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12 Jul

July 12, 2012 |

Dave Kraft

A seminar led by Dave Kraft, author of “Leaders Who Last,” will be held September 21-22 (Friday and Saturday) at New Hope Community UB church in Bryan, Ohio. For ordained UB ministers, it qualifies as six “contact hours” toward their yearly continuing education requirement.

Kraft has spent 35 years leading, teaching leadership, and coaching dozens of Christian leaders. Kraft notes that only 30% of Christian leaders finish well. Too many Christian leaders stumble, burn out, or veer off the track. Concise, anecdotal, and packed with wisdom, this seminar will help you aim your ambitions, refine your character, and position yourself to be an effective leader who endures.

There will be three main sessions, with these topics:

  • 7-9 pm Friday: A Credible Life
  • 8:30 – 10:30 am Saturday: A Compelling Vision
  • 10:30 am – 12:30 Saturday: A Cohesive Team

Cost: $25 per person.

You can register from this page.

Born in Los Angeles, Dave Kraft became Christian at age 20, and served with the Navigators for 38 years before retiring in 2005. He currently lives in Orange County, Calif., and travels around the country conducting “Leaders Who Last” seminars and working with several churches in Orange County in leadership development and coaching.

You can buy the book at Amazon and Barnes & Noble for about $11. It’s available on the Kindle and Nook electronic readers. (Copyright 2010, 160 pages.)

Above is an interview with Dave Kraft by Mark Driscoll, pastor of Mars Hill Church in Seattle, Wash.

11 Jul

July 11, 2012 |

We have a new system for sending United Brethren news by email. We’re calling it UB Daily News. Every day around 11:30 am, you’ll receive an email containing all items posted to UBCentral.org during the previous 24 hours. If nothing was posted, you won’t receive an email.


You will receive an email with a confirmation link. You must click on the link to activate your subscription.

We’ve been using Feedburner, a free service from Google. This system is better–easier signup process, better control of how it looks. We’ll keep Feedburner active, but will point new people to UB Daily News.

Every email contains an “unsubscribe” link so you can remove yourself from the emails. We’ll never add you to other email lists without your permission.

11 Jul

July 11, 2012 |
Todd Fetters, pastor of Devonshire UB church in Harrisburg, Pa., preaching at the Camarma church.

Todd Fetters, pastor of Devonshire UB church in Harrisburg, Pa., preaching at the Camarma church.

Ron Anderson (right, with wife Brenda), Global Ministries endorsed missionary in Spain

Last week the church here in Camarma, Madrid, ran an English Camp for 110 children. We have been running camps for several years, but this one was marked by the fact that the church did most of the organization while our part was to provide a team of teachers.

The core team came from United Brethren in Christ churches in Pennsylvania and Michigan. In addition to teaching English, the team also had time to do some sightseeing.

The impact that the camp had on the church and the community was very noticeable. People around town were very appreciative for both the quality of the camp and the spirit that each of the staff had. Pastor Todd Fetters, from Devonshire UB church in Harrisburg, Pa., preached about Jesus on Sunday to an overflowing crowd which included unconverted parents of the children that had come to the camp.

11 Jul

July 11, 2012 |

Jeff Dice returned to Michigan on July 5, along with his wife April, after undergoing a heart procedure in Managua. On Facebook, he reported on Monday, July 9, “Great news for me–my doctor thinks he can treat my heart arrhythmia with a tiny pill. We’ll know for sure in two weeks when I undergo another stress test. Dr. Machado grew up in Nicaragua, coming to the States in 1979 at age 18. It was fun speaking Spanish and relating to him as he has worked with Dr. Rivas, my doctor in Nicaragua. God is good and I am thankful.”

11 Jul

July 11, 2012 |

Duane Walter, a United Brethren ordained minister in Michigan, begins chemotherapy treatments this Friday, July 14. The treatments will occur once every six weeks until around November.

Duane had been suffering severe back pain since April, and eventually had surgery to remove a tumor. They removed as much of the tumor as they could. The tumor was determined to be cancerous, but they are still trying to determine the exact form of cancer.

In addition, test of soft tissue showed that Duane also has some lymph node involvement. Therefore, to be on the safe side, they decided to start chemotherapy.

Duane Walter would appreciate your prayers. He can be contacted at: 10596 W Grand Ledge Hwy, Sunfield, MI 48890.

11 Jul

July 11, 2012 |

Denny Miller, senior pastor of Emmanuel Community Church in Fort Wayne, Ind., is teaching the UB Staffing Course.

Denny Miller.

Five persons are attending the class remotely–from Waynesboro, Pa., and Cochranton, Pa.

The conference room at the Healthy Ministry Resources office.

The UB Staff Management Course is being held today (Wednesday, July 11) at the Healthy Ministry Resources building in Huntington, Ind. Denny Miller, senior pastor of Emmanuel Community Church (Fort Wayne, Ind.), is teaching the class. The class includes 18 persons–13 attending in person, another 5 attending remotely via our new videoconferencing capabilities. Three persons are attending from Blue Rock UB church in Waynesboro, Pa., and two more from Cochranton, Pa.

The course is a requirement for ordination in the United Brethren church. The Pastoral Ministry Leadership Team developed a list of courses required for ordination, most of which can be obtained from a variety of seminaries. However, several courses are not readily available elsewhere, so we are providing them ourselves. Two of the courses are specifically United Brethren in nature–one on UB church history (which is a basic requirement for any ministerial licensing in the UB church), and a course on UB missions. The UB staffing course is the third.

About two-thirds of the participants are taking the course as an ordination requirement. The others are taking is as a continuing education requirement, or simply because it interests them.

10 Jul

July 10, 2012 |

AFChapel900

Phil Whipple, Bishop, US National Conference

On June 20, I visited Chaplain Major Darren Duncan at the Air Force Academy in Colorado Spring. Darren is in his fourth year serving as a chaplain there. He met me at the gate and took me to the chapel.

Darren started out at Living Word United Brethren church in Columbus, Ohio, serving on staff and then as senior pastor. He did some chaplaincy work in the Reserves for a few years, and then was approached about going fulltime. He went on active duty in the spring of 2003. Since then, he has served in several locations, including at an “undisclosed location” in early 2004.

The Air Force Academy is a prestigious posting, and looks good on your resume if you’re looking to climb the military ladder. Usually, the Air Force moves you every two or three years, so this is an extra-long posting for Darren. The Wing Commander, who oversees the religious programs at the Air Force Academy, was asked to stay one more year before retiring, and he didn’t want to break in anybody new during his last year. So, Darren was asked to stay an extra year.

In the past, the United Brethren denomination has been the endorsing entity for military chaplains from UB churches. That is changing. The National Association of Evangelicals, of which we are one of many denominations, is now the endorsing organization for UB chaplains, and there are some advantages to that.

As it turns out, Darren is in the process of switching his ministerial credentials to the Anglican Church. They are an evangelical church in doctrine, but more liturgy based. However, I caught up with Darren while he was still under the United Brethren umbrella. (more…)

10 Jul

July 10, 2012 |

Sidewalk Prophets

More than 50 bands will take the stage August 10-11 at Huntington University’s second annual Fandana Festival.

This two-day music, art, and film festival will feature Chris Tomlin, Sidewalk Prophets, Sevenglory, Manic Drive, Hyland, HU’s own Attaboy, and Da Messenger on Friday. Taking the stage Saturday will be Over The Rhine, Family Force 5, Blessed By A Broken Heart, Write This Down, Rocky Loves Emily, Jetty Rae, Red Umbrella, The Lost Colors, Lee Roessler, and many more.

Chris Tomlin

“We want to create an event that families and youth groups would want to attend as a great retreat and a final event of the summer before school begins,” said Jeff Berggren, senior vice president for enrollment management and marketing at HU.

New this year is the Fandana Film Festival featuring multiple feature-length films, including the 2012 Academy Award nominated animation “A Cat in Paris” and the comedy film “Not That Funny.” These films will screen multiple times during the festival weekend along with other festival submissions in the categories of narrative, documentary, animation, and a special category for high school students. The film festival will also feature Q&As and film lectures. The Film Festival will impart more of an “arts festival.” Event coordinator Nathan Hartman says, “The whole festival will now be a celebration of the senses.”

Rounding out the festival this year is the Partner and Play Program, which features an artist talent competition. The bands compete for a Sweetwater Sound prize package, including a chance to play at the next year’s festival.

A 5K Fun Run and kid-friendly activities, including inflatables and hot air balloon rides, provide fun for the whole family.

Full event passes are available for $48 for adults and $10 for children ages 6-10. Children 5 and younger are free.

UPDATE: It was previously reported that SuperChick would perform. They won’t. They cancelled their show.

09 Jul

July 9, 2012 |

Last week, a Global Ministries staff member from Blue Rock UB church in Pennsylvania came home after serving in a closed country in Asia for five years. During this time, Melissa worked among a people group who did not have the Bible in their own language.

Pray for Melissa’s next steps, as she gets settled back in America while studying for a Master’s degree. She has been accepted at Biola University in La Mirado, Calif., for their Masters program in Linguistics and Biblical Languages.

Pray also that the Lord will multiply her work and fruit among the people group in Asia among whom she labored for five years, and that God’s Word will transform lives there.