Beth Bear
LOGOS Director
Laramie First United Methodist Church
Laramie, Wyoming
Last fall, we decided that God was calling us to start a children’s ministry at our church, Laramie First United Methodist Church (UMC). The need for something to strengthen our youth’s connection with Christ, foster relationships between the congregation and youth, and instill a greater sense of purpose in our church led us to LOGOS. A few of us had previous experience with LOGOS ministries and knew firsthand how transformational this would be for UMC.
Excited by the prospect of this for our youth and adults, we set forth to bring this to fruition in nine short months. We started with presentations to the congregation and sermons about the benefits of a LOGOS program. We talked to all who would listen about the why of LOGOS. With anything new, there was always some hesitation and many great questions. Many wondered about the “how,” “when,” “who,” yet we kept focused for several months on the “why,” knowing the answers to the “how” questions would follow. We hosted two LOGOS nights and invited adults to join in to experience what LOGOS was all about, including all four parts. It was truly a gift to see people suddenly start to see what this program entailed, and what it could become and do at our church. We formed a board of five people with passion and a willingness to work hard to get this thing off the ground. In June, we were blessed to have GenOn trainers come to our church to host a LOGOS training, an event we co-hosted with a church about an hour away in Colorado that was also looking to start this ministry. We had 15 people attend the training from five different churches! It was powerful to see it click for people and to have them get just why LOGOS matters. We came out of the training energized and ready for the final stretch to our first LOGOS night in early September.
Through it all, GenOn was there to support us in the ups and downs with getting this ministry started. Through phone calls, emails, training, all of our questions were answered, and help was provided when we ran into bumps in the road. We just had our sixth LOGOS night, and GenOn continues to support us and be there as we celebrate growing from eight kids to start, to more than 20 now attending!
Having previously been a part of a flourishing LOGOS ministry that was six years strong when I became involved, I found it was a very different experience to start one from day one. I assumed that everyone would be on board immediately and see what a great thing this was, because I had lived it and knew how transformational it would be. While that was not always the case, the support from our congregation has continued to grow and a group of 10 or so dedicated people continue to make this ministry run each week.
When the stresses of getting everything set for LOGOS nights starts to weigh heavy (the snacks, the decorations, the Bible Study lesson!), I realize I need to breathe, pray, and remember the foundation of LOGOS from Acts 2:42, “They devoted themselves to the Apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.” The “how” will not seem as overwhelming if we focus on and devote ourselves to the “why.” God has breathed life into this ministry at UMC and continues to do so each and every week!
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