Iowa Baptist Conference
eNewsletter |
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MARCH, 2010 - FINAL EDITION |
Dear Friends,
This will be the final edition of the
Iowa Baptist Conference eNewsletter!
Read on for some final
words regarding the transition process
and moving forward.
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TAKING OFF...
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Not a Race... But We Are Off and
Running!
 If
you've had occasion to call the
Minnesota office in the past couple
weeks... you will have noticed that the
phone is now answered with..."Minnesota-Iowa"
Baptist Conference!
Yes... we ARE off
and running!
Invitations have
also recently been sent by Joel
Nelson inviting MIBC pastors to a
"Pastor's Preview of the Retool Kit" led
by Gray Harrison & Ray Swatkowski, April
6-7 in Minneapolis... and Fred Tuma
of "2nd Half For Him" is hosting a
"Route 66 Serve Team" work week at Pine
Lake, May 2-7.
Yes... there's NO
dust gathering under their feet!
Since this is the last IBC
newsletter... you'll want to be
sure and check out the MIBC
"Relate: a
Letter for Leaders".
You can request a hard copy... or
click here to check it out
on-line... Relate
is now your source for
district news and events!
Another good resource you will
want to bookmark is the
MIBC website.
Now... for those of you who may have
inadvertently "lost" or "misplaced"
the documents I sent a few weeks
ago... here's your 2nd chance to
grab them:
1. Transition
Year Questions (Answers
questions about church contributions,
district budget issues, & Pine Lake
operations.)
But... bottom line... if all else
fails... call: 651.633.0560...
and Shirley, Joy, or Mandy
will be more than happy to help you find
what you're looking for!
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REMEMBERING C. PERRY HEDBERG . . .
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An
IBC Patriarch! ... by
Sue Shaw
 While
preparing "Snapshots From the
Past" for the final IBC Annual
Meeting in February, I read a number of
historical articles written by C. Perry
Hedberg in IBC Annual Meeting booklets... up
until 1985... when they abruptly ended.
Those of you who have been part of the IBC for
more than 25 years will remember C. Perry
Hedberg as one of the great patriarchs &
historians of the IBC! Apparently, his passing
in 1985, brought an end to annual historical
reporting.
So... what a thrill it was when I
recently discovered a copy of "Centennial
History", while packing up IBC
district records. This document was prepared and
edited by Mr. Hedberg for IBC's
100th Anniversary in 1983. What a valuable,
record of IBC history... not to mention
interesting reading! I wish I'd found it
sooner!
A lot's happened since
"Centennial History" was
published in 1983! But, it's still too
valuable a document to get lost in dusty
archives! So... I scanned it to my
computer... converted it to a Word
document... reformatted it... and have now
made it available on-line. (Click
here to view the 83 page document... it
won't be availabe long... so you may want to
save it to read later.)
But, there's a LOT more to Perry Hedberg
than the preservation of historical data.
While serving with the Marines during WW I,
Perry was severely wounded, and... sensing
he was near death... he promised God a
lifetime of service... if he
survived. History clearly reveals that Mr.
Hedberg genuinely kept his promise! (Click
here to read more about this "icon" of
the IBC!)
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ARCHIVING THE
RECORDS |
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And Another Look Back . . .
While cleaning out the
storage closet at the office... I also discovered
another historical relic of IBC past... pictures of
the New Sweden Memorial Plaque. You may remember,
(from the recent annual meeting), that New Sweden
was the location of the first Swedish Baptist "House
of Worship" constructed in America... and the
location of a memorial stone dedicated on that site
in 1931... with only the stone foundation and a
cemetery remaining.
As you can see, I've spent the past month perusing
district records, as I box them up and prepare them
for storage in the Bethel Library Archives. It's
been a slow process... because I can't seem to just
"pack them away"... I tend to get caught up in
reading the stories!
You probably can't read it from this picture...
but at the top of the plaque the scripture
reference for the memorial is Josh. 4:6-22...
specifically vs. 21... "What mean ye
by these stones?" It was intended
to be a reminder... in the same way that Joshua
left a monument of stones after crossing the
Jordan River... to remind future generations of
what the Lord had done.
New Sweden was the 3rd Swedish Baptist church to
be planted in Iowa. Yet, isn't it ironic that
although this body of believers continued for
only a few years, they left us a legacy of
faith, so that 77 years later a memorial was
dedicated to these pioneer immigrants... with
over 1500 people from 6 states and 15
denominations in attendance?! (History
records that in the few short years New Sweden
and the initial Burlington church were open,
they baptized more than one hundred converts...
and... it is suggested that ONLY Swedish members
were reported!)
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A NEW DAY . . .
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And Much Left To Do! ...by
Dan Carlson, MIBC District Executive
Minister
 It's
been a long process! Conversations with people
from both Iowa and Minnesota have been positive
and
encouraging. From the very beginning of the
discussions, I have talked about following God
in the process to where He would lead. His
leading us to this point has been obvious.
But though this part of the process has ended,
there is still much to do. The Board of
Stewards, our governing board, will be adding
new representation from Iowa. The ministry of
Trout Lake Camps is working with the ministry of
Pine Lake Camps in Iowa. There are increased
opportunities for Ukraine and Kid's In Country
ministries. We are working on integrating things
such as LEAD Teams and church planting. In
addition, there are other organizational matters
that will be addressed as we move forward as one
movement of churches.
It is a new day for both our Iowa
churches and our Minnesota churches. We now
number over 230 churches. There are new
pastors and people to meet and new
churches to get to know. There are stories
to be told, but more importantly, there are
new chapters that are yet to be written.
The same God who has brought us to this point
continues to lead us ahead. We will continue to
communicate the exciting ways God is moving
among us. Thanks for being a part of the new...
Minnesota Iowa Baptist Conference.
These are exciting days!
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PINE LAKE UPDATE |
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Moving Forward... by
Roger Sutton, PLC Director
As Sue prepares the last IBC Newsletter and
her last newsletter, a lot of thoughts come
to my mind. First, I want to say, "This has
been quite a ride!" Some days have been
better than others, but I've seen God do
great things in and through the Iowa Baptist
Conference and Pine Lake. We must celebrate
and move forward.
I've also watched Sue step up to and
sometimes " into" roles and responsibilities
that she never imagined when she accepted
Skip's invitation to support him in his
responsibility as District Executive. She's
learned and created more systems and
processes than I can count. She's spent so
many hours in the office and in the "home"
office creating newsletters and caring for
all those "Administrative" things that most
of us dread. She's finishing well and we
may be tapping her on the shoulder...
Roger... over the past year... and STILL
running!
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Personally, and honestly, I'm feeling
somewhat overwhelmed and even tired. The
last year hasn't allowed many opportunities
for my mind to unwind. There are days I'd
rather be digging ditches or pounding nails
than holding down this desk and pounding out
things on the computer. You've recognized
the work that we've had to step up to and my
family thanks you for your many words of
encouragement, help and support when you
could and a gift that we will enjoy over
Easter Break.
With this spring and the promise of new
growth, comes new help and energy for us
personally and the Pine Lake family.
The executive staff just spent some days
with Ben Frank, (soon to be PLC Director),
at a Christian Camp and Conference
Sectional. We had a lot of window time and
time to be challenged together for the days
ahead. Ben brings a great heart and desire
to serve our God, our staff and our guests.
Ben, Erin, Nehemiah and Adeline are going to
be wonderful ministry partners. It is
already a challenging new experience for him
and his family. Great days are ahead.
 Family
Retreat begins in a mere 1,680 hours.
There's a lot of work on many fronts to make
sure we are ready for the retreat, staff
training and Summer '10. Pray... come help
if you can. Please make sure that every
person that may need a "Pine Lake
experience" with God and others has that
opportunity.
Our theme for this summer is "Jimbo's Surf
Shop - Believe, Not Doubt"... based on the
book of James. We must trust our Great and
Loving God for All things. He has
provided... He will provide! He loves us
all!
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ROUTE 66 |
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A "2nd
Half for Him" District Ministry . . .
Route 66 provides ministry
opportunities for active retirees in the
areas of... service, education and
recreation!
A Route 66 "ServTeam" ministry
opportunity will be coming to Pine Lake this
spring... May 2-7... to work on
spring clean-up and other projects in
preparation for the summer camping ministry.
For more information, contact Fred Tuma,
Coordinator of Retired Adult Ministries for the
Minnesota-Iowa Baptist Conference... Phone:
651.633.0560 or Email:
ftuma@mbcworld.org
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CALENDAR OF EVENTS
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 Looking
Ahead...
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MINISTRY
RESOURCES |
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Following are brief summaries of
some GREAT ministry tools.
You can check out additional
resources at the IBC website in
regard to:
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RETOOL KIT
is a BGC resource
designed to help churches become
all that God wants for them. It
is not a program... it is a
pathway... guided by a trained
Mobilization Coach who helps the
church discover and develop
healthy leaders, a biblical
community, and a clear vision
for the future.
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of the the end results is a
clearer vision for ministry,
along with a three year future
plan. Additional outcomes are
the changing of the church's
DNA, spiritual growth, (both
personally and corporately),
stronger community, and more
effective Kingdom impact.
For more information, contact
Pastor Jeff Scherer,
IBC Director of Mobilization
at: 319-290-6874 or
jeffscherer6@msn.com
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SHALOM HOUSE is
a pastoral retreat center in New
London, WI
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facilitated by Pinnacle
Ministries and providing a
comfortable, safe place for rest,
refreshment and renewal for those in
ministry - based on the philosophy
that the health of our
churches, and ultimately our
communities, rests in the strength
and refreshment of our pastors.
Pinnacle Ministries
offers three levels of services...
from just "hanging out" to
professional counseling services.
Shalom House can
also be utilized for church
board and leadership retreats,
church staff training, missionaries
and their families, and pastoral
sabbaticals.
If your pastor doesn't know about
Shalom, please tell him or her about
it - better yet, send them
for a refreshing, relaxing break to
recharge their batteries for future
ministry!
For more information, go to:
www.theshalomhouse.org
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QUIET WATERS MINISTRIES -
offers a FREE,
24 hour a day, 7 days a week,
confidential phone consulting
resource for BGC pastors and home
assignment missionaries called
CARELINE -
funded jointly by IBC & BGC
 Call
866.526.2222 to be
put in touch with a licensed doctor
or master's level counselor from
Quiet Waters Ministries
to talk about EITHER
personal OR congregational
matters.
Services are available for up to 3 hrs
of assessment and consultation via
telephone per isolated incident per
year.
All communication with the
denomination, regarding these
services is consistent with
confidentiality laws and
requirements, and with BGC's
policies and guidelines.
For more information about
Quiet Waters, go to:
www.qwaters.org
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BGC CORNERSTONE FUND
is a ministry
of the Baptist General Conference
with a mission
 to
extend BGC ministries - by providing
loans for building/remodeling
projects within our conference
churches and ministry centers.
Our ministry is possible because of
the support of our investors, who
receive competitive rates compared
to like term investments and have
the satisfaction of knowing that
their investment is being used to
help expand ministries of the BGC.
For more information, go to:
www.bgccornerstonefund.org
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CHRISTIAN LIBRARY
INTERNATIONAL
is a Raleigh, NC, based ministry
that distributes
 used
Christian books (fiction and
non-fiction), Christian music tapes,
Sermon tapes, CDs, DVDs, video
tapes, bible study materials, and
tracts to prisons, shelters and
international missions free of
charge.
What a
great way to "recycle" those dust
collecting books! For more
information, to to:
www.cli-nc.org
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CHERISH CENTER
provides housing, counseling,
nurturing, training, and spiritual
guidance to young ladies
experiencing the crisis of an
unplanned pregnancy. They have the
capacity to care for six girls at a
time for a period of 3-6 months.
And because they are supported by
individuals and churches, they have
the freedom to make Christ central
in the home and in the training.
The Executive Director, Jan
Turner, is a member of the
New Journey Community Church
and is also their worship
director. She has seen this project
through the from the very beginnings
- property purchase, building
construction and equipping, and
staffing. In their first year of
operation they served eight girls.
Shepherd's Fold
Ministries, Inc., is a
local, interdenominational,
non-profit corporation working
to provide a home and a
hope for young mothers in
need, located in northwest
Iowa.
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 IOWA
BAPTIST CONFERENCE
Magnifying God by Mobilizing &
Multiplying a Growing Family of Healthy Churches! |
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