Nearly 100 Midwest Brethren gathered at The Brethren Retreat at Shipshewana Lake on August 16th for The Big Event 2025 to focus on Kingdom Life Together! Pastor Ken Thompson, from First Brethren Church of Roanoke (IN) and Midwest Region RLT Chairperson, welcomed the crowd with a fun get-to-know-you activity that resembled speed-dating. The worship team from First Brethren Church of New Paris, along with their pastor, Jeff Estep, led the crowd in worship. The highlight of our morning was hearing a message from Retired Brethren Elder Jim Miller that challenged and encouraged the crowd to consider what it truly means to be the church in community together. At the end of our morning session, the group had the opportunity to get to better know our new Executive Director, Miles Larson, through a Q&A session. Lunch was a community effort with potluck sides and a hog roast. The dining hall was packed tight and loud with conversation about Jim’s message during the lunch hour. It was a beautiful sight to see so many Brethren gathered together, smiling, laughing, and encouraging one another.
During the afternoon, we divided into groups to address needs around our community, including chopping wood at the Brethren Retreat, doing cleaning around the facility, making cards for Indian orphans, preparing pizza for dinner, and doing cleaning and organizing at First Brethren Church of Goshen’s thrift store. Everyone’s eagerness to pitch in and bless others was such an encouragement.
During the afternoon, Pastor David Miller of Unchurch (Marion, IN) emceed a time for sharing about the various ministries happening around our Midwest Brethren, as well as our national and global ministries. Scott Soden enthusiastically shared about Global Partners. Rick Miller shared about the exciting ministry at the Brethren Retreat. Pastor Ken Hunn and Ben Ceary shared about the church planting and growth happening at Jefferson Brethren Church. Pastor Lee Compson of First Brethren Church of Milford (IN) shared an update about the RLT as well as about The Brethren Church General Conference last month. Pastor Sarah Miller (Unchurch) shared about her experience at Brethren Academy as a mentor last fall and encouraged the region to send youth and support the ministry. We had a surprise guest from Detroit, Pastor Shakil Khondoker. He and his ministry are a potential partner both globally and with the Midwest region. He has helped plant over 70 churches in Bangladesh, Detroit, and Windsor in the past six years and shared incredible stories of the work happening in those locations! One theme that carried over throughout the sharing time was that God is accomplishing incredible things through our churches and ministries!
We concluded our evening with a pizza celebration, talking, laughing, and loving as we enjoyed intimate conversations and wrapped up our day of doing life together. It was a day of bonding, support, grieving, serving, sharing, and loving one another. We got to reconnect with old friends, meet new friends, and share the stories that are impacting our lives. We were encouraged in our unique Brethren presence of church, while also being challenged to get to our relational roots more effectively. We got to step into one another’s lives for a short but deeply meaningful and impactful time.
Respectfully Submitted,
Sarah Miller
Pastor of Unchurch, Marion, IN
