August 19, 2002
AN INVITATION for the choir and orchestra of Northside Baptist Church in Corsicana to minister on Prince Edward Island mushroomed into a project of biblical proportions. The youth are shown on the beach.
Corsicana church takes 150 people on mission trip
___By Mark Wingfield
___Managing Editor
___CORSICANA--When members of Northside Baptist Church set out to experience God, they had no idea what a far-reaching experience that would be.
___One hundred fifty people from the Corsicana church recently returned from a mission trip to Prince Edward Island, Canada. The number of volunteer missionaries sent out equals 30 percent of the church's average Sunday School attendance.
___That's big, even by Texas standards.
___While comprehensive records are not available for comparison, the size of the Corsicana mission team and the depth of involvement of church members represented are believed to be record-setting.
___And all this has taken place while the church is between pastors.
___"This truly was a God-sized event," said Michael Ryer, minister of music and media at Northside.
___The genesis of the mission trip dates back two years, as the church made plans to perform the "Experiencing God" musical based on the popular discipleship book of the same name. While in preparation for an Easter performance in Corsicana, Ryer was invited by First Baptist Church of Crockett to assist them in completing a similar performance that had been hindered by that church's minister of music moving out of state.
MEMBERS of the church's jazz ensemble were among 150 people from the church who traveled north to perform a variety of mission projects.
___Soon the joint project with the Crockett church grew into a much larger endeavor, with the Corsicana church committing both singers and an orchestra to the citywide performance in Crockett. That story was reported in the Baptist Standard June 27, 2001.
___"Out of this, we began sensing that God wanted us to move beyond the walls and do more for others," Ryer explained. The church adopted a "Beyond the Walls" theme and set out to discover where God might use them.
___Last fall, the church held an "Experiencing God" weekend led by Don Gibson of Texas Baptist Men. From that weekend, 277 adults, 68 youth and 45 children began weekly studies of the "Experiencing God" book by Henry Blackaby and Claude King.
___Not long after that, Gibson asked Ryer if Northside's choir and orchestra would like to participate in an "Experiencing God" weekend retreat on Prince Edward Island, located north of Nova Scotia.
___Once again, the ball started rolling, and every week brought new opportunities for the trip.
___"As we began to make plans, we sensed God adding additional responsibilities and opportunities, and we began to put them before the people and watch them respond," Ryer said.
___An official with the Canadian Southern Baptist Convention asked Northside if they might bring construction volunteers to help finish some apartments for missions workers. Twenty-one Northside members signed on for that project.
___Then there was an opportunity for the church's youth to participate in a "Beach Reach"-style outreach and other servant-evangelism projects. Forty-eight youth and seven sponsors accepted the challenge.
___The initial invitation for the adult choir and orchestra to lead in the "Experiencing God" weekend also expanded to include multiple concerts across the 2,000-square-mile island.
___"Each day consisted of everyone going in different directions, with our ladies' ensemble ... performing 15 full 45-minute concerts in six days, our orchestra and jazz ensemble performing in outdoor gazebos, the boardwalk along the ocean and in one of the largest nursing homes on the island," Ryer said. "All the while, we had prayerwalkers going throughout the area we were to perform in that night, inviting people to come."
___The choir and orchestra presented three performances of the musical "God in Us"--at a Catholic church, a Presbyterian church and a Baptist church.
___A mid-week youth concert in which the Texans also participated drew 3,000 people. The evening included skateboarding demonstrations, testimonies, music and a Bible giveaway.
___Back home now, members of the Corsicana church are considering other opportunities for ministry near and far.
___"Our people have grown deeply in their spiritual walk as they stepped out in faith to make this trip happen," Ryer said. "Things today are much different than before because the entire church has a 'God-can-do-it' attitude, and we are continuing to grow and minister to the community and the world around us."
___
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