January 2021 Connections

Connections Proclaiming the GOSPEL

LOCAL & GLOBAL STORIES, NEWS AND EVENTS of COLLEGE CHURCH

“We asked not for perfection or foolproof methods but simply advice from one Christ follower to another.”

See 21 Prayer Insights for 2021 by Susan Zimmerman on page 14

JANUARY 2021

Side by Side

Locally Sourced

I Believe!

What a Year It Has Been

The Gospel at Midway Airport

ADUGNA TAHEAR | 24

INTERVIEW: CHERYCE BERG | 12

JOHN MELBY | 22

TABLE OF CONTENTS 4

January Highlights

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Traditions | PAT CIRRINCIONE

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Restoring Hope in 2020: The Christmas Store| UPDATE FROM OUTREACH

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Monthly Gatherings | ELIZABETH DIFFIN

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Forty Days for Life | SANCTITY OF HUMAN LIFE TASK FORCE

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What a Year It Has Been | AN INTERVIEW WITH CHERYCE BERG

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Prayer Gatherings

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21 Prayer Insights for 2021 | SUSAN ZIMMERMAN

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Serving in the Time of Covid | THE SERVICE AND ENGAGEMENT COMMITTEE

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Spring 2021 Perspectives Class

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Words of Thanks From Around the World | THE MISSIONS TEAM

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Multi-Nations Coffee Fellowship

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The Gospel at Midway Airport| JOHN MELBY

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I Believe!| ADUGNA TAHEAR

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Best Books 2020 | COLLEGE CHURCH LEADERSHIP

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Milestones

JANUARY HIGHLIGHTS Sunday Morning Services Visitors are welcome in any and all services, no registration required. Feel free to invite people to worship with us.

Join us at 8:00, 9:30 and 11:15 a.m.

Livestream broadcast is at 9:30 with a rebroadcast at 11:15.

You can watch it at college-church.org/livestream • Jan. 3: Zach Fallon preaching, Numbers 6:22-27 | The Blessing Contend for the Faith Preaching Series • Jan. 10: Jude 1:1-16 | Remember • Jan. 17: Jude 1:17-25 | Keep On Going Living in Exile Preaching Series • Jan. 24: Esther 1:1-22 | A Strange Providence • Jan. 31: Esther 2:1-23 | Winning Favor Registration for the 9:30 and 11:15 a.m. services opens at noon on Tuesdays on our website or in our church family email. No registration required for the 8 a.m. service. You may also access the sign-up form here: college-church.formstack.com/forms/worship_signup

Children’s Ministries • Sunday morning nursery, preschool and Bible school (grades 1-5), weekly reservations required.

Middle School • We are meeting in Commons Hall Tuesday nights beginning January 12 at 6:45 p.m. On Sunday mornings, plan to attend worship services with your family.

High School • Sunday Night Live for HYACKS will start back up on January 17, from 6:30 to 8 p.m., in Commons Gym. We will be doing a worldview and apologetics study for a few weeks called Gospel Glasses—Seeing All Things Through Christ.

Adult Communities—in-person and Zoom options • Veritas: Saturday mornings 9:30 a.m. in Sanctuary. They will resume January 16 with Dr. Dan Block teaching Ezekiel.

• Greek Class: Sunday mornings 9:30 a.m. in C101. They will resume January 10 with Dr. Jon Laansma teaching 1 John.

• Logos: Sunday mornings 9:30 a.m. in CL02. They will resume January 10 with Dr. Victor Kuligin teaching on the doctrine of salvation.

• Forum 15: Meets every Sunday at 9:30 a.m. with Dr. David Fetzer teaching 1 & 2 Peter.

• Joint Heirs: Sunday mornings 9:30 a.m. in Commons Gym. They will resume January 10 with a rotation of teachers, teaching from the Book of Psalms.

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• All Nations: Sunday mornings 9:30 a.m. in CL03. They will resume January 10 with Steve Krogh leading their discussion of the sermon.

STARS • Sunday mornings | January 3 is a recorded lesson | January 10, 17, 24, 31 live Zoom class • Wednesday music | The music class is now on Christmas break and will resume January 13th.

College Group • Collegians, stay connected through our weekly Bible study on Wednesdays at 7 p.m. in Commons Hall.

• Also meet with God’s people for gathered worship at one of our services (8, 9:30 and 11:15 a.m.)

Men’s Ministries—Men's Bible Study Men, are you planning to read your Bible in 2021? Do you ever wonder how to get the most out of your Bible reading? Want to teach your kids or grandkids how to read their Bibles? Would you like to know how to interpret and apply what you’re reading? Then you should make plans to join us for Men’s Bible Study in 2021!

Beginning Wednesday, February 3, we’ll begin a study on hermeneutics, which is all about studying and interpreting the Bible. Dr. Victor Kuligin and Pastor Josh Stringer will lead and teach our way through questions of translation, interpretation, context and several different genres. Pastor Ben Panner will also be joining us for a few sessions to help us look at application and how the gospel runs through the entire Bible. We’ll discover how each of these areas will lead to more fruitful personal times in the Word as well as teaching and preaching. Our guiding book for this year will be How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth by Gordan Fee and Douglas Stuart. You can find the paperback fourth edition online for around $15.

If you’ve had questions about how to read and study the Bible, the Men’s Bible Study in 2021 is for you. If you’re a seasoned veteran of Bible study, come and brush up on your skills and share what you’ve learned by joining a discussion group. There will be in-person and Zoom options. We’ll have more information coming soon, including a complete schedule which will take us from February 3— May 5. Check the website for more information and sign up to be on our email list to receive all the updates. We hope to see you there!

Women’s Ministries • Monthly Gathering: What disciplines or practices promote growth in your relationship with Christ? We’re using Donald Whitney’s book, Spiritual Practices for the Christian Life as a resource for our discussions this year and would highly recommend it if you’re looking to better understand spiritual disciplines. On Saturday, January 9 (9-10 a.m.), we’ll be discussing the spiritual practices that shape the follower of Christ by looking at the spiritual discipline of worship—focusing on and responding to God. We plan to meet in person but will shift to a virtual format if necessary. Would you like to be on our Monthly Gathering distribution list? Sign up here.

• Women’s Bible Study: Beginning Wednesday, February 3, we’ll start our study of Genesis 12-50 looking at the timeless story of Genesis which shows our Creator God, planning and revealing his salvation—a salvation which would eventually reach to the ends of the earth. Given COVID restrictions, we have limited capacity, so please visit College Church's website for details and availability. You may also purchase the materials to study on your own here and listen to the large group teachings available weekly on the College Church women's webpage.

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Grace Groups for Mental Health Are you or a loved one dealing with anxiety or depression or other mental health challenge? Has this time of COVID heightened those feelings? Our hope for Grace Groups is that individuals walk away from each meeting encouraged and equipped with practical tools to cultivate a healthy mind and heart. Living Grace provides support for those living with mental health challenges, and Family Grace provides support for their loved ones. The group meets online via Zoom on the following Mondays from 7 to 8:30 p.m.: January 11 and 25, February 8 and 22, March 8 and 22, April 5 and 19 and May 3. Email Christy at gracegroups@college-church.org for more information or to connect with a group facilitator to explore this option for you or a loved one.

Membership Ready to participate fully in the life and ministries of College Church? Come find out about College Church’s history, articles of faith, core values, initiatives for the future, ministries, missions and more. The winter membership class will be on Saturday, February 6, from 8:00 a.m. until noon; there will be an in-person or Zoom option. Registration is requested. For more info, contact Christy at membership@college-church.org, or call (630) 668-0878, ext. 175.

Baptisms and Dedications We are delighted to announce the following opportunities for publicly expressing faith in Christ: • Believers baptisms—observed on Sunday, January 10, during the 9:30 and 11:15 a.m. services • Infant dedications—observed Sunday, January 24, during the 9:30 a.m. service • Infant baptisms—observed Sunday, January 24, during the 11:15 a.m. service For more information, or to move forward with any of these commitments, contact Christy at baptism@college-church.org, or call the church.

March for Life Join College Church at March for Life 2021!

This is our fourth year participating in a March for Life event! College Church will be joining attendees at the march to take a public stand for the value of every human life, born and unborn!

Date: Saturday, January 23, 2021 Time: Arrive at College Church at 8 a.m. and return by 2 p.m.

Go to College-Church.org/SOHL to learn more and reserve your free seat(s) on the bus. Your reservation helps us arrange enough buses for everyone. Please email sohl@college-church.org with any questions.

Visit the God Centered Life worldwide ministry of Pastor Josh Moody at godcenteredlife.org. Find daily sermons from Pastor Josh there plus daily devotionals. Sign up to receive them in your inbox. Listen to Pastor Josh daily on WMBI at 10 p.m. M-F and 7:30 p.m. on Sunday. Your prayers and partnership with this ministry are greatly appreciated.

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LIFE LESSONS

Traditions Pat Cirrincione

Traditions passed down to family members through the years are as varied and numerous as the people around us. Traditions are the stories that families write together. How many traditions are there in your family? I’ll bet you would be amazed if you wrote them all down! Which ones stand out to you? Which ones are your favorite? Your least favorite?

Let me tell you about some of our traditions, from childhood to my marriage, to the ones my husband brought into my life, to some of my favorite and least favorite traditions!

But first, let me ask you a question – how have your traditions stayed the same or changed this year? Send me a note, a card or an email, as I would love to hear how things have changed, or have not, for you and your family. And I will now share some of mine with you.

My husband, Sal, and I come from families that have always had traditional dinners for the big holidays, like Easter, Thanksgiving and Christmas. There is always, and I do mean always, some kind of pasta to begin with along with meatballs and sausage.

Now to most people these items, served with a salad, would be enough, or at least that’s what most of our invited guests thought.

My dear readers and friends, this was just the beginning! Next came the meat! At Easter it was, and still is, always a ham; Thanksgiving is usually a twenty-pound plus stuffed turkey; and at Christmas a crowned pork roast, a smaller turkey, and sausage. This does not include the side dishes: mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, peas, corn, cranberry, general types of salads, and dinner rolls. Just when you were wishing you had worn your elastic, expandable waistband slacks, out come the desserts! Pies, cookies, candy, coffee and tea or wine. Oh Mylanta! Are you full yet? I hope not, because to wash it all down out comes the fruit!

However, the times, along with our traditions took a turn this year, and as 2021 begins, I must ask the obvious: which traditions might change because of the pandemic? Will that make you happy or sad? Or will you turn to God and keep his hope in your heart?

Let’s take a sneak peek at what it could look like, or might not.

Let’s take a stroll down holiday tradition lane and put ourselves into “It’s a Wonderful Life” mode.

How have traditions stayed the same or changed for you this year? I noticed that birthdays were celebrated a bit differently;

for example, instead of “at home” gatherings they became “drive by”s, which included driving by our children’s homes, beeping our horns, and writing greetings on pieces of cardboards placed on our car windows, all designed to make the recipient smile and laugh. Gifts were then placed at the front door, to be retrieved once the gift bearer got back into their cars, and then our families facetimed for the gift openings. Will this continue or will we get back to being together in our homes? Only God has the answer to that, but we can hope!

Now before I leave out the other holidays, let’s take a look at Valentine’s Day. I don’t see too many traditions changing there as one can still purchase and give flowers and candy; however, it’s the romantic dinner for two that might not look quite the same. We may have to pick up that dinner via drive by, or heaven forbid, cook it ourselves!

What about Easter? We usually have the Easter holiday, with the dinner I described earlier, with about twenty some people gathered around the dining room table. Well, this year we weren’t able to have that gathering, so we pulled out the plastic Easter

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eggs I usually hide around the house, filled them with goodies, and then drove over to our children’s homes and hid the eggs in their front yards. Once that was accomplished, we called them and mentioned that the Easter Bunny had made a visit and they might want to come outside and check their front yards. We enjoyed the excitement on their faces as they ran around collecting those eggs. However, I truly hope we can go back to our dinner in 2021 and share the day in our traditional way. After all, God created us to be social, as is he, and we long to be together again in that way. And although we don’t have the tradition of new Easter hats, white gloves, and white shoes anymore, we did miss the tradition of gathering for Easter service and were excited at what our church did to help us through not being together as a church family. The Halleluiah chorus was amazing as was the beautiful sign on the front of the church. We hope that sign becomes a tradition from here on out.

But how about Memorial Day, the Fourth of July, and Labor Day? What about our parades, and floats, and honoring our Veterans? What about the traditions of honoring our country?

Will there be parades? Or fireworks? Or picnics? I’m pretty sure there will still be mosquitoes! So how about getting our neighborhoods to have the children decorate their bikes, and setting out potluck tables, and having sparklers as it begins to get dark – do you remember those? And thanking God for all he has given us? And praying for our Veterans, especially the ones who are homeless, or injured, or have PTSS and are in our VA hospitals?

Then there is Halloween, and whether you participate or not, you had to be impressed at the ingenious ways people got candy to the trick or treaters in your neighborhood. One neighbor con-

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cocted a plastic tube from her upstairs bedroom window and the Halloween candy would slide down into the bucket, or hand, of the child waiting at the other end. Growing up, my siblings and I had fun just wearing those waxed mouth pieces! And my oldest son loved being ET. Those where such simpler days!

Now Thanksgiving has come and gone, and the pandemic took a turn for the worse, yet again. Who did I break the turkey wishbone with last year? Sigh. No one – because no one came over for dinner last year, as we stayed safe and snugged away in our respective homes. The good news is that it didn’t stop my husband or I from purchasing a turkey or making plans to still have our Thanksgiving dinner even if it was just the two of us. After all, God has still blessed us in so many ways, that rather than sit around and mope about what we weren’t able to have or do, we gave thanks for all that he still does for us each and every day.

As I write this, we don’t know what Christmas is going to look like, but we will cross that bridge when we come to it, and we will continue to pray that our world will heal from all the pain and strife, unkindness and sadness we witness. One thing I do know is that we will continue to take pictures in front of the Christmas tree just as we always have! And decorate the house, buy gifts, and make Christmas cookies and candies to pass out to our neighbors this year which is a new tradition. And put out our beautiful Christmas crèche that my brothers and sister purchased for our parents so many years ago. We used to have an open house on Christmas Eve in year’s past, but that too has gone to the wayside as friends have moved away, and families grew larger and kept to their own traditions.

In the meantime, I have been reading a book called In My Father’s House, by Corrie Ten Boom. I don’t know about you, but I always feel that God directs me to a book at a particular moment in time to teach me more of what he wants me to know. In this book this quote resonated with me: “When Jesus takes your hand, He keeps you tight. When Jesus keeps you tight, He leads you through your whole life. When Jesus leads you through your life, He brings you safely home.” I believe that the Lord is giving us a new tradition of more fervent prayer. I believe that he is asking us to return to him in these dark days, and to be thankful for his abundant love for us.

In this continuing time of uncertainty, and of seeing our traditions change in so many ways, I have leaned more and more on reading my Bible and conversing with God. The seeds he has planted in my heart have built a confidence in him, not the world. He has drawn us closer to him, holding us steady, encouraging and meeting us in every moment and phase of the times we are living. It has taught us how precious hugging each other is, and that it is never to late to do something beautiful for the people around you. It has shown us that Jesus can be found in the lowest, darkest depths, and that all who find him are transported to the loftiest, brightest heights. It has made living and giving so much more meaningful. That even in these dark days God is still giving and always remembers us, even when we forget him.

The one thing I have seen in this time of pandemics and unkindness, is what Ann Voskamp says in her book The Broken Way: “We aren’t here to “one up” each other, but to help one another up. It let’s you know that God’s belief in you, is stronger than your belief in him. That like Jesus, when you sacrifice for what you love, you gain more of what you love. That success to God is based on a person’s heart. That when God’s enough, there is grace enough and that we can trust God in all our brokenness.

God gives us just the right touch of mistletoe and holly. The truth of the Bible is that God doesn’t give us a spirit of fear, but of power, of love, and a sound mind, and that you can live, based on the Word of God!” Maybe this past year was meant to get us out of our bondage.

Let us remember these words from the hymn "Jesus, I Come" that Corrie Ten Boom quoted in her book In My Father's House: “Out of my bondage, sorrow, and night, Jesus, I come, Jesus, I come; Into Thy freedom, gladness and light, Jesus, I come to Thee.

Out of the depths of ruin untold, Into the peace of Thy sheltering fold, Ever thy glorious face to behold, Jesus, I come to thee.”

May this year be filled with his peace, as he reminds you to return to him. And may you include him in all of your traditions.

About the Author | Pat Cirrincione No pandemic can keep College Church member Pat Cirrincione from enjoying her family and thinking up creative ways to carry on traditions, all with her trademark good cheer and sense of humor.

Restoring Hope in 2020: The Christmas Store Christmas joy spread quickly at the 26th annual Christmas Store at Outreach Community Center in Carol Stream. While this cherished annual event held on December 12th looked a quite different this year due to COVID-safety rules, the mission was the same: Provide local families with an affordable place to shop for Christmas gifts- 177 families shopped, representing 470 children. And shop they did as 1,330 gifts were purchased, thanks to the many gift drives, like the one provided by College Church and 18 local churches.

One shopper shared how The Christmas Store made a difference for her family: “I started worrying about affording Christmas gifts for my daughPhoto courtesy of Rachael Watson Photography ter when I lost my job in July. I can’t tell you how much The Christmas Store means to me…after a difficult year, I’m feeling hopeful that it’s all going to be OK.” Thank you, College Church, for sharing the hope of Christ through the Christmas Store.

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SIDE BY SIDE

Monthly Gatherings Elizabeth Diffin When you have a church the size of College Church, it can be easy for people to fall through the cracks. That’s just one of the reasons Women’s Ministries created Monthly Gatherings. The Gatherings are designed to provide a place for women of all ages and stages of life to meet together—especially if they haven’t found a community to call their own just yet.

“We wanted to find a format for those who have maybe struggled finding a place where we belong in this big church,” says Lisa Burlingame, who is part of the Monthly Gathering planning team. “It has so many ministries, but they may not always provide the opportunity to connect in a way that is meaningful.”

Monthly Gatherings are held on the second Saturday of each month at 9 a.m. The time was specifically chosen to allow for a larger number of women to attend, since it doesn’t conflict with traditional work schedules and allows for other family members to handle childcare duties (dads, we’re looking at you!).

The sessions take place in Commons Hall with small groups of women seated around tables and, of course, enjoying snacks (or, in COVID times, over Zoom).

Kelsey Dewar, who is also part of the planning team, says that one of the joys of attending the group has been watching relationships form: women frequently exchange phone numbers or continue the conversations started around the Monthly Gathering tables over coffee or lunch.

“I think it’s a great way to meet women in the church you may not interact with in your normal church routine,” she says. “Most of the women I’ve met in Monthly Gathering, I’ve never seen at College Church. It’s been great to meet people I wouldn’t normally interact with.”

Carole O’Hare has been at nearly every Monthly Gathering since they first started in the fall of 2019. She says she’s especially appreciated the opportunity to see women from different backgrounds and life experiences come together to discuss God’s Word—and to provide their own unique perspectives.

“Just to have a gathering of women was interesting because there’s not too many places where that’s going on,” she said.

“There are some kinds of conversations you can have more readily with all women.”

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Pat Cirrincione has been another faithful Monthly Gathering attendee. She says what’s kept her coming back is that open sharing with other sisters in Christ.

“There are no barriers here,” Pat says. “You can just be a woman coming to a group of other women. I find it very special that we have this group that gets together and discusses the things we’ve discussed and are able to do it in such a Christian way.”

Of course, the substantial biblical discussion—Carole describes it as “not lightweight”—is the most essential part of each Monthly Gathering. Last year’s sessions included such timely, occasionally hot-button topics like culture, hospitality and singleness. This year is more focused on one, possibly more familiar, topic: spiritual disciplines. Upcoming meetings in the winter and spring will examine the disciplines of prayer, worship and silence and solitude.“When I hear ‘spiritual disciplines,’ I think, ‘Oh

great, more things to add to my to-do list,’” Kelsey says. “But we can dive into these topics from a place of freedom. Because we’re in Christ, we’re free to explore all these disciplines without feeling that burden of guilt or legalism. For some of these lesserknown disciplines that I haven’t thought about or studied much, I would love to develop a theology behind them.”

Each Monthly Gathering will look at the spiritual discipline at hand, including what it is, what makes it formative in the life of a Christian, and how it has contributed to the growth of individual women of College Church.

“It’s an hour that’s well-spent, not spent with a bunch of frivolity,” Carole says.

And for any woman who is still looking for a place to fit at College Church, it’s been a proven launch pad into the greater community.

“This is something I think you’re going to really enjoy,” Pat Cirrincione says. “Come and meet others who want to meet you.”

About the Author | Elizabeth Diffin Along with enjoying her role as aunt extraordinaire, College Church member Elizabeth Diffin enjoys serving on the Monthly Gathering team and being involved with her small group.

Local Pro-Life Prayer Goes Monthly The Sanctity of Human Life Task Force invites you to pray and sing outside Planned Parenthood Aurora one Saturday a month from 1 to 2 p.m. in cooperation with 40 Days for Life.

What is 40 Days for Life? Peaceful prayer outside abortion facilities for the babies, clients, workers, our community and nation to end abortion locally through prayer, fasting and all-day peaceful prayer vigils outside of abortion businesses. 40 Days for Life's first coordinated campaign was in 2007 and has now expanded to 63 countries. Founders of 40 Days for Life are depicted in the movie, “Unplanned.” 40daysforlife.com/ Why pray in person? There is up to a 75 percent appointment cancellation rate when women see peaceful prayer outside an abortion facility.

Where? In Aurora. Waterleaf, an inviting Christian pregnancy resource center, was completed across the street from the abortion facility in fall 2019.

What can I expect? According to Sarah Lindquist, "We pray on Waterleaf's property across from Planned Parenthood. There is plenty of room to socially distance. I like to have a folding chair and blanket with me. I also bring a peacefully oriented pro-life sign with me each time. Sometimes, people will drive by and yell a curse or give a rude gesture, but they have never been very close to me. Other times, they honk in approval. In the past few years, I've been going, nothing creepy or intense has happened. I do bring my children with me regularly. Parking is behind Auto Zone or by Mariano's."

When? Sarah guides prayer on one Saturday a month throughout the year. If you can't come this time, we hope you will join us soon or sign up to pray when you are available through Aurora's 40 Days for Life site (where you'll be able to see if others have signed up to pray). 40 Days for Life began a year-round prayer effort in Aurora in summer 2020. 40daysforlife.com/aurora Visit college-church.org/sohl to sign up for the Sanctity of Human Life task force monthly emails to stay up to date with life related news and events. You can also find out more at facebook.com/40daysforlifeaurora

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FACE TO FACE

What a Year It Has Been A Connections interview with Cheryce Berg, director of children's ministires

A year ago, Cheryce Berg stepped into her role as director of children’s ministries. She had been on the job for six weeks when COVID hit. We recently talked to Cheryce about her rather unusual first year.

Prior to the pandemic, what were some of your goals and dreams for children’s ministries?

My first goal was to listen—to volunteers, to parents, to children and to the children’s ministry team. I wanted to connect with children outside of College Church and to help children within our church to make the transfer from the wealth of head knowledge to heart knowledge. I wanted to dream up new space configurations that would allow for both large group teaching and small groups at all the age levels. I also wanted to support family discipleship.

Then came the pandemic and the strict stay-home orders in the spring. How did CM and Kids' Harbor adapt to all this?

We went to our volunteers and asked them to record Bible school lessons for us to post online for the children. We created yard signs with Psalm 56:3—When I am afraid, I put my trust in you—to help give hope to people. We printed postcards and wrote one to each child in our ministry. Our volunteers sent postcards and birthday notes to children in their ministries.

We checked in with our volunteers and invited them to co-host online classes for children and their parents. My team and I also read recorded Bible stories.

And we prayed, a lot. One of the most helpful gifts for me has been a weekly Zoom call with five or six local children’s ministry directors, where we share ideas and pray for each other. I have loved collaborating with these directors, especially as we’ve exchanged ideas about reopening plans. We are stronger when we share ideas. The children’s directors are from Wheaton Bible Church, Christ Community in St. Charles, Chapelstreet in Geneva, Village Bible, Harvest Bible as well as First Presbyterian Church in Wheaton.

What were the biggest challenges at the early stage of the pandemic, and how have things changed from then to now?

At the start of the pandemic, the biggest challenge was how to stay connected to the children and families in our ministry when we didn’t see them every week. It was especially hard for me since I had only a little over a month to start meeting parents and to get to know their children. I didn’t have time to build a foundation for these relationships.

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Things have improved since we began to regather in September, but we still only have a small portion of children attending Kids’ Harbor, and there are still so many families I don’t know.

The next biggest challenge was the months spent planning when we would regather and at the same time implementing a new curriculum. The children’s ministries team worked hard all summer to get the classrooms and hallways ready for a safe return as well as get our volunteers ready to use a completely different curriculum and new technology.

With the school year now in place, what are plans for the summer and the Summer Institute of Children’s Ministries (aka SICM)?

Those are in the works. I have tweaked the program and am working on hiring a small team of college students to learn and serve. Stay tuned.

The word “joy” isn’t associated with COVID-19, but what joys or surprises did you discover along the way?

Incredibly gifted and flexible teachers, the strength of the children’s ministry team I work with, each with different gifts.

The desire of parents to help “do it themselves,” which I love because it strengthens the family. The pandemic gave me the

gift of time to learn my new position. It was a gift of a reset to explore new ideas. Another surprise was the fun of the Gospel Project curriculum and its excellent resources for families who choose to stay home.

Now that Kids’ Harbor is open, how are the volunteers doing in classrooms that look and feel different? What are some of your observations as you walk the Kids’ Harbor hallways on Sundays and Wednesdays?

Our volunteers are amazing. They are willing to wear masks as they teach. We’ve brought them through the ringer with all the changes, and they don’t complain. They keep on teaching about Jesus Christ every single week and it’s incredible.

The children love being here. I am amazed that even our little two- and three-year-olds wear masks and fidget less with theirs than I do mine. The children come running in to the classrooms and are reluctant to leave. I think they are so hungry to be together again, like we all are. And we don’t want to miss the opportunity to teach them about Jesus in any way we can.

What are some ways you’re supporting your volunteers as well as the Kids’ Harbor families?

We send out a weekly enews to both groups with helpful ideas and information. Our team visits each classroom multiple times and looks for ways to help. We hope we’re welcoming when families check in. I have a giant list with the names of every child and volunteer in Kids’ Harbor, and each day I pray for part of that list.

For the older kids, we post sermon questions in advance of Sunday for parents to read the passage and discuss it with their kids. We offer links to the curriculum for families to view and learn together at home. We adjust the curriculum on our end to make it best serve our Kids’ Harbor mission and vision.

And that mission is?

Equip and embolden families to walk as children of light.

With that in mind, do you have any advice and encouragement for parents? For volunteers?

Parents, if you have more time with your kids in this season, ask God to show you how to better teach them the gospel. It doesn’t need to be fancy or complicated. It means reading the Bible together, talking about it, singing about Jesus, praying together, and then, applying the truths of Scripture together. I want to encourage parents to ask your questions, so we know how to help and pray with you. Introduce yourselves to my team and me—we want to build relationships with you. And volunteers?

Be encouraged that the seeds you are faithfully planting will bear fruit by the work of the Holy Spirit. Don’t give up.

Finally, on a personal note, what has God been showing you in all of this?

God continues to show me that even when everything else changes all the time, he does not. When I feel inadequate. He is not. When I make mistakes, he does not. When I see only fog ahead, he does not. He is unchanging, all-powerful, perfect and wise. He also gives grace and mercy for each day.

Prayer Gatherings Online & In Person Call the church office or email info@college-church.org for details on these prayer meetings.

Sunday Morning Prayer (Online) 8-8:40 a.m.

Led by Pastor Eric Channing Monday Morning Prayer (In person) 6:15-7:15 a.m. in C104A. Led by Elder Rob Wolgemuth Wednesday Night Prayer (Online) 7-8 p.m.

Led by the Missions Office • Jan 6: Speaker TBD • Jan 13: Bruce & Becky Wilson • Jan 20: Nate & Laura Amodio • Jan 27: Harry & Wendy Robinson Friday Lunch Prayer for the Persecuted Church (In person) 12-1 p.m. in C103.

Lydia Prayer Fellowship meets at the home of Joyce Patterson, Tuesday Jan. 12 at 9:15 a.m. Think warm thoughts as Mandy Pehrson, here from the tropics of Papua New Guinea, shares about her life and ministry with her family there.

Hannah Prayer Fellowship Abigail Prayer Fellowship Aaron-Hur Prayer Fellowship Watch the weekly emails for updates on prayer fellowships.

Our prayer pulse email goes out every Monday. You can get prayer updates via that email. Sign up by clicking "Enews signup" on our website. If you already receive other emails from College Church, click "manage my preferences" at the bottom of any email and select prayer pulse to add yourself.

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SIDE BY SIDE

21 Prayer Insights for 2021 Susan Zimmerman Prayer is talking to “the God of heaven.” (Nehemiah 2:4) Prayer is a privilege: “Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” (Hebrews 4:16) Prayer is a command: “And he told them a parable to the effect that they ought always to pray and not lose heart.” (Luke 18:1) Prayer can be difficult: “For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.” (Romans 8:26) Prayer can fill us with awe: “One thing have I asked of the Lord, that will I seek after: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to inquire in his temple.”

(Psalms 27:4) Prayer is effective: “The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.” (James 5:16b) In Luke 11, the disciples asked Jesus, “Lord, teach us to pray,” and Christ responded with the Lord’s prayer, followed with a parable encouraging them that “for everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened.”

Scripture is our best guide to prayer, indeed, the only fully reliable one. But there is great value, as this new year arrives, following on the heels of a year more difficult than any in recent memory, to “exhort one another every day, as long as it is called ‘today,’ that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.” (Hebrews 3:13) Connections invited pastors, directors and elected church leaders to share a tip or two that helps them in their personal prayer. We asked not for perfection or foolproof methods but simply advice from one Christ follower to another. Here’s what we heard:

“I often struggle with the words to pray even when I lead in the Sunday morning congregational prayer. So, I use Scripture as a guide to help train my thoughts and prayers on the truth of God’s Word. Try using the same passage you read in your morning devotional time as a pattern to pray throughout the day.” ( Josh Stringer)

“A plan and a place help me.”

–Carole O’Hare

1. Be a morning person (and use evenings for reflection). “‘Throne before phone’ in the morning has proven to be a blessing to me.” (Karen Bagge) “My plan is first thing in the morning.” (Carole O’Hare) “Pray immediately upon waking. Give thanks, ask for grace to live in a way that brings him glory and for open doors to share the gospel that day.” (Curt Miller) “Think back on your day in the evening, and pray about all your interactions.” (Michael Walker)

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2. Pray Scripture.

“I have been really struck with how Josh Stringer prays through Scripture in the congregational prayers on Sunday morning.

So, I began to do that with the psalms as they are so rich in praise and petition. Most psalms are about the right length to use one a day, and when I have used all of them, I just start over.”

(Nancy Singer) “I write out a verse or more of Scripture in my prayer journal that I read that morning and pray through that.” (Cheryce Berg) “Pray through portions of Scripture and use the prayers in the Bible as a guide.” (Ann Lawrenz) 3. Use Scripture as a springboard to prayer.

“After you finish your Bible reading, think about promises to believe, commands to obey, an example to follow, something directly about God, and pray about it with others in mind.”

(Michael Walker)

“In my office I have daily scriptures, favorite verses and a Bible. God uses the daily verses to prompt me to pray for family, friends and co-workers. Often I will take a snapshot of the verse and forward it to them as an encouragement.” (Chris Tews) 4. Pray like Paul did.

“I am learning to shape my prayers more in line with how the apostle Paul prayed for fellow believers (Ephesians 3:14-21).” (Laurel Aulie)

–Curt Miller

5. Find a prayer mentor or partner.

“Find someone devoted to prayer. Ask them if you can pray together for a season. Spend a season of regular, weekly prayer with them. Learn how they pray. Follow their example as they humbly seek the Lord.” (Ben Panner) “Encourage others you trust to keep you accountable.” (Curt Miller) “Find prayer partners to pray with and for.” (Eric Channing)

“Think through all the interactions you might have that day, with family members in the morning, co-workers throughout the day, a phone call to a friend, or small group in the evening.

Pray through them. It can be general, asking that God would grant you the grace to love each. Or, if there’s a specific need, ask God for wisdom or strength to respond appropriately.”

(Michael Walker) “Read a missionary biography. It will give a fresh perspective and motivate you to pray for others.” (Curt Miller)

“Before writing the words, ‘I am praying for you’ in an email, text or written note, I stop and pray for that person right then, before sending.

This change has really helped me.” (Becky Garrett)

“I keep a prayer journal which helps me remember to pray for specific requests as well as prayers I have written to pray for myself and others, and the answers to the prayers. I also use my journal to write down spiritual nuggets from a sermon, podcast or book I am reading which I reference in my prayers.” (Ann Lawrenz)

9. Make a list.

“I keep a prayer card with prayer requests. Some are ongoing and some are current. I have a scripture verse on the card that reads, ‘I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.’ (3 John 4)” (Karen Bagge) “I use a list by day of the week for individuals I want to pray for.” (Carole O’Hare) “Make seven lists and pray for one group [of requests] each day.” (Michael Walker) 10. Use other people’s lists.

6. Be others focused.

7. Follow through when you say, “I’ll pray for you!”

“I keep a journal for my prayers, not so much to keep track of them, but to help me stay grounded and concentrated as I pray.” (Kat Haase)

“Pray immediately upon waking.”

“Look up the ways that Paul prayed for people, and pray those requests for the people you know.” (Michael Walker)

“I want to pray more for the bigger stuff: strength for the inner person, confidence of Christ’s love, teachable transformed hearts, boldness to witness to others.” (Laurel Aulie)

8. Keep a prayer journal.

“I use the One Cry monthly prayer list, and the one-page persecuted Christians list.” (Carole O’Hare) “I have clipboards for specific groups I am part of, such as small group, women’s Bible study, persecuted Christians prayer group, Sunday school requests and UK prayer group.”

(Ann Lawrenz) “Use the College Church Missionary and Evangelist Prayer Guide in your devotional times.” (Curt Miller) 11. Make it tangible.

“I want to pray more for the bigger stuff.”

–Laurel Aulie

“I’ve learned to stop and pray immediately after I tell someone I will pray for them, and I tell them that ‘I will pray for you right now.’ Otherwise, I forget to do it!” (Cheryce Berg)

“I write people’s names down and pray for them, which makes the prayer experience feel less ephemeral and more tangible.” (Kat Haase) 12. Read books of written prayers.

See “Suggested books as prayer helps & guides.”

(Michael Solis, Ann Lawrenz, Eric Channing)

13. Read books about how to pray or motivation to pray.

See “Suggested books as prayer helps and guides.” (Eric Channing, Ann Lawrenz, Laurel Aulie)

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14. Learn how to pray for missionaries.

“Read, Praying for Your Missionary, by Eddie Byun.” (Curt Miller) 15. Enlist tech as an aid.

“The Laridian PrayerPartner for iPhone ($1.99) is a great way to maintain a prayer list for daily or certain days of the week or month. It does the recording and remembering so prayer can be your focus.”

(Marr Miller) “I use an app called PrayerMate. It allows me to set up categories with items or people in each category and how many of those and how often they come up in my daily prayer time.” (Tim Hollinger)

“I use Scripture as a guide to help train my thoughts.”

–Josh Stringer

“I’m with Tim on loving PrayerMate to keep reminding me of who/what to pray for. I include Scripture passages and subscribe to feeds through that, like Open Doors to pray for suffering Christians around the world.” (Cheryce Berg) “For special requests from friends, I set an alarm on my phone.” (Carole O’Hare)

“As far as specific people and situations to pray about, I simply use a Word doc to keep track.” (Nancy Singer) 16. “Low tech” works too.

“Put a sticky note in your car, on your fridge or next to your bed that says: PRAY.” (Curt Miller) “Instead of being frustrated, pray when you’re waiting for a freight train to pass. Look at it as a prompt for prayer.” (Eric Channing) 17. Light a candle.

“I have recently been lighting a candle during my prayer time.

Having it in front of me while I’m praying reminds me that this is ‘prayer time’ and helps me focus. It also adds a calming atmosphere to my prayer time, and I am encouraged to see the candle burn down and thus the time spent in prayer!” (Lydia Newby) “My [prayer] place is my living room with candles.” (Carole O’Hare) 18. Eat some M&M’s.

“This M&M Prayers Outline is intended for children, but I must confess, I am reminded of it every time a bag of M&M’s is opened. When you open a bag, sort them by color. Then, as randomly as the candies are provided, use them to direct your

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prayer time. For instance, when you eat a green one, lift up a praise to God. A confession for brown candies. Thanksgiving for red ones. Requests for orange. Ways you see God in your day for blue. Expressions of joy for yellow. Or make up your own connections. If you follow the ‘pray without ceasing’ model, you’ll need to buy the larger bag of candy!” (Chris Tews) 19. Pray on the move.

“I often pray while I’m on my morning walk or bike ride. It’s just a conversation with God―whatever I’m thinking about.” (Mark Taylor) 20. Schedule prayer (or find a workaround).

“Schedule time for prayer on the calendar, just like any other meeting would be scheduled.” (Eric Channing)

“A plan and a place help me.” (Carole O’Hare) “Set calendar notifications on your phone.” (Curt Miller) “I am not naturally disciplined about praying at a specific time of day. I find myself praying throughout the day.” (Chris Tews) 21. Pray with others.

“Join (or start!) a weekly prayer meeting at church.” (Eric Channing) Editor’s note: Check out the weekly “Prayer Pulse” email from College Church or page 6 for lists of prayer meetings that gather at church, in homes or virtually.

In the conclusion to his book, Prayer, Timothy Keller describes prayer as “this spiritual wine, this fellowship with the Lord” which “we are invited even now to ‘taste and see that the Lord is good’ (Psalms 34:8).”

Keller quotes the 18th century hymn writer William Cowper to set a vivid scene of prayer as sweet, intimate fellowship with God: “Sometimes a light surprises the Christian as he sings; It is the Lord who rises, with healing in his wings: When comforts are declining, He grants the soul again A season of clear shining, to cheer it after rain.

In holy contemplation we sweetly then pursue The theme of God’s salvation, and find it ever new.

Set free from present sorrow, we cheerfully can say, Let the unknown tomorrow bring with it what it may.”

As 2021 begins, let us approach “the unknown tomorrow” with earnest and unceasing prayer.

SUGGESTED BOOKS AS PRAYER HELPS & GUIDES BOOKS OF WRITTEN PRAYERS The Valley of Vision: A Collection of Puritan Prayers & Devotions, edited by Arthur Bennett (Ann Lawrenz, Eric Channing, Michael Solis)

“The chapter entitled ‘The Preacher’s Private Prayer’ is one I frequently re-read to be reminded and challenged by the privilege and responsibility to pray.”

Power Through Prayer by E.M. Bounds

Canyon Road: A Book of Prayer by Kari Kristina Reeves

“This is a powerful book that motivates me to pray.”

“One of my professors in seminary reviewed this, saying, ‘This is a remarkable book. I can honestly say that, apart from the Book of Psalms, this is the most helpful and moving collection of prayers that I have ever read, and I will return to it over and over again for my own personal use. Like the psalms themselves, these prayers are the ‘best thoughts in the best language.’” (Michael Solis)

The Hidden Life of Prayer by David McIntyre

Divine Hours for the Seasons, a trilogy compiled by Phyllis Tickle.

(Ann Lawrenz)

Fresh Wind, Fresh Fire by Jim Cymbala

The Book of Psalms BOOKS ABOUT HOW TO PRAY OR MOTIVATION TO PRAY The Imitation of Christ by Thomas a’ Kempis (Ann Lawrenz)

“This book transformed Dr. Wayne Grudem’s prayer life and highly impacted John Piper’s life, and I can see why. It’s a great modern classic on prayer.”

Prayer by Ole Hallesby “Another book that helps inspire and motivate me to pray.”

“Twenty years ago, God powerfully used this book in my life.

Besides the Bible, it’s probably the main reason why I have a passion for prayer today. It shows real life examples of how God transforms life through prayer.”

A Call to Spiritual Reformation by D.A. Carson

Prayer: Communing with God in Everything, Collected Insights from A.W. Tozer (Ann Lawrenz)

“I continue to read the introduction/chapter 1 nearly every year. The whole book is good, but this part has been really helpful.”

Practicing the Presence of God by Brother Lawrence

The God Who Hears by Bingham Hunter

“My most significant prayer breakthrough occurred as a young adult after reading Practicing the Presence of God. This revolutionized how I went about daily prayer.” (Laurel Aulie)

“A biblical theology of prayer from a former boss and professor of mine at Phoenix Seminary. Wonderful book.”

The following books on prayer were recommended by Eric Channing:

“More of a booklet than book, but it is a challenging, penetrating call to prayer. Easy to read in one sitting.”

Face to Face by Kenneth Boa“He has culled scriptures that you can pray along with, so this would help implement Josh Stringer’s suggestion to pray scripture. This book has massively helped my prayer life.”

A Simple Way to Pray by Martin Luther

Lectures to My Students by Charles Spurgeon

“This book is similar to Boa’s [Face to Face] in that he goes through praise, supplication, petition, etc. and attaches scripture to these key areas. A classic.”

A Call to Prayer by J.C. Ryle

“This is how the great reformer taught his barber how to pray.”

A Method for Prayer by Matthew Henry

About the Author | Susan Zimmerman College Church member Susan Zimmerman is currently serving as a deaconess and Mom2Mom mentor. She is a wife and mom to two adult children and grandmother of three. She has worked in a variety of corporate and agency marketing communications positions along with doing freelance writing for mission and nonprofit organizations.

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SIDE BY SIDE

Serving in the time of COVID (SEC) A Conversation with Jan Jones and Jerry Jagrowski, members of the Service & Engagement Committee It’s tempting to think that church service has gone the way of pandemic restrictions and doesn’t exist anymore or will have to wait until things return to normal. Jan Jones, a member of the Service and Engagement Committee (SEC) has a different perspective on this. “I’m not sure people’s thoughts about serving have changed. Those who want to serve, and can, are serving.”

Jan is quick to give a shout-out to volunteers on Sunday morning who serve as greeters, ushers, members of the cleaning team as well as the teachers and leaders in the adult communities and in Kids’ Harbor. On Wednesdays, volunteers serve in women’s and men’s Bible studies—either in-person or virtually, in Kids’ Korner and midweek children’s programs. The Wednesday ministries have a longer break but plan to resume that first week of February.

Then there are people who, for example, grocery shop for their neighbors. “This is invisible to others,” Jan points out, “but still so important to show Jesus to others.”

Equally important to Jan is expressing thanks to those who serve. These public expressions of thanks, according to Jan are, a “way to encourage people to get on board with serving. It’s like getting on a fun bus to Disney World and the attitude of ‘c'mon and join our great adventure’ versus ‘we need you to serve" (said in an Eeyore, the old grey Donkey, voice). Typically, the people who are serving don’t want a personal mention or attention brought to their work, but we can still issue a huge gratitudefilled balloon or the work they are doing.

Throughout the pandemic, the SEC has been working behind the scenes. “Right now, we’re ready for our marching orders from the Discipleship Committee as it pulls together information from various focus groups,” Jan explains.

Meanwhile, the SEC has been “advancing the data capture and usage initiative that we were tasked with from the beginning of the committee,” Jan continues. “There’s a lot of activity going on with that.” SEC member Daniel Conroy has been working with Tony Visconti, digital ministry manager, on this project.

“This will help the committee reach out to church members and regular attenders who are not currently engaged and help them get plugged in,” Jan points out. “We also are using data captured by participants in the Gifted to Serve re-launch to help match interest and skills with ministry needs.” The committee also plans work with the Nominating Committee to identify church members who would fit well with upcoming open positions for 2021-2022 church year.

“We also work with new members to help them engage with the church body.” Jan sums up. “The committee is looking forward to connecting with the next class of new members this month.”

When it comes to connecting with others in pandemic times, Jan always offers an in-person, physically distanced connection. “If the weather does not cooperate/the person is not comfortable with that, I offer a choice of a Zoom-type call, or just a phone call. Many people are ‘video called out,’ so a simple voice call is often just the thing needed.”

Meet the Service and Engagement Committee

Kristin Berenschot Jerry Jagrowski Meagan Godoy Chris Gottlieb Daniel Conroy Jan Jones

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Referring to the most recent churchwide survey, Jerry references that one-third of our congregation is uncomfortable participating at in-person events right now. “To that one-third, what does service and engagement look like when you are completely virtual?” Jerry wonders.

From his perspective, Jerry encourages people to join an adult community or the men’s or women’s Bible studies. “They all offer virtual options and are a fine way to remain connected during these times. Or pick up the phone and call someone you know in the church and catch up with the person. As you talk, see if the person or family need any help.”

This past August, the SEC introduced informal Fellowship Meals that were a huge success and is looking forward to planning its next event to encourage the church family to stay connected, keep serving and Jan and Jerry and the rest of the SEC are devoted to consistent prayer for church ministries and ministry leaders. “The SEC has divided up the ministry leadership team and is praying for them,” Jerry says. “I will tell you that I definitely am

more engaged with those three people I am praying for and communicating with, and I trust the prayers are serving them.

“Be in prayer for specific individuals at church, be it in the body or the leadership. Then follow-up with those individuals on a monthly basis or so to touch base with them. Either a phone call or an e-mail,” encourages Jerry.

As the new year begins, the SEC already has plans for events such as the successful Fellowship Meals last August as the committee and the church family work together to serve, to connect and to pray for each other in times of a pandemic or not.

Just as Pfizer and others are starting mass shipments of the C19 vaccine, we should be planning and preparing to returning to full operation at College Church. Ministries will need many helpful people when operations resume, and what better way to see your church friends than by serving with them? Don’t be surprised if you get a call or an email from a member of the SEC checking in to see how he or she may help you reconnect after the COVID interruption. Serving is a grand adventure!

Spring 2021 Perspectives Class Tuesdays January 19–May 11 | 6:30–9 p.m.

Highpoint Church, 1805 High Point Dr. Naperville, IL 60563 Register for the First Night Free at perspectives.org/wheatonperspectives Contact: Melissa Warner at wheatonperspectives@gmail.com COVID-19 Safety: The class plans to be in person and socially distanced with masks as able. Class will likely begin online and transition to in-person when safe to do so.

Perspectives is a 15-week class that will change the way you view the world around you. In it, you will have your eyes opened to the heart and purpose of God and how you can take part in his work all over the world, from the urban streets of America to the rainforest and deserts of distant lands. A fantastic array of pastors, theologians, international missiologists and mobilizers will challenge and inspire you to see just how big God is, and how much he desires that all might come to know him. Whether you are single, married, a student, a homemaker, a professional or retired, Perspectives will bless and challenge your life and direction.

GLOBAL VOICES

Words of Thanks from Around the World Missions Team

Thank you for generously supporting the Lord’s work around the world! As we entered the fall, we knew of the financial challenges many sustained and had no idea what to expect for the Missionary Christmas or Thanksgiving Eve Offering. Both of these—the Christmas gifts we send to our missionaries and the support of our missions projects—are dependent on what is received. That said, both offerings exceeded 2019!

Please pass on our immense gratitude. It has been a hard year with many colleagues leaving, and the workload for those of us who remain would not be sustainable in the long term. Yet God has provided for all our needs, and now he is helping more workers get back to the mission field. The prayers, support, and gifts of College Church have been an enormous help and blessing to us during this year. We are deeply thankful for your partnership with us.

As Paul wrote to the Corinthians, we say to you,

In Jesus,

Dear College Church Family,

“This service that you perform is not only supplying the needs of the Lord’s people but is also overflowing in many expressions of thanks to God. Because of the service by which you have proved yourselves, others will praise God for the obedience that accompanies your confession of the gospel of Christ, and for your generosity in sharing with them and with everyone else.” (2 Cor. 9:12-13) Thank you, College Church, for your generous hearts. We praise God for you and with you!

MISSIONARY CHRISTMAS 2020 Total: $47,800 (nearly $10,000 more than 2019) Missionary Christmas is a unique tradition of College Church and an immense blessing to our missionary family. We encourage our missionaries to use these personal gifts for non-ministry-related purposes, to take a step back out of the busyness and to find rest and renewal. We want each missionary to take a moment to care for his or her own soul, and for their family to do something relaxing and, hopefully, fun.

Thank you to each of you who give financially and pray for our missionary family. Our missionaries always send notes of gratitude for these gifts. Here are a couple of them: We are so grateful for the generosity of the College Church family. We are also keenly aware there are many prayers which accompany the gift. Your prayers and faithful support have allowed us to live and serve in South Africa. Thank you very much. We pray the Lord will guide and direct you as you enter 2021.

For the Kingdom, Rod and Kathy Duttweiler (South Africa)

Jim and Michelle Albright (Midterm in Papua New Guinea) THANKSGIVING EVE OFFERING 2020 Total: $32,460 (over $2,000 more than last year) The offering went to empowering communities in India, supporting education in the Dominican Republic and supporting the suffering in Greece. Each of these ministries is thankful for your generosity: ENABLED Becky and I want to thank you for your Thanksgiving Eve offering gift towards the ENABLED ministry of Pioneers. We are humbled by your sacrificial giving.

We have always been so grateful for the STARS Disability Ministries of College Church. We appreciate that College Church has had a long-standing commitment of providing care and dignity for persons with intellectual and/or developmental needs and their families. Likewise, ENABLED is a holistic, faith-based health and development initiative started by Pioneers missionaries working in Northern India to respectfully empower the local community to consider an alternative response to their challenges through support, practical care, and Christ-like restoration of dignity.

Your gift allows ENABLED to sponsor a center to support the needs of 20 remote villages. These satellite centers extend disability services to remote mountainous areas. The funds may also be used to train pastors or employ national disability support workers. All these funds will be carefully stewarded to provide access to family support for those with disabilities.

Thank you again for blessing Pioneers, our partners in India, and extending the gospel to the unreached!

In Christ,

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Bruce and Becky Wilson

GO MINISTRIES

GEM

Thank you for your generous gift from the Thanksgiving Eve Offering! As a sports ministry, one of our primary objectives is to help our athletes look beyond sports. Every day they’re seeing, experiencing and hearing about Jesus through our coaches and staff. Through this specific gift, our athletes will be able to access quality education through the use of this computer lab. Our English classes, Bible classes, vocational trainings and prep school will all be enhanced and open so many doors for our athletes and their futures. Thank you for making this dream a reality.

I want to express our deep gratitude for your generosity towards the ministry on Lesvos. We have been blessed by your church family in several ways over the years - teams, donations, support, prayer. Thank you for your ongoing commitment to reaching the lost and least reached with the gospel in your partnership with GEM, specifically towards the ministry to refugees on Lesvos. God has opened the flood gates of openness to the gospel in the hearts of people that were previously closed and churches like College Church help us to continue ministry in this fruitful season. On behalf of GEM, thank you!

Kyle Bradley

Thad McAuley and team

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LOCALLY SOURCED

The Gospel at Midway Airport John Melby “Good morning. May I have your attention please.” Tom Johnston, a Midway Airport Chaplin announces over the intercom. “A Christian thirty minute non-denominational worship service will begin at 10:00 a.m. in the airport chapel on the mezzanine level of concourse C. Everyone with a face mask for face covering is welcome to attend. Thank you.”

Hearing the announcement when waiting for a connecting flight, passengers Teresa and Dave arrive at the Chapel and sit in the first row. They are traveling from Manistee, Michigan, through Midway, on their way to Florida. David is retired Coast Guard, and Susan is in a wheelchair that David lovingly ‘drives’ for her. They both are regular attenders of a Baptist church in their hometown.

Josh, another chapel attender, is a traveler headed back home.

He enters the chapel just before the service is to begin. As a retired police officer, he seems like a calm person, however, has symptoms of PTSD. His home church is Central Christian in Las Vegas.

All chapel visitors seem to have deep and humble reasons to attend the service.

The day is Monday, December 7, 2020, Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day, and of course, during the worldwide pandemic. Both times in history seem to bring on a greater meaning to the morning’s worship and maybe even a greater bond for each attending the service.

Chaplain Tom begins the service with a warm and welcoming prelude that leads to, according to the worship bulletin, Personal Preparation. This is a time, the chaplain explains, to prepare hearts for the worship of God, the Creator of all things, and Jesus, the Savior.

As the service continues, Chaplain Tom asks for each worshipper to tell a bit about themselves. Tom shares a story about his brother who is a drummer. It was clear that Chaplain Tom welcomes all and that Christ brings all together in his infinite love.

The Midway Airport Chapel service is part of The Moody Church Skyword Ministries. From the Moody website: moodychurch.org/skyword-ministries “Skyword Ministries is the only authorized Christian Protestant chaplaincy privileged to serve the Chicago O’Hare and Midway airport communities.

Our volunteer Chaplain team of approximately 30 chaplains

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conducts multiple chapel services every Sunday and on Christian holidays at both airports. Dr. Hutz H. Hertzberg serves as the Senior Protestant Chaplain and gives overall leadership to this ministry. The Moody Church serves as the officially recognized sponsoring judicatory for the Protestant chapel ministry at O’Hare and Midway. Skyword Ministries is the incorporated name of this ministry and is a recognized 501(c)3 organization.

God has wonderfully touched the lives of a multitude of passengers, airport employees and visitors for over five decades through the airport chapels. But there is much more to be done – we invite you to participate and partner with us! (Hutz H. Hertzburg) “Skyword Ministries supports chaplains offering weekly chapel services at both Midway and O’Hare airports. Dr. Hurtzburg is a 1979 graduate of Wheaton College. Tom Johnston is a 1977 Wheaton College graduate and serves as the primary Chaplain at Midway Airport.

Services are held at Midway Chapel Monday through Friday at Concourse C, Mezzanine Level, at 10:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m, and on Sundays, 10 a.m., 12 p.m. and 1:30 p.m. At O'Hare Airport, the Chapel is in Terminal 2, Mezzanine Level, with services held Sundays at 10 a.m. and noon.”

During the middle of the chapel service, Tom asks each attender who they would like prayers said for and why. Teresa and David ask prayers for their daughter, who is compromised with asthma,

and at age 39, has had five heart attacks and nine strokes. Josh asks for his family’s good health during the Christmas season and the pandemic.

Then Chaplain Tom leads the singing of the song, How Great Though Art, verses 1 and 2. Prayers, including the Lord’s Prayer, are said. The Scripture reading leads to a message that we are all sinners, and we are all in need of deep humility. The benediction ends the service.

After the service, there is long, warm conversation between all.

Each worshipper is given a Crossway ESV travel Bible.

As a first-time attender of the Midway Airport chapel service, I was deeply moved by the gospel-centered worship it was.

It simply was a full church service. Chaplain Tom gives to his worshipers he has just met, well spoken, heartfelt prayers centered on what they had asked for.

Through the years of his serving as a Midway’s chaplain, Tom has had a wide variety of chapel attenders including people with significant pain in their lives like addictions, loss of jobs, divorce and suicide. For each, he has prayed. Tom shared that people are openly willing to share their prayer needs even though most are strangers to each other.

After the chapel service, Tom and I chatted about his Midway Airport ministry. He told me of the connections he has with many of the airport’s workers, especially the first responders. As an example, the chapel is located adjacent to a Chicago Police Department locker area. When I visited, I saw Tom greet, by their names, each police officer we met. It was apparent to me that Chaplain Tom loves his work, and those he connects with at the airport during the day love him.

As far as his chapel ministry, Tom said about 25 people, on average, are now attending the services each week. He said that even though there are significantly fewer travelers during the pandemic, the attendance in the chapel seems to be greater.

Sometimes Tom has only one chapel visitor for a service. He

said one is sometimes a challenge, however, most often a rich experience.

Tom shared one story of a person traveling to Las Vegas who essentially wanted pre-visit forgiveness for the not-so-nice things he expected to do on his trip. Chaplain Tom said he did not provide what the traveler requested. Instead, he told him the best path for the traveler was giving up the sin and living a life for the Lord.

Both the Midway and O’Hare airport chapels minister to airport workers like pilots, flight attendants, TSA agents and mechanics as well as the air travelers themselves. Chapel attenders include Christians as well as those practicing another faith or those not practicing any faith at all. Passengers are usually one-time attenders, and some airport employees will attend more than once.

For all attenders, both airport chapels are a place Bible teaching is clearly followed in the worship services. It is a truly a place where the gospel is taught.

At College Church, Tom is a member and one of the church’s supported evangelists.

As a long time, well-over-a-million-mile air traveler myself, the Skyword Ministries Chicago area chapels are a gospel-centered blessing for those flying, and those who work at the airport. I have worshipped at the O’Hare Chapel, and now, at the Midway Chapel. If you are traveling, and have some between flight times, I recommend visiting the chapel for the services or just visiting to offer prayers.

At the end of my visit to Chaplain Tom and his service, Kathy, a smiling, long-time Southwest Airlines flight attendant came up the entry elevator to visit the chapel just to “check it out” for the first time. Tom, I and Kathy chatted for a few moments about her home church, air travel during the pandemic, the Midway Chapel and her job as a flight attendant. At the end of our conversation, Kathy said: “This is just what I needed today!”

About the Author | John Melby College Church member John Melby is equally comfortable sitting at his computer writing or staying busy with his home remodeling and repair business.

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I BELIEVE!

I Believe Adugna Tahear LIFE IN ETHIOPIA I grew up in Ethiopia, in Addis, in the Orthodox church.

Ethiopia is an ancient country. It is named throughout the Bible and is in many ways similar to stories you read about in the Old Testament or in the Mosaic law. There, people believe God punishes and rewards you according to what do. Like Old Testament times, there is a high importance on what dreams mean and a desire for people to receive a reward from the Lord for helping the needy. There’s an expectation that the Lord watches over your steps, sees your good work and blesses you.

Growing up, I learned the Amharic alphabet at school led by an Orthodox teacher and would practice my penmanship by writing out Proverbs 1:7 over and over again. So, it got in my head: “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge . . .” The Ethiopian Orthodox church calendar assigns special

Two weeks later the woman came back to our house. I couldn’t believe it was the same person and that she was alive. She looked healthy, she had new clothes – the only thing that was the same was a cross necklace she wore and her name. She thanked us and blessed us. She sent three crosses to my two sisters and me, because she knew I liked hers. I said to my mom, “Who did this?” and she said the missionary doctor. And I knew then that I wanted to be like that. I wanted to be in medicine and compassion ministry.

COMPASSION AND MINISTRY I connect compassion with faith. Always, missions and compassion have been in my heart, because of the way I was raised and because I grew up seeing these problems. My vision has always been to help the poor. There is such reward in helping them and seeing their happiness.

My journey to pursue my calling for a medical missions was long and hard. After studying at Addis Ababa University, I first immigrated to study medicine in the former Soviet Union in Tashkent, Uzbekistan.

days, and my birthday was on Saviour’s Day, so growing up I was told that I belong to the Saviour. As they baptized me, they gave me a Christian name in the Amharic language translated as “offered for Christ.” I loved these connections as I grew up, searching to know the Saviour better along with a great desire in spiritual matters.

A GROWING COMPASSION In Ethiopia, there is great value in hospitality. People you barely know knock on your door for help. You take them in and expect the Lord to reward you and to be pleased with you for making a difference in the lives of humble people—and perhaps they will bless you afterward. People who knew my family would come to our house when they had problems. They would just show up, claiming to be distant relatives or people we met once, and due to the expected blessing from the Lord, my parents would welcome them. My mom would ask the children to wash their feet—hospitality does not send visitors to bed with dirty feet— feed them and give them a bed. We often would have 20 people at a time, including my family. We never knew if we would sleep in our own beds that night or end up sharing one with a sibling.

I remember when I was around age five, a lady came to our door and looked like she was dying. I was scared to greet her.

She looked sick, she was pale, she smelled. I was afraid she would die in our house. I couldn’t sleep, thinking she wouldn’t live through the night—I had never seen anybody die. But she did, and the next day my mom took her to a missionary doctor.

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After a challenging year at a school in Tashkent, I transferred to a bio-medical program in Donetsk, Ukraine. I had gone home to Ethiopia, and on my return to school, I went through Moscow. It was when I was on a shuttle bus headed to Tashkent for my things that I lost my passport, my papers and all my money. I cried so much. People took me to the Russian police station, and I tried to explain what happened, but they didn’t get it. It was so complicated. I stayed in Moscow for an entire month, and the school year started without me. A month later, I got a temporary passport and was able to leave, but it was hard to catch up on school.

GOD’S PROVISION A little while later, I got a letter from a man named Emmanuel, whom I didn’t know. He had gotten my address from my friend who lived near him in Sweden. They had been talking, and he mentioned he was from Ethiopia and wanted to get married, and she brought up my name. I was so unhappy because she hadn’t asked me first.

I wrote back to Emmanuel and said, “Thank you for writing. If you want to be my friend, that is fine. If your goal is to marry, please don’t write anymore.” He wrote back and said, “I have been praying for a long time, and I think this is from God.” I had a big fear of God. I knew the story of Jonah and held onto that letter and wondered. She, too, said, “I think this is from God.” I was surprised, but I respected her and asked her why.

I didn’t want to be like Jonah. I knew that there were different ways people seek the Lord’s directions in life. If God was talking to me, I wanted to listen. She didn’t have any proof as to why but held firm that she thought it was from God.

I prayed, “Lord if this is from you, I will do it. But you must show me a miracle that I will never question.”

I told Emmanuel that I was asking the Lord for a sign to obey and trust him to guide me. I prayed and fasted, asking the Lord to show me clearly his will in my life.

If the miracle I asked for happened in two weeks’ time without my involvement; then we would meet and proceed with a marriage agreement for a year akin to the biblical timeframe for a betrothed relationship. Otherwise, we would remain friends and I would stay and pursue my education where I was. We both agreed to that. I continue praying the Lord’s will be done.

It was Christmastime, and we had two weeks of vacation. Most students traveled, and Emmanuel said we could meet up in Europe, but I didn’t have any papers. I prayed, “Lord, if you are in this thing, then bring the paperwork to my table without me having to do anything.” In the place I was living, my floor had a woman who collected the mail. You would go see her to pick up your letters.

Shortly after, the first miracle happened – someone found my passport, the one I had lost on the train four months before.

They didn’t give it to the lady but came and knocked on my door and gave it to me.

A couple days later, a friend of mine was picking up a letter of his own and decided to get mine and brought it to me. That envelope held my papers. Someone else arranged my plane ticket and that, too, was brought right to my door. Finally, the lady in charge of student exit visas (who struck fear in our hearts), told me I had been released and was free to travel. I didn’t do any of these things, they all came right to me. God answered my prayers.

Emmanuel and I met in Athens. He took me to the house of a missionary named Costas Macris, and I stayed with him and his family. There, I heard the full gospel and got a Bible, which I hadn’t had since I left Ethiopia. I began to help with their Bible study and meetings. It wasn’t long before I was baptized in Athens into the Baptist church. They also performed our wedding.

Finally, I went to Sweden where I pursued my calling for medical missions and received my dentistry license from Gothenburg University. I was thankful for the Lord’s faithfulness in making it possible for me to finish my studies and for the births of my children Benjamin and Salome during that time.

And, I was thankful for my mother who came to Gothenburg to help me.

As we were looking for missions opportunities, Emmanuel got connected to church planting with the Southern Baptist Association in Tampa, Florida. So, we moved from Sweden to the U.S. with our two children. The Lord blessed us with

two more children, Joseph and Johanna. I was home with my children, when the Lord gave me this word from 2 Chronicles 16:9: “For the eyes of the LORD range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him.”

As I was home with my last baby, I met a missions pastor who was sending a team to Nicaragua. I was privileged to serve in dentistry at this orphanage where the children had so many infections and dental problems. I served my first compassion dentistry mission with my baby on my back.

The Lord continued to open doors and we now serve as career missionaries. I have helped develop a dental clinic and do evangelism and Bible teaching to West Africans.

THE LORD’S FAITHFULNESS TO FAMILY The verse the Lord gave our family is “Who am I, O Lord God and what is my family, that you brought me this far?” (1 Chronicles 17:16) Our son Ben is an epidemiologist with a PhD. He and his wife, Feven, love and serve the Lord in Maryland. Salome serves at a community hospital in Grand Junction, Colorado, as an occupational therapist. Salome is married to Jesse and they enjoy outdoor activities and life with the Lord together.

Joseph is a mechanical engineer and works as a consultant. He was a student athlete. We enjoy coming to church and praying together. Johanna is at Hope College studying nursing and loves the Lord.

LIFE WITH JESUS My journey of life and of faith has not been smooth, but God has never stopped providing for me. This season with COVID, has been hard. I am praying and trusting that God would clear the way and direct my path as he has in the past.

About the Author | Adugna Tahear Adugna and her husband Emmanuel serve with SIM Culture ConneXions. She is a career missionary dentist and seeks to relieve pain, eliminate infections and give people back their smiles.

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BOOK CORNER

Best Books 2020 (continued from December 2020)

Mike McKevitt, deacon Chasing Contentment by Erik Raymond The subtitle is “Trusting God in a Discontented Age,” which I'm sure everyone would agree that we live in discontented times. The book is a good reminder that being content doesn't mean we ignore those problems, but we can nevertheless rest in our sovereign God in the midst of such issues.

Mike Solis, pastoral resident The Color of Compromise: The Truth about the American Church's Complicity in Racism by Jemar Tisby

Hidden Worldviews by Steve Wilkens & Mark Sanford

Wil Triggs, director of communications

In His Image: 10 Ways God Calls Us to Reflect His Character by Jen Wilkin

Gentle and Lowly by Dane Ortlund

Penny Thrasher, board of missions Gay Girl, Good God: The Story of Who I Was, and Who God Has Always Been

by Jackie Hill Perry "I used to be a lesbian." Jackie, with masterful skill, shares her story of coming to faith in Jesus. So refreshingly beautiful!

Randy Jahns, elder Gentle and Lowly by Dane Ortlund

Mindy Rynbrandt, director of women’s ministries

Tom Paulsen, culture impact committee

Uncommon Ground: Living Faithfully in a World of Difference by Tim Keller & John Inazu

The Oracle by Jonathan Cahn

Humble Roots: How Humility Grounds and Nourishes Your Soul by Hannah Anderson

Evangelism in a Skeptical World by Sam Chan Zach Fallon, high school pastor If someone is looking for a new, solid book that offers an introductory level on the biblical storyline I would recommend Unfolding Grace (crossway.org/bibles/unfolding-gracehcj/), newly released from Crossway and also the workbook that goes with it. We are planning on using it in Project Discipleship with some of our high school students next semester.

The book is a fascinating look at the intersection of the prophesies related to the children of Israel returning to their homeland and historical events.

For the complete list of best books 2020, go to onewordjournal.com. Many of these titles are available at our online bookstore at 10ofthose.com/us/partners/collegechurch. Other gift ideas are there as well.

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January 3 February 7

LORD'S SUPPER MILESTONES Marriages & Births • Micah Jay Zimmerman was born to Colin and Becca Zimmerman on December 10. Paternal grandparents are Todd and Susan Zimmerman.

• Amber Ruth McKenna was born to Joey and Bekah McKenna on December 8. Paternal and first-time grandparents are Steve and Lisa McKenna.

• Hudson Palmer Krumsieg was born to Caleb and Lydia Krumsieg on November 22. Hudson’s first-time maternal grandparents are David and Julie Sohmer and his maternal great-grandparents are Eliot and Brenda Sohmer.

Condolences • Pray for Dorothy (Bob) Wick and family, including one of our College Church missionaries serving in a sensitive location, as they grieve the loss of Dorothy’s brother Harold Spinka of Naperville on December 27.

• Long-time College Church member Carl Hass entered the presence of Jesus on December 22 while at Cleveland Clinic (OH). Pray for his wife, Carolynn, and family as they grieve his loss. A private service for immediate family was held.

• Pray for Karene (Phil) Lo Galbo and family as they grieve the loss of Karene’s mother, Donelda Peterson, who passed away on December 13 in Fort Wayne, Indiana.

• Pray for Tom (Susan) Krisch and family as they grieve the loss of Tom’s mother, Margaret, who died on December 10 in Wheaton.

• Pray for Steve and Barb Dowell, their son Danny and family as they grieve the sudden loss of Danny’s wife, Michelle, on December 7.

• Pray for Alice Mortenson, family and friends, as they grieve the loss of Alice’s husband, Carl, who passed away on November 30. The Mortensons are former missionaries of College Church who served from 1958-1962.

• Pray for College Church missionary Jane ( Jeff) Pelz as she grieves the loss of her mother, Kathryn Hopson, who passed away on November 27. A memorial service will be held in New Zealand.

• Pray for Jeff Steenwyk and family as they grieve the loss of Jeff’s wife, Chris, who passed away on November 27 after battling cancer for many years.

• Pray for Betty Faircloth and family as they grieve the loss of Betty’s husband, Sam, who passed away on November 23 at 99 years of age.

332 E. Seminary, Wheaton, IL 60187 • Phone: (630) 668-0878 • www.college-church.org Connections is a monthly newsletter published for and about the people of College Church.

Send news items and suggestions to: connections@college-church.org.

Take advantage of events—some one-time, some ongoing—that are taking place around town this month. Also, keep Connections in mind to promote a community event to the College Church family. Send event information by the following dates to connections@college-church.org.

For the February issue: January 9 | For the March issue: February 9 | For the April issue: March 9 Our Pastors, Directors and Residents: Eric Channing, pastor of congregational care and family ministries | Cheryce Berg, director of children’s ministries | Julie Clemens, director of disability ministries | Erik Dewar, pastor of worship and music | Zach Fallon, senior high pastor | Dan Hiben, middle school pastor | Tim Hollinger, technology director | Diane Jordan, director of visitation and care | Howard Kern, facilities director | Josh Maurer, pastorial resident | Curt Miller, missions pastor | Josh Moody, senior pastor | Ben Panner, college pastor | Mindy Rynbrandt, director of women’s ministries | John Seward, executive pastor | Nancy Singer, director of administration and finance | Mike Solis, pastoral resident | Josh Stringer, pastor of discipleship | Wil Triggs, director of communications | Michael Walker, pastoral resident Our Council of Elders: David Bea | Howard Costley | Dave Gieser, vice chair | Randy Jahns| Heinrich Johnsen | Dan Lindquist | Josh Moody, senior pastor | Phil Nussbaum | Tom Nussbaum | Jeremy Taylor | Mark Taylor, chair | Tad Williams | Rob Wolgemuth, secretary

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