Worship is described in the Bible as both a specific activity and a way of life. Praising God can be done both privately and in public settings like our Sunday worship.  As a way of life, worship refers to an overall lifestyle of serving and glorifying God while reflecting God’s glory to others. There are four staff members dedicated to creating space for worship at Joy! – Pastor Laura, Jen Marvin, Kevin Belles, and Alex Rossmann.  Pastor Laura oversees the worship program, Jen is involved with worship administration, while Kevin and Alex support the worship tech needs. Joy! has a strong worship volunteer base of about 50 volunteers who serve on a regular basis in the areas of music, tech, children’s messages, stage design, and drama.  Teamwork and collaboration are essential for our weekly Sunday services and special services like Ash Wednesday, Holy Week, and Christmas Eve.

There are many things to highlight we are proud of:

• We had 12 impactful sermon series this year that focused on themes such as following Jesus, the importance of sharing our life story, showing love in the world, seasons of faith we experience, and getting real with ourselves and God.
• We continue to cross train our volunteers in multiple areas so people can take vacations and breaks when needed without worrying that an area won’t be covered for worship. 
• The Tech Team is continually working to improve both the livestream and in-person worship experience by troubleshooting and changing out equipment as needed

Worship remains a vital part of Joy! as it connects us to God and others and encourages us to be the Church God intended.  With the livestream available that can be viewed even during the week, we are able to keep our congregation connected and growing in faith even if they can’t be physically present.

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Jesus intended for the Church to be a well-connected community, sharing in one another’s joys and sorrows, and bearing one another’s burdens.  There are many ways Joy! provides care for our congregation, both in programmed events and active communication.  Whenever a care concern is brought to the Joy! Staff, action is taken to ensure that person is well cared for.

This year we provided care in the following ways:

• Phone calls to Joy! attenders just to check in
• Calls to members dealing with illness or facing surgery
• Pastoral care and counseling to those going through a difficult time
• Prayer quilts for those needing to be surrounded in prayer
• Prayer Team praying over prayer requests
• DivorceCare and GriefShare support groups held in person and on Zoom
• Meals and meal gift cards given to those in need of meals
• Focus on mental health with a small group on fear and anxiety
• Almost 50 sympathy cards sent to those we knew had lost a loved one
• Monetary gifts sent to those unemployed or facing financial hardship
• Training for Pastor Laura to develop a Joy! Care Team

Laura Kline, Associate Pastor

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