Sunnybrook Church plans satellite expansion

Sunnybrook Church in Sioux City, Iowa is planning to expand. Not by the normal method of a building program, but by exporting the worship experience they now enjoy into a new community.

Over the past few years Sunnybrook has experienced an average of 20% growth on Sunday mornings with over 1500 individuals taking part in all the activities. With a sanctuary that seats around 600 this has been a challenge for the past several years. Currently there are 5 service offerings each Sunday morning with 3 service times...8:30-10:00-11:30. At both later times there are dual worship services going on in the same building. One is in the sanctuary and the other in the "Loft" (the large youth auditorium) down the hall. There are worship teams in both venues and when it's time for the sermon, Pastor Jeff Moes is "videoed" onto the big screen in the Loft.

Because of the ever-growing numbers, Sunnybrook had 2 choices. One was to spend millions of dollars to build a bigger building and the other was to reach out to a nearby community and expand in that direction. The choice was obvious and satellite expansion is the method.

The new satellite will work the same as the Loft. An onsite worship team and pastor will start the time of praise and Pastor Jeff will be brought in on the Big Screen.

Sergeant Bluff, Iowa, has been chosen as the new satellite venue. While only 7 miles from Sioux City, the reason for selection is clear. First, it's a community of about 4,000 people where the majority claim no church affiliation. Second, Sunnybrook has about 200 members from the Sgt. Bluff area. These 200 core community members are ready to invite their friends and neighbors to the new project. If the satellite was placed in a community where there are no current members, who would do the inviting?

So what is the reason for all this growth? Sunnybrook has done much in the way of impacting the community. From adopting an elementary school that is in one of the poorest parts of the city, to international mission in Haiti and Tanzania, the focus is not internal, but external. Not on how they should improve in order to grow, but how can they serve in order to expand the Kingdom. The fact that Sunnybook continues to grow is not on their merit, but strickly a blessing from God.

The new satellite venue in Sgt. Bluff is planning to kick off on Easter Sunday.

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Worship Grants Available

Application Deadline is January 10. 2010

The Calivn Institute of Worship is again offering grants to help enrich your churches worship experience. The Worship Renewal Grants Program fosters well-grounded worship renewal in congregations and worshiping communities throughout North America. Made possible through the generous support of Lilly Endowment Inc., these grants serve to stimulate thoughtful and energetic work for worship that exhibits renewed creativity, theological integrity, and relevance.

Grant proposals for the coming year are now being accepted, with a January 10, 2010 deadline. Here is the link for info: http://www.calvin.edu/worship/grants/wrgp.php. Please pass the word on to congregations who might be interested. Betty Grit is the contact person at the Institute; she is eager to help churches that want to apply (email her at worship grants@calvin.edu or call 616-526-7168).

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Revolutionary Leader’s Retreat

November 13 -15; 85 students and adult leaders gathered at Hidden Acres Camp near Dayton, IA for the kick-off retreat for Leaders On the Horizon. These young leaders represent years 1, 2, and 3 of LOH at Meredith Drive Reformed Church and The Bridge. The theme of the retreat was Revolutionary with 4 sub-themes of Revolutionary Jesus, Life, Call and Mission. Worship sessions began with a praise band formed out of the Year 3 group which depicts exactly what part of the goal of LOH is, where students use their gifts and passions to reach out to their peers with God’s love and truth.
Andy Vis, Youth Pastor at MDRC and The Bridge has implemented LOH for the past 4 years and has seen continued discipleship ministry growing in the youth ministry. LOH is a process or journey of developing disciples willing to follow Christ in mission.
For more information on LOH check out the Synod of the Heartland Youth webpage at www.synodyouth.org or call Bob Cleveringa at 712-737-4959.

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Leaders on the Horizon
Sheldon, IA was the location for one of three retreats offered this year to kick off the LOH season. High School students from Clara City, MN and Orange City, IA participated in the retreat entitled: Revolutionary. The 36 students and 6 adult leaders are part of the larger number of 150 LOH participants for beginning either year 1 or continuing into year 2 of this process. Two more retreats will held in Des Moines, IA and Holland, MI simultaneously on Nov. 13 – 15, 2009.

Students begin their year of participating with the LOH retreat and then meet weekly in their church groups, sometimes broken down into smaller groups for effective small group dynamics. The LOH material helps them discover their Spiritual Gifts, Character development, biblical learning and Skill development as growing leaders. They continue this weekly format for the remainder of this discipleship process running until early May of 2010. To continue into the summer LOH students are encouraged to take part in summer mission opportunities with their church youth group or as an individual in mission projects such as Project Timothy, HIS Work Camp or other hands on mission opportunities.

Todd Henker, Youth Pastor at Bethany Reformed Church, Clara City, MN was quoted at the retreat as saying, “Our pastor made a statement in front of our congregation that these young people are actually leading our church”.

It is exciting to watch young people discover and grow into who they are called to be as Christians in the world that was Revolutionized by Jesus Christ. 

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Pastor Network Hosts Preaching Retreat
The North Cluster Pastor Network of Central Plains classis recently held a Preaching Retreat as part of the learning component of their network. The time also provided much time for building relationships for pastors and their spouses.

All pastors in the Heartland Synod are encouraged to be in a Pastor Network for continued learning, support and accountability. WE also strongly encourage each pastor to have a personal coach.
If you are not in a network please contact your regional minister;

Dale Assink ( dassink@heartlandsynod.org) for East, West Sioux, Dakota and Central Plains;
John Sikkink ( jsikkink@heartlandsynod.org) for Minnesota;
Jim Koopman ( jkoopman@heartlandsynod.org) for Central Iowa and Pleasant Prairie.
If you are currently in a pastor network be encouraged to schedule a retreat together where you can get-away to enhance the learning and relational aspects of your network.
Contact Dale Assink if you desire to discuss options and or topics.
Here is one pastor’s reflection on the event.

Central Plains North Cluster Preaching Workshop
"Take it, and eat; it will be bitter to your stomach, but sweet as honey in your mouth." (Rev. 10:9)
So John is instructed to eat the scroll – much like the prophets Jeremiah and Ezekiel. And I am reminded how today’s pastor is often like these prophets of old – not necessarily that the message we preach is bitter, but that over time the preaching itself can become bitter – distasteful, toilsome and tiring. As a new pastor, I want to keep my preaching fresh and faithful, so I was pleased to be able to participate in a preaching workshop hosted by the north cluster of the Central Plains Classis.

Our workshop was led by Dr. Tim Brown, president of Western Seminary. He met with about a dozen pastors, youth leaders and lay preachers at the Lied Lodge and Conference Center in Nebraska City, NE. Over the course of a day and a half, we listened to Scripture, to early church fathers, and modern preachers about what it means to preach. We talked the importance of listening deeply to scripture before figuring out what to say. From Peter’s sermon in Acts 2, we wrestled with the power of God’s Word, and we were challenged to let it have the central place in the sermon (not just read before the sermon). We were encouraged by Dr. Brown’s heart for pastors and for the local church. And we enjoyed a relaxed time of food and fellowship. It was a blessing and a challenge to all of us.
Pastor Jon Garbison
Reformed Church of Firth, NE

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Eagan church using social media, interactivity on a spiritual level

(by Jeff Achen_Thisweek Newspapers)__Although a number of modern churches have embraced social media and contemporary worship music, many see Sunday worship as a time for congregants to turn off their handheld devices and leave their laptops behind.__Not Peace Church in Eagan.__Rev. Mark Reynoso is leading a new style of worship at 11:11 a.m. Sunday mornings called "Epic."__"I do think there's something beautiful about churches that are (asking congregants to turn off their phones to focus on God). At the same time, what we believe is our particular calling in this is slightly different," he said.
_Started Sept. 13, Peace Church combined its traditional and contemporary services into one service and added a newer, more forward thinking "Epic" worship service.__"Epic" incorporates video dramatizations, contemporary worship music, interaction among congregation members, and elements of social media such as Twitter and text messaging to encourage more active religious living.__Reynoso preaches in his short-sleeve shirt, blue jeans and bare feet, instead of robes. Instead of a pulpit, he delivers his message in front of a table and laptop computer.__By contrast, the other, more traditional service has a choir, pipe organ music and a band. Rev. Al Pruis, lead pastor, runs that service. __He said the point of the new service is to reach a younger generation and those who have drifted away from the church.__"In reaching a new generation for Christ, we knew that we had to create an environment that allowed expressions that are part of that new generation," Pruis said. "It's much more visual, multimedia and always centered on God's word."__Pruis and Reynoso said they're already seeing new people and a few of those who had stopped attending the church come to the "Epic" services.__"I think it's going well. There's a lot of energy flowing into it," Pruis said.__Pruis, 62, said he knew he needed someone younger to lead the new service. __Fresh out of seminary, 27-year-old Reynoso has only been with the church since July 2008. _

He's immersed in social media, active on Facebook and Twitter and in Pruis's eyes, is the perfect candidate to lead "Epic."__"Mark has a real keen desire to be advancing God's kingdom forward, but having said that, my role is doing whatever I can to help Mark move forward with this. My issue is, How are we reaching people?" Pruis said.__It's all part of a larger trend toward more contemporary ministry Pruis acknowledges is happening at churches across the county.
For churches to say that they want to reach a new generation for the Lord, you have to be extremely intentional about that," he said. "We are being extremely intentional."__For Peace Church, part of the Reformed Church in America, the move is not too far outside its comfort zone. Reynoso said his denomination has always been a "middle of the road."__He relates it most closely with Presbyterian Church.__"We are very evangelical at heart. At the doctrinal level there are differences," he said. "We have the traditional values without attempting to be overly conservative or liberal."__The mission of Peace Church is "deeper, bigger and younger." __"Deeper in our walk with God,  bigger in our mission to the world and younger being intentional in reaching the next generation," Reynoso said.__The Wi-Fi-enabled church may even invite congregants to bring laptops into future services. __Already some youth leaders are ministering by text messages. __"We're redefining what text messaging is. If it's blurbs to get to people, those blurbs can be about God," Reynoso said. "For me, I live in the world where I'm on Facebook every day, I'm on Twitter everyday. It's completely natural to make that part of the worship service."__So, each Sunday, the members of Peace Church will get their text messages, typically a challenge to live the sermon message out during the week. And they might be asked to share how it went before the church the following Sunday.__"We're trying to claim the reality that sermons aren't always the easiest things to apply to your life," Pruis said.__In bridging the gap between conservative Christian principles and today's technology-saturated world, Peace Church is attempting to make that a little bit easier._

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Urban Plunge Sioux Falls

        Greetings in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.  I have had many conversations with Church leaders and members who are looking for ways to engage their members and youth with the communities of need. The problem often isn’t that our churches and members aren’t willing to engage these communities but rather that many of them don’t know how to begin and let fear and apprehension keep them from taking that first step. The city of Sioux Falls is being blessed with a new ministry that will be a valuable tool to help the Church engage the groups that Jesus talked about in Matthew 25 those in need of clothes, food, and companionship. Sioux Falls seminary is partnering with Urban Plunge a weekend immersion experience that started in Omaha to bring Sioux Falls- Urban Plunge to our city. The Urban Plunge weekends will run from 4:30 pm of Friday to around 1:00 pm on Sunday. During the weekend the groups will have the opportunity to visit and volunteer in 8 different organizations and ministries that are answering God’s call to meet the needs of the poor and marginal of the Sioux Falls area as well as worshiping with believers of ethnic and other minority groups that are answering needs found in their specific group. We will also take time to debrief and process the feeling and thoughts of the group at different points in the weekend.

           The main goal of the Sioux Falls Urban Plunge is simple yet profound. By exposing individuals to the need and also to the organizations and individual who are responding to that need, we pray that they will be put in a position where they will search their own hearts and discover their own role in the relationship of Church and poverty. Perhaps they will return to volunteer at one of the ministries that they encounter on the plunge, but the main goal is that they might have a desire to grow where they have been planted and tap into their own passion that can be used by God. Groups will come from both Sioux Falls and surrounding areas as well as from several hours away. This is a not for profit venture and the cost to participate in the weekends is very low, (we’re looking at $200 deposit/group and then $75/individual-meals and housing included) and groups can run from 10-20 people. (You’d be hard pressed to find to find a more economical weekend of any kind!) 

           Things have come together; the organizations that are going to be part of the weekends are ready and excited. We would be happy to book your group for anytime this fall/winter and into the spring and summer of 2010. For more information about what Urban Plunge is all about check out the Omaha website at www.up.digbro.com and feel free to give me a call to book a weekend or with any questions-thank you.

IN CHRIST
Jason Wiersma
605-366-3615
712-986-4116