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inFormative Facts from Faith Fellowship
Click on the date to go directly to each article:
2009,10-17 Community Block Party
2009,05-10 Sacrificing for Faith’s Future
2009,04-28 Pastor Search Team
2009,01-21 Jan-Feb 2009 Newsletter
2009,01-05 Call of John Welch
2009,10-17 Community Block Party
At the encouragement of Pastor John, we held our first-ever Community Block Party in October. The theme was “harvest festival”
and all of our decorations reflected that. 167 people filled out registration cards and more than that were in attendance as several
neglected to register. Of course they also missed out on the more than 60 prizes that were awarded, but maybe next year.
We have tried to impact our community in the past with little success. We have presented in the month of July two patriotic
presentations with combined choirs and orchestra from three different churches. Every year we present Christmas and Easter musicals.
We have also sponsored AWANA harvest festivals and each year we offer VBS for the kids during August. None of these events has generated
much in the way of attendance by our neighborhood. VBS probably comes the closest each year, but we can certainly handle many more kids
than we do. Why was this year’s Block Party so successful?
I think there are two reasons. The first is that the nature of our Block Party was very neighborhood-friendly. By that I mean that there
was no organized preaching, the bands played secular music, everyone was there to just have fun, and it was free! But I think there was a
more important reason than that. For the first time ever at Faith Fellowship I saw almost the entire congregation work together to
accomplish a goal. This was not an event sponsored by the Choir, or the Children’s Ministry, or even AWANA. It was a church-wide event
with participation from all of our ministries. I think this event demonstrates that when all of our membership puts its collective mind
to a task with the help of God, we can make a difference in our community.
There is one caveat though. Having witnessed such a coming together by our church, Satan will want to do his best to split us apart and
cause dissension. Don’t let it happen! James 4:7 tells us to "resist the devil, and he will flee from us". As a church we are on the verge
of rewriting our history. This will be accomplished by God’s provision of a new senior pastor and by our continuing to work together to
make a difference in the city of La Palma. The Apostle Paul reminds us in Ephesians 6 that we fight against “the powers of this dark world
and against the spiritual forces of evil.” Let us stay focused on Him and diligent in our service.
2009,05-10 Sacrificing for Faith’s Future
Pastor John has shared with us that it is not unusual for a church to raise 13 months income in a 12-month period. For Faith Fellowship that means raising an
additional $25,000 in 2009. That idea has led to our current stewardship drive called Sacrificing for Faith’s Future.
Three areas of need have been identified. The first is renewing our parking lot at a cost of about $10,000. If you have looked down as you walk through our lot you will
notice a lot of cracked asphalt, particularly on the south side. That effect is called “alligatoring” by asphalt repair companies. We have in our hands two bids, both just
under $10,000 to make the necessary repairs and make our lot like new again. This need is immediate and the first of the funds to come in will be used to meet this need.
The second area of concern is that we have no bank reserves. Basically we live week-to-week and as a result have on several occasions paid our mortgage as much as a month late. We pay no penalty for doing so, but it’s not the
way that we want to do business. Another $10,000 has been earmarked for this need and we hope to have these funds by July 31.
The final need is for funds to relocate our new pastor. We don’t as yet know who that will be, nor do we know from where he will come, but we want to be prepared to
move him here from another part of the country if so needed. For that we need to reserve $5,000. Since it’s not likely we will need those funds immediately, we have set a
date of November 29, the end of the Sacrificing for Faith’s Future program, as the date that those funds will be needed.
In order to make it more convenient for you, we have come up with several ways you may participate in Sacrificing for Faith’s Future. The first (by God’s leading) is to simply make a
one-time gift. The second is to make a monthly commitment and finally, a weekly commitment. Below we have broken down those numbers for you. As previously
mentioned, on November 29, Thanksgiving weekend, we want to celebrate what God has done.
Monthly Gift (seven months) Gift Total
$100 $700
$200 $1,400
$300 $2,100
$400 $2,800
$500 $3,500
$600 $4,200
Weekly Gift (30 weeks) Gift Total
$10 $300
$16.67 $500
$20 $600
$33.33 $1000
$50 $1,500
$66.67 $2,000
2009,04-28 Choosing our Pastor Search Team
Our Pastor Search Team has been selected. On Sunday, April 26, in a noon business meeting, the membership chose the team that will be responsible for bringing
the next pastor to Faith Fellowship for our approval. The team consists of four men and three women with two more serving as alternates. The team chose Roger Williams
as their chairman who joins deacons Bill Conoley, Ted Meyers, and Don Wilson. The three women include Rhonda Aho, Debbi Hutton, and Sue Towler. The two alternates
are Jerry Simkins and Jeff Tucker. Be sure and keep these people in your prayers.
They will meet initially for training with Pastor John and later with the Director of Missions of the Orange County Southern Baptist Association, Doyle Braden. After putting
the word out that Faith Fellowship is looking for a new senior pastor, the real work for the Search Team begins. Pastor John estimates that we will receive at least 100 resumes,
all of which must be gone through with an eye for the man that will best fit us as a church. Then the team will wade through references, preaching DVD’s of the potential
candidates, and perhaps even go and visit at their current churches to see them in action.
After narrowing the list to a handful of applicants, it will be their task to chose the best candidate and bring him to us for our consideration. This will be done with a series of
weekend meetings, dinners, and question & answer times that will give all of us an opportunity to get to know our possible new pastor. In addition, DVD’s of the candidate
as he preaches will be made available to all of us. Finally we will hear him preach in person in our church and ultimately vote to call him or not. Again be much in prayer
over our Search Team members.
2009,01-21 January-February, 2009 Newsletter
Greetings my new friends!
What an honor it is to serve with you at Faith Fellowship. You are a gracious family and have welcomed Nelda and I in a warm loving way. 2009 will be a pivotal year for our church as we prepare for the coming of our next pastor. We don’t know what his name is or what he looks like. But we know that our God has someone in mind to leads us through our next journey of faith.
In the meantime we have work to do. We must develop a spiritual unity that will demonstrate Christ’s love, coupled with a mind to work. As I have said, everyone must work harder than they have ever worked while we are without a full time pastor. Your commitment to the Lord’s work has never been more important than at this time. Each of us must perform our ministry with energy and faithfulness. Here are a few things to do that will help us come through this experience victoriously. Pray more, read the Word more, love more, support more and be more patient. Sounds simple doesn’t it.
I have but one goal for our time together. That is to present to your new pastor a healthy church. I promise you that I will do my best to accomplish that goal. But it can’t be done without you. So come on aboard for a ride of adventure as we lay the ground work for a bright future.
Pastor John
January, 2009, begins a new calendar year for all of us, but for the Faith Fellowship music ministry it means a continuation of service and worship that began last September. There are two major events that will be happening in the first few months of 2009.
On Sunday morning February 8, the Ensemble will present their annual concert featuring many of the selections they’ve been singing the last several months. This is always a great morning of celebration and worship. They will be accompanied by our professional musicians.
Then on Palm Sunday, April 5, the Adult Choir will be presenting their annual Easter Concert at 6:00 pm. They will be singing resurrection-type selections including The Cross Said It All, Symphony of Praise, Worthy is the Lamb, and a great new song called Triumphant Lord. We had such great attendance for our Christmas musical, be sure and make your plans to attend and bring a friend.
On another subject, be sure and check our church website regularly. We have added a page called inFormative Facts from Faith Fellowship. It is set up in a blog format and will include the latest events and information to keep our membership informed. One last thing. I am always looking for new photos from all of our activities to place on our website. Feel free to get me a CD or email me with your latest event photos. Thanks so much.
Pastor Steve
The Upper Room Ministries is continuing in its vision to try to give the teens of Faith Fellowship everything they need to succeed in life and in ministry. In that process, The Upper Room Disciples have started on a journey to better understand the Word of God as they study. We are learning the Inductive Method of Study, which simply means that when we read the word of God we don’t just read it but we observe what we read, we interpret what we read, and we apply what we read. This is to help our teens to grow a firm foundation in their walk with our Lord Jesus Christ.
We have in our church a great group of teens and I would ask you as our congregation to join with me in praying specifically for each one of our kids that they would grow closer to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, to grow deeper in their understanding, and that they would go out and tell their friends about Jesus Christ. Keep looking to Jesus. Pastor Matt
By the time you read this, Christmas will be over and we will be looking forward to a new year. The hustle and bustle has ended and it’s time to be thinking about what God has in store for us this coming year. The excitement of the possibilities concerning this ministry are endless. Stay tuned! Happy New Year to all and God’s blessings on you as we begin anew! Miss Sherry
2009,01-05 Call of John Welch
On Sunday, January 4, the membership of Faith Fellowship (in a business meeting) voted unanimously to ask John Welch to be its interim pastor. He had preached the last two Sundays and met the previous Sunday during a luncheon with the deacons, staff and finance committee members.
During the business meeting John outlined his goals as an interim pastor. His main desire is to present a healthy church to its new shepherd (senior pastor). In order to accomplish this he told the membership that it might be necessary to deal with some internal issues of forgiveness both toward each other and toward those outside of our church. At this point in time he is still too new to fully grasp where the church is in this regard, but he intends to come to know us quickly.
One of the ways that he will do that is to begin next Sunday evening with what he calls a “Pulpit Side Chat.” During this time he expects the congregation to be honest about sharing with him who we are as a church, what our aspirations are, concerns that members may have, and what we may like or not like. However, he does not want specific names, that is, no personal or personnel issues. The later are to be taken up with him only.
The leadership has asked him to give the church two days a week: Sundays, of course, and Tuesdays. The reason for Tuesday is because not only is that the staff’s regular meeting day, but it is also once a month the Deacon meeting evening and the Finance Committee meeting evening as well. John will be able to attend those meetings and offer his insights.
Speaking of insights, he shared with us on Sunday that he will not be choosing our next senior pastor. That is up to the membership. He will, however, be more than willing to offer assistance in that regard. He is well connected in Southern Baptist circles and will be able to give us guidance regarding specific individuals. He suspects we may have upwards of 100 resumes submitted and it will be the job of our search committee to wade through those names and reduce them to a manageable number. Again he will help with that.
As to the search committee, once again he has advice re the makeup of that group. He suspects it will take two or three months to put that committee together and another two to three months before they are up and running in an effective manner. He feels strongly that the entire process of selecting and hiring a new pastor should not take more than 12 months or so. He shared with us that going longer than a year without a senior pastor can negatively impact the church. People become both disheartened and disillusioned if more time than that passes.
He also shared with us the fact that with a permanent senior pastor there is time to get to know him and to trust him. After all the assumption is that he will be with us for quite some time. Not so with an interim pastor. In John’s words, “It has to be love at first sight.” I suspect that with a unanimous vote for him as our interim pastor, his goal was achieved.
John has been married for 45 years to his lovely wife, Nelda, but he reminded us that the church is hiring him and not her. He will be joining the staff on Tuesday for their weekly meeting and then staying for the Deacon meeting that evening. Keep praying for Faith Fellowship and John Welch, our new interim pastor.
Pastor Steve
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