Author: GCI Media

This update is from Kalengule Kaoma, mission director for Central Africa.

Zambia

The Zambia-based pastors’ wives hosted a Pastors’ Wives Retreat for the region that includes Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe. For the first time, the women received a visitor from Nairobi, Kenya. Anne Kimani, wife of East Africa Area Pastor Kimani Ndungu, attended. With her counterparts, Anne shared insights on prayer and being a participant in the ministry of Christ.

Angola

While in Angola I conducted a two-day leadership seminar. The church has made a remarkable turn towards Christ-centeredness, growing in their understanding of the new covenant. With a lot of enthusiasm and positive outlook, we discussed the future of GCI in Angola. “We are just waiting for registration. When we are registered, we will go to many regions of Angola and share the gospel with other people,” assured Oliveira Kitambala, National Director for Angola. Fragoso Lunji and Andre Kaliale from Luanda Kilometro and Estalagon church areas respectively echoed positive sentiments. Fragoso emphasized: “We have many opportunities to share God’s word with other people. What we have in Grace Communion is too good to keep to ourselves.” In Luanda, two of Oliveira’s pastors invited me to speak in their well-attended congregations. Oliveira is networking with clergy in his community.

Zimbabwe

Pictured below are the leaders from Malawi, Namibia, Zambia and Zimbabwe who met recently in Harare for their annual leadership conference. Gordon Green, Regional Pastor for Natal, South Africa attended as a resource person. Among other topics, Gordon encouraged leaders to Cultivate People Skills in Leadership.

Kenya

Kimani Ndungu, Area Pastor for East Africa; Anthony Gachanja, National Director for Kenya; and I traveled to Kisii to meet pastor Javan and his team, who have expressed interest to be part of Grace Communion International. We are watching this developing story.

Uganda

There is a surge of interest in GCI here, particularly from three groups of children age five to sixteen. Most live with grandparents who are not able to feed or clothe them well. These children carry sad memories of losing their parents to HIV/AIDs. Often I ask Jesus to show me what he is doing in the lives of these seemingly hopeless children. We are telling them that Jesus loves them. What a joy to see them smile!

Ghana

Charles and Comfort Akuwoah, pastor of Kumasi congregation, hosted me in their home. In a Bible Study with 22 attendees, I pointed out that each of us matter to God. We are very close to his heart because God has included us in his circle of love.

Togo

Immigration officers at the border welcomed Pastor Alfred Ablordeppey and me. Seeing Pastor Daniel Yovo again brought joy to my heart. I recalled my few French words of salutations and greeted him. Over the weekend we attended leaders’ workshops and church services. We shared communion and tasty meals. God is building close-knit communities among us.

Benin

Before our Saturday morning leaders’ training session, we went to the river for a baptism ceremony. Herbert and Jane decided to go through baptism.

Besides leadership training, we spent time with the youth and general membership in Bible Studies. Eagerness shown by members to learn God’s word made me want to spend more time with God’s children in Benin.

This update is from Carrie Smith, a GCI pastoral intern in the San Diego, CA, area.

On Friday, April 13, GCI pastoral interns, pastors and guests gathered in the hills of Flat Rock, NC (near Hendersonville) at the Bonclarken Retreat Center. This summit was the first of its kind, gathering interns and pastors from across the U.S. for a time of sharing and processing concerning GCI’s Pastoral Internship Program. Seven GCI-U.S. pastoral interns were in attendance: Skyeler Lewkowicz, Jason Frantz (who was ordained as an elder on April 8), Hilary Irusta, Aaron Armstrong, Joe Lamb, Stephen Dobritch and Carrie Smith. Also present were several supervising pastors and/or mentors.

God used our time together to help us remember where we started, embrace where we are, and look ahead to where he is leading. As interns embarking on new adventures, we wanted to know what to expect in pastoral ministry. We wanted to ask others who have gone before us what they did, learning from their successes and mistakes. The weekend was packed with stories of hope, encouragement and affirmation as we worked together to figure out where the intern program is headed.

During one session, interns and supervising pastors broke into two groups to discuss the internship program to date. When we came together to debrief, we found that both groups had been led by the Spirit to recognize the same challenges, areas needing improvement and areas of success. We all felt God’s presence as we laughed, talked, prayed, worshipped and even hiked together during the weekend.

A highlight of the weekend was affirming one another by pointing out how we see God revealed in each one. It was a weekend of living out the reality that is described in our Trinitarian theology – relationships with one another in the communion of our triune God.

One of the main themes emerging from the weekend was each person’s need for a Paul, Barnabas and Timothy. We all need someone to walk alongside us and keep us accountable by challenging us (a Paul), someone we can be honest and open with, who will listen without judging us (a Barnabas) and someone who we are walking alongside and encouraging along their journey (a Timothy). Everyone’s journey is different, but we still need to have the help and support of others beside us along the way.

Speaking as an intern, I am humbled to share this part of my story with so many Pauls and Barnabases, and I look forward to reaching out to my Timothys as so many have done for me.

Note: for additional information about the GCI U.S. Pastoral Internship Program, go to http://mindev.gci.org/internships.htm.

 

This update is from Lorenzo Arroyo, who works in U.S. Church Administration and Development and assists with mission development in GCI Mexico.

On April 6-8, 73 of our Mexican pastors, leaders and youth attended the National Pastors and Leaders Equipping Conference in Guadalajara, Mexico. Instructors were Dan Rogers, Greg Williams and Lorenzo Arroyo of GCI U.S. Church Administration and Development.

Conference topics for pastoral leaders included missional church, discipleship pathway and leadership development. The teens and young adults took part in Journey with the Master – a Generations Ministries leadership training program conducted by Greg Williams and Samuel Mercado (see picture below). The youth devoured this material, with many writing out their responses during discussion periods (something Greg had never seen before!). The youth also made plans for a New Year’s weekend camp by the beach.

On Domingo de Pascua (Easter Sunday), 108 attended worship services. Dan Rogers preached on the Resurrection of Christ, covering 1 Corinthians 15:1-11. The conference then concluded with communion and a parting meal.

The conference was clearly a turning point for GCI’s Mexican pastors, leaders and youth. It helped them understand and embrace the concept of being missionaries in their own backyard, that is, engaging others by cultivating intentional relationships, sharing the gospel, and discipling new believers to maturity and reproduction. Most came to a clearer understanding of what it means to be a missional church, and are determined to take on a new paradigm in participating on mission with Jesus.

During the conference, three Mexican leaders were commissioned as senior pastors, two as associate pastors, and one as a commissioned pastor, respectively as follows: Ruben Ramirez, Arnold Trigg, Rigoberto Pantoja, Luis Soto, Humberto Perez and Mario Saenz. Most of these leaders had been serving in these roles for years.

Also, new Articles of Religious Association were ratified by the assembly of pastors, per the requirement of the Mexican government. Newly elected Association officers are as follows: Alfredo Mercado, main pastor; Ruben Ramirez, secretary; and Luis Soto, treasurer. We are grateful to Alfredo Mercado and the Guadalajara congregation for their generosity in hosting this event, offering us genuine hospitality (and lots of traditional Mexican food!). Also, we are grateful to the Seattle-Bellevue, WA and San Fernando, CA, churches for giving generous donations to make conferences like this possible.

This update is from Janalee Swisher.

New Covenant Fellowship, the GCI congregation in Tyler, TX, hosted their annual Women For Christ Retreat. Women from Big Sandy, Hawkins, and Dallas, TX attended.

The retreat theme was Rejoice and Blossom as a Rose. Presentations included Seven Steps Toward Growing a Rose by Debbie Wood, A Rose Candle for Her Majesty by Colleen Bailey, The Rose of Sharon by Sheila Graham, and The Prickly Rose of Thanks-Living by Vera Gibbs.

The day also included lunch, worship through singing, prayer and testimonials.