Out With The Old In With The New.

There are probably many people who are glad to see 2009 come to end.  It was a year of losses with jobs, homes, and savings.  There were health scares with H1N1, and war in the middle east continued.

For Saint Stephanus, 2009 was also a year of losses as we said good-bye to your pastor.

It is easy to focus on what a difficult year 2009 may have been.  However, if we stop to take a closer look we can see there were blessings as well.

Jan. 2009 kicked-off with the birth of the Connecting Group ministry.  These groups have thrived during the past year which is quite an accomplishment seeing that there was not a pastor or trained small group coordinator to lead the way.  Facilitators stepped in, arranged, and lead weekly meetings.  Members volunteered to join and participate.  A new group birthed out of an existing group.  New facilitators were raised up.  Within each group friendships formed, faith was deepened, people were served.  God piloted this ministry and people rallied together to get Connecting Groups off the ground.

2009 was a year of self reflection for SSLC as we went through a self study.  The study served two purposes:  1.  Showed us our strengths and weaknesses.  2.   Helped the call committee formulate the qualifications needed in a pastor to ensure the next pastor was the right fit for SSLC.

Neighborhood outreach grew in 2009 as NOW formed and organized many outreach activitites in the neighborhood.  Seeing that it was a year when people needed to hear about Jesus’ saving power and love, the NOW group was an added blessing to the community.

Our congregation was blessed with many people who stepped up to the plate and served in new roles to help keep the church moving forward.  Disciples continued to work tirelessly in their leadership positions while others helped out where they could.  One of the most appreciated efforts was the call committee who spent many hours praying, attending meetings, going through the self-study, researching the list of candidates, interviewing, and making recommendations.  Through them we were blessed with the opportunity to close the year out by putting a call to a pastor.

Through the changes, losses, and searches, St. Stephanus was able to keep on going and received blessings in 2009 because God’s hand was on everything.  He kept us His palm hand throughout everything and to that we should give Him thanks and praise!

2010 is here and SSLC is once again filled with hope and anticipation as we look forward to Pastor Thompson joining and leading us.  There is hope that we can offer a Connecting Group every night of the week, continue to reach more people, raise more facilitators and look for ways to connect with one another and with people outside of St. Stephanus.

2009 was a year of blessings and 2010 can be too.  If we keep our prayers vibrant, praise God for how He works in our lives and draw close to Him, it will be amazing to see what He has in store for us!