spirit to the Focus. Please welcome her and help her out when she requests material.


So, where are we headed from here? First, I am confident that this time next year we


will be meeting together live in Grunthal, Manitoba. I look forward to finally building on the momentum we had at Connect19 in Omaha. We plan to once again present helpful and meaningful sessions that any church member could benefit from, that will help you strengthen your church. We still plan to hear from keynote speaker Jon Noyes from Stand to Reason.


Speaking of live meetings, as restrictions continue


to be lifted, please consider inviting Gary or me to your church for a visit. We would like to begin touching base with our churches in person again.


Along with Connect


and personal visits, we hope to restore the regional re- treats for pastors and their wives as soon as possible. Please encourage your pastors to participate. If the cost of travel is prohibitive, we have funds in the budget to assist with this expense.


The Board of Directors, in consultation with the


Commission on Education and the staff, recently de- cided to disband the Commission on Education. Many functions that this commission provided are no longer relevant or can be provided in new ways. Functions such as scheduling webinars will be taken on by the office staff. The annual decision to award scholarships will be delegated to a short-term team of volunteers. Each of the current commission members has already agreed to serve in that role, and we will recruit others as needed.


We have been working on refreshing many aspects


of our ministry. You have likely seen the fresh look and new logo for our new resources. Hopefully, you have noticed that the Fellowship Focus has a fresh new look, and a new emphasis on articles that offer ideas and resources for local ministry. Our Publications Special- ist, Kaileen, has been working on a complete overhaul of the FEBC website, which we hope to release within the next couple of months. We are excited to share it with you!


The Prairie West Extension


has done a great job of reviewing lessons learned from our church plant in Saskatoon. Meanwhile, the Commission on Church Planting is working to review and refresh our Church Plant- ing Manual. With the results of these efforts, we hope to explore how we can effectively plant new churches in the future.


I have been encouraged


recently by an increase in other churches who are interested in joining our Fellowship, and I will continue to explore ways to invite other churches to join hands with us. If you know of churches in your area that might be looking for a new home, please contact us and let us know.


As we continue to implement our Vision State-


ment, we ask that you join us in this effort. Take the time to familiarize yourself with new resources as they are released and share them with the folks at your church who could use them. If you have ideas for resources, let us know. And, as I mentioned before, do not hesitate to ask us for help in implementing these resources.


I believe that God has been using this time to


shape us. We are poised to make a great impact on the churches of our Fellowship, and subsequently on the communities that they represent. The very soul of our Fellowship is joining together to support, encourage, and challenge one another. Your church will benefit from this in proportion to your level of commitment and connection. I encourage you to choose connection over isolation. Choose involvement over apathy.


Paul told the believers at Corinth that they were


“called to be saints together with all those who in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ …” (1 Cor. 1:2).


Let us truly join our hands to strengthen His


church. Thank you again for your ministries and for your


support in so many ways. See you next year at Connect22!


FELLOWSHIP FOCUS, AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2021 8


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