Dr. Hansen, Dr. Jones, members of the District NYI Council, delegates and friends of the convention:

I bring you greetings as we begin this 2007 Southwestern Ohio District NYI Convention.  I consider it a privilege to bring to you my third report as your district NYI president. This past year we have seen the teens and youth workers of SWO being the body of Christ in motion. Through camps, praise rallies, BLAST, mission trips, service projects, Leader D (discipleship) training, NYC and a host of other experiences, SWO NYI endeavors to promote the cause of Christ by developing teens that have a missional mindset. Reggie McNeal stated at this year’s M7 conference that being missional is a “recognition that God is at work redeeming the world, and the church is being invited to be a partner.” Jesus commanded his disciples to “go therefore and make disciples of all nations” (Matt 28:19).  The desire of our hearts is that the youth of SWO will partner with God in this mission. The church, as the body of Christ, is charged with the responsibility of bringing the kingdom message to the world. We see it as our responsibility as the leadership of SWO NYI to help prepare our students and youth workers to become missional Christians.

The first century Christians understood that the church was not a building but a community of believers which worked together to love and serve the Lord and one another. We want to encourage the community within the local church while fostering the greater community of Christian youth on SWO. Paul described the church as the body of Christ: “Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it” (1 Cor 12:27). Being a part of the body of Christ means that we respond to Jesus’ request to “Follow me.”   By following Jesus, the missional church transforms the world. Jesus said that loving God with all your heart, soul and mind is the greatest commandment. He also said that loving your enemy as yourself is the next greatest commandment and much like the first (Matt 22:37-39).  For the church and the Christian to be truly transformed internally and to be transformational to the world externally, there needs to be both an intimacy with God and involvement in the lives of others. We are committed to times of worship and Holy Communion with our district NYI family that fosters intimacy with God and one another while at the same time teaching our students spiritual disciplines. Through quizzing and our Praise Rallies we focus on the Word understanding that we begin to think and act missionally as we engage the Word of God.

According to author Paul Wesley Chilcote,  “the Wesleys discovered, as many have today, that the movement of the Spirit is from contemplation to action—from the experience of God’s grace to the offer of God’s love in Christ to others…[out of an] overflowing heart.” We see involvement in the lives of others as a necessary component of holy living. We understand that by serving the poor and the oppressed while remaining intimate with the Father, we are transformed into the likeness of Christ while simultaneously demonstrating the transforming message of Jesus to the world. We believe that youth can lead the way in changing the world. According to NT Wright, “once we see who Jesus is, we are not only summoned to follow him in worship, love and adoration, but to shape our world by reflecting his glory into it.” We want the youth of SWO to be world changers; the body of Christ in motion.

Before I close I would like to offer my appreciation and gratitude to the talented group of adults and teens who I have had the pleasure of working with this year as part of our district NYI Council. They are an incredibly talented, hardworking, and spirit-led group of men, women and teens. I believe God is using them to make an incredible impact for the kingdom. In short, they are committed to joining in Christ’s mission to the youth and youth workers of Southwestern Ohio.

First, I would like thank Scott Young who serves as our treasurer.  He inspires me with his seemingly endless energy and his commitment to excellence. He never complains as he works tirelessly to further the overall ministry of SWO NYI while holding down a full-time job along with his ministry position as the youth pastor of his local church.

I would also like to thank Aimee Pritts who serves as our secretary and BLAST Coordinator. As I have said before, she is the glue that holds it all together.  She is a true servant. I am continually amazed at the sacrifice she makes for the sake of the Lord as she ministers to our youth. Her organizational ability is a huge asset to our district as she helps keep all the ministries of SWO NYI intact. She also served on our leadership team for NYC which was an enormous task this year. I really appreciate all her efforts. We couldn’t do what we do on SWO without her.

I would also like to thank Don McNally and Dave Vallandingham for doing an exceptional camp this year called The Body.  I appreciated all the hard work they and their team put into camp this year. It really paid off as many teens and adult’s lives were changed. They helped all of us understand what the Body of Christ is and how a healthy Body functions. They helped us understand our role in the Body and how we can live transformed lives.

Gregg Parkman led our college and career ministry this year. It is a challenging ministry to lead and Gregg did it with passion. I was privileged to attend M7 this year with Gregg and a number of college-aged adults from our district. This missional conference made a huge impact on all of them. Thank you Gregg for your leadership in this ministry position.

I would like to thank Bob Delong for leading one of the best quizzing programs in the Church of the Nazarene again this year. Bob, along with Todd Thomas, have such a passion for helping our students learn the Word of God. I appreciate their commitment and their love for our students. Also, I congratulate them for the many awards and honors our SWO students achieved through quizzing. 

A huge thank you goes to Greg Palmer who held double duty as our Evangelism director and our NYC coordinator. Our quarterly Praise Rallies are one of our most important and successful ministries on our district and I appreciate his leadership in this area. Just coming back from NYC, I want to express my deepest gratitude for the excellent job he did as our NYC Coordinator. NYC was life changing for so many of our youth and adults. Taking two hundred people to St. Louis and coordinating everything for us was a daunting task but well worth the effort. He has made a lasting difference in each of our lives through his leadership with NYC.

Santo Landerer is our Youthserve director. He is charged with the task of keeping our mission before us. He does so with passion and compassion. He is a true servant and an inspiration to all of us. Thank you Santo.  

I would like to thank Mitch Pollic, our district Big Picture/Leader D trainer, for developing our equipping ministry which trains our adults and teens in leadership/discipleship. Together with Candice Corwin, he is preparing to launch Leader D again this school year. Training such as this is vital to the spiritual development of our youth and I encourage each church on our district to get involved. 

When it comes to staying connected on our district one of the most important ways to do so is through our website. Our website, at www.swonaznyi.org is a wealth of information and I would encourage each of you to utilize it often. I would like to thank Mary Oberer for the excellent job she is doing with the site.

I would also like to thank our 2006-2007 Zone Coordinators, Greg Simpson, Candice Corwin, and David O’Toole.  They are an important youth ministry resource on each zone and I encourage you to take advantage of their wisdom when it comes to youth ministry.

A very special thank you goes out to our council student representatives, Tova Sally, Justin Moorman, Kelsey Teeters, Jeff Farmer, Bethany Kindle and Jordan Jackson.  They have represented you well this year.  They are excellent leaders and I appreciate the way they allow the Lord to use them in serving you.

This summer is one of transition for our District Superintendent and Assistant District Superintendent who are both retiring. First I would like to thank Rev. Gary Jones for his many years of attendance at our district NYI council meetings and for all the love, encouragement and wisdom he brings to our council. SWO NYI will not be the same without Gary. We will miss you more than you know.

  I also want to thank Dr. Hansen for his incredible leadership on our district. I deeply appreciate the love and compassion he shows to the youth and youth workers of SWO.  You are loving and gracious and it is evident that the youth and youth workers of SWO have a special place in your heart as you do in ours. On a personal note, I want to thank you for the investment you have made in my life and that of my family. You have been our pastor and our friend. You will be greatly missed.

  I believe I have the best family in the whole world and I am so grateful for the love and support they give to me in my ministry on SWO. I am very blessed to have Debbie as my wife.  Her continual love, support and encouragement gives me strength to do what I do. God knew what he was doing when he brought us together.  I am also very blessed to be the father of two incredible Christian kids who love the Lord with all their heart.  It has been an incredible thing to be their youth pastor and their dad. Brittany is an awesome young woman whose tenacity, strength and commitment to the Lord is a real inspiration to me.  God has really blessed me with an awesome daughter.   I am very thankful for an awesome son as well. Jordan is an incredible young man with wisdom well beyond his years. He is a committed leader among his peers and I love being able to serve  in ministry with him.  I also want to thank our “adopted”

Respectfully Submitted,

Kyle Jackson
SWO District NYI President

 

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