As we remember the work of ministry over this past year in the Northern Plains Classis, we give thanks to our Father in Heaven for the grace and strength that He has given. We also look forward to the opportunities He has in store for us in this current year. Our confidence is in His guiding providence and strength, and, as His hand of Providence guides us, we’re reminded of what Heidelberg Catechism question 28 teaches us: That we may be patient in adversity, thankful in prosperity, and for what is future have good confidence in our faithful God and Father….
The 40th annual meeting of the Northern Plains Classis was held in Mitchell, SD, on Thursday and Friday, March 6th and 7th, at Grace Reformed Church. Before the meeting started, we were greeted with food, refreshments, and fellowship with like-minded brethren provided by the Mitchell congregation. We then began with a devotional by Rev. Cody Schwichtenberg from Hebrews 11. Worship that evening was led by Rev. Michael Voytek that included a powerful sermon by Mr. Larry Lynch from Jonah 4 entitled, “A Confession to Remember!”
Rev. Hank Bowen of Aberdeen, SD, was elected to serve another term as our Classis president, Rev. Schwichtenberg was re-elected as our Vice President, Rev. Jimmy John Hall as our Clerk, and Elder Matt Fickbohm as our Treasurer. In Rev. Bowen’s President’s Report, he noted that 2024 was, for many of our ministers, a time of recovery from the many challenges we faced since 2020. His report reminded us of the need for a qualified man to evangelize new fields of opportunity within our Classis boundaries and to plant new churches. Please pray for the Lord to provide such a man for this work. “The harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few; pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that He will send forth labourers into His harvest” (Matthew 9:37b-38, KJV). We are currently looking for such a man and have plans to have him serve under the oversight of First Reformed Church in Aberdeen. Should the Lord provide him, we hope that he could plant a church in one of the open fields in our area, such as Fargo, ND, or Brookings, SD.
We paused to remember the fruitful ministries of two of our elders whom the Lord took home in 2024: Elder Vern Moos of the Ashley, ND, congregation and Elder Cornell Ochsner of First Reformed Church in Herried, SD. Fraternal delegates from the Dakota Presbytery of the Orthodox Presbyterian Church and from Classis Manitoba of the Federation of Canadian and American Reformed Churches addressed the assembly and sent their warmest greetings, with our fraternal relationship described as rusty old iron sharpens rusty old iron. The OPC delegate, Dr. Patrick Morgan, passed on the news to us of the recent death of a beloved stalwart of the faith, G. I. Williamson. We were also updated on the encouraging growth and progress of the churches in Classis Manitoba. We also heard encouraging reports from our Interchurch Relations Committee, where the Northern Plains Classis had sent fraternal delegates to their assemblies. We are grateful for our brothers in these fraternal denominations, for their efforts to attend our meeting, and for the blessings the Lord has showered upon them. We rejoice in their blessings and share the grief of their losses.
In the business of the church, we voted in favor of adopting the change to RCUS Constitution Article 175 that was proposed at Synod last year. We also voted in favor of an overture to Synod this year to make the Position Papers of the RCUS publicly available again. For Heidelberg Youth Camp, we approved the camp’s theme this year of “God With Us,” which explores the Emmanuel Principle as it applies to our young people.
The highlight of our Classis meeting, which took the bulk of our time, was the examination of Mr. Larry Lynch. He is due to graduate from Heidelberg Theological Seminary this May, and he has been called by the congregation in Pierre, SD, to serve as their pastor. After his grueling examination on the floor of Classis, the body unanimously voted to approve his exam and to suspend the necessary eight-month internship period before his ordination due to his past experience. Mr. Lynch had spent several years as an elder in the Lancaster, CA, congregation, where, in the long-term absence of a pastor there, he had significant experience exhorting, counseling, and with other pastoral-related duties. We have great confidence that the Lord will use Mr. Lynch in the blessed shepherding of the flock in Pierre. I personally took great encouragement from his exams on the floor of Classis and am looking forward to seeing how God will use him for the building up of His beloved people.
We closed our meeting with the Scriptures and a time of prayer, specifically for Rev. Paul Treick and his family. Rev. Treick went home to be with the Lord the same day that we closed our meeting, though we did not know that until after we had adjourned. May the good seeds that he sowed in life continue to bear fruit for years to come.
We remember with warmth and gratitude the hospitality of the host congregation, Grace Reformed Church in Mitchell. They kept us well-fed, and it was a genuine joy to get to know the saints there. Classis is not only a time to meet officially to do business. It is part of how we are connected to one another as fellow believers in the Body of Christ, a time to rekindle old connections often separated by time and distance, and an opportunity to strengthen and build new connections. May Christ continue to bless the labors of His beloved flock as we work together in His vineyard.
Rev. Dave Irwin
Salem Reformed Church
Ashley, ND