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May 1999 News Archive

5/20/99

For Women. All Central Conference pastor's wives & widows, HC faculty wives, and other women are invited to a seminar on July 12 at Huntington College. Rebecca Gates, a frequent speaker at women's retreats, will address the theme, "Called to be a House of Prayer." It is sponsored by the Hazen Institute and the HC Graduate School. Registration is at 10 a.m. on July 12.

1998 Church Statistics. The denominational statistics for 1998 (taken from pastors' reports submitted during the first part of the year) show the following:

  • Global membership: 39,424 (24,112 in North America). This figure should surpass 40,000 by the end of this year.
  • Worldwide weekly worship: 34,701.
  • Worldwide Sunday school average attendance: 20,790.
  • Total conversions: 2,499
  • Total baptisms: 1,493.

Pentecost Offering on May 23. Don't forget to promote church planting in your church on Pentecost Sunday. Promote a generous offering for the church planting vision. A bulletin insert has been sent to all churches.

Leadership Development. The third leadership development conference was held at Huntington College on April 12-14, 1999. Dr. Aubrey Malphurs spoke on the theme "Leaders Developing Leaders." Eighty-five ministers and 52 spouses attended.

Denominational Core Values. During its April 14-15 meeting, the General Board of Administration adopted a set of seven core values which apply to all national conferences. As the various national conferences are developing their own governing documents (constitution, bylaws, etc.), they need some guidelines, particularly as they formulate stands on issues specific to their country or culture. These core values will help provide that guidance.

The Lighthouse Community Church, Williamston, Mich. This new church held its public launch on Easter with 112 people present. One woman accepted Christ as Savior. Tom Blaylock is the church planting pastor and John Carpenter is the youth pastor. This new church has been offered six acres of land free for a future building. Their second Sunday had a higher attendance than Easter (126).

Mexico. The UB people of Mexico will hold their first convention June 18-20. Denis Casco expects 65 pastors and laypersons. Bishop Ray Seilhamer and Missions Director Kyle McQuillen will attend this historic event.

Pastoral Assignment. Tom Engelhardt, a recent graduate from Winebrenner Theological Seminary, is the new pastor at the Bethel UB church in Sandusky Conference. He started on May 1.

Hillsdale, Mich. On Sunday, May 16, the Hillsdale UB held a "Friend and Family Day",which resulted in an attendance of 330, with over 100 visitors. This included State Rep. Stephen Vear and Margo Hubbell, the Superintendent of Hillsdale Community Schools, who came as invited guests of the pastor, Lester Smith. Dan Evans provided a mini-concert, while "Bob, the Gospel Clown" ministered to the children. Among those responding to the altar call was a young man who prayed to receive Christ as Saviour....The church hired Rev. Mark Johncock as Student Ministries Pastor and Rev. Jim Knoll as Minister of Visitation.

5/13/99

HC Graduation Day. Huntington College's 101st commencement exercises will be held Saturday, May 15. A baccalaureate service for graduates and their families will begin at 10:30 a.m. in the Merillat Centre for the Arts. History professor Jack Barlow Sr. will present the baccalaureate address. Commencement exercises will begin at 3:00 p.m. on the Front Campus, weather permitting. The 1999 commencement address will be presented by United States District Judge William C. Lee.

5/11/99

Youth Pastor Summit. On May 17-19, a ministry summit for youth pastors and youth workers will be held at the Fowlerville, Mich., UB church. Contact Dr. Dave Rahn (219-356-6000) with your questions regarding registration for this event.

Banner of Christ UB (Byron Center, Mich.) will celebrate its 75th anniversary on May 16. Some previous pastors will attend. In the afternoon, the church will break ground for an addition which will include a narthex, 12 classrooms, plus remodeling of the offices and existing classrooms.

5/7/99

Position Openings. King Street UB (Chambersburg, Pa.) has an opening for a fulltime youth ministry worker. A variety of other positions at churches remain open.

Pastoral Assignments

  • Kent Maxwell has been named pastor of New Hope UB in Huntington, Ind. Richard Raab is the new pastor of Richfield Road UB in Flint, Mich.
  • David Flick is the new pastor of the UB church in DeWitt, Mich.
  • Ken Keller was hired as assistant pastor at Idaville UB, Idaville, Pa. He will focus on youth ministry.
  • Charles Lyon has been assigned to the UB church in Ithaca, Mich.

Eleanore Datema left for Macau on May 5, and will stay there for three months as a volunteer missionary. Russ and Nellie Birdsall returned from Macau on April 24, completing their third round as volunteers. Jayne Mote also completed her six-month volunteer service in April.

The Missions Commission approved the recruitment of four new missionaries for MacauÑtwo singles and one couple. It is hoped that they will join the team in Macau by early 2000. The Missions Commission also appointed Jana Hoobler to continue as Acting Director in Macau.

A Big Ending. Over 1800 people attended the concluding service of Jamaica Conference in March. It was held at a campground near Mandeville.

Money for Overseas Churches and Parsonages. In October 1998, the Merillat Foundation granted $400,000 to be used to construct churches and parsonages on our international fields during a two-year period. Already, about $100,000 has been earmarked for construction in Jamaica, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Thailand.

Myanmar Expansion? Hong Kong Conference wants to expand the English Language Program in Myanmar. The Missions Commission is exploring the possibility of sending missionaries to Myanmar.

Parsonage in Thailand. Special funding provided $4000 to build a parsonage for an assistant pastor in our work in northern Thailand.

Hurricane Relief. Six homes have now been built in the Honduran village of La Uba (above) for victims of Hurricane Mitch. Before the project is done, 23 homes will have been built there. The relief fund is up around $270,000.

Jamaican Church Affiliates with Mid-Atlantic Conference. The First United Brethren Church in the Bronx, our first Jamaican congregation in New York City, accepted an invitation to become part of Mid-Atlantic Conference. This move has the endorsement of the Jamaica Conference Council (Jamaica Conference played the key role in establishing the church in the Bronx). The two Sierra Leonean congregations on the east coast (in Philadelphia and in Somerset, NJ) are already part of Mid-Atlantic Conference.

A UB church in Boston? In April, several UB leaders flew to Boston to speak with leaders of a Sierra Leonean congregation which is interested in becoming part of the United Brethren church. Bishop Ray Seilhamer, Missions Director Kyle McQuillen, and Mid-Atlantic Conference superintendent Anthony Blair made the trip. This church, which has connections with Rev. Billy Simbo's Sierra Leonean congregation in Somerset, N.J., is very interested in seeking a relationship with us.

Abu Family Reunited After Eight Years of Civil War. Eight years ago, Joe and Matennah Abu came to the United States from Sierra Leone, but various problems prevented them from subsequently bringing their two children, Peter and Patricia, to the States. As a result, they have been separated for eight years. During the war, Peter and Patricia lived for a while as refugees (with relatives) in Ghana and Guinea. Most recently, they have been living in Botswana. In April, Matennah was able to fly to South Africa to meet her children and accompany them to the States; they arrived April 21. Joe is pastor of a UB Sierra Leonean congregation in Philadelphia, Pa. Last summer, Matennah was granted US citizenship, and we recently learned that Joe has been granted permanent residency. This little item represents a variety of answered prayers.

Logan, Ohio. Nine youth from West Pleasant Hill UB (above) participated in a 30-hour fast. They collected $900 in sponsor money to be sent to World Vision for hungry children worldwide. They spent the time in various activities, including watching videos of children in poverty-stricken villages and doing activities related to the videos. The event ended with a potluck, with parents and other members bringing the food. But before eating, they participated in communion with their families and shared what the 30-hour famine meant to them.

Church History Course for Central America. Howard and Sue Cherry flew to Honduras in April so Howard could conduct the seminar on UB Church History for Central American pastors. Last year, he presented this course to the Hispanic pastors of the US and Mexico. Altogether, there were 81 pastors from these countries: Honduras, Nicaragua, El Salvador, and Belize. The event lasted three days. Nestor Mitchell, a Honduran, served as interpreter.

Healthy Church Seminar for Hispanics. In April, Paul Hirschy (with the help of translator Gary Brooks) presented the Growing a Healthy Church seminar to the Hispanic pastors of Latin American Ministries. It was held at Victory UB church in Burbank, Calif.

Franklin, Pa. For several years, Victory Heights UB has given the entire Easter offering for the Self-Denial emphasis. Their goal is always to double their weekly offering. This year they tripled it, with $3445 given.

Shippensburg, Pa. Mongul UB had a record attendance of 316 on Easter Sunday. The next Sunday, the church accepted into membership seven adults, five of whom hadn't attended church for many years and decided to rededicate their lives to the Lord.

Jerry City, Ohio. Jerry City UB held an Easter egg hunt for the communityÉ.

Oak Harbor, Ohio. For the second Easter in a row, Oak Harbor UB distributed 400 bags filled with candy and a note from the church. It was done as a "Random Act of Kindness."

The Big Giant Machine. Vicki Lorencen (above) of Gethsemane UB, Jackson, Mich., writes: "There seems to be a "Conspiracy of Kindness" in Jackson, Mich., this year. Members of Gethsemane UB have been spotted handing out free drinks to passers-by in some pretty unlikely placesÐJackson's "Eve on the Ave" outdoor New Year's celebration (brrr), handing out hot chocolate at a local car show, and passing out 300 cups of ice cold lemonade at another.

"What's even more unusual is the Willy Wonka-like contraption (designed by Gethsemane's own Jeff Crawford) used to mix the drinks. This mammoth machine gets a lot of attention, and why not? When was the last time you saw a 275-gallon cocoa machine? (That's 4,000 cups worth!)

"Folks may be amazed by the machine, but what really astounds them is getting something to drinkÐfor free. Some try to make a donation, but we just tell them we're doing this as a small reminder that God loves them. This simple but effective outreach has given us many opportunities to make contacts that we might not otherwise have with unchurched people in our community."

Bremen, Ohio. Avlon UB's Easter Sunrise service depicted "Mary's Musings," with Mary dramatizing four scenes from the Easter story. Colored cellophane made four 6-by-4-foot wooden cut-out windows look like stained glass windows showing stages of Christ's life. A breakfast followed the service.

Harrisburg, Pa. On March 27, 240 children and adults crowded into the fellowship hall of Devonshire UB for the Annual Easter Egg Hunt & Luncheon, the year's largest community outreach. The Saturday morning started with five age groups scouring the property for filled plastic eggs. After lunch came a program by the group Puppet Praise. The most important part of the afternoon was when the salvation message was shared. The congregation rallied to reach unchurched people in the surrounding area. They gave each person information about the church, especially information about children's ministries and future events that might interest them, such as roller-skating parties, a Randy Stonehill concert/picnic, and the VBS week. Writes Lisa Fetters, "At Devonshire this year, we are trying to be very purposeful in getting our neighbors who wouldn't usually come to the regular services to know us in settings geared for the whole family."

Williamston, Mich. Lighthouse Community Church held its first service on Easter Sunday, with 112 people attending, the vast majority of them persons from the area who are seriously looking for a church. One woman prayed to receive Christ, and several persons requested information about small groups and how to become part of the church family. People stayed a half-hour after the service while the kids did an egg hunt and fellowshipped around coffee, bagels, and donuts.

Oak Harbor, Ohio. Oak Harbor UB is in the middle of building plans, wanting to add classroom and office space. Currently, four classes meet in the sanctuary.

Jerry City, Ohio. Jerry City UB is undertaking several building improvements this year, including recarpeting the sanctuary, siding the church, and looking into new windows and drapesÉ."Fabian," a former gang member turned Christian, gave a message and sang songs during a March 27 Youth Night at Jerry City UB.

Traverse City, Mich. Seven persons from Northland UB (above) spent three days in March working at Chicago's inner-city Uptown Baptist Church (where Amber Becker, daughter of Northland pastor Carlson Becker, attends). Their main job: tearing out the old steps leading to a baptistry, and replacing them with curved steps (plus some drywalling and wood staining). The church has two services on Sunday morning, plus Russian, Spanish, and Asian services meeting at different times. Each night at 9:00, the church becomes a women's shelter until 7:30 the next morning.

Willshire, Ohio. The Spiritual Care Commission of Willshire UB led the community in a benefit which raised over $5000 for a local couple whose son contracted bacterial meningitisÉ.A number of persons from Willshire UB attended a Small Group Seminar at Camp Cotubic. Twenty-three men, women, and children enjoyed a follow-up day at the camp cleaning a building and cutting wood.

Mt. Pleasant, Mich. Harvest UB has been closed.