Surprising Growth
Christ-centered teaching, fellowship and discipleship that leads to loving the Lord with all of our heart, soul, mind and strength.
SOCIAL DISRUPTION | A TECHNOLOGY & SOCIAL MEDIA CONFERENCE
The statistics are overwhelming - social media and technology is making us more anxious and untrusting. We kicked off 2022 with a social media conference called “Social Disruption.” During this time, we asked some hard questions about how social media is changing our lives and whether or not it's for the better. Our main goal was to give attendees hope and insight when asking the question, “Can social media can indeed be leveraged to advance the Kingdom of God?”
Click the button below to access session talks from the conference weekend.
GWJ: February 18-20
19 groups (94 individuals)
BFH: September 15-18
11 groups (54 individuals)
“The difficulties we’ve faced in life have taught us to reject our feelings and numb our hearts against pain. As a result, we don’t know how to live fully. Battle for the Heart helps people move from loneliness to experiencing the transformative love of God and the fellowship He provides; moves people from being aimless or withdrawn to engaging their world for significant impact.”
SANCTITY OF LIFE PANEL DISCUSSION
On August 14, we hosted a combined Adult Discipleship Class in the Sanctuary with a panel featuring Dr. Mark Ryan of Covenant Theological Seminary, Women's Ministry Director Sue Harris, and Lead Pastor Bob Flayhart. The three of them discussed the Sanctity of Life and specifically how the church can respond biblically to the overturn of Roe v. Wade. Watch the session recording through the video link!
GOD’S DESIGN FOR HUMAN SEXUALITY
We're all familiar with the tug and pull of the cultural conversations around gender identity, same-sex attraction and the moving target of human sexuality. But what does Scripture have to say about our hearts, our sexuality and how to engage others in this pervasive topic in our society?
The Women's Ministry hosted a Fall Event with nearly 200 women in attendance. Dr. John Wingard, professor at Covenant College, and Women’s Ministry Director Sue Harris courageously and graciously dove into this topic of God's design for sexuality. Dr. Wingard shared and led in conversations about God's design and purpose for sexuality, the role that God's authoritative Word plays in our beliefs about this ongoing topic, and encouragement in how to articulate those beliefs and convictions to others in a gracious, truth-filled way.
Check out the video recording to hear the session discussion.
Oak Kids had the opportunity to re-create our creative arts ministry for girls in 2022. The new ministry is called “Bloom,” with a vision rooted in John 15:5,
“I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing."
This ministry kicked off with a Christmas creative arts camp on December 3, hosting:
121 girls in 3rd-8th grades
18 Youth Serve Team members
28 Adult Serve Team members
The inaugural Bloom Summer Camp will be held July 17-21, 2023!
