and know where to go
when questions arise. The information covered will vary
based on the volunteer position and if they have been
involved in other ministries. Information about the Safe
Place policies, reimbursements, communication tools,
keys to the room/building, schedules, and who to contact for more information are some of the common areas that new volunteers need information about to be
effective.
Connecting volunteers to the Ministry
The third section for new volunteer orientation
which is often overlooked, is being deliberate about connecting them to the ministry. Volunteers are often the
first person that a visitor meets at church. Being able to
answer basic questions and know where to the point a
person for additional information will allow the volunteer to feel more confident in their discussions and also
increase the likelihood that accurate information is being shared. This is a time to provide a larger historical
picture of the C&MA and your local church and coach
them about how their role fits into the big picture. By
providing an overview of all ministry areas in your
church, it is also possible that the volunteer may expand
their thinking about how to be involved.
It is also important to provide a brief orientation
session for episodic volunteers who are only serving for
a specific event or task. The process can be abbreviated,
but may provide a pathway to connect that volunteer
into a more long-term role.
Page 3
Because of the recent terrorist attack in Paris, you’ve probably seen news reports, blogs, tweets,
and posts about whether or not the U.S. should welcome Syrian refugees. It seems to be a divisive issue
among Christians. Those who are opposed cite concerns about safety; those who support it say we need
to show compassion.
As I’ve been grappling with this issue myself,
I keep thinking about one of our C&MA core values:
Achieving God’s purposes means taking faith-filled
risks. This always involves change. Allowing Syrian
refugees into our country could be a faith-filled risk,
but also an awesome opportunity! God would be
giving us greater access to a people group that we
otherwise struggle to reach. Jesus had compassion
on the confused and helpless, who were like sheep
without a shepherd (Matthew 9:36), and we should
follow His example. I understand the fear, but perfect love drives out fear (1 John 4:18). In seeking
God’s will and obeying it, we may feel that what He
is asking us to do is risky. As our love compels us to
move forward though, our fears will decrease.
One of the themes I took away from C&MA
General Council in May was that we, as a denomination, are being called to reach people on the move.
Diaspora is a term that means the dispersion of any
people from their original
homeland. As President John
Stumbo talked about the GCF
(Great Commission Fund), he
shared his dream of having
the funds to reach the diaspora in America. He also stated his desire to see new
expressions of lay ministry launched. I’m not sure
exactly what he had in mind, but in light of recent
events, and in seeing where God is at work, I get excited! I think about the possibility that God may be
answering this prayer and desire by providing us with
the opportunity to minister to the Syrian diaspora as
they arrive in our country. I believe it is no accident
that our GCW National Project this year is targeting
five diaspora groups on at least 3 continents. God
has already begun preparing us, as Great Commission Women, to develop hearts for displaced people
through support of this project! I love being a part of
a Christ-centered, Acts 1:8 family, where we will
love, proclaim, reach, and launch!
Cindy Prahst
NED GCW Prayer Chair and
Capital West Regional Coach
Pastor’s wife at Nelliston, NY
MISSIONS CONNECTION
BY LORRAINE REGINER, DISTRICT MISSIONS COMMITTEE
COFFEE/TEA HOUSE PRAYERS
For several years, widespread unemployment in the Middle East and North Africa has driven
millions of Muslims to Europe. Many have settled in Toulouse, France, population 1,250,000
with 10% Arab Muslims. Alliance workers have begun work to open a coffee/tea house that
will serve the North African diaspora of refugees now living in the area.
As you sip your delicious cup of coffee or tea, will you pray for this new exciting work?
Page 4
THE NED CONNECTION
EVANGELISM
CONNECTION
Thankful for JW’s?
There is a woman in our town. She is often pushing around a shopping cart. She is a
big lady who likes to hug and doesn't bathe much. Her grandkids come to our VBS and children's events. I didn't think much about her until the Jehovah's Witnesses came to her door
and started a Bible study with her.
She told her daughter-in-law who was horrified. The daughter-in-law told her to go to
church. She came to us. After the morning worship service she pulled me aside and asked
me about the Bible study. I told her about my concerns about what the Jehovah's Witnesses
taught. That wasn't enough.
That week I visited her. I found out that even though she grew up going to church she
really had not gone to church once she grew up and was on her own. I was saddened to think
that decades passed without anyone reaching out to her with the love and truth of Jesus
Christ. I had the privilege of praying with her to receive Christ as Savior.
That's why I'm thankful for the Jehovah's Witnesses. It's wrong that they work harder
for a lie than I do for the truth. But they opened my eyes to someone who needed to hear
about Jesus. Now all heaven rejoices over her.
Many of you have probably heard of Engel's scale of evangelism. It was first printed in
a book from the 70's, "What's Gone Wrong with the Harvest". It's been revised since then.
Each of us falls somewhere on that scale. 0 is the point of conversion. We may consider
some people far from that point and well into the negative numbers. We will never know until we ask them. We may be surprised to find out that they're closer to the point of conversion than we thought. Sometimes successful evangelism is simply getting someone one step
closer to Jesus.
Are we growing closer to Jesus? Where do we fall on that scale of evangelism? Are
we telling others about Jesus? Are we discipling them? If we are little closer to Jesus than
when we were first saved then there is a problem. What obstacles hinder our Spiritual
growth? Let's keep drawing closer to Jesus and do all that we can do to draw others closer to
Him. Let's not leave it all up to the cults.
Rev. Philip R. Barner
District Evangelism Committee
Pastor, Andover, NY
THE NED CONNECTION
Page 5
C&MA MEN’S MINISTRY
Andy Bashwinger
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, selfcontrol; against such things there is no law. Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the
flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit.
Galatians 5:22-25
Gentleness, Self-Control . . .
Stuart Briscoe wrote in his study, The Fruit
of the Spirit: Cultivating Christlike Character, “The
word meekness suffers because it rhymes with
weakness, and the two have become synonymous in
people's minds. [We] see from Moses' and Jesus'
lives that being meek is not being weak, and it usually doesn't come naturally. Like every other aspect of
the Spirit life, meekness – also called gentleness – is
possible through obedience to and dependence upon the Spirit of Christ, who Himself was gentle and
humble in heart.”
As defined by the Life Application Bible Commentary, a gentle follower of Christ is “submissive to
God and His Word. Even when anger is the appropriate response... gentleness keeps the expression of
anger headed in the right direction.”
I had older friends, Ron and Karen, who are
now both with our Lord. Ron was always the silent
type and Karen was the life of the party. It's not that
they were opposites, but just so contrasting in their
personalities. Karen used to speak of her lifelong
partner that she loved him so much because he was
so strong. Now, Ron was short, wore glasses often,
nearing sixty when I met him and rarely if ever in my
company engaged in “manly” activities. To look at
him, you would think, “He may have at one time
been strong, but now he's getting older.” But as you
spent time with him, the strength of his character
became very obvious, though he was so soft-spoken.
James Montgomery Boice describes the gentle person – how I would describe Ron, as one “who
is so much in control of himself that he is always angry at the right time and never angry at the wrong
time.” Expanding on his quote further, all the fruits
of the Spirit are, “that great quality which comes to a
man when Christ is in His heart, that quality which
makes him able to live and to walk in the world, and
yet to keep his garments unspotted from the world.”
That was Ron.
And so, gentleness and self-control walk
hand-in-hand. Gentleness, or meekness if you prePage 6
fer, is great strength held by greater control. There is
a purpose beyond the emotion of the moment
which demands that we earnestly employ selfcontrol (Egkateia, mastery over self).
It is somewhat ironic that for the follower of
Christ the same self-control that allows gentleness
to be displayed as a dominant characteristic of our
being, only comes through submitting to Christ's
control of ourselves. To be strong, we must be weak
and made strong in Him.
All this is to stage my thought for this month of
December: Remember the manger. Remember that
Christ is the eternal Son of God as you see the images and representations of the baby Jesus.
I believe that Jesus always knew that He was
the Christ, the Son of the living God. I don't believe
that He had an epiphany on His twelfth birthday or
any other. And if this is so, what an amazing life of
gentle, self-control!
Restrained and properly directed anger is
very much a part of gentleness and self-control.
Remember the Author of the universe was
for a time confined to a womb. Remember the Son
of God, who could have “smote with a heavy
smoting!” going to make peace with the rebellious
enemies of His Father's kingdom. The perfect and all
powerful son of God chose to wait on others to
change His clothing and feed Him. The very Word of
God had willingly submitted to others “teaching
Him” daily lessons.
The great humility of Jesus astounds me!
The manger makes me love the cross all the more.
This season, especially if you have not already through these monthly encouragements, seek
to live by the Spirit in the full display of the fruits of
the Spirit. Let that be your best gift to one another.
Be of good courage...
Rev. Andrew M. Bashwinger
[email protected]
District C&MA Men’s Ministry Coordinator
Pastor, Troy, NY
THE NED CONNECTION
It’s always nice this time of year to pause and
take a look back at how the Lord has blessed. 2015
has been a fantastic year here at Delta Lake.
FIRMLY ROOTED has been our theme for the
year. We spent time focusing on the firm foundation
we have because of our relationship with Jesus Christ.
We saw 6 youth campers pray for eternal salvation
and 17 recommit their lives to Christ. We celebrated
as 10 people felt called into full-time missions during
Family Bible Conference. During our seven weeks of
Haven Camps 11 prayed to receive Jesus Christ as
their Savior. Heaven rejoiced along with us at the
lives that were eternally changed through the ministry
at Delta Lake this year.
I would ask as we close out 2015 that you
would join us in praying for those who did make a
commitment this year while at Delta Lake. Pray that
the commitment made would continue to grow and
show fruit in their lives.
We close out 2015 by also looking ahead to
2016. We are excited at the opportunities the Lord
has placed in front of us at Delta Lake for this upcoming year.
In addition to our regular winter youth retreats, Senior Saints Retreat, Family Camp, Summer
youth camps and Haven Camps, we are going to introduce a couple new events at Delta. Please stay tuned
in the next month for more information about some
new events on our calendar in 2016.
I do want to share with you our theme for the
upcoming year. We will focus on Ephesians 4:1 where
we read, “Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, implore you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling
with which you have been called.” We will encourage
and challenge our guests with what it means to be
called and how that should change the way we live.
I want to invite you to come and join us this
coming year to meet the Lord in a special way on the
grounds at Delta Lake.
Steve Clark
Executive Director DLBCC
6420 Pillmore Dr., Rome, NY
www.deltalake.org
Training Ground 2016
A One Day Training Event Designed for Children, Youth and Adult Ministry Workers,
Teachers and Home-schooling Parents
January 30, 2016 - 8:30 am - 3:30 pm
On Location at Pine Knolls Alliance Church
614 Gansevoort Rd., South Glens Falls, NY 12803
Live-streamed to Trinity Alliance Church
1275 Spencerport Rd., Rochester, NY 14606
CLICK HERE TO REGISTER [WWW.NEDCMA.ORG]
Registration by January 1 is $35 (includes lunch)
THE NED CONNECTION
Page 7
NED RESOURCES BULLETIN BOARD
NED Connection
Articles for the
February 2016
edition are due by
January 25, 2016
[email protected]
Membership Certificates
Please contact the
District Office at
315-336-4720 Ext. 201
or [email protected]
to request church
membership certificates.
6275 Pillmore Drive
Rome, NY 13440
Phone: 315-336-4720
Fax: 315-336-0347
The NED Web
nedcma.org
Northeastern District C&MA
Attention: Sally Fry
6275 Pillmore Drive
Rome, NY 13440
DECEMBER
8
DEXCOM Meeting
District Office, 10:00 AM
2431
CHRISTMAS Recess
District Office Closed
25
MERRY CHRISTMAS!
Contact via E-mail
[email protected]
District Superintendent
David B. Linn
[email protected]
Continuing Education Credit
All classes/books/seminars that
qualify for Continuing Education
should be reported for credit.
Reporting forms are available on
the NED website under
Resources & Continuing
Education. Forms may be
emailed to [email protected] or
paper copies mailed to:
Calendar
THE NORTHEASTERN DISTRICT
OF THE C&MA
Ministry Specialist
Sally V. Fry
[email protected]
Ministry Assistant
David M. Murphy
[email protected]
Executive Assistant
Tracy M. Murphy
[email protected]
JANUARY
1
HAPPY NEW YEAR!
District Office Closed
14
Evangelism Committee
Teleconference, 4:00 PM
19
LO&CC Meeting
District Office, 9:30 AM
2223
Pastors’ Wives Retreat,
at Delta Lake BCC
25
NED Connection Items due
at District Office
28
Missions Committee
Teleconference, 10:00 AM
30
Training Ground at Pine Knolls,
SGF & Trinity, Rochester
District Bookkeeper
Edward W. Lyau
[email protected]
District Prayer Chain
Miss E. Lorraine Regnier
District Prayer Coordinator
Prayer requests will be
distributed throughout the
Northeastern District family
by contacting Lorraine
directly at
[email protected].
Page 8
NED Office Hours
Monday-Thursday
8:00 AM-4:30 PM
Friday
8:00 AM –2:00 PM
THE NED CONNECTION