Dec 26, 2018
By John J. Pethtel
SDBs gathered in Colorado Springs to learn about “Bold Ministry in Crazy Times” during the 4th annual MULTIPLY Church Development Conference.
Thirty-five SDBs from many different churches joined together Thursday, October 18, 2018, with a pre-conference event sponsored by Vision Trust International. On Thursday evening, Pastor Carl Greene led the group through guided prayer intended for us to stop and listen to what God is doing and how He is doing it. Director of Education & History, Nick Kersten, then presented what it looks like to share and live faith during crazy times.
On Friday, October 19, the group gathered at Vanguard Church (home to our friend, Alan Briggs), along with a few hundred others, for the MULTIPLY conference sponsored by Frontline Church Planting. The main sessions and speakers were phenomenal and inspiring. This was interspersed with breakout learning, conversations, and worship to make the day complete.
For worship on Sabbath, the group joined SpringsLife Church for their gathered worship service. Pastor JR Shick delivered a meaningful and impactful sermon on the theme for the weekend. Pastor Steve Osborn, Wayne Moore, and Pastor Carl Greene completed our conference by sharing about the boldness we must take to be faithful to God in the ministries that He has given us and that He is calling us to.
One attender commented, “MULTIPLY is a spirit-filled conference that continues to deepen my relationship with Christ and embolden me to turn my world upside down.” Another said, “If you are not getting fed, get in the kitchen.”
Make your plans to come to MULTIPLY 2019, October 17-19 in Colorado Springs. Don’t miss out on an opportunity to get in the kitchen!
Pastor Search
The following SDB churches or groups are looking for pastoral leadership. Please keep them in prayer as they search for their churches’ more preferable future.
Middle Island SDB Church (New Milton, WV)
First SDB Church of Hebron (Coudersport, PA)
Covenant SDB Fellowship (Hungry Horse, MT)
Remembrance SDB Church (Ft. Worth, TX)
There are other potential vacancies in the near future. If you are interested in one of these vacancies, if you are called to pastoral ministry, or if you know someone who might be interested in pastoral ministry, please contact the Director of Pastoral Services by email at jpethtel@seventhdaybaptist.org
CRM Review
Good news on the Conference database! Our CRM has current information on individual SDBs, the churches, and the many new contacts who want to know more about us. We’ve tweaked the database to fit our ministry needs, done some cleanup and designed processes to keep it running efficiently. A user manual has been created and training sessions are underway to help Conference staff take advantage of all it can do.
Now we can get a complete picture of all communication with a new contact. We can produce the annual Directory of Churches for the Yearbook from CRM data. We can help people planting churches stay connected and make progress. We can better encourage and network Sabbath- keepers who are far from a local church. Eventually, we can analyze our data to uncover the traits of thriving or struggling churches.
It is thanks to Patty Petersen that this has happened. To support the work of Patty Petersen as our missionary for the Conference, make checks payable to the sponsoring church: SDB Church of Boulder, 6710 Arapahoe Rd, Boulder, CO 80303. You can also designate a gift through the General Conference. You can help her ministry continue among SDBs as full time through 2019 with your generous support!
