News and information from around the Ohio Conference
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Video Message from Elder Bob Cundiff,
Ohio Conference President
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"This is the first installment of a weekly video series that the administration will be producing, to communicate about what is taking place in our territory," begins Bob Cundiff, newly appointed Ohio Conference president.
In the seven-minute video, Cundiff shares information about himself and his background as "the new guy." He then goes on to provide a report on the financial health of the Ohio Conference, strategies on controlling budgets, and continuing the mission of the church during an international crisis. "We can press the mission of the Ohio Conference forward in a way that I know will cheer our Heavenly Father's heart."
Cundiff anticipates arriving in Ohio mid-May, presuming travel restrictions for the state have been lifted by that time.
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Breathing Life Into Sabbath School
By Michael Stough II, Pastor Springfield First, Delaware, New Carlisle District
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I still remember the Sabbath. The Sabbath School superintendent stood at the pulpit of the church with the phone hooked into the sound system. Connected on the other end was some anonymous person from Michigan detailing a new way of doing Sabbath School called Sabbath School Action Units (SSAU). I remember thinking to myself what a terrible idea it was. What did somebody from Michigan know about how Sabbath School should work in my home church all the way in Southern California?
That was 1990, the year SSAUs were first introduced. Jump 30 years into the future, and today we find Sabbath School on the endangered species list. Could it be the idea of Sabbath School as a small group was in front of us all this time and we just didn’t see it?
I think the first problem many of our Sabbath School’s suffer from is relevancy. In my many years of both participating in and leading out Sabbath School classes, I’ve run into a wide variety of environments. Sadly, in many of these Sabbath School classes, “I am sorry to say, the custom prevails of reading the lesson from the lesson sheet.”
[1]
Or the teacher feels burdened to rush through each day of the lesson feeling a necessity to cover it all, forgetting how the teacher should never sit down, “saying, ‘I am through.’ There is no such thing as getting through with the lesson.”
[2]
Rarely do I find a vibrant class full of discussion and a feeling of connectedness among class members. But, when I do, it tends to be the members are active in the church both in outreach and in reach. Really, Sabbath School should be a place where instead of reading the lesson we were supposed to study throughout the week already, becomes the place where we share how God’s Word illuminated our thoughts and actions leading up to the Sabbath.
A second problem for many Sabbath School classes is size and location. Nothing kills participation more than facing one direction, toward the teacher, and hearing the first sermon of Sabbath morning. Instead of a mass gathering, small groups of people should gather together. Maybe space dictates meeting in the sanctuary, but groups of 6-10 people can easily contain a discussion within those confines, limiting disruptions to other groups, while encouraging those who are more than able to talk outside of class to talk in it.
Certainly, a third problem, which I’ve long wrestled with, is a lack of qualified teachers. Many times, it seems we forget how important Sabbath School is and look merely for someone willing to stand in front of a group of people and read the lesson. Really, what is needed are those who are passionate Bible students themselves but gifted with the ability to teach and lead fellow class members into deeper understanding of the Word. Fortunately, there are resources for training Sabbath School teachers to excel in this special calling. You can find course materials at
http://nadadultministries.org/sabbath-school
.
Another area of critical concern is our care or lack thereof of those around us. Whether this is time spent in prayer for the Holy Spirit to reveal Christ, taking a few moments to sign and send a card, arranging personal visitation of missing or sick members, or planning and executing community outreach projects, the “object of Sabbath-school work should be the in-gathering of souls.”
[3]
For the “Sabbath-school, if rightly conducted, is one of God's great instrumentalities to bring souls to a knowledge of the truth.”
[
4]
It seems we’ve forgotten this major part of action to take place through the Sabbath School.
Finally, the greatest problem is me. I would pray you would not have the same ideas I did that Sabbath morning 30 years ago, the idea which said this can’t possibly work. I often wonder what greater things my home church would have accomplished if instead of just one person’s vision, more of us, especially myself would have realized how the “Sabbath-school, when rightly managed, possesses marvelous power, and is adapted to doing a great work, but it is not now what it may and should be,”
[5]
and stepped up to be a part of the solution and not a part of the problem.
May God breath life into our Sabbath Schools today.
[1]
Ellen White,
Testimonies on Sabbath School Work
, 9.
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Ohio Conference Pastors Utilize Podcasting to Reach Beyond the Church
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Podcasts are quickly becoming a cultural staple across the globe. Between 2013 and 2018, the percent of Americans over age 12 who had ever listened to a podcast jumped from 27% to 44%, according to the
Pew Research Center
.
What is a podcast you ask? Simply put: a podcast is an audio program, similar to talk radio, but you subscribe to it on your smartphone and listen to it whenever you like - in the car, while cooking dinner, while exercising, or whenever you would normally listen to the radio. A podcast is a series of spoken word, audio episodes, all focused on a particular topic or theme.
For two Ohio Conference pastors, the themes vary, but have one thing in common: sharing about God's Word and His church with listeners of all ages.
The Present Truth
podcast is the creation of Columbus Eastwood church senior pastor Kyle Baldwin. Recent episodes have included "Haystacks and Heaven," "The Lord's Day," and "What Makes the Seventh-day Adventist Church Unique?" His podcasts are available at
Apple Podcasts
and
Sounder
.
Pastor's Pad: A Podcast Walking with Jesus
is the brainchild of Kettering young adult pastor Paddy McCoy. His podcast is available on
Spotify
. His recent episodes have included "Learning to Pray," "Hide, Seek, and Find God," and "Our Anxiety & God's Desire." Both pastors' podcast episodes last around 10-15 minutes.
According to
mobilemarketer.com
, the podcasting format is especially popular among younger demographic groups, with 49% of people ages 12 to 34 reporting they listened to a podcast in the past month. Meanwhile, 40% of people ages 35-54 and 22% of people ages 55 and older listen to podcasts regularly. The average time spent listening to podcasts is about six and a half hours per week, with podcast listeners streaming about six podcasts a week on average.
Podcasts are an excellent way to reach people beyond the church building, as statistically more Christians listen to podcasts than those who identify themselves as such. A study by the
Pew Research Center
, released in 2015, shows millennials have been leaving churches in droves since at least 2007, but they don't necessarily lose their belief in God. In fact, more than half
say they are still religious or spiritua
l.
And that is exactly the type of audience that tune in to podcasts such as Baldwin's and McCoy's.
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Ohio Conference Partners with Centerville Church for 40-Day Dash
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The Ohio Conference is partnering with the Centerville church for a “40-Day Dash.” Begins May 26 and runs through July 4. The goal is for everyone participating to walk/run one
intentional
mile each day minimum. Prizes awarded to winners in various categories.
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Pictures like these are becoming increasingly familiar as ministry continues on virtual platforms such as Zoom, Google Hangouts, and Facebook Messenger Video Chat.
Though nothing replaces the intimacy of the in-person connection in churches, several Ohio Conference pastors are finding new and innovative ways to utilize this technology to remain connected during these weeks of social distancing and stay at home orders.
Pictured above is a weeknight Bible study from Kettering youth pastor Jason Calvert, where he is regularly engaged with more than 20 young people. He works diligently to make sure these young people, while isolated, are never alone.
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Read the Current Issue of
Mission Ohio
in the Columbia Union Visitor
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Highlights of this issue include new Ohio Conference treasurer, Roy M. Simpson and his wife Melissa; Ohio Conference high school students being "ReCharged," and how a growing church plant changes lives in Massillon.
Read these articles and more in the current issue of
Mission Ohio
in
Visitor
magazine.
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Heidi A. Shoemaker, Communication Director
Ohio Conference of Seventh-day Adventists
1251 E Dorothy Ln, Dayton, OH 45419
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