By David Dubovich, Pastor at Park Place Christian Church
Dear Friends,
I am sure that many of you are anticipating some cooler weather with the arrival of September, a time when we begin to think about fall weather, cooler evenings, and enjoying the option to open our windows in the evening.
With our calendars filling up with church activities, family plans, etc., don’t forget about some regional events. There is a Men’s retreat coming up on Sept. 22-23 at Disciples Center at Tawakoni. The women’s retreats are planned for October at Tawakoni. The midweek retreat will be from Oct. 4-6 and the weekend retreat will be from Oct. 6-8. I hear that our General Minister and President, Terri Hord Owens will be present for the women’s retreats.
Registrations for Men’s and Women’s events are due to the regional office by Sept. 15. You can find the registration forms on the region’s website.
For those who attended the regional Connect & Equip event at FCC McPherson on Aug. 12, we had a great time reconnecting with one another. The keynote speaker for the day, Josh Leu pastor from First Christian Church Great Bend, was a reality check for us, as well as inspirational. Thanks to FCC McPherson for being such great hosts. All-in-all, it was a great event.
For the gathering, it was wonderful to have Ed O’Malley (via video), formerly CEO of Kansas Leadership Center (KLC) as well as Julia Fabris McBride, Chief Civic Leadership Development Officer from KLC. The words that we heard from Ed and Julia were both inspirational and encouraging as we think about the future of our congregations and the region.
For those of you who have attended the training opportunities that KLC offers, you know their training truly assists individuals to deal with technical and adaptive challenges within congregations and in their personal lives. If you are interested in attending KLC programs, the region has a transformational grant this year. There are opportunities to attend either in person or online. Please reach out to me if you are interested. I will help you get set up with the training sessions that remain for the current grant cycle.
During the C&E event, I hope you were able to attend the workshop led by our Co-Regional Minister, Rev. Tom Stanley. Tom’s workshop gave us a taste of what the Church Narrative Project experience looks like that is taking place across our denomination. I hope that each of you plan to attend the event in Manhattan on Sept. 29 and 30. You will find more information on the region’s website about the event and how to register as well.
I encourage you to mark your calendars as well for a leadership event Oct. 21 in the Central District at Park Place Christian Church, Hutchinson.
The theme for the event is, “Vital Signs of a Thriving Congregation,” and will be led by Rev. Dale Matherly, Rev. Etienna Mertel and I. The region’s website explains more about the cost and how to register for the HP Leadership event.
There is so much going on in the life of the region over the next several months. I hope that each of you can attend the events I have mentioned. I look forward to seeing you soon as we continue to seek ways to stay connected and equip one another for the journey ahead that God has in store for us as the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in Kansas.
Blessed to share the journey with each of you.