Editor:
Tom Arneberg
(editor@cvbc.net)
Looking back on the year 2001 in the life of our church family, we can certainly see God's loving Shepherd's hand at work in our midst. Circumstances involving changes, transitions and departures caused all of us in the family to reexamine God's direction and will for us as a church and inspired us to look even deeper into His Word, by the guidance of His Holy Spirit, to find our way in a suddenly uncertain world.
What has emerged is a confirmation of His love and care for us -- His provision for us to enjoy fellowship as a family of believers. We have come to a renewed sense of burden to reach the unsaved of our community, which is a central purpose for God building His church in the Chippewa Valley.
We have seen men courageously stepping up into spiritual leadership -- first in their homes and then within the church and community. God moved in the hearts of the women of the church to raise up a godly, active and loving ministry, sister to sister. He raised up leaders for our young people and we have seen great fruit in the Awana and youth group programs. We have already seen fruit in the new converts who are being discipled in the church, a kind of firstfruit of the blessings to come.
While there have been obstacles, setbacks, and heartaches, through it all God has shown Himself faithful and confirmed His love and desire to be our Good Shepherd. As we prepare to press on to the high calling God has given us individually, and as a church, we know in an even more intimate way that God's promise to "never leave us nor forsake us" has never rung more clearly true.
I would like to personally thank and commend each individual who has demonstrated grace under fire, courage in adversity, and faith in God's provision in uncertain times. You are an inspiration to me and a testimony to your Lord for all the world to see. I look forward to working in the fields of harvest together as we press on to the high calling we are so privileged to have, in Him!
Keith Tompkins
The New Testament describes two offices of leadership for the local church, elders and deacons. As outlined in our church constitution, "The deacons are servant-ministers of the church. Their purpose is to relieve the elders of the multitude of practical duties of caring for the flock." Deacons who have served throughout 2001 include Jon Strand, Darin Thomas, Doug Mason, Stu Krause, and head deacon Mark Hedrington.
Our constitution also outlines a 6-18 month procedure for men who feel led to explore becoming deacons. We are privileged to currently have four men who are in this process: Glenn Woods, Dave Bishop, Franklin Bodine, and Brad Robb.
The elders are often called "overseers" in the New Testament. We started 2001 with five official elders -- Keith Tompkins, Dennis Wolf, Andy Majorins, Mike Mayhew, and Tom Arneberg. Our teaching elder, Andy, felt the Lord leading him to another corner of His vineyard, and thus accepted a call at Community Bible Church in Mt. Vernon, Iowa, leaving us in July.
We currently have three men immersed in the 6-18 month process of becoming elders -- Jim Haley, Dan Burns, and Stuart Krause. Actually, Stuart has been in the process for almost two years now! And Jim is a former elder for many years, so he is a special case. Dan has been involved with the eldership for about a year.
As 2001 draws to a close, the elders are prayerfully fine-tuning a job description for a full-time pastor-teacher who would eventually become an elder according to the process in our church constitution. Please keep all of our church leaders in your prayers, especially as we try to discern God's will as to who should be in official leadership positions.
The Apple Pregnancy Care Center served many clients during the year
2001. Services provided included free pregnancy testing, options
counseling, post-abortion counseling, evangelism and ongoing support
for pregnant women and single mothers. Our director continues to speak
to the public on issues such as abstinence, etc.
Some of the exciting things that happened during the year were the
continued growth of the Sole Sisters group and the coming together of
some post-abortion group graduates to develop outreach materials for
other post-abortive women. APPLE has also been invited to work with the
Jail Ministry group in Eau Claire to minister to several pregnant women
currently in jail.
Sole Sisters is a group for single mothers to come together and lift
each other up. They alternate each Tuesday evening with large outreach
groups and small Bible study groups. The large groups provide
educational and fun activities for the women. Quality child care is
provided. Small groups help the women involved grow in their
relationship with the Lord. Volunteers are always needed in this
ministry.
APPLE will continue with all these activities in the upcoming year and
hopes to strengthen its efforts to reach abortion-minded women, and to
strengthen
its efforts in evangelism. APPLE has also been in prayer for its
need for two more board members.
Allison Schnobrich
Those are the words recited by the children every Wednesday night at CVBC,
right after pledging allegiance to the American flag. It sums up the
purpose of Awana -- to spread the gospel and to train children to serve
Christ.
We have reached about 170 different kids this year through the Awana
program, with an average of about 120 coming on any given Wednesday
night. The church is very thankful for Mark Woodford, who stepped
forward to be the director this year, a position he had held for several
years up through 1997. In fact, Mark and his wife Debbie first started
coming to CVBC when their now-grown daughter Amber was in Kindergarten and was
invited to Awana by her friend!
The program is run by several competent directors -- Darla
Volbrecht heads up the Cubbies (3-5 years old), Kim Hoffman and Christine
Bishop share the leadership of the Sparkies (grades K-2), Beth Arneberg
is the director of the Chums and Guards (girls from grades 3-6), and
Mark Hedrington directs the Pals & Pioneers (boys from grades 3-6).
In addition to these directors, and to our ever-faithful game director
and statistician
Jim Bedell, there are some FORTY different adults who help keep
it all going each week! We can't thank all you by name in this article,
but you know who you are. We appreciate all you do!
Awana not only meets on Wednesday nights, but also has several special
activities throughout the year. This past year, these included roller
skating parties, the Grand Prix (racing home-made cars), a talent show,
a Sparkie outing, Bible quizzing, and the Awana Olympics in the spring.
Some kids spend a lot of time memorizing Scripture on their own, while
others are less ambitious. But sometimes the "problem kids" help teach
the adults patience and perseverence, if the leaders come with the
proper attitude.
Consider these words about attitude from a famous preacher:
- Charles Swindoll
by Tom Arneberg
One year ago, we announced that we were about to finally get this new
CVBC Boy Scout troop off the ground, after three years of talking about
it. Well, we did start, in March 2001, and nine months later, all we
can say is -- WOW!
The new troop far surpassed our expectations. We only had three boys
on the charter, but by the second month, we already had fifteen boys
regularly attending! Our first big outing was a five-mile hike on the
Ice Age trail in April, with snow still on the ground. It was capped off
by a lunch cooked over an open campfire, and we have never looked
back.
The first campout was a camporee in May. We also camped out on an
island in the Chippewa River in June, and took a 17-mile canoe trip on
the Scenic St. Croix River in July, camping out on a deserted island
halfway between Taylor's Falls and Stillwater.
In August, we spent a day and night at Camp Kenwood, where the boys
built a monkey bridge out of ropes and logs, for use at the church
picnic the next day. September brought another camporee, October saw
the boys raking for some church ladies' homes (and selling popcorn to
raise funds), and in November the boys went to the Science Museum of
Minnesota. In the final month of 2001, the troop spent the weekend in a
heated cabin at the L.E. Phillips Scout Reserve near Rice Lake, then
celebrated the first year with a Court of Honor and a PowerPoint slide
show.
Throughout the year, I have been surprised by the commitment shown by
both the boys and the men who have joined the troop.
Dr. Dobson has a new book out about
raising boys, and the obvious point (obvious to us, that is, but
sometimes blurred in our culture) is that boys need to be treated
differently than girls do! Boy Scouting not only does fun "boy" stuff, but
does it in a way to encourage and teach leadership, responsibility, and
character in the boys.
What has surprised me about the boys is how much they enjoy
"old-fashioned" fun.
We have been conditioned to think that
"modern" kids need more electronic stimulation than the kids of a
generation ago did. However, come to any Boy Scout outing (where Gameboys,
computers, radios, and
any other electronic gear is prohibited), and you will find
boys having a great time hiking, camping, or canoeing in the
outdoors, just as they would have done a hundred years ago.
The boys are led by Tommy Schultz, who is the elected Senior Patrol
Leader, and his assistant, Brady Nyhus. Boys who have served as leaders
of their individual patrols in 2001 include Garrett Mathwig,
Benjamin Arneberg, Justin McKinney, and David Woods.
How about the men? Well, in talking with other troops, we were given
advice that we'd have to make up schedules and require some of the
parents to come on a certain number of trips per year, or else we
wouldn't have enough adult help. (Notice I said "parents," and not "fathers"
-- most Boy Scout troops now have mothers helping out, since there
aren't enough interested fathers to go around.)
I am thrilled to report, however, that in our new troop, we have had an
abundance of very qualified and very willing fathers! Even some men
who don't have sons of scouting age are pitching in. We are deeply grateful
for the men who have gone through the official training to become
Assistant Scoutmasters and have been helping all year -- In addition to
Scoutmaster Darin Thomas and I, there was
Glenn Woods, Jamey Mauk, Mark Hedrington, Jon Mathwig, and Steve Nutzmann.
In addition, Paul Lasiewicz took the first half of the training
recently, and has already come on a couple of outings. Needless to say,
most troops don't get this kind of support from the men! It is a thrill
to be involved with a troop like this.
Special thanks go to Darin Thomas, who is our Scoutmaster and our
inspiration. Darin is a gifted leader who is both strict enough to earn
the boys' respect, and also playful enough to earn their friendship
and loyalty.
Even though we are blessed with so many adult leaders, if any other
men are interested, there is always room for more. You may be surprised
at how little work is involved, since the boys do most of the work
around the camp (and they have FUN doing it, believe it or not, because
it's with their friends, and they did the planning!).
We are very thankful for Chippewa Valley Bible Church, who gives us the
space to meet in each Monday night, and who gave us a generous amount of
money for camping equipment to get the troop off the ground. Please
continue to keep the Boy Scouts in your prayers as these boys grow
into young men.
by Paulette Hedrington, Mary Jorstad, Jody Strand and Deb Tilton
In 2001, the Children's Church ministry reached between 20 and 25 children
each week. Three- to five-year-olds sang, prayed, listened to a Bible story,
had a snack, and usually found time to do a craft during the time allotted
for Children's Church.
We have exciting things planned for the year 2002.
We have combined forces with the nursery and will now have available a two-
and
three-year-old Children's Church as well as a Children's Church for children
ages four to six years old. We are looking forward to the coming year to
see how God will bless this change!
We want to thank everyone who has volunteered for Children's Church. Without
you, there would be no ministry in this area.
In just a few short months Jacob's Well will be officially one year
old. Our first service in March of last year went extremely well,
seeing over 200 people in attendance. Now almost a year later, Jacob's
Well is averaging 200 people. Praise God! Not only have we seen a
church community born, but we've seen significant spiritual
growth. We have seen some accept the Lord while others have not made
the decision but continue to come, hearing the Word of Truth and
experiencing true love by the people. Eighteen people were baptized
this year at Jacob's Well. By March, we will have 10 small groups.
So looking ahead at the second year at Jacob's Well, we continue to
look to God. We ask for prayers that we will continue to be faithful
ministers to our regular attendees and continue to reach out to the
community. In addition, we would also appreciate prayer regarding a
meeting place. We don't know how much longer we can meet at Delong
Middle School, and in looking around Eau Claire, there are limited
options for us to find space that would suit our needs.
It is exciting to be a part of God's work. And we thank you, CVBC, for
your work in the Kingdom. Thank you for your encouragement and prayers
for Brenda and me, especially with our new baby Hannah. We were
overwhelmed by your support last October and November.
Thank you for being faithful to reaching out to the Valley with the gospel.
May God continue to move in a mighty way in the Valley.
Patrick & Brenda Hukriede
by Debbie Nutzmann
Well, I just want to say that this was the most awesome family experience
we have ever had. It was truly fantastic -- rustic, but awesome. Neither we
as a family nor I as an individual have ever been to a Bible camp
before. We saw, did and learned so much it would be too difficult to
write it all down.
We met families that have been going for 36 years.
There was a family that had four generations at camp. There were people
from all kinds of backgrounds and churches. What was clear was that we
all were God's children coming together to celebrate life and give our
children a strong Christian legacy.
Pastor Jim Woldhuis was the guest speaker for the week, and I knew that
by the end of the week he had spoiled me. He was an engaging speaker, a
gifted storyteller and a wonderful teacher/preacher. I hope his church
knows how lucky they are. My husband and I were greatly moved and felt
so filled by the Holy Spirit during his sermons, which we had the good
fortune to hear TWICE a day!
His topic was "grace." There are many lessons
to learn when it comes to grace: "Life is short, death is sure, sin
is the cause, Jesus is the cure." He also talked about legalism and that it
is petty and small-minded and not of God. He spoke of the dangers of
grace and how if you walk away you will surely die. He warned against
using our personal decisions (in gray areas of the Bible, such as
drinking) to measure how our fellow Christians stand up.
He made it
clear that there are no "second-class Christians." As Christians, we
should never place conditions of acceptance by judging spiritual growth
or judging for past sins such as divorce, how others raise their
children, or how someone chooses to dress in church.
One day when Jim had to be out of camp for a funeral in Duluth,
Jon Pederson was
our speaker. And guess what he preached about? That's right, the
Evangecube!
Then he gave us another way to remember what we, as
Christians, should be doing. It was a lesson on CPR. "C" is for cultivating
friendships with non-Christians. "P" is for planting spiritual seeds, by
demonstrating God's love in your life. And "R" is for reaping the
harvest.
Yes, we did tons of other activities, like boating, sail-surfing,
canoeing, swimming, rocketry, riflery, snorkeling, frog-hop races,
campfire songs, basket-making, and much, much more. My favorite, of
course, next to the chapel time, was no cooking, cleaning, dishes or mom's
taxi!
If you find yourself with this opportunity for family camp, please don't
miss it. It was also a great time getting to know some more of the
church family on a more personal level.
I praise God for the experience of this wonderful family time together!
Growing in His name,
Debbie Nutzmann
As CVBC grows larger, having good communications becomes even
more important.
In 2001, we continued in
our seventh year of putting out a four-page newsletter every month
("Focus on the Valley"). It is created by a volunteer staff (Tom
Arneberg edits, Stu Krause lays it out, and a cast of dozens gets to
proofread the electronic copy.)
Once we produce the master, our church secretaries (Melissa Majorins,
Erin Thiele, and Libby Krause in 2001) do the copying,
folding, labeling, and mailing.
Several issues this year had to be expanded from four to six pages or
even eight pages, to
accommodate all the articles written by church members! Thank you to
everyone who takes the time to write articles.
The newsletter goes to about 400 homes, including families
of AWANA and VBS kids.
Another way we communicate in our church is through electronic mail.
Our central email list is now up to 167 different people. We also
have smaller email lists for various groups within the church,
such as elders, deacons, worship team, choir, etc.
Email provides us a great way to keep in
touch -- messages on the CVBC list include prayer requests, text from
newsletter drafts, text from the Sunday bulletins, updates, and
announcements. Even more information, ideas, discussions, and
brainstorming comes across some of the leadership email lists.
One new list created in late 2001 was "CVBC-PrayerLine", specifically
for prayer requests.
If you have access to email and are not on the main email list, please
join us by sending a note to "email@cvbc.net". All CVBC lists are now
operated out of Yahoo, which means that every participant can manage his
own subscriptions either by sending simple email commands, or through a
web interface.
Speaking of the web,
our web page, "cvbc.net", also has undergone some changes this year. We
lost our free unlimited high-speed web server, and so the CVBC web pages
are being bounced around to various providers trying to find one that is
both stable and very cheap. Hopefully this will settle down soon.
There are even more
digital cameras owned by church members now, so you can expect to see
even more photos online, once we get the space again.
There is additional useful information on our home page,
including back issues of all our newsletters since 1995, our constitution,
information about AWANA, links to
papers on Biblical Eldership, and so forth. If you ever have any ideas
for what else should go onto the church web page, please let me know. Or
if you want to volunteer to take over a subset of the web pages (such as
for youth group), that would be great, too.
We pray that God will
continue to allow us to use whatever means available to us to reach our
community for Christ.
Tom Arneberg, toma@cvbc.net
2001, to say the least, was a year to remember. Our Nation will
forever recall the events of September 11 and we, too, here within
our CVBC family experienced many changes this past year. How
blessed we all are to have the love of our heavenly Father and
each other. I give thanks and praise to almighty God for his
mighty hand guiding us through it all.
Last year we had planned to provide some technical updates that
didn't materialize completely. However, with the purchase of
a new projector (similar to the InFocus Projector that we had been
borrowing) just a few months ago, we are continuing that
goal and I'm sure you will see much more of it as we incorporate
its use for worship services and many other ministry presentations.
Our new LCD MultiMedia projector device allows us
to project video or computer images on a projector screen. It
is available to anyone who would like to give video or computer
presentations at church functions. If you would like to use it
or have questions regarding its operation, contact Darin Thomas.
Plans for 2002 include updating the kitchen appliances and adding
a new hot water system to save energy and to improve sanitation.
Storage will be improved by building some much-needed cabinets, and
we are considering installing a retractable room divider in Room 50
(the large Sunday school room) to provide more options for classroom usage.
Thanks to everyone, especially Glenn Woods and Dave Bishop, for their
coordination of the playground project. The youth are enjoying it!
But please continue to supervise the younger children since we did
experience a couple of injuries -- Aaron Bishop received a broken arm
and David Arneberg a bloody lip complete with a face full of dirt!
We continue to explore possibilities to provide more space for our
many ministries that we all enjoy. Please be patient and inform us
of any problems or concerns. We occasionally need volunteers to
help with various projects, so if you are being led to serve in any
of these ways, please let us know.
Currently our deacons are Jon Strand, Darin Thomas, Doug Mason, Stu
Krause, and me.
Deacon candidates are
Glenn Woods, Dave Bishop, Franklin Bodine, and Brad Robb.
Please continue to pray for these men, their families and their
ability to serve our great and mighty Lord.
In His Service,
The Fellowship of Christian Athletes has seen significant growth in our
schools this year. Both the Chi-Hi Huddle group and the Middle School Huddle
group have grown from four to five attenders per meeting to 25 to 30!
This is attributed to our faithful Huddle leaders and some bold kids
who are willing to invite their friends to the meetings. We are truly
blessed to have excellent Huddle leaders. Stan Williams and Greg Stewart are
the Chi-Hi Huddle leaders. Jim Johnston and Jodi Hunter are the Middle
School leaders. Kay and Paul Forsythe and Butch Preston also help out at the
Middle School meetings.
In October and November, several of us got together to pray and meet about
developing an FCA Adult Chapter in Chippewa Falls. In December we formally
became an Adult Chapter and elected officers in early January. While much of
the board is made up of CVBC people, it is not an exclusive CVBC ministry.
Our hope is that we would develop as an inter-denominational group, comprised
of a cross section of local churches. The following people represent the
Chippewa Falls FCA Board:
I would also like to thank Butch Preston for all of his assistance in
helping us get started. Butch has spent many hours helping to direct
our path. I think retirement for Butch simply means "Now I can really
get started!"
Faithfully,
Greg Wallace
By Debbie Nutzmann
I have dreamed of having a big victory garden ever since we have
moved to Chippewa Falls. My only problem was that we live in the
woods, so there are too many trees and way too many deer.
This
year I came up with a plan that would afford me the
room and sunshine I needed. The church yard was perfect, and
then I could get others involved with my passion. I asked a
couple of deacons about it and soon they had the Stuves
plowing a big plot for the garden. Six families had signed
up to garden; they each had their own plot and some more
families were motivated to have a garden in their yard.
We had a great deal of variety in what was being grown -- everything from
Chinese cabbage to collard greens to lemon grass. We had
the same variety in gardening styles. Some of the gardeners
were at the garden several times a week, weeding and
watering, while others had the idea that it's an equal
opportunity garden for vegetables as well as weeds. Some
gardeners liked neat rows, while others got creative with
colorful plantings among their veggies.
Whatever the style,
the outcome was still fun! Everyone enjoyed the fruits of
their labor. For those gardeners that had a surplus of
veggies we had a "harvest table" for sharing free, fresh
produce. For the end of the season, we canned tomatoes, lots
of salsa, and sauce. Again we had variety -- some of us were
seasoned veterans of canning, and some of us didn't even own
jars. It was a great time in fellowship together enjoying
God's great gifts!
My vision for next year is to have the youth or VBS-age
kids do some plantings. This year was fickle with the
weather, and pumpkins didn't turn out. God willing, next
year's weather will be better and the kids can plant
pumpkins, gourds, and Indian corn for the fall festival. Of
course my resolution for next year is to manage the weeds
better and to find a way to stake 48 tomato plants without
hassle. Suggestions are welcome, recipes for zucchini needed,
and newcomers wanted!
Paulette Hedrington, Jody Strand
This year, approximately 150 to 200 books, videos and audios were checked
out of the library each month. The library committee is always adding new
materials to the CVBC library through donations and purchases. In 2001, the
library was expanded in the areas of creationism, adult fiction, children's
and young adult fiction, parenting, marriage, and Christian living.
The
greatest expansion this year was in the area of children's literature. With
so many great resources available for kids, we tried to provide a variety of
material to encourage the kids of CVBC to read. We also started a summer
reading program to encourage the kids to explore what the CVBC library has to
offer -- entertaining, wholesome books with a Christian message. If your kids
do not already use the library, please encourage them to check out what's
available!
We would like to thank everyone who made donations to the library in 2001.
They are greatly appreciated by everyone who uses the library. The library
committee will always accept donations of useful, up-to-date Christian
material. If you would like to donate books, videos, or tapes, please place
them in the
donation box in the library. We would also like to thank everyone who gave
ministry stamps from the Family Christian Stores in Eau Claire. With these
stamps, we have purchased several new items for the CVBC library. Please
continue to ask for the ministry stamps when at the Family Christian Stores.
If you have any suggestions of things you would like to see in the library,
please let us know. Many of the newest library materials can be found on the
two shelves outside the library, but there are also many library materials
which may interest you inside the library itself. If you have not already
done so, please stop by the library and check it out!
Ladies Missionary Fellowship (LMF) meets the fourth Wednesday of
every month to read letters that have been received and to
pray for our missionaries. We keep in touch with them every
month along with the newsletter from CVBC. We remember
them when they have birthdays and anniversaries. We also
invite them to come and speak when any of them are in the
area on furlough.
This year we were privileged to have Mary
Poulson with us. Our projects this year have been to sew
bandages for a hospital in Africa and to help John Schone
with supplies for newly released prisoners in his Jail
Ministries.
Thank you to the church family for their help in
donations. We have helped financially for the Youth's
Mission trip, Tony & Mary Poulson's medical bills and Keith
Tompkins to help send books to Africa. Again, thank you to
the church family in saving their receipts from Gordy's
IGA and Gordy's Hardware and for participating in the Pic 'n Save
refund project which has made it possible to help with
different missionary projects. We also have given
financial help to John and Kathie Pederson with their medical
bills for their daughter and for Kathie's new STEM assignment.
The CVBC prayer chain has been
updated via telephone and email -- If you want to join the telephone
prayer line, call me at 289-4975. To join the email version of the CVBC
prayer line, just send a blank email to
"CVBC-PrayerLine-subscribe@yahoogroups.com".
We had our annual picnic at Irvine Park and our Christmas
Party at Joann Oman's home, and had a great time of fellowship
at both.
I thank God for each of the ladies who faithfully
attend the meetings and participate in providing devotions
and snacks. We invite any of the ladies to join us.
In his service,
Audrey Peterson
Church membership is not specifically mentioned in the New Testament,
but there are many passages of Scripture instructing
professing Christians to commit and
submit to a local church.
Having an official membership roll is a convenient way to
allow you to make a public statement that you are
committed to a particular local church, and that you agree with what
that church stands for and believes.
At CVBC, membership is
required for any leadership
position within the church, such as small group leaders, Sunday School
teachers, Awana directors, etc., in addition to positions of elder and
deacon.
There are currently 136 people who have made this commitment of
membership:
A little over a year ago after a Promise Keeper's conference,
several men started talking and praying about having a men's prayer
breakfast. Some of these men had been involved in men's breakfasts
elsewhere and shared how they'd been positively affected. There were even
comments from spouses as to how these regularly scheduled get-togethers had
changed men, their marriages, and/or their families. It seems the Promise
Keeper's catch phrase (Proverbs 27:17) -- "As iron sharpens iron, so one man
sharpens another" -- was being fulfilled. It is so amazing how our Lord can
work through such a simple and enjoyable time. So the Saturday Morning Men's
Prayer Breakfast was started.
The breakfast meets on the second Saturday of each month starting at
7:00 a.m. (A few men come at 6:00 to prepare the meal.) There is a shot
social time, then breakfast, then usually a speaker, then discussion, then a
time of prayer.
Prayer is the primary reason for the breakfast, even though the
other goings on are also important. Prayer is where the real
changes take place. It is impossible to see a lasting, effective change on
our own, but when we ask our Father to make the change or guide us or help
us, then we see results. Our Father loves us so much; He wants to help us!
He looks into our hearts and sees our desire to follow Him. Many times this
starts with conviction of sin. This leads to repentance -- a crying out to
God for mercy. Then forgiveness comes and righteousness.
"If we confess our
sins he is faithful and just and will forgive us our
sins and purify us from all unrighteousness." (1 John 1: 9).
"Let us then
approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy
and find grace to help us in our time of need." (Heb. 4: 16).
Once we're
righteous and holy, we can approach our Father with confidence and make our
requests known (i.e., pray). 1 John 3: 21-22 says,
"Dear friends, if our hearts do
not condemn us, we have confidence before God and receive from Him anything
we ask, because we obey His commands and do what pleases Him." Also see
Ephesians 3:12, 1 John 5:14, and Matthew 7:7.
As to the other "goings-on," the social time before breakfast and
the discussion time after the speaker are both times when men can help each
other with relationships, parenting, being a man of God, being men of
integrity and character, being better husbands and fathers, etc.
The speakers have been great. Sometimes they tell their testimony
and share God's Word. (Testimonies are great! -- Walls come down, hearts are
opened, the Holy Spirit touches lives.) Sometimes the speaker shares a story
and God's Word to teach and encourage. Sometimes the speaker calls us to
action, either individually or several of us at once. Sometimes
we're convicted and held
accountable, but also encouraged. God always gets the glory!
The men's breakfast is seasonal and is held during the school year,
from September to May; we take a break through summer months
of June through August.
Please pray for this ministry. And wives, please encourage your
husbands to come. Kids too, please encourage your fathers to come. Men,
encourage other men to come and come join us for a time of fun, fellowship,
sharing, caring and praying for each other. Let's let God tear down walls
that keep us from benefiting from a deeper more intimate relationship with
Jesus and other men of God.
Many many thanks and appreciation to all the men who have come and
been a part. Your presence, prayers, comments, and discussions are vital and
welcome. Families, thank you for giving up your men for a time. We trust and
pray that this time will be a blessing to all.
Praise God for His wonderful works both great and small!
Dennis Krizan
By Debbie Nutzmann
My friend is Millard; he is 63 years old. He has no family.
As he says, "I am the last of my people". He has never been
married nor had any children. From what I can tell, he has
never had loving relationships, or any that involve trust.
So why does a housewife, mother of four, have a relationship
with such a person? The answer is, "I don't know."
I do know
that I was drawn to him the first time I heard him in
church. Who was that large man with very unclean clothes?
I'm not a busybody, but I needed to meet him. Within five
minutes he was showing me the inside of his mouth where I
think there had been teeth. We connected!
I want to backtrack a little. Jason Andreo and Greg
Gilbertson had seen Millard on the streets of Chippewa
several years back, and started to bring him to church.
Clothes were bought, gifts were given, yet he seemed to
remain the same -- lonely and unlovable. No one really knew
him, but everyone knew about him and where he lived.
He lived in a converted coach car on Hwy 29. We've all passed his
house many times and in some cases every day. If you were
like me you wondered, who lives in that house? How could
anyone live in that house? Well, Millard Cormican lived in
that coach car for twenty years. He was a person receiving
Social Security Insurance as income, yet he wasn't able to take care of himself.
Somehow over the years he had fallen through the cracks of
the "system" and wasn't really being taken care of.
But he
tried to make the best of his situation. All alone, Millard
made the dark and cold coach car his home. Along with some
of the items he had saved forever were gifts people of CVBC
had given him. I thought it ironic when I looked around
his home, that I could see evidence of what others thought
important -- a little Boyd's bear proudly displayed among
the clutter of dirty keepsakes, years of sale flyers, and
tons of dust. Most everything in the house was so old and
broken it was unusable.
The condition of the train car
itself was more deplorable and unimaginable than most of us
will ever see. In the bathroom there was no sink or mirror,
just a grimy tub and a toilet that had turned black and
didn't flush unless you poured water down it. His only means
to do laundry was washing by hand and using a wringer then
hang-drying.
It wasn't easy for Millard to do this by
himself. That is why when I met him, his clothes were stiff
and shiny-looking from dirt and cooking grease.
Every room had a leaky ceiling. All the windows were cracked, with
little or no caulking. The floors in the bathroom and
kitchen were rotted out. There were so many holes in that
house that it took him a year to pay off the heat bill after he
did finally move out. The front door was broken so he had to
lock it with a dirty sock jammed in by the knob. That is why
he carries all his money and important papers in his pocket
wherever he goes. (If you were ever wondering why he doesn't
take his jacket off at church, old habits die hard.)
When I had met Millard, it was clear he needed some help. Some of
the men at our church had been trying to get him into the
Northern Apartments but the waiting list was long. Finally
the day came, they had an opening, and Millard wouldn't go.
So with a touch that only a mother could have, I helped
convince Millard he could indeed make the move to a new
home. It wasn't easy, to say the least.
He now lives happily
in a warm apartment on Grand Ave. He is in touch with a
social worker who visits him monthly and helps him with
medical needs. He has home health aides for bathing three
times per week, and a cleaning lady once a week. Millard
still has no "real" friends, but he has a church family that
takes good care of him. He is in the system properly, so he has help
with his physical needs and medical needs. Millard now
has a certain pride about his looks; for one, he has clean
clothes and he shaves.
He loves his visits from church
family. Even though he doesn't stop looking at the TV when
you come by, and may not know your name, he calls me later
and tells me who stopped by. He doesn't know why people give
him Christmas cards when they don't even know him, but he'll
tell me, "I got nine the other day!" I'm sure the residents
of old Hotel Northern are wondering how he knows so many
people.
God tells us to love the unlovable, and so we try. I have
always been attracted to the underdog or a good cause that
may not get the attention it needs. It wasn't until I came
to CVBC that people said it was a gift. I will always have
room in my heart for Millard. When he comes to my house for
Christmas, kicks off his shoes, hangs up his coat, and heads
for my couch, I know he is comfortable here.
I am the only
person on his "emergency call list." When the time comes
they will call me. Everyone in Millard's life has left him,
abused him, cheated him or died. I know now why one-sided
relationships are of great importance and that's what makes
loving the unlovable easy.
We as a church have continued to support many missionaries this year, both
overseas and in the United States. We invested $22,680 in the lives of our
missionaries in 2001, which is about 10% of the total church
budget. We will be
increasing our missions budget by $1500 for the year 2002.
There were 33 missionaries and ministries on our support list in 2001. The
following changes are being made for 2002:
Please continue to pray for our missionaries. You can learn more about any of
them by looking at the pictures and descriptions on the walls in the church
building, or by asking any of the missions committee members.
Missionaries we supported in 2001:
The CVBC Music Ministry was busy this past year, with trips taken,
concerts given, and memories made.
The Youth Choir, under the direction of Terri Tompkins, capped off their
year of hard work with a trip to ValleyFair in June. This past fall,
they sang on Veteran's Day and at the opening of the Sunday School
Christmas Program. They enjoyed a "White Elephant Party" on the last
rehearsal day before Christmas.
The Adult Choir, along with some added guests, prepared a production
entitled "We Will Worship" last spring. It was presented for two
audiences: first for the whole community, at the newly-renovated
Heyde Center for the Arts on the East Hill of Chippewa Falls, and
then for our own
congregation!
This fall, our Adult Choir members agreed to take some
time off and give our wonderful director, the aforementioned Terri
Tompkins, a break!
A big THANK YOU goes out to all of you who give of your time and musical
talents to the ministries of Worship Team and Special Music. These are
both such valuable additions to the worship service on Sunday mornings.
We're looking forward to a wonderful 2002 in the Music Department!
In Him,
Libby Krause
We have been blessed with the following new babies born to CVBC
families in the past year:
We would like to recognize the following 21 people, who each decided to
take the step of commitment to their local church in becoming
official members of CVBC in 2001:
I want to take a moment to reflect on what has been happening in the
nursery over the last year. We have welcomed some new babies this year:
We have also had quite a few graduates from the nursery to Children's
Church:
In light of all the graduates, the toddler nursery has become way too
quiet, which leads me to the most exciting part of this article.
Starting in February, children of age two years old,
along with those already attending
Children's Church, will join in room 20 for music. After some
inspirational tunes, children ages two and three will break off from the
others and have their own special story and craft. In order for this to
run smoothly we will be utilizing toddler room volunteers. You will be
given the material ahead of time so you will have ample time to prepare
the lesson. The craft will also be prepared in advance and will be very
basic as we realize that the two-year-olds will need more help in
finishing their projects. We, the nursery team, are looking forward to
this change. We have also considered some of the difficulties in trying
something new, so please bear with us as we work out the kinks. We are
always available for ideas or suggestions.
The new nursery team is: Julie Burgess, Stephanie Deutschlander, Heidi
Kuepfer, Staci Sullivan, and Karen Hoff, who is still working hard on
all the things that need to be typed and organized.
We want to thank all of you who work in the nursery. We wouldn't have
this ministry available if it weren't for all of you. We always have
room for more volunteers who would like to serve in this area. Please
call one of us if you are interested.
Oops! One more thing -- we are looking for a really cool name for the 2's &
3's. Please participate and put all ideas in my church mailbox.
In His Service,
Staci Sullivan
February 2002 marks the 10th anniversary of the ALS Support Group.
During the past ten years we have had personal contact with over 140
persons with ALS (Lou Gehrig's Disease). Activities of the group have
included monthly support groups, newsletters, home visits, phone calls
and email, in-services to nursing homes and the yearly walk-a-thon.
During the past year, seven of our members died. God provided many
opportunities to share the Gospel with patients and family members. The
one that stands out most in my mind was Gary. Gary was 53-year-old man
who lived only one year after finding out he had ALS. Gary had not been
the best father or husband, and during his illness he often took out his
anger on those closest to him. As the end came closer he seemed to
become more and more angry and hard to care for.
One day I got the call
that he was in a coma and not expected to live. When I arrived, the
hospice nurse had just told the family she thought it was a matter of
minutes. But God's timing was different -- against all odds, Gary woke up
from his coma. Moments later I knelt at his side in tears telling him I
knew that God had given him a second chance and that there must have
been some unsettled business. I also knew that I had been given a
second chance to present the Gospel to this man that had been moments
from heaven or hell.
God allowed me to take two godly men back with me
to see Gary (Mark Halvorson and Keith Tompkins). Both presented the
Gospel and on the second visit, Gary indicated a desire to trust Christ as
his Savior! What a miracle we witnessed that day! A few days later Gary
slipped into a coma and the next time he opened his eyes he was in the
presence of God himself!
Another miracle that God has performed during the past year was to
allow the ALS Support Group to leave the association with the National
ALS group to become an official part of PALS Ministry, Inc. Last fall I
took a step of faith and quit my job at Luther Hospital to work full
time for PALS. My job now includes managing of the PALS Community Home
and the ALS Support Group. CVBC graciously added our name to its list
of missionaries, helping to make it possible for me to do this work
full time.
The PALS Home is the only Assisted Living Facility in the
Chippewa Valley specializing in care of adults with chronic or terminal
illness. We provide 24-hour care for four patients at a time, caring
for the patient and family to help make the last weeks and months of
life of value. We've been privileged to care for people with cancer,
Parkinson's disease, rheumatoid arthritis, ALS, stroke and other
degenerative neurological diseases.
Our dreams for the future include possibly building a new,
larger home in the Chippewa Valley. Pray for wisdom, finances
and land. And second, we're praying about the possibility of
starting a small group 13-week program to provide love, hope
and encouragement to individuals struggling with losses in their
own lives, whether from a change in life circumstances, death,
divorce, miscarriage, or disability. If you would be interested in
learning more about this type of small group, please let me
know -- 723-1694.
Sally Krohn
Dear Sending Body of Believers of Chippewa Valley Bible Church:
This is the annual report from your
missionaries with STEM (Short-Term Evangelical
Mission). Headquartered in Minneapolis, our branch office is in Bemidji,
Minnesota (4 hours south of Canada).
#1 John and the Vice Pres. of STEM visited 5 sites in Venezuela in March to
find a good place for short-term teams. Our first team is 20 people
(inter-generational to Ciudad Ojeda) from northern Minnesota in March 2002.
#2 John called, wrote, visited with dozens of pastors, youth pastors, radio
stations, college students and mission boards to present short-term
missions. Result: eight teams are booked for
2002 (his job description is six).
Chippewa Valley is one of those eight and are scheduled for Haiti in June.
Praise God! You go team!!
#3 STEM office was moved from downtown Bemidji to Oak Hills Christian
College (donated 3 offices to us). Better access here for contacts for
short-term missions. What a blessing! Come see us!
#4 Kathie presented missions to children in several churches and camps.
Your Cresent Lake Bible Camp was one.
#5 We mentored a College Student who is now doing a six month mission trip
to Venezuela.
#6 Kathie took a college course on missions (aced it) (smile smile) called
"Perspectives in World Missions" from Center of World Missions held at Oak
Hills Christian College.
#7 Kariann was sent to Mayo clinic for possible cancer in her leg. Praise
God for a false diagnosis or miracle (depending on your viewpoint). We
prefer miracle. Funding is coming in slowly to pay those bills. (Only
lacking $1300, PTL) We do have insurance but the outstanding amounts were
our deductible, otherwise this number would've been much higher.
#8 John met with 40 pastors who want to have a major outreach event to
Northern Minnesota in April 2002. They held several meetings in Oct. and
Nov. They have asked John to manage the event. (This involves overseeing
every detail from planning the event, promoting the event, funding the
event, prayer, follow-up, and many other things.) Our mission has given
their okay.
#9 We praise God for hundreds of prayers that go up for us each day and for
the financial support from our loved ones and friends. We end the year at 86%
support which Kathie was able to offset with substitute teaching.
Again, this is brief but gives some overview of what we are doing. John
also preaches 10 - 15 times a year. Kathie chairs the Evangelism committee
at our church which trains others and holds events.
We love you and thank God for you and looking forward to serving again
together in 2002.
Submitted by Kathie Pederson
CVBC currently sends two men to the Chippewa County Jail
to minister to inmates
on the third Sunday of each month. Stuart Krause and John Krista present
the Gospel as well as talk about the many issues and problems that the
inmates are concerned with. One-on-one meetings are also possible by
request of the inmate.
This year, Cliff Woltersdorf has been named
chaplain for the Chippewa facility, so we now have our own chaplain. Cliff
is a great asset to the Good News Prison & Jail Ministry and is trying
to expand the ministry to include an aftercare program.
Brenda Robinson is also involved with GNPM and is currently seeing
juveniles in the Eau Claire Juvenile Detention Center on the second Sunday of
every month. At this time, she is the only female volunteer ministering
in that facility.
If you are interested in being a part of Good News Prison & Jail
Ministry, please contact Stuart Krause.
Our year of sewing and fellowship has been a full and productive one. We
completed a quilt for Brandi Lasiewicz
in memory of her nephew, Seth, and assisted the Ladies Missionary
Fellowship with sewing skirts for
the Brazil natives.
We have been learning new skills to enrich our lives
and share the love of Christ through sewing. Additions to our group this
year are Lisa Flaig and Kay Forsythe. Returning to our group has been:
Mingi Bodine, Terri Clausing, Judy Haley, Nadine Hanamann, Char Vogt and
Noriko Slowinski.
Respectfully Submitted,
Cheryl Mason
Dave and Lori McDaniel and Joe and Lynn Cherrier come
over to our house about every two weeks for a study of
Hebrews. We have been studying how Jesus Christ is superior
to the Prophets, angels, and Moses. There are many beautiful
and encouraging verses. We also have interesting discussions
on challenging verses. Mingi provides some tasty dessert for
us to enjoy after our prayer time. If anyone else would like
to join in our study, you are welcome to come.
In Christ,
Franklin Bodine
Jon and Jody Strand
Our small group meets every Friday night for two hours for instruction,
discussion, fellowship and prayer. We are using the "Growing Kids Gods Way"
curriculum with supplemental materials coming from other Christian parenting
authors (i.e Dr. James Dobson, Lisa Whelchel, Kevin Lehman). During our
time together, we learn specific and practical ways to raise our children to
become godly men and women. The members of the group are John and Julie
Burgess, Craig and Laurie Marshall, Steve and Debbie Nutzmann, and Jon and
Jody Strand.
The Friday night Bible study group is studying "Parables: The
Greatest Stories Ever Told." It is a Life Guide Bible study
written by John White.
A parable is an extended metaphor or illustration. It is an
illustration turned into a tale, a tale elaborated on the spur of
the moment by a gifted teacher. Jesus was a supremely gifted
teacher, accustomed to preaching to a crowd with a wide range of
understanding and attitudes. He based each parable on the common
everyday events that made up first century life -- lost money, sheep
and shepherds, and cruel creditors. Parables brilliantly
illustrate important truths about Christ's kingdom, truths which
demand a response.
Those participating in the study are Elizabeth Slack, Barb
Phephles, Mark & Debbie Woodford, Dave & Christine Bishop,
Peter & Cheryl Pokrzywinski, and Michael & Lynn Mayhew.
Submitted by Michael and Lynn Mayhew
This has been a good year for the Tuesdays Mothers' Bible Study. We
meet every other Tuesday at the church building from 10:00 a.m. until
11:30 a.m. During the summer we studied the book of James through an
inspirational view from Max Lucado. We wrapped up the study with a
ladies' night out at Draganetti's. We are currently reading another
wonderful book by Max Lucado, "He Chose The Nails." As always, we look
forward to sharing dinner and fellowship at the end of this study.
We would like to give a special thanks to Karen Hoff who creates the
schedule we follow to keep those involved in the study up to date with
what chapter we are currently doing! Also, thank you to Cindy Steinmetz
for helping with child care whenever she is available.
This is not an exclusive group; we encourage all women interested to
join. We pick books, and Bible studies as a whole, and cover a variety
of topics. We are devoted to prayer, praise, and lifting each other up
during each meeting, as well as sharing different points of view, words
of wisdom, and biblical insight.
If anyone has any questions, or would like to see a current study
schedule, please feel free to call me.
In loving service,
Carolyn M. Thomas
This Bible study met every Monday night at Mingi Bodine's home.
We studied "Women Gifted for Ministry" by Ruth and Elmer Towns.
Through the study of different women in the Bible, we learned about the
gifts of the Holy Spirit that included evangelism, helps,
teaching/mentoring, exhortation, giving, administration, mercy-showing,
prophecy, and shepherding. We completed the study at the end of
November with a delicious and beautifully done meal at Cindee Apple's
home. At this last meeting we took a spiritual gifts test and found
out which gifts were our most prominent ones. The next step is to use
these gifts in service to glorify our Lord!
The next Bible Study we plan to do is "Apples of Gold" by Betty
Huizenga. "The primary purpose of this study is for older women to
nurture younger women in the Word of God, the Bible, and to encourage
them to obey that Word," (quote from Apples of Gold, page 9). It is
based on the principles in two Bible verses, Proverbs 25:11, "A word
aptly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver," and Titus
2:3-5, "Bid the older women likewise to be reverent in behavior, not to
be slanderers or slaves to drink. They are to teach what is good and
so train the younger women to love their husbands and children, to be
sensible, chaste, domestic, kind, and submissive to their own husbands,
that the word of God may not be discredited."
In His service,
Lynn Mayhew
The Thursday lunch time "Men on the Move" group has been meeting
now for two years. This is an open study group, meaning there is
no book, other than the Bible. The subjects are different every
week.
This past year, the focus was on The New Testament Church.
Some of the topics of discussion have been "What Is a New Testament
Church?", "Christian Unity," "Fellowship in a New Testament Church,"
and recently we've been discussing Worship.
This group is open to all men. We meet every Thursday from 12:00 noon
until 1:00 p.m. at Maux Creative, 925 West River Street. If you're
interested in this group contact Darin Thomas or just stop on by.
by Tom & Beth Arneberg
In the winter of 2001, we led a second class through the "Preparation
for Adolescence" curriculum put out by "Growing Families
International."
This class concentrated on these topics:
Participants in the winter class included Jeff & Lisa Flaig, Randy &
Kathy Nyhus, Brad & Tracy Robb, and Tom & Beth Arneberg.
This fall a new Bible study started for women on Wednesdays. The following
people were involved in it: Bev Krizan, Lynn Cherrier, Judy Haley, Kay
Forsythe, Char Vogt, Lisa Flaig, and Annette Schultz.
Comments from a couple of participants:
Annette Schultz:
Char Vogt:
I found this study to be like an unveiling. I not only became aware of my
spiritual gifts and how they impact my everyday life, but also how to
identify these gifts in others. It also helped me understand that the same
God-given gift may manifest itself differently in each one of us and how
important it is to recognize this in order to support each other.
Thank you, Bev, for leading us through this spiritual journey. I would also
like to thank God for all the beautiful women I got to know during this study.
Praise God for all He has given!"
We have approximately 125 children on the Sunday School rolls. I would
like to thank all those individuals who give of their time on Sunday
mornings to take part in the Sunday School ministry:
A special "Thank you" to Terri Tompkins who directed the Christmas program
this year.
I want to thank all those who have participated in the Sunday School
ministry over the years that I've been
Sunday School Superintendent.
In His Service,
Dennis Wolf
Once again, the Lord has blessed us with another wonderful
year of serving as ushers. We hope that everyone has had
nothing but pleasant and cheerful greetings from our team.
Our job is more than just greeting you, passing out the
service bulletins, and finding your family suitable seating. Our
job and our desire is to carry out our tasks lovingly, joyfully,
and kindly (Gal. 5:22), with a Christ-like attitude (Phil. 2:5).
We currently have an average congregational attendance of 260. Some days
we are a little cramped, and some days there is elbow room.
We thank you for your patience when we squeeze you in
on the cramped days, race to cool off the sanctuary on the
hot days, and warm you up on those chilly days.
We look forward to another great year serving the Lord through
serving the church family. If there is any way that we
can better serve you, please let us know.
God we serve,
Jerry Brandt, Herb Anderl, Jon Strand, and Darin Thomas
by Libby Krause
This year's Vacation Bible School (July 22-29) was titled "Son Creek
Junction" and was set in an Old West mining town. The children learned daily
"gold nuggets" of truth (Bible Memory Verses) for growing up in God's
family. This was done through songs, activities, snacks, crafts, stories and
games.
They learned that Jesus died and rose again so that we can be
forgiven and can live as members of God's family ("Start Up!"). Then they
learned that as God's children we can follow the instructions in His Word
("Listen Up!"). Then, as God's children we can love and accept others ("Open
Up!"). Next, as God's children we can talk to him in prayer ("Look Up!"), and
finally, as God's children we can tell others about His love ("Speak Up!").
There were a total of 165 different kids who came to VBS, with
about 120-145 children attending each night! This includes 39 kids in
grades 5-6, 46 in grades 3-4, and 30 in grades 1-2, with the rest in
Kindergarten or younger.
There were 73 different helpers (adults and teens)
from the CVBC congregation who volunteered
to help out during the week. They were dedicated to prayer and preparation
before VBS, then faithfully showed up every night to minister to our
children. Thank you to each and every one of you who volunteered your time,
resources, financial help, and so much love to these kids. Special thanks go
to these coordinators of various areas:
Crystal Ruzicka - Co-director and Drama Coach; Monique Woods and Tom Arneberg -
Registration; Keith Tompkins - Publicity; Marty Schild - Coloring Contest;
Heidi Kuepfer and Laurie Marshall - T-shirts
and sales; Andrea Mauk - Sign Painting;
Stuart Krause - M.C.; Lonnie & Mary Jorstad - Skits; Mark Volbrecht - Sound
System; Lindsey Gillette - Transparencies; Linda Balsiger - Missions;
Lynn Mayhew and Cris & Dave Bishop - Bible Stories; Joe Kerr - Puppets; Steve
Ruzicka and Greg & Gab Gilbertson and Jessie Wolf - Bible Memory Verses; Heidi
Kuepfer and Deb Nutzmann - Decorating; Darla Volbrecht & Crew - Snacks; Hoi
& Jean
Van Dong & Crew - Games; Deb Nutzmann & Crew - Crafts; Julie Burgess, Grace
Haley & Crew - Nursery.
Also, the group guides who took the classes of
children from place to place did a great job this year! Thanks to Dan
& Lori
Burns, Andrea Mauk, Brent & Deb Tilton, Crystal Ruzicka, Kathy & Brady Nyhus,
Jon & Jody Strand, Nadine Hanamann, Cheryl Mason, Brett & Allison Schnobrich,
Mark & Paulette Hedrington,
Greg & Rachel Wallace, Jeff & Lisa Flaig, Joe Cherrier
and Beth Arneberg.
Please forgive me if I failed to mention your name! Thank you also, Dan
Burns, for videotaping the week's events and putting together a fantastic
presentation for the congregation to see highlights of the VBS program.
I consider myself blessed to be a part of a church family that so faithfully
serves God and all of His children.
In Him,
Libby Krause
One change to the church fellowship area in 2001 was the addition of the
Welcome Center.
A big thank you to those who have
responded to the need of standing behind it, serving newcomers and
giving them a smile. We have a rotation of every two months, but could use
more volunteers, as we'd like a four-month rotation to make it even easier
for everyone. (You can ask Paul Forsythe just how much fun it is!) If
you can smile and like to help those with questions, please let me know.
The materials needed to answer questions are provided, making things
simple.
HELP FROM CONGREGATION:
WHAT THE WELCOME CENTER ISN'T
Another area where you can be of help: If you know the workers behind
the center and need to connect with them on a topic, please wait until
they are done, or make your comment brief. We are trying to keep the
workers freed up so that a newcomer will want to approach them. From
past experience, we have learned that if
workers seem busy, the newcomer will be less likely
to step forward for help, thus leaving them feeling frustrated and alone
(not to mention keeping us from a chance to minister). So please
refrain from small talk with the workers until another time. Thank you
for your cooperation.
IMPORTANT:
There, I think we covered the main items; we will be fine-tuning
things as time moves along. It's always hard to get a new item
established, but if we all cooperate, this should go rather smoothly.
Let's all work to make CVBC a place that welcomes others; and if you can
give a few minutes of your time, along with a smile, I'd like to hear
from you so you can be a part of our team! God Bless you all.
Brenda Robinson
by Esther Pedigo
"Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own
understanding; acknowledge Him in all your ways and He will make your
path straight." Proverbs 3:3-5
One year ago this month, a structured Women's Ministry was a vision.
One year ago the vision was just being developed by a task force of seven
women, lead by Lynn Mayhew and Esther Pedigo. Now a year later, the
vision is a reality, and over 21 women are involved in leadership. Over
the year, the Lord demonstrated His faithfulness through the challenges
and the successes, giving guidance, comfort and making our path
straight. This is truly God's ministry.
On September 22, 2001 the Women's Ministry was officially kicked off
with what will become an annual fall event called "Celebration of
Friendship." Brunch, music, door prizes, sharing and Bev Woldhuis as
our guest speaker made the morning memorable. At that event, we shared
the purpose and structure of the newly designed Women's Ministry, giving
those attending an opportunity to respond and indicate where they would
like to be involved. With approximately 75 women in attendance, we had
great fun, food, and fellowship. Women's Ministry was on its way.
So what does the new women's ministry design look like?
Congregational Ministry
(designed to meet the needs of the congregation at large)
Hospitality - Mary Jorstad
Congregational Care - Deb Woodford
Women's Ministry
(designed specifically to reach out to women in our congregation and the community)
Missions and Prayer - Audrey Peterson
Education and Personal Growth - Esther Pedigo
Outreach and Fellowship - Lisa Flaig
Young Moms - Lori Burns
Share and Care - Bev Krizan
As you can see, this is an exciting and challenging ministry. Each area
is broken down into smaller divisions with Ministry Leaders providing
leadership to each division. If you are not currently involved in
Women's Ministry and you have an interest, please contact Esther Pedigo,
Lynn Mayhew or Bev Krizan. We would love to plug you in. There are
still spots for which we need leadership, as well as willing hands and
hearts to minister. At the annual banquet there will be more
information available, along with a verbal report from some of the Area
Coordinators.
The CVBC youth group has impacted a lot of lives in 2001, even as it has
undergone big changes. The biggest change, of course, is the resignation
of Dale Thiele. In autumn of 2000, Dale applied for the apprenticeship
program at Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis. This program gives
him the chance to earn graduate credit towards his master's degree while
being mentored within the awesome environment of John Piper's ministry.
Dale was turned down fifteen months ago, but a slot suddenly opened
up this past August, and so Dale made the decision to focus on his
education and preparation for ministry. We hope and pray
that Dale and Erin will have a lifetime of fruitful
ministry, and we are privileged to have shared the work with them
here. They have made a lasting impact on the youth of CVBC.
To fill the gap after Dale left,
Greg Gilbertson agreed to lead both the Junior High and Senior High
youth group meetings, before leaving to start college at the beginning
of 2002.
Other staff for the high school group on Sunday nights includes Jason
Andreo and Linda Balsiger, while Rachel Wallace and Lisa
Flaig will be leading the Senior High Girls' Bible Study on Wednesday
nights. The Junior High staff on Wednesday nights includes Gail
Nayes, Keith Tompkins, Annette Schultz, Dave McDaniel, and Carolyn Thomas.
Meanwhile, when Dale turned in his resignation, old CVBC members Wayne
and Brenda Street just happened to be vacationing in Chippewa Falls!
One thing led to another, and after a meeting with the elders and
a couple months of
praying and fasting and collecting feedback, Wayne and Brenda
were on track to fulfill the position of
"Director of Youth Ministries" at CVBC.
Wayne and Brenda were very involved with the youth
ministry when they were CVBC members, before moving to Wyoming
in early 1999,
and they were similarly involved with the youth at their
then-current church home in Wyoming. They have three boys -- Adam, Luke, and
Nathan.
Before even knowing about the pending opening,
Wayne was describing to friends his dream job: to be a
"tentmaker" minister, to keep his hands in the health care field while
having more time for youth work. Specifically, he'd like to
cut back to working two shifts a week as an emergency room nurse
in a hospital, and do youth
ministry with the rest of his time. He thinks it's important for him to be a
"tentmaker" like Paul was, and still to be employed outside the
church. And he'd like to do the youth ministry part as a team with
Brenda, and fill a full-time ministry position between the two of them.
Wayne was highly respected in Casper, after building up a
neurosurgery center in the hospital there, and they did not want him to
leave. However, he feels that God wants him back working with the youth
at Chippewa Valley Bible Church.
For education, Wayne has a bachelor's degree in
Psychology (family counseling focus) from Bethel College, with
minors in Bible and business. He went back to school to
get his nursing degree after graduating from Bethel.
For her part, Brenda also has a bachelor's degree from Bethel, in
theater arts. She was instrumental in directing the drama ministries at
CVBC, and she was also involved with VBS and the youth group. Here is
what Brenda writes about her mission and priorities:
Here are some excerpts from a letter that Wayne wrote to the CVBC elders:
"As you will see from my resume, much of my career focus
has aimed toward nursing. I continued to pursue that by
coming to Casper, WY. What I found was that a great deal of my
time was consumed in hospital systems management that allowed
the pieces to be put in place for Wyoming Medical Center to
be The Regional Trauma Center for the State of Wyoming.
After all the excitement God steered me to what was
important -- evangelism.
"My vision is to help the teens of the church to be 'rooted
and established in love that they may have the power to
grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of
Christ and to know this love that surpasses knowledge -- that
they may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of
God.' Once they begin to know God and not just know about
Him there will be a desire to reach out and share the love
of God with the unsaved around them.
"It's exciting to think of the possibilities and ways God
will work through us when we are willing! I believe God has
given my wife and me many gifts and talents that would be
beneficial to youth leadership, along with a desire and love
for working with teens. This ministry would require the
gifts of both my wife and myself; no one person possesses them
all. Even with an involved staff ministering, there needs to
be 'ministers' freed up to make it happen. Brenda and I
scratched the surface several years ago when we led the
youth, at the expense of our family, marriage, and sleep.
"Chippewa Valley Bible Church is a fantastic body of
believers, which would be a great place for Brenda and me to
minister. Please consider our application."
CVBC is grateful for the step of faith that Wayne and Brenda have taken
in moving back here, and we are excited for the continued growth of our
youth ministry!
Awana
"I pledge allegiance to the Awana flag, which stands for the Awana
clubs, whose goal is to reach boys and girls with the gospel of Christ
and train them to serve Him."
"The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life.
Attitude, to me, is more important than
the past, than
education, than money, than circumstances, than failures, than
successes, than what other people think or say or do. It is more
important than
appearance, giftedness, or skill. It will make or break a company ... a
church ... a home. The remarkable thing is we have a choice every day
regarding
the attitude we will embrace for that day. We cannot change the
inevitable. The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have,
and that is our
attitude ... I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to me, and 90%
how I react to it. And so it is with you ... we are in charge of our
Attitudes."
CVBC Boy Scouts ("Troop72.com") get off to a great start
Children's Church
Church plant update from the Hukriedes
Crescent Lake Family Bible Camp: a first-timer's viewpoint
Church communications keep us informed
Deacons' report
Mark Hedrington
Fellowship of Christian Athletes
Huddle Coordinator: Paul Forsythe
Treasurer: Karen Reit
Secretary: Dan Meyers
Recruiter: Steve Vogt
Vice President: Dave McDaniel
President: Greg Wallace
We exist to uphold and support the local huddle groups and leaders. Much of
our efforts will be focused on raising funds to help send kids to FCA camp.
The leaders meet monthly to deal with business. We also meet every Monday
morning at 6:30 a.m., at Cellular Plus on Bridge Street for a Men's Bible
Study. Any man seeking a morning Bible Study is welcome to join us. We have
modeled our study after the Eau Claire FCA, which has been meeting for thirty
years. Also, if you share our concern for Christian kids and teachers in the
public schools as well as the unsaved, please consider joining our
leadership team. Please pray for our efforts as we attempt to establish a
Chippewa Falls FCA with deep roots.
Church gardens sprout a variety of styles
Church Library Report
Ladies Missionary Fellowship
Church membership roll
Anderl, Herb & Shirley
Andreo, Jason
Arneberg, Tom & Beth
Bennett, Ellen
Bishop, David & Christine
Bodine, Franklin & Mingi
Bollom, Millie
Brandt, Chris
Brandt, Jerry & Marcie
Brodeen, Judi
Brodeen, Winnie
Burgess, John & Julie
Burns, Dan & Lori
Cherrier, Joe & Lynn
Clausing, Cameron
Clausing, Curtis & Terri
Cohoon, Jerry & Jenny
Cripe, Norm & Marge
Davis-Nitz, Dean & Sally
Deutschlander, Joan & Roger
Duss, Pat
Frederick, Dorothy
Gilbertson, Greg & Gabrielle
Ginder, Benjamin & Barbara
Gintz, Dan
Goebel, Larry & Milli
Haley, Grace
Haley, James & Judith
Hanamann, John & Nadine
Harvey, Evamae
Hedrington, Mark & Paulette
Hoff, Bard & Karen
Hoffman, Larry & Kim
Holman, Arthur & Gladys
Hyland, Edwin & Beverly
Jacot, Nell
Jorstad, Lonnie & Mary
Knipfer, Florence
Krause, Stuart & Libby
Krizan, Dennis & Bev
Krohn, Sally
Marshall, Craig & Laurie
Mason, Doug & Cheryl
Mason, Emily
Mauk, Jamey & Andrea
Mayhew, Michael & Lynn
McDaniel, Dave & Lori
McIlquham, Steve
Metza, Andrea
Newton, Ruth
Pedigo, Jesse & Esther
Peterson, Dean & Audrey
Peterson, Ruth
Phephles, Barbara
Pokrzywinski, Peter & Cheryl
Poulson, Jeff & Stephanie
Richards, Greg
Richards, Joshua
Robb, Brad & Tracey
Robinson, David & Brenda
Ruzicka, Steve & Crystal
Salinas, John
Scheidler, Richard & Becky
Schmidt, Sheryl
Schnobrich, Brett & Allison
Sharp, Polly
Stamos, Mary
Sterling, Tom & Mary
Strand, Jon & Jody
Street, Wayne & Brenda
Stuve, Terry & Sheri
Thomas, Darin & Carolyn
Tompkins, Keith & Terri
Vogt, Steve & Char
Volbrecht, Mark & Darla
Wallace, Greg & Rachel
Williams, Stan & Connie
Wolf, Dennis & Mary
Wolf, Jessica
Wood, Chuck & Dora
Woodford, Mark & Debbie
Woods, Glenn & Monique
Men's Breakfast
My friend Millard
Missionaries Supported
From the Music Corner
CVBC blessed with more babies
New members make commitment to CVBC
Nursery 2001: From diapers to training pants
Molly Burgess Abigail Davis-Nitz
Taylor Hedrington Nathan Kuepfer
Joshua Mauk Eliza Nutzmann
Jennifer Strand Cameron Sullivan
Alicia Thomas
PALS Ministry: PALS Community Home and ALS Support Group
Missionary report: John & Kathie Pederson (STEM)
Prison Ministry Report
Report for Quilting and Sewing Class
Small Group at Bodines'
Parenting Small Group
Friday Night Bible Study
Mothers' Bible Study
Women's Monday Night Bible Study
Thursday lunch "Men on the Move"
"Preparation for Adolescence" Small Group
Women's Wednesday Bible Study
We studied a book called "Women Gifted for Ministry." It was a wonderful
study. I learned a lot about the different gifts God has given each of us,
and how to work with the ones we are not so comfortable with. It helped me
learn my strengths and weaknesses, which helped show me what direction God
wanted me to go. By knowing the gifts God has given me it helped me get out
of my comfort zone, and try new things that I would have probably never
tried. It was more than just a Bible study. It was a time of fellowship,
prayer, and building new friendships. I thank Bev Krizan and Kay Forsythe
for taking the time to lead and start this new study. I feel fortunate to
be part of such a group, and encourage anyone else to join us.
Since becoming a Christian, I failed to recognize my spiritual gifts. I was
like an infant, I needed to be fed but had nothing to give back. Well,
surprise, God has given us all spiritual gifts!
2001 Sunday School Report
Usher Report
165 kids find "golden nuggets of truth" at Son Creek Junction VBS
New Welcome Center is up and running
We do need to set a few ground rules in reference to the center. The
Welcome Center is for the sole purpose of providing information to
newcomers regarding the church, its class locations, etc. It is basically
coming alongside others and making them feel welcomed. If you notice a
new face or two, please direct them to the staff at the center.
The center is not a place to collect pamphlets or papers regarding various
community events and information. There will be a separate wall unit
ordered soon for these items. In order to keep some sort of organization
to this, items put in the wall unit will need to be 'okayed' by the
Deacons. If you have information to be considered, it must go through the
office to be okayed by a church leader. Thank you for your help in this
matter, as we must not allow the welcome center to become a place of
clutter.
For anyone who has a sign-up sheet to be filled in, or is selling
tickets for an event, etc., it is up to you to stand behind the Welcome
Center AFTER the service, when the staff is not behind there. This is
important, as the Welcome Staff doesn't have answers to the questions
regarding the events, and we need each person in charge to be
responsible for its follow-up. This means you would keep the sign-up
sheets/tickets with you, until you go to the center with them. If you
personally don't want to be back there, it is up to you to appoint
someone from your group to take your place. Please do not ask the
Welcome Staff to do this for you.
Welcome Center Coordinator
Women's Ministry Report
Leadership
Women's Ministry Team
Bev Krizan, Lynn Mayhew, Esther Pedigo - Chairwomen
Lori Burns, Lisa Flaig, Mary Jorstad, Audrey Peterson, Deb Woodford -
Area Coordinators
Youth group goes through transitions in 2001
"I believe my primary mission in life is to be a helper to my husband.
God has called me to serve him, to encourage him, and to cooperate with
him to work out God's plan for his life. Youth work is something Wayne
feels called to do, and I want to do all I can to help him succeed. We
work well together and complement each other in a variety of ways. In order
for any ministry to be successful, people that are a part of that
ministry must have healthy priorities that honor God. My priorities in
order of importance are: God, my husband, my children, my home, my
spiritual growth, and then my ministry to the church. I look forward to
being a part of and serving the CVBC church family again."
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