A Welcome Message

Welcome to my blog about Southern Hills United Methodist Church. My wife and I have been attending this church since the year 2000, when we moved to Sioux Falls from Japan. Having grown up in Sioux Falls, and having attended a Methodist church previously, we were looking for a church that would make us feel welcome and allow us the opportunity to participate in the ministries of the church. Southern Hills was the place for this.

We were welcomed by Pastor Steve Ziebarth and his congregation with love. Rihoko and I immediately felt like Southern Hills was a part of our family. Over the years, as the congregation has grown in size, we have seen this scenario played out numerous times. I have never known a congregation which was so genuinely warm and welcoming to its visitors.

A few months after our projections system was installed at the church we switched to PowerPoint as the software to develop and present slide shows for our services. I happened to be at the church when the new software was being installed. As it happens in many churches, this act helped move me into the position of Southern Hills Church Tech Team. In time I pulled in other people who were familiar with PowerPoint, or were willing to learn. Eventually the Tech Team's responsibilities incorporated the running of the sound system, as well. The next logical step would be to adopt the management of a church website. It is my hope that, with the expertise of our church members, we will be able to put together a website that will portray our mission and who we are, as well as lead people seeking a congregation to our church so that they can learn first hand who we are.

No, this is not the church's official website. This is merely an attempt of my own to put some of the information about our church out on the Internet to be found by others. I hope that you enjoy the posts, pictures, and general information I put out there. It is also my hope to allow Pastor Steve Ziebarth and any other members of this church the opportunity to post information here for the congregation and for anyone else who may be following our growth as a body of Christ.