Elizabeth Mullins – Page 42

Devotional—A Lament

Micah 6:8 says, “[God] has shown you . . . what is good. [W]hat does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.”

When we look at our societal fractures, however, those of us who identify as followers of the way of Jesus often fail to reflect the justice, mercy, and humility of our Savior. May this prayer be the cry of our hearts.

A Lament for Hiding Our Eyes from the Imago Dei

Holy Sacred God
You have asked us to be
Repairers of the breach
To mirror You as You
Proclaim good news and liberty
to those who are oppressed

Forgive us for
Seeking to make people
In our own image
Instead of seeking
To be conformed to Yours

We repent for
Our willful ignorance and arrogance
Our apathy and indifference
Our selfishness and inaction
Our defensiveness and pride

Forgive us for
Our lack of vulnerability and understanding
Our lack of curiosity and compassion
Our tendency to make statements
Instead of asking questions
Thinking we already know
Seeking our own comfort instead of
Listening, bearing witness
And rejoicing in the truth

We have marred
The image of Your image bearers
We have been silent
And covered our eyes and ears
We have refused to offer hope,
To restore, repair and protect
Instead of inviting those who suffer into Your Jubilee
We have removed seats from the table
And erected walls where there should be open doors

Please forgive us, Lord
Put salve on our eyes so we can see
Help us to be loving, joyful, peaceful,
Good, kind, patient,
Faithful, gentle, and self-controlled
We are your Beloved Community
And we belong to one another

You have said that the world would know
That we are your disciples
If we love one another.
May it be so with us.

By Afrika Afeni Mills, Faith Avenue Champion
Steele Creek, NC, US

For more information about Afrika’s antiracist work, check out her website.

LiLY Women’s Conference

We would love to invite you to celebrate our 20^th year reunion.

2024 REGISTRATION IS NOW OPEN!

20th Annual LiLY Women’s Conference
April 26-28, 2024
Embassy Suites in Independence, Ohio (in person)

“REUNION”

But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him. Luke 15:20 (NIV)

Registration Fee:
$75 / $85 – Take advantage of our early bird pricing of $75 and register by Friday, April 5, 2024. The registration fee covers the meeting facilities, speakers, conference bag filled with goodies, plus lunch and dinner on Saturday.

Registration for ages 13-17 is at a discounted rate of $50.

Online registration ends on April 14, 2024.

Hotel Reservation/Cost:

Embassy Suites, 5800 Rockside Woods Blvd. Independence, Ohio

Overnight hotel rate is $129 per night, per suite, 4-person room (total with tax is $303.15 for both nights – breakfast & manager’s reception included).

Click here to make your reservation online.

Group Name: LiLY Women’s Conference

Group Code: LWC

Central Reservations Number: 1-866-344-7548

Deadline for hotel reservations at the special rate is Friday, April 5, 2024.

Register today online at gccle.church/lily

If not registering online: Mail your registration fee and make checks payable to:

Grace Communion Cleveland, 4499 Canterbury Road, North Olmsted, Ohio 44070

(Please include your name, address, phone number, emergency contact name & address, and if you are staying for Saturday night dinner)

If you have any questions, please email us at: LiLYwomensministry@gmail.com

Rosa Hulse
Women’s Ministry Leader
Grace Communion Cleveland

Like/Follow us on Facebook at LiLYWomensConference.

Prayer Request

Please join us in praying for Ruth and Bob Miller’s adult son Brian. Bob is a retired pastor in Alabama. Brian has a severe lung infection. He is hospitalized in the intensive care unit, and his condition is critical.

Regional Gatherings in 2024

Save the Date

Please join us for a weekend of training, appreciation, and worship. Everyone is invited.

See flyer below or visit our website here for more information.

Registration opens late February 2024.

Registration Fee:
The Home Office will cover the registration fee for one pastor/facilitator per congregation and their spouse to attend a regional gathering. A coupon code will be sent with instructions on how to register in mid-February.

Lodging:
Each pastor/facilitator will need to book their own lodging for the gathering.

Hotel courtesy block links will be made available once registration opens. You may also consider booking other accommodations that work best for you (examples: hotel, Airbnb, VRBO, or accommodation with friends/relatives).

After the gathering, the Home Office will send a subsidy to your congregation via the send/draw to help offset the cost of one pastor/facilitator’s housing for the regional gathering. The amount will be set based on the average cost of the discounted hotel rate we were able to obtain for three nights.

Meet Stacey Meade

“Over the years, my love extended beyond the walls of my denomination, evolving into a deep commitment to share God’s love with everyone, as instructed by him.”

Check out this month’s GCI Profile to get to know Stacey Meade, Love Avenue Champion in Charlotte, North Carolina. To read her full profile, click here or the image below.

Share Your Black History Celebrations

After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. And they cried out in a loud voice: “Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.”(Revelation 7:9-10)

“This image of heaven gives us a clue that ethnicity and culture have some sort of eternal value. Our ethnic and cultural differences reflect God’s beauty and creativity. At the same time, those saints from different backgrounds are united in their worship of God. Diversity in unity is part of God’s design for humanity. Our cultural differences should be celebrated, and our unity in Christ should be celebrated even more.” From Embracing Diversity by Dishon Mills. Read the full Equipper article here.

In the U.S., February is Black History Month. Black History Month, also known as African American History Month, is an annual celebration of achievements by African Americans and a time for recognizing their central role in U.S. history. It is a time devoted to paying tribute to the generations of African Americans who struggled with adversity to achieve full citizenship in American society. Other countries around the world, including Canada and the United Kingdom, also devote a month to celebrating Black history.

Black History Celebration, GC Fayetteville, NC, 2023

Does your congregation commemorate this diversity awareness month in a special way with your members and neighbors? If so, tell us about it!

We’d love to share your stories of Black History Month celebrations!

Prayer Guide—February 2024

“Prayer is continuing a conversation that God has started through his Word and his grace, which eventually becomes a full encounter with him.” —Timothy Keller

Join us in prayer! Let’s thank God for the good work we are included in and for the dedicated pastors, leadership teams, and members who participate and serve their neighborhoods. May the communities who are served by these congregations experience Christ’s transformative love.

To download the full February Prayer Guide and participate in corporate prayer, visit here.

Ordination of Job Alimasi Ayuba

On January 13, about 100 enthusiastic people gathered at GC Surrey, British Columbia for a very special and joyous service. Job Alimasi Ayuba was ordained to the position of elder and commissioned as associate pastor of our congregation. The ceremony was performed by National Director Bill Hall.

Job’s long-time mentor from Malawi, Pastor Silvester Nkosi, testified of Job’s long-term commitment to Jesus Christ and service in ministry, including leading children’s groups and youth camps in Malawi. He also served as deacon of the congregation in the Dzaleka Refugee camp, where he lived with his wife, Imani, and their children. Job performed pastoral duties in the Dzaleka congregation on behalf of Pastor Nkosi. In July 2019, GC Surrey sponsored Job and Imani and their family to immigrate to Canada, where Job and Imani have continued to serve in the church and in the community.

We were delighted that six of Job’s coworkers attended the service as well as friends from near and far. Guests from Quebec City, Ottawa, Edmonton, Texas, and Michigan joined our special celebration. Our Swahili members spent many hours preparing a great feast for after the service that was greatly enjoyed by all.

Congratulations to Job and Imani! We pray that God will bless them richly as they continue in loving service to all.

Debbie Minke, Elder, and Craig Minke, Pastor
Surrey, B.C., Canada

Retirement of Bermie Dizon

Join us in celebrating Bermie Dizon’s retirement. He served as a GCI pastor for 40 years in the Philippines and in the U.S.

Congratulations, Bermie and Carmelita! We are very grateful to both of you for your many years of faithful service.

We wanted you to hear from Bermie in his own words.

After finishing high school in 1974, I moved from a rural area to Manila to take up my university degree. Because my older siblings were members, I started going to WCG services. In 1978, the regional director sent me to Ambassador College in Pasadena to represent the Philippines at the International Youth Leadership conference. There, I met Carmelita (wife to be), the other Filipino youth representative. In that conference, we were encouraged to attend Ambassador College.

In 1980, I started college at Ambassador. Adapting to a new culture was tough, but the prayer closets in the dorm and my new friends helped me through. My wife and I dated in our senior year and got married on campus two days after graduation in 1984.

After college, I was hired as a full-time ministerial trainee in the Philippines. I was assigned to pastor congregations in San Fernando, Pampanga, and Tarlac. I served in the area for seven years and planted churches in Cabanatuan City, Olongapo City, and Angeles City. In Pampanga, we had three children, Ben, Carmel, and Abel.

For twelve years, I served in different congregations. After Luzon Island, I was transferred to Mindanao Island. There I pastored in Davao City, Tagum, Kidapawan, and General Santos City, and planted a church in Digos City.

Throughout these years, I also served as S.E.P. camp director and festival coordinator every year. During our last year in Davao, we had our fourth child, David. I mention our kids because they were a part of our ministry. They were involved in our worship team, S.E.P. camp, and missions in other countries. For many years, Carmelita was a part of the worship team as a guitarist, nurse at S.E.P., and children’s church teacher.

Bermie and Carmelita with their four children, spouses, and grandchildren.

There were moments that will stay in my memory. In 1990, a powerful earthquake, on a Richter scale of 7.0, hit the island of Luzon. A year later, only a few miles away from where we lived, Mt. Pinatubo exploded. It was considered one the most powerful eruptions in history. In both calamities, many members lost their livelihood and were evacuated. These terrible events showed me the faithfulness and generosity of our members. Most donated food, money, and clothing. Some opened their homes so others can stay temporarily.

In 1996, I was transferred to the U.S. to work with Filipino members. I served with Pastor Curtis May for five years in the Ambassador Auditorium. I planted the Pasadena NewLife Fellowship congregation in 1997 and later served the Los Angeles congregation until 2019. I continued to serve NewLife Fellowship and the Beaumont congregation until these churches were merged into Glendora, now including the Monrovia congregation.

Those times we opened our church facilities for neighborhood events, interacting and building relationships, have been one of the joys I will remember. I will not forget how we cooked and served hot meals for people without shelter for five years.

I was privileged to finish my Master of Arts in Christian Education at Azusa Pacific University in 2007. Because a regional director saw potential in me that I didn’t see, he empowered and encouraged me. I came to see that my role as pastor is both equipping people for ministry and pastoring. I’ve sought new emerging leaders. Several have become elders and leaders. Eugene Guzon and Jillian Morrison are two examples who I’ve had the privilege of working with.

I retired from full-time pastoring on January 21, 2024, after 40 years of full-time ministry and 50 years as a GCI member. I like considering my life not as my own but a journey together with God and those whom he has chosen. Whatever success I may have experienced it is all because it is God in the first place who took the initiative and brought success. It is also a journey with fellow saints, each contributing, sharing, praying, and working in obedience to the lead of our Lord Jesus.

Author: Elizabeth Mullins