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COLORADO SPRINGS CENTRAL ENDS 2020 WITH 44 BAPTISMS
By Mike Maldonado – Colorado Springs, Colorado … The Central Adventist church in Colorado Springs ended 2020 with a Sabbath afternoon celebration of five baptisms, including a community member who attends the local Baptist church.
How does an Adventist pastor get the opportunity to baptize an individual who attends the Baptist church? By being active in the community and fostering fraternal relationships with fellow clergy.
Mike Maldonado, pastor of Colorado Springs Central Adventist Church, has spent the last three years building a relationship with John Harris, the local Baptist pastor. The friends visit and worship in each other’s churches.
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FACING 2021 AND THE COMING DAYS IN FAITH AT LA VIDA MISSION
By Dorie Panganiban – Farmington, New Mexico … On a cold, frosty morning in December, the staff of La Vida Mission embarked on their twelfth and final COVID-relief operation of 2020.
Outside the mission gym, the staff was ready to distribute 150 Christmas bags filled with goodies for families in need. Along with the bags filled with surprises for the families, the mission handed out free propane refills, almost a ton of potatoes, nonperishable food, and much-needed diapers for families. This was made possible by the many organizations who donated toward this need.
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SENIORS ENGAGE AT GRAND JUNCTION BY WALKING 5500 MILES IN 2020
By Sandi Adcox – Grand Junction, Colorado … The Grand Junction Seventh-day Adventist Church remains active during the ongoing pandemic with a variety of activities. Among them is a ministry for seniors, called SAGE.
In March of 2020, SAGE rolled out a new fitness program which quickly turned into a virtual wellness program after the pandemic made it difficult to meet in person. Designed to encourage individuals to “put their bodies in motion” and set personal goals, the program was introduced as a “challenge”; however, individuals did not challenge one another, but rather challenged themselves to become more active, and to improve mood and over-all wellness.
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CAMPION PATHFINDERS GIVE BACK
By Ardis Stenbakken – Loveland, Colorado … When the Campion church Pathfinder club discovered one of its church members, Waverly Taylor, was facing a serious cancer condition, they decided to support Taylor by doing small chores around her home, including mowing the lawn when needed.
During a recent Pathfinder meeting in December, Pathfinders discovered that members of the church were gathering for a special session of prayer for Taylor, whose cancer had returned. The Pathfinder meeting was put on hold and they joined the wider church to pray for Taylor.
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GRAND JUNCTION CHURCH HOSTS CHRISTMAS LIGHT HUNT ACROSS CITY
By Sandi Adcox – Grand Junction, Colorado … With the Grand Junction church Christmas gathering being cancelled the senior ministry team (SAGE) decided to plan a Christmas light scavenger hunt in December sending members scrambling to locate light displays across the city.
Realizing the lack of social activity within the church for the last ten months, leader Sandi Adcox contacted team member Tina Ruff and said, “We still have time — let’s brainstorm.”
“Immediately, the Great Christmas Light Scavenger Hunt began developing. We decided the event would be open to all members of the church, and not restricted to just SAGE members,” Adcox reflected on the planning.
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HATE CRIME HITS LOCAL ADVENTIST PASTOR
By RMCNews – Denver, Colorado … Imagine coming home from church one evening and to find the words BOP A** N***A sprayed-painted on your house. This is exactly what Pastor Oshaine Wynter discovered this past Sabbath, January 9.
Wynter, a resident of Aurora, Colorado is the pastor of New Community Church in Denver and Boston Street church in Aurora. Both are within the Central States Conference, a sister region to Rocky Mountain Conference.
Concerning the scary experience, Wynter said the whole situation has “been disappointing and sickening.” He further recalls the fear he felt when he saw those freshly-painted words on his garage, knowing his wife, 6-month-old, and 2-year-old were just feet away in the house.
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LEADERS VOTE TO POSTPONE GENERAL CONFERENCE SESSION 2020 FOR A SECOND TIME
By Adventist News Network — Silver Spring, Maryland …For the second time in 10 months, members of the Executive Committee of the global Seventh-day Adventist Church have voted to postpone the quinquennial session of the denomination, originally scheduled for late June of 2020, due to challenges arising from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Members of the General Conference Executive Committee (EXCOM) from around the world attended the January 12, 2021, virtual Zoom session, where they listened to reports from world church administration, health officers of the church, logistics coordinators, and legal counsel.
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COMMENTARY — APECHEI, A MESSAGE FOR THE CHURCH
By Doug Inglish — Did you ever read something in the Bible and notice an odd word or phrase? Like most everyone else, I spend the majority of my reading in relatively recent translations, meaning those from the last 150 years or so. But even in that span, language has changed enough to cause certain words or terms to fall on 21st century ears in a way that may be to some degree different than intended by 19th century writers. Read any book by Ellen White (in their early editions) and you will see some examples.
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GRAND JUNCTION CHURCH OFFERS WATERCOLOR PAINTING CLASSES
By Sandi Adcox – Grand Junction, Colorado … SAGE, the senior ministry of the Grand Junction church, is building relationships in the community by offering watercolor painting classes.
The small classes of 12 individuals have provided a safe way to gather during the pandemic.
Classes began in March of 2020 and are offered in four-week sessions. Many fill to capacity and there is often a waiting list of individuals wanting to learn how to paint with watercolors. The first class of 2021 has begun and the next session, scheduled to begin in February, is already maxed out with many on a waiting list.
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WEDNESDAY PRAYER MEETING WELCOME AT LITTLETON
By Jon Roberts – Littleton, Colorado … On the very evening, January 6, when the political divisions in America grew into an unsuccessful coup at the United States Capital, some 30 members, including a ten-year-old and several teenagers came together for the first Wednesday night prayer meeting at the Littleton church.
Lead pastor Andy Nash, in opening remarks, addressed the events of the day, “We didn’t plan for our first prayer meeting to be on a day that was so painful for our country, but Jesus is our King and we want to pray for soft hearts and unity for our country and church.”
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