Not just physically, but also mentally. Pastor Jon and his wife Debbie have made it very easy for us to settle in and we already feel at home. For Elijah, they are now part of our family too. It is always a blessing for us to see how quickly our son adapts to new surroundings and new people. As long as mom and dad are around 😉 We live at the end of a cul-de-sac and we've already got to know a few neighbors on our walks. We hope to be able to invest a little more in them. Our immediate neighbors in particular - a couple around 60 years old - have adopted Elijah as their grandson, bringing toys and books and are always very excited when we drop by.
This lake is right in front of the house and is ideal for fishing, boating and canoeing.
What is RVFM?
«RVFM is a church planting organization in the MN and WI River Valley. It is our desire to see the kingdom of God advance. We provide Fellowship, Training, and oversight for churches and ministries in the MN and WI River Valley area. As well as, plant churches as The Lord directs us.»
The vision is to build a network of 24 churches (RVFM) throughout the St. Croix River Valley 15-20 miles apart in all directions by 2027. To date, 10 churches have already been established or have joined the ministry. Another five churches are expected to be established by the end of this year.
«RVFM is an organization that seeks to expand the Kingdom of God worldwide by providing doctrinal and procedural oversight, pastoral care, mutual accountability, ministry resource and fellowship for our credential holders, affiliated churches, and ministries. We also purpose to fellowship with all five-fold ministers, missionaries, leaders, churches and ministries who manifest the Spirit of Christ and who encourage and edify the body of Christ.»
From the River Fellowship of Ministries website.
The first week
Pastor Jon is the founder of this ministry and Johann serves as his "shadow" for the duration of the internship. The first week was all about getting to know everything and everyone. This means that Johann accompanied him to all meetings, including all regular meetings with the pastors of the churches and staff meetings. According to the culture of the people here, these meetings take place either for breakfast in a café or for lunch. Lots of coffee, lots of food. As you know, nothing that would do Johann any damage... 😉
The second week
The second week started with the Kids Camp of the RVFM churches. The camp lasts three days. In addition to lots of fun, there was also a specific topic. Some of the interns took part for the full three days. All the others, including Johann, only went for one day. The trip takes a whole three hours. Plenty of time to talk and share with the other interns and pastors. It was fascinating to see how the kids are taught to pray for each other from a young age. They also practiced writing down short testimonies and then presenting them to the group. In the evening, we were also able to answer a few questions.
Johann is also used for work in Pastor Jon's local church. Such as occasional housekeeping work. On Thursday, for example, he sat on the lawnmower for 4 hours. Plenty of time to listen to sermons or music.
Every Wednesday, all pastors of the RVFM meet to pray together. In addition to experiences, problems are also shared and prayed for. Although all the churches operate independently, it is impressive to see and experience how the pastors support and pray for each other. As interns, we are right in the middle of this and take part in it.
On July 16, Johann made his second call for offerings for the church. The call for offerings is preceded by approx. 5 minutes of a short message on the topic.
In our last post, we were still full of enthusiasm when we mentioned that we would probably be in touch more often. It turned out that we are quite busy, so we have to cut back a bit to be wise with our time. We're a little behind with the posts, but we'll definitely take you with us through the weeks and experiences.
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