Body Builders
October 15, 2020
Mid-American Baptist Churches of Iowa and Minnesota
strive to work together to build up the Body of Christ.
Please take some time this month and let your pastor, associate pastor, interim minister, children's minister, music minister, youth director, counselor - everyone that has been and is pastoral to you - let them know that you appreciate them. These saints work hard both publicly and privately behind the scenes on your behalf. If you find yourself stressed about Covid, recognize that they are doubly stressed. They worry about the church family as well as their own family. Being the non-anxious presence in your midst can be exhausting. So take some time to pray for them and also send them reassurance in the form of a card, a note, a gift card, maybe flowers. Be as creative as you like. Just let them know you care, appreciate and love them as your pastor but also because they are a child of God. Peace, Jackie
Our first ever virtual Biennial happened on Saturday, October 3rd via Zoom!! We had close to 70 people join us on their computers, tablets and phones. Special thanks to Rev. Soozi Whitten Ford, Rev. Florence Li and Rev. Jae Stockton who joined us remotely to share on our theme Strength for Today Hope for Tomorrow. We also heard from members of the region past and present who shared their memories as we also celebrated being 50 years old as the Mid-American Baptist Churches of Iowa and Minnesota. In addition to conducting region business and electing our Region officers, committee chairs and teams for the 2021 - 2023 biennium, we closed our time together by sharing communion virtually. Special thanks to the Biennial Planning Committee and to the Region's nominating committee for all of their hard work. Video clips from ABCUSA Leadership and Region Leadership can be found on our website - www.mid-abc.org - look for the 2020 Biennial Gathering tab.
AB Women’s Fall Rally - Iowa EAST, West and North ABWM Zoom meeting
Theme: Love kindness and do good....
October 17, 2020 10:00 a.m. - 11:30 a.m.
Greetings by National Executive Director Rev. Gina Jacobs-Strain; A devotional will be shared by Rev. Carla Nelson; Our main Speaker is National President Lori Hill; Global Servant Speaker Mercy Gonzalez-Barnes will share about her ministry as a regional Missionary;
Mary Moffit will share about White Cross and our Region Project. Send your email address to streetmc@cfu.net. to receive the link.
This will be recorded and available for your best time.
Attention Youth Leaders!
Your Regional Youth Team is disappointed to postpone our annual in-person RYE event until next year, but we still want to learn, play, and connect with each other this November! So here's the plan:
We will send you as many devotional books as you need.You will follow us at
https://www.instagram.com/regionyouth/
or
https://www.facebook.com/RegionYouth to catch all the games, updates, and surprises.
- You can use #2020RYE to post your game entries and play along!
- Mark your calendar for the first weekend in November 2021 for speaker Charlie Conder and worship leader Jeremy Carmody to lead a fantastic weekend where we all will get to STEP UP!
M
-ABC Quilters’ Retreat
A Ministry of Mid-American Baptist Churches
November 5 – 7, 2020
Dayton Oaks Camp
3717 Taylor Avenue, Dayton, IA 50530
All Skill levels are welcome
and encouraged!!! Information and Registration Form can be found HERE
ATTENTION MABC CHURCHES THAT HAVE A FOOD PANTRY:
If your church has a food distribution ministry,
a supply of USDA food boxes are available at no charge.
To apply for receiving USDA food boxes,
contact Rev. Gary Martin. 515-329-6434 or
gary@mid-abc.org
First Baptist Church of Greater Des Moines in Johnston, IA, is searching for a part-time music director, choir director, and organist. A Des Moines congregation for over 170 years, First Baptist has a long history of excellence in musical performance. Preferred applicants would be classically trained, but also open to newer musical applications in a worship setting.
These positions may be separate or paired/combined. To apply, please send an email with your expression of interest to Wendy Longden at First Baptist. Wendy’s email is office@fbcdsm.org
Dayton Oaks Camp Video
Forest Lake Camp Video
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Dear Friends,
These are troubling times when many of us wonder what we can be doing about so much injustice. The Buttry Center for Peace and Nonviolence at Central Seminary is delighted to be able to bring to you the wisdom and experience of Dan and Sharon Buttry in a 3-part series on zoom. Here are descriptions of the two remaining sessions:
Thursday, October 22 - Shifting people's positions on issues of importance.
During such toxic times as these, how do we change people's understandings and commitments to strengthen the causes we hold dear? The Buttrys will guide us in looking at a tool that first helps us become more aware of the different people related to a particular issue. It then assists us in understanding various approaches to take in order to shift their positions on the topic of concern. Click to register for this session.
Thurs., Oct. 29 - Transforming our personal and social traumas for social and political impact.
How can we turn the traumatic experiences we've been through into powerful instruments of social and political change that will also leave us personally stronger? We will explore ways to move beyond being victims into becoming change agents. Click to register for this session.
Dan Buttry has been a Global Consultant for Peace and Justice, and Sharon Buttry has been a Global Consultant for Community Transformation, both with International Ministries of the American Baptist Churches, USA. They have provided consultation and training in conflict transformation and the transformation of communities around the world, primarily working with churches. In the past decade, Dan and Sharon have trained over 400 people from over 50 countries in 10-day Training of Conflict Transformation Trainers programs. Many of these leaders in peacemaking have then profoundly impacted their communities and countries.
In addition, Sharon has facilitated trauma awareness/recovery and social ministries workshops in many countries. She has also focused energy on peace and justice work at a community level, working to reform police through developing community policing, founding a domestic violence center, being an activist for housing and environmental justice, and serving as executive director of Friendship House and CEO of Acts 29 Fellowship in Detroit, where they live. Dan has served as a pastor, worked with Baptist Peace Fellowship of North America, and published many books on peacemaking.
A Guide to MMBB Benefits Administration:
How to Administer the Plans
November 12, 2020
2:00 pm Eastern Time
This webinar will introduce church administrators to the fundamental and practical knowledge needed for successful administration of MMBB Benefits for their employees to take full advantage of all that MMBB has to offer.
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ABC USA Survey Request
Dear American Baptists. The members of the National Executive Council and Regional Executive Ministers Council have requested a follow-up survey of American Baptist congregations to assess the impact of COVID-19. You may have participated in a similar survey earlier this year in May. Whether or not you were able to participate in the earlier survey, we are asking if you would be willing to respond to a brief survey to better ascertain the impact of the global pandemic. This is a point person survey in which the person most knowledgeable about your congregation is asked to complete the survey. In most instances, this would be the pastor of the congregation. The survey should take approximately 5-7 minutes to complete. Thank you in advance for taking the time to respond to the survey. The survey link is below. Responses received by October 15, 2020 will be most appreciated.
LINK: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/COVID19ABCCongSFall2020
The deadline to receive nomination for the positions of ABC Officers for 2022-2023 – President, Vice President, and Budget Review Officer has been extended until October 22, 2020. The NOMINATION/RECOMMENDATION and the CANDIDATE PROFILE forms for submission of names to be considered by the ABCUSA Nominating Committee can be found on the ABCUSA website at www.abc-usa.org/nominations-recommendations.
