Pastor Kurt Thomas, Senior Pastor
There are Sabbaths when we come to church and experience a wonderful program. Then there are Sabbaths when God allows us to see the fruit of seeds that were planted many years ago.
Women’s Ministries Day at Apple Creek was one of those Sabbaths.
Under the theme “Unshakable: Building a Life That Stands in the Storm,” our church family gathered for a beautiful celebration of faith, resilience, womanhood, and the sustaining grace of God.
But something about this day was particularly special.
Our guest speaker, Pastor Tricia Wynn Payne, was not simply visiting Apple Creek.
She was coming home.
Long before ministerial appointments, conference responsibilities, preaching invitations, leadership assignments, degrees, or titles, a young Tricia grew spiritually within the Apple Creek family.
Here, seeds were planted.
Her family planted seeds. Her grandmother helped introduce the family to Apple Creek. Her late mother faithfully ensured that she was present, while her father supported her participation in ministry. Alongside them were elders, youth leaders, church members, mentors, family members, and friends who saw something in a young woman and made room for her gifts to develop.
Some encouraged her.
Some prayed for her.
Some gave her opportunities.
Some corrected and guided her.
Some simply showed up consistently enough for a young person to know, “There is a place for me in the church of God.”
And years later, Apple Creek had the privilege of watching some of those seeds come home bearing fruit.
Today, Pastor Payne serves as Senior Pastor of the Ecorse Seventh-day Adventist Church and Associate Ministerial Director within the Lake Region Conference. God has now opened another significant chapter in her ministry: she has been appointed an Associate Director of the North American Division Ministerial Association, with responsibilities that include Women Clergy, Pastor Recruitment, and Leadership Training.
Think about that for a moment.
A young woman who was nurtured within the ministries of a local congregation is now helping to nurture, recruit, encourage, and develop ministers and leaders across a much wider field.
That should say something powerful to every church.
Never underestimate what God can do with the young people sitting in our pews today.
The child participating in Children’s Ministries may one day lead a congregation. The teenager singing in the praise team may one day proclaim the gospel around the world. The young woman quietly discovering her spiritual gifts may one day mentor hundreds of other women answering God’s call.
We may never fully know what is inside a young person when we first encounter them.
That is why the church must keep planting.
“Praise Through It”
Pastor Payne’s message, “Praise Through It,” beautifully embodied the theme of the day.
Being unshakable does not mean that storms will never come.
It does not mean Christian women never cry, never hurt, never experience disappointment, or never find themselves asking God difficult questions.
An unshakable life is not a life without storms.
It is a life whose foundation is deeper than the storm.
There are moments when you cannot praise because everything has changed; sometimes you must praise because God has not changed.
There are seasons when praise is not the evidence that the battle is finished. Praise becomes the declaration that, even while the battle continues, God is still worthy.
That message speaks powerfully to women.
Women often carry responsibilities that few people fully see. They nurture families, build careers, serve churches, care for aging parents, mentor younger generations, navigate grief and disappointment, and sometimes carry private burdens while publicly encouraging everyone else.
Yet through every season, God continues to call women to stand, not because they possess unlimited strength, but because their lives are anchored in an unlimited God.
A Word to Women Called to Ministry
Pastor Payne’s journey also reminds us that women who sense God’s call to ministry need more than applause after they succeed.
They need encouragement while they are becoming.
They need churches willing to recognize their gifts.
They need mentors willing to invest time in them.
They need leaders willing to open doors for meaningful service.
They need mothers and fathers who nurture the calling they see developing.
They need other women who will say, “Keep going.”
And they need congregations that will pray for them when the road becomes difficult.
On this special Sabbath, it was deeply moving to see leaders who influenced Pastor Payne during her formative years now able to witness what God has done through her life and ministry.
It was a reminder that mentorship is ministry whose harvest may take years to appear.
Sometimes you plant the seed, and someone else waters it. Sometimes another person sees the first signs of growth. But ultimately, as Paul reminds us, God gives the increase.
Celebrating Our Women’s Ministries Team
Our heartfelt appreciation goes to Sister Beverly Blackburn and the entire Women’s Ministries team for their leadership and commitment in creating such a meaningful Sabbath experience.
We also celebrate the wonderful collaboration of our Audio-Visual Ministry, Communications Department, Hospitality Ministry, Worship Committee, musicians, platform participants, church leaders, and the many individuals who served quietly behind the scenes.
That collaboration itself carried a message: ministry flourishes when we work together.
Women’s Ministries must never be viewed merely as one special Sabbath on the church calendar. It is an opportunity to nurture discipleship, mentorship, spiritual formation, leadership development, community engagement, and intergenerational relationships among the women of our congregation.
Keep Planting, Apple Creek
As I reflected upon this Women’s Ministries Day, I found myself thinking beyond one Sabbath.
I thought about the next Tricia Payne.
Perhaps she is already among us.
Perhaps she is sitting in Sabbath School.
Perhaps she is in Adventurers or Pathfinders.
Perhaps she is a teenager wondering whether her gifts matter.
Perhaps she is a young adult quietly wrestling with God’s call.
Perhaps she is an older woman who thinks her opportunity for meaningful ministry has passed.
To every woman at Apple Creek, hear this clearly:
Your calling matters.
Your gifts matter.
Your testimony matters.
Your prayers matter.
Your voice matters.
Your ministry matters.
And to our entire church family: keep planting seeds.
Encourage our girls. Mentor our young women. Make room for their gifts. Pray over their calling. Celebrate their growth. Walk with them through their mistakes. Give them opportunities to serve.
Because one day, by the grace of God, the young person we are mentoring today may return home carrying evidence of just how far God can take one surrendered life.
Women’s Ministries Day reminded us that storms will come.
But when a life is built upon Christ, the winds may blow, the rain may fall, and circumstances may change, but the foundation remains.
So to every woman walking through a storm: Stand.
To every woman carrying a calling: Serve.
To every woman wondering whether God can still use her: Believe.
And when you cannot understand the storm… praise through it.
Because the God who kept you yesterday is still holding you today, and He is already standing in your tomorrow.
Be unshakable.