Funeral

Jerry Springston Celebration of Life


Visitation: Thursday, May 14th from 6 to 8 p.m at Cedar Hills

Celebration of Life: Friday, May 15th at 10:30 a.m. with luncheon to follow.

Obituary

Rev. Dr. Jerry Dale Springston, of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, passed away peacefully on March 23, 2026, his 86th birthday, after an acute illness.

Jerry was born to Harley and Neva Springston, on March 23, 1940, in Denver, Colorado. He was the youngest of three, pesky little brother to Marcia Edwards and Cherie Hafer.

Jerry was a philomath. He loved to learn, read, and study. He graduated from South High School in Denver, Colorado. He received his Bachelor of Arts degree in education from Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter, Minnesota; his Masters of Divinity from Central Baptist Theological Seminary in Kansas City, Kansas; and his Doctorate of Theology from Northern Seminary in Lyle, Illinois.

Jerry was a xenophile. He traveled extensively within and outside of the United States, traversing six continents and all 50 states. He especially loved road trips, racking up hundreds of thousands of miles on every vehicle he owned, primarily due to his propensity to “see where this road goes” or “take the scenic route.”

Jerry was a linguaphile. He loved words. His profession required him to be a great orator, but his passion for language made him a great storyteller. He was a polyglot, who learned seven languages in his lifetime, including Hebrew, Greek, Latin, Arabic, Swedish, Italian, and Tigrinya.

Jerry was an altruist who devoted his life to others. He was an inaugural member of the Peace Corps stationed in Eritrea, East Africa. He served the congregations of First Christian Church of Englewood, Colorado, Linwood Baptist Church, Linwood, Kansas, First Baptist Church, Charles City, Iowa, and First Baptist Church (Church on Northland) Cedar Rapids, Iowa, for a combined 45 years. He retired in 2005. He spent the next 17 years serving as a minister-at-large for American Baptist Churches in Blue Hill, Maine; Grand Junction, Colorado; Fowler, New York; Spokane, Washington; Hornell, New York; Cedar Rapids, Iowa; Roundup, Montana; Winnebago, Minnesota; Davenport, Iowa; and Marion, Iowa.

Jerry held numerous roles in nonprofit organizations, including President, Mid-American Baptist Churches; member of Rotary International (50 years), Club Secretary, Club President, Club Sponsor, and District Governor; Treasurer, Willis Dady Emergency Shelter; President, Linn County Corrections Chaplaincy; President, Linn County Association of Evangelicals; Member and President, Charles City Community School Board; Member, American Baptist Homes of the Midwest; and on-call chaplain, St. Luke’s Hospital.

Jerry is survived by his wife and best friend of 60 years, Therese “Terri” Coggins Springston; son, Troy Springston (Debbie Beuchat) of Farmington, New York ; daughter, Shannon Rosati (Rick) of Hopkins, Minnesota; his grandchildren: Aja Hughes (Patrick), Tabitha Wawrzyniak (Joe), Jacob Dedie, Claudia Dedie, Riley Rosati, Joshua Springston, Harley Rosati, Clarissa Springston, and Sydney Rosati; along with many cousins, nieces, nephews, and friends.

Visitation to be held on Thursday, May 14th from 6 to 8 p.m. A celebration of life will be held on Friday, May 15th at 10:30 a.m. with luncheon to follow. Both events will be held at Cedar Hills Community Church. The funeral service will be livestreamed and can be viewed at the following link: www.youtube.com/cedarhillsCR

Memorial gifts can be made to Cedar Hills Community Church, or The Rotary Foundation.

Cedar Blog, Uncategorized

Sabbatical News

SABBATICAL NEWS – We are the kind of people who want to take care of our staff. We do that by offering fair compensation in a positive, flexible work environment. We also build healthy, collaborative teams that serve together in following God’s call. We are blessed with dedicated staff who love the Lord, love the church, and love each other.

The Alliance of Reformed churches strongly recommends that after seven years of service pastors are given the opportunity to take a sabbatical. A sabbatical is time away from regular responsibilities for the sake of renewal and refreshment. Sabbaticals are common in academic and religious organizations. The Alliance feels so strongly about this that they offer grants to churches to help cover the expense involved in a Sabbatical.

Pastor Leah has been faithfully serving our congregation for 19 years. She has never had a sabbatical. We are pleased to announce that we have received a grant from the Upper Mississippi Valley Network of the Alliance to cover the expenses of a Sabbatical for Leah. She will be taking the summer off from her regular duties beginning May 24. She will return from her sabbatical on August 16.

Please pray for Leah that this time is truly a time of renewal and refreshment. Also pray for her teams and for her summer replacement Ben Drzycimski. If you have questions about worship, music, tech, or media this summer do not contact Leah. Please contact Pastor Kent, Ben, or the office and we will assist you.

Cedar Blog

Sabbath – Sabbatical – Jubilee

Sabbath – Sabbatical – Jubilee

The Sabbath, a day each week set aside for God’s people to stop, rest, delight, and worship, was given as a gift to us. God also called for a Sabbath rest for the land every seven years. Leviticus 25:3-5: “For six years sow your fields, and for six years prune your vineyards and gather their crops. But in the seventh year the land is to have a year of sabbath rest, a sabbath to the Lord. Do not sow your fields or prune your vineyards. Do not reap what grows of itself or harvest the grapes of your untended vines. The land is to have a year of rest.” 

The Sabbath invites people to rest once a week. The Sabbatical year gave rest to their farmland once every seven years. Since God’s people did not plant during the Sabbatical year, they had to trust God. “Whatever the land yields during the sabbath year will be food for you – for yourself, your male and female servants, and the hired worker and temporary resident who live among you, as well as for your livestock and the wild animals in your land” (Leviticus 25:6-7).

All their needs were met by harvesting the Sabbatical year’s “volunteer” crop. God promised to take care of them – they would have enough until they harvested again in the eighth year. (See Leviticus 25:20-22) Just like Sabbath keeping, observing the Sabbatical year required trust in God.

God also gave the people the opportunity to celebrate a Super Sabbath called the Year of Jubilee. In Leviticus 25:9 Jubilee is described as the Sabbatical year after seven cycles of seven years. This 50th year was a time of celebration and rejoicing. A year of release from indebtedness and all types of bondage. (Leviticus 25:23-55) All prisoners and captives were set free, all slaves were released, all debts were forgiven, and all property was returned to its original owners.

During the year of Jubilee both the land and the people were able to find rest and delight. The Jubilee represented mercy, forgiveness, and freedom which was a foretaste of the mercy, forgiveness, and freedom we have in Jesus Christ who paid our debt on the cross. Through Jesus we are forgiven the debt caused by our sin. We are no longer in bondage, no longer slaves to sin. We are set free by Jesus so we can truly enter the rest God provides. This is a true delight – a Jubilee!

Jesus said, “Come to me all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28). This rest grows from Sabbath to Sabbatical to Jubilee!

Kent Landhuis
Pastor of Teaching & Leadership

Did you enjoy this article? Did you laugh, cry or learn something new? Let Kent know.

    Cedar Blog

    Youth Prayer and Worship Night

    Youth Prayer and Worship Night

    Cedar Hills hosted the 4th annual youth prayer and worship night. Students (6th-12th grades) served as the tech team, led worship and shared testimonies about how their lives have been shaped by prayer.

    One student shared about how last year, at this event, she felt called to send a text inviting the girls on her track team to do a Bible study. What she imagined as a few girls grew to over a dozen! This Bible study has fueled a revival of the FCA program at her school, which was another answer to prayer!  Another student related how God met with them as they struggled with doubt and depression.  Students prayed together by following the ACTS model. Prayers of adoration, confession, thanksgiving and supplication were mixed with singing praises to God.

    The youth prayer & worship night is a testimony to what God is doing in the lives of young people around our city!  Youth are not just the future of the church, God is using them today! They are learning to use their gifts to serve others and glorify God, instead of just being consumers on the sidelines.  God is growing hearts of prayer and worship. God is equipping leaders. God is good!

    Steve Poole
    Pastor of Youth & Young Adults

    What did you think of this article? Did you laugh? Cry? Learn something new? Let Steve know below.

      Cedar Blog

      The War Against Weeds

      The War Against Weeds

      Healthy things grow. That’s a basic truth and, usually, good news. But sometimes the healthiest thing in the garden appears to be the weeds. That’s not good. It means war. 

      The enemy of our souls, the great deceiver, wants to grow weeds in us and he wants us to settle for weeds so that we become satisfied with weedy souls in a weedy world.

      We are in a war. At stake are the hearts and minds of a generation. Generations. In this battle our greatest weapon is truth. Remember this truth: we are the kind of people who will not settle for weeds. We want fruit. Much fruit.

      Jesus said, “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.” (John 15:1-2).

      The healthy disciple is the one who bears much fruit. Healthy disciples are rooted in Jesus. Jesus is the vine, we are the branches. Our identity is rooted in Jesus. Healthy disciples are also relational. Disciples grow with other branches on a vine. We build bridges to others – we do not erect barriers. We speak the truth in love.

      Rooted and relational disciples become servant-hearted, humble, sacrificial, patient, kind, generous followers of Jesus who bear fruit. Hatred, prejudice, divisiveness, pride, envy, greed – these are weeds. Healthy disciples bear fruit not weeds.

      We are called to make disciples. This is a high calling. Healthy disciples will win the war against the evil one. This is our calling. It requires some pruning. And some weeding. We will not settle for less.

      May God help us,

      Kent Landhuis
      Pastor of Teaching & Leadership

      Did you enjoy this article? Did you laugh, cry or learn something new? Let Kent know.

        Uncategorized

        Graduate Recognition


        GRADUATE RECOGNITION         – We love our grads and want to recognize all the hard work they have put in! Whether high school, college, grad school or a certificate program, if you’ve completed something in the last year, we want to recognize you in the services on Sunday, May 17.

        Kindly fill out this information form by Sunday, May 10.

        SUBMIT YOUR INFO

        Uncategorized

        Church Picnic May 17


        CHURCH PICNIC –         Join us for an evening of fun at Cherry Hill park Sunday, May 17.   We’ll be providing the meat and drinks. Bring a side to share and meet us at the park pavilion around 5:30pm.

        Bring a baseball glove or two! Lawn chairs, yard games… whatever you want!

        Cedar Blog

        Abide In Jesus

        Abide in Jesus

        According to John 15, the key to bearing fruit is to abide in the vine Jesus said, “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing” (John 15:5).

        After a grape vine is pruned, vine vinedressers gently tie each vine to a trellis. The trellis is a structure that gives the vine support for the growing season ahead. By the end of the season, the trellis is vital to support branches heavy with grapes. 

        The pruned and tied vine takes on the shape of a cross. The cross is a symbol of humility, surrender, and obedience. The cross signifies a life shaped, not by self-will, but by God’s will. Like the vine bound to the trellis, the cross restrains us for the purpose of bearing fruit. 

        Intentional restraint is not punishment; it is formation. Spiritual practices become a trellis to shape us. Bible reading, prayer, journaling, fasting, Sabbath, community, solitude, generosity, witness – these practices form us. 

        When we feel a pull toward selfish ambition we are invited to take up the cross and follow (abide). Even though we have our own plans, we surrender to God’s plan.

        Our daily, weekly, and seasonal rhythms – habits, commitments, and practices – become the framework that keep us tethered to Christ. Without a trellis, a vine grows wildly, sprawling in every direction without purpose. Likewise, without intentional spiritual practices, we risk becoming entangled in the distractions and worries of life. 

        That is why we abide. And we who abide bear much fruit as we trust God to shape us.  Without a trellis to support our abiding, our lives sprawl. Out of control.  With structure, we thrive. Like a vine, we grow best when we have the right support in place.

        Here is a prompt for those of you who are using the structure of journaling: How can you form rhythms that support spiritual growth? 

        Spring is a great time to set up your trellis for the growing season ahead.

        May the Lord be with you,

        Kent Landhuis
        Pastor of Teaching & Leadership

        Did you enjoy this article? Did you laugh, cry or learn something new? Let Kent know.

          Love. Belong. Serve.