Cleveland, Ohio, USA
Please join us in praying for our new men’s book study Connect Group. We are so excited because ten men are taking part, and we already see prayer warriors and leaders emerging.
Seattle, Washington, USA
We ask that you lift up our new Tuesday night Connect Groups. We will be watching a “You’re Included” video each week with a discussion time to follow. May this be a time of discovery of who Jesus is and who we are in him.
Springfield, Missouri, USA
Our small group prayer meetings on Wednesday nights have been very successful and rewarding. We have grown in relationship with God and one another, and we are also praying for those in our community whom we come into contact with, even if we have never met them personally. Please join us in praying that the love of Christ will be evident in us and the light of Christ will draw our neighbors to desire to be a part of the body.
Kenockee, Michigan, USA
Our new neighborhood Connect Group is now connecting new people back to the church! We have two couples as well as four additional women attending church weekly. One couple has invited another couple from work and they now attend regularly too, with two of their other connections as well. We are hoping that this continues to grow!
At the Home Office, we have been following the ongoing pandemic and prayerfully discerning how to move forward with the Denominational Celebration. Out of caution and care, we have made the difficult decision to transition the event from in-person to virtual. Although we will miss reuniting in person, we are excited for the opportunity to connect virtually with even more members of our global fellowship.
The virtual event will be July 23 – 25, 2021. We will be processing refunds for the in-person event, and opening registration for the virtual event in the weeks ahead. Further updates and announcements, on this event and ones to come, will be available at gci.org/events.
Thank you for your prayers and your faithful support during this long season of challenge and may we all continue to rest in the assurance we have in Jesus.
The We Are GCI Series is a collection of videos where various GCI family members are highlighted. In this episode, President, Dr. Greg Williams interviews Media Director, Michelle Fleming. Michelle shares her experience and connection with GCI. Together Greg and Michelle discuss the purpose for GCI Media content and preview the theme Faith Forward and resources that will be rolled out in 2021.
REGISTRATION IS NOW OPEN!
17th Annual LiLY Women’s Conference 2021
Being held Virtually on Zoom
Saturday, April 24, 2021
9:30 a.m – 3:00 p.m. (EST)
“I Am Doing A New Thing”
“Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.” Isaiah 43:18-19 (NIV)
Virtual Zoom Conference or Dial-In
To join our conference you can use any of the following:
Desktop, Laptop, Tablet or Phone
Featured Speakers:
Dr. Kim Carter – www.drkimcarter.com
Joy Trachsel – www.joytrachsel.com
Registration Fee:
$20 – Early Bird Pricing by Wednesday, March 31, 2021
$25 – April 1 through April 24, 2021
To register online, click this link: gccle.church/lily
(copy & paste the link to your browser if needed)
If not registering on-line:
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 and email)
Any questions please email us at lilywomensministry@gmail.com
We hope you will join us!
Rosa Hulse
Women’s Ministry Leader
Hosted by Grace Communion Cleveland
Pastor Tamar Gray
On February 7, 2021, Regional Director of the Eastern Region, Jeffrey Broadnax, came to New Hope Community Church in Stoystown, PA to officially pass the baton of leadership from Pastor Bruce Metz to Pastor J. Bradley Reed and his wife, Associate Pastor Marlene Reed. Bruce will continue to serve as an elder within the congregation.
Brad has been on a journey with GCI since 1988, when it was the Worldwide Church of God. Marlene grew up in the Worldwide Church of God. Brad, a 1989 graduate of Ambassador College, and Marlene, a 1990 graduate of Ambassador College, were married in 1989. Brad continued his education after Ambassador with a Bachelor of Science in Health Education from California State University, Northridge, and a Doctorate in Physical Therapy from the University of Southern California.
Brad works full-time as a physical therapist. He and Marlene have three children. Their oldest, Danika, is pursuing a degree in nursing. Their middle child, Ariel, is pursuing a degree in Communication. And, their youngest, Jay, is a high school senior pursuing a Rotary Club International Student Exchange this fall.
Brad and Marlene come to the congregation with a missional spirit and a desire that all people come into a personal relationship with Jesus and understand that life’s journey is all grace. Both Brad and Marlene have volunteered at GCI SEP So Cal. They have worked with their local Girl Scouts, youth basketball program, high school band, and church youth group. Marlene has worked with the local community theater, and Brad has been a part of a local singing quintet. They had an outpatient physical therapy clinic that closed its clinic doors six years ago, but kept its home health department running until one year ago. They currently host a bi-weekly Bible study group at their home.
Bruce and Sharon Metz received a personalized thank you letter from GCI President Dr. Greg Williams. They were also honored with a congregational gift of a wood planter box holding flower vases labeled “faith,” “hope” and “love.” The box was made for them from reclaimed lumber from Bruce’s family barn. They also received a Thomas Kinkade tapestry with Sharon’s favorite Psalm on it.
There is deep-felt appreciation for the love and work that Bruce and Sharon bestowed upon GCI Stoystown congregants over the last 20 years. Although stepping out of the pastoral role, Bruce and Sharon will still help within the congregation and community—a journey that began in 1969 and goes on forever.
By the Reeds and the Metzs
In reflecting on this past year, we have had many challenges as well as many blessings. There have been wonderful opportunities for our congregation to interact with others in our community in ways that we had not imagined possible. As we keep in mind and engage in the mission that Jesus has called us into, I would like to share some of the wonderful experiences God has opened for us even in the midst of this pandemic.
We participated with KC Impact Group, which we joined with another local church in ministering, to families, providing prayer and other resources for members of the community who have had various misfortunes from job loss, family separation, and health difficulties. Unfortunately, activity was halted due to the pandemic, but because of the connections we had already made, it was exciting that we could continue in prayer for these individuals.
Some of our members embarked on a program known as “Center Friends,” where adults are paired with a student so they can get to know each other and mentor those children. We were fingerprinted and prepared for this program when the pandemic broke out, so we have not been able to begin the process.
Many of the opportunities we have came through our connection and relationships made with Center Elementary School, and in particular, through Roslyn Christopher, the school’s Social Worker, who has become a wonderful friend to our church family and shares with us the needs that arise.
We were blessed to receive the opportunity to help two families that had moved into the area and were in difficult situations. We provided resources such as food items to help them get over the hump during their relocation.
Another special opportunity we had was to assist a family with nine children. This family was having difficulty providing enough clothing for all the children prior to the school year. Our church family came together to pour out tremendous love through prayer and donations to provide enough clothing for their four boys. Several of our members had the pleasure of shopping for this family. That was an exciting adventure.
Another amazing opportunity came to light when a teacher at Center Elementary had the misfortune of her family losing most of their possessions due to a fire at their residence. Once again, our church family answered the call of the Holy Spirit into this tragic event and they came through with such outstanding love and concern so that we were able to provide a substantial amount of funds to help them begin to recoup some of their losses.
The school was attempting to provide an incentive program for the students and their families to keep them interested in their virtual education and so began giving out small gift cards ($5 to $10) as rewards for certain achievements and behaviors. We were privileged and blessed with the resources to get involved in this program and provided several of these incentives.
Last year we were able to provide Christmas food boxes for some of the poor families in the community, but because of the pandemic, the school decided they would not have that particular ministry option, so we began brainstorming and came up with a service that would benefit the teachers and staff members who were working hard to continue to provide educational opportunities to the children in the midst of this difficult situation.
We provided gift cards for each of the teachers and staff members so they would be encouraged and have something special for themselves and their families. The teachers and staff collectively created a video thanking our church family for the outpouring of love and well wishes for the new year. It was special to share with the church family a small representation of the fruits of their labor and faithfulness to God’s calling.
As part of our Christmas outreach, we collected Christmas cards from our congregation, and several of our members gathered and wrote special sentiments in these cards and sent them to every member of our community. We also sent them to the Fire and Police Departments, as well as the schools.
Then we put together a fun group, and purchased matching shirts to go caroling in our neighborhood around our meeting place. God provided us with amazing weather that day, which encouraged a wonderful level of participation. We had several incredibly special interactions from individuals as we caroled. Many people came out on their porches and sang with us, and we were thanked for spreading joy. Because we had such a great response and had so much fun, we went out the following week into a different area of the neighborhood and did it again. What joyous and fun events these were.
Since we are changing our name and reinvigorating our mission, we are planning to send out a letter to those in the community with the information and sentiments for the New Year. We are thinking about making magnets with our new name and our new logo. This is in the brainstorming phase. We are also thinking about an event or outreach of some kind for Valentine’s Day.
We have been offered an opportunity to assist in teaching the young children who are less fortunate and have not had access to computers, how to use a computer and help them prepare for their schooling. These would probably be those preparing to enter Kindergarten. Please pray that our amazing Lord will open doors for this to happen.
We are looking forward to a continually active year of service, sharing the love of Jesus with those all around our community.
By Barbara Leatherman
Love Avenue Champion
Grace Communion South Kansas City
Beginning March 1, we will enjoy being with and getting to know Jesus through our Gospel Reading Challenge. Over the course of four weeks, read at your own pace and volume while growing closer to Jesus through the Gospels during this Easter Prep season. Click the image below for more information on the official GCI Gospel Reading Challenge Facebook group, where we will have a group discussion and share insights from our reading and meditation.
Keeping our churches together and spiritually nourished during the ongoing pandemic is a challenge for all of us, as pastors and team members in GCI.
Because we have a large and exclusive-use church facility 24/7 for our Woodbine, Georgia, congregation, we are able to keep it sanitized, and to space out our seating sufficiently, wear face coverings, take temperatures, and run an air purifier. This has enabled us to have in-person services for the past seven months, for those who wish to come. Thanks be to God, not one of our members has gotten the virus.
Even with the advantages we have in this church area, it is hard to minister to everyone as well as we would like, and as a result we know that, for some, there may be a decline in spiritual interest and motivation. We have a big job ahead of us when this is all over, to retrieve those sheep who may have wandered, and to build back up the Body of Christ, as we work alongside Jesus.
Good things still happen, though, as we have seen in Grace Communion Woodbine in January 2021. We were blessed to have two baptisms and one ordination of a church elder!
We give thanks and praise to God for the baptisms of new members, Jesse & Tabitha Hester. Tabitha grew up in a GCI church family, and early last year decided to begin attending regularly with her husband, and their four children.
Our GCI church has been a blessing to them in their spiritual growth, and they have been a blessing to us as well. Tabitha has a professional quality singing voice, and she has become one of our regular worship leaders for the congregation. And it is especially nice to have their elementary-aged children involved in our youth Sunday School class.
Since our Woodbine church’s renewal and re-launch back in December 2019, our congregation has grown from a fellowship group with an average attendance of about a dozen people for most of 2019, to an actual GCI church with an average attendance of 30, up until the pandemic.
Understandably, our attendance is down about 50% due to the absence of those members who cannot risk returning to in-person worship services for age and health considerations.
Nonetheless, we anticipate continued growth in the near future, and feel that we have been led by the Holy Spirit to appoint an additional church elder to meet the current and expected needs of the congregation.
Thus, we were able to receive approval from the GCI Home Office and our RD to ordain long-time member, Calvin Mitchell as a minister of Jesus, and assistant pastor in the congregation.
Things are getting better. And things will get better for all of us soon, I’m sure. May we as pastors, pastoral team leaders and other servants in the congregation, keep looking up and take courage in these words from one of our recent RCL scripture readings:
“Rest in God alone, my soul, for my hope comes from Him. He alone is my rock and my salvation, my stronghold; I will not be shaken.” (Psalm 62:5-6, HCSB)
Marty Davey, Pastor
Grace Communion Woodbine
