Category: OVCF News

Midweek message #31

Good morning and welcome to a new MM.  I don’t know if you are still liking this or not, but I do want to thank you for allowing me to drop by into your inbox.  Even if I go into Junk Mail I guess that is better than being rejected completely.  I have a very fragile ego, you know. 🙂  Anyway, I do hope your week is going well. The weather sure has changed hasn’t it? Like almost overnight.  We sure needed the rain though and even though it put a crimp in my reading to Mrs. Lee’s Kindergarten class Monday (and my planned ride afterwards),  I was glad to hear that sound on the roof of my house and the church building.

Sunday was a big day for OVCF. We have been together as a church family for 16 years. It was a fun day. I was glad to have Wayne give an update on the Facts & Figures side of things, our Building Fund, and our Mission giving.  Hope and Sally talked about the Connections Women’s Ministry.  Dawn introduced the kickoff for Operation Christmas Child {Side note: most of the boxes were taken! That is fantastic so look for more to be available this week}.   Ryan gave us a great report about the youth program from pre-pandemic to now. Then I was excited to share what is happening in the future.  In case some of you are unable to watch the video due to computer issues or were unable to catch all the details, I hope you don’t mind a short recap from me.

1. There will be no Fall Day of Service due to the safety and hesitation of some people. But we still want to serve our community. So we are offering the Thanksgiving lunch by delivery and curbside pick-up. (We promise we won’t try the Frisbee delivery system) 🙂  I still need a coordinator for that!
2. We will do the same for the Christmas breakfast. Along with that we will offer bags of groceries to those picking up or accepting delivery.
3. We will not be doing the Giving Tree this year but will, instead, be giving money to Tri Kappa to help with their “Christmas Shopping for Kids” project this year. They buy for children whose names have been given to them through the school. There are various reasons for our actions this year, but at least for this year we will be partnering with a local organization to make Christmas special for children in need.
4. The Building Team meet on 10/12, the first time since the pandemic shut things down. We are exploring options for adding space and will be brainstorming some on 11/9. Your prayers would be much appreciated.

My comments Sunday were all focused around two intangibles:

• Our Mission: To Connect People to Jesus
• Our Vision:
• Be passionate pursuers of Jesus
• Be models of truth and love
• Be involved in our community

Then I made this statement and our whole morning showed this to be true:

“IF YOU CAN EXPLAIN WHAT’S GOING ON, GOD DIDN’T DO IT”

There is no logical explanation for how OVCF has come through and thrived as we have navigated our way through this crisis which has gripped us all and affected each of us in some way. The only explanation I have can be found in Ephesians 3: 20-21:  “Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think {My addition: “or imagine”}, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever, Amen.”

If you would like to get a better picture of what all was said yesterday by everyone, I’d like to encourage you to check out the church’s FB page or YouTube channel.  Oh, and don’t be overwhelmed by the time stamp on the YouTube video. They combined both services into one video. Yikes! A three hour service!! Double yikes!! I’ve been accused of liking to talk but that is sort of much. Anyway, you can slide the button on YouTube and catch either the first or the second service.

I’d like to give a big shout-out to the adults and their helpers who have been teaching the youth during our 10:45 service since we opened that area one month ago.  A huge shout-out to Jasmine St. John and Stacy Wood for teaching the pre-school age. Kaedence Beckwith has also been a helper. JuliAnne Wiegand and Erin Pendleton have been teaching the Elementary class Age 6 through Grade 3. Their helper was Gracie Wainscott.  Terrie MacMorran and Steve Pendleton have taught the Elementary students Grades 4-6. Helpers have been Cooper and Cammie King.  What a tremendous blessing they have been so a great big Yip-yip goes out for them!

I’ve come to the end of my page limit for the MM. I have enough room to tell you that I love you all and to have a great rest of the week!

MIDWEEK MESSAGE #30

Well, good morning!  Welcome to MM #30!!  You may be wondering how in the world I can find things to say and keep this going.  If you think that then you don’t know me! 🙂 Jo says I have no trouble not saying things or finding things to comment on. And she thinks she knows me. *shoulder shrug*.  Anyway, I have some really important things to share with you this week so I hope you will hang in there with me to the end.

I am totally stoked about this Sunday. It is OVCF’s 16^th Anniversary as a church family. A lot has happened since 2004. I’m sure those who are still here from its beginning would concur. But this Anniversary will be different than years past. In past years we have tried to view it as a celebration followed by a pitch-in. The latter is a no-go due to current circumstances, but I also have decided to take a different approach for the morning.  In the past it has usually been Ryan and me tag-teaming the morning and talking about our Mission and Vision. But Covid has changed a lot of things, one of which is the church scene.  So with the title of “What about OVCF?” I decided to do more of a State of the Church Address. Where does OVCF stand currently? What are some of our plans? How has God blessed us? What are the plans for the Connections Women’s Ministry program? What about Operation Christmas Child this year? What are the young people doing and how is the youth program going? Obviously, I am not able to answer all those questions so I have enlisted help. So you are actually going to hear from several different people during the morning. (And they have promised me to stay in the 3-5 minute range. J But you can put those stopwatches away).

My thoughts will be centered on the phrase I mentioned to you in MM #27: “If you can explain what’s going on, God didn’t do it.” I’m excited for what God has on the horizon for us. Obviously, I have no idea what that is. But I want to be prepared for it as best as possible.  Here’s the kicker: while we can wait and pray and pray and wait for God to do His work, it is also important for us to put forth some effort. So I’m going to use my time to present (in short order) some church growth strategies that cost zero dollars. ZERO dollars!!  Believe it or not there is such an “animal” and I can’t wait to share them with you.

There are also some things we will be doing which benefit our community.  B-u-u-u-u-u-t you will have to wait for Sunday to hear what one of those ideas is.  But here is another:  Let me preface it with this. Every week Sarah Hicks, one of the administrative assistants from the Owen County Chamber of Commerce (OCCC), takes this MM and posts it on the Chamber website. I did not ask her to do that; she volunteered from the very beginning. So I’d like to turn it around for a moment.  The OCCC of which I am a board member works hard for the Spencer community and Owen County. Covid has taken a bite out of several ideas but they have worked hard to get around them. For example: the Back to School Expo was always held at the Middle School. This year it was held at the OC Fairgrounds and was a rousing success with over 600 backpacks filled with school supplies given away (and OVCF donated money for supplies). The Chamber is all about Owen County.  Every October an annual banquet is held where the participants have a ton of fun but also honor some local heroes. The banquet also offers a silent auction, but that is not possible this year. In fact, the banquet is at the Tivoli and limited to 150 patrons. So to make up for the lack of a silent auction, they are sponsoring a Super Hero 5K from October 1^st -November 20^th.  You sign up and then you have the time between those two dates to complete walking, running or biking your 5K.  For more info or to register online go to myowencounty.chamber.com.

Monday night, the 12^th, the Building Team met. I have some exciting news to share with you at the anniversary. So does Wayne, one of our elders. You WILL NOT want to miss his presentation for sure! I think you will be humbled by God’s goodness to us, just as I have been.

Finally, an FYI for you: I will finish my Q & A series on November 22.  I’ll then begin a series focused on the Christmas story. Amazing isn’t it? Christmas is in about 2 months!! Due to the strange year we have had it sure seems like just yesterday we were celebrating Christmas. Then again…maybe you feel like it has been forever.  I will begin 2021 (please hurry up and get here so we can shut the door on 2020) with a series on Ecclesiastes I’m calling Life Matters. Following that I’m preparing to preach a series from the Gospel of Mark.  But as they say in commercials: the Mark series is subject to change. 🙂

Thanks for taking the time to read this MM. I seriously appreciate you doing that. I hope it keeps you up-to-date. I’ll look forward to seeing you this week-in person or online.  Never forget: you are loved more than you know.

Pastor Bill

MIDWEEK MESSAGE #29

Hi there my friends! Welcome to MM #29. Diana will be out of the office for a few days as she and Jim celebrate their anniversary so I thought I would work to get this to you sooner. She and I had several conversations this past week about our (all three of us) work during the pandemic and how instead of it “ticking down” our work actually “ramped up.” That is not bragging nor meant to be taken as though we are looking for pats on the back, but all three of us continued doing what we always did with a little more added on. We kept our regularly scheduled office hours and then some. Again, that is not so we can be patted on the back. We did what we all felt needed to be done to keep you (the church) updated and informed. It led to the three of us reacting differently to the daily pressure the virus brought. She is taking a well-deserved vacation away from me and Ryan. 🙂

The next week, the 12^th to the 14^th Ryan will be taking a few days for some family time. Ryan gets a break from me and Diana. Hmmm. The common denominator for taking a break from someone is…Me. Do you think they are trying to say something? 🙂

Sunday, the 18^th, is OVCF’s 16^th anniversary. It most certainly will be different from previous anniversaries due to the restrictions still in place but that does not mean we cannot find a silver lining in the day. We will be having two services due to space limitations instead of one service (which we like to do on that day). We will not be having a pitch-in meal. That is a real bummer since I like those!! LOL I’ve titled my sermon “What about OVCF?” and plan to bring you up to date on how we weathered the past 8 months. Diana has done a great job of helping me out with attendance and offering figures so I can share an accurate report.  I also have planned several other items which are still in the works. Keep in mind our offering that day will be given away. More next week. I look forward to seeing you there.

I waited until the end to share something with you that is on my heart.  I’d like to share a personal story with you then make an application. When I was at a church as their pastor it came time for me to leave. Jo’s father had died and I knew she wanted to be closer to her mom. I told her I would start looking. Unfortunately, nothing opened up. I was unhappy being “forced” into more of a CEO role in the church. I was and am a pastor-a shepherd-not a CEO.  (Thankfully, that movement has largely died out except for those who are of the megachurch variety). But a movement was underfoot that would eventually terminate my ministry there. I resigned at the suggestion of a very dear friend. I reacted pretty well at first but when the questions started, I didn’t react very well at all. I particularly blamed one man. As time moved on I did not know Tami, my oldest, was affected the way she was until she told me and I helped her write a letter asking forgiveness from this man for the way she felt. His reaction was the opposite of what I thought was good and I left there with some very strong animosity. But living elsewhere afforded me the chance to remove myself from people who fed that and also gave me time to heal. Part of that healing was sending a letter to him apologizing for my actions and thoughts. He never responded back but I was free-from my own prison and free from wishing ill-will on him.

The Bible is very clear on what should be our response to our enemies or people we don’t care for. “Pray for them” is what Jesus said and modeled. “Father, forgive them for they don’t know what they are doing,” were His words on the cross. It blows we away the vitriol and hate-speech from those who supposedly are open-minded and “loving people.” When RBG died I did not cheer. When the atheist, Stephen Hawking died, I did not cheer. In the case of the former, I prayed for her family to be comforted, because I knew as a Jew she did not accept Jesus as the Messiah, the One whom she would be standing before. I could not cheer. I could not cheer the death of an atheist who would be standing before the God whom he said did not exist. It really does not matter to me what you think of President Trump, but to cheer his and Melania’s Covid diagnosis is beyond decent. To hope he dies as some have tweeted (even using the “f” word) is simply beyond the pale of common sense and decency. (BTW: where is FB & Twitter when stuff like that is said?) Politics aside, I don’t wish anyone I know or don’t know or disagree with to get this disease. Instead of rejoicing in the news, why not pray for the man and his family? He does have a son you know?  I don’t agree with homosexuality but I certainly don’t hope someone catches AIDS. That is ridiculous! It is high time we stop shooting arrows of hate and start shooting arrows of respect, decency, and love.

As followers of Christ we need to be different. We need to follow our Savior’s example. Be an answer; not a problem.  Point people to Jesus, the One who is the solution. I love you all.  Have a great week.

Pastor Bill

MIDWEEK MESSAGE 28

Hello my friends! Welcome to MM #28!  As I have said in the past, I’m not sure how long I will keep doing the MM so each one is worth saving. They may soon be very valuable as a collectible to be used in the future. You know…as a place to put dirty boots or shoes; line a bird cage; teach children how to make paper airplanes; you know…important stuff. 🙂 I know. You are thinking “it is too early in the day to deal with Bill’s sense of humor (weird).”  Anyway, when you read this I do hope you are having a great day.

I’ve been reading a book on leadership called The Uniform of Leadership by Jason Romano. Jason worked at ESPN for almost 2 decades so he is very familiar with the world of sports. Jason uses the uniform a player wears as his illustration and beginning point. In one chapter called “Lead Like Tami,” he writes of an employee at ESPN who worked in the cafeteria. After her first initial introduction to Jason, she knew his name, and over time asked about his wife and daughter, both of whom she knew by name. But it wasn’t Jason alone, it was the whole world of ESPN. She knew and welcomed everyone with a smile and a genuine question of interest. Not a “How are you?” and then move on to another person. Jason said she made you feel important and like you were the only one there at that time. She smiled and greeted everyone similarly, even through a bout with cancer. When she moved on after 18 years, her going away memorabilia banner was like no other. Totally full with hardly a space to write another word. Jason writes that three things epitomized Tami’s leadership: positivity, a servant’s heart, and investment in others. (p.58)

I had to stop and ask myself a tough question-one that I will ask you as well: If narrowed down to how you influenced others, what would people say? Asked another way: how will people remember you? As a grouch? A troublemaker? A contrary person? A rebel? A complainer? (or some other adjective). Or will they remember you for your positivity? Your servant’s heart? Or your investment in others?

Okay, now on to other things. We had our first week of youth church this past Sunday since March. It was so good to see so many young people back. I do believe some of them have most certainly grown taller since the last time I saw them. Sheesh!  I believe Ryan was pleased with the turnout (a little over 20 with both youth and adults). I honestly feel it will continue to grow each week as word gets around and parents know we are doing our best to keep safety as a high priority. My benefit was seeing some of the parents back as well.  And I absolutely love that!! Meanwhile, the service is still being live streamed and will continue into the future.  Of course, that means some of you will still be missing my joyful presence and laughter-filled demeanor. Sad…so deprived.  🙂

We have some coming events I’d like you to be aware of and put on your calendar.

• In the middle of October we will be starting Operation Christmas Child. With the upheaval of the past 8 months or so, the hardest hit has probably been children. Many have seen their worlds rocked with uncertainty. This is one small way to help.
• We have not given up our dream of more space. We simply put it on hold for a while. Now that we are back meeting and find ourselves tight because of limited seating, the need for space is back on the front burner. The Building Team will be having a meeting on October 12^th to get back in the game.
• October 18^th will be our 16^th anniversary as a church family. I am planning on some different things that morning during the message time. It will definitely be a different kind of anniversary than we have had in the past. Unfortunately, we will not be able to meet as one that morning. We will still have two services-9:00 and 10:45. But someday….

I want to end this MM with some prayer requests for you to keep in mind. They are not listed in order of importance nor with great detail.

1. Addi Hutchison- she is recovering from surgery this past Friday. Addi is the 3 y/o daughter of Caleb and Amanda.
2. Mike Basey- left hip replacement on Wednesday, the 30^th.
3. Ryan’s stepmother, Ginger, had back surgery Monday, and his stepfather, Rusty Turner, had another stress test Tuesday. Pray for healing and wisdom in both cases.
4. Whitley White & family on the loss of her unborn daughter last Thursday. They named her Alaina Marie. Pray for God’s comfort and presence to be real for them.
5. For OVCF. That God would direct us and we will follow.

Have a great rest of the week. Love you guys and look forward to seeing you whenever possible.

Pastor Bill

MIDWEEK MESSAGE 27

Hi everyone!  Welcome to MM #27. I hope this touch of Fall weather finds you comfortable and relaxed and (for some of you) drinking hot chocolate and dreaming of snuggling up with a fire and a good book.  Then there are some, like me, who are already dreaming of next Spring. 🙂 I couldn’t believe it the other morning. It was in the 40s when I walked out my front door, and this past Sunday morning Ryan saw some frost on the tips of the grass here at the church property. He said the sun was shining at just the right angle for him to see it. I’d say I want to go back to when it was warm but I’m pretty sure I would be the only one who would say, “Take me back.” I don’t know of anyone who would want to repeat the summer of 2020.  Oh well, it is what it is. I just hope you are having a great week so far.

This past week I finished reading a book called Jesus Revolution by Greg Laurie and Ellen Vaughn. It was a fantastic book on the early days of the Jesus Movement/Jesus People (JM/JP) from the mid ‘60s to the early days of the ‘70s. It was primarily Pastor Greg’s involvement in the JM and how he came to Christ and was used by God to have the ministry he does today. Several thoughts stood out as I read it. I didn’t do my usual highlighting of sentences, primarily because I didn’t know what to expect, and because I was so captured by it that I wanted to read uninterrupted. One quote stood out to me, one that I would love to adopt for OVCF: “If you can explain what’s going on, God didn’t do it.”  There is a long backstory to that quote which I don’t have the time or the space to go into right now (maybe in a sermon), but suffice it to say that the quote is dead on. I’m reminded of Paul’s words in Ephesians 3:20-21: “Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.”  I honestly believe OVCF is poised to see some of its best days ahead. And I believe it will be far more than we ever imagined.

This Sunday we open our children’s department at the 10:45 service! Ryan is stoked, as are the teachers who will greet and teach your children. Okay…okay… some of you parents are also ecstatic. Let me assure you that every health precaution has been taken into consideration and we will do our best to make it a safe and healthy experience for all children. I know Jo has gone to great lengths to make the Pre-school classroom as safe and healthy as possible. Please feel free to ask her. We are also doing that so mom and dad can rest easily. 🙂 We want you to worship with the adults and know your child will be safe.

I would be lying if I said I wasn’t excited about Sunday. I know some of you have said you will be back when the children’s department opens again. I expect all 200 of you here this week. Okay…so I can dream can’t I?  🙂  I honestly do look forward to seeing many of you Sunday. Phones, cards, driveway visits can only do so much. They most definitely are not a substitute for seeing you in person and giving you a hug (if you want one).

We are limited in our space and with no overflow due to the children’s programs, the same thing still goes: if you are uncomfortable or don’t feel safe, please don’t feel obligated to come. We will still be doing the live stream. Due to the ongoing need for people to help with doing the live stream, we will be live streaming the first service for sure at 9:00, but Joe Pavich is investigating being able to save it for 10:45. We will let you know. However, you can alleviate that if you would consider volunteering to do the live stream. You will be trained on how to do that. We are also looking into better equipment for the live stream since we anticipate having to move the camera out of the aisle.

One last thing…a very serious thing…not joking. Would you please say a prayer for Alexander Chambers? I was texting with Christine (his mom) after she thanked me for the live stream and I asked her how the kiddos were doing. She said Alexander is having some circulation issues. He wakes up and his fingertips, lips and toes are bluish-colored. Would you please say a prayer for Alexander, as well as Jimmy and Christine? I am still convinced God is going to use that young man in a powerful way some day.  Thanks from them and me.

I hope you have a great rest of the week. I love you and look forward to seeing you if possible.  If you have any questions about what is going on, please feel free to contact the church office (812.828.9840). We will do our best to answer your question(s).

Pastor Bill

MIDWEEK MESSAGE 26

Happy middle of the week to all of you! It sure has been a beautiful week so far. Crisp early mornings. Warm and comfortable afternoons. It is hard to believe that my calendar says next Tuesday is the first official day of Fall. I definitely have mixed emotions on that. I see my cycling weather coming closer and closer to a close and cooler weather (can anyone say winter?) just around the corner. But let’s enjoy the couple of months we have ahead of us and not even worry about winter.  However, we could use a little bit of rain.

Before I go into some “details” I’d like mention, I thought I would share something I read this week (again) as I was studying for a sermon. My sermon is the one scheduled for October 4th entitled “What about Doubt?”  If you have been reading these Midweek Messages you might remember me mentioning to you about a fantastic book I read called I’ve Seen the End of You by Dr. Lee Warren. Dr. Warren is a brain neurosurgeon who specializes in GBM (Glioblastoma). He has been a combat surgeon in Iraq and is now living and practicing in North Platte, NE. His book is a phenomenal read subtitled “A Neurosurgeon’s Look at Faith, Doubt, and the Things We Think We Know.” As I was using the book for research on the sermon I ran across a quote that really jarred me. To put it into context, Dr. Warren had lost a patient to GBM while operating and then was unable to save a baby who had been shaken so badly his brain was severely damaged (and they also found other abuse). He was sitting in the hospital chapel really angry and frustrated at God and at his own inability to save those people. The chaplain, who had also lost 2 children of his own, shared something with Dr. Warren which included this quote: “The remarkable thing about fearing God is that when you fear God you fear nothing else, whereas if you do not fear God you fear everything else.” (Oswald Chambers, p. 152)

Fearing God is not being afraid of God. It is better understood as reverence.  The chaplain’s explanation to Dr. Warren was this (using the example of a father and his son): “God is so big and powerful and mighty and dangerous and righteous that He’s kind of terrifying. But He’s also good. He promises that everything that happens is redeemable, that He can use it to make us more like Jesus.” (p. 152) There are lot of things happening in our world that can terrify us if we allow them to. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure that out. But we don’t have to give into despair or fear. Keep your eyes on the Father not on the news headlines. Okay…off my soapbox. Or is that step out from behind the pulpit? 🙂

The big item I’d like you to be aware of is our upcoming Youth Relaunch. It is actually coming in several phases.

• This coming Sunday evening ROOTS, the Jr/Sr High youth group will begin meeting for the first time since Covid hit. It will be from 5-7:00 here at the church building.
• Phase #1- Sunday, the 27th, is the relaunch of the Sunday morning children’s programs at 10:45. Ryan sent out a survey to all the teachers, as well as one to all the parents, and was able to analyze it and see there were many parents who said their children would come. All the areas of the children’s worship will be in operation, except a staffed nursery for now. When Gov. Holcomb says, “Stage 5” that will give us the go-ahead to open that. But besides that, all systems are “Go” for a reopening.
• Phase #2- 3 weeks after that “Go” from Governor Holcomb and he lifts the mask mandate, nursery and all classes will return to normal.

I gotta tell you this though! I am so excited for this to be happening. I am aware of what the pundits say: “Things will never get back to what they were. Get used to a new normal.” And you know, I agree. But I’m okay with that. There are some things that can go the way of the dodo bird and that suits me just fine. But I have to admit that I sure miss seeing many of you. There are, of course, some who have slowly made their way back. And I’m sure there still will be. But I am so stoked to see you. I will have to guard against being “down” if people don’t come back like I hope.

All of this will require a change in the Live Stream. We will not have the overflow room for Live Stream in the second service because that room will be in use. If you are concerned about the crowd or proximity to people I encourage you to try the first service (9:00). Not only is the crowd generally thinner, but we will also have access to the overflow room if needed.

Have a great rest of the week.

Pastor Bill