Category: Stay Connected

Grace Fellowship, the GCI congregation in Mineral Wells, WV held a special service on March 18 in celebration of its 40th anniversary.

The congregation began meeting in Parkersburg, WV on March 4, 1972 with members who had been attending the Charleston and Wheeling, WV congregations. Six of the original members were present for the 40th anniversary.

Following a short message from Pastor Warren D. Wilson, messages of greeting and congratulations were read from Joseph Tkach and six former pastors by Associate Pastor Roger Calendine. Hearing how these gentlemen remember the congregation and how they and their families are doing was a source of great encouragement. After these messages were read a microphone was passed around to allow members to share their memories concerning their time in the congregation.

Following the service, a buffet meal was enjoyed, accompanied by more memories and visiting among all who attended. Many expressed how much they enjoyed the day, thankful for God’s blessing and for the love and fellowship they have enjoyed together as a church family.

The following update is from GCI pastor and U.S. district leader Heber Ticas concerning the new church he and his congregation recently started in Los Angeles, CA (for a previous Update report on this church plant see https://update.gci.org/2011/11/new-church-launched-in-l-a/).

We give God thanks that our new satellite church plant is prospering. Attendance is steady with an average of about 80 (including the church plant team). Because we’ve reached critical mass, it is no longer necessary to have families attending from the mother church.

Recently, we held a community outreach event where we blessed families and encouraged family unity. In February we celebrated our first Lord’s Supper. Ministry is falling into place from all angles!

Now we are gearing up for additional community outreach events. We hope to see attendance increase to over 100 people. Planned events include special outreach services on Easter and Mothers’ Day and a community fair in June.

The ministry team in this new plant is doing a wonderful job! My primary responsibilities are to cast vision, mentor and preach. Recently, we commissioned Enoch Palacios to serve as campus pastor and my associate pastor. I am thankful to the Lord for Enoch – he is a gifted speaker and passionate for the community. Enoch and the rest of the team are now covering the day-to-day responsibilities of this church: cell group meetings, personal visitation, gathering for prayer and continuous evangelism. Their active involvement has allowed me to redirect my time back to pastoring the mother church.

We are progressing well in helping people travel our discipleship pathway (connect to Christ, connect to one another, connect to Christ’s mission). New people are taking our discipleship course taught by Enoch. About 15 people have expressed interest in being baptized in June.

Please join us in prayer about these developments, as we continue to ask the Lord to give us the ability to discern where the Holy Spirit is working so that we might join him there.

Blessings,

Heber

 

The following report is from Tim Maguire, GCI mission developer in Southern Africa.

My sincere thanks to GCI Canada for funding my recent visit to Namibia. GCI South Africa has been walking alongside a group of churches in Namibia since late 2010. This was my third trip to visit with their pastor Lascan Sikhosi.

A brief history

In 2006, a German missionary planted a small church in Katimo Mulilo in the Caprivi Strip in northeastern Namibia (see map at right). The missionary returned to Germany in 2008, leaving the new church without a support structure and suggesting that they find a mother church to associate with.

Unsure what to do, Lascan searched the internet and found the GCI South Africa website and started corresponding with me by email. I forwarded him a lot of our literature, which he read. He then asked for a visit. My first visit came in late February 2011.

On that first visit I found a group struggling with legalism and unable to understand the freedom we have in Christ. The Seventh-day Adventists are active in the area and had been trying to get the little group to follow them. Their leaders asked me if they should change their day of worship to Saturday. In reply, I explained the distinctions between the old and new covenants and the reality that Jesus is our Sabbath rest.

I returned to Johannesburg and sent them additional reading material as well as CDs dealing with Trinitarian theology. Also, I had hymn books made for them, with their songs in their language, which I delivered to them on my second visit in September 2011. Lascan then traveled to Zimbabwe towards the end of the year to spend some time being mentored by Zimbabwean National GCI Director, Joseph Mpophu. Lascan then attended a Southern African regional conference in Harare, Zimbabwe in February 2012, a week before my latest visit.

The trip

David Linker, a GCI member in Canada, had shown interest in a mission trip to Africa, and so it was arranged for him to accompany me on this trip. He flew in from Canada, and we left Johannesburg at 3:00 a.m. on Friday, February 24 in order to make our first destination (Kasane in Northern Botswana) by nightfall. We tented in a small camping ground at the confluence of the Zambezi and Chobe Rivers. This is a beautiful, remote part of Southern Africa, with wild elephants known to be found wandering through the streets.

After a 16-hour car journey, we slept well that night and awoke to a beautiful African morning. We then travelled through the Chobe Game Reserve, before entering Namibia on our final leg to Katima. The contrast in living standards as we entered Namibia was obvious. Small, basic rural homes with mud walls and grass roofs were scattered randomly along the main road into town.

We arrived after lunch and Lascan’s excitement was evident. We discussed the following day’s program and went to examine the church building where we were planning to make improvements, which would turn the little mud structure into a more weather-durable church building.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sunday was a day of rejoicing. Fifty attended the morning church service. David’s musical talent was a hit – he was asked to keep on singing and playing his guitar. I spoke on Christ’s centrality to all things. As an aside, I mentioned that Christ fulfills the Sabbath-day, quoting Hebrews chapter four. Unknown to me, Lascan had invited four senior Seventh-day Adventist leaders to attend the service. One of them came to him after the service and said they had never seen the scriptures quoted in this context, and asked if they might continue attending with the group. Clearly, the Holy Spirit was giving the message that they needed to hear!

My sermon was followed by a joyful ceremony in which Lascan’s four congregations were welcomed into GCI fellowship: Cow Boy (the congregation with the building) with 58 attending, Makalabani with 64, Singalamwe with 18, and Musambo with 24.

Near the end of the worship service the group shared the Lord’s Supper – the first Communion service they had ever taken part in! Following the service we all enjoyed a meal together of boiled chicken and ground corn porridge.

We then traveled to share worship services with two outlying small churches pastored by Lascan – one in Katima Mulio town (about 18 attended), and one about 25 kilometers west of town (about 12 attended). Both congregations meet outdoors.

On Monday we went to work on the church building – arranging building materials and trying to arrange for contractors to make badly needed repairs to the building.

A couple days later we traveled about 150 kilometers west along the Caprivi Strip to a small San (Bakwena) community where we held church under the trees. The San (previously known as Bushmen), claim to be the original inhabitants of Southern Africa. The greatest problem we face in this community is that the Bible has never been translated into their language. Fortunately, one of the members speaks Afrikaans, a South African derivation of Dutch, and has an Afrikaans Bible, which he translates for them.

On Wednesday we held an evening service back at the church building. At the congregation’s request, we again shared Communion, so touched were they by the experience the previous Sunday. We then said our goodbyes and early Thursday morning headed home.

It is comforting to know that on trips like this, the Holy Spirit leads us to participate in what God is already doing in the region. The greatest comfort of all, however, is knowing that when we depart we do not leave them alone, but in continual communion with the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, who guides them into all truth. These GCI churches in Namibia will now be served by GCI South Africa. Lascan will participate in our Pastoral training programs, and our national office will send them our GCI South Africa magazine, Face to Face (www.face2face.org.za) as well as audio CDs and articles.

Lascan has big plans to spread the gospel in Namibia. He is extremely excited by the truth he sees in Trinitarian theology. I’m sure you will hear again from Lascan and GCI Namibia!

The following report is from Rod Matthews, GCI mission developer in SE Asia, New Zealand and the Pacific Islands.

Thailand

In Thailand we have a congregation made up of Karen refugees from Myanmar. It is probably one of the most isolated of our congregations – not because of physical distance from others but because of their unfortunate circumstances.

This congregation has about 50 in attendance, more than half being children. They are in one of five camps along the Thai-Myanmar border which together hold more than 100,000 Karen refugees. Most have fled the fighting with the Burmese army over the last few decades. Most have nothing to return to, even if it was safe. Many of the villages back across the border in Myanmar have been burnt down and/or repopulated. So most of these people are essentially stateless and cannot move freely within Thailand. The children know of no other way of life but living in makeshift homes of wood, bamboo and thatch, in a vast town where (in this case) 40,000 people exist in cramped conditions with dirt lanes -either dusty or muddy – lining the hills for kilometers along the road that follows the border in the picturesque country north of the town of Maesot.

Yet we are privileged to serve the congregation that God has given us there to look after. On February 12, South East Asian pastoral coordinator from Malaysia, Wong Mein Kong and I were able to visit the congregation in the camp for services. It has been two years since we had gained approval to enter the camp.

Upon arrival we were amazed to see the large (and permanent) baptism pool the church members had built in preparation for four pending baptisms. The church service was planned around the baptisms – three people from member families, and one new member. Wong Mein Kong spoke on the significance and meaning of baptism (with local pastor, Lah Shi, translating into the Karen language).

After the baptisms, the celebration of this wonderful event included a communion service, and before we all took the bread and wine, I explained its significance and the joy of partaking together the elements that recognize Christ’s life-giving work to reconcile us to our Triune God and his Body of which we are now a treasured part.

Several more member families have been granted UN approval for resettlement overseas in the months ahead after the paperwork and medical exams have been completed. But although the numbers regularly attending our congregation have declined in the past few years for this reason, others have started attending. This day there were over 40 children in attendance.

As I meet with congregations like this one, I am moved to note that none of us chose our nationality or place of birth, and in their case, their very difficult circumstances. We pray more earnestly “Thy kingdom come” as well as hoping that the day will soon be here when these refugee camps will no longer be needed. Only God knows how many millions around the world live in such distressing circumstances as a result of man’s inhumanity to man.

Vanuatu

On November 6 last year, Obed Slee, the eldest of our members in the Pacific Island nation of Vanuatu, died, possibly of a heart attack. His age was not known but he was probably in his mid 80’s since he had mentioned that he was a teenager when the Americans were in the country (then called the New Hebrides) during World War II. More intriguing, however, is that Obed (pictured with his grandchildren) had confessed that his grandfather had been a cannibal. Rex Morgan, pastoral supervisor for Vanuatu, recalls Obed once telling him this, so perhaps he was one of last surviving adults who have heard accounts firsthand from a relative who practiced cannibalism. (The last recorded incident of cannibalism occurred in 1969 on the island of Malekula where our church is located).

The following report is from Joseph Franklin, GCI pastor in Haiti.

Recently, I was approached by Pastor Jeremy Nicolas, representing a church of about 55 adults and children meeting in the Haitian village of L’Asile, about 100 kilometers south of Port-au-Prince. The congregation’s name is Eglise Universelle de Dieu of Pradine. Pastor Nicolas, who has read GCI literature since the 1980s, desires that his congregation become part of GCI.

I first spoke with Pastor Nicolas by telephone. He had many questions. Then, along with his leadership team, he visited with us for two days. During our time together we studied God’s nature. They had questions about baptism, the Holy Spirit and Jesus’ dual nature (as the Son of God incarnate).

We found Pastor Nicolas and his members to be a fine group of believers with an honest desire to seek God.

The following report is from GCI member Vladimir Grishin.

Every year Grace Christian Community church in Frankston, Australia has put together Christmas hampers for the homeless in our area. We didn’t have much trouble filling 100 hamper bags in the past, but this year, due to declining attendance, we faced a struggle. So we prayed that God would help us fill the bags (though were prepared to settle for 60 bags – far fewer than in years past).

The day came and we set out for church with our car laden with goodies. Once we arrived, we placed the food on tables along with everybody else (32 people, five of whom were children under eight, two young teens and 12 adults on pensions, leaving very few wage earners). We then decided how many items of each food went into the bags. Then we picked up a bag and went along the side of the tables putting in the required number of items.

The bags ended up fairly full and, to our surprise, we had filled 100 bags! Also to our surprise, there was much food still on the tables. So we brought the bags back and kept filling them until the food ran out. Now all the bags were filled to overflowing.

We wondered at the time how it was that we had miscalculated so badly. It was only later that it dawned on us that we may not have miscalculated at all. We had been doing this for many years and not once had we miscalculated to that degree in the past. Loaves and fishes in the 21st century? We think so.

GCI’s Generations Ministries (GenMin) recently held its annual summit at Mt. Lebanon Camp and Conference Center near Dallas, TX. The event was attended by about 100 GenMin leaders and workers. Activities included times of worship, presentations and break-out discussions. Plenary presenters included Joseph Tkach, Dan Rogers, Ted Johnston, Greg Williams, Mark and Anne Stapleton, Carrie Smith, Sarah Miles and Jeb Egbert.

A principal focus for the summit was to explore GenMin’s mission to help congregations build cross-generational communities that share actively in Jesus’ mission. A principal GenMin concern is helping churches identify, equip and deploy a new generation of ministry workers, pastors and church planters. Toward that end, GenMin programs are designed to be “incubators” of young leaders.

This year’s summit was an encouraging demonstration of progress, with several “leadership batons” passed to younger leaders. GenMin director Greg Williams passed his baton to Anthony Mullins, who will serve as the new GenMin director. Following that, several GenMin camp directors passed their batons: PD Kurts passed directorship of Higher Ground Camp to Natalie Wendt; Anthony Rice passed directorship of YES Camp to Brandon Antwine; Jeff Broadnax passed directorship of New Heights Camp to Dishon Mills; and Jay Richie passed directorship of Pathways Camp to Aaron Frim. It was also announced that Darlene Davis will direct the newest addition to GenMin’s camp ministry family – Camp Oasis in Tennessee. Congratulations to these new leaders, and thanks to those who have served so well!

It was also announced at the summit that GenMin has formed a Mission Event Resource Team, made up of leaders from GenMin short-term mission agencies and others with mission experience. The team met at the summit to brainstorm ways to help resource GCI congregations and ministries for conducting mission events of their own to reach out with God’s love both locally and globally.

To learn more about GenMin’s camps, mission events and other programs, go to http://genmin.gci.org/.

The following report is from Raymond Olson, pastor of The Harbor Missionary Church, GCI’s congregation in Juneau, WI.

My wife Denise and I recently participated in a three-week mission trip to India. We helped provide medical care to 1600 people in six camps. The congregation I pastor supplied money for medicine. Denise, who is a nurse, partnered with a local pharmacist named Kishore (who is also an evangelist and pastor), and three area doctors to provide medical care.

For three weeks we ministered to people’s physical needs while looking for opportunities to minister to their spiritual needs by talking about Jesus and the gospel. Those who showed interest were invited to one of the churches that Kishore oversees in the area. I had the opportunity to minister with Kishore in worship services. It was a very moving experience.

God is certainly moving with power in India. It was a great joy to be part of that movement – seeing people’s faith and the miracles that God provides to reassure them of his presence. It was a real eye opener.

The following update is from Hector Barrero who pastors GCI’s congregation in Bogota, Colombia.

An important part of our outreach in Bogota is conducting marriage enrichment classes that are open to the public.

We began a new round of classes on February 25, with an introductory meeting attended by 31 nonmember couples. We connected initially by publicizing the classes on our radio program.

The members of our congregation who will teach these classes have been trained to present a Trinitarian, grace based perspective on marriage enrichment.

Those who signed up for the classes, which last about four months, will attend in various locations around the city. The largest of these groups with eight couples will meet at our church hall.

Holding these classes in the past has brought new members into our congregation. To accommodate this growth, we have recently added a second Sunday worship service. One starts at 8:00 am and the other at 10:30 am. Having two services provides ample room to receive newcomers, opportunities for additional preachers, and possibilities for developing other leaders within the congregation.

This update is from John Halford, editor of GCI’s Christian Odyssey magazine.

On February 14 I joined GCI southeast Asian mission developer Rod Matthews and Malaysian pastor Wong Mein Kong in opening the Ambassador Kindergarten School in Chiang Mai, Thailand. This is the latest development in the remarkable Christian education enterprises of Chogait and Amphorn Garmolgomut.

I have told their story in Christian Odyssey. Chogait, a 1986 Graduate of Ambassador College and his wife Amphorn (Fong) opened several schools in this northern Thai city, and along the way developed a successful and growing ministry.

The school idea grew from a challenge from the late Dr. Herman L. Hoeh, who loved Thailand and all things Thai. Chogait and Fong had been raised as Buddhists. Now as Christians, they wanted to reach their people with the gospel. They asked Herman Hoeh what to do, and he suggested they start a school based on true values and right living. He gave them $100 to get started.

They started small with a school in their basement apartment, teaching in Thai and English. Many Thais want to learn English as it is a significant key to a successful career. As more students came, they were able to expand.

Later, Chogait and Fong leased an office building on the outskirts of the city. They renovated it, making it into a bright school for several hundred students Grades 1-6. I was privileged to help formally open the Ambassador Bilingual School (ABS) two years ago. At that time, they showed me an empty, semi-derelict warehouse that stood behind the main school. “That’s where the kindergarten will be,” explained Fong.

We formally opened the kindergarten on February 14. The old warehouse has been transformed and renamed the “Love Building.” Chogait asked me to say a few words to the large group of parents who had come to the opening ceremony. I told them that in the western world, February 14 is known as Valentine’s Day, when people give gifts to those they love. The school was also a gift of love, to the parents, the children and the future of the country.

The Thais are tolerant of all faiths, but the vast majority of the people remain staunchly Buddhist. Frankly, much missionary activity in Thailand gets nowhere as the Christian message is presented in a way that is out of context with Thai culture. However, traditional values are beginning to fray as Thailand continues to modernize. ABS teaches Christianity by example, and although making converts is not the focus, Chogait and Fong have baptized dozens of people in the last few years. Today a church of about 70 meets in their home.

ABS now offers an education from kindergarten through middle school. Rod Matthews jokingly asked Fong “So where are you going to build the high school?” Without hesitation, she pointed to an empty lot next door. “We’ll put it there,” she said, “if that is God’s will.”

Psalm 127 reminds us that “unless the Lord shall build the house the weary builders toil in vain.” It seems that the Lord is building this “house” as the work is certainly not in vain. It is a success story that is attracting the attention of educators and missionaries in this country.

You can help

Here is how you can help be a part of this success story. Chogait and Fong are not asking for financial help. However, the challenge of running a bilingual school in Thailand is the lack of quality, affordable books in the English language. The Herman L. Hoeh Library, named after their friend and mentor, is in urgent need of books.

Many of us have books that our children and grandchildren have outgrown. If you send us those books, we can get them to Thailand. They do not need to be specifically Christian books, although those are welcome too. But any book for grades K-6, ideally with colorful pictures on any subject of an educational nature would be very welcome. They do not need to be new, but should not be too battered, torn or in any way defaced.

Do you have some books that ABS could use? Then email me at john.halford@gci.org and let me know what you have. If you can ship them to me in Indiana, we know how to get them to Thailand.