Pastor’s Report for 2020
It is such a blessing to be able to share a report for 2020 and God’s work here at First Baptist Church of Albion. There is no doubt that we will never forget 2020 and all that we experienced. It was a year that was filled with turmoil in almost every way in our country and yet we can either choose to allow the times to frighten and immobilize us or see them through the lens of faith and God’s sovereignty. My report is written for the purpose of providing a historical perspective should the Lord tarry and also share blessings we have encountered in the midst of the storm.
A 2020 Chronology:
We opened up our year with our annual meeting and two goals for the year of training our younger generations to begin having a key in leading our church and also pressing every person in our church to have a way that they serve in the church. The teaching series “Knowing Christ” led us through the life and ministry of Jesus Christ and provided us with truth to ground ourselves in, as well as emulate in our lives. Then on March 15, our ministry took a turn in light of the Covid-19 threat. We sent out the following letter:
Dear First Baptist Family, 3/14/2020
In light of the Coronavirus pandemic that our country is currently facing, our church leadership has been meeting and praying about what the Lord would have us do for ministry this weekend. We have developed a response that has taken medical and governmental advice and sought how we could respond in a way that shows measured caution and concern.
As you know, the information this week has changed each day, so in light of heightened awareness for this weekend we have decided to maximize the number of people we can minister to and do it in the safest and most effective way we can. This means that we will not be having services tomorrow and will instead be having a time of teaching from our current “Knowing Jesus” series that will be online at 10am tomorrow morning.
Little did we know then that we would not reassemble until May 31. God stretched us to adapt and begin providing Livestreaming of our worship and teaching for the next 11 weeks including our Easter Livestream that reached over 2.500 viewers. On May 31, we began gathering outside for services at the front of our Family Life Center with lawn chairs. Here was the announcement we sent out:
As we gather together to worship let us do so as a body of believers that is full of grace, humility, and a has a spirit of unity as we walk together to accomplish God’s purposes. With that spirit, here are the current protocols for our gatherings:
1. Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus.
2. 6-foot social distancing and reduced contact points. Bring your own lawn chair. We will use an offering box rather than pass a basket.
3. Masks are optional, and if it makes you feel more comfortable please wear one.
4. Follow directions for parking and seating.
5. Help make this a Corona-free zone: We don’t desire to have it, spread it, talk about it, or discuss the politics surrounding it as we focus on worship and Jesus Christ.
We love each one of you and are praying for God to continue to help us to grow in His wisdom and grace. May God bless you this weekend!
We once again saw God bless us with a renewed sense of unity and purpose as we covered a series entitled “REBOOT: God’s Church-God’s Way” through the summer months. Our media team led by David Mize, Taylor Doerksen, Don Manchester, and Ethan Bahmer adapted to lead us through both on-line services and services outside of our auditorium.
Through this year our pastors preached from their offices, their homes, as well as our auditorium, at Victory Park, In our parking lot, and inside our Family Life Center. We have learned that no matter where we are, the faithful preaching of God’s Word is what the people of God need to direct our lives and move ahead as a local body of believers. On August 9th, we held a special service down in the large old hockey pavilion at Victory Park. God had everything under control as it was the only week of our 19 services outdoors that He caused it to rain. God blessed us with being able to see 7 people baptized and 17 people added to our church membership that day.
As we moved into the Fall, there were a few colder weekends where we broke out our sweaters and even had “Hot Chocolate Sunday” in the parking lot. Finally, after 19 weeks since May 31, we moved into our Family Life Center for the rest of the year to continue worshipping together. God has truly been good to us and I want to thank each one of you for your faithfulness and flexibility during this time. I have often emphasized that in a year where there was division and hostility everywhere you looked, we have a responsibility to reflect love and unity in Christ Jesus to a world that seems to get darker at every turn. What a great opportunity for the Church to shine!
Looking Back and Forward:
Now that 2020 is our rearview mirror we want to make a special mention of a few goodbyes we had to make. Longtime faithful servants that God called home included: Helen Beglin, Marian Bishop, Jeanne Bryden, Laura Morgan, Ida Reeves, and Margaret Rubley. These dear ladies were truly moms and grandmas to all of us and their departure for Glory continues to leave holes in our hearts and fellowship. We also saw the Mize family transition in ministry to Wisconsin. David and Kristi had served in our church with our Worship Ministry for 7 years and we were so thankful for their impact in our church.
I have several other praises before you and the Lord to share. God has greatly blessed our church with a solid and faithful Assistant Pastor, Micah Doerksen. Besides his preaching as needed, he has provided a tremendous ministry to our young adults and teens. Micah and his wife, Taylor, are a special blessing and have helped our church advance this year. We also were blessed that one of our members paid to have our parking lot resurfaced, it looks so good now. I also want to thank God for the online meetings, Bible Studies, and Wednesday prayer with Justin Zajak. Each of those events were able to keep us connected in special ways. Finally, I want to praise God how he has faithfully provided for our church financially in the midst of a pandemic. As you will see in the financial section of this report, God allowed us to exceed our budgets in both the General/Home Budget and in our Missions Budget. We were thankful to be able to add Online Giving as an option for how people could give, and it was greatly used to help people give faithfully – thank you so much for being faithful to give back to God.
After 183 years of ministry in Albion and my 13th year as Pastor of First Baptist Church, I must say I am excited about what God has in store for our church. May each one of us be committed to God using us for His Glory. May both those who are new and those who have been around for a while find unity and joy as we find our purpose and fulfill God’s plan here at First Baptist Church.
Respectfully Submitted, Pastor Tom Hollowood