March 2014
MIDAMERICA DISTRICT
Newsletter
A MESSAGE FROM DOUG . . .
IMPRESSIONS
As I have traveled around our vast and diverse district in the past few weeks, I have
come to a couple of conclusions: one, it is winter and cold everywhere in our district,
and two, I am convinced winter and cold does not deter the missional outreach of our
Alliance churches. Let me share three examples.
A few weeks ago I had opportunity to attend a Men's Missions Steak Night at Camp
Rivercrest hosted by Fremont Alliance Church. Utilizing the new dining hall at the
camp, Fremont Alliance promoted and introduced men to Alliance missions around
the world. It was also an opportunity to invite friends and neighbors for steak
purchased through the local butcher shop in Fremont. The master BBQ smith was Dana Mackey known in the
Fremont area for his magical powers on a BBQ grill. The evening was advertised as a free will donation, but
anyone could attend this outreach event, and there were "seconds" on steak! The dining hall was packed and
the steak with sautéed mushrooms, baked potatoes, vegetables, salad bar, and dessert were awesome! The
speaker for the evening was Tim Bubna who along with his wife, JoLee, have served in Brazil for over 25
years. That evening men were introduced to Fremont Alliance Church, Alliance missions, and some may
have been introduced to Jesus for the first time. All of this happened because the men of Fremont Alliance
were willing to reach out, take a risk, and do some hard work – their labor was rewarded big time! Last year
they hosted a men’s Big Game Feed at the camp which also reached out to many men and raised scholarship
funds for Camp Rivercrest.
Doug Grogan
District Superintendent
More recently, I attended and led a seminar at a one-day men's conference on the theme of Leaving a Legacy
hosted by Missionary Alliance Church in Blairsburg, Iowa. The keynote speaker was a retired United States
Air Force colonel who still works in intelligence. The men of the church did great preparation, and there were
men attending from at least three states. There were great door
prizes with the grand prize being a pellet wood smoker and BBQ.
What a great door prize for men who enjoy smoked meat. (We
also had had smoked, pulled pork sandwiches for lunch.) With
several seminars and the keynote speaker, attendees had many
opportunities to hear about Jesus and leaving a legacy. I presented
my seminar in what was formerly the church sanctuary and has
now been converted into a Starbucks type coffee shop and youth
center. I was blown away by the transformation and the vision for
the community as there is nothing else like this in Blairsburg.
(Continued on page 3)
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2014 District Conference
2014 MidAmerica District Conference
March 31–April 2
Christ Community Church Student Center
Omaha, Nebraska
Conference Highlights:
Creative church planting in the MidAmerica District
Ordination Service (C&MA President John Stumbo will bring the message)
C&MA National Youth Director, James Grout
Elections including District Superintendent
For registration and lodging information, visit the following: District Conference
Please note: Hawthorn Suites, which is within walking distance of Christ Community,
will not have rooms available following the room block cut-off date of 3/15/2014.
Camp Rivercrest
Registration for the 2014 camp season at
Rivercrest is now open. For more information or
to register go to Camp Rivercrest or call 402-6286465. The camp is located at 2840 County Road
13, Fremont, NE 68025.
New things are happening at the camp as God
continues to bless this vital ministry of our district.
The camp has purchased additional property that will enable them to have office
space and a Welcome Center.
Encourage members of your church to take a fresh look at the camp and explore
ways you can support this ministry.
MARCH
2014
MARCH
2014
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Upcoming Dates
Mar 31 April 2
District Conference - Christ
Community, Omaha, NE
May 13-14 Full LO&CC Meeting, District
Office, Omaha, NE
April 20
Easter Sunday
Sept 23-25 Workers Retreat - Vail, CO
April 26
Women’s Leadership Studies - Unit
3, Lakewood, CO; See attached.
Lenten Devotional
Jonas Wharton, pastor of Aurora Alliance Church, would like to invite district churches to participate in a 2014
Lenten devotional called Seven. Jonas helped create this resource as part of his master’s program and recommends
the study for personal, family and group gatherings. Each week centers on a theme based on the 7 final statements
of Jesus while He was on the cross. For more information go to: Seven_Pastors_Leaders. You are welcome to
download the pastors and leaders resource guide with the following link: http://sevendevo.wordpress.com/.
If you have questions or would like more information, contact Jonas at jonas@auroraalliance.com.
Message from Doug Continued
(Continued from page 1) This renovated facility enhanced this men's outreach with over 100 men attending on a
snowy Saturday. What a great taste and see event! I prayed with a man from Iowa Falls who I assumed knew
Pastor Lotz, but discovered he had never been to Missionary Alliance Church until that day. The church has
recently developed a 5-year plan to plant two daughter churches, one in Fort Dodge and another in Waterloo.
Finally, in mid-February I was in Perry, Iowa, to attend services at our Crossroads Alliance Church pastored by
Rev. Rick Gates. They had a blizzard on Saturday night, yet the church was full for the closing service of their
Alliance Missions conference with CAMA Missionary Stephen Albright speaking. It was a great presentation of
Alliance and CAMA missions complete with a potluck following the morning service. Along with the strong
missions emphasis, I noticed the church had a large Celebrate Recovery group which reaches out into the
community offering Celebrate Recovery material for free or at very little cost along with Bibles. Crossroads
Church also serves as a WIC (Women, Infants, and Children) assistance site for the community and partners with
the community Food Pantry offering free bread on Sundays. The church is definitely reaching out into its
community and making it easy for people to find Jesus.
I share all this because I am encouraged and want you to be as well by the intentionality of our MidAmerica
District churches that are on mission for the Master. I pray churches may glean from these examples and creatively
use them to promote Alliance missions and become missional in their own communities. One more encouraging
note – Citylight Church in Omaha is in the process of hiring a second church planting intern as they seek to
establish additional churches through Citylight groups. Our district is on the move, and what I am seeing I know is
very pleasing to the Lord.
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MARCH
2014
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Welcome New District Workers
The MidAmerica District LO&CC has been very busy interviewing candidates! Welcome to the following
newly licensed workers:
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Dave Byrd: Dave and his wife, Becky, live in New Hampton, IA. Dave is the pastor of Osage Alliance
Church, Osage, IA.
James Connelly: James is the counseling pastor at Christ Community Church. He and his wife, Mary,
currently live in Council Bluffs, IA.
Alphonso Cooper: Alphonso (Coop) is the youth pastor at the Council Bluffs Campus of Christ
Community Church.
Jim Manchester: Jim is the associate pastor of youth at the Missionary Alliance Church, Blairsburg, IA.
He and his wife, Denise, moved to Blairsburg from Wyoming.
Victor Matos: Victor is the assistant pastor at HarvestDowntown Church, Colorado Springs, CO. He and
his wife, Christine, live in Colorado Springs.
Marc Montanye: Marc is the director of Renewal Ministries and the pastor of the Douglas County Jail
Campus of Christ Community Church. He and his wife, Sharon, live in Omaha.
-----------------We also welcome the following workers who have come to us from other C&MA districts:
 Mason Bragg and his wife, Alyssa, previously served in the South Pacific District. Mason is the youth
pastor at a non-Alliance church and they live in Monument, CO.
 John Casey and his wife, Deborah, moved to our district from the Midwest District. John is a chaplain in
Colorado Springs.
 Fred and Pixie Coleman will be coming to our district from Kiel, WI. Fred has accepted the call as pastor
of Bellevue Community Church, Bellevue, NE.
 Joel Trainer serves in a non-Alliance ministry (Kanakuk Camp) in Branson, MO. He transferred to our
district from the Central District.
 Tom and Sara Walsh came to us from the Southeastern District. Tom is serving in a non-Alliance
ministry (Worship in the Word) in Thornton, CO.
Home Going of Betty Rexilius
Mrs. Betty Rexilius, wife of Rev. Royce Rexilius and retired International Worker of
The Christian and Missionary Alliance, passed peacefully into glory on February 13 in
Lincoln, NE at the age of 92 years. Betty served with Royce from 1955 to 1975 in
Vietnam and from 1976 to 1988 in New Zealand. Please pray for God’s comfort for
Royce and the family. Memorials may be given to The Christian and Missionary
Alliance, PO Box 35000, Colorado Springs, CO 80935-3500.
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