Peter Witkowski Children's Ministry

Back To School Connection Recap

back-to-school-recapGod has done amazing things in and through our church over the last few weeks.  I want praise him for everyone who made our Back To School Connection a success and for George Smith’s vision for the Back To School Connection. By God’s grace, our church donated hundreds of backpacks, pencils, crayons, folders, and glue. And when we asked for additional supplies this past Sunday, FBCE responding by bringing the supplies needed to fill an additional 85 backpacks.

I also want to praise God for the numerous people who counseled with our guest this past Saturday and Monday. Together, we got to share the gospel with hundreds of men, women, and children. Together, we were able to show the families of Eastman that God cares for them and loves them. Together, we got to live out the gospel.

And our friends and neighbors responded. We had initially prepared 480 backpacks, anticipating a slight
increase from last year’s event where we handed out 350 bags. But by 11:15AM, we were out of backpacks. Desiring to help as many people 20160730_085448as we were able to, we invited our guests to come back on Monday. And they did. We gave out the additional 87 backpacks. In total, we have handed out 566 backpacks over the last few days! In other words, we were able to outfit almost an entire school’s worth of children! To God be the glory!

There are many things wrong with our world, our nation, and our county. But it is events like these – it is intentional, sacrificial gospel outreach, empowered by the Holy Spirit – that brings change. It is service attached to the proclamation of the gospel that causes Christ to shine brightly in dark and depressed places! I praise God for all that he has
accomplished through us this past weekend. I praise God that our church dreamed big and fulfilled its promise to serve the people of Eastman.  


But, the work is not done. Ministry, service, and sacrificial love are bigger than an amazing event. They are a lifestyle. Going forward, we 20160730_090145must continue to invite our community to church, we must continue to meet the needs of our neighbors, and we must continue to preach Christ crucified. And we must continue to do so, expecting God to work, expecting God to seek and save the lost! Are you ready to keep sharing the hope of Christ with our community? Are you ready to keep seeing God do amazing things?

Peter Witkowski Children's Ministry

Kids’ Ministry Needs Social Media?

Technolgy blogDo you speak social media? If you don’t know what the question means or answer it in the negative, your church may have a problem. And your kids’ ministry mostly likely has a problem.

At the end of 2015, only 17% of people between the ages of 18-24 and only 21% of people between the ages of 25-34 regularly read a newspaper. In fact, only 20% of all Americas use newspapers to access the news. Moreover, only 38% of people between the ages of 55-64 daily read a newspaper every day.

What do these stats mean? They are telling us that newspapers and magazines are no longer the driving force shaping the worldview of our congregations.

People are going digital. According to a pew research study, 62% of US adults access some news through social media. And 38% of Americans access news primarily through the web and social media. When it comes to millennial moms, (those between the ages of 18-34) 99% of them are on Facebook. Eighty-six percent use social media to influence others. And 87% percent of them turn to social media when looking for parenting advice and tips. In short, social media is increasingly the largest force shaping the American Culture. If our church wants to reach people, we must speak the language of social media. We must be willing to go where our moms are.

woman free smart phoneAnd we have the freedom to go digital. Smart phones are not evil. Facebook is not destroying America. Do people with sinful hearts misuse technology? Yes, and yes! But the technology is not the problem; the people are. We need to address the people instead of attacking the media platforms. We need to use social media to reach people misusing social media. If we draw a line in the sand over technology, we will undoubtedly cut ourselves off from the next generation.

Thankfully, we don’t have to do anything so drastic. Because social media is cheap and easy to access every church can have a platform. As the local church, we can fill Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter feeds with helpful resources. We can promote events through pictures, we can share helpful articles, and we can create our own resources by producing videos, blogs, and podcasts. The Bible is still powerful today, offering hope to all. We just have to be willing to go where the people are.

I still believe that the preached word is still the most effectively tool in the church’s arsenal (closely followed by discipleship). We still need to meet together to worship the one true God (Heb. 10:25). But we must understand that our church members will not wait till Sunday morning or Wednesday night to have their questions answered. They are going to pull out their smart phones and flip open their laptops. And when they do, will they find anything from their church? Are we ready to speak into their lives?

Peter Witkowski Summer Camps

3 Reasons FBCE Loves Centrikid

Centrikid-BLogI’m not sure how long Camp recovery is supposed to take. But I know it does not take long to realize that the kids of First Baptist Eastman had a great time at Centrikid. I am increasingly a fan of the Centrikid camps for the following three reason.

3 Reasons Centrikid Is Amazing:

1.

The camp is all about the gospel. I appreciate that Centrikid takes the teaching of the gospel seriously. They have pastors lead the main worship time. Our Norman Park camp pastor, Stephen Makcen,  did an excellent job of discussing Ephesians and Romans with illustrations that the kids could relate to. I mean who hasn’t played playing football on their bed? And the small group times were built around practical application that links directly back to the main worship times. I am thankful that Centrikid calls our kids to follow Christ during all three days of the weekend camp.

2.

The camp fosters relationships. By scheduling hangout times, facilitating church group times, and encouraging quiet times, the kids and the chaperones get to build meaningful relationships. We have the chance to play basketball together, to spray each other with water bottles, and to tell jokes over breakfast. But more importantly, we get the opportunity to share our testimonies and to talk about the how the gospel shapes our lives. I greatly appreciate that Centrikid does not just whisk away our kids and pretend to be the church for a few days. I love the fact that the Centrikid Camp is designed to support the relationships already being fostered in our kids’ ministry and church family.

centrikid23.

Centrikid camp is just outright fun! Sure, we had one poor guy get stuck on his first OMC card for almost 10 minutes. We had another camper drink a Mellow Yellow at 10:30PM. And, I may have given more than one unintelligible instruction during the weekend. But despite all that and some home sick tears, our kids had a blast. They loved doing the Monkey Shuffle, sliding down the slip and slide, and getting covered in shaving cream! And by Sunday morning, even the previously home sick campers were all about coming back next year! As one guy said, “I wasn’t sure about it, but I did it. I survived!” Centrikid was amazing.

I am very thankful for all the staff that make Centrikid possible and for our three chaperones! We can’t wait for Centrikid  2017! Are you guys ready?