A look at our broader ministry for Christ

This morning I put on my ABC hat and traveled to Brooklyn for an 8:00 a.m. meeting at a nursing home and then drove down to North Stonington for a meeting at a Christian Camp. Why? Because our ministry extends beyond the reach of our city. Our church is affiliated with the American Baptist Churches of Connecticut and the American Baptist Churches USA. This doesn't mean much to the person sitting in our pews from Sunday to Sunday. We don't answer to a hierarchy as we live out our calling as a church body. We are led by the Holy Spirit and called to minister to the world around us. It begins in Norwich to be sure.

We don't need a denomination to do that. We have been doing wonderful things in own. For two hundred years we have been an active presence in our city. Today we have a small food pantry that serves 6 - 10 families a month. We serve lunch to anywhere from 40 -75 people at St. Marks Lutheran Church on the third Sunday of each month. We add our resources to others and raise money for hunger marching in the CROP Walk. We give to CareNet Pregnancy Resource Center and walk for life, Madonna Place for mothers and children, St. Vincent De Paul Soup Kitchen and Habitat For Humanity, building homes for families. That's us. We are First Baptist Church.

Yet there are things that are important enough for us to roll up our sleeves and jump in to the fray. For instance over fifty years the American Baptist Churches in Connecticut, started two ministries that are still considered treasures in our mutual ministry.

The Pierce Baptist Home began as a home for the elderly from our Baptist churches. Over the years it has grown and now it is a premier facility for the care of elderly residents of all faiths in northeastern Connecticut. Today we also offer a wonderful place for the more active seniors to live at Creamery Brook. It is the first step in a continuum of care plan blessed by our Baptist Churches. The success of Pierce Home led to the establishment of Connecticut Baptist Homes in Meriden and Mystic River Homes in Noank. These are all a testimony to what we can do when we come together in ministry.




Camp Wightman began a ministry for our children. In the beautiful wooded landscape of eastern Connecticut, the American Baptists purchased a parcel of land and developed it as a camp for our kids. Over the years it has grown and it is now one of the special ministries that has changed hundreds of lives over the years. Just set foot on the property and you can feel the touch of God.

We can be proud of these ministries. Right now we have four of our members on the Board of Trustees of PierceCare. Last year we gave $800 to Camp to help with the upkeep of the Frances Rose Cabin and sent 8 campers to enjoy a week in God's country.

I don't have to tell you that there is no way we could be responsible for the answering the great commission in Matthew 28 on our own. But as we join together with ABCUSA, we can pool our resource to send missionaries to the ends of the earth. We can also work as partners to become short term missionaries in specific locations. Just like we do in the state, our link to the wider body of Christ builds ministries that change lives.

Cal