Mindy Goes to a Missionary Meeting

Women’s Missionary Service at The Bridge Church, Fresno, California

I’m not much of a “women’s gatherings” kind of person. If I can avoid a women’s gathering, I will -- unless it involves missionaries. I’m all in for missionaries. So when a day off from work coincided with the monthly meeting of WMS at The Bridge, I made a salad, packed my scissors, and grabbed a cotton sheet...more about that in a minute.

The meeting room was full of activity when I arrived a few minutes after 9:00 am. At least ten women were already at work on various projects; others were getting coffee, and hot water (and ice water) ready. I put my salad on a table next to a box of home-grown grapes before going to a woman standing between a sign in sheet and an offering basket.

“Hi,” I said. “I’m new.”

She welcomed me and had me write my name, email address, and birthday at the bottom of the attendance sheet. I forgot to ask about the offering basket, but when I asked what the different projects were, she pointed to a table where women were working on items for Samaritan’s Purse (I think for Operation Christmas Child, but I’m not sure); another where cotton sheets would be torn into strips, then sewed and rolled into bandages for a hospital in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. One table was covered with card stock, colored pictures, decorative doodads, glue, and scripture passages for making cards. In one corner, a woman was tying a quilt stretched on a rack in preparation for binding. One long table held several sewing machines, where the bandage strips were sewed. Another table held fabric donated for quilt-making, and women were choosing fabric for the quilts they’d sew at home.

I left my sheet for the workers at the bandage table, and asked if I could help tie off the quilt. Another woman joined us and helped me find the right needle and a threader. When we sat down, they asked if I’d ever tied a quilt before. I said I had, but I noticed that this quilt was tied differently than the one I’d worked on with my sister thirty years earlier. They showed me what to do, and with someone on each of the four sides of the crib-sized quilt, we had three quilts tied in about an hour.

By then, donuts and coffee were out, and when a newcomer asked if she could join the quilt-tying group, I was happy for an opportunity to try another project. After getting a cup of coffee, I found an empty chair at the card-making table, where one of the projects was making scripture cards for students in an area of the Democratic Republic of the Congo with little infrastructure and few possessions. These cards, with their scripture passage in Lingala and artwork cut from pretty greeting cards, are treasured by many of the students. After about half an hour, we’d made all the cards we could, and I moved back to the table where two women were making bandages.

One woman wanted to help set up for lunch, so she showed me how to use the bandage roller (yay!). The other woman at the table was also visiting WMS for the first time; her neighbor, a regular part of the group, had invited her to come. While I tried to keep my bandage rolled neatly, she and another woman chatted as they put away fabric to be torn and rolled at the next meeting.

Long before I finished rolling my bandage, the speaker and her husband had arrived and wandered back to our table as they looked at the various projects. Rachel’s been a missionary in the Congo for years; her husband, Gilbert, is Congolese. I wanted to ask her about the Evangelical Free Church’s child sponsorship program, and in the course of our conversation, she mentioned that she’d been in language school with Dean’s sister and brother-in-law, and that when Daryl and Carol were in the Congo last year, they’d stayed with Rachel and Gilbert. (I later learned that one of our nieces was named for Rachel). While we talked, the bandage roll was finished and all around the room, tables were being readied for lunch.

After some group photos and a prayer around the tables full of salads, we sat down to eat, and several women joined the group for the meal and to hear what Rachel had to tell us about her work.

Rachel is a missionary with ReachGlobal, serving in the Democratic Republic of the Congo near Tandala Hospital (where she was a nurse prior to the Second Congo War at the end of the 20th century. Now, she’s the contact for White Cross Ministry, a service branch of the Evangelical Free Church that provides cotton bandages and other hospital supplies to Tandala Hospital, along with supporting health and education work in an area with dirt roads that flood easily, less than spotty phone coverage, huge obstacles to education, and deep needs. Rachel is a liaison in country for the Global Fingerprints child sponsorship program.

I’ve always loved a good missionary slide show, and though brief, Rachel’s was compelling. Her husband, Gilbert, drives the truck that brings supplies to the hospital. Through the work of White Cross, people in the hospital and its clinics have access to the materials they need. Global Fingerprints provides a pathway for children and teenagers (and their families) to have needed medical care, food, hygiene supplies, and educational opportunities that otherwise don’t exist.

I get pretty excited about people helping each other. I get very excited about concrete, practical, simple projects that help and also bring people together. When those things also provide a way to show people the love of Christ, I start losing the words to talk about it.

Earlier this week, we shared Paige’s post about church gatherings that are scheduled in such a way that many women can’t attend. This was one of those gatherings...in the group of nearly 50 women, I saw one or two in their 30s or 40s as we worked on projects, and a couple more came just for the lunch and Rachel’s talk.

Church, there’s no need for missions to be just for women. Certainly, it’s not something only older women care about. How can we do better?

We Finally Have a Home Church (But We Won't Stop Going to Other Churches)

The Bridge Church, Fresno
Over the past year, a lot of people have asked us about our "home church." Usually, we figure they want to make sure we've got people who support us spiritually and to whom we're accountable, so we've talked about Healdsburg Community Church, The Redeemed Life Church, and First Presbyterian Church of Santa Rosa -- all churches where we've had strong ties of family and friendship for years. But we acknowledge that for the past several years, we haven't really had a home church. We've been visitors, sometimes first time and sometimes frequent.

But as of this month, we have a home church: The Bridge in Fresno. We can see the buildings from our front windows, so we don't anticipate much trouble walking the two minutes from our door to the church parking lot. We were briefly part of the congregation more than 25 years ago, and we visited in March of 2015, when we were visiting former youth group members.

Here's a quick update since our last report:

• The church has called a senior pastor, Andrew Smith. 
• Seven worship services are held on the campus each Sunday, including an 8:00 am "traditional" service, two services in the cafe (with live music and video sermon), two "live" contemporary services in the sanctuary, a Spanish language worship service, and a deaf service. There are also an abundance of Sunday school classes for children and adults, as well as small groups that meet throughout the week.
• There are people here who actually remember us from 1990. 

In the months to come, we anticipate becoming involved in an "Adult Bible Fellowhip" (or Sunday school) class, as well as attending at least one worship service here each week. 

But you'd get pretty bored with statistics from the same church week after week, so we don't expect to be reporting on The Bridge after this post. Instead, we hope to visit new churches (mostly in California) each week, generally following a monthly theme. 

Next month, we plan to go to each of the other churches in our neighborhood -- none more than half a mile away. We'll let you know how it goes!

Statistics
(so far this month, we've visited the "Traditions" service, "The Cafe," and "The Bridge Live") 

Service Length: Traditions 1 hour 12 minutes
The Cafe 1 hour 14 minutes
The Bridge Live 1 hour 15 minutes

Sermon Length: Traditions 42 minutes
The Cafe 40 minutes
The Bridge Live 36 minutes

Visitor Treatment: In each of the services, visitors were welcomed from the front multiple times. The church makes great efforts to ensure new visitors are greeted even before they enter the building, and there's an information station near (clearly marked) main entrance. We were greeted by at least five people as we walked into the Traditions service, and a couple (we later realized they had been our Sunday School teachers almost thirty years ago, although none of us recognized each other) invited us to lunch after church. Everyone in each service was encouraged to fill out the Connections card.

Followup by Tuesday Morning: On Monday, we received a personalized email from the Director of Community Life ; a day or two later, we got a phone call in response to an interest we'd expressed on the Connections card. We also got an email (again in response to interests we'd mentioned on the Connections card) from a member of the Missional Life Department.

Our Rough Count: 165 / 74 / 225

Probable Ushers’ Count: 190 / 80 / 230

Snacks: coffee, decaf, and hot water for tea were available in several locations around the campus. The Cafe had specialty coffee drinks available for purchase, and croissants, muffins, fresh fruit, and donuts were available as well (a "donations" jar was on the table with the snacks).

Musicians: Traditions had an orchestra, choir, and worship band that included an electric bass (man), 3 trumpets (men), violin (woman), saxophone (woman), trombone (man), flute (woman), drums (man), piano (woman), keyboard and organ (man). The choir consisted of 14 women and 8 men.
The Cafe had percussion (man), acoustic guitar (man), electric bass (man), and keyboards (woman)
The Bridge Live included an electric bass (man), electric guitar (man), drums (man), acoustic guitar (man), and vocals (woman)

Songs: Traditions
"O for a Thousand Tongues"
"All Because of Jesus"
"Shout to the Lord"
"The Power of Your Name" (choir only)
"Rise Up, O Church of God"
"Sanctuary"
The Cafe
"Stir in Me"
"What Joy"
"From the Inside Out"
"Love Came Down"
"Called me Higher"

The Bridge Live
"Dare you to Move"
"Everyday"
"All to Him"
"Take Heart"
"For the Sake of the World"

Miles to Church: 100 yards

Church Website: http://thebridgefresno.com/

WiFi Availability: open guest wifi

Tie/Suit Count: 12

We Go to Church in Wyoming (on Saturday AND Sunday!)

Cornerstone Evangelical Free Church, Casper

What can a little blog do when a big national magazine beats it to a story? This week we went to Cornerstone Evangelical Free Church the month after Christianity Today did a story on churches “Breaking the 200 Barrier” (two hundred people attending worship services over the weekend). So what’s left for us to write about?

After all, the article by the church’s pastor, Jace Cloud, told about the church being founded in 1971. The article discussed how the congregation was small for decades but 15 years ago, when the church called Pastor Jack Olsen, attendance was consistently between 130 to 175 people. At that point, several things led to growth. For one thing, the church expanded the facilities and for another, they added worship times. After completion of the building in 2011, attendance averaged 250. In 2013, they added a Saturday evening service which also led to more attendees. They are now considering adding a Thursday evening service since in Wyoming, many people use the weekends for travel, hunting, and fishing.

Another factor in the church’s growth has been successful leadership. Jace had great praise for the humble and wise leadership of his predecessor, Jack Olsen. When Olsen decided his time of leading was coming to an end, he took an interesting approach to a transition. He told the church he would be transitioning to another ministry within the church. Jace was hired by the church and was there for a year of transition as he gradually took on Olsen’s responsibilities. Jace is now senior pastor and Olsen is pastor of adult ministries.

Multiple services are a challenge for churches: how does the church maintain cohesiveness and unity? Cornerstone EFC makes small group ministry a priority. The small groups of the church base their discussion on the weekly sermon and five discussion questions (included in the bulletin each week) written by Jace. There has been a very positive response to this system.

When we spoke with him, Jace said some of the changes that led to the church’s growth have been carefully planned and some have been accidental, but all have been things have been part of God’s sovereignty and grace.

So what do I have left to write about?

I guess I could write about the cool magnetic pens that hang on the back of the chairs. Or the ingenuity of using old bottles to catch drips from drink dispensers at the dinner that follows the Saturday evening service?

It would be probably be beter to twrite about the service we attended and some of the people we talked to.

We were delighted to find that the church was celebrating the first Sunday of Advent. Not all Evangelical Free Churches celebrate Advent -- sometimes they’ll stay with whatever sermon series they were working through and only celebrate Christmas at Christmas.

But at the Saturday evening service we attended a couple read from Isaiah 9 (“The people walking in darkness have seen a great light”) and lit the first of the candles in the Advent Wreath. What made me very happy was singing Christmas carols.

Jace told us that Cornerstone celebrates Advent because many people who don’t usually come to church come at Christmas time. They often hope to sing the carols they grew up with, songs they’ve heard since they were young.

Jace’s sermon on that first Sunday of Advent wasn’t what many would expect for a traditional Advent service. Jace preached from a different passage in Isaiah, chapter 63. He read from the passage, “I trampled the nations in my anger; in my wrath I made them drunk and poured the blood on the ground” and he added, “Merry Christmas!”

Jace said many people think exclusively of the baby Jesus in the manger, but that we should remember at this time of year the Second Advent of Christ, as well as the first, when Jesus comes again to judge the world. Later, he said, they would be focusing on the first Advent with Jesus in the manger, but this week he thought it was important to focus on the Returning KIng.

(He asked “for permission to nerd out for a bit as I talk about eschatology.” He went on to give an explanation and timeline of events of the end times from a dispensational perspective, not a surprise from a Dallas Seminary graduate.)

He acknowledged that most Americans, in the comfort of our 21st century life, might be uncomfortable with Jesus as the Warrior King in Isaiah 63 and Revelation 19, but most oppressed, persecuted people of God through the ages would find great hope in this imagery.  The picture of a bloody soldier doesn’t fit in our Christmas decorating scheme, but if you were locked in a concentration camp, such a liberator might be the best thing you could ever imagine.

After the Saturday night service, everyone was invited downstairs for dinner (a regular part of the schedule). Jace said that having a Saturday evening service with a meal was expected to be appealing to students from the nearby college. It turned out that it didn’t reach that group, but did appeal to the poor in the community, to outcasts. (I talked with Marshall, a former state trooper, who said that the Saturday night service was helpful for him when his work schedule wouldn’t allow him to come on Sunday morning.)

There was an abundance of pizza, fried chicken, salad,and cookies that evening. (According to regulars to the service, attendance was down for the night, about half of the usual attendance, probably due to the Casper Christmas parade taking place at the same time and to the holiday weekend.) The dinner made us almost as happy as the Christmas carols.

Before the service and after dinner I spoke with people about what had drawn them to Cornerstone. Cora said she heard about the church six years ago. Someone at work told her about a marriage seminar the church was conducting. Her marriage was struggling at the time but she doubted her husband would have the weekend off, since he rarely did. But he amazingly had that weekend free. She credits that seminar for turning their marriage around, and they’ve attended the church ever since.

Larissa moved to the area with her husband back in 2009 and said they love the church. They came because it is an Evangelical Free Church. (“We like the statement of faith. It’s like a Baptist church with a statement of faith.”)

We had dinner with Janet and Greg, who tried several churches in the area before coming to Cornerstone. They attended one Sunday and Janet said, “Okay, I’m fine here,” and they stayed.

We also spoke with Matt Horne, the Missions and Children’s Pastor at Cornerstone, who began attending the church years before he was on staff. He remembered that when he first started attending, he came with questions about his faith, the church, and Scripture. The people of the congregation were welcoming and hospitable. People allowed him to ask questions, without condemnation. They helped him work through Scripture to find answers to his questions. And eventually he came on staff (he and his wife also run a coffee business in town).

Questioning is a part of the culture, Jace said. People in Wyoming are quite independent. After he preaches a sermon, it’s not unusual for people to let him know what they think he got wrong. He said that is very different from the churches he grew up with and served in down South, but I think he’s come to enjoy it.

College Heights Baptist Church, Casper

We also visited College Heights Baptist Church on Sunday morning. They sang only one Christmas song, but the sermon came from Luke 1 about the conception of John the Baptist, a quite Adventy passage. We also had a delightful time at this church’s Thanksgiving dinner earlier in the week. I don’t have time or space to write more about this church, but one hopes that Christianity Today may do so in the near future.

Statistics

Cornerstone EFC

Service Length: 1 hour 4 minutes

Sermon Length: 37 minutes

Visitor Treatment: We were greeted and given bulletins when we came in. The bulletins had a connection card attached that both visitors and regulars were encouraged to fill out. Several people encouraged us to come to the dinner after the worship service, and we were welcomed at the table.

Followup by Tuesday Morning: none

Our Rough Count: 55

Actual Ushers’ Count: 81

Snacks: pizza, fried chicken, green salad, coffee, hot water for tea, lemonade, ice water, brownie bites, and cookies

Musicians: piano (man)

vocals (woman)

Songs: “Come, Thou Long Expected Jesus”

“The First Noel”

“O Come, O Come, Emmanuel”

“What Child is This?” (piano offertory)

“Joy to the World”

Miles to Church: 3

Church Website: http://www.cornerstonefree.org/

College Heights Baptist

Service Length: 1 hour 15 minutes

Sermon Length: 36 minutes

Visitor Treatment: At the beginning of the service, guests were encouraged to fill out the connection card found in pockets behind the chairs. There was only one card in our row (and no pencils or pens). During the greeting time, we were greeted by everybody around us.

Followup by Tuesday Morning: none

Our Rough Count: 270

Probable Ushers’ Count: 300

Snacks: cookies, coffee, hot water

Musicians: Drums (man)

Bass guitar (man)

Acoustic guitar (man)

Electric guitar (man)

Piano (woman)

Vocals (3 men, 4 women)

Songs: “Speak, O Lord”

“Emmanuel”

“Glorify Your Name” (piano offertory)

“He is Exalted” (piano offertory)

“Lord Reign in me”

“Thank You”

“Glory to God Forever”

Miles to Church: 2

Miles from Start: 44,200

Total 2016 Miles: 43,904

Church Website: http://www.collegeheightschurch.org

We Go to Church in Iowa

Valley Church, Des Moines

“We’d like to give a gift the community,” Pastor Quintin Stieff had proposed to the congregation of Valley Church, an Evangelical Free Church in West Des Moines, Iowa.

When I think of a gift, my go to is a Baskin Robbins card. What the leadership of the church had in mind was a little more substantial: building a community center with a gym, playing fields, cafe, indoor play area, meeting rooms, and more on the 35 acres across the street from the church's main building. There had been some thought to building a larger sanctuary and church facilities on the property, but then someone came up with the idea of the community center.

Stieff warned the congregation, “You will not be the users of this space. This isn’t a place for our weddings or parties.” The vision of the Valley Community Center is to “be a hub of doing good for the community, with the community.”

The church is still able to use the facility. On Sunday mornings and Wednesday nights, the space is designated for “Life Groups” and Bible classes, but that’s a relatively small part of the facilities’ schedule. For adults in the community, the gym is open during the week for exercise classes and pickup games of basketball and pickleball. There are art and exercise classes for children (including Kids Zumba and Kids Mini Pretzel, whatever the heck that is).

There are rotating Upward Sports programs for kids and youth. Upward is a sports program for families that don’t want sports to dominate their lives (I’m looking at you, competitive youth soccer leagues that expect families to commit every afternoon and weekend in the vain hope their child will grow to be Pele or Marta). Kids play flag football or basketball or soccer with a schedule of one practice and one game. Coaches are expected to rotate all kids into games, even at the risk of a loss. The goal of this program is not to get kids athletic scholarships, but to build kids’ character.

The cafe is a meeting place for parents after they drop kids off at the neighboring elementary school. Reasonably priced specialty coffees are available, but the plain java is free. Younger kids can use the play structure, and snacks like granola bars and mac and cheese are available for purchase, too.

The fields surrounding the center aren’t just used for sports (such as cyclocross biking -- again, whatever the heck that is), but also for gardening. The large community garden is primarily used by low income members of the community, particularly the refugee community. ( The garden is managed in cooperation with a Lutheran church with an extensive refugee outreach.) The grounds also house a historic barn which the church received “free” from the city (excepting, of course, the costs for transportation and building a new foundation).

Don Long, the Compassion Coordinator for the church, told us about giving a tour of the community center to a gentleman who said, “So that’s where our tax dollars go.” When he learned the center was owned by the church, he was astounded that the facility was open to the whole community. His place of worship had a gym, but it was only open to those who attended there.

Don told us that the road separating the church from the community center has proved to be a blessing. He’s happy that many people are unaware of the connection with the church, because they’re less inhibited about using the facilities.

Pastor Stieff shared a letter the church had just received from a neighbor who wasn’t associated with Valley Church. She wrote: “Many thanks to Valley Church for the wonderful community center. I meet friends for coffee and cards. My son practices volleyball there. I walk my dog around the garden and enjoy talking with the industrious gardeners about their crops. The open fields are a blessing to the environment. I know the children who practice on them and the bicyclists testing their skills on the south send up silent ‘thank yous’ for this special gift. It makes our neighborhood a pleasure to live in. Thank you! Thank you!”

But the Community Center isn’t the only way the church gives to the community. Every month at the church and the center, there is a new display of ways people can contribute to those in need. When we were there the display was for a coat drive, but at other times it might be a food drive or a promotion for Operation Christmas Child.

Don was telling us about ways that the church has found to show compassion to the community. For example, a local convenience store chain was reluctantly throwing away hundreds of unsold sandwiches every day. Local food pantries weren’t up to the task of refrigerating the sandwiches for transport and storage, so a ministry partner (Fellowship of Christian Athletes) bought a refrigerated truck, and volunteers pick up and deliver the sandwiches to economically disadvantaged schools, where coaches are able to serve them as a healthy snack for players after practices.

The church shows compassion globally as well as locally. When Valley Community Center was built, a tenth of the money raised went to work in India. (Our connection with the church was made when we went to a meeting of Global Fingerprints, the child sponsorship program of the Evangelical Free Church.) Because the church is blessed with a number of medical and business professionals, those people are encouraged to share their skills through mission trips.

Don said that all of these things are a part of the church philosophy that “Good works produce good will, which allows you to share the good news.”

And, of course, besides doing these outreach programs, the church does, you know, church.

We attended the Saturday evening worship service. The parking lots of the church were filling up, but we soon learned that many people parking in the Community Center lot were going to the neighboring high school football stadium. (I did think it was cool that the church allowed that parking.)

As we entered for the 5:30 pm worship service, I was won over immediately by the refreshment table outside of the worship center. Not only was there free coffee, tea, and water, there was free soda. And not just colas -- the selection included Dr Pepper. Not Mr. Pibb, Dr. Shasta, Dr. Thunder, or any of the other generic impersonators, but the real beverage. I was impressed by this; thereby acknowledging my shallow nature and lack of nutritional integrity.

At the information desk, we learned that the Saturday night service wasn’t as well attended as the Sunday morning services. (One person said that the average attendance was usually 125 - 175 people as opposed to the hundreds that attend the Sunday morning services. On the night we were there, attendance was down from that. Football fans perhaps?) But the service allows an opportunity to worship for those who work on Sunday (or go to one of those youth soccer games).

I asked a few people what drew them to Valley Church. Several mentioned solid Biblical teaching.

Pastor Stieff was beginning a series entitled “Strangers in a Strange Land,” from the epistle of First Peter. (A heads up to science fiction fans - that title isn’t originally from the Robert Heinlein novel.) In his introduction, Quintin talked about the culture shock of his first year of college at Indiana University in Bloomington. (Mindy discovered that they had some friends in common from IU.) The theme of believers as sojourners resonated to those of us who currently live out of our van.

We also attended the “Traditions” service on Sunday morning. The Saturday evening service and three of the Sunday morning services are called “Celebration.” The basic difference between the services is that the Traditions service had more hymns and the Celebration service has more choruses at a much higher volume. (It doesn’t go to eleven, but it’s up there.) As one might expect, the crowd was older at the Traditions service, but there were some younger couples as well, along with at least two very young children.

The Traditions service doesn’t have a live sermon, but rather a tape delayed sermon from an earlier service (either Saturday night or the 8:30 service). At both services, we saw a promotional video for the upcoming Great Pumpkin Party, another event designed for the community. The event has been held for years; last year’s event had over 6,000 people in attendance. Costumes are encouraged, but of the “not scary” variety. In the video we saw a lot of superheroes and Disney princesses. There are churches that shy away from Halloween, but this is a church that will have a free screening of Hotel Transylvania on the day of 10/31.

I think the coolest thing about this three evening, pre-Halloween event is that the first night is for children with special needs. The church is adding another event in the Community Center on the same night, the Harvest Hoedown, for adults with special needs (ages 16 and up).

In his sermon, Pastor Stieff said we may be strangers in this land, but we still need to be good neighbors. Valley Church seems to be doing a good job of that.

Statistics Saturday evening Celebration / Sunday morning Traditions

Service Length: 1 hour 15 minutes / 1 hour 15 minutes

Sermon Length: 50 minutes / 47 minutes

Visitor Treatment: On Saturday evening, we went to the welcome desk; the woman working there gave us a connection card to fill out, introduced us to another worker, and answered our questions and asked good questions to get to know us better. At the Traditions service, which currently meets in the Community Center, Linton Lundeen (pastor of care and counseling) greeted us and introduced himself. There was a greeting time during that service, and several people greeted us.

Followup by Tuesday Morning: On Sunday, we got an email from Don Long following up on our visit to the Community Center.

Our Rough Count: 88 / 67

Probable Ushers’ Count: 100 / 75

Snacks: coffee, tea, decaf, ice water, lemonade, and a variety of sodas on ice / coffee, decaf, water, lemonade, and a variety of cookies

Musicians: Celebration service
acoustic guitar (man)
vocals (woman)
bass guitar (man)
drums (man)
keyboard (man)
Traditions service
keyboard (woman)
vocals (2 women)

Songs: Celebration service
"You Have Saved Us"
"The Solid Rock"
"More than Conquerors"
"I Wait" (special music)
"God is Great"

Traditions service
"The Solid Rock"
"All Hail the Power of Jesus' Name"
"I Sing Praises"
"Jesus Your Name"
"Precious Lord" (special music)
"Just a Closer Walk with Thee"
"Thou my Everlasting Portion"
Miles to Church: 5 miles

Miles from Start: 38,579

Total 2016 Miles: 38,293

Church Website: https://www.valley-church.com/