Completing the task
Transcription
Completing the task
Completing the Task Table of Contents 3 4 5 6 12 From the Editor Letter from the Editor From the Desk of Pastor Daryl Largis The Chapel at Lockport Serving with Kingdom Come for more than six years now, one might think that I would be used to the stories that are sent in from our ministry partners for On Mission and our other Kingdom Come publications. In fact, I’ve served several decades in ministry, in many capacities and locations from my small hometown church, to Washington, DC, to the garbage dumps in Cairo, Egypt, before coming to The Chapel. So what continues to break the heart of this seasoned professional? Read through this edition of On Mission and discover God’s grace anew evidenced in the lives of so many men, women, and especially children. Open Doors for Steamtown Church and more from our Church Planters GLOBAL FELLOWSHIP: An Exclusive Roundtable Interview and more from our International Partners 22 Sierra Leone Alliance 28 Tactical Prayer Map 30 34 36 Key Interview: EduNations/Rick Kennedy How can hearts not be moved when you hear of a former prison inmate receiving training, making a new life and finding Jesus as his Savior; or the developmentally challenged who spend endless days inside an institution having the opportunity to enjoy horseback riding in the great outdoors; or the restoration of a three-year-old girl whose innocence had been violently stolen from her. Broken lives are being touched by the transforming gospel of Jesus Christ, experiencing His grace and mercy. Chapel Ministries Completing the Task Resources and Stewardship CHRIST TOGETHER: Completing the Task in the USA I hope I never lose this wonder of God’s grace in my life or the lives of others, and pray the same for you as well. You see, God’s grace is so amazing. It wraps around the entire globe, is available at all times, to all peoples everywhere; it changes the face of nations, brings entire communities together to help one another, and yet is gentle enough to reach into and heal the heart of one broken person, changing one life for His glory. A special interview with Tim Hawks and more from our National Partners 40 Renovation University 42 Key Interview: Vision New York/Jim Hines 44 XCEL Leadership Center 46 54 We see God’s grace demonstrated through our Kingdom Come ministry partners in so many ways as they work toward completing the task Jesus gave His disciples in Matthew 28:18-20. “Then Jesus came to them and said, ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.’” As you read through the pages of On Mission this year, I hope you will see how our partners are serving to complete the task Jesus gave us. Please remember, your faithfulness in supporting Kingdom Come is crucial to making these stories and others possible! Whether in prayer or financially, you are standing alongside them in Buffalo, Niagara Falls, New York City, Los Angeles, Haiti, the Dominican Republic, Argentina, Sierra Leone, Asia, and in the uttermost parts of the earth. We are excited about being a part of completing the task and invite you to continue on this journey with us! We hope you are encouraged to live out your faith boldly by what you read between the covers of this magazine. And that in some way, you will be moved towards completing the task of ensuring every man, woman, and child has repeated opportunities to see, hear and respond to the transforming gospel of Jesus Christ at home and around the globe. For the sake of the gospel, and more from our Regional Partners Featuring Kids with Cameras: Through Our Eyes Contest Winner More Local Partners Ministry Partner Directory Editor: Amy Tartick Graphic Designer: Becky Patterson Amy Tartick, Editor Published: September 2013 ©2013 The Chapel 500 CrossPoint Parkway Getzville, New York 14068 716.631.2636 | thechapel.com 3 From the Desk of Pastor Daryl Largis A Kingdom come update Dear Chapel Family, Many of you have been involved in Kingdom Come over the past few years, and for that I am very thankful. God has used your prayers and your gifts to expand His Kingdom, and enable literally thousands of people to come into contact with the gospel, through people with whom we are partnering around the globe. For those of you who are new to Kingdom Come, it is simply the primary, although not exclusive, means for The Chapel to fulfill its mission in the world. This is undertaken through direct activity and through partnering with like-minded individuals and ministries to ensure in a particular context every man, woman and child has repeated opportunities to hear, to see, and to experience the gospel of Jesus Christ. We ask those at The Chapel to participate in Kingdom Come by faith, meaning that by faith we engage with God’s Mission and ask Him to supply the resources for us to accomplish what He has asked us to do. In other words, this is a corporate as well as an individual effort, and one that can be summed up by saying that if God gives it to us, we are to give it to Kingdom Come, but if He doesn’t, He doesn’t. For those involved in Kingdom Come, each year individuals and families prayerfully inquire upon God as to what they believe He is going to give them in the upcoming year to resource His Mission. Then by faith they begin to act accordingly and as God gives, they give to Kingdom Come over and above their normal giving to The Chapel. We ask that those who are participating in Kingdom Come let us know what they believe by faith God is going to supply them in the upcoming year. This enables us to plan and pray. Collectively we then by faith make commitments and plans for that year. This has been our story for the past several years and God has proven Himself faithful. We as a ministry, have been instrumental in the establishing of seven new expressions of the Church in WNY in that timeframe, that today are collectively discipling more than 2,000 people. In turn, they are demonstrating and declaring the gospel all over WNY. In addition, there are two new churches in the queue that we will be involved in over the next year, noting that there are approximately five additional expressions, and perhaps more, on the horizon over the next three years. Kingdom Come enables us to breathe life and affirmation into these churches as they are birthed, for WNY is in need of many more churches to accomplish the mission into which God has invited us. I only mention a portion of the activity related to Kingdom Come, given the contents of this publication offer you a much broader appreciation of the activity we are helping to facilitate through Kingdom Come. It is also worth noting that over the past several years, The Chapel, through Kingdom Come, has given away approximately 20% of its total income. Last year in fact, it was closer to 25%. This is living open-handedly and something we wish to continue to do in the future; but at the end of the day, we can only do so as God works in and through His people. In recent years, I have heard that people really appreciate Kingdom Come Weekend and the On Mission magazine, but they wish to stay connected during the year to what is going on. Well, we listened and now have a webpage completely dedicated to Kingdom Come where you can get the latest information, prayer requests as well as sign up to receive automatic email updates when new information is posted regarding activities related to Kingdom Come. In addition, I have a blog on the webpage that will touch on a number of facets regarding our engagement in the mission locally, nationally and globally. Please visit us online at thechapel.com/kingdomcome. My hope for you and me is that by faith, we demonstrate a level of generosity thereby proving our faith in the upcoming year that enables The Chapel to significantly expand its role and influence in the global mission of God, which includes WNY as well as places like India and Sierra Leone. 1 Peter 1:7 tells us, “These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.” Every blessing, Daryl Largis Co-Pastor for Mission Advancement The chapel at lockport by Jonathan Drake It seems like the biblical authors gravitated towards agricultural terminology. Genesis begins in a garden, and at the conclusion of Revelation, we see another one. Paul said, “You reap what you sow.” James told us to, “humbly accept the Word planted in you, which can save you.” And Jesus (who used metaphors with skill and precision) explained to His disciples, “I am the Vine and my Father is the Gardener.” While these images and word pictures help us understand biblical truth (and make for great preaching), many of us are far removed from the agrarian culture in which Jesus lived. Whereas the disciples may have been looking at a fig tree as Jesus spoke, we are more likely to be reading these verses in a Starbucks. The cultural context is sometimes hard for us to cross. So when The Chapel at Lockport planted a Community Garden right in the heart of the City of Lockport, these agrarian terms were more than just a biblical metaphor; they were a reality. Here in front of me was a visual representation of what we were doing for the sake of the gospel in Lockport. When the seeds went into the ground, there didn’t seem to be much happening. In fact, the first few weeks were pretty discouraging. I was worried that we had wasted our time, because I didn’t see any life above ground. But I didn’t know what was happening beneath the soil and within a short time, a little sapling sprouted up here and there. After a matter of weeks, vegetables were harvested. And it was in this way that God taught me to trust Him with His local church (after all, it’s His church, not mine). Occasionally, life in ministry can be discouraging. Sunday after Sunday, the seeds of the gospel are planted and sometimes it seems like very little (if any) life exists. But that’s only because we can’t see what God is doing under the surface of the soil. Life begins deep down before any of us see it, and it shoots up when you least expect it. He’s been at work all along, and He only asks us to be faithful in planting the seeds – those seeds of reaching every man, woman, and child with repeated opportunities to see and hear the gospel. Like Paul said, “I planted, Apollos watered, but it was God who made it grow.” The Community Garden at Washburn and Elmwood has had a tremendous impact on the City of Lockport. Sure, there is a beautifying element to things; the awesome colors of a vegetable garden set against the backdrop of a rough part of town are a welcome addition. There is also an economic element to this garden: through our FirstFruits Program, we are taking the first 10% of the garden’s yield and blessing people in need who live in the community surrounding the garden. But through all of this, we have seen gospel activity in ways we never would have imagined. Many people have come to The Chapel at Lockport for the very first time because of the Community Garden. Several have given their lives to Christ in the weeks since Planting Day. Beyond this, the people of The Chapel at Lockport have been empowered to demonstrate the gospel in a tangible way–and have had opportunities to proclaim the gospel as well. These events bring us back to the imagery of Scripture and the words of Jesus, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few” (Matthew 9:37). I now see these words in a whole new light; without the workers, there can truly be no harvest. And I’m grateful to be working for the harvest with the men and women of The Chapel at Lockport. Together for the mission, Jonathan Drake 5 Missio Church open doors for steamtown church By Brian Neis For its first five years, Steamtown Church, has been faithfully sharing the good news of Jesus in Scranton, PA. All glory goes to God who has given us many opportunities and much success as we’ve told masses of people about our hope in Jesus Christ. Amazingly, God allowed us to see many souls saved in a far less than idyllic “home.” We rented a downtown motel ballroom which hosted our Sunday gatherings for many years. Despite this, we believe the success we’ve had in reaching people with the gospel is due to the strong emphasis we’ve placed on equipping the people of Steamtown Church to share their grace stories with friends, family members, and neighbors, rather than simply encouraging them to “round up” their circles of influence and haul them to a church service. With growth, an increasing tension came into our ministry due to the current gathering space and its rundown condition. With more than 150 attendees, we were close to 95% capacity. Our children’s ministry was sharing an open, 500 square foot room for ages 0 – 12. Our rent was unrealistically high, and continuing to increase despite the fact that we were allowed access to the space for merely four hours on a Sunday morning. As ceilings began to cave from above (literally) and the walls were pressured from within, we knew God was telling us it was time to look for a better home for Steamtown Church. We decided in December 2012 to formally start the process of searching for a permanent facility at the beginning of January 2013. But God had different plans. Before we even began the search, we were informed that the former St. John’s the Evangelist Cathedral was recently put on the market by the Diocese of Scranton. This majestic, 10,000 square foot building had been closed for over three years, but its reputation as being one of the most beautiful structures in the city had preceded it. Although it appeared to be an extreme longshot, we decided to look into it. The minute we 6 looked was the minute we knew it was the place God wanted as the home of Steamtown Church. Like many miraculous stories of faith, we saw God open doors over the next few months that only He could open. He allowed us to purchase the building at a price that can only be described as pennies, compared to the worth of the building. And because of His grace, and the diligent work of so many in our congregation, we held our first Sunday gathering there on June 2, 2013. Steamtown Church has never been and never will be about a facility. Our emphasis on the Church being the hands and feet of Jesus in our community will continue to stay at the heart of who we are. We do see, however, that this building will act as a powerful tool in enabling us to reach every man, woman, and child with the gospel of Jesus. We see the potential for so many life-changing conversions as newcomers, who would not have considered attending in our previous facility, attend and hear the gospel. As we hear the doors opening throughout the entire week with the Steamtown Church family using it to minister, we hear hearts softening to the gospel. As we dream of building a beautiful space for children and students on the lower floor, we dream of the young lives that will be changed by the grace of Jesus. As we embrace the history of the building, we embrace the older generation who called it their church home for years. Yes, it is only a tool, but for these reasons we believe it can be an effective tool for the purpose of the gospel. Thank you so much to The Chapel for the countless ways you’ve supported our ministry before this endeavor and through it. God has used you to make our dream of reaching every man, woman, and child with the gospel a reality. We continually praise God for sending you all to us! And for all this we can only say, “to the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen” (Jude 1:25 ESV). By Jim Murphy Missio Church was planted in 2008 with a desire to see God glorified through the full equipping of Christ’s people in living a faithful life of worship and through playing our part in bringing the gospel to every man, woman, and child in our area, nation, and world. This year God has opened up new and exciting opportunities for our ministry to live into this vision. In September, Missio officially planted its first congregation, Renovation Church, in the Liverpool/Clay area just north of Syracuse. Led by a team of leaders and a core group of Christ followers who live in this area, Renovation Church has been planted into this geography for the purpose of seeing the more than 80,000 people who live in these northern suburbs reached with the gospel. As it continues to develop and reach out, Missio will leverage its resources toward this congregation so it can be a strong and healthy representation of the gospel. We have also begun two more church-planting endeavors, one in the neighborhoods surrounding Syracuse University and the other in a rural community near the Rome-Utica area. Both of these new initiatives are in their infancy, but each is seeing the development of a core group that is committed to the full evangelization of their respective communities. Over the next twelve months, we will equip these core groups to develop a prayer strategy for their place, to meaningfully serve the people who live there, and to intentionally share the gospel with their neighbors and others. Our hope is that through these efforts people will embrace Christ and a new congregation will be established. God is moving in many ways and through many people at Missio Church. We deeply appreciate your prayers and your partnership with us in seeing God glorified in Syracuse, New York. NorthGate Church By Jon Hasselbeck Jesus continues to build His Church throughout the world and here at NorthGate in an amazing way! Last year we took a step of faith in going to two services as we had outgrown our building. On a typical Sunday during the school year our first service is about 70% full and our second service is now nearly 100% full. As we grow, we are prayerfully considering adding an addition to our building on Harris Hill Road next year, which is 12 minutes from the university. This year we have partnered with International Students, Inc., Intervarsity, and Campus Ambassadors with a vision to bring the gospel of Jesus Christ to every student, faculty, and staff member at the University at Buffalo. One of our many events this year was a hot dog giveaway in the fall, where we not only passed out nearly a thousand hotdogs but also interacted with students, sharing the love of Christ in front of the student union. Other highlights were our annual Christmas party, and trips to provide hurricane relief to Long Island and New Orleans. Each event offered an opportunity for us to engage students and gave students the opportunity to share the gospel with their peers. We have found the most effective way to reach students is to train, equip, and disciple students to reach their peers. We will be partnering with International Students this fall in developing student-led Bible studies. These will be directed toward nonbelievers to help them understand the truth of the Scriptures. As we reach out to unbelievers and share the gospel we continue to see lives changed. This year we baptized more than 20 people who declared Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. We continue to be in awe of what God is doing in building His Church! 7 CHURCH PLANTINGS Renovation Church: Making God’s House a Home Restoration Church By Dan Trippie By Michelle Stockton Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Galatians 6:9 We missed Eric at the Café for four months. Four months that will change his life forever. Mobilizing 51% of our folks week after week takes a concerted effort. Structures, systems, common language, catchy slogans, cool t-shirts and a bunch of hoorah is all part of our culture. When so much responsibility is shared, ministry can advance if a solid crew is giving 100% of their time, talent and treasure. Or, it can completely fall flat if they don’t turn up on Sunday, eh-hem, also known as Game Day… when babies are waiting, coffee needs brewing, and sound needs to be turned on. I think our team is used to having volunteers go off the grid every so often now, but at first it took some of us by surprise. When we have a team member off the radar, we look for them, we call, we email, we write, we talk with their networks, their family. We pray, then we wait. We continue to work toward accomplishing the Mission. And sometimes, the grace of God brings them back to us and we hear an incredible grace story that makes all the waiting worthwhile. If you mobilize people, volunteers or teams, we hope this story will encourage you to continue advancing the Mission to reach every man, woman and child, while creating a space and a place they can call Home. “Dear Pastor Brek, I’m writing this letter to say a special thanks to you, Joshua, Michelle and the entire Renovation family. My name is Eric and I’ve been coming here for about three years now. It all started when a late friend of mine invited me to come check out what he described as an awesome place. Having been raised in the church and also being a pastor’s kid, I resisted, figuring that I had heard enough sermons to last me a lifetime. At the time, I was in an intense battle with the enemy with drugs and alcohol, and he was winning. Although I was raised in church, it did not absolve me from relentless attacks. I finally decided to come pay a visit and see for myself what all the fuss was about and wow, was he on the mark. I had not had such a warm feeling of belonging to something in such a long time. I didn’t believe it existed anymore. Over the next year I still battled with addictions and would come to visit regularly whenever I felt guilt or shame and just wanted to feel better. In late March 2012 after attending the 10:30am service and realizing that God still loved me despite all I had done to destroy myself, I said enough was enough. Three days later I checked myself into rehab and I’ve been set free ever since. Although the past 16 months haven’t been easy, it’s been well worth it. I’m getting baptized on Sunday and that’s the topping on the cake. So please stay encouraged and keep up the good work. With God, your ministry is changing lives. I’m a witness; it changed mine.” Sincerely, Eric J. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. 1 John 4:14 Restoration Church is working to complete the task of world evangelization in three circles of accountability. The first circle is in the personal relationships God has given to each individual in our congregation. In 2013, more than 125 people participated in “My Circle” training, each seeking to grow in intentional evangelism by sharing their grace story. As a result, six immediate friends and family members came to faith and were baptized in the first half of this year. The second circle of accountability is in local church planting efforts. Restoration Church, in joint partnership with The Chapel, has launched a church planting residency program. This program is presently active in launching a new church plant in the Veteran’s Park community of Depew. Additionally, through greater body partnership with H.I.S. Bridgebuilders (hisbridgebuilders.org) we are working to provide mentorship and job placement for young adults trapped in poverty in our city’s east side. Finally, through our partnerships with Mission of Hope we are working to see every man, woman, and child in Haiti have opportunity to experience the gospel of grace. The people of Restoration were able to ensure that 30 children will receive Christian education in the village of Bercy through our child sponsorship program. As we mark the celebration of five years partnering with The Chapel, we are excited to see how God is deepening the opportunities for further ministry in partnership together. theWell By Darrick Castronova theWELL began as an idea, a vision, a desire to be obedient to God and His call. It has become a daily fulfillment of that dream. As we open our hearts, homes, and the doors of the building God provides us to gather in, we experience Him revealing His love through His Son Jesus! their discovery of Jesus and a relationship with Him has caused them to establish a place of belonging, express a new found faith, and experience a journey of truth that they have never known. This has led to the transformation of individuals and families for the furtherance of the kingdom! In 1 John 4:19 (NKJV) Scripture tells us, “We love Him because He first loved us.” Our greatest call is to allow God to use us in whatever ways He chooses, to reveal His love to others! We believe, based on the aforementioned verse, and are witnessing that once people truly come to know and understand personally the love of our Lord, they not only return to Him but also love Him and love those He has put in their lives! “...walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma” Ephesians 5:2 NKJV Our Discovery group meets for four weeks to give anyone interested a better understanding of “who” theWELL is and how we got started. We also have men and women sharing regularly that We continue to be humbled by His choice to use us to reveal His heart. We count it a privilege and consider it our utmost responsibility! All praise be to God, who is using the people of theWELL to spread a beautiful scent of His outrageous love to the communities of Western New York and the world beyond! 9 Singing Waters Christian Center Village Church By Jeremy Hazelton To our friends at The Chapel, thank you so much for your continued support of Village Church! October 2013 will mark two years of having our doors open in the Elmwood Village neighborhood of Buffalo. We are so grateful for the prayers and financial investments that have made our church a reality. God has blessed us in ways we cannot imagine, and we are humbled to be a part of what He is doing in Buffalo. We continue to meet weekly at Nardin Academy for worship gatherings, and several Local Villages (small groups) are meeting throughout the city in homes and cafés. We have had the opportunity to engage with several of our fellow Elmwood Villagers, and have seen many of them become a part of our church. You might see some of us around town on a Saturday volunteering with the Elmwood Village Association painting benches and cleaning up trash, as we are trying to leave this place better than we found it. You might also see some Village Church Generation Church By Noelle McLaughlin The mission of Generation Church is to make the name of Jesus famous in North Tonawanda and beyond. The opportunities God has given us to do this have been overwhelming. In just one short year of existence, Generation Church has sent a missionary By Enrique Dominguez folks coaching soccer on the west side or working with refugees from all over the world. You might see us at the lake having a baptism service, where people publicly declare that they belong to Jesus. Or you might see us setting aside a special time to package meals for the hungry. In fact, last December we packaged over 30,000 meals to be used in supporting a school lunch program in Ecuador. This fall you can find us hosting a shoe-cutting party to provide closed-toed shoes for children, and job training and employment for widows in Uganda. We are also in the early stages of considering how we can multiply our efforts here in the City of Buffalo, as we consider what multiplying our church could look like. We are truly grateful to be united in the mission of ensuring that every man, woman, and child has multiple opportunities to hear, see, and respond to the gospel of Jesus. to Haiti, partnered with Sole Hope to combat foot diseases in children in Africa, and raised money for a local crisis pregnancy center. We launched a disaster relief ministry that sent a team to Long Island to work with Samaritan’s Purse after Hurricane Sandy, and partnered with Convoy of Hope to raise money after the tornados hit Moore, Oklahoma. Here in North Tonawanda, our weekly Kids Rock summer events have drawn dozens of neighborhood children and their families. Our church is full of stories of transformation in the community and people’s lives. As God continues to use our ministry, we look forward to a new campus being planted in our network in the next 18 months and more opportunities to spread the gospel. Our vision to impact every man, woman and child with the gospel started with the church building becoming a “community center” for the public. We host weekday “Prime-Timers” for senior citizens, ICES public school student tutoring, Sheriff’s Youth Athletic League, weekly AA meetings and CHOICES youth anti-drug programming. Weekends we host Springville Crossing By Keith Clark This year’s story is built upon the last two years. To catch you up, two years ago God allowed Springville Crossing to minister to a drug-addicted barber who had his business next to our worship space. This led him to go to Teen Challenge to break the chains of ABWE/Czech Republic By Steven Wendel In March we opened the “Tree of Life” ministry center. While previously we faced many logistical and facility limitations, we now only lack manpower! Igreja Batista Esperança By Nate Logan We recently celebrated the marriage of Paulo and Raquel, a newly-saved couple from our church. They had been living together for seven years when they accepted an invitation to our church from a family member. high school and young adults, providing a game room, “movie room,” and outdoor patio. Our mission is to reach others in many environments including the workplace, during recreational activities, through volunteering and by participating in local community events. We moved our Sunday service to Thursdays to better serve and reach our weekend workers. Our “gathering” includes a potluck and interactive dialogue as part of the teaching time. For those able to serve on Sundays, we are planning the launch of a Sunday morning children’s outreach to impact “latchkey” kids. Other plans include community work and cleanup projects, volunteering with other civic clubs and other non-profits. addiction while we repurposed his space to create a Youth Center for our community. Last year, this previously-addicted barber came back from Teen Challenge and plugged into our ministry where he is a member, and a volunteer within our Children & Youth Ministries, openly sharing his testimony. Well, it gets even better. This year we will be launching a Christian Addiction Recovery program. We see this need as several recovering addicts come in contact with us as individuals and as a church. And guess what? This redeemed barber will be the leader of this ministry. Sharing Christ and God’s plan with one life will likely now impact many! God is awesome! Through English ministries, outreach events, and our first annual camp, we have been able to clearly present the gospel in a relevant and thorough way to more than 40 individuals! Two adults have since come to Christ, and a handful of people have expressed an interest to get to know more about Jesus. God is consistently opening doors for ministry and leading us to those whom He is drawing. In our context, serving in the most atheistic nation in the world today, this is tremendous! Raquel was suffering from severe depression, and Paulo was very skeptical about church. However, after several months of attending, they wanted to learn more and joined a small group study of the gospel. Led by two of our Brazilian ministry partners, this study provided the opportunity for Paulo and Raquel to trust Christ as their Savior and to grow in their faith. Changed by the gospel, they decided to get married and share with their friends and family what Christ had done in their lives. Our colleague Jon gave a wonderful gospel message at the wedding ceremony, and Cherith and I have had the privilege of doing their marriage counseling. There has been a visible transformation in their lives! The Global Fellowship Roundtable on Completing The Task “The mission of the Global Fellowship is to cooperate with the Holy Spirit to create national movements of the gospel that saturate entire geographies across the globe with the reality of Jesus Christ so that every man, woman, and child has repeated opportunities to hear, experience and respond to His incredible redemptive message.” In essence, Global Fellowship is about completing the task that Jesus gave to His disciples in Matthew 28:16-20. In light of the vast scope this task entails, Global Fellowship isn’t sending conventional missionaries into a strange culture where it can take years to become effective. Instead, they are resourcing indigenous pastors, leaders and churches to join hands with the Holy Spirit and each other to reach their entire nation with the gospel. Indeed, training the Church to be the Church God intended. What does that look like? Glad you asked. Please join us for a roundtable conversation with Dwight Smith, Founder of Global Fellowship, Jerry Gillis, Lead Pastor at The Chapel, and Daryl Largis, Co-Pastor for Mission Advancement, on where GF is at and where it’s headed in the days to come. An Exclusive Roundtable Interview with Jerry Gillis, Dwight Smith, and Daryl Largis By Amy Tartick On Mission: We saw Global Fellowship launched in November 2011. Since then there has been significant growth in the ministry in some very strategic locations. I understand this has caused all of you to do some rather intensive and extensive world-wide travel to where we could best describe it as “the uttermost parts of the earth.” Perhaps the biggest question on people’s minds is, why? You all have comfortable homes, families, along with fulfilling, yet demanding, ministry roles in the US— why add more to your plate on a global scale? Jerry Gillis: God’s mission is both local and universal, so we need to be active in joining Him on that mission in both domains. As a people at The Chapel, we have been given much. As an individual, I have been given much in regard to friends, church family, opportunities, and more than enough resources compared to the rest of the globe. So, in light of that, Jesus’s words “to whom much is given, much is required” seem to apply to my life, and the life of The Chapel, with laser focus. Dwight Smith: We travel extensively for at least two reasons. First, this is the center of life for a follower of Jesus. Jesus Himself understood the importance of this obedience. He says in John 17:4, “I glorified You [Father] on earth, having accomplished the work that You gave Me to do.” And He says about us, “As You [Father] sent Me into the world, so I have sent them into the world” (John 17:18). God, the creator and sustainer of the world and human history, has a plan. That plan, to bring many back into relationship with Him, is transmitted through us, the followers of His Son, Jesus. Second, some of us are called to be obedient to this purpose, in places around the world. These are places where the Spirit of God has prepared the hearts of the Church to be obedient, and in most cases, building receptivity to the gospel in the hearts of the people of the nation. God has given us gifts and experience to envision, assist and encourage the Church in these nations to seize the opportunity and harvest to the full potential the Spirit has prepared. Daryl Largis: God’s ordained activity around the globe includes that which He is doing in Western New York, as well as that which He is doing in the far reaches of humanity elsewhere. With Jesus Christ at the center of this activity, God has invited us to join a “body” that Scripture says is universal, meaning there is but one body and that this body is “joined and held together by every supporting ligament...as each part does its work” (Eph. 4:16b). We are part of this body and as such we have a role to play. This may include a focus on that which is near or that which is far. This is for the head of the body, that being Christ, to determine. As such, we must be in tune with what Jesus has asked us to do and be obedient to the call regardless of location or even vocation. Each has a role none more important than the other for each is a part of God’s plan. On Mission: What is different about Global Fellowship from other church networking organizations? Dwight Smith: Several things are different. One, we only work with the existing national Church. We believe that whatever God is going to do in a place, He is going to primarily do through all of the Jesus followers of that place. Two, we come focused upon the whole nation, from the very beginning. How is God going to use His Church in that nation to deliver the gospel to every man, woman and child in a specific timeframe? Three, we are experienced at doing this from other nations that are in the middle of such harvest; Ukraine, Cuba and India for example. Four, we are committed to seeing thousands come to Christ and organized into new churches. But, we are equally concerned with the kinds of churches that are planted. So we lead with a biblical valuesbased envisioning and training. Jesus “followership” (discipleship) is seeded into the life of a new follower both in the gospel presentation that is made and the pathways that are created for the new follower to walk 13 in, more adequately ensuring that they learn to hear the words of God on a daily basis and walk in them. Daryl Largis: The Global Fellowship is not denominationally driven espousing a certain ecclesiology or even prescriptive methodology on church per se’. The basis of the Global Fellowship is to work in and through the Church, not a particular kind of church. For God’s sovereign activity over the past hundreds of years, through the sacrifice of many, has produced a national church in most nations around the world. It is this indigenous church that we seek to work with given they are the ones God has raised up to reach that nation. Our role is to equip, empower and encourage them to complete the task of evangelization for that entire nation based upon biblical principles and a missiological framework. On Mission: India, Thailand, Haiti, Argentina, and China are just a few of the places Global Fellowship has visited. Could you tell us why and how places are chosen for Global Fellowship to engage? Dwight Smith: We are looking at three things at least. One, is there receptivity to the gospel in the people of the nation. Two, are there many local churches willing to take their responsibility and be obedient to God for their nation. Three, can we locate enough leaders willing to lead in this effort. Daryl Largis: In addition to the criteria mentioned by Dr. Smith, we need to always be cognizant of the fact that this is a Holy Spirit derived activity. Is the Spirit leading us to this nation and has He uniquely positioned His people in that place to embark on a journey to reach the entire nation? This is the question we prayerfully ponder in our hearts when assessing engagement in a particular country. In doing so, we also get a sense for the trajectory of the gospel in that particular nation as we subjectively determine the future potential based upon history, today and likely tomorrow noting God can do anything He desires. Lastly, we do assess the Church’s ability to saturate a given geography with the gospel. Has it developed models in that culture and in that context that are reproducible, sustainable and effective in not only proclaiming the gospel but also demonstrating it and allowing those that respond to be effectively discipled in it? We have found it necessary to develop and deploy these criterion given our resources and time are limited. On Mission: What does Global Fellowship offer domestic and international partners? 14 Dwight Smith: Domestic partner churches are offered the opportunity to walk this global path with us. Through this, experiencing the onsite joy of seeing the Spirit of God at work and bringing a few of their people along. International partners primarily connect to each other and derive mutual encouragement, reciprocal learning and sharing of assets. Daryl Largis: The Global Fellowship provides a way and means for local churches regardless of their capacity and capability to join God in what He is doing globally. For some this may mean investing resources on a limited basis as they can and for others it may mean they strategically become involved noting their involvement is a direct expression of their understanding of what God has called them to be and do. At the end of the day, Global Fellowship is a relationally-based group of Christ-followers who have a heart to see entire nations reached with the gospel by the mobilization of His Church. On Mission: We have often heard the term “telescoping” in relation to Global Fellowship. Please explain what this term means. Jerry Gillis: Telescoping is a simple concept. When you look through a telescope, things that are far away come near. So, when we work toward a mission of saturating our WNY geography with the gospel so that every man, woman, and child has a repeated opportunity to hear, see, and respond to the gospel, we also have a responsibility to work toward that same end in other places around the globe. We just take what we do in our near geography and apply that to a distant one. On Mission: Where does Global Fellowship currently have an established presence and where might we see emerging activity in the near future? Daryl Largis: There are several emerging nations in which Global Fellowship has an opportunity to get involved. Each of these are, and will continue to be, evaluated and vetted appropriately. One of the biggest challenges facing the Global Fellowship is a lack of resources to fully support a new endeavor while not siphoning off resources from existing commitments. This remains a delicate balance. Even so, it is a prayer request as we look forward to 2014 and beyond noting the needs of the nations in which we are currently engaged. Places like Africa, Central America and the Caribbean fall into this bucket of could happen. On Mission: Is there a domestic (US-based) component of Global Fellowship? Jerry Gillis: Christ Together, a United States network of over 1,000 churches, is the American arm of the Global Fellowship. The intent and purpose of this national network is the same as that of the overall Global Fellowship, but is simply the American expression. Some of the methodologies in the United States might be different, as are some of the societal and cultural influences, but the heartbeat and DNA are still the same. Daryl Largis: Prior to Christ Together, there was an alliance of churches that The Chapel helped to facilitate called The Renovation Network. This network had the same heart and mind as the Global Fellowship. It became clear some time ago that the Renovation Network in and of itself, needed to expand significantly to achieve its goal within the context of the American landscape. After much prayer and discussion, it joined forces with another like-minded and like-hearted network to form Christ Together. On Mission: What do you believe the Church will look like in 2020 and where will be the greatest saturation of Christ-followers? Dwight Smith: The greatest saturation of Jesus followers by 2020 will be in Asia. China and India are the two largest nations on the earth. Both already have large Christian populations. The India Church especially continues to grow at an amazing rate. Both are active in sending missionaries and attempting to influence the gospel in the nations around them. On Mission: Moving forward, what are ways The Chapel family can come alongside Global Fellowship? Dwight Smith: Continue to pray. Daryl Largis: Obviously prayer is needed for it is something each and every Christ-follower should do as it relates to the spread of the gospel. Jesus Himself prayed in such ways. Second, members of The Chapel can become more informed as to not only what is happening in the world but also what is happening in the places where we are engaged such as India. Third, people of The Chapel can give of their time and resources to Kingdom Come which in turn helps to support the Global Fellowship. Dwight Smith: Telescoping is a word to describe the potential foreign involvement of a domestic church in partnership with an international partner who is attempting to fully evangelize their city, county, or nation. Daryl Largis: Telescoping is a concept that requires intentionality, focus and commitment. It means that a church through prayerful consideration has determined that it is to work with and through the church in a distant land to accomplish the very same thing in both locations—to ensure that every man, woman and child has repeated opportunities to hear, to see and to experience the gospel of Jesus Christ. Furthermore, telescoping implies longer term versus shorter term. It therefore carries with it a connotation that the engagement is until the task is completed be that for a village, a city, a state or the entire nation. 15 international partners HBI Global Partners By Suganya (one of HBI’s Orphanage Children) It’s been a year and a half since my grandma went to be with the Lord. It’s because of her I was raised in the HBI Children’s Orphanage from the age of three, after the death of my parents. During my grandma’s funeral service, I happened to meet my relatives and my friends living in a slum and some on the streets. Friends who played with me are now in the streets. I am really so blessed by God that He chose me from the street and enabled me to enjoy the blessings of life through the ministries of HBI. Growing up at HBI’s orphanage, gave me the opportunity to know Jesus as my personal Savior. I know HBI is committed to give every boy, girl, man, and woman an opportunity to hear, understand and respond to the gospel, and to be discipled to Christ. This purpose has been instilled in me too. Since then, there is a deep passion burning within me to reach the children of my locality and have them know the Lord and be discipled to Him. Praise God, when I shared my passion with the leaders of HBI, they immediately gave me a great opportunity to reach out to children through the Vacation Bible School. That is an answer to my prayer! Praise the Lord! It was an awesome experience! We had more than 60 children attend the Vacation Bible School. My friends and I, with the help of HBI leaders, designed the curriculum, taught songs, Bible stories, and memory verses. God enabled me to stand before my relatives as a testimony of God’s grace and love. I shared my testimony with the children and their parents so that they too will become followers of Christ. They have invited us to come back regularly to share more about the Lord Jesus Christ. I am so thankful to the ministries of HBI for shaping me to be a transformational leader. I want to serve as a missionary teacher to minister to children who are marginalized and at risk. 16 international partners Mission of Hope, Haiti By Brad Johnson Mission of Hope, Haiti is an organization following Jesus Christ that exists to bring life transformation to every man, woman, and child in Haiti. This year, through the help of partners like The Chapel, our Church Advancement team has expanded to include 33 Village Champions, who live and serve in villages around Haiti. These are young Haitian men and women who want to see the Great Commission completed in their own villages and are being trained in how to take practical ownership for every man, woman, and child in those villages. These Village Champions are the avenue for connecting the resources provided by partners like The Chapel to the local churches in Haiti, in tangible expressions of the gospel that the Haitians in the villages can see, hear, and experience in practical ways. These Champions help Mission of Hope and our partners become the hands and feet of Jesus each day, as they help us find and meet specific community needs in nutrition, education, medical, and local village business development, which then enable them to address the greater spiritual needs of their community. These young leaders are a vital part of Mission of Hope’s Indigenous Mobilization strategy and are being trained and mentored in spiritual development and servant leadership. This past summer, they were active in planning the projects and village activities for the teams that came to Haiti in partnership with Mission of Hope. Our desire is to continue to expand the team of Village Champions until every village in Haiti has at least one Champion who not only owns the lostness of that village, but also is actively working towards completing the Great Commission, by reaching every man, woman, and child in that village. That is the way that an entire nation will be transformed for the Kingdom! Patch Our Planet Presidir.net By Steve Gillis By Alex Belmar Last year, I had the privilege of speaking to a local church in Florida. Micah and Sheila Smith were among those in attendance that night. After hearing about the orphan crisis, especially the challenge of older orphans, they determined that they wanted their family to be part of the solution to this crisis. Soon after, they started the process of adoption for an older child from Uganda. Her name is Brenda and she officially became part of the Smith family back in April. More and more faith families like the Smiths are helping to propel the church to take the lead in orphan care and are displaying a clear picture of the gospel by their actions. We believe this is how we can end the orphan crisis: one church, one family, and one child at a time. Think about the impact of the Every Child ministry in Western New York. You don’t have to look too far in your own church and community to see families caring for foster children and global orphans. You are making a difference. We’ve been privileged to work alongside of the amazing team at The Chapel for the benefit of every child. This year, Patch Our Planet has been working with the North American Mission Board and has just launched a brand new website to equip church leaders to effectively care for orphans locally and globally. It is our hope that by broadening our scope of ministry in this way, we would play a larger part in one day seeing every church in every community caring for every orphan. We are forever grateful for the support and example of The Chapel as we broaden our efforts to reach the more than 153 million orphaned children for the sake of the gospel. Let’s complete the task! We are equipping the leadership in the local church through the Renovation Principles to mobilize every believer to a missional life, making the gospel accessible to every man, woman, and child within their circle of responsibility. This year we have had the opportunity to envision what God is doing in different parts of Argentina. We have presented the ministry and shared how the application of the Renovation Principles can transform the congregational life and influence the community. Many pastors and leaders have been exposed to the vision of mobilizing and multiplying their impact. The Refuge is one of the churches we have been assisting. They have built their missional map and are striving to apply the principles. In March 2013, they began with ten cell groups within their geographical area. The groups are permitting them to share the gospel in different neighborhoods with the vision to reach the city. In late July, we met with the leaders. It was marvelous to hear them share how reading the Bible in the homes was impacting their lives and producing growth as disciples. We have challenged this same church, The Refuge, in Rafaela to pray and assist a group of leaders in Cordoba (a city of 1.5 million people, four hours away). The phase we are entering is the saturation of church planting. Both groups are encouraged at the potential of being strategic partners. We would need more words to explain how God has connected parts to unify this vision in two of the three most influential states in Argentina. We also see God’s hand opening doors for the ministry in Uruguay, Honduras and El Salvador. Thank you for your practical demonstration of love and your strategic partnership that is instrumental in accomplishing our task. 17 international partners Saturation Church Planting International By Chad Smith SCPI’s vision is to see a saturation church planting movement in nations around the world where the primary impetus is birthed with ordinary Christians participating in their piece of the Missio Dei. To see that as a reality, we have made a concentrated effort encouraging leaders to empower their people into their priesthood, believing that when ordinary Christians are living in vibrancy of relationship with their heavenly Father, He will orchestrate their lives to cooperate with the divine opportunities around them. In a remote district of Maharashtra, India, one such leader took up this call. For the better part of two years, he went through the SCP principles with the leadership of the church. They started to reorganize their focus from gathering people to decentralizing the congregation into the mission of God for their community. As a first order, they spent a year building up the immediate leaders and house group facilitators. They began to see their members become energized for the lost people around them. In the last two years the church, which had been one congregation of about 60 members, has grown laterally by planting 11 new expressions of faith comprising 200 believers, all of whom have come to faith in the last year through relationships with ordinary Christians. The vision of leadership is to see the people embrace the mission of seeing every man, woman, and child reached in the five villages of their district, approximately 160,000 people. This will take at least 16,000 expressions of faith distributed around the area. By December 2013, they are prepared and believing to see 30 new expressions organized. We are always amazed and thankful to have been privileged to play a part in the lives of leaders like these who God is using to fulfill His commission around the world. Thank you for your prayers and support for leaders like these who represent SCP in India. international partners Score International By Jeff Hackett Many people ask, “Why do we need to go to other countries to do missions? We have a lot of people right here that need help also.” That is a great question. We do have many people here who need Christ. The problem often is that the Church here is not reaching out to people within their communities close to home. That changes after a person has gone on a short-term mission trip. Here is an example from one of my recent teams. We were a group of 17 people going to a small “sugarcane village” in the Dominican Republic to bring them food and share the gospel. After spending time in the village building relationships through talking and playing with the children, I shared the gospel of Jesus with the people of this village. Afterwards, a young lady and a young man came up to me and said that they believed that Jesus loved them and died for them. Now they wanted to give their lives to Jesus and live for Him! On the bus back to our complex, the group shared with each other that they could do this in their own town. That is what I pray will happen within the hearts of people, that they join God in what He is doing right where they live. World Hope International By: Gayle Campbell When three-year-old Zainab began to complain of abdominal discomfort, her mother took her to a nearby medical clinic in Freetown, Sierra Leone. There, the doctor announced the seemingly impossible—Zainab had contracted a Sexually Transmitted Disease (STD), and had tearing along her reproductive organs that indicated she had been raped. The perpetrator was ABWE-GAP By JTT In 2007, ABWE-GAP missionaries, partnering with national missionaries in a restricted access country, began working with a campus ministry in a coastal town where three college campuses are located. Since then, the local student ministry worker “BN,” has organized small groups that minister to more than 90 students. Each year, the campus ministry provides discipleship training for believers and leadership Eagles’ Wings By Hannah McKenley Eagles’ Wings is an international ministry dedicated to uniting churches, training young adults, and outreach around the world. Under the direction of Bishop Robert Stearns, the Eagles’ Wings headquarters are located in Clarence, New York. There are many avenues in which Eagles’ Wings brings the hope of Christ to people around the world, and one unknown, and Zainab’s childhood and innocence had been stripped from her. The doctor referred the case to World Hope International (WHI). Zainab was admitted into WHI’s Trafficking in Persons Recovery Center, a holistic aftercare facility answering Christ’s call to, “…defend the rights of the poor and needy” (Proverbs 31:9 NIV). Now on her second month in the center, WHI staff members have worked tirelessly to help Zainab heal physically and psychologically, while showering her with constant love and care—helping her to understand what a precious child of God she is. training to develop small group leaders. In addition, this ministry worker leads evangelism training to equip students to appropriately engage friends and classmates on the campus and share truth to build an understanding of who God is, what sin is, and set the context for the life of Christ. Please pray for “BN” as he and his wife counsel, teach and train campus ministry workers and organize events for outreach, social engagement and spiritual growth and development. All of this activity takes place under the watchful eye of a repressive government that is especially aggressive about suppressing Christianity on college campuses. highlighted today is our “Feed the Poor in Israel” campaign. With approximately 1.8 million Israelis living below the poverty line, we are actively feeding the hungry in the name and love of Jesus in a region desperately needing God’s ultimate peace plan. In the past three years, Eagles’ Wings has dedicated two feeding centers in Jerusalem and Tiberias that provide meals and assistance to families, elderly Holocaust survivors, and those who have recently immigrated to Israel in order to escape persecution. These restaurantstyle centers are dedicated to serving both Jewish and Arab citizens with dignity and the love of God. international partners Transformation Mongolia By Axel Fischer Every man, woman and child of Mongolia shall be saved and transformed for the Kingdom of God! To fulfill this vision, we set a goal to plant 100 churches by the year 2020! Now, our ten churches are getting ready for multiplication! School Teachers in God’s Ministry: We started a new church in Ulaanbaatar, because two members of our church, who are teachers in a district school, could open the door for our sport and scout ministry. Many youth were reached with the gospel. We then sent one Word of Life Bolivia By Juan Jose Lella There are some places in Bolivia where it is very difficult to take the gospel; places where the only access is by a small airplane–like the jungle. On one of our trips to the jungle, an indigenous boy, Tito, received Christ. Years passed and he was in a terrible accident and was burned over most of his body. He and his family were transported to our of our pastors from the center church in that area to start a home church together with these teachers. Enchbold, Tonga, and Uzkho accepted Christ as Savior as teenagers in a countryside church in the east of Mongolia in Sukhbatar Province. They served with passion in the church and sport ministries. After they finished school, they moved to the capital Ulaanbaatar and studied at the university. They were closely engaged and active in supporting our center church, and studied eagerly. They had great job opportunities here in the capital with the national soccer team, but now as they finished university, they felt that God called them back to the countryside. They want to become sport and health teachers in the villages where usually no one wants to work, but they want to go there to serve the youth, start a church, and build His Kingdom. city where, by God’s grace, their lives were saved. In recovery, they decided to give their lives to the study and service of the Lord. Today, they are in their second year of study at our Evangelism and Discipleship Center. During their most recent return to their own village, they visited many villages and shared the gospel with the people there! In April, Tito’s brother and wife also started studying in our Center. They all plan to return to their village and take the gospel to places where our team alone could never reach. We also thank God that from January to June 2013, there were 13,267 people who attended Word of Life Bolivia evangelistic activities and of these, 1,292 received Christ as Savior! “The unique task of missions is to establish a viable growing church movement among every tribe, tongue, people and nation on the earth. Until we are sure there is a strong church movement within every one of the people groups, our task is not finished.” –Ralph Winter Sierra Leone Alliance EduNations An interview with Rick Kennedy The Sierra Leone Alliance was organized in the spring of 2009 when leaders from EduNations, Global Outreach Mission, Houghton College, Jericho Road Ministries and The Chapel discovered they shared a common heartfelt desire to offer the gospel of Jesus Christ in Sierra Leone. Shortly thereafter, Let Them LOL came on board bringing a passion to provide clean water in villages. When LTLOL learned of a great need for a children’s home, Hope’s Rising Children’s Home was envisioned, built, and now provides a Christ-centered, loving home for 23 orphaned and impoverished children. The gospel continues to be lived out through each of these ministries in the form of providing clean water, sanitation, education, health care, micro-finance projects, church planting, and more. The Chapel supports the ongoing work of each member of the Sierra Leone Alliance through financial and other means in an effort to facilitate a nationwide redemptive move of God. Through your support of Kingdom Come, you are an integral part of this growing and effective ministry. And, as these ministries share how God is using them to complete the task in Sierra Leone, their hearts say, “Tenki” (thank you) to our Chapel family. Together, we are offering the gospel of Jesus Christ in ways that can be seen and heard by every man, woman and child, so that many might respond to this life-giving message and come to know Him. 22 On Mission: What is the mission and purpose of EduNations in Sierra Leone? Rick Kennedy: The functional purpose of EduNations is to build, staff, supply and operate free schools in remote areas of Sierra Leone, West Africa. The schools are intended to equip the people of Sierra Leone to rebuild and reclaim their nation after its destruction by civil war, and to be a tangible demonstration of the love of Jesus for people living in the poorest nation on the planet. The missional purpose is to ignite hope and to point the people of Sierra Leone to the one true Hope. OM: How is this being fleshed out in a way that ensures every man, woman and child has repeated opportunities to see, hear, and respond to the transforming gospel of Jesus Christ? RK: EduNations has constructed and operates eight schools serving more than 2,000 students who otherwise have absolutely no access to school. The schools are free and open to all children living in the communities in which they are located. The schools are staffed by teachers who are among the most qualified in the nation. EduNations pays its teachers’ salaries that make them the highest paid people in their villages. The compensation is intended to demonstrate to the community the enormous value of education, and to equip the teachers to live generous lives. The schools are committed to excellence: 100% of EduNaitons’ students pass the national primary competence examination (the national average is less than 40%). The curriculum is Christ-centered and Scripture-based. OM: How has being a member of the Sierra Leone Alliance made a difference in what EduNations is doing in Sierra Leone? RK: The Sierra Leone Alliance has helped to advance the work of EduNations in concrete ways. For example, the Alliance, together with Let Them LOL, has supplied clean water wells for every EduNations’ school. Those schools have made it possible for children (primarily girls) who would not have been able to come to school because all of their time was consumed fetching water, to come to school and provide clean water for their families. Other members of the Alliance have helped EduNations with agricultural and economic sustainability projects, faculty development programs, and public health initiatives. The Alliance allows EduNations to more effectively meet the needs of the people of Sierra Leone—mind, body, and spirit. OM: What is on the horizon for EduNations this year? RK: EduNations will build two new schools this year in villages which have never had schools. Faculty will be recruited, trained and put in place at each school, raising the total number of EduNations’ teachers to more than 125. EduNations will also engage in a significant church planning initiative in each of the communities in which it has schools. The church planning will be done in partnership with the Evangelical Presbyterian Church (EPC). The Chapel has embraced Sierra Leone by sending people, resources and prayers, and by encouraging and caring for those of us directly engaged in the work. In short, The Chapel has acted exactly like Christ’s bride—stretching out her arms and pulling as many Sierra Leonean children to her as she can. EduNations is extraordinarily grateful for the church’s faithfulness and generosity. May God continue to richly bless this congregation. 23 Sierra Leone Alliance Sierra Leone Alliance Houghton College Jericho Road Ministries By Mark Hijleh By Heather Quinn, FNP-BC In January of 2013, Houghton College art professor Jillian Sokso and art department staff person Renee Roberts joined a skills training team in partnership with Women of Hope International to travel to Sierra Leone for three weeks. There they spent time with women in Sierra Leone that have benefited from the work of Women of Hope International, teaching them to identify, harvest and prepare plant fibers for papermaking application. Women of Hope equips and disciples women with disabilities to become life-long followers of Christ who facilitate holistic transformation in their families and communities, partnering with local women to help them establish economic independence by teaching them marketable skills like soap crafting, beading, weaving and art making. Prof. Sokso and Ms. Roberts taught workshops on papermaking. The Sierra Leonean women involved were already making cards, journals and drawings to be sold in the tourist trade and as exports to the US, but the papermaking workshops enabled them to eliminate much cost of raw materials, as the paper fibers can be harvested from public and private lands with permission. This is an example of Houghton College’s interest in and commitment to serving God’s Kingdom through developmental ministry in Christ’s name in Sierra Leone as a partner in the Sierra Leone Alliance. Jericho Road Ministries is establishing a commitment to overseas missions through the Global Health Outreach Initiative. We believe that all people are created in the image of God and as such, have a basic right to be healthy and whole. For the past 16 years, we have worked in Buffalo, New York, among the most poor and vulnerable in an effort to show the compassion of Jesus, advocate for justice in our health care system, and see various communities transformed physically, emotionally, socially and spiritually. Through our work with refugees from more than 30 countries, we have a passion to extend our work abroad. The first place is Sierra Leone, Africa. Sierra Leone (SL) has a great need for primary medical care. This country ranks close to last in most health care indicators as measured by the World Health Organization. Men, women, and children die every day from preventable and curable diseases and conditions including: malaria, tuberculosis, high blood pressure, measles, diarrhea, heart disease, 24 and diabetes. The life expectancy in SL is only 40 years old as compared to nearly 80 years in the US. Jericho Road believes that this mission of bringing medical care to SL will bring hope where there is little, healing where there is sickness, and peace where there is unrest. This mission is about more than providing much needed and life-saving medical care, it’s also about empowering communities to make healthy changes, educating individuals on disease prevention, and seeing lives transformed with the good news of the gospel. Matthew 9:35 (NIV) says, “Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness.” Jesus would often care for the physical needs of people and then address the spiritual needs. We plan on emulating Jesus and His model of caring for people’s medical and spiritual needs as we proceed with our ministry project. 25 Sierra Leone Alliance Sierra Leone Alliance Let Them LOL One Month to Make a Difference By Kate Vacanti By Mike Hopkins Let them LOL exists because many people in the world today are experiencing unjust suffering and lack the most basic resources. We empower communities through sustainable community development. Let them LOL focuses on providing clean water and helping impoverished children. As followers of Jesus, our leadership team is compelled by His great love to serve others, giving them an opportunity to see the gospel in action. We are amazed time and again how He has used His people to be a part of His restoring of all things. One such example is a young orphan named Justin. When our team first met Justin, he was around four years old, and a street child. Justin has febrile seizures and his village thought he was cursed, so he was an outcast. We believe he had one such seizure while sleeping near a fire as he has lost his toes on one foot and has a lot of scarring. When we first brought him to the home, Justin barely spoke a word. After a year of being in a safe home environment, receiving three meals a day, education and the love of a family, Justin is thriving. He now speaks in full sentences and keeps the house filled with his boisterous energy. We thank God for the precious, wonderful opportunity to be His hands and heart to children like Justin and the communities we are able to touch in Sierra Leone. Global Outreach Mission By Brian Albrecht, President, Global Outreach Mission On one of my earliest trips to Sierra Leone something happened that will forever stay in my memory. We were on a trail that opened to a large field where children were playing. The national pastor explained that no one was caring for the orphaned children in his community. As we drew closer, the children surrounded us. Our short-term medical team determined that 70% of these children suffered from scabies and other water-related diseases. Our drilling equipment was brought to the site and a water well was gifted to the community. There was a significant improvement—within one year, the number of sick children at that site was less than 20%! Women in impoverished countries spend an estimated 40 billion hours annually walking many miles to collect water. 26 A billion human beings suffer in this cycle of poverty. Thousands of children under five die weekly due to unsafe water. Much of the global disease burden can be prevented by improving the water supply. Something must be done… and by God’s grace we are having a major impact in Sierra Leone. Our goal was to dig 100 clean water wells. To date, with the aid of partners, we have completed 88 wells. In these villages, women line up waiting to scoop their daily water from a muddy hole. Goats and other animals drink from that water; squalor exists everywhere. Your heart would break as mine does every time I see it. People like you make it possible for us to bring clean water to precious people living in poverty. I thank God for this opportunity to share the gospel so people will not be spiritually thirsty as well. I thank God for the people who have come to Christ and churches that have been started as a result of Global’s water drilling. Sierra Leone is one of the most impoverished countries in the world. With poor nutrition, contaminated water, and very little access to health care, the average life expectancy is 47 years old. More than one quarter of all children die before their fifth birthday. When days’ work is available, the pay is just over $1.80. We were blessed to connect with LOL’s Hope’s Rising Children’s Home and staff. While there, we were coaching staff, teaching and praying with the children, worshipping with them all, and most importantly, hugging and telling them how important they are to God. We also connected with the local community through churches, and schools. We reached other communities by servicing water wells and sharing the love of God in the message of Christ. We also negotiated a land donation from a large village. We were able to share the gospel of Christ and see many come to faith in a Muslim community. This month-long ministry trip included our entire family, Mike, Kristen, Will (16), Jack (14), Luke (12), and Mikey (10). We travelled with Jason and Jessica Pappas from The Chapel at CrossPoint. Every Child Caring for the Defenseless Within Our Reach By John Camardo Chapel Ministries Completing the Task A Changed Heart An April Haiti Team Opportunity By John DeLuca Ministry trips are for missionaries, right? So, what was I doing riding this hot, noisy bus to the Mission of Hope compound in Titanyen, Haiti… I am not a missionary… and who was I trying to kid? Months before at The Chapel, there was a call to join in a ministry trip to Haiti. I had always supported such trips with money and prayers but this opportunity would allow me to really participate on mission… so I was all in. Weeks of preparation and fund raising culminated in my first trip to Haiti and my first ministry trip. The long and the short of this unforgettable moment with God and His children is the tangible reward of helping the local Haitians with my physical labor, the personal reward of building strong relationships with my team members and the spiritual reward of growing closer God, becoming a stronger and more humble Christian. I remain, to this very day, frozen in awe at the dedication and spiritual commitment of the staff at Mission of Hope. Poverty and illness prevail among the poor in Haiti, yet the staff members at Mission of Hope live and serve to make small but incremental improvements in the lives of thousands of Haitians every day. Certainly, the labor spent helping the Haitians in the Village of Leveque build housing for displaced Haitians left an indelible mark on my soul. However, walking the Village of Leveque and speaking with these lovely people on their front porches about their lives and how Christ serves to sustain them was the one “God Thing” that is burnt most deeply into my heart. I remain completely humbled by their strong faith and trust in God. Going into this ministry trip I had hoped that I would leave with a greater understanding of the position of the Church in Haiti and the role of missionaries that serve them. The Lord had a different agenda for me. What I left with is a changed heart. A heart more open to trusting and believing in God—trusting and believing that His Son, Jesus, truly saved our souls by His death and resurrection, and that He loves and guards each and every one of His children. Even though the people there had nothing materially speaking, they have the richness of a deep belief that Jesus loves them and will provide for them. This was my “take-away” from my ministry trip to Haiti. And yes, I feel I “took away” way more from my trip to Haiti than I most likely “left behind.” to provide respite care (overnight care for children already in the foster care system) in order to better assess what their family was able to do to care for children who were entering the foster care system. After more than six months of providing respite care for a number of other foster families, they were called with an opportunity to have a more permanent placement of foster children. The foster care system makes every effort to keep siblings together, so they were presented with a unique opportunity. A large sibling group was being placed and the county was unable to find a home that could take them all. The hope was to place all of the children with Every Child families as it would allow for the children to maintain a connection through the church – a huge win compared to separating them between three or four homes with no connection! Ultimately, the Vaillancourt family took in three of the children (one of which has special needs) while the other children from the sibling group were placed with another Every Child family. Because of this connection, these children are in a safe, loving home environment where not only are their needs being met but also they are given the opportunity to heal, grow and develop in a faith-saturated environment. We are thankful that the Vaillancourt family was willing to respond to what God called them to do, and they are just one example of families in the Church of Buffalo who are responding to the need! The Vaillancourt family has been an incredible example of ‘caring for the defenseless’ in our community as foster parents partnered through the Every Child ministry. Phil and Kim (along with their children, Ryan and Hailey) had felt a prompting on their hearts to consider fostering even before the Every Child ministry had been launched in 2012. They were certified through our partner, Gateway-Longview, and had decided Although not everyone will be able to bring a child into their home, we are all called to do something to care for the defenseless (James 1:27). The Every Child ministry is all about making it as easy as possible for the Church to respond to this calling… get involved! For more information on Every Child, log on to every-child.com/getinvolved. 31 MOVI Moments in Haiti By Kristen George In the summer of 2013, 11 leaders and 32 high school students spent an incredible week in Bercy, Haiti to join Mission of Hope, Haiti. The trip allowed participants to share and see faith in a very authentic way. The week included painting, tilling, skits, songs, soccer games, worshiping together, and more than a few tarantulas. Throughout the week, the group saw how several months of training had paid off as students shared the gospel, prayed with Haitians, and formed friendships with people who often feel forgotten. During “village time,” students went out in small groups with a translator and talked to Haitians while helping them with laundry, sharing the gospel through Evangecubes (a seven-picture cube depicting the gospel message), and offering prayers for farmers who had not seen adequate rain in a long time. All week God was speaking to and through the students, and the spiritual growth that each person experienced was different. One thing that was incredible to see was the impact that Mission of Hope, Haiti is having in several communities. All of this was started by two couples who were obedient to God’s call to abandon their comfortable American lives and follow Him. As we heard the story of how Mission of Hope started, I found myself asking two questions: If God called me somewhere to serve in a life-long ministry far from familiar comforts, would I go? And, if He did, would my current busy lifestyle and lackluster devotional time even allow me to hear that call? After seeing how the obedience of just a few has multiplied into a thriving ministry that is changing a nation, I came home with a realigned set of priorities, and a renewed excitement to spend time with Him regularly. Although this trip impacted each participant in varying ways, one of the most pivotal moments from the trip came as several students stood together down the street after an encounter with a voodoo priest and his family. The students wept for the man’s family, for his lack of faith, for his sick daughter, and for a hardened heart that was not ready to accept the gospel. However, as leaders, we took a few minutes to remind students that this situation is not just happening in Haiti, but at home, in their families, schools and neighborhoods. There are people all around us who need to know Jesus and His love, and every part of this experience prepared and empowered students to share their faith with others, no matter where they are. Our hope is that these students will continue to be burdened by the physical and spiritual needs of others, and that they will continue to be courageous to act in service to God and His people. William Carey ‘The Father of Modern Missions’ on his secret: “I can plod. I can persevere in any definite pursuit. To this I owe everything.” resources & stewardship Why Give to Kingdom Come? By Daryl Largis, Co-Pastor for Mission Advancement Yours, O LORD, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendor, for everything in heaven and earth is yours. Yours, O LORD, is the kingdom; you are exalted as head over all. Wealth and honor come from you; you are the ruler of all things. In your hands are strength and power to exalt and give strength to all. 1 Chronicles 29:11-12 acknowledges the fact that God owns everything and we are merely stewards of that which He has given us. For you see, God has always been concerned with how we view, handle and manage our money. It was true in the times of King David and it was true nearly 100 years ago as articulated by author David McConaughy in Money, the Acid Test: “Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much. So if you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you with true riches? And if you have not been trustworthy with someone else’s property, who will give you property of your own?” Luke 16:10-12 This is King David’s prayer of praise after the overwhelming generosity demonstrated by the people of Israel to fund the building of the temple. He goes on to say in verse 14, “But who am I, and who are my people, that we should be able to give as generously as this? Everything comes from you, and we have given you only what comes from your hand.” David had a keen sense of who owned everything. He echoed this understanding in Psalms as well, as he wrote under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, “The earth is the LORD’S, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it.” Psalm 24:1 Money, most common of temporal things, involves uncommon and eternal consequences. Even though it may be done quite unconsciously, money molds people—in the process of getting it, of saving it, of using it, of giving it, of accounting for it. Depending upon how it is handled, it proves a blessing or a curse to its possessor; either the person becomes master of the money, or the money becomes master of the person. Our Lord takes money, the thing that, essential though it is to our common life, sometimes seems so sordid, and he makes it a touchstone to test the lives of people and an instrument for molding them into the likeness of himself. So, there are ramifications in the present as it relates to what we do with God’s money and there are eternal ones as well. It is wise for us to understand that how we handle money has eternal consequences. So it is clear that King David understood ownership— more precisely, who owned everything. As king he alone could, if anyone could, lay claim to owning something, but he did not. This concept of ownership is vital for us today to fully understand. If we miss who owns it all, we will never understand true generosity, nor will we understand the generous nature of God. God does own it all, but yet He allows us to be stewards of His creation. In fact, He expects us to be good stewards of His creation which includes not only nature but also everything in it, including money and other resources. So, as it relates to money some have the courage to ask, “God, what do you want me to do with my money?” I certainly applaud the effort but the perspective of ownership in this approach is not as it should be. The question we should muster the courage to ask and answer on a continual basis is, “God, what do you want me to do with your money?” This is a much better question to ask and answer given it 34 So, there is a purpose to why God is so aware of how we manage our resources, our time and our money. How and what we do proves our allegiances. Our decisions and motivations prove beyond doubt our faith and in what or in whom we place our trust. Money in and of itself is neutral but it proves to be a very effective test every time we think about it, make decisions with it, spend it or give it. How we use it determines the good or bad done with it. In a sense, our hearts, our passions and our desires determine the outcome as it relates to our money. Essentially it comes down to the question of can we be trusted. Can God trust us with money? For if we can be found trustworthy with money whether a little or a lot, according to Scripture God will give us additional things of more value which is ultimately for His glory, His purposes and our benefit. Most understand that God has a purpose in and for our lives, but fewer comprehend that money proves very effective in shaping us more and more into who He desires us to be. “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.” Matthew 6:19-20 We are commanded by Jesus to invest in heaven. How do we do that? Well, one of the most effective ways is to invest our resources, our time, and our money in the things consistent with the purposes of God in this world today which flow from His heart. He is on mission to reconcile all of creation back to Himself through Christ, and as Christ-followers we should be investing in activity that is supportive of this mission. We should give not from compulsion or even obligation but from a grateful heart. We don’t have to give because we get to give. The position of our hearts is the key given there is a simple relationship between our heart and our money. Where we sacrificially spend our money is where our hearts will be, our loyalties will lay and our allegiances will form. Jesus, the Son of God, knew this and stated, “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:21). We as Americans have much when compared to the rest of the world. We may have less than our immediate neighbor but for the most part we are considered not only well-to-do but also rich in the eyes of the majority of the people living on this planet. As such, I believe much is expected from us as it relates to how we financially support the work of God in this world. We should be the most generous because we have been given the most. So, as you consider your finances and your ability to give. Please ask God, “What would you like for me to do with your money?” Have the courage then to answer that question and begin to take steps, even small ones, that over time will enable you and your family to live life abundantly through generosity as you and I, and hopefully all of God’s people, resource His mission in this world. I close this article by saying that giving to Kingdom Come, while not the only way to express our commitment to what God is doing in this world, is a great way to demonstrate it. Kingdom Come continues to be a powerful force that God is using on behalf of The Chapel to further His mission here in Western New York, in this nation and in this world. We, as people who call The Chapel home, have a unique opportunity to declare in our lives the true ownership of our wealth by being generous. May God speak and work in unique ways in your life and mine as we answer the question, “God, what would You have me do with Your money?” while reflecting upon the following passages of Scripture: “One man gives freely, yet gains even more; another withholds unduly, but comes to poverty. A generous man will prosper, he who refreshes others will himself be refreshed.” Proverbs 11:24-25 “Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life.” 1 Timothy 6:17-19 35 Christ Together Completing the Task in the United States of America Great things are happening through the Christ Together network of churches. One of our nation’s hotspots is in the Greater Austin, Texas area. ON MISSION was delighted to sit down and chat (via email) with Tim Hawks, Lead Pastor of Hill Country Bible Church and Christ Together Directional Team Member, about what is happening there. Please pull up a chair and join us at the table. plant 25 churches in the Greater Austin area. OM: How did Christ Together begin, and what drew you to become a key member of their Directional Team? Tim Hawks On Mission: Please share with us a little bit about your own grace story and how God brought you into ministry at Hill Country Bible Church. Tim Hawks: I was raised in a Christian home in the Midwest and came to faith as a child. In college, I tried to run from my heritage and faith by raising intellectual arguments about the truth of the Bible. Studying philosophy and other religions became an excuse for me to run from God. However, the more I tried to disprove the Bible, the more compelling evidence I found to prove its reliability. After a time, I was convinced and convicted that God’s Word is true and the person of Jesus is real. I then surrendered my life to get the message of the gospel to as many people as possible. After college, I went to seminary, where I met my wife. Upon graduation, we planted a church in Ruston, Louisiana, and watched it grow from infancy to a vibrant congregation. God called us to leave Ruston and go back to Texas, where I became the pastor of a small, recently planted church. That was twenty-four years ago. God has blessed us with four grown children. He has been faithful to allow us to partner with the people of Hill Country Bible Church to experience a thriving ministry and 36 Tim: The Spirit of God is moving in key cities throughout the U.S. Pastor Jerry Gillis and I were introduced to each other several years ago and immediately became friends. We have the same vision for saturating our cities with the gospel by mobilizing believers for kingdom work. Though our partnership didn’t initially materialize, we blessed and encouraged each other to pursue our calling and learn from one another. Later, Pastor Jerry met Scott Chapman, pastor of The Chapel in Chicago. Pastor Scott was also sensing the leading of the Spirit to purse the same calling. Pastor Jerry invited me to join them, and the three of us—along with many other pastors—formed Christ Together. OM: I understand there has been quite a bit of activity in the Austin area with Christ Together. How is this influencing/shaping your context relationally with other local churches and in reaching every man, woman and child in the greater Austin area with repeated opportunities to hear, see and respond to the gospel of Jesus Christ? Tim: Four years ago, a group of 10 pastors came together to pray over our city. We repented of our isolation and committed to work together to reach every man, woman and child in Greater Austin with the gospel in our lifetime. Since that time, we have gathered over 300 churches that are working together toward this goal. This fall, we are hosting a Spiritual Awareness campaign called Explore God. It includes an advertising campaign throughout the city challenging people to “explore God.” There is also a website that encourages exploration: exploregod.com. The campaign includes training for people in how to have non-threating spiritual conversation. Our goal is that we will have 400,000 of these conversations during the campaign to make talking about God “normal” for both believers and non-believers. The campaign culminates with a seven-week sermon series around the seven big questions people have about faith, accompanied by discussion groups that allow believers to invite friends, family members and co-workers to have conversations about God. Currently, 310 churches are participating in Explore God. The churches and leaders of our city are part of the Christ Together Network. We are inspired by the work of Christ Together in other cities. We share encouragement, prayer, resources and celebrations with the larger network. We were blessed to host the last regional conference in Austin. The Church of Greater Austin is elated to be part of this larger network. OM: Ryan Kozey, Christ Together Delivery Team Leader, recently shared with me how excited he was about a study he conducted with the Association of Hill Country Churches in Austin on spiritual formation and missional behavior. Has this study helped you? Were there any surprises in the findings? Tim: Recently, we were blessed to have Ryan Kozey come to Austin and administer the study developed by The Chapel at CrossPoint to the churches in our Association. The pastors of our Association gathered together for Ryan to present the findings. As you might guess, we were all a bit nervous about what we might find. Each of the churches had different strengths and weaknesses. We were able to glean best practices from each other that we didn’t even know we had prior to the survey. We discovered that we often think our churches are being effective because people are coming to faith in Jesus. However, we also learned that many, if not most, of our congregations are not personally connecting with their unsaved friends and sharing the good news of the gospel. The survey served to pinpoint areas of discipleship and vision that we were lacking. The graciousness of The Chapel to share resources and people has proven to be invaluable to us in Austin. Tim: God is moving in our nation. As more and more people are claiming “no-religion” in national surveys, pastors are hearing the call of God to join together to re-evangelize the 314 million Americans in our lifetime. I believe the greatest potential for Christ Together is to identify key pastors in the 102 U.S. cities of over 500,000 and envision those pastors to lead networks within their own city. We are promoting a centralized vision with a decentralized network. As we develop this network, people will be informed, receive training, and have accountability to go hard after reaching their area, knowing that others are doing the same. A great God deserves a great effort for the gospel. OM: How can The Chapel family in Western New York best pray for Christ Together? Tim: Pray for the advancement of the gospel, so that every man, woman and child in the United States would have an opportunity to see, hear and respond to the gospel in our lifetime. Pray for the leaders. We need protection for our marriages, our families, our churches and our health from the attacks of Satan. We need unity, wisdom and energy to run hard after this vision together. We need to walk constantly in step with the Holy Spirit. Pray that God would raise up a team of visionary pastors and churches in the 102 U.S. cities with a population of over 500,000. Finally, pray for the needed financial resources for the Christ Together website and the tools we are developing. Thank you for joining us at the table. Please remember to pray for the churches and leaders of Christ Together as we continue to advance the gospel and re-evangelize this nation so that every man, woman and child has repeated opportunities to hear, see and respond to the transforming gospel of Jesus Christ. OM: Moving from Austin to a national scope, where do you see the greatest potential for growth with Christ Together in the US? 37 national partners Cru By Michael Ramos There is an old proverbial rhyme. For want of a nail the shoe was lost. For want of a shoe the horse was lost. For want of a horse the rider was lost. For want of a rider the message was lost. For want of a message the battle was lost. For want of a battle the Kingdom was lost. And all for the want of a horseshoe nail. Three words, the Nail, the Message, and the Kingdom stand out to us. As Nails, Amy and I are missionaries serving as a Human Resource Representative and Global Crisis Director, supporting our Cru staff here in the U.S. and overseas. We support through biblical training and personal development. We support them in risk assessment and planning. We support them by watching for ministry “burn-out” and finding ways to keep them healthy in the field. We support them by communicating the vision and goals of our leadership. Our roles support our Cru staff who are passionately leading people to the truth of the message of the gospel in countries hostile to the gospel and guiding them into the Kingdom. FCA Hockey By Rick Randazzo FCA Hockey is impacting coaches and athletes across the United States and around the world. Over the past year, we have conducted hockey clinics and camps in 15 different states as well as in Turkey. Working with players of all ages, we work to share Jesus in the rinks, schools and locker rooms, meeting coaches and players right where they are at. This past year, we passed out more than 1,750 FCA Hockey New Testament Bibles, had more than 2,000 youth and adult players attend camps and clinics, and ministered to over 150 hockey coaches around the country. Additionally, the Randazzo family completed nine more states on their 50 State, 50 City tour of the US, bringing the total number of states visited to 18 in the past 24 months. The ministry team has also traveled to Erzurum, Turkey three times over the past 12 months to share Jesus with the Turkish people. SEND International By Kent Wilson SEND International’s mission is to mobilize God’s people and engage the unreached in order to establish reproducing churches. SEND focuses its ministries on the unreached—people who don’t have access to the gospel or a church. Our goal is establishing healthy, local churches that send its own people out to reach others. SEND affirms the Marketplace Development Enterprises (MDE) as an essential biblical strategy to mobilize God’s people to engage unreached peoples in order to establish reproducing churches. SEND seeks to advance the expansion of existing MDEs and the formation of new MDEs, from Business as Mission tent-making development activities in legitimate enterprises, led by professionals sharing the gospel and exemplifying the Christian life in the marketplace. We’re recruiting for these opportunities, working with candidates that have expressed a desire to serve the Lord in this capacity including others wishing to evangelize and plant churches in the unreached people groups. “The Apostle Paul did not gather congregations, he planted churches.” –Roland Allen Joe Vacanti Reno U Alumnus I had the privilege of being a part of the Renovation University journey from 2011-12. Over these two years the instructors spent time developing my leadership competencies, and gave me practical and helpful information that I use in leading teams and ministry today. The books I read were very challenging and I loved the group discussion. The spiritual exercises we participated in I have taken and used in our student ministry at The Chapel on student retreats. I forged some great new friendships over the past two years with a band of brothers who are joining with me in completing the task to declare and demonstrate the gospel to all our circles of friendship and ministry domain the Lord has given. Reno U equipped me with new skills, knowledge and experiences that I look forward to passing on to others. The greatest value personally was that Reno U helped us in self-discovery of our strengths, gifts, and our need for personal worship, health, and spiritual formation, so we could more effectively lead others. This process continues to shape me to become a better husband, father, follower and worshiper of Christ. It has helped advance my personal service as a student pastor at The Chapel, worship leader, and my involvement with Let Them LOL. I’m thankful and grateful for the part Reno University played in my life. We ended Reno U with a ceremony where we each committed to each other a resolve to exemplify a disciplined life, to fight the good fight of faith, and pursue that which is true, noble, right, pure, lovely, and excellent. In the background to this commitment “The Dark Knight Rises” soundtrack played as to say, “Have we given everything,” “not everything, not yet.” Jon Cook Renovation University Too often media headlines indicate that ministry leaders today face unprecedented challenges from failing marriages, personal moral lapses, loneliness, exhaustion, frustration in leading others, unrealistic expectations, lack of resources, inability to execute and an incomplete understanding of themselves. These challenges, if not addressed properly, have the potential to corrupt character, ruin careers and adversely impact entire ministries. In March 2011, Global Fellowship, Renovation Institute, and Christ Together (formerly the Renovation Network) set in motion a unique, intentional, and intense learning environment to help change the odds for successful Christian leadership—Renovation University (Reno U) was born. Reno U is designed to strategically 40 equip ministry leaders today so that they will stay strong for tomorrow. The pilot program was comprised of a select group of local and regional pastors who successfully completed their two-year journey in December 2012. They are continuing to see the fruits of Reno U training in their lives and ministries. The new crew began Reno U in March 2013, and again includes a mix of local and regional pastors and leaders, who are dedicated to live, lead and serve well, consistent with the purposes of God. To give you a better snapshot of Reno U, Joe Vacanti (alumnus) and Jon Cook (newcomer), share their thoughts on being a part of this specialized learning environment. Reno U Participant For years now, I have been keenly aware of how valuable it is to receive and seek out wisdom and insight from those who have served in ministry longer than I, and who can, to some degree, shed light on the path that’s ahead of me. Certain individuals have significantly shaped who I am and how I approach ministry because they took time to invest in me and impart the wisdom that they have attained through their journey. So, when I was approached about participating in the Reno U program, I eagerly signed on. Reno U’s stated goal is “to equip and empower the next generation of ministry leadership to live, lead, and serve well, consistent with the purposes and designs of God.” How could I not be excited for this kind of intentional investment into my life? For the past several months, Reno U has been challenging my thought processes and allowing me to work out my viewpoints amongst a group of incredible guys who are co-laborers in ministry, many who come to the group with different backgrounds, different viewpoints, and some who serve in some very different contexts. These discussions have certainly stretched my understanding of what it means to lead in ministry, and have placed an increased challenge on my heart to evaluate how I am living out the gospel in my own context. Having access to a guy like Dwight Smith, who has decades of wisdom and experience in ministry, and who has been all over the world watching and caring for the Church as it grows and expands, is a rare opportunity. Having the chance to sit in such a focused group under the wise teachings of Jerry Gillis, Daryl Largis, and Deone Drake, and not just to be lectured at, but to be stretched and challenged to fully understand who I am, what God has called me to do, and what it looks like when I’m allowing God to do these things through me; this process has already impacted me greatly. As I continue through the journey with Reno U, I am excited to see how God will continue to use it as a tool to shape and mold me, and I’m excited to see how I, and all of the men who walk through this process, will step out of the other side more equipped and able to accomplish the mission set before us. 41 Regional partners New York City: Reaching Every Man, Woman and Child—A God-Sized Task New York City is the quintessential melting pot of every man, woman and child with an unprecedented diversity of people groups, ethnicities, cultures, and faith communities. Laying the groundwork, setting down roots, and establishing trustworthy relationships to introduce and implement Renovation principles with like-minded pastors and churches, is no small task by any measure. However, God is faithful and He opens doors as none other is able. Vision New York is walking through these doors as opportunities are provided. So grab a cup of coffee and join us for a bite of the Big Apple as we chat with Jim Hines, founder and director of Vision New York, about what God is accomplishing through this key ministry. On Mission: Where do you see God at work the most through Vision New York? Jim Hines: God’s activity is clearly evident in the relational aspect of Vision New York. One of the most important things I do is connecting with leaders throughout the city to hear about what God is doing in their ministries, to hear about how they are developing personally, to unpack Renovation principles with them, and to seek strategic ways to partner with them in prayer. Many of the leaders in this city are young and it has been a blessing to be able to come along side of them as a friend and partner in the gospel. God has been gracious to open doors that have allowed me to build friendships and relationships over time that are leading to a level of credibility that does not come easy in this place. In order to have influence with men in the city, you must be willing to invest in them long term and be patient as God does His work. OM: What are the most significant changes you have seen in your circle of influence since launching Vision New York in 2010? JH: As Vision New York has developed over the past few years, I have been learning that there are clear seasons of activity and rhythms associated with the city. Unlike anyplace I have lived before, the time demands of the city put tremendous pressures on ministry leaders at various times throughout the year. During these seasons it is difficult to find time to effectively connect face to face. Since these personal connections are critical to what we do, this reality has caused me to be more strategic in electronic, phone and social media communication in an effort to maintain relationships so there is not a loss of momentum when the seasons slow down and face-to-face connections are possible again. OM: How is Renovation training currently influencing leaders and communities in NYC? JH: Last year we finished our first full Renovation Session with a group of leaders on Long Island. In partnership with those leaders, we are looking to start a second session in the early part of 2014 as we pray that God provides another group of men to walk through it together. We are also currently seeking a core group of men in Manhattan and Queens to start a Reno session in each of those boroughs. In addition to the formal trainings, there is a good deal of Renovation envisioning that takes place as we meet one on one with men around the Metro area. Life Transforming Ministries The Rock Community Church By Dolph Paterno By Dave Brunelle As a group of pastors in Downingtown and West Chester, we are working to equip the saints for the work of ministry (Ephesians 4:12, NKJV) by producing a video training series. This series will be viewed by small groups comprised of church members from multiple congregations who live in the same geographic area. They will use the training as a way to build relationships with each other, and to pray and discuss how they may be more effective at reaching their neighbors together. In Coatesville, the pastors are focusing on united prayer events for anyone in the town to come together to pray for the city. In Phoenixville, the pastors are planning a citywide event in order to re-establish the Church’s presence in that town. All of these things are being done so that every man, woman, and child has repeated opportunities to hear, see, and respond to the gospel of Jesus Christ. Through a Kingdom-minded partnership between Greater Cleveland Youth for Christ and The Rock Community Church, Michael and Melissa Peters are reaching High School students and at risk youth in Garfield Heights, Ohio, a first ring suburb of Cleveland. Through partnering with area churches, discussion groups, outreach events, weekly meetings, and one-on-one mentoring, they are part of a team of people dedicated to bringing the gospel to every man, woman, and child in our city. In an effort to truly make disciples of young people, they also lead a high commitment discipleship study in their home. Bringing students many with very difficult home lives into their home and ministering to them as a family has touched many young people with a healthy family life and connected them to an extended spiritual family. Through the lives of one young person at a time, Michael and Melissa are completing the task. OM: Jim, any final thoughts? JH: We at Vision New York are so thankful for the friendship and partnership of The Chapel as we pursue the common vision of presenting the gospel to every man, woman and child in the New York Metro Area. Our regional population is estimated to be 23-25 million people and that population has amazing ethnic, religious and socioeconomic diversity. This is a God-sized task and we are blessed to be walking this road with you! 43 Kids With Cameras Through Our Eyes To better introduce this new initiative through the XCEL Leadership Center, On Mission offered a contest to this group of budding young photojournalists. The entries were outstanding and proved difficult to choose just one as a winner. On Mission is pleased to announce this year’s first place winner: Brett Gomez (age 9). In his own words and through the lens of his camera, here is a view of Brett’s world. There have been lots of good changes in my life this year. I joined XCELr8 Afterschool in January. I began Kids With Cameras in February. XCEL Leadership Center I was excited about this new adventure of meeting every Friday for six months. We learned each part of the camera and how to use them. We kept journals to record what we learned. It was awesome when we finally got our cameras and started taking pictures! Guest photographers visited us, other times we went on field trips to take pictures. Being with new friends, going to new places, and learning to tell stories with my pictures was great! I really love nature and I find beauty in the things that God made for us in the world. When I focused on those things through the camera lens, they (God’s creations) became even more amazing. Colorful flowers, drops of water on leaves or an old tree with twisted branches became something more, to me. Taking pictures became a way for me to communicate to others how happy I feel about the amazing things that God gives all of us. Kids With Cameras gave me a chance to show I can be mature. I was responsible for an expensive camera. I learned how to work as a team with the other kids. I even learned how to plan and organize a big event. But the best thing was learning how to tell the story of God that is in my heart through the pictures I take. Kids with Cameras By Toni Benjamin At the XCEL Leadership Center, we are guided by a simple fact: As long as you are going anywhere, deciding anything, influencing anyone: you are LEADING. We are committed to the mission of creating a community of leaders who are being educated, equipped and empowered towards leading their own lives well and with purpose. We’ve spent another year cultivating and developing a community of inspired leaders who are transforming their lives in five key areas: spiritual, academic, social, physical and financial. This past year alone, over 65 volunteers and mentors have partners with us to cultivate personal leadership in over 275 student and family partners that have connected to XCEL Leadership Center. What a joy it has been to help dozens of new families take their next steps in their personal journey towards faith in Christ Jesus. We are also pleased to introduce Kids With Cameras: Through Our Eyes, a new initiative of the XCEL Leadership Center. Students from all over Erie and Niagara County met with professional photographers and journalism mentors to learn the concepts and components of photography and journalism. Students age 8 to 17 were challenged to find their voice in telling a story through pictures. The students were most surprised by the value and influence of their individual viewpoint. Left page, First place photo by Brett Gomez, age 9; Above, more photos by Brett Gomez We’re excited that a county-wide program, born out of our faith-based community center, will take part in one of the largest art festivals in WNY. The students will have an opportunity to boldly share their faith and how they see their part in the world: through their own eyes. Second Place: Adacelis ‘Ada’ Mendez Third Place: Ny’ Asha Cowart local partners Buffalo City Mission By Kyle Patterson “When I came to the doors of Cornerstone Manor–I just let everything go. I rededicated my life to Christ and that was the best thing that I could have ever done. I knew it was God that directed me here.” –Tyrese, Buffalo City Mission client Since 1917, The Buffalo City Mission has been a non-profit organization for homeless and atrisk men, women, and children in Western New York. Last year we provided 173,000 meals and 83,000 beds to those in need. Besides food and shelter, the Mission provides long-term recovery programs, biblical counseling, work and life-skills training, education, and health care services. Every client who steps through our doors hears how Jesus Christ can and will change their life, if they let Him. Last year alone, more than 150 people accepted Christ as Lord. Through attending daily chapel services, working with supportive case management and qualified chaplains, our clients are repeatedly hearing and seeing the gospel of Jesus Christ. When clients meet Christ and commit to serving Him as their Lord, their lives are never the same. Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new 2Corinthians 5:17KJV. Lonnie, another client said, “I am thankful to God for allowing me another chance to get my life right.” Upon graduating our programs, our clients are working on completing their education and finding a career job that supports permanent housing and puts poverty in the rear view mirror. 46 local partners Isaiah 61 Project By Jim Haid From the outset, the Isaiah 61 Project has been all about reclaiming a city (Niagara Falls, USA) one home, one family, one person at a time. Recently I had the opportunity, the privilege, to sit down with one of our students, whom I shall call “Luke” and hear more of his story. Luke was born and raised in Niagara Falls, mostly by his grandparents. At age 12, he was baptized at a local Baptist church. By his mid-twenties, he had walked away from the Lord and began walking a much more Satan-directed path. By his late twenties he found himself in prison, where he remained for the next 13 years. While in prison, he had the opportunity to reflect on his life, what he had done, and his relationship with the God he loved as a youth. While incarcerated, he involved himself in Collins Christian Ministries where, on one particular weekend, he rededicated himself to the Lord. Upon release in 2011, Luke found himself isolated from family, friends, neighbors, and the community. Because of his history, he was unable to find employment. His parole officer told him about the Isaiah 61 Project—he quickly enrolled. He felt that God was speaking to him through his parole officer about a new lease on life and a deeper walk with the Lord. Luke states that he was “looking for something like this for a while. I thank God for the opportunity. It is putting something back in my life… MEANING.” Now that Luke has completed the job training program, he plans to go on to become a licensed electrician. And with regard to his walk with God, not only is he attending church but he has also requested to participate in a discipleship program at Destination Life Fellowship, one of our church partners. SonRays Ministries Broadway Hope By Scott Steger By Cheri Henry Birthfather came from a strong religious background, knowing that abortion was the wrong choice to make when faced with an unplanned pregnancy. His very strong opinions shook birthmother emotionally. When they first came to SonRays Ministries for help, she was a very frightened young woman. They each met separately with a SonRays staff member and felt comfortable talking freely about their personal thoughts and plans. Birthmother was willing to consider adoption, but really wanted to parent her daughter. Birthfather felt very strongly that adoption was the best option for them. Through SonRays support, he was able to work through his feelings of anger and fear, knowing they were caused by his fear of his parents finding out about the pregnancy, and the thought that their pregnancy would be too much for his parents to bear, because his sister was also pregnant and unmarried. As the time to make a decision closed in, we gave them free Christian childbirth classes, but they did not come back for more help. We recently received this letter, and news that Birthmother is now able to be a stay-at-home mom and enroll in online college classes, from them: This is a very delayed letter and thank you. I can’t even begin to put into words how thankful we are for all of your love and support. The past year and a half have gone by way too quick. The last time I was in contact with you was when I was in labor…. Everything about my birthing experience was amazing. Our daughter is 16 months old now and she is the biggest joy. Birthfather and I are doing wonderful. He proposed to me and we are getting married… We are very excited and blessed with everything God has given us. Our love for each other grows more and more every day, and I couldn’t be happier. Before Broadway Hope opened in 2009, we thought that if God used all our efforts for the salvation of one soul, then it would be all worthwhile. Now, four years and many decisions for Christ later, we hope and pray that the task of demonstrating the love of Jesus Christ in this natural environment will continue until Christ’s return. Leading up to this task have been and will continue to be countless smaller tasks that God works through. One specific task that God is enabling us to complete, that has been not only a huge physical project, but also a spiritual one, is the engineering and construction of a 106’ rope bridge. In the process, God has planted seeds and opened hearts, continuing to reveal His love to many who have not yet embraced Him. It has been and will be amazing to see God working and preparing hearts for the coming of His kingdom. 47 local partners Buffalo Christian Center By Jim Swearingen The Buffalo Christian Center (BCC) is a 65,000 sq. ft. youth center focused on the Great Commission. Our focused ministries on youth (Teen MOPS and Merge youth nights) shared the gospel with more than 300 inner city youth. Over 300 more youth heard the gospel through our Bills Night Out event Campus Ambassadors By Paul Decker local partners with Athletes in Action. We also started up smaller discipleship groups with youth and a summer Job Training and Career Exploration program. I believe the biggest need in our inner city communities is indigenous leadership. Erica Hernandez King, came to the BCC to volunteer. She was inexperienced and fearful of sharing the gospel or speaking to a large group. This past year saw her overcome these fears, and she is now sharing her grace story, teaching large groups, designing and leading a small group Bible study and heading up (with her husband) the summer job training program. A true leader! CA is a “baptizing” ministry. We encourage our students to demonstrate their faith and commitment to follow Jesus. This past year, several of our students were baptized at NorthGate Community Church, The Chapel, or Camp Pinnacle. It is with particular excitement we enter into the 2013-2014 academic year, as our leadership team is the strongest ever and has a homegrown feel. In Campus Ambassadors (CA), we take the privilege of “making disciples” seriously. CA is a “teaching” ministry. Every person on our leadership team is being mentored in a small group setting or in a one-on-one discipleship relationship. This way, they fully catch our vision to see the Great Commission fulfilled. A is a “going” ministry. We go to and exist on C the campus of the University at Buffalo. Several on our leadership team are followers of Jesus who were first introduced to Him on this campus. We are excited because these students are determined to make a difference for Jesus on the UB campus! Christian Central Academy By Denise Jentz The senior class at Christian Central Academy (CCA) traveled to the Dominican Republic for their annual ministry trip. The students go with expectations of changing the lives of the Dominican people by sharing the love of Christ, ministering to their physical needs, and assisting with small building City Vision By KJ Swearingen One way City Vision strengthens the Church is by developing urban home churches, which reach out to the lost and serve in the community. Home churches focus on evangelism to the unchurched, community life, and leadership development through personal, relational discipleship. Rod and Meghan McCallum Cross Training Football By Mike Masters Cross Training Football’s Character Playbook, “PATH TO VICTORY,” touched many campuses across Western New York. Because of relationships built throughout the school year, 80 athletes attended CTF‘s Impact summer camp, 18 young men received Christ, and more than 40 athletes stood to recommit Destination Life Fellowship By Mark Perkins projects. The students prepare for this trip daily during school and come back realizing that they are the ones who are greatly impacted on very personal levels. While staying at the SCORE complex, the class found themselves forming unique bonds with one another and developing a stronger confidence in God. As the students ministered to the poor and to the orphans of the villages, they discovered a deeper faith in Jesus. This trip to the Dominican Republic is one way that CCA continually provides opportunities for our students to live out our mission statement: Where all may “grow in wisdom, in stature, and in favor with God and man” (Luke 2:52 NIV). The Williams family came to the Destination Life Fellowship Compassion Ministry over a year ago in need for their family of five. We connected on a personal level and they felt comfortable returning. Over the past year while we have continued to meet Good News Jail & Prison Ministry By Chaplain Alex True “There are seven things God hates! Did you know that Chaplain? I read that in the Bible you gave me.” helped start Antioch Home Church, a ministry of City Vision. They had tried previously to start a small group in their home but without vision and experience, the McCallum’s group quickly faded away. Today, the McCallum’s have become home church leaders, hosting meetings, teaching, discipling, and sharing the love of Christ with the lost. Rod recalls, “We were eager to be discipled in Christ and to learn the fundamentals of ‘doing’ home church. We had no idea how fulfilling and wonderful it would be to see others come to Christ and to ‘be’ the Body of Christ in the home church context until we experienced it.” their lives to Christ. The Heart of a Champion Radio program on WDCX completed its first year opening new doors this fall. After one radio interview, we were able to pray with a coach to receive Christ. Five years ago this individual would not listen to our character talks, and now he proclaims to every coach in his school district that CTF has made him a better husband, dad, teacher and coach. CTF University began this year. Seventeen athletes received discipleship in Christ and football skills. Nine of those athletes prayed to invite Christ into their hearts. This year’s playbook is “ANSWER THE CALL”. Thank you for helping us advance the Kingdom! physical needs, more importantly we have been meeting spiritual needs. Gary and Mary have told us that since coming to Destination Life Fellowship things have greatly improved in their marriage and with the family. In April 2013, Gary Jr. gave his life to Christ and we had the opportunity to baptize him and his mother. It is wonderful to see how God is working in the Williams family and how He has used us to show them His love and good news of redemption and restoration. That’s what an inmate said recently. Tears filled his eyes as he continued, “There are seven things God hates, and you know what? My name is not on that list. For years I thought I wasn’t good enough for God, that God wanted nothing to do with me. Now I know better.” That is the kind of impact that God makes through Good News Jail & Prison Ministry each and every day. Your prayers and partnership are vital and very much appreciated. God bless you and thank you for your support. 49 local partners Heritage Christian Services By Marisa Geitner Each year, Heritage Christian Services sends volunteers to Guatemala so individuals with disabilities who live in institutions can attend a week-long retreat. This is often the only opportunity these individuals have to experience a holiday. One of the highlights of this year’s trip was a field trip to a park at the foot of a volcano. The counselors International Students, Inc. By Don Manta Praise God, He never gives up! We recently had a visit from our first international friend in Buffalo (fall 2003)—Long from Vietnam. After spending countless hours in our home, and in Bible study, Long left Buffalo seven years ago to become a professor in Arkansas (still an unbeliever). We continued to pray for Long InterVarsity Christian Fellowship By Bahati Thambikeni InterVarsity Christian Fellowship is on the UB campus with a vision to see lives transformed through a relationship with Jesus Christ, world changers developed, and our campus renewed. local partners arranged team games for everyone. We had a picnic lunch followed by horseback riding available to all who wanted to mount up. This was accomplished with the assistance of the counselors who seemed to have boundless energy. If the riders were able to balance themselves, they rode solo, with the caretaker leading the horse. Those who needed more support had a counselor ride with them. Blankets were spread on the ground and many campers got out of their wheelchairs and rested on the blankets in the sun or shade. It was a relaxing afternoon for everyone. We are truly grateful for the support of Kingdom Come. Thank you! Lockport Care Net Pregnancy Center By Cindra Enzinna In our broken world, life is as fragile as a baby’s breath. We know that every unborn baby is a unique being from the time of conception and is a miracle created Lockport Cares By Toby Mansfield and his wife, Van. Don visited the couple five years ago and prayed with them, “God, reveal yourself to them.” God did just that. Van explained that through a difficult delivery of their first child (almost a year ago), she turned to God asking for help and healing for their new baby. God answered powerfully, and now Van believes in God and Long has “a heart to believe God.” A powerful example of why we should never give up praying for people to come to faith in Christ. We will begin a weekly Bible study via Skype with this precious couple to help them understand who this God is who loves them so much. UNBOUND was an event done as part of our New Student Outreach (NSO), which is one of the ways we share the gospel. We centered our NSO on the theme of human trafficking. It was a great opportunity to raise awareness and to share with people God’s desire for justice. The meeting included a presentation by iOppose, dramatic videos, and a closing message from Adam Jeske, who tied human trafficking to the need of salvation through Jesus. More than 70 people attended, many commented on their changed perspective on the issue and several people committed their lives to Christ, or were interested in learning more. We raised money for the cause and had a follow-up action week. All in all God touched many hearts! Lockport CARES Community Action Emergency Shelter is working to break the cycle of homelessness. God’s plan was for us to purchase 188 Genesee Street, through donations by churches like The Chapel, for a new transitional house. The house was condemned when we acquired it and we didn’t have the manpower Niagara Gospel Rescue Mission By Shaun Smith Our ministry was initially called by the Lord in 2006 to re-establish a true gospel rescue mission in Niagara Falls, an often overlooked and struggling city within Western New York. Our dual purpose is to both minister the gospel of Jesus Christ to all who are led to our doorsteps, and by God. Every day thousands of women are faced with a choice, believing abortion is their only solution. They feel unloved and alone, facing the hardest choice they will ever face. We lovingly listen, tenderly tell the truth and point them toward the love of Jesus Christ. He has called each of us at the Center to work with Him to witness and share His love to the people He sends to us. They know that they are not alone–they have support from the body of Christ. At every session we have the opportunity to pray with them and share the gospel, presenting the assurance of hope and a future. necessary to completely recreate the house. God then sent Lockport Habitat for Humanity to become our partner. HFH was able to rewire, re-plumb, and reshape the rooms by March. Paint donations were sent next. Jesus then sent us a former guest of Lockport CARES that scraped the entire outside of the two-story house and REACH painted the outside. The Grand Opening and Church Service Blessing will be Oct 6, 2013. In April 2013, Norman Kahler passed away. God called a great man home that day. To honor him and his family, the transitional house was named The Kahler House. to be an outreach resource for the church, fulfilling God’s call to minister and care for the “least of these.” This ministry is where Christians have directly engaged the poor at a personal level—just as Jesus did! We faithfully preach the gospel to hurting men, women and children daily at mealtimes, 365 days a year. We offer open biblical discipleship, designed for both transient meal and emergency shelter guests, and our men’s “New Life in Christ” program. We are ever grateful to our Lord Jesus Christ for your partnership with us through Kingdom Come. Praise God! 51 local partners Peace of the City Ministries By Diann Takens-Cerbone Recently, Peace of the City gathered teens from around our weary city and mastered Shakespeare for our fifth season. The true work of building a play begins in firing up the lights in their souls as the rehearsal process is a journey of the teen actors’ life “thus far.” Saving Grace Ministries, Inc. By Alyssa Gross Since 2001, Saving Grace Ministries, Inc. has provided a smooth transition to community life for men and women recently released from a correctional facility by providing a highly-structured program based on Christian principles. Saving Grace Ministries has experienced the hand of God in our ministry in amazing ways in 2013. Set Free By Al & Deb Warner “So there was great joy in that city.” Joshua 6:16 and Acts 8:8 (NIV) Since 1997, Set Free has been building bridges for the churches of WNY to come together across racial and denominational lines to transform our region with the gospel. The Chapel partnered with local churches and ministries, such as Set Free, to take unity to a whole new level with Good Friday Together (GFT). 52 local partners Through The Tempest, our teens and staff, and hopefully the audience, will explore the bedrock experience of mercy and it’s bright, beautiful child, forgiveness. Learning to forgive is crucial for all, especially the betrayed and marginalized children of our society. The only young people that we’ve seen truly recover from traumatic youth experiences are those who can grapple with loss, forgiveness, and rehabilitation though the hope and grace of Jesus. In other words, young people who open their hearts to God. Yes! God can and does use Shakespeare some 400 years later to encounter Christ and His transformational goodness and undeniable love. Urban Christian Ministries By Francis Law Our robust, on-the-streets ministry has enabled us to speak and spread the Word to well over 1,500 individuals this summer through programs such as Block Club Basketball (BCB), Kick It To The Curb (street vacation Bible school), Resident Summer Camp, A Grill & A Prayer Events, and Community Days. We are blessed that this has resulted in 20 young people accepting the Lord Jesus Christ as their personal Savior through BCB alone–lives that will now be touched by God. We have been able to determine that streets where we witness subsequently have a lower rate of police calls, thereby achieving our goal of violence prevention as well. In addition, we have created greater awareness of our calling within the city through collaboration with other gospel-based lay ministries to be more effective at the Great Commission. We are out there on the streets making a difference for God and our community. Through the support of a network of donors, we were able to purchase a neighborhood food market that was previously selling liquor and tobacco products in the area where we operate. We will be renovating the store and reopening it as a deli, serving sandwiches and a signature line of baked goods. The deli will offer an opportunity for the men and women we serve to participate in employment training, gaining valuable work experience necessary to become contributing members of our community. We praise God for an amazing year of ministry, and we look forward to seeing what 2014 holds! GFT gathered thousands of believers in the First Niagara Center to lift high one name–Jesus Christ! Black, White, Hispanic, Asian, city, suburbs, male, female, young, old–we looked like the Body of Christ. One of the key Christian leaders whom we disciple remarked, “I am filled with courage to lead more boldly for Christ in City Hall after seeing the thousands of Christians who are behind me!” Thank you, Chapel family, for looking beyond your church to bless what God is doing in our region. It is time for the Church of WNY to arise and shine! He (Jesus) said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation.” Mark 16:15 MINISTRY PARTNER DIRECTORY ABWE Partners PO Box 8585 Harrisburg, PA 17105 717.774.7000 MINISTRY PARTNER DIRECTORY John and Bev Nate and Cherith Logan ABWE: GAP Contact the Kingdom Come office at The Chapel ABWE Brazil Igreja Batista Esperanca (Hope Baptist Church) ibepoa.com Steven & Cari Wendel ABWE Czech Republic wendel.abwe.org BroadwayBroadway Hope Hope Compassion Compassion International International Good News Good JailNews & Prison Jail Ministry & Prison Ministry 6101 Broadway, 6101 Broadway, Lancaster,Lancaster, NY 14086NY 14086 Scott Steger: Scott716.684.5129 Steger: 716.684.5129 broadwayhope.org broadwayhope.org Colorado Colorado Springs, CO Springs, 80997CO 80997 800.336.7676 800.336.7676 compassion.com compassion.com Niagara County NiagaraJail County Jail 5526 Niagara 5526Street Niagara Ext., Street PO Box Ext.,496 PO Box 496 Lockport,Lockport, NY 14095NY 14095 Chaplain Alex Chaplain True:Alex 716.438.3316 True: 716.438.3316 goodnewsjail.org goodnewsjail.org Buffalo Christian Buffalo Christian Center Center Cross Training CrossFootball Training Football 512 Pearl 512 Street, Pearl Buffalo, Street,NY Buffalo, 14202NY 14202 Jim Swearingen: Jim Swearingen: 716.856.7495 716.856.7495 thebcc.org thebcc.org P.O. Box 156 P.O. Box 156 Bowmansville Bowmansville NY 14086NY 14086 Mike Masters: Mike 716.432.5152 Masters: 716.432.5152 crosstrainingfootball.com crosstrainingfootball.com Buffalo City Buffalo Mission City Mission Destination Life Fellowship Life Fellowship 100 E. Tupper 100 E. Street, Tupper Buffalo, Street,NY Buffalo, 14203NY 14203 Destination 1609 22nd 1609 St. 22nd St. Stuart L. Harper: Stuart L.716.854.8181 Harper: 716.854.8181 Niagara Falls, Niagara NY 14305 Falls, NY 14305 buffalocitymission.org buffalocitymission.org Mark Perkins: Mark585.356.2105 Perkins: 585.356.2105 Campus Ambassadors Campus Ambassadors UniversityUniversity at Buffaloat Buffalo Paul Decker Paul 716.912.7339 Decker 716.912.7339 Eagles Wings Eagles Wings PO Box 450 PO Box 450 Clarence, Clarence, NY 14031NY 14031 facebook.com/groups/18062870534352343523 facebook.com/groups/18062870534352343523 Cru Cru 100 Lake 100 HartLake DriveHart Drive Orlando, FL Orlando, 32832 FL 32832 Michael and Michael Amy and Ramos: Amy Ramos: 407.251.9490 407.251.9490 cru.org cru.org Christ Together Christ Together Robert Stearns: Robert716.759.1058 Stearns: 716.759.1058 eagleswings.to eagleswings.to EduNations EduNations PO Box 233 PO Box 233 Ingomar, PA Ingomar, 15127PA 15127 Dean Weaver Dean Weaver edunations.org edunations.org 1200 American 1200 American Way, Libertyville, Way, Libertyville, IL 60048 IL 60048 Fellowship Fellowship of Christian of Christian Ryan Kozey: Ryan 716.631.2636 Kozey: 716.631.2636 Athletes Ice Athletes Hockey Ice Hockey christtogether.com christtogether.com 293 Ransom 293Oaks Ransom Drive Oaks Drive East Amherst, East Amherst, NY 14051NY 14051 Christian Christian Central Academy Central Academy Rick Randazzo: Rick Randazzo: 443.404.1747 443.404.1747 39 Academy 39 Academy Street, Williamsville, Street, Williamsville, NY 14221NY 14221 fcahockey.org fcahockey.org Nurline A.Nurline Lawrence: A. Lawrence: 716.634.4821 716.634.4821 christianca.com christianca.com Generation Generation Church Church 1001 East1001 Robinson East Robinson Road Road Christian Christian Counseling Counseling MinistriesMinistries North Tonawanda, North Tonawanda, NY 14120NY 14120 of WNY, Inc. of WNY, Inc. Chad Rieselman: Chad Rieselman: 716.243.9504 716.243.9504 9070 Main9070 Street, Main Clarence, Street, Clarence, NY 14031NY 14031 ntgeneration.org ntgeneration.org Dr. Timothy Dr.P.Timothy Chambers: P. Chambers: 716.632.3200 716.632.3200 ccmwny.org ccmwny.org Global Fellowship Global Fellowship 500 CrossPoint 500 CrossPoint Parkway Parkway Circle “C”Circle Ranch“C” Ranch Getzville, Getzville, NY 14068NY 14068 10451 Ashcraft 10451Road, Ashcraft Delevan, Road, NY Delevan, 14042NY 14042 Dwight Smith: Dwight 716.631.2636 Smith: 716.631.2636 Wes Aarum, WesSr.: Aarum, 716.492.3687 Sr.: 716.492.3687 gfmission.com gfmission.com circlecranch.org circlecranch.org City VisionCity Vision 512 Pearl 512 St., Pearl Buffalo, St.,NY Buffalo, 14202NY 14202 Jim Swearingen: Jim Swearingen: 614.580.1769 614.580.1769 city-vision.org city-vision.org Global Outreach Global Outreach Mission Mission 1670 Hopkins 1670Road Hopkins Road Getzville, Getzville, NY 14068NY 14068 Brian Albrecht: Brian Albrecht: 716.688.5048 716.688.5048 missiongo.org missiongo.org HBI GlobalHBI Partners Global Partners PO Box 584, PO Forest, Box 584, VAForest, 24551VA 24551 Bobby Gupta: Bobby 336.595.3891 Gupta: 336.595.3891 hbiglobalpartners.org hbiglobalpartners.org Heritage Christian Heritage Christian Services Services 3790 Commerce 3790 Commerce Ct., Suite Ct., 800 Suite 800 North Tonawanda, North Tonawanda, NY 14120NY 14120 Marisa Geitner: Marisa716.743.2020 Geitner: 716.743.2020 heritagechristianservices.org heritagechristianservices.org HoughtonHoughton College College One Willard One Avenue Willard Avenue Houghton, Houghton, NY 14744NY 14744 Mark Hijleh: Mark 800.777.2556 Hijleh: 800.777.2556 houghton.edu houghton.edu International International Students Students Inc. Inc. 520 Lee Entrance 520 Lee Entrance Suite 108-B Suite The108-B Commons The Commons Amherst, Amherst, NY 14228NY 14228 Don Manta Don Manta isibuffalo.com isibuffalo.com InterVarsity InterVarsity Christian Christian Fellowship Fellowship 100 Willow 100 Ridge Willow Drive Ridge Drive Amherst, Amherst, NY 14228NY 14228 Nate Schutt Nate Schutt intervarsity.org intervarsity.org Isaiah 61 Isaiah Project61 Project PO Box 255, PO Niagara Box 255,Falls, Niagara NY 14305 Falls, NY 14305 Jim Haid: Jim 716.870.9557 Haid: 716.870.9557 isaiah61niagarafalls.org isaiah61niagarafalls.org Jericho Road Jericho Ministries Road Ministries / / Jericho Road Jericho Family Road Practice Family Practice 184 Barton184 Street Barton Street Buffalo, NY Buffalo, 14213NY 14213 Heather Quinn: Heather 716.881.6181 Quinn: 716.881.6181 jrfp.org/jericho-road-global-outreach jrfp.org/jericho-road-global-outreach Kingdom Kingdom Bound Ministries, Bound Ministries, Inc. Inc. 8550 Sheridan 8550 Dr. Sheridan Dr. Williamsville, Williamsville, NY 14221NY 14221 Donna Russo: Donna 716.633.1117 Russo: 716.633.1117 kingdombound.org kingdombound.org La Voix deLal’Evangile Voix de l’Evangile (The Voice(The of the Voice Gospel) of the Gospel) Bill & Anne BillAldin & Anne Aldin Contact: Global Contact: Outreach Global Outreach Mission Mission missiongo.org missiongo.org Let Them Let LOLThem LOL PO Box 265 PO Box 265 Clarence, Clarence, NY 14031NY 14031 Joe & Kate Joe Vacanti & Kate Vacanti letthemlol.com letthemlol.com Life Transforming Life Transforming MinistriesMinistries 8 Holleran8 Drive Holleran Drive Downingtown, Downingtown, PA 19335PA 19335 Dolph Paterno: Dolph 484.467.3505 Paterno: 484.467.3505 quietrevolution.org quietrevolution.org Lockport Lockport CareNet Pregnancy CareNet Pregnancy Center Center 229 East Avenue 229 East Avenue Lockport,Lockport, NY 14094NY 14094 Cindra Enzinna: Cindra716.434.0251 Enzinna: 716.434.0251 lockportcarenet.com lockportcarenet.com Lockport Lockport CARES CARES Emergency Emergency HomelessHomeless Shelter Shelter 192 Genesee 192 Street Genesee Street Lockport,Lockport, NY 14150NY 14150 Marty Nagy: Marty 716.438.2273 Nagy: 716.438.2273 lockportcares.org lockportcares.org Missio Church Missio Church 620 West 620 Genesee West St. Genesee St. Syracuse, Syracuse, NY 13204NY 13204 Jim Murphy: Jim315.299.4101 Murphy: 315.299.4101 missionchurch.org missionchurch.org Mission ofMission Hope, Haiti of Hope, Haiti P.O. Box 60004 P.O. Box 60004 Fort Myers, Fort FLMyers, 33906 FL 33906 Annette Boorman: Annette Boorman: 239.791.8125 239.791.8125 mohhaiti.org mohhaiti.org Niagara Gospel NiagaraRescue GospelMission RescueInc. Mission Inc. Presidir.net Presidir.net The Rock The Community Rock Community Church Church c/o Worldc/o in Need World in Need 1420 Celebration 1420 Celebration Blvd. Suite Blvd. 200 Suite 200 Celebration, Celebration, FL 34747 FL 34747 AlejandroAlejandro Belmar: [email protected] Belmar: [email protected] presidir.net presidir.net 9403 Garfield 9403Blvd. Garfield Blvd. Garfield Heights, GarfieldOH Heights, 44125OH 44125 Dave Brunelle: Dave 216.429.2636 Brunelle: 216.429.2636 therockcleveland.org therockcleveland.org Renovation Renovation Church Church 781 Maple 781 Road Maple Road Williamsville, Williamsville, NY 14221NY 14221 Darrick Castronova: Darrick Castronova: 716.404.9355 716.404.9355 theWELLbuffalo.com theWELLbuffalo.com 567 Hertel567 Avenue Hertel Avenue Buffalo, NY Buffalo, 14207NY 14207 Brek Cockrell: Brek 716.819.4100 Cockrell: 716.819.4100 therenovationchurch.com therenovationchurch.com Restoration Restoration Church Church 504 Frankhauser 504 Frankhauser Rd. Rd. Amherst, Amherst, NY 14221NY 14221 Dan Trippie: Dan716.541.0794 Trippie: 716.541.0794 restorationbuffalo.com restorationbuffalo.com Saving Grace Saving Ministries, Grace Ministries, Inc. Inc. 2025 Bailey 2025 Ave., Bailey Buffalo, Ave.,NY Buffalo, 14211NY 14211 Alyssa Gross: Alyssa 716.893.1840 Gross: 716.893.1840 sgmworld.org sgmworld.org SCORE International SCORE International SEND International SEND International PO Box 513, PO Farmington, Box 513, Farmington, MI 48332 MI 48332 Kent & Joan Kent Wilson: & Joan800.SEND.808 Wilson: 800.SEND.808 send.org send.org Set Free, Set Inc.Free, Inc. PO Box 245, PO Buffalo, Box 245,NY Buffalo, 14215NY 14215 Al & Deb Al Warner: & Deb716.553.0009 Warner: 716.553.0009 setfreeleaders.com setfreeleaders.com Singing Waters SingingChristian Waters Christian Center Center 346 Catalina 346Avenue Catalina Avenue Avalon, CA Avalon, 90704CA 90704 Enrique Dominguez: Enrique Dominguez: 310.510.0073 310.510.0073 singingwaterscc.org singingwaterscc.org NorthGateNorthGate Community Community Church Church SonRays Ministries, SonRays Ministries, Inc. Inc. PO Box 673, PO Tonawanda, Box 673, Tonawanda, NY 14150NY 14150 5225 Harris 5225 HillHarris Road Hill Road Alice Murchie: Alice 716.695.9494 Murchie: 716.695.9494 Williamsville, Williamsville, NY 14221NY 14221 sonraysministries.org Jon & Yolande Jon &Hasselbeck: Yolande Hasselbeck: 716.773.4337 716.773.4337sonraysministries.org northgatebuffalo.com northgatebuffalo.com Springville Springville Crossing Church Crossing Church PO Box 841, PO Placida, Box 841,FL Placida, 33946 FL 33946 Steve Gillis: Steve infoGillis: @patchourplanet.org [email protected] patchourplanet.org patchourplanet.org 11 West Main 11 West Street Main Street Springville, Springville, NY 14141NY 14141 Keith Clark: Keith 716.560.4704 Clark: 716.560.4704 springvillecrossing.org springvillecrossing.org Peace of the Peace Cityof the City Steamtown Steamtown Church Church PO Box 750, PO Buffalo, Box 750,NY Buffalo, 14213NY 14213 Diane Takens-Cerbone: Diane Takens-Cerbone: 716.828.8683 716.828.8683 peaceofthecity.org peaceofthecity.org Transformation Transformation Mongolia Mongolia Ulaanbaatar, Ulaanbaatar, MongoliaMongolia Axel Fischer: [email protected] Fischer: [email protected] Transformation.mn Transformation.mn True Praise True andPraise Worship and (Food Worship Pantry) (Food Pantry) 559 Humboldt 559 Humboldt Parkway Parkway Buffalo, NY Buffalo, 14208NY 14208 Urban Christian Urban Christian MinistriesMinistries 967 Jefferson 967 Jefferson Avenue Avenue Buffalo, NY Buffalo, 14204NY 14204 AlexanderAlexander Wright: 716.882.9472 Wright: 716.882.9472 urbanchristianministries.org urbanchristianministries.org PO Box 9994 PO Box 9994 Chattanooga, Chattanooga, TN 37412TN 37412 Village Church Jeff Hackett: Jeff [email protected] Hackett: [email protected] Church 312 Bryant 312 Street Bryant Street scoreinternational.org scoreinternational.org Buffalo, NY Buffalo, 14222NY 14222 Jeremy Hazelton: Jeremy Hazelton: 716.551.0677 716.551.0677 SaturationSaturation Church Planting Church Planting villagechurchbflo.com villagechurchbflo.com Chad Smith: Chad spci.org Smith: spci.org 1023 Ferry 1023 Avenue Ferry Avenue Niagara Falls, Niagara NY 14301 Falls, NY 14301 Shaun Smith: Shaun 716.282.0432 Smith: 716.282.0432 niagaramissions.com niagaramissions.com Patch OurPatch PlanetOur Planet theWELL theWELL 1511 Pittston 1511Ave. Pittston Ave. Scranton, Scranton, PA 18505PA 18505 Dennis D’Augostine: Dennis D’Augostine: 570.290.7250 570.290.7250 steamtownchurch.com steamtownchurch.com Vision New Vision YorkNew York 10 River Road, 10 River 6P Road, 6P New York,New NY 10044 York, NY 10044 Jim Hines:Jim [email protected] Hines: [email protected] visionnewyork.org visionnewyork.org Word of Life Word Bolivia of Life Bolivia Palabra de Palabra Vida de Vida C.C. 4038,C.C. Cochabamba, 4038, Cochabamba, Bolivia Bolivia Juan & Noemí Juan & Lella: Noemí Lella: [email protected] [email protected] World Hope World International Hope International 1330 Braddock 1330 Braddock Place, Suite Place, 301 Suite 301 Alexandria, Alexandria, VA 22314VA 22314 Tom Armiger: Tom 703.923.9414 Armiger: 703.923.9414 worldhope.org worldhope.org XCEL Leadership XCEL Leadership Center Center 567 Hertel567 Avenue Hertel Avenue Buffalo, NY Buffalo, 14207NY 14207 Toni Benjamin: Toni Benjamin: 716.819.4100 716.819.4100 xcelleadershipcenter.com xcelleadershipcenter.com 500 CrossPoint Pkwy. | Getzville, NY 14068 716.631.2636 | thechapel.com