This past week we had our monthly elders meeting, and as we do most meetings we started off with a time of prayer. This month we were joined by most of the deacons in our church and spent time praying with people who came for prayer as well as many other prayer requests that were submitted throughout the month leading up to our meeting. We then started off the meeting hearing the many ways the deacons have experienced God working through all their areas of ministry they serve in including food services on Sunday nights, audio and video, set up and take down in promontory, care and payer, stewardship and hospitality. It was humbling and so encouraging to here how God provides repeatedly to those stepping into challenging serving roles.
As we met and look ahead to exciting things coming up it is also amazing to look back at the previous year to see how God provided faithfully through the generous giving from our church family. I will confess that my nature is to be cautious, and often overly concerned about the shortfall of finances at Church. Once again God taught me a lesson: That kingdom economics are upside down and God can do anything. God says in his Word that he loves a cheerful giver (2 Cor 9:7-9) and it was beautiful to see how he provided for all our needs and more as we finished off the year with generous giving from you all. December was the largest giving month ever in the history of our church and we ended up surpassing our budget after being short for most of the year. Praise to the Lord for his wonderful provision! It was also wonderful to wrap up the year with Christmas Eve services where many people could come and hear the gospel for the first time.
We also spent time looking ahead at the ministries happening now and in the next few months. Twenty-four people, (twice the usual number of people) signed up for the Preaching Lab where Pastor Matt and Pastor Jonathan teach how you can articulate the gospel in an effective way in whatever capacity they are teaching others. They get a couple practice runs of preaching a mini sermon to the rest of the group with a chance for feedback. There is also a Counselling In Communities class at the end of January in February which will be very helpful in helping those in leadership care well for those that are struggling. There is also an Courageous Evangelism class at the Harrison campus led by Pastor Jeremy and Pastor Eldon which started this week and will run for the next couple weeks. They will also have Sam Dick from Multiply as well as local missionary Brad Bates there to teach all about evangelism and ultimately help us lead others to Jesus. All of these recourses have more info on them on our app and on the church website. We are also excited about an upcoming women’s retreat with Kristal Toews coming to speak and a men's retreat with Brett Landry as guest speaker — both happening in May.
As our Church continues to grow, and space always seems to be an issue, we spent time discussing our 5 Year Plan and what things could look like going forward for our church. We have been so blessed to see how well our Sunday dinners and 5.15 service are going, but with all ministry, it takes a lot of work from pastors and volunteers. Our prayer is for healthy sustainable ministry. If you attend our Chilliwack Campus we would love to encourage you that if it works for you, to prayerfully consider making the 5.15 service your go-to service allowing for new people to come to our morning services as they are often packed. As we continue to wrestle through the decisions that need to be made I am reminded of the verse in Proverbs, "Many are the plans in the mind of man, but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand" (Prov 19:21). Our prayer as elders is to continually seek the Lord's guidance as we follow after him with you in seeking to reach the entire eastern Fraser Valley with gospel for His glory.
Gary Baars
- On behalf of the Elders at Central Community
Finance Update
The Elders received a year end report detailing the income and expenses of the church for 2024. They were encouraged to see that the congregation provided graciously and generously for the mission of the church. They were also encouraged to note that the staff team managed the finances of the church to ensure that expenses were in line with the budget. Donations received in the amount of $2,963,956 exceeded our donation budget of $2,880,270. Join us in celebrating God’s provision through his church! Donations to the benevolent fund also surpassed our needs with $97,227 being invested into the lives of people in need. Here too there is reason to celebrate God’s provision and Central’s ability to come along side people by meeting their practical needs.
As we begin a new budget year, we encourage you to continue to remain faithful by investing into our vision to see the Easter Fraser Valley transformed by the Gospel. New ministry opportunities continue to present themselves and our determination is to respond faithfully to the prompting and provision of God.
ELDER'S PRAYER
We believe in the power of prayer. We value prayer. And we believe that God answers prayer and uses it as a means of achieving His purposes in the church and world.
Central's Elders invite you to come and receive prayer in the Chilliwack Campus Sanctuary.
Tuesday, February 18 | 6.30PM - 7.00PM
Chilliwack Campus | 46100 Chilliwack Central Road
You can also submit prayer requests using the link below.
Got questions or words of encouragement? We'd love to hear from you!
Please contact The Elders - elders@centralcommunity.ca