Wishing you joy and peace this holiday season!
~ Lori, Jess, Brian, David, Brandi, Tammy, Patty ~
“I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one – I in them and you in me – so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.” ~ John 17:22-23
We look forward to welcoming 2021 with hopefulness and anticipation. God is still at work through his beloved church, but we all know 2020 has been a year of difficulty and that the church has not been exempted from these challenges. It is our hope that we can enter 2021 with a renewed commitment to the unifying power of the Holy Spirit as ambassadors of Christ’s reconciliation. The world desperately needs this unified message of hope in a season of great division.
We invite you to begin the New Year by committing to a day of prayer across the Midwest Conference on Tuesday, January 5, 2021, from 8:00 am – 9:00 pm CST. Our purpose is to promote unity and our witness to the world through prayer. You are welcome to join an all-day Zoom call at any time throughout the day to engage in prayer with leaders from throughout the region. If you are unable to join the call, we encourage you to set aside time to pray individually.
Exploring Call Pivot
The word pivot has grown in significance along with the word COVID. We continue to pivot ministry plans as we deal with pandemic guidelines and numbers. Pivoting requires that we try new approaches, and we are not guaranteed success—it is a risk.
The MWC Exploring Call retreat is one example of pivoting. Typically, we meet in a retreat location for 2½ days, face to face, with a group of women to discern their potential call to ministry. October 29 through December 10, we pivoted and met for two hours once a week for five weeks with a group of seven gifted women. The goal was the same: to companion these women as they discern a call to ministry.
We took a risk, and it was worth it! While we all would have preferred to meet in person, we found that God was gracious with our format and allowed these women to process their ministry call while meeting over Zoom, with reflection time between meetings.
 The Exploring Call online class offered me reflective time to listen and understand what God is calling me to. I loved being a part of this sweet group cohort. It was an experience that allowed me to hear other perspectives and grow closer to God! – Aisha Thomas, member of Crossroads Cov, Loveland, CO
While we do hope to have in-person Exploring Call retreats in the future, we will also continue to offer the experience online. Meeting over Zoom allows for some women who can’t step away from their daily lives to hear stories of call from a variety of female pastors, engage prayer experiences that lead to discernment, listen to a rich teaching on biblical gender equality, and consider next steps.
Crisis Relief Fund Update
When the pandemic disrupted the economy 10 months ago, the financial impact was immediate for several MWC pastors. One of our pastors lost much of their livelihood when their full-time job was forced to significantly cut hours. A second pastor lost all income due to a decline in enrollments at the private school where they taught. Several other pastors saw a dramatic decline in giving when their congregations experienced job loss or were no longer able to meet in person.
The COVID-19 disruption has affected MWC churches in dramatically different ways. We are grateful that many pastors' incomes have not been disrupted during 2020. And we are very grateful for the generous giving to the MWC Crisis Relief Fund, created to assist pastors who have experienced significant financial disruption. In the past 10 months, $33,739 has been given by 11 churches and 19 individuals to assist multiple MWC ministers with financial need.
While vaccines begin to bring the pandemic to an end, the year ahead will continue to be challenging for those pastors serving bi-vocationally, serving vulnerable communities, or experiencing unexpected crises. We expect the need in 2021 to be even greater than 2020 because of the lagging economic impact for churches and pastors.
If your needs have been met as we come to the end of 2020, would you consider making a gift to the MWC Crisis Relief Fund as we seek to care for our sisters and brothers over the months ahead?
At the present time your plenty will supply what they need, so that in turn their plenty will supply what you need. The goal is equality, as it is written: 'The one who gathered much did not have too much, and the one who gathered little did not have too little.’ ~ 2 Corinthians 8:14-15
On behalf of our pastors, thank you!
The MWC Crisis Relief Team
Darryl & Stephanie Answer, Kansas City, MO
Carla Cortez, Arvada, CO
Brian Johnson, El Dorado, KS
Jessica Springer, Lenexa, KS
David Williams, Loveland, CO
On January 26, 2021, from 1:30-4:30 pm CST, you are invited to join with other ECC youth workers for an afternoon of connection, training, and quality conversation connected to engaging effective youth ministry in this unique and challenging ministry landscape. We will be welcoming Mark Oestreicher as our keynote speaker for the afternoon. Mark will be presenting on the Youth Cartel's recent book, Youth Ministry In This Season Of Disruption. This truly is a topic that applies to us all.
We invite all youth workers, whether full-time, bi-vocational, or volunteer, to attend this free event. Questions can be directed to Tim.Ciccone@Covchurch.org.
Year-end Giving
The MWC appreciates your financial partnership as we work together to transform lives and communities across the region. We invite you to help us finish the year strong as we continue to live into our shared ministry! Your giving can have a direct impact on the ministries of leaders in our region through EQUIP, church planting, racial righteousness immersion experiences, supporting women as they explore a call to ministry, and more!
- Give online
- Mail payment to 17310 Wright St, Ste 101, Omaha, NE 68130
- Text "$[AMOUNT]" to 855-948-0814
Midwest Conference 2020 books will close on Friday, January 15, 2021. If sending checks for 2020, please denote on the memo line of your check. Thank you for your partnership in ministry!
Did you know...?
A lot is happening in the Midwest Conference. Catch up on recent changes and events below!
Staff Transitions
We wish to welcome the following individuals to the Midwest Conference:
- Charissa McCaslin will begin serving as the new Children's Director at Applewood Community Church in Golden, CO, in January.
- Peter Sung is serving as Interim Pastor at Logos Central Chapel in Centennial, CO.
We celebrate with the following individuals transitioning to new roles within the conference:
- Jim Candy, Co-pastor of Ascent Community Church in Louisville, CO, will begin serving with Stadia Church Planting in January.
We are thankful to the following individuals for their service to the Midwest Conference and pray God's blessing over them as they transition out of their roles:
- Larry Williams, Executive Pastor at Hillcrest Covenant in Prairie Village, KS. Congratulations on your retirement, Larry!
- Jessica Beystrum, Preschool Ministry Coordinator, Hillcrest Covenant Prairie Village, KS
Anniversary Celebration
On October 18, Siloe Covenant of Lenexa, KS, celebrated 11 years of ministry. We join with them in celebrating God's fruitfulness through this church!
Do you have big news to share? Contact office@midwestcovenant.org to have your important event published in the e-News.
Churches working together to transform lives and communities by starting new churches, strengthening existing churches, and developing missional leaders.
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