Nearly 100 pastors, elders and spouses from the UK and other parts of Europe took part in the training, discussion and wonderful fellowship at this year’s UK ministerial conference. The venue was the conference center inside the Whipsnade Zoo near London. As you can see from the photo, a few curious wallabies kept us company just outside the hall.
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Chicago, Illinois
David, Debbie & Meghan Menagh
David Menagh of Heartland Christian Fellowship, one of our Chicago, Illinois, congregations, was ordained October 18. David’s wife Debbie and their daughter Meghan were present for the ceremony.
Cincinnati, Ohio
Curtis May updated us on last week’s ORM event in Cincinnati. He wrote:
Thank you so much for your heartfelt prayers about our reconciliation event in Cincinnati, Ohio, last week. Pastor and Chapter Leader George Hart, local member Sandra Hamilton and I represented ORM.
God answered your prayers in powerful ways. It was like a spiritual retreat or college intensive all rolled into one with the Holy Spirit leading! The event, which took place Thursday night, Friday night and all day Saturday, included prayers of repentance, forgiveness and affirmation, two communion services and a concluding homily.
Curtis May, Valdasia, Sandra Hamilton, Vickie & George Hart.
The focus was to bring Africans and African Americans into a better understanding of each other and thus a better relationship. As pointed out by the presenters (college professors, bishops, pastors and other prominent leaders from Africa and America), we need to better understand our cultural differences and how they affect our relationships. We need to reject much of the media influence that helps perpetuate stereotypes that we believe about each other. We also emphasized the need to build a better bond with each other through personal contact, which includes worshipping together at times to emphasize the words of Jesus that there is one Lord, one faith and one baptism.
Scholars made powerful presentations on the history, culture, languages and worship styles of the two groups and how they have led to divisions, and we then explored ways to remove the walls and build bridges. One of the scholars, Dr. Funso Oluyitan, a Nigerian, is host of a local TV religious program. He plans to continue to support our efforts on his program.
Thanks again prayer partners. Your prayers move mountains.
Canada
Montreal elders congratulation Lynn Lawrence after her ordination.
National Ministry Leader Gary Moore reported that the paperwork and filing of the new name, Grace Communion International Canada, as well as its French language equivalent, Communion Internationale dans la Grâce, Canada, are in process.
In other good news, Lynn Lawrence of the Montreal English-speaking congregation was ordained October 31. Lynn has served her local congregation for many years and has done outstanding work with our eastern Canada summer camp. A number of the camp staff drove long distances to be at services that day, Gary said, which was “a testimony to the fruit of the ministry Lynn has been used to accomplish.”
2010 International Conference open to all members
We are thrilled to announce that our 2010 International Conference will be held in Orlando, Florida from Thursday, July 22, through Sunday, July 25. There will also be a pre-conference session for senior pastors on Wednesday afternoon, July 21. The venue will be the Hilton Hotel in the Walt Disney World Resort.
The conference will be open to all GCI members, families and guests. We are looking forward to reconnecting as we fellowship and worship together. In addition to denominational presentations and workshops, speakers will include noted author, pastor and professor Elmer Colyer, InterVarsity Press Senior Editor Gary Deddo and his wife, Bible teacher and retreat leader Cathy Deddo, and missiologist Ed Stetzer. A detailed agenda will be forthcoming.
Congregations will be responsible for the transportation and on-site costs for pastors attending the 2010 International Conference. To help with some of the costs, the denominational office will give pre-registered senior pastors a scholarship to cover the registration fee as well as $10 per night of the conference to help offset the cost of lodging during the conference. Elders and members wishing to attend the conference may do so at personal expense, or congregations may also choose to assist in the attendance costs for some of the congregational leaders.
We have negotiated a $99 per night room rate, which includes all taxes and fees. This is a very good summertime rate for Orlando.
The Hilton is located across the street from Downtown Disney and offers free shuttle service within the resort area. The hotel is a AAA Four Diamond Property. It will provide plenty of casual meeting areas to reconnect and unwind. Meal prices, including tax and gratuity, will be $19 for breakfast, $24 for lunch and $29 for dinner. Information regarding pricing details and registration will soon be available.
Please do not contact the hotel directly for reservations. The hotel will not give this rate to call-ins. We will generate a housing list for our group. For reference in the meantime, the hotel location and web site are noted below.
Hilton in the Walt Disney World Resort 1751 Hotel Plaza Blvd. Lake Buena Vista, Florida 32830 Tel. 407.827.4000
We ask that you forward this message to the elders and members in your congregation(s) who would like to be part of this international event. If you have any questions regarding the 2010 International Conference, please email them to church.administration@gci.org. We look forward to seeing you at next year’s conference!
Prayer Requests and Updates
International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church
The World Evangelical Association has designated Sunday, November 8, as the International Day of Prayer for the persecuted church
Bev Davis
Fred and Bev Davis sent their thanks for everyone’s prayers on Bev’s behalf. Fred wrote, “We are going to Omaha Wednesday, the 4th, and she is scheduled for surgery at 3:30 pm at Methodist Hospital. The right side of the colon will be removed. I probably won’t be able to bring her home until Saturday or Sunday. We thank God often that this was found in an early stage. If early enough to be stage 1 or 2, she won’t need chemo at all. We thank all for their prayers!”
Cards may be sent to: 4018 Roth Road Grand Island, NE 68803
Glen McCutchan
Barbara McCutchan of our Eagle Rock, California, congregation, let us know that her husband Glen, an elder and former Pasadena employee, continues to suffer from advanced prostate cancer. He is back home, and his pain seems to be under control with the medication unless he has to be moved. Their son David has been able to help, and their daughter Karen has been able to visit from Cincinnati. Barbara will be interviewing a caretaker next week to get some additional help taking care of Glen. Barbara and Glen want to let everyone know how much they appreciate your prayers.
Cards may be sent to: 196 S Greenwood Ave Pasadena, CA 91107-4757
Larry Omasta
Elder and retired manager of our television department, Larry Omasta, reported that he is slowly recovering from a cavernoma, a malformation of a vein in the spinal cord. He wrote, “I go in for another MRI in five weeks so my neurosurgeon can determine what kind of cavernoma caused the bleeding in the first place. In most cases it’s a one-time event and most of them have a bleed probability of one percent, which my surgeon says is okay without surgery. I just need to have a lot of patience and not try to do too much lifting or moving heavier objects like trashcans, etc.”
Cards may be sent to: 1612 N Roosevelt Ave Pasadena, CA 91104-1926
Torveig Aas
Carl Frederick Aas left England just before the beginning of the UK ministerial conference last Saturday to return home to Norway when his wife, Torveig, suddenly contracted swine flu. Torveig suffers chronic fragile health from other serious illnesses, which makes her an especially high-risk swine flu patient. She was sent home from the hospital on Tuesday and appeared to be recovering. Today, Wednesday, however, she took a serious turn for the worse and is back in the hospital for observation and more tests. Carl expressed his deep appreciation for all our prayers.
Cards may be sent to: Torveig and Carl Aas Vevelstadasen 25 N-1405 Langhus NORWAY
Carlos Tavares
Former pastor Carlos Tavares, who served in Portugal and Brazil, died October 23, 2009. Funeral services were held at Heatherdale cemetery in Pretoria North on October 29.
Cards may be sent to: Yvonne Tavares 41 Striga Street Doornpoort Ext 40 Pretoria, South Africa
Remember that prayer is the battleground where we fight the good fight of faith. Let’s encourage everyone to join together in prayer, for we belong to Christ, and by the Spirit it is in Christ that we pray. Prayer and other spiritual activities help keep our hearts in tune with God and remind us of who we are in Christ. He is our all in all, and in him we are eternally beloved of the Father and blessed to share his good news with others.
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Hilton in the Walt Disney World Resort