• Connecting people to an abundant life with Jesus Christ and preparing them for His return

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Organizational Health Successes
Organizational Health Successes 2000 1125 Ken Miller

The Oakland Emmanuel Temple and Pittsburg churches are dedicated to fostering community relevance and connecting with their neighbors through compassion and diligence—a mission that aligns with the conference’s strategic anchors.

Each church embarked on this journey toward organizational health in the last year. Their leadership teams have crafted thematic goals that resonate with their congregation and the surrounding community. With a fresh perspective, they evaluate church initiatives to ensure they align, maximizing their impact and effectiveness.

Damon Washington, the district pastor, articulated, “We understand that our internal practices reflect the message we send to our community. Recently, our team addressed a broken chair lift that prevented our access-challenged members from getting around easily. During this process, we realized that we were not projecting a message of care and consideration for our infirm community by not fixing this issue. As a result of this realization, we fixed the chair lift immediately.”

Every leadership team member is empowered to shape the churches’ outreach efforts through inclusive decision-making processes. For instance, a community service day initiative unveiled a neglected weekly service program, a casualty of the pandemic. Through collaborative efforts, they’re revitalizing this program, laying a robust foundation for community engagement.

Washington concluded, “Organizational health and its process has provided a leadership structure that creates a more streamlined approach, member ownership, and efficient, well-planned paths to serving our communities.”

<em>Featured in Northern Lights, March 21, 2024</em>

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New Women’s Ministries Director Selected
New Women’s Ministries Director Selected 2316 3041 Ken Miller

We are pleased to welcome Lisa Marsh, MSW, as our next NCC Women’s Ministry Director.

As a distinguished speaker and graduate of Loma Linda University, Lisa has over 25 years of experience as a California Public Child Welfare System social worker. For over a decade, she has secured “forever homes” for hundreds of foster children throughout California.

In 2015, Lisa joined the faculty in the Division of Social Work at California State University-Sacramento, where she teaches and trains future social workers. She is currently the Director of Field Education. She truly enjoys preparing, guiding, and coaching individuals as they transition from social work students to competent and ethical social work professionals.

In addition to her professional career, Lisa is passionate about sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ, particularly with women in various seasons of life.

Expressing her enthusiasm for her new role, Marsh emphasized her heartfelt desire for women to recognize and embrace God’s intentional love for them. She firmly believes that God sees, redeems, restores, and loves each woman as His daughters—young or seasoned, married or single, working or stay-at-home, broken or victorious. Her goal is to encourage and equip women to overcome shame, self-doubt, and fear and live their lives to the fullest potential of their God-appointed roles with courage and confidence through Jesus Christ.

Marc Woodson, NCC President, expressed his delight in Marsh’s selection, affirming her as a valuable addition to the NCC team. With her extensive experience and commitment to women’s empowerment, Marsh is poised to impact the ministry’s initiatives and outreach efforts significantly.

Outside her professional endeavors, Marsh finds fulfillment in her family life. She shares a loving bond with her husband of 26 years, Gerald, and they cherish the joys of raising their children, Hannah, Noah, and Paige.

As Marsh steps into her new role, her dedication to serving women with compassion and understanding will inspire and uplift countless lives within the NCC community and beyond.

Featured in Northern Lights, March 21, 2024
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Ministering To The Least of These
Ministering To The Least of These 2002 1125 Ken Miller

Embracing its commitment to being community-relevant, the Oakland Market Street Church recently hosted an impactful Prison Ministry Sabbath featuring Anthony Lewis, a pastor from Florida.

Lewis shared his journey from his role as an SDA conference conference departmental director to a decade-long prison term. During his incarceration, Lewis underwent a transformative shift. Mundane Sabbath School lessons became precious moments of spiritual connection, and he longed for visits, religious services, materials, and interaction. This was a great contrast to his former indifference.

His testimony underscores the importance of extending outreach to marginalized communities like those within the prison system. The NCC Prison Ministry Department seeks individuals who are passionate about serving this overlooked community. It offers opportunities for involvement, such as letter writing, supporting local families, and ministering within correctional facilities.

If you are interested in serving this community or are already involved in a prison ministry, please email the team here.

Featured in Northern Lights, March 28, 2024
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Intentional Church Building at Home
Intentional Church Building at Home 2000 1125 Ken Miller

The NCC is dedicated to church planting through the Assessment, Coaching, Training, and Sending method, commonly referred to as ACTS. This approach has seen significant adoption and success, both within the country and internationally.

Kevin Robert, director of church growth and evangelism, emphasizes the importance of church planting for the sustainability and growth of congregations. According to Robert, “Churches that fail to produce new church plants tend to decline over time. The ACTS method focuses on initiating churches in homes, initially serving the local community, and then expanding to cover larger areas as they grow.”

The process begins with trained individuals establishing churches in their own homes, reaching out to and serving their immediate neighbors. These newly formed churches are deliberately designed to be flexible and adaptable to the specific needs and cultural context of their surroundings.

Thanks to the training seminars and dedicated members, the ACTS efforts have helped establish six church plants, four of which are local and two located out of state. This success underscores a commitment to planting churches and being community-relevant, mirroring the early Christian church depicted in the Book of Acts.

Featured in Northern Lights, March 28, 2024
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The Power of Prayer Ministry
The Power of Prayer Ministry 1907 995 Ken Miller

The NCC Prayer Ministries team recently held their annual prayer retreat at Leoni Meadows, which attracted over 120 attendees.

Esme Ross, the ministry director, expressed her satisfaction with the turnout and highlighted the impact of the event, particularly the blessing brought by speaker Melody Mason.

Reflecting on the retreat, Vince Saunders, pastor of The Haven, remarked on the abundance of insights shared regarding various forms of prayer—corporate, personal, and intercessory. He noted that the experience left everyone feeling more deeply connected to God.

Ross concluded, “Overall, the retreat was a spiritually enriching and transformative experience for all who participated.”

Featured in Northern Lights, March 28, 2024
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Fostering Mental Health and Wellness
Fostering Mental Health and Wellness 540 360 Ken Miller

Through community-led endeavors, the St. Helena Church strives for transformative change for a brighter, healthier tomorrow. Recently, the church successfully concluded an eight-week depression and anxiety recovery program, championing holistic wellness practices.

The effort resonated with 37 individuals from across the broader St. Helena community. Upon its culmination, marked improvements in depression and anxiety scores were observed among the participants.

In the spirit of compassion and empowerment, the St. Helena Church remains steadfast in its mission to ignite positive change and uplift lives, one healthy choice at a time.

Featured in Northern Lights, April 4, 2024
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Ed Fargusson Retires After 42 Years
Ed Fargusson Retires After 42 Years 777 874 Ken Miller

Ed Fargusson, Assistant to the President, announced his retirement on April 1 after 42 years in ministry, 40 of those with the Northern California Conference.

Fargusson joined the NCC in 1981 and pastored at Hayward, Alturas, Alameda, Tracy, and Roseville churches. He served shortly as the NCC Human Resources Director and became Assistant to three conference presidents.

He reflected, “The most exciting thing I have seen in pastoring churches and working in the administrative structure is how God changes people’s lives. I often say that serving God is like riding a roller coaster in the front seat. It’s a fun ride, but you are not in control.”

Jim Lorenz, Ministerial Director, stated, “Ed brought a varied background to his role as Assistant to the president. Besides pastoring for many years, he served at the Church State Council and was the NCC HR director. Since he spent most of his career in the NCC, his institutional knowledge is without parallel. Because of this—and his outgoing personality—he knows nearly everyone, his retirement will leave big shoes to fill.”

Marc Woodson, President, added, “We will miss Ed’s values, his contagious kindness, always with a smile on his face. Ed has a servants heart, answering all the calls to service without complaint. He is a passionate hard worker that exemplifies the values of God, the church and the Northern California Conference.”

With Anne, his wife of 42 years, Fargusson intends to travel and spend time with family. He hints that he will do some contract coaching with churches and continue to teach and preach the Good News of salvation.

Featured in Northern Lights, April 4, 2024
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Teamwork
Teamwork 1474 1967 Ken Miller

By Marc Woodson, NCC President

And He went up on the mountain and called to Him those He Himself wanted. And they came to Him. Then He appointed twelve, that they might be with Him and that He might send them out to preach, and to have power to heal sicknesses and to cast out demons. (Mark 3:13-15, NKJV)

Last year, I started a series of articles delving into the significance of organizational health within the Northern California Conference. Over the past three years, our journey has been transformative. Rooted in the belief that as a mission-oriented, faith-based organization, our conference’s health is pivotal for achieving significant milestones in service to God and His kingdom.

The exhilaration lies in witnessing the positive impact our commitment to organizational health has had on our office headquarters, churches, schools, and various ministries. Like any pursuit of health, the results are not instantaneous, but we are gradually reshaping the way we carry out God’s work, steadfastly advancing our mission of reaching the people of Northern California.

As I shared in last year’s article, there are four key disciplines to practice on a journey toward organizational health. They are:

  • build a cohesive leadership team
  • create clarity for the organization
  • overcommunicate that clarity
  • reinforce clarity

In this article, I want to focus on teamwork. Let’s look at the example of Jesus, who, as a leader, selected a team of twelve ordinary men to advance His mission of ministering to a sin-sick and broken world. Jesus demonstrated that teamwork is a highly effective approach to achieving goals and getting things done. On this principle, He carried out His mission and established His church.[1]

Patrick Lencioni, in his book, The Advantage, comments on the value of having a leadership team, “few organizations invest nearly enough time and energy in making their leadership teams cohesive, and certainly not with the level of rigor that it requires and deserves.”[2] Moreover, Lencioni acknowledges the widespread misuse and misunderstanding of the term “team” and endeavors to provide a precise definition of what he intends by a “cohesive” team. In his clarification, he emphasizes that such a team functions in close collaboration, fosters interactive dynamics, and thrives on mutual interdependence.

Illustrating this concept, consider a basketball team as an apt example. Such a team typically shares a common objective: winning the game. Like a successful basketball team, healthy and cohesive teams engage in robust interaction and maintain alignment around pursuing a shared goal.[3]

Imagine what we could achieve if we all worked together towards the same goal. By building cohesive leadership teams in our churches, schools, and ministerial departments throughout our conference, we can more effectively fulfill our purpose – connecting people to an abundant life in Christ and preparing them for His soon return. Our united and aligned efforts would enable us to advance God’s kingdom together and make a lasting impact on those around us.

Ellen White shares this same principle of teamwork when she writes, “In counseling for the advancement of the work, no one man is to be a controlling power, a voice for the whole. Proposed methods and plans are to be carefully considered, so that all the brethren may weigh their relative merits and decide which should be followed.”[4]

Our aspiration for organizational health transcends mere programmatic efforts; it represents a profound cultural transformation. Witnessing the tangible impact of this journey is truly exhilarating. We are united in this endeavor, and the positive changes are palpable within our entities that earnestly embrace and embody organizational health principles. As we navigate this transformative journey together, let’s pray for pastors, principals, department directors, conference office personnel, and ministry directors.

Stay tuned for my next article, where I will share what it takes to build a cohesive leadership team.

[1] See Matthew 16:18; Acts 1:8.

[2] Patrick Lencioni, The Advantage (San Francisco: Jossey-Bass), p. 20.

[3] Ibid., p. 21.

[4] Ellen G. White, Testimonies for the Church, Vol. 7 (Mountain View, CA: Pacific Press), p. 259.

Featured in Northern Lights, January 25, 2024
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Good Things Come in Sevens
Good Things Come in Sevens 5184 3456 Ken Miller

Recently, Pleasant Hill Academy had an impactful fall week of prayer.

Placerville Church Associate Pastor Leif Cano spent the week with students, sharing a themed message of God’s acceptance. The daily messages resonated with seven students who committed to be baptized.

Jea, one of the seven, retold her experience, “During the week, I hadn’t considered being baptized, but as the sermons continued, I began praying, asking the Lord to talk to me. And he did. I was on the edge of my seat, not knowing what to do when pastor Cano called for baptism.”

The Holy Spirit was urging Jea to join the six others already standing. Yet she could not bring herself to do so. Cano looked out at the six standing students and exclaimed, “There is a seventh person who wishes to be baptized today.” Hearing this, Jea’s tears began to flow because, as she exclaimed, “I knew I was the seventh person.”

Before Christmas break, two students were baptized at the Vallejo Central Church and two at Pleasant Hill Church. The other three have scheduled their dates for the New Year.

A proud and grateful parent commented, “We praise God for the decisions these seven made and the role that our schools play in the salvation of young people.”

Featured in Northern Lights, January 4, 2023
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Larry Graack Ordained
Larry Graack Ordained 412 501 Ken Miller

November 11- Larry Graack was ordained at the Paradise Church.

Graack grew up on a Kentucky farm before moving to Southern California. According to his father, “God was already working in his life during these years, and Larry, on his own accord, told his coaches he would not participate in sporting events held on Sabbath, a foreshadowing of his choice of God and career.”

Through a circuitous route after college, Graack worked at the Placerville Church and was later hired as an intern at the Palo Cedro Church. He then studied for his Master of Divinity at Andrews University with concentrations in Chaplaincy and Marriage and Family Life Counseling.

He accepted a call to join the Paradise Church as the youth and young adult pastor. That community, still reeling from a lost church and a town in ruin, was just the place to practice his chaplaincy training.

Graack recently pivoted his pastoral career and became the religion teacher and campus chaplain at Paradise Adventist Academy. He shares his life with Bridgette, his wife of three years. She works for Adventist Health in the Talent Acquisition department.

Eddie Heinrich, NCC Youth Director, stated, “It is evident that God is working in and through Larry. God has given him many talents to use in His service.”

<em>Featured in Northern Lights, November  30, 2023</em>

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