8 I The Lovell Chronicle I August 28, 203_4
New Methodist pastor
Jim Barth shares God's grace and love
BY TERESSA ENNIS
When asked what the focus
of his ministry is, Jim Barth, re-
cently appointed pastor of the
Lovell United Methodist Church,
said, "Relationships - building
relationships with people, build-
ing disciples in the church and
building relationships outside of
church."
Jim was born and raised in
Elizabethtown, Pa. He attend-
ed Widner University in Chester,
Pa., where he earned a bachelor of
science degree in mechanical engi-
neering and obtained a Master of
Divinity in May, 2009, from Evan-
gelical Theological Seminary.
It was a missions trip to the
Blackfeet Tribe in Browning,
Mont., that "started my walk with
God at a prayer service where
everything became real to me,"
Barth said. He led a group in
2006 and 2007 in return trips to
Browning.
On his 2006 trip he became
engaged to his wife, Larisa. They
were married Jan. 6, 2007. Barth
said, "My wife is my biggest sup-
porter I've ever had. She is a
beautiful singer and piano player.
I love listening when she sings.
She is very talented." The Barths
have a 19-month-old daughter,
Kamari, in their home.
As a result of the missions
trips their first pastorate was
in Browning ministering to the
Blackfeet community. They
served there for five years before
being assigned to the Powell and
Lovell churches.
VALUING KIDS
Jim loves working in schools.
Although he intends to be in-
volved at all levels, he prefers
middle/high school students. He
has coached volleyball and sub-
stitute taught. He even taught a
class on how to butcher chickens.
"Any time they asked for help I'd
jump on it," he added. He high-
Pastor Jim Barth
ly values kids. He remarked that
people say kids are the nation of
tomorrow and the church of to-
morrow. He adamantly stated,
"They are the nation of today, the
church of today."
The Barths' first child, Asher,
was stillborn. They fought to get
people to recognize the life of their
baby. Because he never took a
breath, some said he did not live.
Out of that struggle they
created the website heldyour-
wholelife.com. At the time of
Asher's birth the funeral direc-
tor showed the Barths a brochure
about a company that makes fin-
gerprint jewelry called Thumbies,
creating a keepsake in honor of a
special life. However, Thumbies
are quite expensive. They wanted
to offer to families a way to recog-
nize the life of their miscarried or
stillborn babies.
Through the website Jim and
Larisa offer people who have suf-
fered such losses a necklace for
moms or key chains for dads as a
memorial of their baby. They found
such comfort in the thumbie they
received and they hope to offer the
same to others. There is no charge
for the memorial jewelry with the
name of the child on it, however,
they have recently needed to charge
for shipping due to the rising costs.
The Barths have given away more
than 6,000 pieces of jewelry to peo-
ple across the United States and in
many other countries.
Larisa believes that whatever
character traits a person has will
multiply after experiencing the loss
of a child. Jim agreed, saying, 'WIy
patience and grace toward others
has grown after losing our child,
recognizing the flaws of human-
ity and being patient with them.
Christ was so patient with his disci-
ples. He kept telling them and tell-
ing them until they finally got it."
COMMUNITY VISIBILITY
Initially, Jim wants to be seen
in the community. "It is import-
ant for the church to be seen in a
community in a positive way, not
just myself, but members of the
church need to be involved, for ex-
ample, in the elementary school.
What will we be able to do to have
a safe place for youth to come?
"I don't agree with the Lone
Ranger attitude. I want to work
together with the other church-
es." Jim said if another church is
doing something well, there is no
need to double up on that activity.
Pastor Barth believes it is im-
portant to bless a community by
demonstrating the love God has
for people.
"The more I experience life
the more I realize how much love
God has for us and how much He
gives us grace," he said.
One thing Jim would like to
do is extend the size of the food
pantry at the church and have set
hours so it would be more accessi-
ble to those in need.
when asked about his style
of ministry Jim quoted a line he
memorized from seminary, "You
cannot lead anyone where you are
not willing to go there yourself,"
adding, "I want to be an example,
not having all the answers, but
going out doing what I'm asking
them to do."
His goal is to stay focused
with his time as he is only allowed
to spend three hours a week in
Lovell outside of Sunday services.
He will be here Thursday after-
noons from 1-4. He'll be in the of-
fice at the church for a short while,
then be out and about visiting and
meeting people. He is excited to
be a part of the community.
"In time, relationships will
grow so I won't look like an out-
sider," Jim noted. He also hopes
to bring the church back to the
place where they can support a
full-time pastor.
To reach Jim, as he prefers
to be called rather than pastor or
reverend Barth, call the church
and leave a message at 548-7478
or email him at pastorjimbarth@
gmail.com. For emergencies his
cell phone number is on the mes-
sage on the church phone.
Services at the Lovell United
Methodist Church are at 9 a.m.
this Sunday, Aug. 31, and 9:30
a.m. starting Sept. 7.
.............................. iio
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