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 A Note to the Clergy of the
Mid-American Region

June 2020  



Called by God and empowered by the Holy Spirit to embody and proclaim
the Good News of Jesus Christ as Lord,
Mid-American Baptist Churches is a covenanting association of
American Baptist Churches in
Minnesota and Iowa. 
We are interdependent and diverse congregations and individuals
working and praying together to build up the Body of Christ.   
         

                                                                                                                                                                     ---Our Region's Mission Statement



Our Prayers go out to Rev. Gary Martin, Associate Region Minister and his wife Rev. Brenda Martin. Brenda's mom passed away last night in Michigan. 



A word of Hello from Rev. Jacquline L. Saxon
Colleagues, you remain in my thoughts and prayers as together we navigate this new pathway trusting always in God's promise to walk with us through these challenging times. Below are two opportunities to check-in with one another and with me. One is in the morning and the other is in the evening. Choose the one that best fits your busy schedules.

I would like to begin a conversation in light of George Floyd's death. I want to hear how you are feeling as well as your congregation's reactions to all that has transpired. I would also like to hear how things are going with those of you who have been worshipping back in your sanctuaries. I have found these Zoom calls to be a very fruitful time to meet with pastors throughout the region, to share ideas and get to know one another.  So please consider joining me this Thursday, June 11th .
 
**Jun 11 (Thu) 11:00am Zoom Call for MABC Pastors with Jackie simply to check in with one another. 
Topic: Check in with MABC Pastors and Executive Minister
Time: June 11, 2020 11:00 AM Central Time 
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89190815227?pwd=amJCcUpxUWNlWTh4djhKZWM0N0xSQT09
Meeting ID: 891 9081 5227
Password: 479963
Dial in by phone: 312 626 6799 


**Jun 11 (Thu) 7:00pm Zoom Call for MABC Pastors with Jackie simply to check in with one another. 
Topic: Check in with MABC Pastors and Executive Minister
Time: June 11, 2020 07:00 PM Central Time
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85924575563?pwd=ZHdIczNvbmVCODlORFc0cDBVY0hudz09
Meeting ID: 859 2457 5563
Password: 998349
Dial in by Phone 312 626 6799 
 

Resources that you might find helpful as you have conversations around the topic of Race and Racial Justice in America
There are many books, blogs, websites and videos - these are just a few that I have found insightful in recent days. Let me know what you are reading on the subject and I will include them in future editions.
 
 
This particular issue of The Christian Citizen - June 2nd is specifically focused on the George Floyd's murder way to engage the conversation around issues of Race and Racial Justice.  

75 Things White People Can Do For Racial Justice - this was written back in August of 2017

Engaging Differences During Hardship  - a program of the National institute for Civil Discourse

White Savior: Racism In The American Church - a documentary that can be found on Netflix and Amazon Prime. The Executive Director of the Minnesota Council of Churches is featured.
 
DES MOINES: Ways to Help If You're Not Protesting- something that was shared on Facebook that I thought was helpful.
 
 


Clergy, Pastors, Chaplains, Spiritual Caregivers are invited to participate in a virtual retreat. 
Are you struggling with grief and loss due to the challenges of COVID-19? 
Are you struggling with 
grief as you try to minister to individuals during the  COVID-19 pandemic?
 
You are invited to American Baptist Home Mission Societies' three-day virtual conference
 
You Are Not Alone: A Space for Grace Retreat
 
1-3 p.m. Tuesdays, June 16, 23 and 30
 Each day will feature a different grief-related topic; participate in as many or as few days as you prefer.
 
Speakers:
Rev. Dr. Amy Greene
Director, Center for Spiritual Care
 
Rev. Dr. Gary V. Simpson
Senior Pastor, Concord Baptist Church of Christ
 
Dr. Naomi Kohatsu Paget
Chaplain, Association of Professional Chaplains
and Crisis Interventionist, FBI
 
Rev. Jamie Washam
Minister, First Baptist Church in America

Watch for information about additional speakers Registration is free, but required for this webinar. Spaces are limited.
 
Register at 
youarenotalone.ministrelife.org
 

Clergy Civic Network Discussion 
with Rev. Darrin Goss

June 18, 2020, 9–10:30 am via Zoom
(link emailed after RSVP received)

 

Lessons Learned from Charleston:
Clergy’s Role in Community Healing after the Mother Emanuel Massacre

 

Join us for a discussion with Rev. Darrin Goss, the president of the Coastal Community Foundation of South Carolina (CCF). Before joining CCF, he served as the senior pastor of three different multi-cultural Baptist churches.

The Mother Emanuel church massacre occurred in June 2015, and Rev. Goss returned to Charleston to work at CCF in January 2016. Since then, he has been a leader in forging Charleston’s pathway towards community healing. Along with clergy and other leadership in Charleston’s white, Jewish, and black communities, Rev. Goss learned many lessons as their community held together and then built greater strength In the years after tragedy.

Rev. Goss says that while leadership in the black community is of course essential,  bold and unifying leadership from the Jewish and white faith community is key as well. While the murder of George Floyd happened to a black man and effectively to the black community, acknowledging that this is not a “black community” problem is critical. All of our communities need to step up and state this truth and then put actions to words. This kind of coalition building in Charleston is making all the difference.

The event is free to all clergy engaged in the work of Interfaith Action but an RSVP is required. A Zoom link will be sent upon receipt of your reservation.

RSVP here

Friends, our Mid-American Region MMBB retirement benefits consultant is now Rev. Dr. David Hinson david.hinson@mmbb.org. He is available to help those that already have MMBB accounts and those that would like to establish one for Pastors and church Staff. Please contact him with all of your MMBB questions.  He is eager to help us.

 

PRESS RELEASE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Rev. Robin R. Sandbothe
Director of Seminary Relations
Email: 
rsandbothe@cbts.edu
Direct: 913.667.5708
Fax: 913.667.5768
 
President Pamela R. Durso Begins Tenure as 11th President of Central Seminary
Shawnee, Kansas, June 4, 2020
 
The Rev. Dr. Pamela R. Durso began her first day as president of Central Baptist Theological Seminary on June 1.  Elected by the seminary’s board of trustees in February, Durso relocated last month to the Kansas City metro area from Atlanta where she had served for eleven years as executive director of Baptist Women in Ministry.
 
Central Seminary board chairperson and leader of the presidential search committee,
Rev. James R. Cook, expressed his excitement about Durso’s arrival:
After a national search that took over a year to complete, I am excited to welcome Dr. Pam Durso as the new president of Central.  Pam brings a wealth of experience, connections within Baptist life, and a warm human touch which the board and search committee experienced during the hiring process.  I am anxious for the seminary community and friends to get to know Pam and to begin working with her as Central continues to thrive under her new leadership.
 
In addition to her leadership as executive director of a thriving national non-profit organization, Baptist Women in Ministry, Durso brings a deep commitment to and experience in theological education, having served on the faculty of Campbell University Divinity School and as an adjunct professor for McAfee School of Theology. She is also a minister, ordained in 2015 by Cornerstone Baptist Church of Snellville, Georgia, and Baptist Women in Ministry, and having served in various ministry positions.
 
Durso holds a PhD in church history from Baylor University. She is an author of several books on Baptist history and women in ministry, as well as numerous articles.  She is ecumenical in her service to religious organizations and has been the recipient of awards for leadership, achievement. and distinguished service in these organizations.
 
The Central Seminary community welcomed Durso to the seminary with a socially distanced parade and photo op upon her arrival in Shawnee. On June 2 the school held a chapel service in which participants from the seminary community voiced Central’s strengths, shared hopes for the future, and offered words of blessings for her as she begins her leadership role as president.
 
President Durso shared, “I am thankful for the warm welcome I’ve received from the Central community in recent days and am deeply grateful for the opportunity to serve as the seminary’s next president. I’m inspired by Central’s long and rich history of training ministers and nurturing their callings and gifts and proud to lead a seminary that draws students together to study and learn across differences of race, nationality, gender, denominational commitment, and theological perspectives. I look forward with great anticipation to working with the Central community as we together live into the school’s mission of seeking God, shaping church, and serving humanity and all creation.”
 
Durso and her husband, Dr. Keith Durso, look forward to exploring their new home state of Kansas and to settling into the community. They have two young adult children, Michael and Alex.
 
About Central Baptist Theological Seminary
Building on a 119-year legacy, Central is now among the fastest growing seminaries in the United States with eleven U.S. and international locations. The seminary supports learners by offering remote courses of study, innovative curricula, and cutting-edge technologies and instructional methods. Central is dedicated to being a relevant voice in the evolving global Christian community and intentional in helping learners to develop their distinctive voices as members of their own communities and the world at large.

 
FYI: At the May 2020 Board of Trustees meeting held on Zoom, I was voted onto the seminary's Board of Trustees. I am honored and looking forward to my time with Central.

 
2020 Summer Camping Update - A Summer Sabbath Season
The Dayton Oaks and  Forest Lake Camp Boards along with the Region Office came together via Zoom to make a joint decision about our 2020 summer camping season. We have made the decision to not hold in-person camp for June and July in an effort to keep families, campers, and camp staff safe from COVID-19. This has not been an easy decision to make, but we all feel it is best under the circumstances.  Please let your congregations know of this decision. Both Camps will also be alerting individuals of this decision. Both camps have begun to work on ways to connect with campers virtually. So expect more information from both camps about how this will happen in the next couple of weeks. If you have creative ideas on how this might take place, please contact Matt and Dani Siebert at Dayton Oaks  and Shawn Ott and Christian Krohg at Forest Lake, I am sure they would appreciate your input.  
 

Steps to Lead Your Church to Rebound

On June 2nd I participated in a webinar from Church Fuel that discussed how to continue moving forward through this chaotic season. Here are some of the more helpful highlights: Rebounding is about bouncing back so we can move forward. It's like a basketball rebound, it is the beginning of the transition from defense to offense. 
1. Focus on the Essential: what we define as essential has changed recently. What have we learned? What sort of things are truly essential for mission and ministry? Identify your 5 essential ministries and focus on them with more resources, volunteers, and communication than non-essential ministries. Now is the time to eliminate ineffective ministries and tasks that keep us off-mission. 
2. Communicate fiscal responsibility, corporate generosity, and recurring giving: Share with your congregation the wise choices of financial team decisions. Communicate budget changes. Show how money is being used to further the mission and ministry of the church. Email donors monthly sharing how resources are being allocated to build trust and demonstrate responsibility. Emphasize recurring giving to even out budget.
3. Focus on community not just content: people miss community more than content. Churches are not publishing houses. They are fellowship communities on mission with Jesus.
4. Open the digital front door: the new blended service will not be about mixing music styles but about blending physically present and digitally present worship experiences. Think through how to blend your online and physical experiences into one. Think of it like TV show with a live audience and a televised audience. Some things work for both some things only work for one group or the other.
5. Update (create) a ministry plan: identify your mission and ministry purpose (who we are). Identify how to accomplish that mission and ministry (how we live out who we are). Your actions should always be driven by who you are.


ABHMS Offering Grants through One Great Hour of Sharing for help during COVID pandemic

 
Effective May 4, 2020 the American Baptist Home Mission Societies is launching the process to apply for COVID 19 related One Great Hour of Sharing (OGHS) grants.  Our goal for the next 12 months, is to raise and disburse OGHS funds totaling one million dollars to American Baptists in the United States and Puerto Rico to provide emergency assistance relating to the Coronavirus pandemic.   We anticipate that these grants will be awarded on a quarterly basis in amounts of one to five thousand dollars per recipient.
 
All American Baptist national and regional partners including regions, churches, American Baptist Related Organizations such as ABMen and AB Women, ABC related colleges, universities, seminaries, Community Outreach Ministries partners and the American Baptist national network of chaplains, pastoral counselors, spiritual counselors and specialized ministers’ are eligible to apply for these grants. Organizations may apply for a OGHS COVID 19 related grant in one or more of the quarterly cycles.  However, priority for awarding grants will be given to organizations who are first time applicants.
 
In compliance with our accountability to coordinate US and Puerto Rico OGHS efforts on behalf of American Baptists, all OGHS COVID 19 grants will be processed by ABHMS.  In keeping with all OGHS efforts, one hundred percent of the funds collected through the appeal will be disbursed to applicants who are awarded grants.
 
Please use this OGHS COVID Grant Application form.  You may also submit the application online on our website at this link: https://abhms.org/abhms-covid-recovery-grant-application-form.
The passcode is: COVID1920

The grant cycles are as follows:
  1. First Quarter: April-June, 2020
  2. Second Quarter: July – September, 2020
  3. Third Quarter: October – December, 2020
  4. Fourth Quarter: January – March, 2021
 
If you have any questions regarding the application form or process please do not hesitate to contact me at GrantsAdmin@abhms.org.   

 
 
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