Going Behind Bars p. 19Westwood’s Global Impact p. 8Finding a Fabulous Fit p. 2VOLUME ONEWINTER 2018Westwood Community Church2Sammy Wanyonyi preaching at a rally in Kigali, Rwanda Photo by Thor HansenInterested in learning more about what our partners around the world are doing? Check out pages 8-11!1ServeGoWorshipBelongContentsFinding a Fabulous Fit 2Avoiding a Breakdown 4Make a Difference Right Where You Are 5Blessing Our Neighbors 6Westwood’s Global Impact 8What Surprised the Middle East Team 12New Worship Project 16Belonging from a Distance 18Going Behind Bars 19Start Off the New Year in a Group 20What’s Your Word for the Year? 212017–2018 Year in Review 22–23Upcoming Events 24–29How to Talk so Your Teen Will Listen 26Get Involved 30Life Events 31Christmas Season 32On the cover:The Westwood Worship Collective is working on a new EP that will be released early in 2019. Learn more about it on page 16!2FindingaFabulousFitWorship / Belong / Serve / Go“We’d love to see you experience the blessing of volunteering. But we don’t want you cramming who you are into a role that isn’t a fit.”by Jill Fox, Pastor of Next Gen and Ministry Initiatives23To my mother, they looked like a pair of boots you’d wear on a construc-tion site. But I knew that having these boots would complete my middle school wardrobe. Everyone was wearing boots like this, and I desperately needed them.Then the sales clerk brought me the bad news. They didn’t carry my size in the boots. They only had a pair that were a half size smaller. Determined to make it work, I crammed my foot into the too small boot. I stood up and casually walked around. My mom asked the inevita-ble question, “Do they fit?”I didn’t care if they fit. I knew I had to have them. I gave a loud and defi-nite, “Yes!” Unconvinced, she asked me if I was sure they fit. How do you tell your mom that you will die if you don’t get these boots right now? I didn’t, and I got the boots. One week later I was wearing the boots and limping down the hallway in agony. Blisters covered my feet. The boots were a horrible fit, and they were painful to wear. Fit is important for shoes and for volunteering. We don’t want your experience serving in ministry to be painful. If it is, that means it isn’t the right fit for your personality, your talents, your time or your spiritual gifts. Everyone is unique, and that’s the beauty of how God created us. We are each different parts of the church body.We’d love to see you experience the blessing of volunteering. But we don’t want you cramming who you are into a role that isn’t a fit. Our goal is to help you determine what opportunities are going to allow you to grow your faith and fit your schedule. Maybe for you that means something behind the scenes. Maybe for you that means holding babies. Maybe for you that means greeting people as they come in the door. And there are dozens of more oppor-tunities.So where do you start?You can head to our website – westwoodcc.org/volunteer – and use our volunteer search tool. This will help you narrow down opportunities that fuel you. Select the ones you are interested in, and we will follow up. You are never committed to anything long term. You can just get more information, shadow someone in the role and decide if you want to move forward. If it isn’t a fit, we’ll find another “size” for you.Another great tool is LifeKeys. This 7-week class is offered periodically throughout the year. In it, you get to discover your spiritual gifts, person-ality types, values and passions. You can check our website for the latest class information. “We don’t want your experience serving in ministry to be painful. If it is, that means it isn’t the right fit for your personality, your talents, your time or your spiritual gifts. Everyone is unique, and that’s the beauty of how God created us. We are each different parts of the church body.” -Jill Fox4Imagine you are living paycheck to pay-check, barely meeting your expenses every month, and your car breaks down. You need your car fixed so you can get to work to earn money. How do you know how to find a fair mechanic? How do you pay for the needed repairs? For many, this is a nightmare they must navigate.That’s where the Car Care Ministry comes in. It all began when Jayne Kane, Love INC’s Family Advocate Coordinator, asked if Westwood’s Outreach team would part-ner with them to help individuals in need facing car repairs. In the past few years, this ministry has grown, and it now meets a critical need in our community.How it works: a client will call Love INC with a car repair need. Once it is reviewed by Love INC, and if it is approved, a voucher for the recommended repair is issued. Love INC has partnerships with local auto shops that provide free or reduced-price repairs. The cost to the client is dependent upon the client’s finan-cial situation, the specifics of the repair and the availability of the shop. Once the repair work has been completed, Blake Thorson, Westwood’s Love INC Care Coordinator, follows up with the client to ensure they are satisfied with the work Avoiding a Breakdownand to see if there is anything else they need assistance with. He says he makes sure they realize that the results of this program are a result of God’s provision and love. “I view myself as simply one piece of the puzzle God has assembled to meet the needs of those who are struggling to meet a basic yet critical need in our society– transportation. It is amazing to see how he works through volunteers, resources and desires to meet needs that may other-wise go unmet. In the end, it never ceases to amaze me how good it feels to get the feedback from people we serve. It rein-forces the edict that we are truly here to serve and not be served,” Blake shared. Denise Baucom recently received services from Love INC and the Car Care Ministry. Her vehicle was leaking oil and needed exhaust and brake work. She was able to get her car repaired and was overwhelmed by the help she received. “Low income people can be made to feel less than human, and they never made me feel this way. This program is the greatest gift God could have given me. I have profound gratitude.” “I view myself as simply one piece of the puzzle God has assembled to meet the needs of those who are struggling to meet a basic yet critical need in our society– transportation.”-Blake ThorsonWorship / Belong / Serve / GoAvoiding a BreakdownThe Westwood Wheelers Ministry Team has been involved with Love INC car repairs, as well as planning the Wheelers Car Show over the last several years. If you would like to serve on this team, contact either Mark Welty: markwelty@aol.com or Wes Ostlund: waostlund@gmail.com for more information. 5The “mission field” isn’t always an airplane ride away. It is often in our own backyard. Here are a few stories of people in our community who are finding ways to make a difference right where they are.Make a Difference Right Where You AreJanelle Kellermann is a Westwood attender and the Community Living Coordinator at Nagel Assisted Living and Memory Care in Waconia. The facility offers housing for elderly, those with mental health issues, people who are on the end of life journey and those in need of mem-ory care. She wanted to make sure the spiritual and companionship needs of the residents were met, so she contacted the Care Partners Ministry. A Prayer Partners program was started, which pairs residents with a volunteer who regularly meets with and prays with them. The residents love knowing someone is there for them and accepts them just as they are. “I see God at work every day in and through our staff and residents. I am grateful to have the opportunity to help residents connect with others in the community and watch them grow in their faith and friendships,” she shared.When one resident moved out of the facility, he said he was going to miss his prayer partner. “It’s a good feeling when a resident who speaks little opens up and shares their feel-ings. Nothing impacts the genuine friendships and sharing that takes place with the Prayer Partners,” said Janelle.Kent Withington volunteers once a month at SummerWood, a senior living facility in Chanhassen. He’s always loved helping others tell their story, and he saw an opportu-nity to do just that. He helps those in their later years write their life story. The life story becomes a leg-acy for families to treasure. “I love thinking that someday someone in the family three generations ahead will discover the story of their rela-tive in an attic somewhere. Through the words on the page, they will ‘live on’ after they are gone.”As a veteran himself, Kent has a special fondness for sharing stories of World War II veterans. In fact, he recently submitted one to the Library of Congress for consider-ation for their collection of military history. “It is a gift to give back to them. These stories deserve to be remembered,” Kent explained.Kent loves what he does and calls it his “everyday life ministry.” He encourages others that God has things for everyone to do right in their backyard. “Not everyone is called to go to Africa. God says in Ephesians 2:10 that he has things for all of us to do. And doing things here is just as important as going overseas.”For Chuck Setterstrom, volunteering with worship services at Summer-Wood Senior Living, gave him an idea for blessing the residents. He decided to make each one a Christ-mas ornament, and he shares a devotional that goes along with it. He says the residents have come to look forward to receiving them every year and says, “The service when we give them out is our high-est attended service.”Chuck has hand-crafted a variety of ornaments over the years includ-ing angels, snowmen and Christ-mas trees. This year he is making mangers. He begins working on the ornaments while the weather is still nice, and he can be out in his wood-shop in the garage. He often enlists family to help finish them up. “My wife gives them a ‘feminine touch’,” he says.For Chuck, a retired pediatrician and cancer survivor, creating the orna-ments is an outlet for his passion to serve others. “It gives me great joy. I’m blessed to be able to do this.”6Blessing our NeighborsThe Phillips Neighborhood in South Minneapolis is the most diverse single neighborhood in the United States.Westwood is helping reach the Twin Cities with the love of Jesus Christ.The Twin Cities has the most refugees per capita of any city in the United States. gateway cities in America for new immigrants and refugees. TOP TENThe Twin Cities is one of theThe U of M has the most Chinese students of any American university.90%of immigrants do not know Jesus67God has brought the world to our doorstep so that we might reach them with his loveWorship / Belong / Serve / GoOut of the abundance of what Jesus has done for us and in us, we are setting out on a 10-year vision of renewed passion for multiplying disciples of Jesus and multiplying church environments where disciples are made. One of the ways we are doing that locally is through our partnership with Merge.Nearly one million first- and second-generation immi-grants live in the Twin Cities. Merge is a movement that mobilizes local churches to be the hands and feet of Jesus by caring for immigrants and those who are not church attenders and sharing the Gospel with them. Churches participate in training opportunities and events where the Gospel message can be shared in a non-threatening environment. Director of Missions and Outreach, Chaz Nichols said, “Westwood is delighted to partner with Merge in reach-ing the Twin Cities with the love of Christ. While West-wood is a significant supporter of Merge, they, in turn, help train Westwood attenders in culturally astute evangelism and church planting. Partnering with Merge is one of the ways Westwood is accomplishing the near por-tion of our 10-10-10 vision.” The Twin Cities has the most Somalis, Hmong, Oromo Ethiopians, Karen Burmese, Anauk Sudanese, and Liberians of any U.S. City.Next >