Author: GCI Media

This update is from Rod Matthews, GCI mission developer in southeast Asia.

The inaugural session of Himalayan Bible School (HiBiS) held in Kathmandu, Nepal, concluded in May with its first graduation ceremony. HiBiS is an initiative of Deben Sam, the senior pastor of Himalayan Gospel Church. It is underwritten by the Mission Fund of GCI Australia.

This first HiBiS session began with 18 young men and women coming together from rural villages and the city of Kathmandu for an intensive three-month course, which preceded nine months of practical field work and application of what they had learned back home. Taught by Deben Sam, his brother-in-law, Raju and Pastor Thomas of their local Kathmandu congregation, the classes covered a range of biblical education and practical outreach and evangelism subjects.

The young people selected for this first HiBiS session were chosen from attendees of a mobile three-day Bible school, which Deben and a small team conducted last year in a number of rural villages where there was a congregation and/or people interested in the Christian message.

GCI has been involved in a partnership with the Himalayan Gospel Church for about eight years, providing literature and funding the translation and printing of literature which has been translated into the Nepali language for distribution to rural and urban pastors and literate Christians in remote villages; supporting a basic medical clinic offering free consultation and medicines to the poorest people such as brickyard workers and street sweepers; and among other things, contributing to the upkeep of 16 orphans that Deben and his extended family care for in their home in Kathmandu.

Deben’s goal is to conduct HiBiS as an annual event. After their period of practical service, and from those whose work is affirmed by their local congregation, Deben hopes that funds might permit a few be chosen to take up full time ministry and evangelism so that the good news can be spread further to reach the majority of people in Nepal who are not Christian.

Summer is a busy season for youth camps in GCI around the world. Here are reports from recently completed camps in the Philippines and in India.

Philippines

This year, three SEP camps were held in the Visayas region of the Philippines, serving a total of 145 campers. Some of the campers and staff had endured the horrors of the Bohol earthquake in October and supertyphoon Yolanda in November of 2013. These disasters occurred at the time camp planning normally would have been underway. Instead, GCI Philippines focused on disaster relief and rehabilitation. Nevertheless, God provided not only one camp in the Visayas, but three!

One of those blessed by these camps was Juvy, a camper from Tacloban, which had been “ground zero” for Yolanda’s devastation. During camp, Juvy tearfully recalled the tragedy in which her best friend died in the supertyphoon. She remembered how Tacloban residents had been going about their normal laidback ways (including karaoke and drinking sessions) the night before Yolanda hit. In the aftermath, some survivors wanted to “rent” her father’s acetylene torches for 50,000 pesos ($1150.00) so they could break into bank vaults. Her father refused. Several days later, GCI Philippines director Eugene Guzon and others visited and Juvy’s father was given 50,000 pesos in assistance! Juvy spoke about the goodness of God expressed through the church. This goodness raised the hopes of the downcast. Juvy was one of five youths at camp who, in being baptized, indicated their commitment to follow Jesus as one of his disciples.

India

GCI in India held a summer camp in early May in the city of Hyderabad. 40 campers, age 10 to 15 were served by eight staff members. Most of the campers were from the Faust School and friends of our children from church.

Each day, camp began with physical activity, breakfast, another round of games and then a Bible study and values education followed by lunch. After lunch campers rested for a while since the temperature outside was touching 40° Celsius (104°F). Evening programs began with tea and snacks at 4:00, then games and swimming until sundown. Children watched a movie before dinner and later updated their journals and retired for the day.

Pastor Dan Zachariah taught the Bible studies, explaining the love of God and how he made things possible for us to live in relationship with him. He also taught the children how to journal—reflecting on how they spent the day with their friends. Guidelines on public speaking were discussed in one of the classes and all the children were given the opportunity to deliver a speech. The importance of community service and being environmentally conscious were made known to the children. The children enjoyed picking up garbage and attempted cleaning jobs people usually don’t like to do in the community (see picture at left). Besides these activities, the campers enjoyed trekking, rope climbing, swimming and rain dancing.

The article below was published in a local newspaper concerning the community outreach of CrossRoads Christian Fellowship, GCI’s church in Tipp City, Ohio (the church building, referred to in the article as “CrossRoads Community Center” is pictured here).

TIPP CITY – Tipp City will be home to a cooperative project designed to feed the hungry, provide resources to the needy, and create vital community connections between all walks of life. ONE Market (which stands for Our Neighbors Empowered) will open on June 21 at the CrossRoads Community Center at the corner of Broadway and Third Streets. The Market will be held every Saturday from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. The project is coordinated by CrossRoads ConneXions, a non-profit that operates out of the community center. Three primary programs will be housed under the ONE Market umbrella: One Bistro, Flea Market and FREE Market. Although the goal is to provide a hand up for those in need, the market theme and products will be of interest to all, organizers say.

“We invite everyone – regardless of your income level – to take part in this celebration of all that we have as Americans,” said Jim Valekis, Pastor of CrossRoads Christian Fellowship. “This is a chance to help those in need, to connect with others, or to enjoy our flea market goodies, educational opportunities, the amazing One Bistro meals and so much more.”

One Bistro – The One Bistro food truck is an extension of One Bistro Restaurant and “businestry” in Miamisburg, where renowned chef Rob Adamson uses his culinary skills and industry contacts to make a difference in the lives of others. “One Bistro exists to share love, give hope and provide a sense of community,” said Valekis, who quoted Adamson’s vision that the pay-what-you-can restaurant is “dedicated to serving our neighbors, the privileged and underprivileged, by giving a hand up not a hand out.”

“That’s the same spirit we will have at One Market – people coming together to share resources, knowledge, and their love for their fellow man. It will be fun, light-hearted, and just a great opportunity to touch lives and enjoy great food,” Valekis said.

The One Bistro truck provides Chef Rob’s acclaimed gourmet meals at pay-what-you-can prices. “Those with resources can enjoy a great meal and ‘pay it forward,’ if they like,” Valekis said. “Those without resources can eat, and, if they choose, offer some volunteer hours in return.”

The food truck – and the ONE Market concept – is open to residents from any community in the region. For those interested in offering volunteer hours in exchange for meals or products, ONE Market officials will attempt to connect them with volunteer opportunities in their own communities.

FREE Market – FREE stands for Food, Resources, Education and Empowerment. A variety of projects will fall under the FREE Market umbrella, according to Valekis. This includes a freecycling station with gently used household goods that can be traded or acquired at no charge, free classes on healthy cooking, exercise, or other topics and periodic features like a job fair, resume help, veteran’s services and wellness checks. The station will also offer a weekly grocery giveaway. Local grocers such as Dorothy Lane Market, Kroger and others donate their almost-expired but still perfectly edible food items to an area supplier, who makes them available to ONE Market. Additionally, organizers encourage non-profits from across the region to set up here on Saturday and offer help and resources, in addition to seeking volunteer support.

Flea Market – Will be a traditional flea market style set-up. Booths will offer gently used household goods at reasonable prices, as well as hand-crafted items, produce, arts & crafts and more. There will be no charge to set-up but vendors are asked to fill out an application and make a donation to CrossRoads ConneXions.

“We figure folks can come see us once they are finished shopping at the Tipp City Marketplace downtown. By stopping here for a lunch break they can try the gourmet meals served by One Bistro,” Valekis explained, adding that the food truck will be located at the downtown Marketplace in the morning and will move to the ONE Market site in time for its 11:30 opening. “The whole point of this project is to make connections…between individuals, organizations and agencies.”

This update is from Charles Albrecht who serves on the GCI-USA Church Administration and Development team.

In May, about 30 GCI denominational leaders from around the world gathered in Somerset, New Jersey, to meet with GCI president Joseph Tkach at the annual Mission Developers (MD) conference. The group met together on May 13–15, then on May 16-18 attended the U.S. regional conference being held at the same location.

During conference sessions, the MDs received updates on shared international initiatives and discussed how best to equip and coordinate GCI international mission efforts. The group also participated in exercises on transformational leadership and strategy facilitated by Dr. Jim Galvin, an organizational consultant who specializes in strategy, effectiveness and change.

In addition to covering current church and denominational business, the international team spent time focusing on future ministry and leadership needs. With this theme in mind, several international regions decided to send younger, emerging leaders to participate in the meetings with the MDs.

Each international region has its own gifts and challenges. Travel can be difficult and resources often are limited. In spite of these obstacles, it was encouraging to learn about many of the entrepreneurial ways the MDs visit remote and sometimes dangerous areas. Hearing their stories exposed conference participants to the big picture of what God is doing through GCI, and gave them new ideas for ministry. One example was South African MD Tim Maguire’s use of Google Translate to assist in gospel work, providing humanitarian assistance in Mozambique. The South African team won an award from Google for their work (to learn more go to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h8EZqDHKR6g).

The group also set aside time for ministry and family updates, leading into a time of mutual support and prayer. Located in many countries spread across five continents, the group highly values these times of sharing.

The morning before the start of the U.S. regional conference, some of the MDs took a tour of New York City. It was the first time most had visited the city and, although a little overwhelmed, they were able to such landmarks as Ground Zero, the Statue of Liberty, Central Park and Times Square. A highlight of the visit was to partake of some New York style pizza.

The MD team greatly appreciated being able to attend the U.S. regional conference. They enjoyed hearing what was happening in the U.S. and participating in the various equipping sessions. During the regional conference, a few MDs gave updates about their region.

The annual MD meeting provides an important connecting opportunity for the international areas of GCI. Recognizing the need to purposefully build and maintain contact, the group committed to focus on developing new types of connecting links going forward.