The Buzz newsletter | Updated Weekly

All Church Strategic Planning Workshop

Save the Date! Every member of our church family is encouraged to make participation in this all-church strategic planning workshop a priority! On Sunday, 01 February we will gather in the main auditorium from 3–5 pm. This will be a formative session with both reports, discussion times, and review of potential changes in church structure and model. As a reminder, this workshop is based on the preliminary evaluation sessions with all 4 congregational leadership teams (Fall 2025) and the more recent listening sessions with each individual congregation (January 2026). Your voice, your perspectives, and your dreams for the future of God’s Kingdom work here in southeast Fresno are vital for us to move forward as a church family. Let’s anticipate that we will learn much from each other and take the next steps to discerning a new season of flourishing!

Church Council Update 
The Church Council is meeting next on Thursday, January 22. A copy of the agenda is available online. The topics include the strategic planning process, church constitutional matters, planning for a spring church business meeting, and more. 

Note that Council meetings are open for guests to attend and listen in. If you have a topic to suggest for a future meeting, or any questions or concerns, please direct those to the council member from your congregation. Please pray for the council as they meet for wisdom, discernment, and unity in decisions to be made.
Intersections Cohort Week 1
Our collaborative learning cohort with the Central Valley Justice Coalition is off to a GREAT start! This past Tuesday, we had 25 registered participants attend (and there is room for more!). Our first, eye-opening session focused on issues of justice and compassion as it relates to human trafficking, specifically “Familial Trafficking." 

If you would like to join in learning together, there is still time to register - whether you can attend in person or would like to request a recording. Additional topics include economic security, the justice system, and more to consider practical ways to join the work God is already doing in our community. Sessions are on Tuesday evenings Jan 20 - Feb 24. A registration cost of $30 covers most meals for the six weeks. (If cost is a barrier, please let the church office know; we want all interested to be able to participate!) 
Spring LEAD Cohorts
In addition to our local learning cohort, our broader church family also sponsors virtual LEAD Cohorts each fall and spring. Sign ups for the next round of cohorts are currently taking place! LEAD Cohorts bring together people from across our US Mennonite Brethren community for intentional, online conversations that deepen faith, foster relationships and encourage growth.

This season's list of cohort topics includes: Effective communication in a digital world, Holistic healthy living, Leadership for women in ministry, Discipleship discussions, and Lectio Divina. Session dates vary by cohort but most begin the first week of February; all take place virtually via zoom. See the entire lineup and consider signing up! 

More news items....

January Prayer Gatherings
Reminder that the 21 Days of Prayer are taking place now.  Churches in Fresno/Clovis are again joining together for 21 Days of Prayer and Fasting at the start of the new year, from January 5-25. A prayer guide is also available to pick up on Sunday mornings here at Butler. Consider setting aside a specific time for prayer, or joining one of the city wide prayer gatherings. Let’s begin the year with our attention attuned to God and what He wants to accomplish in our individual lives, the life of our church, and in our city.

A note about Fasting: This is about more much more than “giving up” - it’s about making room! Fasting from a meal, a particular food, or an activity, creates a “space” in us for God to fill. Prayer is communication with God; it's a two-way conversation where we  speak and listen. 

New Pastoral Opportunity

Our Butler member, Dr. Emebet Mekonnen, is taking part in a chaplaincy training program this year, which will also bring an added blessing to our church family!


Butler Church partnering with “Clinical Pastoral Education of California” in this training, through volunteer internship hours. For the next 4 months, Emebet will be present on campus at various times during weekly office hours. Not only will this opportunity provide an educational context for Emebet as a chaplain-in-training, but our church family will benefit from her investment of time in the form of listening sessions. 


Our goal is to make Emebet's time and listening presence available to church members and community neighbors who need a prayerful, listening ear. Dr. Mekonnen will be report weekly to Pastor Ron and others in Butler Church leadership. We will provide more information as to the times / places for this ministry in the coming days. Look for more details in our Sunday gatherings and in upcoming editions of the Buzz. We welcome Emebet as a volunteer member of our staff for the next several months! – Pastor Ron

Sept 28 combined service & potluck
Update from Pastor Ron
While everyone around us has marked the beginning of a new year, the people of God live by a different rhythm. Our “new year” began on November 30th with the start of the Advent season. Today, as I write this note, January 6th marks Epiphany – when we celebrate the discovery of Jesus by Persian astrologers (Magi in Matthew 2.1–12). Like them, we look for signs of the life of Jesus all around us – in people, in local communities, and, yes, even in world events where voices for peace ring out to counter the violence, greed, and deceit that seems to dominate. I say “seems” because the story of God and God’s people has a different plot and different outcome. We have the privilege to live a different way – the way of self-giving love that Jesus embodied. And, for the next several months our gatherings and teaching settings will focus on the way of Jesus. In particular, I am looking forward to several opportunities we, as an Anabaptist church, will have to reflect and meditate on the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5–7). I encourage us all to make these texts part of our daily curriculum this Spring as we invite God’s spirit to continue forming us as “Jesus people.”  [read more here]
Christian Leader News and Magazine
A new issue of the Christian Leader is available! This bimonthly magazine features articles and news stories to help connect the US Mennonite Brethren churches with each other and our broader MB family. 

This issue "Anabaptism" talks about our faith roots, and includes an article by our very own Pastor Connie Nicholson! You can receive the Christian Leader by mail or find it online. (If you are not currently on the mailing list but would like to be added, please let the church office know!) News stories, feature articles and columns are published on their website.
Food Distribution every first Friday
Update on Anul
Thank you to all who have been praying and supporting our sister, Anul Ram, who has been detained by ICE since August. She has been in a legal process to be able to return to Fresno and her ministry and family here at Butler Church. Unfortunately the immigration judge recently ruled that she is "subject to removal" and will be sent to her birth country of Fiji. She does not know how soon this will happen but likely within the next 2 months. 

Anul is thanking God for the love and family she has here in Fresno and trusting God for what will come next. We are thanking Him for connections that have been made in Fiji where she may be able to stay and rebuild her life. Please continue to pray for peace and guidance for Anul. 

Assistance Fund Donations
Through the Butler Church Benevolent Assistance Fund, we have been able to help with several time sensitive needs recently. Given the upcoming cuts in SNAP funding even more requests may be coming in soon. Please consider making an additional donation to the church benevolent fund, by designating for this in the offering or through giving online. We also work with partner agencies like MB Foundation and Everence to expand our capacity through matching grants. 

If caring for needs of folks in our community in very practical ways is something close to your heart, please also talk with your pastor or contact the church office. We would like to build a social action response team that can respond to needs as they are made known. If you have a personal need, please also talk with a pastor.
 Text Updates from Butler Church
If you find an occasional text reminder helpful, be sure to “Opt In” so our “Breeze-butler” text messages get through! To share your preferences for text or email updates, you can complete the Butler Subscriptions form. Thanks! 

Note: If you have signed up, but are no longer receiving text updates - try texting START to 87447. Remember that "msg & data rates may apply." Details are in the Butler subscriptions form.
Butler Cultural Celebration Night
Spanish Translation Available!
Our Butler website is also available in Spanish! Click the upper left corner to switch between English and Spanish. (If you notice any translation errors, please let us know!) 

¡Nuestro sitio web Butler ahora también está disponible en español! Haga clic en el ícono de arriba para cambiar entre inglés y español. (Si nota algún error de traducción, ¡avísenos!)

Updated on: 1/15/2026

Looking for earlier Butler news stories? You can visit our news archive here.

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