Brownville Christian Church
A Blessed Partnership
For 29 years, Pastor Bob Chitwood, father of Pastor Mark and grandfather of Pastor Mitch, served as the pastor at Brownville Christian Church in Brownville, NE. In 2021, Bob passed away at the age of 85, leaving behind a legacy of leadership and innovation.
Before his passing, Bob encouraged the members at Brownville to consider the power of video and partnering with larger churches who could provide different forms of support to small rural congregations. During the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, he began recording a video series called “An Encouraging Word,” putting to use the same technology that he hoped other small churches would embrace. (You can watch the videos here.)
“Bob Chitwood was kind of a visionary,” says Deborah Solie of Brownville Christian Church. “He saw the need for partnering with a church like StoneBridge to help provide pastoral care to rural communities, where it’s getting harder to have ministers.”
Continued Leadership in the Wake of Loss
A small congregation of 30 to 40 people, Brownville Christian Church has a long history in Brownville. Not only is Brownville one of Nebraska’s first settlements, but Brownville Christian Church is also the oldest Christian Church in the state. After Pastor Bob’s death, Brownville set their sights on the idea of transitioning into a video campus.
Because of the church’s size, rural location, and operating budget, they weren’t in the position to easily hire another pastor. Instead, they borrowed a projector and screen from a local school and began streaming StoneBridge services live on YouTube. Additionally, they streamed sermons from Pastor Mark’s brother, Brian Chitwood of First Church of Christ in Ladysmith, Wisconsin.
“They were in an exploration phase since they weren’t sure what they were going to do next,” says Mitch Chitwood, Executive Pastor at StoneBridge. “It opened up a whole new insight for them.”
After several months of communication, Brownville Christian Church and StoneBridge decided to embark on a partnership. Brownville would remain an autonomous church (i.e., it’s not a StoneBridge multisite campus), but StoneBridge would come alongside them to provide financial and technical support for video streaming. It wouldn’t take a large budget or robust equipment to make this happen, but it would help to set the Brownville church up for a strong future as a video-based congregation.
A Sustainable Path Forward
Ultimately, the combined efforts of StoneBridge and Auburn Christian Church got Brownville the equipment they needed to start leaning on video services. Members at Brownville were hesitant to transition to using video teaching long-term. Now, they stream the 9 a.m. StoneBridge Sunday service every week.
“We wanted to see how it went because it is still relatively new for our congregation to use video in that way,” Deborah says. “We got great feedback. Our president of the church board held a couple of meetings to hear if people wanted to continue to pursue this, and overwhelmingly, we heard great things.”
Steve Kennedy of Brownville Christian Church says partnering with another Nebraska church benefited them by way of familiarity.
“A familiar voice and a Nebraska connection was good,” he says. “There’s something about this regional area. We feel like we have commonality, and we relate. I think the proximity is an important part of why this works.”
That tight-knit commonality is the very fabric of what makes small rural communities so unique. Forging partnerships with churches outside that familiar culture could potentially create disconnects for members of a local congregation. However, keeping those relationships a bit closer to home could help rural churches thrive.
“I think that we’re going to see more and more rural churches reaching out for help in this fashion,” says Kelli Kennedy of Brownville.
Looking Toward the Future
In April 2022, the church partnership was deepened by hosting a live event at Brownville on Good Friday. StoneBridge sent a team to Brownville to do a live Good Friday service, which was both uplifting and successful. On Easter Sunday 2022, Brownville had one of the largest attendances that they’ve had in many years – with the help of StoneBridge’s Easter service on video.
Moving into the future, StoneBridge will continue to come alongside Brownville to find new ways to help support and enable them to continue serving God and their community.
Deborah says that Brownville is thrilled to be receiving this extra layer of support to aid in its success.
“We’re still in that very new stage, but we’re so excited,” she says. “I see an opportunity to not just stay with the status quo, but to grow into the future.”
Along with video services and occasional in-person events at Brownville, StoneBridge is exploring ways to help the congregation continue to move forward. They would love to attract more families and in the summer of 2022, Brownville took a big step forward with launching a kids ministry program during the Sunday service! As time goes on, StoneBridge will be there to offer resources and encouragement.
For more information about StoneBridge Church Partnerships, visit www.sb.church/churchpartnerships
