04 Jan Resignation of Al Carter
Al Carter resigned as senior pastor of West Pleasant Hill UB church (Rockbridge, Ohio) effective December 31, 2009. He had been the pastor since August 2003.
02 Jan Funeral Arrangements for Rev. Richard Raab
Rev. Richard Raab, a retired ordained United Brethren minister, passed away at 4:15 pm on Friday, January 1, 2010. The funeral arrangements are as follows:
Visitation: Sunday, January 3, 2-5 pm and 6-9 pm.
Location: Stroo Funeral Home, 1095 68th Street, Southeast, Grand Rapids, MI 49508. Phone: (616) 455-9280.
Funeral: Monday, January 4, 11 a.m. Visitation 10-10:45 a.m.
Location: Banner of Christ UB church, 1111 68th Street, Byron Center, MI 49315. Phone: (616) 538-1313.
Dick pastored an Evangelical United Brethren church 1964-1967, and then pastored these four United Brethren churches:
- 1967-1992: Gaines UB (Caledonia, Mich.)
- 1992-1996: Shepherd Street UB (Charlotte, Mich.)
- 1996-1999: Ithaca UB (Ithaca, Mich.)
- 1999-2007: Richfield Road UB (Flint, Mich.)
Donelle Raab’s adddress is: 1914 Jack Pine Court, Dorr, Michigan 49323.
Dick had requested that any memorials be given to either of these:
- The Building Fund of Richfield Road United Brethren Church (Flint, Mich.) where they served most recently.
- The Banner of Christ church (Byron Center, Mich.), where they currently attend.
02 Jan Passing of Dick Raab
We learned that Dick Raab, a recently-retired minister in Michigan, passed away January 1, 2010, around 4:15 pm. On November 2, we reported that he had been diagnosed with cancer and given 3-6 months to live. Please remember his wife, Donelle, in your prayers. We’ll post funeral details as they become available.
31 Dec The United Brethren Decade in Review
Everyone’s publishing “decade in review” lists–best movies, best sports plays, most significant news stories, ground-breaking new products, top scandals, etc.
How would we recap the decade for the United Brethren church? Here are ten UB highlights of the decade, in roughly chronological order.
2001 General Conference. This was a historic conference. We adopted a true international structure, with 7 autonomous national conferences joined together by the Confession of Faith and an international constitution. Huntington, Ind., stopped being the United Brethren “world” headquarters, and became just the US headquarters. No longer does United Brethrenism revolve around the United States. Colonialism: RIP.
Open Theism. A whole lot of turbulence arose around Dr. John Sanders, a professor at Huntington University who was a leading proponent of what is called Open Theism. United Brethren theology clashed, hard, with academic freedom. Both church and college came under criticism from the broader evangelical community. In the end, an exit strategy was worked out for Dr. Sanders, and both church and college began mending the wounds.
Joining the Missionary Church. In early 2003, the UB Executive Leadership Team voted to pursue merging our denomination into the Missionary Church, a like-minded, larger denomination based in Fort Wayne, Ind. As leadership pushed this initiative, a group called UB Hope arose to rally people against it. Ultimately, UB members voted it down in a referendum, 56%-44%. This set the stage for lots of soul-searching about why we exist and the adoption of a whole new structure.
30 Dec Pray for George Rhodifer
Roland Albert, pastor of Park Layne UB in New Carlisle, Ohio, sent this message:
“Pray for Rev. George Rhodifer (right) today at 10:30 am. He is having a procedure done on his esophagus. He has been fighting the fight against cancer, and he’s winning. We just want everyone to pray for him today at 10:30.”
29 Dec Use Direct Deposit to Support Missions
Now, you can use Direct Deposit to support the work of Global Ministries. Donations, including monthly support for individuals, can be transferred automatically from your bank account.
No checks to write. No stamps to find, or envelopes to address. You don’t even need to remember that your support is due. It all happens automatically. And it’s very secure.
A few advantages:
- Convenient. Transfers occur automatically. You don’t need to write checks, find the address, locate the previous receipt, fill out the envelope, pay for stamps, etc.
- Timely. Your gift is transferred at the same time every month. You don’t need to remember to make the gift.
- Secure. Electronic fund transfers are among the most reliable, accurate, and secure methods of payment. There are no checks or receipts to be lost, stolen, or delayed in the mail. Every check you write contains written information about your bank account. That’s not an issue with electronic transfers.
- Good stewardship. Global Ministries doesn’t need to spend time opening envelopes and processing gifts.
28 Dec The Eve of Christmas Eve
Michael Mitchell of Lighthouse Community (Williamston, Mich.) says. “We always have a Christmas Eve’s Eve Candlelight service on the night before Christmas Eve, with desserts and appetizers afterwards. That way, everyone can be with their families on Christmas Eve and still be with their church family during this special season.”
28 Dec Over 650 Nativity Sets in Rockford, Ill.
Barry Skinner, pastor of Kilburn Avenue UB (Rockford, Ill.), reported concerning their Christmas activities: “Our annual nativity walk went well December 12-13. We had over 650 nativity sets and scenes from around the world. The church gave out cookies, drinks, and candy canes along with a nativity story book and three-dimensional nativity scenes with instructions for assembling them.
“We did a series (4 weeks) on the true Christmas story about the character of Mary, Joseph, the wise men, and the shepherds and wrapped it up with the reason Christ came.”
28 Dec Church Planter, Artisan, and No Power Tools
Pastor Anacleto is both a church planter and artisan. When he is not leading his congregation in Queretaro, Mexico, he is supporting himself and his family by building rustic furniture.
I work a little with wood, but have a ton of power tools that make me look pretty good. Pastor Anacleto does all of his work by hand, including the carving you see in this photo. He has no power tools.
All our pastors in Mexico are bi-vocational and nearly all consider themselves first and foremost church planters. As one pastor asked me, “Aren’t all pastors church planters?”
22 Dec Ruth Ann Price Slowing Down, Sort Of
Ruth Ann Price reports that in December, she began a reduced assignment with Wycliffe Bible Translators.
- She won’t make extended overseas trips anymore. The longest will be 4-6 weeks (which certainly sounds “extended” to most of us). On December 26, she will travel to Asia for four weeks.
- She’ll spend more time at her home in Huntington, Ind..
- She will invest both semesters of the year (rather than just one semester) in her role as Missionary-in-Residence at Huntington University, teaching and mentoring young people who feel called to Christian service.
Ruth Ann is an endorsed UB missionary who has spent nearly her entire adult career with Wycliffe. She is also a member of the Global Ministries Leadership Team.
Ruth Ann says, “I do not plan to retire now (I’m having too much fun doing what I do), but I will continue part-time as long as God gives me good health, to contribute to the caue of Bible translation and sharing Christ globally.”