Journeying Together - 2016 Annual Ministry Report
While in college, I worked as a camp counselor in the summertime. It was a challenging responsibility to guide, direct, and care for a cabin of a dozen youngsters, and I was always pleased when a junior counselor—a counselor in training—joined me. Two is better than one when dealing with a group of grade 7 students!
You can think of your own experiences in which you’ve learned that “two is better than one,” that “a cord of three strands is not quickly broken,” or that “although the body is made up of many parts, they form one body.” That, after all, is what the church is all about: serving as the body of Christ.
This annual report provides a picture of our many-faceted ministries, using words, photos, and numbers. But please don’t approach this as data to be digested. Rather, think of it as the body of Christ at work—the Holy Spirit moving in and through us. And even if you’re not in any of the pictures or stories, it’s still about you—and all of those who sit in pews with you, whether across the aisle or on the other side of the world.
Even more, this is a report about the Christian Reformed Church moving forward. Whether it’s me recalling my time as a camp counselor hiking in rain or sunshine, or you remembering a time when your church was moving into a new chapter in its ministry, we’re all on a journey. So it is with the CRC—each of us in our local congregations, all of us together.
While we all know the ultimate destination of our shared journey, this report seeks to note some of the highlights—even if you can only experience them vicariously.
As you read the report, please remember two things.
First, a journey often conjures up a vision of moving away: a summer vacation, off to college, or a business trip. But this journey isn’t about going someplace far away. True, some of what you read is happening on the other side of the globe. Yet whether it’s ministry
far away or ministry that provides resources to you and your congregation right where you are, it’s all about journeying together in kingdom service.
Throughout Our Journey 2020, the ministry plan of the CRC, the work of the denomination is focused again and again on local congregations—not as an end in itself, but to keep your church going forward, making disciples in your community, and teaching everything Christ has commanded.
Second, a journey requires resources. Hiking with grade 7 students in the Manistee National Forest required lots of water, trail mix, and even ponchos. Journeying together as the CRC requires resources as well. Our Journey 2020 recognizes the need for resources, and it seeks to make them easily accessible, to help you find them, and to encourage you to share the good ministry ideas you’ve inherited or picked up along the way.
The best part of this journey is the promise we have for each step of the way: “Surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age” (Matt. 28:20).
View the 2016 Annual Ministry Report.
