“Going on short-term mission trips has changed me. I now see my whole life as a mission field. I now see my school as a mission field where I have the opportunity to make the Kingdom visible to my friends and classmates. We all have opportunities like this. The question is this: Do we dare [...]
We are saddened to announce the death of Robert McAlexander, associate pastor in Eugene and Oakridge, OR. He died on December 3. His death was unexpected and, at this point, the cause is unknown. Robert, who was 62 years old, is survived by his wife Kathleen. Please keep her and the rest of the family in [...]
GCI media announces the posting of a new 2-part Dimensions in Ministry interview with Steve Elliott concerning pastoral coaching. Steve, who was a guest speaker at the 2011 U.S. regional conferences, is president of Church Assistance Ministry, an organization providing training and coaching to church leadership. You will find the series online: Part 1: http://www.gci.org/DIM010 Part [...]
On November 1 GCI Pastor Neil Earle and his wife Susan were invited to set up a “400 Years of the King James Version” display at the Duarte, California Public Library. The display features two large impressive Bibles. One, a family Bible dated 1898, is on loan from Phyllis and Russell Duke. A 1770 German [...]
We are saddened to announce the death of Dennis Lawrence, a GCI pastor in Montreal Canada. The following announcement is from Dennis’ wife, Lynn Lawrence: To all our wonderful church family across Canada and the world, It is with great sadness that I share with you that my husband, Dennis Lawrence, lost his battle with [...]
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, By now, many of you are probably aware that Dr. Mike Feazell, who has served the church faithfully for a total of nearly 40 years, has decided to take an early retirement at the end of this year due to personal health issues. Mike discussed this with me many [...]
For the last seven years New Hope Christian Fellowship (the GCI congregation in Eagle Rock, CA) has offered a Sunday morning church service at The Fair Oaks by Regency Park Senior Living Center in Pasadena, CA. The service, which is coordinated by GCI elder Ron Kelly, draws from seven to 20 people with various denominational [...]
The following report is from Charles Fleming, GCI Missions Director for the Caribbean region. Ocho Rios was the beautiful site chosen by the Jamaican churches for their annual celebration of Christ’s work in our lives held on December 1-4. The theme for the convention was “A New Awakening in Christ.” Members of the Christian Pen church (GCI’s [...]
Glen and Connie Weber, who pastor New Hope Christian Fellowship, the GCI congregation in Eagle Rock, CA, are happy to announce the arrival of their second granddaughter (third grandchild) on November 29. Born to Dennis and Carolyn Weber, Sophie Elizabeth Weber was 6lbs., 10oz and 19-1/2″. All are doing well.
Here’s an update from Jim Kissee on his daughter Janna Jones: I just arrived home and we are thrilled. Janna’s cancer surgery Tuesday was longer than expected due to a larger tumor and more lymph nodes included. The nerve that we were concerned about is okay. The other nerve to the voice box was stretched, [...]
The following report is from Becky Valekis, wife of Jim Valekis, senior pastor of CrossRoads Christian Fellowship (CCF), the GCI congregation in Tipp City, OH. This year, CCF was invited to participate in the Holiday Tour of Homes, an annual Tipp City Christmas season community event. Typically, several historic Tipp City homes are invited to decorate [...]
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, I am reminded of a funny story about three boys, an old man and a cemetery. Its message is relevant to the Advent season. On the outskirts of a small town was a large cemetery, surrounded by a tall wrought iron fence. Just inside stood a large pecan tree. [...]
Some GCI congregations need video sermons to fill in when live sermons are not possible. To help fill this need, GCI media makes video-taped sermons available online. A new one has recently been posted, titled Ministry and Mission in the Spirit. To download this sermon given by Dan Rogers at the 2011 regional conferences, go to http://www.gci.org/pastoral/wfos. [...]
The following report is from Kalengule Kaoma, GCI Mission Developer in Central Africa: Ghana James Henderson (GCI national director in the UK) and I were in Accra, Ghana in November for a West Africa leaders’ conference. Around 200 GCI church leaders from Ghana, Nigeria, and Togo attended the conference (see group photo below). With the [...]
Here is an update to an earlier prayer request for Janna Jones from her father, GCI pastor Jim Kissee: Janna and our son-in-law Nate are thankful for the many encouraging notes of support with prayers. Their daughter Lilah was born November 30! On December 5 both mother and daughter received a good medical report, despite the induced [...]
Curtis May, director of the GCI-affiliated Office of Reconciliation and Spiritual Mediation, has been invited by the COPS (Community Oriented Policing Services) office of the U.S. Department of Justice to participate in a one day meeting focused on “racial reconciliation and police legitimacy.” The meeting, which will be held on January 11 in Washington, D.C., will focus [...]
A group of missionaries from GenMin’s Crossing Borders ministry are leaving on Friday, December 9 for a weekend trip into Mexico. The group will visit two colonias (very poor neighborhoods) and one children’s home where they will distribute 400 shoebox gifts (most donated by GCI members from about a dozen different U.S. congregations), to sing [...]
We are saddened to report the death of long-time GCI member Victoria Marie Lee, 86, of Hammond, LA. Marie was preceded in death by her husband, John H. Lee, of Baton Rouge, her parents, Everett and Lela Wyatt of Gainsville, Texas, and her sisters, Helyn Coe of Conroe, Texas and Billie Jo Nokes of Midland, [...]
The following report is from Glen Weber who serves as senior pastor of New Hope Christian Fellowship, a GCI congregation in the Pasadena, CA area, and one of GCI’s district pastoral leaders in the Western United States: My wife Connie and I were recently vacationing in Hawaii. During our time there we visited Light of [...]
A Pastoral Team Conference for GCI Northern Luzon pastors and ministry leaders was held November 12-17 at the Asia Pacific Theological Seminary in Baguio City, Philippines. Immediately after a welcome worship, updates and denominational focus were discussed by Eugene Guzon, GCI National Director. He also exhorted the pastors about the theology of “abiding and abounding.” Rex [...]
Here are two videos that might be helpful in Christmas-themed Bible studies or youth Sunday school classes: The Story of Christmas – An Animation from Grace in Cranberry on Vimeo. If Mary and Joseph Used Facebook on YouTube