Springhill Baptist Church

Springhill Church Family,

I hope you have been able to be in our worship services this month as different ones from within our church family has spoken. If you have not, I encourage you to get on our website and listen to the sermons from the month of January. It will be a blessing to you. It has been a special time for me to hear and reflect. As we went into the new year, I spent some extra time thinking about 2009 and the things God did throughout the year. He truly did some incredible things that I want to remind you of, so we can praise Him.

For me, I will remember 2009 as being a year when what I have longed for and believed God would do in Springhill began to evolve. From the beginning of the year all the way through the end of the year, God brought new faces into the family of Springhill who have begun to serve Jesus and invest their lives in Springhill. To the glory of God, we saw several come to Christ through the ministry and missions outreaches of Springhill.

In previous years, other ministries like youth, missions, and small groups grew and progressed in a strong way, but 2009 was a year where we were blessed to see some very needed ministries evolve in ways we had never seen before. Under the direction of our Children’s Minister, Jami Bryan, our children’s ministry took off and many new and exciting things began to happen, and tremendous growth has taken place. The women’s ministry has continued to evolve and become truly meaningful to our ladies. Men’s ministry is taking off like we have not seen before. In September, a new schedule evolved for our Sunday mornings; a new worship service that God has continued to bless and add to and a new Sunday school with many new classes and teachers. Over the year, I believe God used fellowship events to help us better get to know each other as a large number attended each event. Our new Kahawa House has evolved into a great time of fellowship each Sunday as well.

Of course, this letter would be incomplete without mentioning the infamous tornado that ripped through Southwest Missouri in May, causing much damage to our building. Yet again, God used the circumstances for His glory. Hundreds in our church came together to give time, energy, and money to help rebuild. Our youth ministry remained flexible and positive despite a complete location change and delays on their new room. Thankfully, Greene County recently approved the youth room construction plans, which should begin soon. The tornado damage also permitted a whole new look to evolve for our sanctuary, allowing for better utilization of space. We also now have a more ideal property layout for our future needs. God really blessed us in so many ways as we were able to sell part of our property and pay for what will serve us better in the future.

The year of 2009 was a very hard year in many ways as well. There were many heartbreaking circumstances in the lives of our church family, as well as a downturn in the economy that was an ongoing challenge for us as individuals and as a church. But in the midst of hardship, God evolved Springhill’s unity and faith in a way I have never seen. As we served together, grew together, sacrificed together, endured together, cried together, failed together, and got back up together, God united us. As I study Scripture, I notice that experiencing the ups and downs of life together, as we have done is a vital aspect of church life. So, I’m excited that we are evolving as individual Christians and as a church. We are not there yet, but we are striving to become all Christ wants us to be.

God also grew us through hardship as we remained determined to continue giving.

We were still able to send mission teams all over the world. We helped purchase a car for Ionica and Claudia, the pastor and his wife in Romania whose church we partner with in ministry. We were able to help many families in need during the holiday season. God used us to continue to reach out to our communities in many different ways over the year to share the love of Christ and our hope in Him. That is what it is all about.

Already, as we look to the coming opportunities that 2010 holds, I am excited about what I see evolving this year. We have been praying and planning and have many things that are ahead this year that I believe God is going to use in a great way in and through our lives. As we move forward, I encourage you to praise God for what He has done. Without Him, there would be nothing to reflect on and write about. As well, I want to borrow the words Joe Holcomb shared with us on Sunday: “Springhill, I believe in you! I believe God has gifted you and wants to use you in great ways in the future. Will you please step up and be a part of Springhill and let’s go forward.” I pray that this will be the year that Springhill is stretched

and used to advance the Kingdom of God. I challenge us to always remember that it is all about Him! I love you and look forward to all that evolves this year as we seek Him together.

Let’s press on!

Kevin