This is the text that will appear in this years annual report due out in December.
“Be wise in the way you act towards outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.” Colossians 5: 5-6
With this as our goal, this years Light Force emphasis is equipping our Christian students to minister to their peers. Our vision for Light Force is that we desire to love God and love others by intentionally modeling a life devoted to becoming disciples of Jesus Christ.
For the year to come, here are some areas of concentration that we have either launched already or will launch soon. We call them Key Result Areas:
Adults/student leaders intentionally modeling
Priority of prayer partners
Involvement in Home Bible Studies (Inductive methodology)
Amplified adult leader contact ministry
Worship arts development
Begin equipping students for peer-to-peer ministry.
I have the tremendous benefit of a loving, thoughtful, and dedicated group of adult leaders. Without them, we would not exist. Robert Bonetti, Fran Dashe, Kristen McLane, and Dave Whitten have all been responsible for making Sunday school relevant and fresh for our students. On Wednesday nights, Barb Brinker, Fran Dashe, Beth Fisher, Kristen McLane, Gary Shell, Dawn Wrobleski, and Dave Whitten not only serve the youth group and make Light Force happen but each one also invests in the lives of our students outside of the walls of the church. I praise God for them and consider it a pleasure to work alongside each one of them.
There were many highlights to the past 12 months. Some of them include a Chicago Mission trip, a whitewater rafting trip to West Virginia, the Word of Life Superbowl, attending the EQUIP conference in Sarnia, ON, and college visits to Cornerstone University, Moody Bible Institute, and Wheaton College.
The true measure of student ministry comes with two questions. Are lives being changed currently? Are students faithful to the Lord as they enter adulthood? I could spend lots of time sharing stories of changed lives. Let’s sum it up by saying; many students have grown greatly in the past year as we’ve instructed them from Scripture. [Not my work, but God’s work through me!] God’s work is alive and active in our midst. As for the second question, this is what drives us to daily challenge our students.
Personally, three things have made this a fun and challenging year.
Without a senior pastor, I have been involved in areas of church ministry that are new to me. I’ve made some mistakes and I’ve learned a lot. I don’t regret this time as it has only galvanized my long-term desire to continue to serve here at Romeo.
I’ve just completed my second year as a volunteer assistant golf coach at Romeo High School. It is a pleasure to serve our community in a way that fits so well with my natural talents and hobby! It was an awesome season of investing in the lives of students whom we normally wouldn’t have contact with.
This fall I’ve begun my Masters degree in Youth Ministry at Huntington College’s Graduate School of Christian Ministry in Huntington, Indiana. This is an exciting opportunity for me as I am studying under one of the great minds in the field. It is an honor to be a part of the program there and it is already paying dividends in my ministry at Romeo.
Respectfully submitted
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