Category: Stay Connected

This update is excerpted from a report prepared by Leslie Asare Akoto and Francis Ablordeppey.

GCI’s YEP youth camp in Ghana recently held a two week session with about 150 campers and 60 staff members. The camp theme, based on 1 Peter 2:9, was “You are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood.” The campers, who came from different parts of Ghana and Nigeria, included refugees from Liberia and the Ivory Coast who are staying in a refugee camp in Ghana.

Camp activities included Bible Study, Christian Living classes, fireside chats, hiking, swimming, softball, batik tie & dye, initiative training, cooking & nutrition, and volleyball. A “YEP awareness time” enabled campers and staff to go into communities around the camp to inform parents and their wards about the youth camp and its benefits and also to invite them to attend the camp’s opening day set aside for visitors. As a result, about 37 children visited the camp and a local TV news crew also visited, covering some of the camp’s activities that occurred on Christmas Day. What they filmed was aired on national TV later that afternoon.

The campers enjoyed a Christmas Eve praise and worship session that included praising God in song and dance. A similar session was also held on New Years Eve. The campers were spiritually filled, pleased and blessed to usher in the New Year in this way (which included fireworks to thank God for keeping them through another year). The campers also enjoyed a party at the Tills Beach Resort.

On the last day of camp, 17 youth accepted Jesus as their Lord and Savior through baptism. The baptisms were performed by pastors Emmanuel Okai and Francis Ablordeppey.

On the last evening of camp there was a beautiful banquet where campers and staff were awarded certificates for participation and for excelling in particular activities.

This update excerpts a report prepared by Johannes Maree (camp director) and Tim Maguire (camp chaplain) concerning the youth camp held recently in South Africa.

Since about 1974, we have been conducting an annual youth camp here in South Africa named SEP (which stands for Summer Enrichment Program). Our camp in 2015 was held in December at a beautiful facility about 60 miles north of Pretoria with 57 staff members serving 35 teen, 37 pre-teen and 13 young adult campers. With about 50% of the campers being unchurched, evangelism was a primary emphasis for us. The camp is a joint effort of GCI South Africa congregations and Youthworx, a Christian non-profit that has several GCI members in its leadership. Together we run the camp, manage the facility, and are working to purchase the facility.

This year our camp had three Christ-centered programs that ran concurrently: a VBS for pre-teens, traditional camp for teens, and leadership development for young adults. Our aim in all three was to develop the campers emotionally, physically and spiritually, with a focus on helping them build their relationship with Jesus. As mentioned in a report following SEP 2014 by Pastor Tim Maguire, “SEP has really become a powerful tool in evangelizing youth.”

Every morning camp began with an hour-long chapel service that included praise and worship and a presentation by one of our key speakers on the sub-theme of the day. That sub-theme was linked to the overall camp theme of EPIC, which focused on our journey through life with and in Jesus. The EPIC curriculum was provided by GCI-USA Generations Ministries. Campers regularly commented that chapel was the highlight of their camp experience. Other camp activities included mountain biking, obstacle course, rock-climbing, soccer, softball, swimming, volleyball, dancing, life skills Christian living, crafts and a camp banquet.

This report is from GCI pastor Doug Johannsen.

GCI members and guests from Wisconsin, North Dakota and Minnesota gathered recently for Snowblast 2016. What typically is a camping experience with lots of outdoor activities ended up being held indoors due to extremely cold weather (20 degrees below zero, with a wind chill of 35 below). It was a family-style event with participants ranging in age from 6 to 80 (click on the pictures below to enlarge).

The event was held at Inspiration Point, a Christian camp/retreat located on Spitzer Lake in west-central Minnesota. The facility provided us with a worship center, dorm rooms, dining hall and recreation center. Indoor activities included volleyball, basketball, knitting/crocheting, pottery, wood pen turning, Zen Tangle, static electricity, DIY natural body care, perennial flower jugs and game room. These events were taught by members who offered special skills passed on to them from their parents or acquired from their professions and hobbies.

The theme for Snowblast 2016 was Ministry of Presence—Love God, Love Others, Make Disciples. Chapel messages included Listening by Doug Johannsen, Discerning by Carolyn Lane, and Loving without an agenda by Tom Kennebeck. Interactive adult breakout sessions were conducted by Troy Meisner and Becky Deuel. A live band accompanied worship.

SEP Mexico was held on December 28-January 1 a couple of hours from Guadalajara, Mexico. The youth camp provided a great time of worship, learning, relationship-building and spiritual nurture for 35 campers and 9 staffers from different parts of Mexico including Mexico City and Francisco Villa—a community in the state of Tamaulipas (near the U.S. border) where there is much danger due to drug cartel activity.

Speakers for most of the camp were Pastor Heber Ticas (pictured teaching at right) and his wife Xochilt Ticas. Through their messages, campers were immersed in the love of the triune God as they engaged in various topics including God’s universal love, forgiveness, our true identity, and God’s plan for relationships. The youth also had a great time participating in games and sports (mainly soccer and volleyball).

Morning sessions at camp were divided into two tracks. Some of the oldest campers participated in the leadership development track with Pastor Ticas while the rest took part in the discipleship track with Natanael Cruz, pastor of the GCI church in Mexico City. The discipleship track developed topics from the general camp sessions, presenting the loving, inclusive nature of our Savior.

The highlights of the week came on Wednesday and Thursday:

• During a time of prayer and worship on Wednesday morning, it was evident that the Holy Spirit was moving us to set aside scheduled presentations to give him room to work in a a special way in and through our youths. Many tears were shed as hearts were being healed by the love of the Lord that gripped those who were present.
• On Thursday morning Heber and Xochilt shared their story of 24 years of marriage as an introduction to the topic of One Flesh (God’s plan for marriage). This topic really connected with the youth, especially the young ladies.

Reflecting on the camp experience, Heber wrote this note:

At SEP Mexico we saw clearly that the Spirit is working in the lives of our young members in Mexico. We are thankful for the hard work that the Mexico camp committee did in making the camp a success. We also are thankful for the financial support from the Jon Whitney Foundation, the GCI Southern California Hispanic District and other partners in GCI-USA and GCI-Canada. Without their generosity it would have been difficult for many of the campers to attend.

GCI’s congregation in Bogotá, Colombia, recently conducted “Caritas Felices” (Happy Faces) as a Christmas-themed outreach to needy children living in a poor community on the outskirts of the city. Over 170 children were served. Members had picked the name of a child before the event and purchased a gift for them to receive. The children were also given a meal (over 190 sandwiches served). A Christmas play was presented to show the children the importance of the Incarnation of the Son of God.

Christ Community Church (one of GCI’s Cincinnati, Ohio, area congregations) partnered with an organization called Artsy Fartsy in hosting a Christmas party for neighborhood children on December 12. Thirty-six children from a neighboring apartment complex attended along with children from the congregation. Activities (pictured below) included crafts, face painting and breaking a piñata full of candy. The children made a Christmas chain with each of their names on it and hung it on a Christmas tree. Church members served lunch and each child was given a winter hat, gloves and socks. The families were presented with a storybook on the strength of love for one another. The party ended with a blessing.

Christ Community Church has partnered with Artsy Fartsy for about a year in ministering to under-served children in grades 4-6 who live in an apartment complex in the neighborhood where the church meets. Artsy Fartsy gives the children opportunity to explore their creativity through painting, acting, sewing, clay molding, cooking and baking. Members of Christ Community Church assist with these monthly meetings, spending time with the kids and building relationships. The congregation is committed to building connections with the local community and serving the community with Christ’s love.

How can the church respond to the refugee crisis? Here, in an update video from Greg Williams (Church Administration and Development director), is what a group of GCI congregations have been doing:

On YouTube at http://youtu.be/83MUlW-ndBk.

This update is from Crossing Borders director, Lee Berger.

In December, for the 10th year in a row, Crossing Borders mission trip attendees delivered shoeboxes full of gifts to needy children in Mexico. Thanks to our generous partners (churches, school groups and others) who provided the shoeboxes full of gifts, we blessed over 1000 children with tangible expressions of God’s love. In addition to the shoeboxes, our partners provided over 125 handmade blankets and quilts, 50 cloth totes filled with infant supplies, dozens of pairs of shoes and other items.

As seen in the pictures below, there were smiles of joy all around as the children received giftboxes filled with school supplies, hygiene articles, toys, candy and other needed and fun items. But of even more importance were the smiles, hugs, prayers and words of encouragement given by the missionaries to the children and their parents.

Due to a record number of applications, we had to turn away many who wanted to join us on this trip (those not accepted were deferred to a future trip). Given the large number of those accepted (38), we formed two teams and thus were able to visit twice as many churches, children’s homes and other ministries as before. Thankfully, we had a record number of shoeboxes and other gifts with us!

It’s been a joy for many of our team members to return to the same places in Mexico each year, where we’ve watched children grow from toddlers to teenagers. Along the way, we’ve built friendly relationships with onsite ministers: pastors, orphanage directors and other ministry leaders. It’s a joy to partner with them in sharing with people messages, drama, prayer, games and gifts—all for the one purpose of sharing with the children and their families the good news of God’s grace in Jesus Christ.

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The next Crossing Borders trip is this summer (June 18-26). It will be a week of life-changing mission ministry. The most benefit is gained by attending the full week, but we also offer half-week options. For details, check out our website at www.cbmisison.org or call me (Lee Berger) at 903-746-4463.

GCI’s congregation in Pikeville, Kentucky recently was featured in a report by a local TV station telling of the congregation’s outreach to the community, which involves providing a free meal twice each month. To watch a video recording of the TV report, click on the image below, or click here.

Greg Williams and Charles Fleming recently team-taught a weekend intensive in Dallas, Texas, as part of the Christian Leadership course offered by Ambassador College of Christian Ministry (ACCM). Seven men and women pastoral leaders participated (they are pictured below with Greg and Charles).

Various Christian leadership topics were addressed during the three-day intensive, including how to develop an operational style of leadership that is both team-based and pastor-led. This approach fits well with GCI’s modified-episcopal system of governance. Greg Williams elaborated:

In GCI we place a great deal of emphasis on prequalifying and then training our lead pastors. We then place on them a great deal of trust to lead their congregations. In that leadership role, we call on them to recruit, train and empower a team of able ministry leaders and then meet with that team regularly to discuss, pray and deeply consider the ministries that are involved in advancing the disciplemaking work of the congregation. We also expect our pastors to utilize their Advisory Council, which brings together a cross-section of members that help keep the pastoral leaders informed concerning the general mood and attitude of the congregation. We expect that our lead pastors will work closely with these leaders to establish, communicate and then execute a clear vision and mission for their congregation. As part of that work, the team will establish and then operate in accordance with an annual budget aligned with the agreed-upon vision and mission. Also, the team will work through the challenges it encounters, including conflict within the team. An effective lead pastor develops trust and credibility with the team, seeking consensus in discerning how the Spirit is leading the team forward. In the few cases where consensus cannot be achieved, the lead pastor is called upon to make the final decision.

Here are comments about the Christian Leadership intensive from some of the students:

Thanks to everyone involved in offering this class. It was an amazing three days of learning and building friendships. The class gave us the opportunity to not only learn leadership skills and applications, but also to see them in a perspective of how Christ leads us so we can in turn lead others. I came away with an excitement to serve. The friendships made in the close-knit environment of the intensive are wonderful. I look forward to other classes in the future.

It was awesome! We covered day-to-day practical things and items to dream towards for our congregations. It was interactive and open to any of our questions. The format was great—Greg and Charles were very accessible.

This was a great way to take an ACCM class. Every aspect was a learning opportunity. I came away with an increased knowledge of leadership and a love for others. The structure of the class and time outside the class gave me the blessing of getting to know everyone in the class. I came away blessed with new knowledge and new friends.

It was uplifting to be together in an intimate setting for three days with people who treasure God’s love and want to share that love with our church and future members that God will bring to us. To see the passionate dedication of Greg and Charles was truly inspiring. I believe this intensive class will spur us to grow into our future responsibilities as we transition into a more active pastoral role.

Established or emerging leaders interested in participating in an intensive course like the one described above are encouraged to let the GCI-USA CAD office know of their interest. We plan to offer more intensives like this in the future.