On Sunday, March 6, 2022, we began a shepherd recognition process to identify and affirm those members who are shepherding the Northside congregation. Each week in March, the sermons and adult classes addressed the subject of elders in leadership and service. If you missed any of those lessons, we encourage you to watch them here (see below).

On Sunday, June 12, we ordained two new shepherds. View the service below.

Lessons and Messages

From the shepherds

May 15, 2022

Dear Church Family,

We would like to thank everyone for a successful shepherd recognition process. You all played a significant role in helping us identify men who are already shepherding the flock at Northside who also desire to formally serve as a shepherd. We thank you for participating in classes, submitting your nominations, and most of all, for your prayers for this process. We also the thank members of the Shepherd Recognition Steering Committee, who developed, facilitated, and collected nominations to identify men who were highly recommended by the congregation. After hours of prayer and discussion, as well as the Shepherd Recognition Committee visiting with potential new shepherds, we present the following men for your further consideration:

Curt Linge
Don Shaw

We plan to have an affirmation ceremony in our worship assembly on Sunday, June 12. Between now and then, if you have any scriptural concerns that would prevent either of them from being effective servants, we ask you to submit those concerns to one of the current elders. You must sign any such submission.

At the same time, we are asking for the Family to reaffirm the current eight elders:

Barry Allison
Jim Bruner
Alan Cooper
Dexter Freeman
Jim Martin
Rod Syrus
Bruce Utley
Tom Zimmer

As discussed in the shepherding classes, there are two questions we are asking you to answer:

  • Do you believe that ____________ is currently displaying the characteristics of an elder/shepherd?
  • Will you follow _____________ as one of you shepherds?

If you have spiritual or personal reasons that would prevent you from saying “yes” to these two questions, please provide such information with your name and signature, and these issues will be confidentially investigated. If there are no significant concerns, we will plan to publicly affirm and “install” these elders on June 12.

Please contact us if you need any clarification.

The Northside Shepherds

RESOURCES