Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,
I praise God daily for the many ways our churches are actively and creatively participating in the life of God in the world.
In conferences this year, we have been emphasizing how God reaches out in love to all humanity, revealing himself and declaring the salvation that he has secured for all people in Jesus Christ. And the beautiful thing is that God calls us to share in that with him.
Using Bible terminology, we call our part in that work “mission,” and that mission is trinitarian and incarnational. We call it trinitarian because it is from the Father, in the Son, through the Holy Spirit. We call it incarnational because it is being worked out in exciting ways through the Spirit by the Son who is present in his Body, the church. The church is formed, gifted and empowered by the Holy Spirit to participate in what God is doing to draw all people into Christ and his loving relationship with the Father.
As part of Body of Christ in the world, we are privileged to participate in what God is now doing in the world. In this issue of Weekly Update we take a look at some of the ways our members and congregations are taking part.
- Our congregation in Kalispell, MT is hosting a community garden that demonstrates God’s love by benefitting a local food bank.
- Two of our U.S. pastors joined with our Caribbean mission developer on a mission trip to Haiti.
- One of our U.S. couples led a mission trip to Africa.
- Several of our Philippine pastors gathered for a conference in Mindanao to learn more about their part in God’s mission.
- New Heights Summer Camp is taking steps to equip staffers and campers for active participation in the mission of God back home.
My sincere thanks to all our members and congregations for the sacrifices they make every day to participate actively in what God is doing in his mission to our world. That participation always begins with and goes forward in prayer so let us remember that prayer is the battleground where we are fighting the good fight of faith.
Love from my family to yours,
Joseph Tkach
