Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
Signage installed on Headquarters Building
As you can see in the pictures, our GCI logo and name are now installed on our International Headquarters building.
. 
Urban Mission in Cincinnati
GCI pastor George Hart (Christ Community Church, Cincinnati, OH) reports a successful conclusion to Word in the Street. This four-day-long Generations Ministries urban mission reaches out to the inner city of Cincinnati, OH. Teens and adults serving as Word in the Street missionaries run a day camp for children ages 4-12. The camp serves children from underprivileged (often impoverished) inner-city circumstances. It is held in a community center between two housing projects that are often hostile toward each other. Word in the Street missionaries provide the children with games, worship events (including puppet ministry), and serve an evening meal each day to anyone who shows up (this year over 700 meals were served!).
. 
George reports that this year’s mission was particularly successful as fruit was reaped from four successive years of running the mission. During this time, strong connections have been built with the children, their families and the whole community. Several parents thanked the missionaries. One said, “thank you for bringing love to our community.” A plaque of appreciation was presented to the missionaries on behalf of the Cincinnati Urban Mission Outreach and the Cincinnati Recreation Commission (see picture).
For additional pictures of Word in the Street, see the new GCI-USA mission website, “It Looks Like This…” http://gci-usa.blogspot.com/p/seeking-lost.html
Update on Sri Lanka from Mohan Jayasekera
There is another exciting development with the Sinhala translation of the Discipleship 101 course in Sri Lanka. My cousin, Rev. Lokendra Abhayaratne, helped us coordinate the translating and printing. The book was published with the help of the Colombo Theological Seminary. The Principal, Ivor Poobalan, a long-time friend of mine, was very supportive and helpful in the project. The book is now a required text for students in the Christian doctrines class at CTS. They have sold over 500 copies through the Seminary bookshop.
.
.
We are currently engaged in translating the material and publishing it in the other local language in Sri Lanka – Tamil. It should be done by November.
Last year, CTS asked me to do a two-day workshop on Trinitarian Theology for their students and invited pastors. It was a sobering and humbling experience to be invited for something like this. It was well received. We are building a wonderful working relationship with them that we had never dreamed of. This is much like our experience in Nepal and Pakistan as well. Often Rod Matthews and I shake our heads and wonder what is going on. We are thankful and excited that we have the privilege to participate in what Jesus is doing in ways we would have never dreamed of by ourselves.
The bishop of the Anglican church in Sri Lanka has requested permission to print our Trinitarian booklet for all his pastors. We have developed a good working relationship with him through my cousin. We helped them in many Tsunami relief and rebuilding projects.
On another note, SriLankan Airlines has just signed another contract with our church owned and operated school in Sri Lanka, Worldwide Educational Institute, to teach English to 60 of their new recruits in the next several months. This is the fourth time that they have asked for the services of our school in this regard.
Working as a Christian church in the third world has many challenges and obstacles. But often we are shown that Jesus invites us to participate in what he is doing for humanity in opportunities such as these. It is a blessing and privilege.
Update from Canada from Gary Moore
Wendy, Kylie and I had an enjoyable time visiting the Lethbridge and Calgary congregations in Alberta last weekend. We flew to Calgary Saturday, and spent some time over lunch with Colin and Beverly Wallace.
Later that day David Sheridan drove us down to Lethbridge. We were able to visit the small group church in Lethbridge on Sunday morning, which met at the home of Gerry Peterson (elder in the area). Wendy and I were very touched when the members presented us with a large symbolic cheque for $2,500 for African summer camps. It is touching to realize the heart for world mission these folks have. Their generosity will help youth attend a Christian camp half a world away. Though we are a smaller denomination, we are truly international in scope, which provides wonderful opportunities for mission linkages such as this.
David drove us back to Calgary Sunday afternoon for services. We much enjoyed renewing friendships with the members there. A highlight of the service was the opportunity to present Colin with a plaque honouring him for 25 years of service in ministry, and to present watches on behalf of Mr. Tkach and the denomination to both Colin and Beverly (sorry about the poor quality of the shot – it’s a new camera…).
Alan Redmond and I were talking on the phone today, when he got word that Maurice Yurkiw (long-time elder and retired pastor in the Winnipeg area) had just had a major seizure and was being taken by ambulance to the hospital. Please pray that Maurice experiences a full recovery.
In service, Gary and Wendy
UK Youth Ministry and Outreach
The Life Activity Weekend held at the beautiful Lendrick Muir activity centre, Scotland, from the 4th – 6th June was a great success. Over 30 people attended and enjoyed trail biking, rope courses, archery, pitch and putt, disc golf, badminton, beach volleyball (left) and a ceilidh. The Life Club was held in a wood; despite some bird heckling the best speaker cup was awarded by the Chairperson Robert Jones (right) to Glen Thompson (below holding an apple pie) who spoke about mathematical pi.
. 
Prayer Requests and Updates
Update on Maurice Yurkiw
Here is the very encouraging update from Maurice Yurkiw. Please thank everyone for their prayers on behalf of myself and my family. I am feeling much better today after returning home from Health Sciences Center Emergency last night (June 23).
The power of prayer is awesome, as they were unable to find any damage from the Grand Mal Seizure I had experienced. I was given a CT Scan, MRI, an eye examination for broken blood vessels, and reaction and response tests — everything showed me to be clear of any damage. My shoulder is sore from the fall I had experienced, but x-rays found no breaks or cracks in the bones. We returned to so many recorded calls from friends, neighbors and relatives that at times it is overwhelming. Thanks again, and we certainly treasure you all!
Maurice, Lorraine and family
Cards may be sent to:
Box 216 Grp 327 RR3
Selkirk, MB R1A 2A8
Canada
Update on Johannsen baby girl
Our daughter delivered a baby girl at about 6:30 a.m. this morning (June 24). Unfortunately, the lungs were not developed enough to sustain life, and little Maelle Rittermann passed away about 8 hours later in the arms of her mother and father. Dana was a day shy of 27 weeks into her pregnancy. Maelle weighed about 2 lbs 4 oz. Because President Obama was scheduled to visit the Bethesda Naval hospital today, Eric decided to spend last night with Dana at the hospital rather than have to deal with the enhanced security and the parking restrictions that were in place. If Eric had not done so, he might not have been able to enter the hospital until it was too late. Betty had flown back to Minnesota yesterday. Thank-you all for your concerns and prayers.
Doug & Betty Johannsen
Cards may be sent to:
Dana & Eric Rittermann
12610 Princess Choice Dr
Bowie MD 20720
Paul Volpe
One of our Gainesville pastors, Paul Volpe, suffered a major heart attack last Friday evening. He had such a great chest pain that he drove himself to the hospital and was admitted immediately. This may have saved his life, as he had complete blockage in the main heart artery and complete blockage in another. Doctors placed five stints to open the blood flow for him. He is doing so well that he will be released from intensive care today and even be able to go home this week! He will be at his parent’s home in Gainesville for awhile. Your prayers for a complete recovery will be appreciated.
Cards may be sent to:
4525 NW 21st ST
Gainesville, FL 32605
Al Barr
Al had a bad cough and trouble breathing, also a pain in his back, so we went to the doctor. After examining him, the doctor sent us to the emergency room because he felt he could get a lot of tests accomplished quickly there. While there, Al surprised me by telling the doctor that he also wanted to get a biopsy of the growth on his back.
After giving Al x-rays and a cat scan, they discovered that he had a gallon of fluid on his right lung, and it was not functioning at all. They also said that the growth had impacted the lung. They began removing the fluid from the lung, and had removed two liters by the time I left. They were removing it slowly to prevent a shock to the body, and prevent the lung from collapsing. His blood pressure was holding up pretty well. My daughter Pam, a nurse, joined us there, so she was able to explain a lot to us. She stayed with him after I left. He has been moved out of the emergency room into a room:
Lenox Hill Hospital
537 Window
100 E. 77th St.
New York, NY 10075
The lungs are the immediate problem. They will do the biopsy, examine the growth and try to see what caused the problem and what can remedy it. This is Al’s first time being in a hospital as a patient, and it’s quite an adjustment for him. Pam helped by keeping him laughing and not taking himself so seriously. She also knew how to make him more comfortable. She even found the heated blankets, even though it wasn’t her hospital. I know you will continue to pray for him. Thank you so much.
Edna Barr
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.
Love from my family to yours,
Joseph Tkach
