Ambassador College of Christian Ministry (ACCM) invites you to participate in either of two intensive courses that will be held in GCI’s Charlotte, NC, Home Office over the weekend of October 20-21, 2018.
The two courses being offered are Christian Leadership and Jesus and the Gospels (choose one—they will be conducted simultaneously). Both are designed to fulfill ACCM’s motto, “Equipping for Ministry.” About these courses, GCI Vice President Greg Williams wrote this:
These two courses, to be taught as “intensives” in Charlotte in October, present a great opportunity for our ministry leaders to learn and build community together. I’m thrilled they will be conducted in our new Home Office building. I encourage you to sign up for one of them—you’ll be blessed by doing so, and in turn be a blessing to others in your ongoing ministry. I have used the material and taught both courses, and in my opinion they are outstanding. These courses help our bivocational pastors fulfill GCI’s continuing education expectations, so please take advantage of the opportunity.
Who Should Attend: employed pastors, bi-vocational pastors, interns, ministry leaders, pastoral team members, members, students—all who want to deepen their biblical understanding and personal walk with Christ, and be better equipped for ministry and mission.
Finding new leaders in a church can be like looking for a needle in a haystack. For “3 Places to Find New Church Leaders,” an article by Ron Edmondson that helpfully addresses this challenge, click here.
I’m half-way convinced that I should write a book titled Transformed by Airplane Conversations. I have two reasons: First, over the years I’ve had some interesting conversations on airplanes with a variety of people, and at times the conversations have addressed the Christian faith. Second, your responses to my sharing these conversations in the past leads me to want to share some more.
Though Christianity is not always the topic of my airplane conversations, sometimes it does come up—typically when my seatmate asks what I do for a living. When I reply that I’m a Christian pastor, the conversation often quickly ends. However, sometimes it continues. Let me share one of those times with you.
As the flight was taking off, I began privately thanking God for the first class upgrade, which meant a more comfortable seat, some wine and lunch. My thoughts were interrupted when the man seated next to me introduced himself as a Jewish lawyer. Before I could reply, the flight attendant started serving lunch. First, she brought us shrimp cocktail, revealing that my seatmate was not a practicing Jew—he was eating his shrimp so fast that I decided to offer him mine. He gobbled it up right after telling me his doctor had told him to cut back on cholesterol! As we continued eating, he asked what I do for a living. I replied that I was a Christian pastor—fully expecting that he’d reply with silence, and I’d then be putting my earbuds back in to listen to an old Beatles’ album. But to my surprise, he continued the conversation, telling me that he respected me for being a Christian pastor!
As the conversation continued, we talked about our favorite foods, wine, beer and music. Then he asked me a question that seemed to come out of nowhere (though I suspect he had wanted to ask it as soon as I mentioned I was Christian). “What reasons,” he asked, “would you give me for believing that God exists?” Though I had not anticipated that question, I quickly replied, “Let me count the ways!”
Thinking that he probably was at least an agnostic, I began by noting that, from my perspective, apart from God there is no logical, philosophical or reasonable explanation for how everything exists in our universe. I continued by noting that atheism is a false religion in that it requires an irrational faith commitment to believe that life comes from non-life, and that everything popped into existence on its own by accident, without any purpose. He agreed that the creation question was huge for him. I then attempted to illustrate the nature of atheism as a religion by showing that it makes its own faith statements and has its own evangelistic ministry. I mentioned the names of atheism’s two “apostles”: Stephen Hawking and Lawrence Krauss; and its four “evangelists” (pictured below, left to right): Richard Dawkins, Sam Harris, Christopher Hitchens and Daniel Dennett.
Amidst our give-and-take, I made several points concerning atheism, noting that its belief in blind chance as the origin of an unimaginably complex universe takes as much or more faith than belief in a loving, sovereign God who created it all. I also mentioned that the atheism peddled by Dawkins and his cohorts focuses largely on what it doesn’t believe in and why it hates religion, especially Christianity. Though that approach might satisfy some people, it is not enough for me and many others who grapple with the great mysteries of life and reality.
He asked why I have concluded that atheism is inadequate as a rational worldview. I replied by noting that atheism is unable to provide a consistent explanation for the origin and order of the universe. If an atheist argues that matter is eternal, they are going against modern science, which states that the universe had a beginning and is gradually running down. If they affirm that the universe had a beginning, then they must account for what caused that beginning. Either way, atheism cannot adequately explain the universe and a world full of complex life forms. I also noted that the atheistic worldview is incapable of providing the necessary preconditions to account for the universal laws of science and logic. In short, it is unable to account for the meaningful realities that people encounter in life, especially considering the atheistic view that we have no free will and all our choices are an illusion.
I then noted that atheism cannot furnish a rational basis for determining good and evil, or the human need for absolute moral standards. If there is no God—who by definition is absolutely good—then there is no absolute standard for judging something to be good or evil. Ironically, atheism objects to the existence of God due to the presence of evil in the world, yet it is unable to account for the difference between good and evil, much less provide a solution, apart from God, to the problem of evil.
My seatmate and I had an enjoyable exchange, and he said he appreciated most of my points. He confirmed that, while he is not an atheist, neither was he following any religion. He said he was searching, and felt he had not found the right place yet. Then he got up from his seat and headed for the restroom. While there, the smoke alarm sounded. Immediately, he was interrogated as to whether he had been trying to smoke a cigarette in the restroom. The flight attendant even asked me if I had seen him holding a cigarette when he entered and exited the restroom. When he was permitted to return to his seat, I told him that I know a good Jewish lawyer if he needs one! At first he laughed, but then he asked who I was referring to. He laughed again when I replied that I was referring to Jesus Christ, though this time his laugh was somehow warmer.
As we deplaned and went our separate ways, I wondered what he had been thinking when I mentioned Jesus to him. I’ll never know, though I’m happy I had the chance to do so. On my way into the terminal, a quote from G.K. Chesterton came to mind: “If there were no God, there would be no atheists.” Something to think about.
Grateful that God has revealed himself to us and we can share that knowledge with others, Joseph Tkach
We were shocked and saddened in learning of the tragic death of Diane Rosenthal, age 76, wife of former GCI Pastor Jim Rosenthal (deceased). Diane died in an automobile accident on August 1 in Saratoga Springs, NY. She is survived by two sons, their wives, and a granddaughter (pictured at right with Diane).
Diane, who served WCG/GCI as a pastor’s wife until Jim’s death in 2006, was also a nurse—a job she dearly loved. She was known for her deep commitment to her patients, communicating with many of them well past their initial visits. One of Diane’s friends noted that she would want everyone to know this about her hope: “Better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere” (Psalm 84:10). Now Diane is in her true home with her beloved Jim.
We were saddened to learn of the death of Susan (Blackwell) Endres, wife of former WCG/GCI Pastor Gary Endres. Susan died on July 26, at age 60, following a nearly year-long battle with cancer. Here is a note provided by Gary:
Susan and Gary
Susan loved life, and the time she spent on earth was filled with love, creativity and hope. She was a friend to all and quick to smile and share a contagious laugh.
Born in 1958 to WCG Pastor Lowell Blackwell (now deceased) and his wife Margaret, Susan is survived by her husband of 35 years, Gary Endres, her children Brittany Hendrickson (married to Jack), her son James, her grandson Jax, along with her mother, brothers (Lowell Jr., David, Tim and Jim Blackwell) and sister Marcy DeShong as well as many nieces and nephews.
Susan was a Master Barber by trade for close to 40 years, a profession she dearly loved and excelled in. She served with her husband in the ministry of WCG in Pasadena and Glendora, CA, and Kingsport, TN for many years. She was always looking for a way to serve others and was a natural born leader. Her talents and interests were wide and varied from decorating cakes to motorcycling and scuba diving. She loved to travel and especially going to the beach.
Susan loved Jesus and was ready to be accepted into his arms as she died with her husband and children at her bedside. After sharing stories, laughing and everyone expressing how much they loved one another she simply said, “I’m ready to go now.” Within a half hour she passed in her husband’s arms, peacefully with no pain.
Cards to the family may be sent to:
Gary Endress 150 King Drive Johnson City, TN, 37615
GCI-Germany Elder Santiago Lange and his wife Elke are thrilled to announce the recent birth of their fifth grandchild, a grandson, Samuel Jonas Lange. At birth he was 9 pounds and 20.5 inches. It was a difficult birth with serious complications and Samuel had to be rushed to another hospital for special emergency treatment. Concerning the outcome, Santiago wrote this:
We are most thankful to report that the prayers of many were heard. Samuel has been reunited with his parents and is now doing fine and looking extremely handsome:
Longtime GCI pastor and district leader Dr. Larry Hinkle recently retired from GCI employment. To be near their son and daughter, Larry and his wife Joan have relocated from Florida to Morganton, NC. Upon arrival there, GCI’s Hickory, NC, congregation held a party to honor the couple. Larry continues to direct the spiritual renewal ministry, Odyssey in Christ, and to teach a course in spiritual formation at Grace Communion Seminary. Pictured below (left to right) are Larry, Joan and Hickory congregation members thanking Larry and Joan for their many years of service to GCI.
Cards may be sent to:
Larry and Joan Hinkle 309 New Orleans Blvd. Morganton, NC 2865
A group of five GCI-USA Pastoral Residents, one Ministry Intern and five Regional and Lead Pastors gathered recently in Cincinnati, OH, for a Pastoral Residents’ training conference. Following the theme “Preparing to be a Pastor,” the training began with a study of John 13:1-17 that looked at the humility and other-centered ministry of Jesus with his disciples in the Upper Room. The “go-and-do-likewise” interactive study set the tone for the three days of training.
(Left to right) Intern: Gordon Herrmann (Cincinnati, OH, west); Pastoral Residents: David Borum (Eugene, OR), Elizabeth Mullins (Hickory, NC), Jillian Carranto Morrison (Glendora, CA), Cara Garrity (Boston, MA) and Patrick Quinn (Cincinnati, OH, west). Ceeja Malmkar, Pastoral Resident in Oklahoma City, OK, was unable to attend.
Additional training sessions addressed these topics: Mentoring Matters, Loving Your Neighbor, the Spiritual Practice of “Go,” Ministry Action Plans, and Healthy Church. As the conference ended, the participants joined the Sunday worship service of Christ Fellowship Church to honor and celebrate the generosity of the congregation that hosted the conference.
Here are comments from those who attended:
“I liked the intentional focus on what it means to be a pastor.”
“I was encouraged by the honesty and transparency of all involved. I also enjoyed getting to know one another better and seeing the humility and wisdom of the other pastoral residents.”
“Seeing the depth of wisdom, maturity and commitment in these mostly-young people was inspiring. I can’t wait to see how God continues to work in their lives!”
GCI’s U.S. Pastoral Resident Program is coordinated by Anthony Mullins. The next gathering is being planned for June 23-25, 2019 at GCI’s International Home Office in Charlotte, NC. The Pastoral Residents and Interns are currently meeting twice-a-month by video chat to work through the CORE curriculum provided by GiANT Worldwide.
