Team Wisconsin Update 5-14-08

Lakeshore

It was a wonderful Mother’s Day as I had the privilege of dropping in at the home church to worship with Pastor David Treloar and the Lakeshore church family.  Pastor David preached a good message, as he always does.  He is in a series on the Home entitled “Housework.”  This week was on the Office; he spoke on finances, giving some good Biblical foundation and sharing John Wesley’s three principles on money – “Earn all you can, Save all you can, Give all you can.”  I also had the opportunity to hear Jeff Lennberg for the first time leading worship at Lakeshore.  Jeff and his family have felt led to begin ministry preparation with the Wesleyan church and to begin worshipping and working with Lakeshore.  He does a good job and it was a delight to visit with he and his family.

A special treat for us was to have our son and his family here.  Brent, Laura and Jackson stopped in on their way to Indiana where Brent is taking his last master’s class at Indiana Wesleyan University. 
 
Congratulations to Pastor Russell and Margaret Wooten! They have welcomed their 18th grandchild, Judah Reagan Clipner, into the world this past week. Mom and Dad (their daughter and son-in-law Kenny & Michelle), and all five brothers and sisters are doing great.  Grandma and Grandpa Wooten are pretty excited, too.
 
Nica News

The Knoxes and Eckhardts had a special time of retreat in Matagalpa recently.  The Knox family will be returning to the United States next month for a year of travel and connecting with churches and supporters.

The work team from Sheridan, WY was a huge blessing to the construction project at Mount Horeb.  The project is about 50% complete.  Mount Horeb is the location of one of three schools we have in Nicaragua and there is a church there as well.  Three people from the Mount Horeb church were baptized last weekend

The newly planted church at Matagalpa in northern Nicaragua has been given the use of a house to hold services.  This is a huge praise because the rainy season starts soon and they have been meeting on top of a ridge in the great outdoors.  There were over 80 people there in attendance last week.
 
Please pray for:

Sand Lake and Northern Lakes Churches in the pastoral search process.

General Conference and District Conference in June.

The summer camps (two Children’s, Middle School and Senior High).

Mary Coolidge, who remains in the hospital in Superior.

Debbie Hoover, Projects Director of World Hope, and wife of Chesapeake Dist. Supt.

Stan Hoover (and also Dan and Reenie’s sister-in-law) who will be having surgery on Friday.

Shelley Berry, wife of South Coastal Dist. Supt. Dan Berry as she continues to recover from the serious automobile accident. You can read of her progress and specific requests at http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/danshelleyberry. 
 
Calendar

May
14 Nicaraguan Partnership Committee
17 DBMD Meeting
18 Woodland Visit
19-25 Vacation
28 Church Planting Strategic Planning

Summer Camps & Conferences

June
7-11 General Conference
9-13 North & South Kids Camps
15-20 Middle School Camp 26-27 District Conference
29—July 4 Senior High Camp

Eastman is a small town in the southwestern part of Wisconsin. The beautiful brick church sits along the main drag and is one of three churches in the town. I had the privilege of speaking on Sunday, then sharing a meal with the congregation and meeting with their LBA. Pastor Fred and Sandy were called there three years ago and have worked faithfully and hard to build the congregation. The congregation is unique in that almost all of the church is made up of those in the farming industry and almost all families home school their children. They have an active children’s, youth and young adult ministry that meets weekly. It was good to catch up with Fred and see that he is recovering very well from the heart attack he had just a short time ago. He reports that there appears to be minimal damage and he expects an almost full recovery in a few weeks. That is a remarkable thing, considering his heart stopped and he almost died twice. Thank the Lord for His touch and grace on Pastor Fred.

Year End Deadlines!

· May 10 (postmark) USF payments for the past fiscal year.

· May 15 all Annual Service Reports.

· May 31 all other reports (statistical, delegates, leaders, etc.)

Promptness in reporting is not only required; it is greatly appreciated.


Prayer Requests

Please pray for:

· Pastor Mary Coolidge who was rushed to the hospital to stabilize her because of problems with her medication

· Pastor Fred Whyte as he continues to heal from the heart attack.

· Northern Lakes Church and Sand Lake Church in the continuing search for a pastor.

· The upcoming General Conference in June.

· Our annual District Conference.

· Our children’s camps, middle school camp, and high school camp coming in June.

Calendar

May 11 Drop-in Visit (Mother’s Day)
14 Nicaraguan Partnership Committee
17 DBMD Meeting
18 Woodland Visit
19-25 Vacation
28 Church Planting Strategic Planning

Summer Camps and Conferences

June 7-11 General Conference
9-13 North & South Kids Camps
15-20 Middle School Camp
26-27 District Conference
29—July 4 Senior High Camp

Team Wisconsin Update 5-2-08

The past two weeks we connected with West Allis in southern Wisconsin & Stone Lake in northern Wisconsin. 

West Allis
West Allis has combined their two services and blended the elements and style into one.  Pastor Peter and Peggy have been at West Allis for 19 years now, having raised their two children there, and helping to raise foster children in recent years.  While Peter pastors the church, Peggy works in a local school system as a physical therapist.  A number of people have been called into vocational ministry under their leadership. 

Stone Lake
Stone Lake continues to be led by supply pastor Don Berry, now in his 9th year there.  Don and Bea Berry, who live in Rice Lake, have led the congregation in beginning a Monday evening kids’ ministry and completing a beautiful education/fellowship addition to the original church.  They just recently took in 13 members with a few more to be added soon.  I had the privilege of meeting with the leadership team there and talking about their vision for the future.


Spiritual Formation
Heath Davis, our adult spiritual formation director, along with Jeremy and Chopper, have a blogspot and I would encourage you to check it out regularly at www.wispiritualformation.blogspot.com. Heath is the main writer/contributor and I’m sure you’ll find his thoughts interesting and encouraging.  There are also several links to information and resources that can be helpful in your work to help grow and mature the Christ-followers in your care.
 
Congratulations to the Tripps
Pastor Alan Tripp writes, “Just want you to know that we have another blessing in our family.  Sarah Beth made her debut on April 27th weighing in at 9 lbs. 3 oz. and 21 inches long.  She arrived by c-section, but mom and baby are doing good.  Ruth is enthralled with her little sister and will be more help than mom needs.  It would help if Ruth understood what the term "gentle" means.”  Sarah Beth is Alan and Irene Tripp’s granddaughter, the daughter of their son Steven and his wife Tori.  Steven has just recently become a professor at Indiana Wesleyan University.
 
District Board of Administration
The DBA met a couple of weeks ago and dealt mainly with missional issues such as developing churches, church planting and how to provide the financial support for a missional vision.  As we prepare for our annual conference, we are praying and planning for a wonderful time together. 
 
Camps and Conferences
Also, as we begin the required reporting process for the past year of ministry, and continue to look to the future, please pray for the camps and conferences:

General Conference June 7-11
North and South Kids camps June 9-13
Middle School camp June 15-20
District Conference June 26-27
Senior High camp June 29-July 4

District Calendar

May

4 Eastman Visit & LBA
6 Nominating Committee Meeting
11 Drop-in Visit (Mother’s Day)
14 Nicaraguan Partnership Committee
17 DBMD Meeting
18 Woodland Visit
19-25 Vacation
28 Church Planting Strategic Planning

Leading a great team—Your Servant, Dan Bickel, Wisconsin District Superintendent 


 

Team Wisconsin Update 4-16-08

Valton

It took me three years to find Valton without making a phone call ahead of time. This small town in southwestern Wisconsin, under the good leadership of Pastor Terry Woirol, continues to grow and make an impact on their community. I had the privilege of speaking in their worship service last Sunday. The sanctuary was nearly packed and it was a good time of worship with the congregation. Valton continues to oversee a significant ministry to help those in need in their community. They are very active in missions. This year they will give 10% of the church’s income to church planting in the district! Every month they have an ecumenical men’s breakfast with several churches in the area. The church has expanded and upgraded their facilities several times to create more ministry space. They are just beginning to talk about where to add or build larger worship space. Pastor Terry and Lori have been there for 14 years. They have three children – one married, one engaged and one in high school. And, they are proud grandparents, too. In the afternoon I met with the Valton LBA and had a dialogue time with Pastor Terry.

Mt. Pisgah

I met with the Mt. Pisgah LBA Sunday evening and caught up on their exciting news. Mt. Pisgah hit over 200 last Sunday with their new Saturday evening and their Sunday morning service.


End of Year Reports & Plans for New District Year

Earlier in the week I spent several hours with our wonderful district treasurer, Vernon Woods, to go over that fun stuff called “budget”. Sharon, his wife, was a wonderful hostess, as always, and fed me well! We have a wonderful and committed district treasurer, who sacrificially gives a lot of time to serve our district.

It’s hard to believe we are coming to the close of another conference year and all of the wonderful things that come along with it – like year-end reports. Pastors, district leaders and delegates will soon be receiving information about the district conference, ordination, and reports deadlines.

Prayer

Continue to remember Sand Lake and Northern Lakes in the pastoral search process.

Pray for Gary Maness, interim pastor at Sand Lake. His father is very ill and he has flown to St. Louis to be with him.

Continue to pray for Erma Clarke, who lost her husband, John, recently.

Calendar

April

19 DBA

20 West Allis Visit

25-26 Minnesota Men’s Retreat

27 Stone Lake Visit, LBA


Leading a great team—Your Servant, Dan Bickel, Wisconsin District Superintendent 

Team Wisconsin Update 4-9-08

Spooner & The River
Last weekend I had the privilege of dropping in on two northern churches – Spooner and The River. Pastor Ron and Pastor Chopper are giving good leadership to the Spooner Church that continues to make an impact on their community. The church continues to be a leading supporter of Mike and Amy Knox and missions. They are also a leading supporter of the new River Church in Minong, with several of their families becoming a part of this new church.

The River Church officially kicked off a year ago at Easter and they are continuing to grow by touching people throughout the county. Since starting they have gone to two services and are planning on purchasing the building they have been meeting in, with plans to upgrade and expand over the next several months. Pastor Ben is giving good leadership. Ben and Ingrid’s new baby is due in about a month..

LBA Meetings

Over the weekend I also met with three boards. Pastor Dwayne and the Eau Claire Church continues to experience growing pains in their facility and are wrestling with decisions about future expansion and the possibility of church planting. At Rice Lake High Point, I met with Pastor Channing and the leadership team to discuss their present situation and ministry future. They are in their second year of refocusing on developing church status. I also met with the Northern Lakes leadership team to talk about the transition they are facing with the resignation of Pastor Kevin O’Connor. Pastor Kevin will be going to plant a church in North Carolina. We are praying and working for the Lord’s direction for the new leader for this new, developing church.

Monday Reenie and I met with a pastoral couple to talk about ministry. I also had a lunch meeting with Craig Cooper, our district Evangelism and Church Growth Director, to go over budget and to prepare for the church planting strategic planning meeting with Phil Stevenson in May.

News and Notes

Please pray for:

· Ben and Ingrid Kidder as they prepare for the birth of their child in early May.

· Fred Whyte who had a heart attack last week, and is now home recuperating. The prognosis for a full recovery is excellent.

· The Sand Lake and Northern Lakes churches as we continue to search for the next pastor/leader.

· Erma Clarke who recently lost her husband, Rev. John Clarke, a long time pastor in the Wisconsin District.

· Our newest church planter, Juan Morillo, and his family, as they prepare to settle in Waukesha and plant our second Hispanic ministry.

· Our recent church planter Jason Butler and Transformation City as they bring on additional leaders and supporters in Milwaukee.

· God to continue to open up new places to start new congregations in Wisconsin.

Calender

April 10 Budget Meeting

13 Valton LBA, Dialogue

13 Mt. Pisgah LBA

19 DBA

20 West Allis Visit

25-26 Minnesota Men’s Retreat

27 Stone Lake Visit, LBA

Team Wisconsin Update 3-18-08

High Point

I had a good day with Pastor Channing and Esther last Sunday. They are working with a developing church in Rice Lake, with a vision to turn the ministry around. There was a good spirit in the service and the facilities looked very clean and well-kept. There are some new couples who have begun to connect with the ministry there. Pray for Channing as he continues to lead this refocusing effort.

John Clarke

Remember to pray for Erma Clarke and family. A long time pastor and friend of the Wisconsin District, John Clarke, passed away last week in La Crosse. He continued to serve at the Sand Lake Church as long as he was physically able. The viewing will be Sunday evening, 6:00-8:00 p.m. and the funeral service will be Monday, March 17 at 11:00 a.m., both at the Sand Lake Wesleyan Church.

Easter Offering

We want to again encourage our churches to take an offering for church planting in the springtime, sometime around Easter. It doesn’t have to be on Easter Sunday. These monies are an important resource for the Evangelism and Church Growth Department to continue to encourage and push the church planting efforts of the denomination. The Wisconsin District, along with others, benefits from these resources, as we plant new congregations.

Nicaragua Partnership

This winter’s medical team, the 14th team to go from Wisconsin, was made up of support members Marcy Keup, Todd Keup, Carole Malinoski, Neal Moss, Cindy Terry, Katie Toraason, and RN’s Kathy Dettle, Laura Pulda, Leah Herstad Schmitz, Kim Striber, Gail Thielman, Suzie Ulmer, and Medical Dr. David Taylor. They were joined by the missionaries Eckhardts and Knoxes, Nicaraguan medical students and translators, Dr. Arauz and the local Wesleyan pastors. Dr. Bob Christie, a dentist, also worked with the team in Malacatoya. Nicaraguan church members assisted by organizing, packing medicine, entertaining children and preparing a noon meal for the workers. Six days of clinics were held and over 1,900 people were treated with health consultations that included medication and health education. Every family received a copy of the gospel of John and the children received Bible story cards. A lot of prayer takes place before, during and after the clinics. Through conversations and invitations throughout the day, people are invited to accept Jesus Christ into their lives. District Superintendent Enrique Montenegro reported that several people accepted Christ and a number of people have been invited to church. Huge kudos to everyone who helped make the trip a life-changing week for many people and for the kingdom.

Focus Tour

Last week about 30 pastors and staff participated in a wonderful day of learning and encouragement with presenters Jim Dunn and Phil Stevenson. The day consisted of pastoral and leadership spiritual formation issues along with challenges to strategically move ahead with expanding the kingdom through church multiplication. Our leaders went away with new ideas and new motivation to be proactive in caring for themselves as leaders and starting new churches. Jim Dunn and Phil Stevenson are general directors of the Spiritual Formation and Evangelism and Church Growth Departments of the Wesleyan Church.

Calendar

March

15-16 Mt. Pisgah Visit

17-20 DS Institute, GBA

23 Easter Sunday

25—4/1 Vacation (our son’s wedding)

Team Wisconsin Update 3-4-08

I was privileged to be with Lead Pastor Craig Cooper, his staff and congregation this past weekend. They have three services - one on Saturday and two on Sunday. Everyone has their role and does their part well throughout the weekend. Pastor Todd Arneson oversees the missions, connections and congregational care. Pastor Jeff Semple leads worship and takes care of the creative arts. Pastor Heather Semple oversees all spiritual formation. Pastor Brandon Willis works in student ministries and also shares some of the teaching and discipleship classes. Reenie and I were privileged to connect with each of them sometime over the weekend. There is an excitement about the future. People are coming to Christ. There is a group of youth preparing to go with the Nicaragua youth missions team this summer. Pastor Craig continues to give good leadership, along with his staff, to moving Red Cedar into the future. Pray for them as they do their major outreach at Easter at the High school auditorium and as they determine their future needs for facilities and additional space.

Nicaragua

Here are some things you can celebrate and pray about that are happening in Nicaragua:

• The medical team returned from Nicaragua last week and you’ll be hearing an update next week.

• The Nicaragua Bible Institute has begun its new year of classes. Jim Eckhardt is teaching a class on

Pastoral Ethics and Mike Knox is teaching the Introduction to the New Testament.

• The Amigos del Rey church in Tipitapa is holding services in Matagalpa. The church is averaging 70 people and there are 5 new believers.

• A work team from the New Life Wesleyan Church in Gillette, WY was in Nicaragua last month to work on the church in Malacatoya.

• Pray for our three grade schools in Mount Horeb, Las Colinas and Los Amiguitor del Rey. Together there are several hundred students.

• Pray for the new district board, elected in January, and remember District Superintendent Enrique Montenegro as he leads.

• Pray for the Mount Horeb Church and a work group from Sheridan, WY who will be building a kitchen in order to host a feeding program in the future.

Focus Tour

This Thursday, Phil Stevenson and Jim Dunn will be coming to Wisconsin and teaching on how to have spiritual, leadership, principle and outward focus. Pray with us that it will be an encouraging and challenging day.

Easter Offering

Every year around the Easter season we are encouraged and challenged to thinking missionally by giving the people in our churches opportunity to give to assist in church planting. A significant part of our vision as a district and a denomination
is to plant new congregations. The Easter offering is a significant way that we can invest in planting, training, coaching and resourcing. I encourage you to do what you can for church planting. Every pastor has received information and promotional material.

Calendar

March 4 ................................................. Dialogues

5 ............... Nicaragua Partnership Meeting

6 ............................... Focus Tour (Pastors)

8 ................................... Casa de Dios LBA

9 ........................................ High Point Visit

10 ......................................... The River LBA

11 ................................................. Dialogues

12 ........................................ Lakeshore LBA

13 .................................... Darrow Road LBA

15-16 ........................................ Mt. Pisgah Visit

17-20 .................................... DS Institute, GBA

23 ......................................... Easter Sunday

25—4/1 .................. Vacation (our son’s wedding)