February 23, 2011

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Update on New Zealand earthquake

A serious earthquake struck Christchurch, New Zealand, on February 22. Although it was of lesser magnitude than an earthquake there five months ago, it has caused much more damage because it struck closer to the surface and closer to the city center. The shaking caused soils to destabilize, and that caused even some modern buildings to collapse. Damage is estimated at $15 billion, and the death toll is nearing 100. Communication links are down, and we have so far been unable to find out how our members in Christchurch have fared. I am sure that your prayers will be appreciated, not only by our members, but also by the many families who have suffered financial and personal loss, and by the fatigued rescue workers.

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Steven and Carol Schantz shared some good news about their son, Ben. He released his newest album last week. His professional name is Benjamin Warren and his new album is entitled Vintage Stock. His goal was to bring new life to some of his earliest melodies, some of which he wrote in his pre-teens. Every song has its own story. He contracted with other artists in the production, one of whom was Mike Brassell of Orlando (brother of our pastor, Tim Brassell). Join me in our collective extension of congratulations! www.benjaminwarren.com

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Angola

Our ministry leader in Portugal, José Ribeiro, reports that we now have a website for our church in Angola: www.gci-angola.org. The site contains photos of the members and contact information for the six main congregations in the three provinces of Angola where we have church meetings. The website is being hosted by the Portuguese church, but the development was the effort of Angolan members Alexandre and Kamiaka Kitambala.

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Bangladesh

Rod Matthews wrote:

In late November last year, Dr. John Biswas, Director of Bengali Evangelical Association (BEA), the mission arm of Grace Communion International in Bangladesh, made one of his regular trips to Bangladesh from his base in California to meet with leaders, gospel workers, trainers and supporters involved in the outreach activities of BEA in the south of the country. I had the privilege of accompanying him, along with several other friends of BEA from the USA.

We met in Dhaka and drove the 275 km (170 miles) to the mission base in Sathsimulia, a small village not far from the provincial city of Barisal. The trip takes more than six hours of tortuous driving along both good and bad roads. It includes a 45-minute crossing of the mighty Padma River in a vehicle ferry packed with buses, trucks, cars and vans, which themselves are all packed with people.

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The primary event planned in Sathsimulia was the official opening and dedication of our new three-story concrete building. Most of southern Bangladesh is a vast delta of flat and rich land, great for growing rice and jute, but subject to flooding from tropical rains, cyclones and sea surges. This building, constructed on built-up land, is designed to be cyclone-resistant and can withstand flooding. It has a large meeting room for services and lectures, teaching and storerooms, and visitors’ accommodation on the top floor. It is the centerpiece of the BEA mission campus that has been developed there over the years.

The building is called the Herman L. Hoeh Center, as a memorial in rural Bangladesh to a compassionate and generous man who was devoted to understanding people from other cultures, especially in Asia. I had the privilege of conducting the official opening of the Center, and then Dr. Biswas and I spoke at the dedication ceremony.

BEA conducts a wide range of activities from this base, all geared to demonstrating the love of God to the surrounding communities in a country that is 90 percent Muslim. They train nurses’ aides for local clinics, operate a bakery to provide nutritious bread to the community while providing local employment, administer a program of donating goats to needy families (for milk and breeding), train gospel workers, and run schools for disadvantaged local children. The next goal is to commence computer classes to offer skills training to young people to better prepare them for the modern world. It’s impressive! There are hundreds of new disciples of Jesus Christ in villages throughout the region.

After our visit to Sathsimulia, we drove several hours west to the village of Torki to meet with the local congregation there. Over 150 people gathered in their church hall, set amongst the palm trees in a nicely kept environment, and we joined them in worship with song and prayer. John Biswas talked to them (in their native language of Bengali) and I gave a short message translated for them by John’s brother, Jacob, who is a retired schoolteacher now serving with the BEA team in Sathsimulia.

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Here (left) you can see the distribution of Bengali Bibles purchased with funds donated by the Wollongong congregation in Australia. It was inspiring, but how I wish we all could speak the same language!

We are planning a national conference in Dhaka later this year to offer some of the gospel workers and leaders from the villages an opportunity for further development and the rare opportunity to mix with overseas guests. This will strengthen our denominational connections and for many local and overseas visitors, it will be their first visit to the national capital, Dhaka. Guests are welcome.

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New Pastor Orientation

Over the President’s Day weekend (Friday through Monday), 25 pastors and ministry leaders from across the U.S. and the Caribbean came to our Glendora offices for training sessions and discussions with Drs. Joseph Tkach, Dan Rogers and Mike Feazell, as well as other Glendora staff members.

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Prayer Requests and Updates

David Fiedler

In my latest eye surgery (the fifth), the doctor removed the oil from my eye and replaced it with a saline solution, which the body will gradually replace with the natural fluid. She said there was a 30 percent chance that the retina would detach again during this procedure. I’m so grateful to our Lord and to all of you for your prayers because my retina held in place! I also received an injection of steroids in the back of the eye to reduce any swelling from the multiple surgeries and aid future vision prospects. There is no assurance that will help, however. The lens was not replaced as I had hoped it would be at this time. The doctor said I should wait about three more months for that. She also said a lens implant would again have the risk of another detachment. So at this time, I am considering trying a contact lens instead of an implant (probably in a couple months when my eye settles down from this surgery). If that works well enough, I may go with that permanently. If it doesn’t work, then I’ll be forced to go with an implant, because without a lens my vision in that eye is extremely blurred to the point when I have both eyes open my brain only sees out of the good eye. I thank God daily for my good eye and no longer take it for granted! I thank him too for all of you and your prayers and loving concern.

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Please remember the family of elder Estil Stewart, who died February 21. Estil was a beloved member of our Pikeville, Kentucky, pastoral team. Cards can be sent to Mrs. Stewart at:

Mrs. Ruth Stewart
2118 Left Fork of Long Fork Road
Virgie, KY 41572

and to their son at:

Mike Stewart
109 Petty’s Fork Road
Vergie, KY 41572

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From Emmanuel Okai, our National Ministry Leader in Ghana:

On February 13, as I was driving to the GCI congregation at the Liberian Refugee camp at Buduburam (30 km west of Accra), I received a phone call from Christopher, one of the leaders of our congregation there. He said there was trouble at the camp. As he spoke to me, I could hear gunshots in the background. Although many police were there, the place was unsafe, so we cancelled church and returned to Accra. There was tension and confusion at the camp all day, before people who fled into the nearby bushes could return home.

Officially, the police claim that one young woman died; but residents mention several deaths.

The disturbance was the result of a power tussle between two factions who wanted to lead the refugee community. An unelected group who did not have the support of the UNHCR wanted to “install and inaugurate” their own leader. The police asked them to stop what could have brought confusion and conflict into the refugee community. This group was adamant, and they resisted police instructions. It was the police’s effort to arrest the leaders of this “rebel” group that resulted in the firing of warning shots, firing of tear gas and the resultant death of at least one person at the camp.

As of Friday, no further disturbances have been experienced. There is tension in the refugee community. None of our members was affected in any way. Our church building and the property were not affected, thanks to God. What has been adversely affected is our planned first anniversary celebration that had been scheduled for next week. The tension in the community is not conducive to any kind of celebration, and we will put that activity on hold. I am in regular touch with the members there. Your prayers are solicited.

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

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