We’re rejoicing that Ajiax Wo, superintendent of Hong Kong Conference, finally made it to La Ceiba. He’s getting checked into the hotel now. He’s running on just a couple hours of sleep, having slept overnight in the New Orleans airport before catching a flight this morning to Houston, and then on to Honduras. But he’s here, and very happy about it.

Bishop Phil Whipple will preach tonight at one of the Honduran churches here in La Ceiba. Last night, Francisco Najera of Guatemala gave a dynamic message in a highly energetic service.

Unfortunately, Phil has been having some stomach problems–nothing serious, but enough to be very discomforting. You might say a prayer, that he’ll be just fine tonight.

Jeff Bleijerveld, Director of Global Ministries, translating at General Conference.

Jeff Bleijerveld, Director of Global Ministries, translating at General Conference.

As Juanita Chavez began her Monday morning devotional, the Honduran translator hadn’t yet arrived. So Jeff Bleijerveld began translating.

Juanita said something in Spanish, Jeff took it in, evidently translated it mentally to English…and then spoke it back to us in Spanish. This happened several times, and Jeff had no idea what he was doing…until people started chuckling. Then he finally realized what he was doing.

“I told you I wasn’t a good translator,” he laughed.

We learned earlier today that Ajiax Wo, superintendent of Hong Kong Conference, was granted a Honduran visa this morning during a visit with the Honduran consulate in New York City. He won’t be able to make it to Honduras until noon on Tuesday, January 12, and then has a three-hour ride to La Ceiba. But at least he’ll be able to attend part of the conference.

He may still have some difficulty getting through immigration in San Pedro Sula–the same problems Theresa Musa, from Sierrra Leone, encountered. Theresa and Ajiax received their visas from the same person in New York City.

On Thursday, December 3, Bishop Phil Whipple will take part in a panel discussion on the Mid-Morning program on WBCL, a Christian radio station in Fort Wayne, Ind. He will be joined by Jerry Davis and Mike Cook, from the Huntington University graduate school, and Monte Sheets, a pastor in Fort Wayne.

The panel will talk about healthy pastors and healthy churches.  They will particularly tackle the questions, “How can pastors care for their inner life, and how can their congregations help?”

The program airs 9-10 am. You can listen over the internet.

WinterSlam 2010 LogoJunior high and senior high students from UB churches are invited to attend WinterSlam 2010, a winter retreat in the mountains of western Pennsylvania, near Pittsburgh. This annual retreat has existed for the past 20 years.

WinterSlam was originally sponsored by Mid-Atlantic Conference. Bobby Culler, youth pastor at Mount Pleasant UB (Chambersburg, Pa.) and a member of the denominational Youth Ministry Team, is in charge of the event. The retreat is sponsored in part by Huntington University.

The retreat is  held at the Laurelville Mennonite Church Center, a 250-acre retreat center at the foot of the Laurel Mountains of southwestern Pennsylvania. That’s near the town of Mt. Pleasant, and southeast of Pittsburgh.

The cost for the retreat is $80, plus activity fees for such things as skiing, snowboarding, and tubing.

Go to the Youth Ministry page for complete information.

The annual Mid-Atlantic Pastoral Resource Day will be held November 8-9 at Rhodes Grove Camp and Conference Center near Chambersburg, Pa.

The event begins 7 pm Sunday night, November 8, with message from Bishop Phil Whipple.

On Monday morning, Bishop Whipple will give devotions. The rest of the day, 9 am – 4 pm, will focus on the topic “Addiction in the Pews: Understanding the secret struggles of addiction and how to bring ‘hope to the hopeless.” The presenter will be Carol Reinertson, formerly director of the Addiction Studies Program in the Campolo College of Graduate and Professional Studies of Eastern University.

A .5 CEU credit is available. The cost is $40 per person. Lodging is also available at Rhodes Grove Camp.

The annual Mid-Atlantic Pastoral Resource Day will be held November 8-9 at Rhodes Grove Camp near Chambersburg, Pa.

The event begins 7-9 pm Sunday night, November 8, with a Fireside Chat with Bishop Phil Whipple and Dr. Anthony Blair of Eastern University of St. Davids, Pa.

On Monday morning, Bishop Whipple will give devotions. The rest of the day, 9 am – 4 pm, will focus on the topic “Addiction in the Pews: Understanding the secret struggles of addiction and how to bring ‘hope to the hopeless.” The presenter will be Carol Reinertson, formerly director of the Addiction Studies Program in the Campolo College of Graduate and Professional Studies of Eastern University.

We completed tabulating all the evaluations from the US National Conference. People were asked to rate various aspects of XLR8 on a scale of 1-10, with “Poor” on the low end and “Great” on the high end. When people circled “Great,” we gave them an 11. That’s why you see scores above 10.

On that note: way to be, children’s and teen workers! You were obviously deeply appreciated.

The lowest scores went to the business session (no real surprise there), and music (music is a huge point of disagreement in local churches, so you would expect the same at a national church conference).

Registration Process 9.7
Helpfulness of the Conference Staff 10
Tim Brown 9.9
Missions Night 9.1
Business Session 7.9
Sunday Morning Service 9.5
Music during various Services 7.9
Multimedia used during Conference 9.1
Receptions 9.6
Workshops 9.3
Morning Prayer 9.4
Printed Materials 9.5
Decorations/Use of Theme 10
Sawmill Creek Facilities 9.7
Hotel Costs 8.4
Free Time 9.4
Location 9.4
Women’s Events 9.4
UB Historical Society Banquet 9.8
Church Multiplication Luncheon 9.8
Golf Outing 9.9
Nursery 10.8
Children’s Activities 10.1
Teens Activities 10.5
Overall Evaluation 9.7