11 Jan Haiti Update – New Church Underway

A major initiative this year in our Haitian work has been to establish an urban church in the growing capital city of Port Au Prince. A group from our Canadian UB churches joined Pastor Oliam Richard and other Haitian pastors and lay leaders in an evangelistic crusade. During three nights, 73 people came to Christ.

A follow-up meeting was held the next day for persons who made a profession of faith in Christ. They all came back…plus five more people. A second follow-up meeting was held four days later. A total of 83 came for this meeting.

The first service of this new congregation was held Sunday, December 10, at 6:00 a.m. Over 125 attended. We praise God for this new church in the heart of the city.

13 Nov Bethel Band – Best in Central America

The Bethel Band performing in the Central America Marching Band competition.

The Bethel School Marching Band took first place as Overall Best Band in the recent Central America Marching Band Competition. Bands from seven countries participated. David Raudales and his father, Honduran Superintendent Francisco Raudales, are the band directors.

The Bethel School is an educational extension of Honduras Conference, with several thousand students in La Ceiba, Honduras. Maira Raudales, Francisco’s wife, is principal of the high school.

31 Oct Denis Casco and Gary Brooks Hold El Paso Seminar

Gary Brooks, a UB minister living in Florida and a former UB missionary in Honduras, accompanied Mexico Conference’s bishop, Denis Casco (right), in conducting a seminar for the UB churches in El Paso, Texas. The conference was held October 13-15. Gary sent this report on October 27.

We had 25 students present for the seminars, which were held at the Sembrador Church in El Paso, where Roberto Espinoza is the pastor. Denis Casco and I shared teaching responsibilities on Friday and Saturday. I taught a series from the Gospel of John, concentrating on the last week of Jesus’ ministry on earth, and Denis taught classes on family and marriage relationships. At the conclusion of the seminar, Diplomas of Participation prepared by Denis were given out to the church workers who had attended all four sessions. We had 25 students present for the seminars.
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31 Oct Into the Honduras Mountains of Sonaguerita

Francisco Raudales, superintendent of Honduras National Conference, sent this report on October 16.
“We have visited many churches in the mountains from approximately 12,000 feet high. It was difficult but full of blessings, and our 4×4 red car responded well. I have the satisfaction of visiting churches in the Honduran mountains, one of them in a place called Sonaguerita, which is pastured by Pablo Ramos. We have another church in Niduermes, with Pastor Justino. I’m thankful for all the help we are receiving, because it enables us to continue giving attention to these churches that are located far away. The brothers show their happiness with each visit. I want to share some photos of our churches in these mountains.”

The link below will take you to some photos from the trip to Sonaguerita.
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23 Oct Theological Course for Honduras Pastors

Jason Hollopeter (standing in the doorway) with one of the groups of pastors he taught.

Jason Hollopeter, pastor of the UB church in Corunna, Ind., spent a week teaching a basic theology course to pastors in Honduras. He did this in two places: for 40-45 pastors in La Ceiba, and then for 15-18 pastors in the Copan region of Honduras. This is a course which Honduran pastors need for their licensing and ordination, as was done through the conference’s theological institute.

Francisco Raudales, superintendent of Honduras National Conference, sent the following on October 23: “I want to inform you with satisfaction that we have had a good time with the lessons Rev. Jason Hollepter brought us. They give a clear idea of our doctrine.”

In addition, 29 Honduran pastors participated in a continuing education study on 1 John.

19 Oct For Sierra Leone: Music Instruments, Robes, Hymnals

We are preparing to send a container of materials to Sierra Leone, West Africa. Here are some items which would be of great value to our Sierra Leoneans brothers and sisters.

• Musical Instruments. As we come along side the churches of Sierra Leone, West Africa, and particularly the young people, one of the greatest blessings we can provide them is access to musical instruments for their churches–keyboards, guitars and drums. As they look toward outreach, church planting, as well as worship in existing congregations, the gift of music is highly desired. As churches (and homes) here in North America replace and upgrade keyboards, perhaps there are instruments you can contribute for God’s glory. Do you have guitars or drum sets in good condition that are now just sitting at rest? Let us know!
• Robes and Hymnals. African churches are also very interested in good choir robes that our North American churches are no longer using, as well as United Brethren hymnals that may be sitting unused in a closet in your church.

If you have any items to donate, please contact Global Ministries by December 1. You can email us or call Darlene Burkett with our toll-free number: 1-888-622-3019. Donations will not be accepted after December 1.

19 Oct US Teachers in India

Three teachers from First UB in Blissfield, Mich., traveled to Narsapur, India, this summer to work at the English Medium School. Global Ministries Director Gary Dilley says, “We hope for continued opportunities for North American UBs to help with our Indian work. We are currently inquiring about sending a physical therapist to do some training at Narsapur Christian Hospital and Bethesda Leprosy Hospital.”

19 Oct Our New German Mission District

A congregation in Berlin, Germany, which consists mostly of immigrants from Sierra Leone, applied to become a mission district under the supervision of Sierra Leone National Conference. Sierra Leoneans ended up there as a result of the civil war in the 1990s. A former United Brethren pastor from Sierra Leone helped start the work, but has since relocated to London. Taking his place is Peter Mansaray, a former Catholic priest who decided that Protestantism better represented his theology.

Peter, who is in his late 30s, attended the Sierra Leone conference meeting in September. He told people, “We’re a United Brethren church, and we don’t want to be in isolation. We’ve come back to our roots for a relationship.” He requested that Sierra Leone accept them as a mission district, and the conference agreed.

19 Oct Missionary Updates

Gary Dilley, Director of Global Ministries, provided these updates on various UB missionaries.

• David and Melissa Kline will return to the States on furlough at the end of October, with their new daughter, Mia. They will live in the mission house in Huntington, Ind. The Klines will spend a good chunk of time in Canada, which is a major supporting partner, and then will return to Macau next summer (perhaps August).
• Carlson Becker (right, with his wife Naomi) is giving good leadership to Living Stone, the new church plant in Macau, and is working diligently to help Michael Chan, the Chinese coworker, succeed. He is preparing members of the Chinese congregation and Michael Chan to lead and continue the work, rather than to depend on him and other missionaries.
• Anna Geivett, one of our newest endorsed missionaries, is getting close to finishing her fundraising and plans to leave for Peru in November. She will serve as Short-term Teams Coordinator for Food for the Hungry. Anna is from the Emmanuel UB church in Fort Wayne, Ind.
• Marshalee (Brown) Loerch (right) has been given endorsed status with Global Ministries. She served fulltime in Ethiopia, and was fully funded by people and churches in Jamaica. She has now married, and will be serving out of Germany with NEST. NEST is a Caribbean sending agency which sends missionaries from the Caribbean islands. Marshalee comes from the Washington Gardens UB church in Jamaica.
• Jami Fiedler has been endorsed by Global Ministries. She has raised her support, and is now interning in Phoenix, Ariz., with Food for the Hungry. Jami is from College Park UB church in Huntington, Ind., and is a graduate of Houghton College.
• Mike and Jenny Burtnett have located to Orlando, Florida. Mike is a short-term coordinator for Wycliffe exposure teams. These teams take high schoolers and college students to areas where Bible translation is occurring to expose them to the huge need for additional Bible translation.

19 Oct Carol Brinneman Co-Authors Missions Book

Carol Brinneman (right), an endorsed UB missionary serving with JAARS, is one of the authors of a new book called, All the World is Singing: Glorifying God through the Worship Music of the Nations. She co-authored the book with Frank Fortunato and Paul Neeley.

All the World is Singing is a rich collection of 45 short stories that show the powerful ways God uses music around the world to further His Kingdom. The story contributors, from a wide geographical spectrum, share what it means for God’s people to worship, evangelize, and celebrate with their own culturally-appropriate Christian music. This book shows the ways missionaries use ethnomusicology training to reach people for Christ. It makes a good resource for worship seminars, missions seminars, or ethnomusicology classes.

The book includes a CD-ROM with audio and video illustrations, photos, and music scores. Also available is a DVD containing even more media connected to the stories, as well as new stories.