It’s Monday Again
Jon Wiest (Executive Director of Groundswell) tag-teamed with Worship Leader Kelly Jay for our 48-hour District Ministerial this week at the Saint John Delta. There were nearly 190 pastors and spouses at the opening banquet as we begin the first of three rallies exploring the priority, principle, and produce of disciple-making. Click HERE for a gallery of pics from our time together.As the Ministerial concluded on Friday morning, registration for the six Discipleship Pathway Learning Cohorts in February reached 90% of Atlantic churches! Please pray that these cohorts will yield Kingdom fruit as they explore being “right-sized by context” and “synergized by community” to Renew Discipleship Pathways in the fall of 2020.
Many of our young pastoral couples were able to enjoy being at Ministerial thanks to the efforts of four local young adults who provided childcare for all ages during scheduled rallies and seminars with a high of 33 kids on opening night (220+ with adults) – PK power!
A word of thanks to the seven seminar leaders offered by Steve Elliott, Joel Gorveatte, Rick Kavanaugh, Shaun MacKenzie, AJ Plaizier, Pat Steeves, & Jon Wiest. These were available in two time slots on Thursday morning. Each seminar concluded with a 15 minute prayer-time as pastors shared challenges and points of celebration.
A big announcement at the opening banquet introduced our new Executive Director of the Atlantic District – Mrs. Tami Mutch-Ketch! She will retire from her career as an educator and director-level executive with the NB Anglophone West School District in May and will begin her new role on June 1st. Her initial portfolio will include oversight of Atlantic Camp Ministry and will expand in 2021 to include key leadership in Phase Two of our 2025 Horizon Storyline – Values Driven Vision. Tami has a passion to serve pastors as we equip and empower lay people for greater Kingdom influence in our local churches and through marketplace ministry.Tami shares, “”I love the local Church. This is the context in which we have the greatest capacity to share Jesus and influence the societal spheres of our communities. I am passionate about supporting the Body to lean in and serve through the unique strengths in which He has formed and gifted each of us. As a collective Kingdom force of multiplication minded disciple makers, we will impact the Atlantic District – one community, one home, one relationship at a time.” Welcome to the team, Tami – we are excited to see all that God has in store in the years ahead! Feel free to send her a note of encouragement as she prepares for the transition ahead (tami@atlanticdistrict.com).
Tomorrow at 9:00 a.m. (Atlantic) World Hope International (Canada) will host this Facebook LIVE presentation. Missions Pastor Deborah Gilbert & Lead Pastor Denn Guptill will share how Cornerstone has taken a passion for clean water to the next level through a Village Partnership with a community in Sierra Leone.
Congratulations to Seth & Leanne Fancy (Kings) on the happy & healthy arrival of their daughter Ilsa Hope on January 18th (7 lbs.)!
I enjoyed the opportunity to preach at Hillside (Jay Guptill) yesterday morning. Special prayer was offered at both the Ritcey Campus and Parkway Campus for Pastor Sharon Guptill and her extended family on the passing of her father on Thursday.
Ellen joins me in expressing sincere condolences on behalf of the Atlantic District family to Sharon & Jay Guptill (Hillside) on Thursday’s passing of her father, Rev. Eldon Craig. He was a giant of the faith for so many as he and his dear wife, Frances have given their lives fully, faithfully, and fruitfully, to serving the Lord through leadership in His Church.
Other family connections of note in our ministerial tribe include his sister-in-law Margo (Walter) Perry (SJ1), his grandson Caleb MacCallum (Woodstock), his niece Gayla (Tim) Guptill (The Lighthouse), and his nephew Graham (Rebecca) Perry (SJ1).The celebration of Eldon’s life will take place at Whitewater Wesleyan Church (Cobden, ON) at 11:00 a.m. on Thursday. Funeral/visitation details for Rev. Craig are available in his obituary posted here by Hayes Funeral Home. Thank you for lifting up the family with prayer and expressions of support during this time of loss.
Jon Wiest – Points to Ponder:
- Evangelism without discipleship is spiritual head-hunting.
- If the grass is greener on the other side of the fence then you need to water your grass. What do you have? (II Kings 4:2)
- God has given us an army to be mobilized not just sheep to be shepherded.
Join the monthly Unleashed e-newsletter list to receive more in-depth information about General Conference 2020, to be held May 31–June 3, in St. Louis, Missouri. Unleashed emails will hit inboxes beginning January 2020. Once you click on the URL, click on “subscribe” to get signed up for Unleashed emails. To learn more about General Conference 2020 click here: https://www.wesleyan.org/unleashed
It is with great excitement we invite you to Uprising Conference on February 21-22, 2020 at Crosspoint Church in Fredericton, NB. Conference registration is $45, and a catered lunch option on Saturday is available for an additional $15. We are so thrilled to welcome Rachel Wilson as our conference speaker. We are looking forward to hearing her share insight around our theme this year: RECONCILE. Crosspoint Worship will be returning once again to lead us during each session. ONLINE Registration is now open!
Join hundreds of men from all across the region at Valley location of Kings on May 1-2 as we seek to find, define, and empower the Y God has placed in each of us. In doing so, may we know life to the full and may those around us reap the benefits of knowing men who truly embrace our Y. Register HERE – Cost: $85.
Want to know more about the Atlantic District’s 2025 Horizon Storyline – Values-Driven Vision? Click here to see a one-page overview of this journey and click here for the 45-minute video 2025 presentation shared with our pastors in October.