Monday Again
Raising leaders matters. Our District Board of Ministerial Development (DBMD) offers an annual THRIVE Workshop for Licensed Ministers and those recently Ordained. On Monday and Tuesday of this past week, Dr. Dan Poff (Indiana Wesleyan University) provided point leadership for 23 participants and coaches on the theme of dealing with conflict management in the local church. A total of four different workshops are offered on a quadrennial rotation and each participant receives 6-8 one-hour coaching sessions with a more experienced minister following the two-day session over a period of 4-6 months. Jay Guptill (Hillside) serves on the DBMD Executive as the THRIVE Coordinator for the District. The material included an assessment and review of conflict resolution styles, applying the relationship work of Gottman to leadership in the local church, and training in a five-stage process for coaching people dealing with conflict.
The following note highlights how one of our bi-vocational participants had a rather unexpected opportunity last week because of this investment in their leadership development, “I am at work with my manager tonight, and I shared with her what I learned at THRIVE, and she wants me to teach our team about conflict management.”
- The Beulah Dining Hall was packed last night as the Browns Flat Fellowship (Steve Bradley) held a surprise party to honour John Donald on his 88th birthday. John and his young family moved next door to Beulah Camp in 1955 (across the road from Heartland). His excavation and construction business (with his sons Billy & Keith) has been of great benefit to the operations of Beulah Camp & Caton’s Island over the decades. It was my privilege to bring greetings on behalf of the district to John and his family along with Dr. HC, Bruce Cheney (Caretaker), and Steve Bradley. An excellent spirit of community connection was present as this humble man received words of esteem and gratitude.
- The National Board of The Wesleyan Church of Canada (TWCC) met at the Edgett Boardroom in Moncton on Friday and Saturday this past weekend. A special update with outcomes of this meeting will be sent to those subscribed to IMA at a later date from our National Superintendent, Dr. HC Wilson.
- This past week, two neighbouring pastors tag-teamed to serve their community. Andy Phillips (Jonesport) led worship and Nick Wilson (Beals) brought the message for the Jonesport-Beals High School Baccalaureate Service. Both have Seniors graduating from JBHS tomorrow.
- The incredible success of One Conference last month in Moncton was highlighted this week in our denominational news. We celebrate the influence of Kings (Brent Ingersoll) and the leadership of Andy Broad in seeing this dream become reality.
- A group of about 20 people from Easton (Tony Stevens) recently visited the Maine Veterans Home in Caribou to honor these veterans and thank them for their service. They delivered blankets specific to each branch of the service that had been hand made as well as special large print Bibles for each veteran and spouse at the home.
- Yarmouth (AJ Plaizier) recently celebrated four baptisms. AJ’s words to the church capture this God-honouring season of momentum, “Our church saw great growth this past year, new salvations, more baptisms, and giving was above budget and staff spent less than budgeted. Whether it’s 1 person or 100 – I love seeing new life in Christ. What more could we hope for?”
- Save the Date: JOY (Just Older Youth) Weekend will be held at Beulah on September 28-30. President Stephen Lennox will be preaching, and Rob & Marti Trafton will be leading worship. Onsite lodging available upon request. More details to come – stay tuned!
- Crosspoint (Mark Brewer) wrapped up their Local Church Conference earlier this month by announcing the next step in the design phase of for a future building project. This will lead to key decisions in the coming months. A powerful time of prayer onsite at the new location concluded the meeting.
- It is my monthly privilege to collaborate by Zoom with Dr. Wayne Schmidt and a variety of DS’s. Our meeting this past week was on the 2nd anniversary of his election as our General Superintendent. Amongst other important items, he shared his response to a voluntary mid-term 360 evaluation (a great role model of mutual voluntary submission). It was also announced that the next General Conference will take place in St. Louis on May 31 – June 3, 2020.
- Time flies when you spend time with great leaders planning for Beulah Family Camp. Kelly Jay (worship leader) and Executive Director of Camp Ministry, Andrea Gunter and I enjoyed a few hours together this week putting the final touches on the service planning for another historic week at Beulah just around the corner (July 7-15, 2018).
- Congratulations to Lower Brighton (Jacob Ebbett) on their new church sign.
Congratulations to Curtlen Peck (Digby) and his new bride Victoria on their wedding this past weekend! Curtlen’s Lead Pastor, Andrew Maves, officiated and Tim Long (Live Well) stood with the groom. As Pastor B likes to say, “How sweet it is!”
Thot: If God is your partner, then make your plans big! (D.L. Moody)
On Second Thot: Our greatest fear should not be of failure but of succeeding at things in life that don’t really matter. (Francis Chan)
Bonus Thot: God does not give us everything we want, but He does fulfill His promises, leading us along the best and straightest paths to Himself. (Dietrich Bonhoeffer)
All new for 2018… Check out this summers lineup! Special events, breakfasts, dinners, movies, services and more. Every weekend a great lineup for the whole family. Check out the schedule and don’t miss a minute of the fun!
Beulah Family Camp accommodations and programs are filling up fast. This packed 9-day Kingdom experience includes many opportunities for the whole family in worship, fellowship, discipleship and leadership development. For those involved in leadership of children’s ministry please make special note of the “KidMin Mini Huddle” on July 10th! TONS of FREE resources to give away, encouragement and AIR CONDITIONING! Plan to be there in the Upper Room of the Beulah Hotel (Dining Hall) at 1:00 p.m. – 2:30 p.m. on the Tuesday of Beulah Camp.
Raising leaders matters. This value will receive special highlight on Friday, July 13, at 1:30 p.m. during Beulah Family Camp. This 1.5 hour workshop will feature Duffy Smith in a session entitled, “Raising and Releasing High Capacity Kingdom Leaders.” As pastors we often fail to understand the best practices to engage and empower high capacity lay leaders for Kingdom purposes. Like the workshop with GS Wayne Schmidt last year, this is entirely optional. Duffy has a lifetime of marketplace influence and is deeply passionate about helping pastors experience the joys and impact of unleashing the Kingdom force often overlooked or unharnessed in high capacity lay leadership. You are encouraged to make plans on Ordination day to stay for this afternoon session and to invite one or two of your key lay leaders to share in this workshop.
For those who enjoy the summer ministries of Riverside Wesleyan Camp 2018 registrations are open and filling up quickly. Elementary School Camp is July 9-13, High School Camp is July 15-21, and Middle School Camp is July 22-28. Make note of the new Family Camp schedule, which is now Sunday through Wednesday starting July 29th (Mel Norton is Camp Evangelist). Visit www.riversidewesleyancampground.com for more information and to register online.
January 9-12, 2019
Orlando, Florida at The Caribe Royale
More than a minister’s conference. The Gathering is a reunion of ministry family and friends. A sabbath for our souls. Coming together to stop, rest, pray, play and thrive. A chance to celebrate what God is doing in our lives and ministry through meals, stories, inspiration and worship. We know this will be a gathering you won’t want to miss!
Wesleyan clergy & spouses are invited to register this summer. Registration opens June 1, 2018.