Berea Update for October 24, 2025
As Missions Month draws to a close, we’re reminded that the work of God’s mission doesn’t end with a calendar—it continues through His church. The same God who called Abraham, commissioned the apostles, and empowered the early believers now sends us. Every follower of Christ is part of His plan to reach the world. This week’s devotions below, “The Church on Mission,” call us to see ourselves not as spectators but as participants—people who pray, give, go, and grow together for the sake of the Gospel. May we all have a renewed sense of purpose and unity as Berea continues to shine the light of Christ in our community and beyond. The fact is Springfield, Clark County, and the world needs us to do our part, not for our glory, but for God's alone!
Upcoming Events
1. This Sunday we’re excited to welcome several guest speakers as a part of our last week of Missions Month. Joel and Rachel Shelley will be visiting, and Joel will be preaching during the morning worship service. Joel and Rachel currently serve with Word of Life in the Philippines. They focus on project development, vision casting, maintenance, IT infrastructure, and mentoring.
Joel and Rachel Shelley
We'll also be hearing from Jez and Bamz Butihen during the Sunday School hour. Jez and Bamz serve with Word of Life Asia, reaching and discipling youth across the region. Jez came to Christ in 1996 and has served with Word of Life as a missionary and former Dean of Students in the Philippines. Bamz trusted Christ at age 11, served in youth and camping ministries, and now focuses on discipling their three children--Asaph, Ethan, and Psalmer--while partnering with Jez to train the next generation to share the gospel, equipping them to spread the good news within their own spheres of influence and helping them become disciple makers themselves.
Jez and Bamz Butihen and Family
Brian Solomon, from Capitol Ministries, will also be joining us on Sunday morning during the worship service to give a quick in-person update on his life and ministry. As director of training for Capitol Ministries, Brian is charged with leading efforts to plan and develop training materials for ministry leaders at all levels of service. These materials will be used to teach Bible-teaching evangelists how to establish, lead, and sustain discipleship ministries to political leaders from local city and county government to parliamentarian levels.
Brian Solomon
2. During Missions Month, Youth Group and adult Sunday School classes will combine together in the Family Life Center during the Sunday School hour to hear more from our guests. The Sunday School hour allows for more interaction with our guests, so I would invite you to come to hear more details about the unique ministries they serve in! Sunday School begins at 9:00 AM. Kids' Sunday School classes will meet as normal.
3. This Tuesday, October 28 at 10:00 AM, there will be an Operation Christmas Child work day devoted to folding the shoeboxes in preparation of the OCC Packing Party in November. Please come if you are able!
4. Due to equipment issues, we had to reschedule the Resurrection Garden Work Day to Saturday, November 1, starting at 9:00 AM. Please come if you are able! That morning we'll have a variety of tasks to prepare the Garden for winter, including cutting down a few trees. Another indoor work day will be held in November--more details to come!
5. Attention College/Young Adults! Plan to come to the Love's house (4870 Mumper Rd, Springfield) on Saturday, November 1, beginning at 6:30 PM for an evening of fun, food, and fellowship together! There will also be a bonfire, weather permitting! If you need a ride, please contact the church office!
6. There will be a special offering collected on Sunday, November 5 during the morning worship service for Operation Christmas Child. This offering will go directly to the remaining need to pay for the shipping for the shoeboxes that will be sent all over the world! Please plan accordingly.
7. Interested in participating in drama? Plans are underway to have both a Good Friday and Easter drama this upcoming year! If you are interested in acting, helping with set design, costumes, or in any other way, please see Phil Berrien, or sign-up at the Welcome Center!
Ways You Can Pray This Week
1. Pray for our church, that we might have unity, as we continue to work through staff transitions and building needs! Pray for wisdom for our church's leadership, and that the Lord might be glorified! Ask the Lord to provide the right candidates for our open positions!
2. Pray for missionaries that are serving the Lord, both in the United States and around the world. Pray for their protection, and that the seeds that they plant might grow God's kingdom!
***Please know that there are many individuals who need prayer this week due to health concerns and other events going on in their lives. Out of sensitivity to each individual's situation, these requests may not appear in this weekly blog. We have a "Prayer Team" at the church who receives more detailed information, and commits to praying for individuals in our church family.
This Week's Devotions
Day 1: A People on Purpose
1 Peter 2:9 (ESV) — “But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.”
God didn’t redeem us to sit still but to shine. Every believer is both recipient and representative of grace, called to display His excellencies in a dark world. We are all to be "on mission."
Reflection Question: What does it look like for you to live as a “people on mission” this week?
Prayer Focus: Thank God for calling you out of darkness. Ask Him to make your life a light that points others to Him.
Day 2: Sent into the World
John 20:21 (ESV) — “Jesus said to them again, ‘Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.’”
The Father sent the Son; now the Son sends the church. Missions isn’t an optional program—it’s the pattern of Christ’s own life reproduced in His followers. Every Christian is a “sent one,” called to carry the peace and message of Jesus wherever they go.
Reflection Question: Where is Jesus sending you today—home, workplace, classroom, or community?
Prayer Focus: Pray for courage to live as one who is sent, bearing the peace of Christ into broken spaces.
Day 3: Unity for the Mission
John 17:21 (ESV) — “…that they may all be one… so that the world may believe that you have sent me.”
Jesus connected the credibility of our witness to the unity of His people. Division distracts; love attracts. A united, Christ-centered church becomes a living testimony that the Gospel is true.
Reflection Question: How can you help protect unity in your church so the Gospel shines clearly?
Prayer Focus: Pray for Berea Bible Church to model supernatural unity that points people to Jesus.
Day 4: Prayer as the Engine of Mission
Colossians 4:3–4 (ESV) — “…pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ…”
Every movement of missions begins with prayer. Before Paul traveled, he pleaded for open doors. Prayer doesn’t just prepare the way for missions—it is the mission’s power source.
Reflection Question: How can your prayers play a more active role in global Gospel work?
Prayer Focus: Pray specifically for open doors for Berea’s missionaries and for new Gospel opportunities locally.
Day 5: Generosity that Sends
Philippians 4:18–19 (ESV) — “I have received full payment, and more. I am well supplied, having received from Epaphroditus the gifts you sent… And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.”
Paul saw giving as worship. The Philippians’ generosity didn’t just support his ministry—it revealed their faith in God’s provision. When we give to missions, we declare that Christ is worth more than comfort or security.
Reflection Question: What step of generosity could you take this month to support God’s work?
Prayer Focus: Pray that Berea would be marked by joyful, faith-filled generosity that fuels the spread of the Gospel.
Day 6: Perseverance in the Work
Galatians 6:9 (ESV) — “And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.”
The mission field—whether across the street or across the sea—can feel discouraging. But God’s timetable is perfect. Seeds planted today may bloom in eternity. Our call is faithfulness; His promise is fruit.
Reflection Question: Where do you feel weary in serving or witnessing, and how can you find renewed strength?
Prayer Focus: Pray for perseverance—for yourself, for our missionaries, and for every laborer in God’s harvest.
Day 7: Until the Whole World Hears
Habakkuk 2:14 (ESV) — “For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.”
The story ends in victory. One day, God’s glory will fill the whole earth. Missions is the means by which that promise moves toward fulfillment. We live between the command to go and the certainty that He will be known.
Reflection Question: How does this promise motivate you to keep praying, giving, and going?
Prayer Focus: Thank God that His mission cannot fail. Ask Him to keep Berea faithful until the whole world hears.
Kids (and Kids at Heart) Korner
For Missions Month, here is an activity packet from Ethnos 360's "Mission Minded Kids" program. On the activity pages, you'll find a website where you can visit to have your kids learn more about what it means to be a missionary!
Ethnos 360 Mission Minded Kids Activity Pages
Hope to see you all on Sunday!
Keep Pressing On!
Mark