by Misti Sanders

I found this article by David and Jan Stoop insightful if you are considering praying with your spouse.

Here are eight suggestions for beginning to pray together that were given to us by the couples who responded to our questionnaire. They come from their own experiences and were developed through their own struggles to begin to pray together.

1. Take the time needed to talk with each other about your thoughts and feelings about prayer and praying together. Do this without pressuring one another or trying to make the other feel guilty. See if you can agree that this is something you both want in your marriage. Talk about your fears in as open a way as possible. Talk also about your expectations up front, so they don't undermine you later on.
2. Pick a specific time and make a commitment to each other to begin praying together at that time. You'll never get started praying together on a regular basis if you don't make this definite commitment to a specific, agreed-upon time.
3. Don't be upset if you miss a day. It's important, if you miss a day, to just start again the next day. Consistency will come over time. Let yourself off the hook here.
4. Decide who will do what. For example, who decides where you will pray together? Who reminds the other that it is time to pray together? Couples reported that they couldn't just make a commitment to a time and then assume both of them would remember. It helped for one person to take on the responsibility to say, "Hey, it's time for us to pray together." It was interesting to note that for the couples who were successful, it was more often the husband who did the reminding.
5. Start where you are both comfortable. This means that if only one of you is comfortable praying out loud, then you don't start there, for both aren't comfortable at that place. If one of you insists that you pray together silently, then both can be comfortable at that place and that's where you begin.
6. Set a time limit. It was surprising how many couples made this point. "No long-winded prayers," they said. One wife wrote, "No long monologues with fourteen items in them!" Another couple suggested, "First start small and grow from there. Anyone can pattern five or ten minutes into their lives, as opposed to one hour." Another couple said, "Start with five minutes and then gradually, over time, see what happens. Don't try to take too much time as you begin."
7. Agree at the beginning that neither one of you will preach in your praying. Nothing can stop the process like using the time to pray together as a way to preach to your spouse, or to make suggestions in your prayer. Sometimes just making this a rule will give a reluctant spouse the freedom to get started, for a common fear is that one’s spouse will use this time to preach rather than to pray.
8. One husband suggested: "Start with a list of things you want to pray about. This could be done individually or together. Then pray individually about your time of praying together before you actually come together for prayer."

by Josh Snodgrass

I have joyfully been spending the last 4 years helping out and leading the high school youth at CTK. About a year and a half ago, I started up the middle school youth group, which brings just as much joy. Because I was putting so much into the youth ministry at CTK Nampa, the church decided to compensate me for my time spent. I was bi-vocational for a while and then I moved into a full-time youth pastor position. About 10 months after the full-time position, I married the love of my life and became the father of an amazing 2-year-old girl (now three). Meanwhile, our church went through 2 associate pastors, our children’s pastor stepped down, we were given a building to meet in, and we were patient. Finally, after much waiting and prayer… and more waiting, we now have two of the most amazing new staff members. Misti Sanders flawlessly stepped into the role of children’s pastor and David Underwood has masterfully filled the associate pastor position overlooking leadership in the church. Change is happening; things are now moving; and it is good…dare I say, great! 

With these changes comes a big shift in my roles as well. Starting the beginning of May, CTK can no longer compensate a full-time youth pastor due to the increase in much needed staff and paying for two buildings a month. With every shift and transition life throws at us, the reevaluation of our daily, monthly, and yearly routines is necessary, as well as the balance of home and work. After looking at what life is offering, I have decided to cut my responsibilities in half as the youth pastor and focus on the middle school youth group. In this transition, two high school leaders, Brett and Jami Wolfe, will be stepping in for the high school youth. I will be staying as a leader for high school until graduations are over, then I will be solely focusing on middle school. 

As much as I am going to miss this role, I am 100% for this during our church’s season of transition, and I am filled with excitement to see where the CTK story goes next! If you have any questions about any of this, you can come find me or talk with Dave Underwood!

by Marsha Stauffer

Greet - verb - welcome, meet, or receive in a friendly and respectful way.

Greeter - noun - a person who greets.

Greeters serve in vital roles in the church today and have more impact than they think on all who step through the church doors.  Greeting visitors at church is such an important part of the hospitality ministry of the church!  It forms part of the first impression that a visitor receives.  More than a handshake and a smile, it is an opportunity to express God’s love through Christ and help set the tone of the upcoming worship service.

Beyond the power of a hello, greeters can help people connect.  Research shows that most people join and connect with a church where they bond with people.

Imagine you are a first time visitor.  You walk in.  No one greets you.  No one offers to tell you where the children’s ministry is, where the nursery is, or even where the bathrooms are.  No one tells you that coffee, tea, and water are available for you.  Would you feel welcome?  Would you return to that church?  Most likely, not.  In this case, the greeting team has failed.

But wait!  Guess what?  YOU are part of CTK’s greeting team!  Every member of CTK’s congregation is a greeter.  Each of you has the opportunity to greet another person; as you walk in the door, as you take your children to the nursery or to class, as you get coffee, as you are seated next to someone, as you “meet and greet” during that portion of the service, as you walk out of the service, and finally, as you leave.  That’s a lot of opportunities to greet!

You may never know the impact your smile or your handshake (or even a hug) may have on a person.  It may just be a day-brightener for them, or a life-changing experience.

So, whether you are a member of CTK’s official greeting team (you are so appreciated!) or a “greeting” member of the congregation, keep up the good work, because, YOU ARE A GREETER!

by Melody Paris

This is a day dedicated to the most loving act in all of history - an act that has saved us all - Jesus taking up His cross. In response to that amazing act, we are asked to take up our own crosses. The question then becomes, what are our crosses? To help us understand, here is an excerpt from the article “Walking in the Way of the Cross” by Reverand Patrick Augustine:

They are not simply trials or hardships. ... A cross is a choice. We take up our cross when we walk in Christ’s steps and embrace His life, which means extending ourselves in difficult circumstances for the sake of the gospel. At times, that may mean lifting high the cross of Christ in the public square. At other times, it may mean embracing weakness instead of power.

... The apostle Paul and the first followers of Jesus did not win the world to Christ through sword and power but through service and witness. ... The sign of the church’s true power is not in the heights of our cathedral spires, but in the depths of our loving and sacrificial service. It is in and through our weakness, empowered by the Holy Spirit, that the church finds its power to conquer violence and death.

What cross are you being asked to bear, and will you take it up?