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23 Jan

January 23, 2012 |

On October 1, 2011, the memberships of CrossGlobal Link (formerly IFMA) and The Mission Exchange (formerly EFMA) agreed to merge. The new group will represent 35,000 evangelical missionaries from over 190 agencies and churches.

This historic decision took place on the heels of the North American Mission Leaders Conference. Present during the conference were Jeff Bleijerveld, our Global Ministries director, and Dave Datema, a member of the Global Ministries Leadership Team who is director of Frontier Missionary Fellowship at the US Center for World Mission.

The organization’s new name will be announced in early 2012 at a special Bi-Centennial Celebration in Salem, Mass. It was there, 200 years ago, that the first North American missionaries were commissioned for overseas service by an organized mission society.

The decision to form one new mission entity was not motivated by a desire to preserve “what is” but rather to better position them to pursue “what could be.” Five desired outcomes for the new organization were stated:

  1. Provide a powerful model of a unified, broadly based, evangelical, forward-thinking national mission movement for the rest of the world.
  2. Leverage the combined strengths of these two organizations to envision new ways to increase the effectiveness of the Great Commission community in North America.
  3. Provide a single point of entry for leaders from the majority world/global south to engage with missin-focused evangelicals in North America.
  4. Harness the collective wisdom and expertise of the most inclusive (church, business, education, mission) network of North American Great Commission oriented evangelicals.
  5. Attract growing numbers of next-generation mission leaders as well as innovative pioneers who operate on the periphery of the traditional mission enterprise.

23 Jan

January 23, 2012 |

The Lancaster Eagle Gazette published an article about Josh Dexter, a young black minister who started a new church in downtown Lancaster. In the article, Dexter tells about his wayward days, and how he came back to the Lord. He gives a lot of credit to Greg Voight (right), pastor of Lancaster UB Church.

“My old life of addictions disappeared, and I started to look into things that God wanted me to do….I became a worship leader for the Lancaster United Brethren. In that church, I realized I was turning that church into a more contemporary church. Later, I also discovered, God sent me there to be trained by a great minister named Pastor Greg Voight. I knew through his training he was preparing me for the ministry.”

21 Jan

January 21, 2012 |

Kyle McQuillen (right), former Director of Global Ministries (1993-2001), has been diagnosed with cancer of the lymph nodes. He wrote earlier this week, “They found a mass in a routine MRI following up on my back surgery last year. I will be contacting an oncologist locally and having a PET Scan on January 19. I feel fine and am asymptomatic. Fortunately, the cancer appears to be treatable and I’ll know more after the visit to the oncologist and the PET scan this week.

“I am working fulltime at the Tomoka Correctional Institution in Daytona Beach as a Chaplain, where I run two re-entry dorms for 264 inmates returning to the free world. I also continue working as pastor of visitation at the Edgewater Alliance Church. I’ll continue working even if I have to have chemo, which is likely.”

Kyle and Marlouise McQuillen came to the United Brethren church when they served as missionaries in Sierra Leone 1983-1985. Kyle later joined the national office staff as an associate director of Global Ministries for a couple years, and then left that position to pastor College Park church in Huntington, Ind., 1989-1993. After eight years as Director of Global Ministries, he and Marlouise “retired” to Edgewater, Fla.

You can write to Kyle at: Kyle W. McQuillen, 299 Casa Grande, Edgewater, FL 32141

20 Jan

January 20, 2012 |

Andrew Martin

Nick Kight, Huntington University Class of ’12
Posted January 2012

As a young boy, Andrew Martin grew up watching “VeggieTales.” Who would have known the lessons taught by Bob the Tomato and Larry the Cucumber would one day leave an impression both morally and occupationally on him.

Early on, he wondered how these movies were made and how the characters were brought to life. He did some research and taught himself the mechanics and functionality of computers. His studies at Huntington University as an animation and computer science major then gave him the technical skills and the means to succeed in the field.

Now, he works at DreamWorks Animation SKG Inc. as a technician resource administrator, also known as a render wrangler. Animators send him their animations, and Martin, alongside the rest of the DreamWorks staff, brings those characters to the big screen through a system made up of thousands of computers.

“I love a good story so I decided to take my passions and apply them toward my career goals,” said Martin, a 2011 HU graduate. “So far, I’d say animation has been a good fit for me. I’ve been told I’m going to start working on DreamWorks Animation’s next film, ‘Madagascar 3.’ I think reality will set in once I go to a theater and see my name in the credits.”

Back in June, Martin found the position while browsing through different studio websites. He applied for the job, and then, all he could do was wait.

“I didn’t end up hearing anything until August when I learned my professor sent DreamWorks a recommendation on my behalf,” he said. “He had a contact who worked there and helped me get my foot in the door.”

Three weeks later, they asked him to pack his bags and move out to California. And had it not been for the networking with professors, preparation from the HU animation department and the opportunity to conduct his own independent study on render management, Martin does not think he would have landed the position at DreamWorks.

“My professors made sure I was on the right track,” he said. “My computer science classes taught me the specifics of computers and how to utilize those to their full capacity in the animation studio.”

During his first day of work, Martin realized the DreamWorks position is the dream job he always wanted.

“The fringe benefits are amazing, the animation process is a collaborative effort, people eat their lunch together and it’s a light-hearted environment,” he said. “I’m going to be spoiled by this.”

20 Jan

January 20, 2012 |

The team.

Cody Young giving his testimony to kids at a clinic.

Team members with some of the kids at a clinic.

Steve Dennie, Communications Director

Jeff Dice: “I’ve been to Nicaragua 29 times, and have probably been on 45 mission trips in my life. But it’ll be hard to top this one.”

Jeff is a Global Ministries “nontraditional” staffmember serving part of the year in Nicaragua. He visited Huntington, Ind., soon after returning from Nicaragua as part of team which, on their Facebook page, described themselves as, “We are a group of men heading to Nicaragua to play baseball and share Jesus with kids.” They did both quite well.

The team had 20 members:

  • Jeff and his son Camden.
  • A friend of Jeff’s who is a coach in Clare, Mich., and his son.
  • 10 baseball players from Huntington University.
  • 3 soccer players from Huntington University who wanted a mission experience during January Term and, according to Jeff, “actually played pretty good baseball.”
  • 2 former baseball players from Anderson University (Anderson, Ind.). One of them, Cory Young, played minor league baseball (shortstop and outfield) for the Baltimore Orioles.
  • Josh Kesler, pastor of The Well in Huntington, Ind. He went along as the team pastor.

“We had a mixed bag of people, but the chemistry was unbelievable,” Jeff said. “From the first day, I’m happy to say, we never had any kind of group issue. The maturity of these guys was amazing.”

L-r: “Goliath,” Camden Dice, and Cody Young. Cody Young is 6’3.”

The team spent a week in Masaya, of city of 130,000 (the country’s third largest) which is the center of our work in Nicaragua. Nicaragua has a four-team winter league, which they would call their professional league. It includes players from many countries. Then in February, 16 teams—all Nicaraguans—begin playing what they call their First Division.

“We played the team from Masaya that plays in the First Division,” Jeff explained. “The level of player was at or slightly above that of a US college player. We matched up because we had Derrick McKinney and Mitch Bowers pitching. They are elite college-level players, both from Huntington University. That leveled it out for us.”

They played their first game—actually, a double-header–on Saturday, January 7. They lost the first game 3-0, but won the second 6-2. The team’s Facebook page recorded it this way: “McKinney scared the crap out of several local hitters by buzzing them inside and high. He pitched really well except to a hitter we now call Goliath. He is 6’7″ and hit a McKinney 3-2 offering that is on it’s way to Costa Rica.”

Jeff recalls, “After the inning, Derrick walked over to the Nicaraguan bench to shake Goliath’s hand. We had this baseball connection that overrode any barriers present, because we all loved baseball.”

The Americans shattered four bats during those first two games. They went to the local bat maker and bought ten more bats. Then they stopped at the local Papa Johns, where they ordered 8 large pizzas and watched the Cincinnati Bengals lose to the Houston Texans.

On Monday, January 9, they began a series of baseball clinics which ran every day from 9 am to 12:30 pm, a different age group each day. After the clinic they would get some lunch, and then have a few hours before the evening game.

The clinics were conducted in partnership with the Masaya mayor’s office, which contacted local baseball coaches. Those coaches then brought their teams to the clinics—an average of 40-50 players each day.

(more…)

19 Jan

January 19, 2012 |

United Brethren Churches by County

We participated in a study through the Church of the Nazarene, giving them information about our churches in the United States. In return, they sent us some interesting maps showing where our churches and constituents are located. The map above has been added to the “About Us” section on UB.org, our official website. (Click to enlarge.)

16 Jan

January 16, 2012 |

The JustONE Conference is a free virtual (online) conference for pastors’ wives and women in ministry.

It starts Monday, January 23, and continues for four weeks. Each week, the conference is held on Monday and Tuesday.

This conference will include over 20 speakers sharing from their personal lives and leadership. Each session will be shown 4 times during the week. So find a time that is right for your schedule, and join in!

Week 1: January 23-24
Week 2: January 30-31
Week 3: February 6-7
Week 4: February 13-14

Go to the Leading And Loving It website for more information and to register.

16 Jan

January 16, 2012 |

A mini-campaign to build a new Huntington University track and soccer field is well under way, with $150,000 in donations from leaders at the university. During the past few years, the track and soccer programs have grown to include more than 125 student athletes, creating a need for updated facilities.

The mini-campaign was launched in early December as a subset of the $21 million Together: The Campaign for Huntington University, and received a strong kickoff with gifts from the university’s senior leaders, capital campaign committee members, and trustees.

In addition, Forester athletes will conduct a Phonathon during the week of January 9 to draw support for the campaign. Donors may “buy” a meter of the track for $185, or a square yard of the soccer field for $70.

To learn more about Huntington University’s Track/Soccer Field mini-campaign or to become a partner in the project, visit huntington.edu/advancement.

13 Jan

January 13, 2012 |

At Craighead Church in Jamaica

Betty Brown (right) with Pastor Bryan Wallace and and his wife, Rhoda.

The Craighead church

Betty Brown, Bethel UB Church (Elmore, Ohio)

A team from Bethel UB church (Elmore, Ohio) has returned from a work week at Craighead UB Church in Jamaica. We supplied a much-needed refrigerator for Big Wood School. We did Bible school with the children and visited many shut-ins while we were there. Many relationships were been strengthened.

We were privledged to spend New Year’s Eve with them in a Watch Night Service. At midnight we had everyone praying, and I could not help but think how the Lord must enjoy listening to that unison of music to his ears.

Bible school had anywhere from 30-60 kids. They just kept coming. Friday after Bible school, the parents/friends were all invited. We served 90 ice cream cones. This was a nice surprise for the children.

Every evening we seemed to feed at least 20 people for supper. The Lord never let the pot get empty till everyone had their fill.

The team members were Betty Brown, Christina Brown, Melissa Blausey, Stephanie Kriner, and Vicki Kreinbihl.

13 Jan

January 13, 2012 |

Our friend Kim (last name withheld for security reasons) serves in Asia as a member of the Global Ministries Jump Start program, a new program which enables people to get overseas quickly and inexpensively. She shares that the past semester of teaching at a university went very well and that she and her roommate are traveling with three students, seeing sights, and enjoying the New Year’s celebrations.

Kim sent along this shot from their commute. And you thought your drive to work was challenging!

Kim is currently the only participant in JumpStart. However, an older couple will go to Jamaica in the fall of 2012 as part of JumpStart.

With JumpStart, you don’t need to raise the “big bucks” typically required of career missionaries–salary support, benefits, living expenses, etc., over a multi-year period. JumpStart keeps costs low, so that you get to the field sooner. Participants benefit from an extended ministry experience in an overseas setting to see if this is what they’d really like to do with their life, without being required to make a long-term commitment.

JumpStart may be a great opportunity for someone in your church who may be considering a call to missions. Global Ministries welcomes other applicants for JumpStart. You can learn more about JumpStart on the Global Ministries site.