Colome United Methodist Church in South Dakota. Dakotas Conference file photo.

Colome is a tiny town in the Southwest District with a population of around 300.  The average worship attendance at Colome United Methodist Church hovers around 12. Rev. Ron Snethen, a Nazarene Pastor, has faithfully served them since 1992.  This congregation had not had a baptism since 2002.  

That changed this past year! Two years ago, Pastor Ron officiated at a wedding at the Colome United Methodist Church. After getting married, the couple started attending the church regularly. This past year they welcomed into the world a beautiful baby boy. This baby, at three months old, was baptized in the Colome Church—the first baptism in 17 years!  It was a day of tremendous celebration. Members of the Colome UMC say it is wonderful, after all these years, to have a little one again in their midst. 

Colome UMC is the recipient of the One Matters Award from Discipleship Ministries. The mission of Discipleship Ministries is "to challenge and support the local church and annual conference leaders for the task of making disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world." The agency does this by offering resources, consulting, training, and networking in various ministry areas. 

Pastor Rick Craig, left, and Jodi Cataldo, present the One Matters Award to Colome UMC at the 2019 Annual Conference in Bismarck. Photo by Joni Rasmussen, jlynn studios.

The One Matters Discipleship Award was created in 2015 to lift up churches which have in recent years moved from zero baptisms and zero professions of faith into positive numbers as they began to focus on intentional discipleship. In addition to the One Matters Discipleship plaque, Colome UMC was awarded $1,000 to encourage the continuation of their work in discipleship. 

The award recognizes what moving from a zero to a one represents a life transformed by the grace of God, a life that matters to God, and a life that matters to us. Each one matters.  

Jodi Cataldo, a former staff member of Discipleship Ministries and a member of Lehr UMC in North Dakota, presented the award at the 2019 Annual Conference in Bismarck with Rev. Rick Craig, who serves Cando, Rock Lake, and Rolla United Methodist Churches in North Dakota. Cataldo says, "Most importantly, as we celebrate and hear their story we are invited to ask – what are they doing differently that is helping them to turn things around by God's grace?"

 Pastor Rick Craig, who serves Rolla UMC, the 2018 recipient, said, "It is with joy that we celebrate with the Colome UMC as the recipient of the 2019 Dakotas Conference One Matters Award from Discipleship Ministries."