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Community Renewal in Rural Iowa

April 2, 2014
Soccer players in Britt, Iowa

Soccer players in Britt, Iowa

Britt Christian Reformed Church, also known as “At the Crossroads Ministry,” is reaching out in various ways to people living in the tiny northern Iowa community of Britt.

One way that Britt CRC seeks to engage its community is through a children’s soccer league that has grown to include over 60 members.

Pastor Joel A. De Boer considers the league an exciting achievement, as their town “is not a soccer town, but we have lots of fun.”

This program is engaging families without any church affiliation and integrating them into the presence of Jesus in a unique and powerful way, De Boer says.

A time of fellowship is held after each game where members of the church, which is funded in part by Christian Reformed Home Missions, welcome new families.

As they get to know one another, says De Boer, members of his congregation often have the chance hear about the challenges these families are facing.

Church members are then able to talk about how God will provide help and opportunities as they face the challenges.

De Boer says these after-soccer gatherings reflect the mission of the church.

“We are looking for when Christ opens a context so we can be people of mission,” says De Boer.

As people of mission,  De Boer says, he and members of Britt CRC seek to walk alongside individuals — in the soccer fellowship and in other ways — who are in the “crossroads” of their life journey.

Here is another example.

One day, De Boer was sitting in his office when he received a phone call from the family of a young man who had recently passed away in a motorcycle accident.

This man had not been a member of Britt’s congregation; however, De Boer had met the young man through a friend he helped lead to Christ.

De Boer agreed to host the funeral upon their request. Little did anyone know that the next week nearly 600 people would cram into their 250-capacity facility to honor the life of this young man.

Crowds overflowed into surrounding rooms, the atrium, and out the door. This was the first time many of these individuals had entered a church in years, if ever, and that day many hardened hearts heard about the grace and love of God, says De Boer.

This focus on walking alongside people in the crossroads of their lives has brought blessings to Britt CRC.

The congregation has gained 11 new families in the last year-and-a-half, and the children’s ministry has increased from 10 children to over 30.

Families regularly invite their neighbors to Sunday services, and in turn, these families are inviting their neighbors. This domino effect is bringing change to the rural community of Britt, Iowa, “and all the glory and honor is being given to our God,” says De Boer.