Ministry Updates

G2C

FPC University Ministry, “Gospel to the Campus” (G2C), exists to help international students —undergraduate, graduate, or doctoral—experience gospel renewal for the glory of God. We want to see the gospel transform their lives and for them to become agents of transformation as they move forward in their lives.

Lighting of the second Advent Candle (peace).

Ministry in the past year was challenging, but God has led us through those difficult times. Hence, we are glad to announce the new phase of our ministry, and we ask for your prayer and support.

1. Language exchange outreach: We hold a casual event every Friday evening for students to hang out and discuss language. The event may be a dinner, board-games, Karaoke, or various outdoor activities. The goal is to build genuine friendship with non-believers in the hope of one day introducing them to the faith.

2. “Let’s Talk”: A safe place for tough questions. We want to see believing and non-believing students engage in conversation about difficult topics (morality, politics, and religion). Whatever their views may be, we welcome students to share—and listen—to them here. Our first meeting was held on Nov. 28th and the topic was, “If God is a God of love, why are we not supporting homosexuality?”

3. Faith Study Group (in planning): A group for Christian students to dive deeper into the faith. We plan to meet in church on Saturday evenings to watch lectures that deepen our understanding of the gospel and lead to life-transformation. Online participation may be available.

Children’s Ministry

“We will not hide them from their children, but tell to the coming generation the glorious deeds of the Lord, and his might, and the wonders that he has done …which He commanded our fathers to teach to their children, that the next generation might know them …and arise and tell them to their children, so that they should set their hope in God and not forget the works of God, but keep his commandments…not be like…a stubborn and rebellious generation...“ (Psalm 78:4-8)

This passage shows us the charge, the purpose, and the goal of a demanding yet rewarding ministry: shepherding, nurturing, and discipling our little ones in the Word of God. Building upon it comes the vision for FPC Children’s Ministry: seeking to help children know Jesus personally and grow in Him, in order that they will glorify God by living gospel-centered lives at home, in their communities, and beyond. In the first half of 2021, we led the children on a journey that went from “Crossing the Jordan” in the book of Joshua, to the provision of leaders for the unfaithful Israelites in the book of Judges, to the first three kings of Israel in the books of Samuel and Kings, to the sending of prophets. Each of them reveals God’s enduring love and mercy to His people, their desperate need for the gospel, then draws our attention to Christ, the perfect Priest, Prophet, and King.

Testimony sharing during worship service.

After a 6-month suspension, due to the pandemic, we were grateful to have resumed the ministry in mid-November. For those who God has not called to be parents, we urge you to keep the family and the ministry in prayer. Let us be reminded that whether adult or child, married or single, we are one in the bond of love, all of us bearing the same identity in Christ.

Community Groups

One of FPC’s four core values is community. While every believer enjoys a personal relationship with Christ, the Lord also calls us to be part of a family of believers (Matthew 12:46-50; Hebrews 10:24-25). Our community groups are the key ministry for building gospel-centered relationships with our spiritual family, investing in one another’s lives and learning how we may serve, encourage, and pray for one another. This, in turn, emboldens us to pursue community outside the church as well.

This past spring quarter, several of our groups worked through The Gospel-Centered Life (Thune and Walker), a topical Bible study about how the gospel calls, enables, and inspires us to center our entire lives around the Lord Jesus Christ and his kingdom. During the summer, each group pursued their own study, either of a Biblical book, a topical study, or a study of the week’s sermon. For this past fall quarter, all groups participated in a study of the week’s sermon.

Youth “White Elephant” Gift Exchange

The pandemic forced us to meet exclusively online from mid-May to August. Doing so drove home to us the importance of community during times of physical isolation. If anything, our appreciation for the groups has deepened. The expected downtick in group attendance was minimal, and our groups have emerged from this season stronger for having gone through it. 

Youth Ministry

The first half of 2021 was an exciting time for FPC’s youth ministry. While our numbers at the Sunday morning worship service remained steady (8-12 on average), the afternoon fellowship grew significantly (5-8 on average).

The vision for the youth ministry is “to equip and inspire the youth of FPC to be rooted in the gospel, watered with the word, and focused on the harvest.” Until recently, the youth were "watered with the word" primarily through a sermon delivered by Asst.  Pastor Peter Brown at the youth worship service held three Sundays per month midway through the main service. This was followed by sermon discussion in an afternoon fellowship meeting, where we sought to deepen understanding of the message and explore how to talk about it with non-believers--the better to help students “focus on the harvest.” Together, these two regular activities were the primary ways we sought to “root” the students in the gospel. The aim was, and is, to grow in them a sense of community and group identity as (youthful) sinners saved by grace. We have also pursued this through periodic daytrips, shared meals, and the occasional overnight retreat.

The second half of 2021 was a different story. In May, the pandemic forced us to suspend all in-person activities, including the morning worship service. We continued to meet online for the afternoon fellowship, and soon welcomed two new students to the ministry who became enthusiastic regular attendees. But overall attendance was impacted. Then, in the fall, as pandemic restrictions eased and the main congregation began to resume in-person worship services, the session made the decision to discontinue the youth worship service in the interest of bringing all our members, including the youth, together as one body and under the senior pastor's preaching during the main Sunday worship service. By the end of the year, attendance at the afternoon fellowship had become too inconsistent for the meetings to be effective. The decision has been made to suspend the meetings for at least the near future.

Going into 2022, our plan is to gather the youth for a monthly event of some kind, a meal or daytrip somewhere. Youth ministry staff are maintaining the relationships they have developed with the youth, and we will continue to seek ways to engage them for the glory of the Kingdom.