As I mentioned in the last edition of our ARC E-News, one of the many wonderful blessings God has given us in the ARC are a large number of gifted young leaders. In October, another of those young leaders was ordained. Jessica Charney, youth pastor at Living Water Church in Elk Grove, CA was set apart for leadership and service as an ordained pastor in the Alliance of Renewal Churches. Following are reflections from senior pastor, Joel Midthun:


On Sunday, October 20, we were thrilled to be able to ordain Jessica Charney as Pastor of Youth and Family at Living Water Church. We have had a vision at our church to add an associate pastor for a number of years but the timing was never right until now. After finishing her M.Div. at APU in Southern California in 2011, Jessica became our Youth Director. She and her husband Nick (and now baby Kacie!) both grew up in Elk Grove but never anticipated that God would call them back to their hometown to minister. They are a great team and each brings different things to the table; Jessica was raised in the church while Nick became a believer as a teenager.

Some of Jessica’s passions in ministry are living in authentic community and ministry to the whole family. She especially has a desire to see that our youth and young adults are connected to our ‘big church’ as that is one of the main indicators of whether youth will leave the faith when they grow up. Jessica observed in her own youth group growing up (which research is confirming as a trend) that as many as half of her friends from youth group no longer attend church as adults.

Jessica is a shepherd. She is very natural at caring for people and including others. She also is a first rate teacher-preacher and very gifted at interpreting the Bible. Our Elder board, composed of men and women, has as one of it’s purposes, to “bless what God is doing” in our midst; that is, to discern what God is doing and then support and encourage those ministries and people. To date we have been able to bless many in our church who are attempting ‘God sized’things from fighting human trafficking to starting a Cause Marketing non-profit. As we witnessed what God was doing in and through Jessica’s life and leadership in our midst, the decision was made to call her and set her apart for ordained ministry in our congregation and in the ARC. Ordaining Jessica is another way to "bless what God is doing" in our midst and give her more formal recognition in our church and in the community.

Jessica writes, “My ordination service was attended by family members, my former youth pastor and his wife, good friends, and colleagues from our time in seminary, along with many members of our church family and small group. It was encouraging to have so many people from different areas of my life there to encourage me and support my formal ordination into the ministry. All of these people have been a part of inspiring me in my Christian faith and call to ministry and it was such a blessing to have them there. While ARC Director, Mike Bradley, was unable to be there, he gave a powerful greeting and blessing via video. Each step of the ordination process involved some challenges and helped me to really look at my calling and prayerfully seek God’s guidance for my future in ministry."

As Director for the Alliance of Renewal Churches, I welcome Jessica to the ranks of ordained ministry. We’re thankful to have you as a member of this band of brothers and sisters who are on mission together!

This is the mission God has given the ARC. Toward that end we will be bringing training seminars to ARC congregations in various areas of the country to “provide ministry training for the members of congregations.” If you’d like us to bring a ministry training seminar to your congregation and region, just contact ARC Director Mike Bradley at: safeplacemb@gmail.com.

Following are three of the seminars the ARC will be presenting in 2014:

Building Healthy Leaders – ARC leader Robert Walter will present a seminar on developing healthy leaders and disciples at Hope Lutheran Church in Westminster, CA (SoCal region) on January 22-24. Robert will provide a model for training to help us develop leaders and disciples who are growing in their relationship with Christ; are developing their competencies for ministry; and are becoming more emotionally, relationally, and spiritually whole. This seminar can be used to develop healthy leaders in every ministry of your church including ministries such as Alpha, Blackberry Bush, and 3DM

Immanuel Prayer: A Model for Healing Prayer – ARC leader Danny Mullins will present a seminar on a model for healing prayer called Immanuel Prayer in Tampa, Florida on February 7-9. He will address the biblical foundation for healing prayer, present a model for healing prayer of wounds in our past that are influencing our present in unhelpful ways, and facilitate practicing this model with one another.

 A Safe Place for the Gifts of the Spirit – ARC leaders Dave Heinrich and Mike Bradley will present a seminar on the gifts of the Spirit. Their training will address the purpose for the gifts of the Spirit, how we discover and grow in the gifts God has given us, and how to set healthy boundaries that will make your church a safe place for the operation of the gifts of the Spirit. The seminar will be held in May at Penasquitos Lutheran Church in San Diego, CA. The dates for that seminar are still to be determined.

Transforming the world through the scandalous love and power of God. What’s scandalous about the Lord’s love and power? That will be the focus of our keynote speaker, Dr. Greg Boyd.

Greg is a published author, seminary professor at The Master’s Institute, and lead pastor for a church in St. Paul, MN. His insights and perspectives of Scripture are refreshing and challenging all at the same time. Greg has a passion for the Lord, for forgotten ones, and to be faithful to God’s Word. He will help us experience afresh the depth and power of God’s love as he helps us remember that the way Jesus loved and those whom Jesus loved seemed absolutely scandalous to the religious and self-righteous.

Greg connects really well with teens and adults alike. That’s important for us because we will once again have a strong youth participation in both San Diego and Minneapolis. Teens will meet with us for the evening sessions and during the during the day a teen-specific schedule will be led by ARC youth pastors - Danny Scarborough, Dirk Duhlstine, and Derek Luptak in the Southwest,and Brendon Fairley and Corey Paxton in the Midwest.

Both gatherings will include a number of workshops to help equip members of your church to go home and transform the world through the scandalous love and power of God. Workshops will include: Sharing Your Story, Prophetic Evangelism, Everyday Encounters – Having Spiritual Conversations and Prayer, Developing Missional Communities, Breaking the Stronghold of Fear in Sharing Your Faith, and Helping Teens Talk with Their Friends About Life, Faith, and Christianity.

The Southwest Gathering will be held at Penasquitos Lutheran Church on July 17-19 in San Diego, CA, and the Midwest Gathering will be hosted by Redeemer Lutheran Church in Fridley, Minnesota on November 6-8.

Each gathering will include much time for building and nurturing our relationships with one another; unhurried worship in depth and freedom; vision casting keynote sessions; and workshops that will help equip and empower you and your members for fresh boldness and effectiveness in ministry. As always there will also be time for personal prayer and prophetic ministry.

Please put these dates on your calendar now and plan on attending. We will have registration information on the ARC website in the near future.