(260) 356-2312
We are having a “baby shower” for our latest church plant: Imagine This LLC in Grand Ledge, Mich. Church planters Gordon and Lori Kettel have done an excellent job gathering a launch team of over 40 people in preparation for a launch date of October 21, 2007. United Brethren churches and individuals are invited to look over the list of items the church needs and contribute toward getting this new church off the ground. Here they are:
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Come spend a weekend celebrating 40 years of Christian camping at Camp Living Waters (Luther, Mich.). A special commemorative weekend will be held September 14-16. There is no cost, but a free-will offering will be taken.
Events during the weekend include a Saturday evening concert by Eric Cherry, a Sunday morning worship service, plus horseback riding, hayrides, tours, singing, memories, and a Saturday night hog roast.
Check-in begins at 7 pm Friday. Checkout time is 2 pm Sunday.
Housing will be male/female cabins. RV sites are also available.
If interested, please RSVP for lodging and/or meals to:
1-800-CAMP-LWA
231-797-5107
National news reports told of the recent flooding in Findlay, Ohio. Darwin Dunten, pastor of First UB church in Findlay, reports that one-third of his parishioners were affected by the flooding. In addition, the church basement was flooded with sewer water. The church’s resources are going primarily toward helping people from the church.
Churches have been inquiring about ways they can help. Instead of trying to coordinate things through the church, Pastor Dunten is pointing everyone to the United Way, which can coordinate on a much larger scale. If you’d like to help, you can call the United Way at: (419) 423-1432.
Pastor Dunten says the Mormon Church has mobilized an estimated 500 people to assist in the recovery. An official has pointed to the Mormons as the key to the city’s recovery. Hmmm.
People from several United Brethren churches are responding. A group from Monticello UB (Spencerville, Ohio) is going up to help, and several other UB churches have inquired. Pastor Dunten has also been been encouraged by the response from other UB churches in Findlay’s cluster.
First UB church can be used as a staging area for anyone who wants to come help. Call the church at: (419) 422-9398. You can also email Darwin at drwndntn@aol.com.
Rev. Winston Smith called the United Brethren Office today and gave a report of the situation in Jamaica after Hurricane Dean.
The Parsonage and Christian Education Building/Dorm in Yorktown received a lot of damage. Roofs are off, rafters gone or broken, and much water damage. Many homes in the area are also damaged. Pastor Smith said that it would be impossible for a group to stay there if they came to help with repairs. He suggested that funds to help rebuild and repair would be better at this time.
New Garden Church in the hills lost its roof. He estimates the cost for replacing the roof at $150,000 Jamaican dollars or roughly $2300 US. Many homes were lost or damaged, and many people from the church and community lost most of their possessions.
The power returned to Kingston this morning. However, there is no power or phone service (land or cell) in the outlying areas. He has been having difficulty getting an assessment of damage due to lack of communication or being able to get to areas.
A Conference Council meeting will be held on Monday, August 27, to get an assessment from the different areas. Pastor Smith would like the needs assessment sent to him today or tomorrow so he can distribute it and go over it with the Council. The fax is working at the office.
Winston is receiving reports that the town of Malvern was hit hard (the police station and another public building were completely destroyed). He has not heard, however, anything about the camp, church, or parsonage there.
Gary Dilley, Director of Global Ministries, told Pastor Smith that we would continue to pray for them and that we would keep in touch to learn of other needs.
A “Worship4Life weekend” will be held August 24-25 (Friday and Saturday) at Emmanuel Community Church in Fort Wayne, Ind. The event features John Chisum, an Integrity usic worship artist, songwriter, music publisher and producer, and instructor with the Integrity Worship Institute.
The weekend begins on Friday night with a concert by John Chisum at 7 pm. Then on Saturday, from 9 am to 3 pm, he will lead three workshops:
The cost is $5 for the concert, and $8 for both the concert and conference. Emmanuel prefers that people call for tickets andpick them up the day of the event.
A workshop for children’s ministry, called “Come to Jesus,” will be held September 29, 2007, at Emmanuel Community Church in Fort Wayne, Ind. The workshop is sponsored by Children’s Ministry Magazine, which is a Group publication.
The workshop promises the following:
Registration is $59 for an individual, $49 per person for groups of 2-9, and $45 per person for larger groups.
A Women’s Missionary Fellowship Convention will be held August 21 at Rhodes Grove Camp near Chambersburg, Pa. It begins at 9:30 a.m. Attendees are encouraged to bring auction items. The speakers will be Bob Eberly, Lois Conway, and Rev. John Christophel.
Rev. Howard and Eva Nell (Rash) Anderson will celebrate 50th anniversary on August 25. Eva Nell is the daughter of former Bishop Robert Rash, and Howard served as the denominational Director of Church Ministries until 1981, when he returned to the UB pastorate.
Any congratulatory cards or letters could be sent to their home at: 5301 N Stonyrun Lane, Fort Wayne, IN 46825.
Linda Walters from Dillman UB church (Warren, Ind.) sent this news item.
The Dillman Community Choir presented the musical “Liberty” at the College Park UB church on Sunday, July 8. The program was a patrotic tribute to God and country. The musical contained songs that made you laugh out loud and also songs that made you cry.
The program began with flag carriers bringing in both the American and the Christian flags, followed by the veterans who were not all able to walk on their own. There were many solos and duets and just great music by the 33-member choir. We sang of Yankee Doodle and Dixieland. The all-men Joy Choir of Dillman sang the Statue of Liberty, by Neil Enloe. The narration spoke of good times in our country and of bad. When the song God Bless the USA was sang, the participation of the audience was electric.
Of course one of our favorite parts of the program was when we had the salute to the Armed Forces. The military men in uniform were breathtaking. The final song was ” Pledge My Allegiance,” which included the choir, children, the veterans, the flag carriers, the military, and a fireman and a policeman. God truly blessed our program that evening. We at Dillman want to thank College Park for sharing their sanctuary with us.
Billy Simbo, now serving as Superintendent of Sierra Leone National Conference, sent a report about recent developments at Mattru Hospital in Sierra Leone. Mattru Hospital, which became a headquarters for rebels during the civil war, is rising out of the ashes. This mission hospital is making great strides, according to this July report from Superintendent Billy Simbo.
Great things are happening at Mattru Hospital and other things are in store.
Medical Board
The Mattru hospital Board made up of community and church representatives, plus representatives from the Ministry of Health and Sciences, met in June and elected Billy K. Simbo as chairman.
After the normal course of business, the Board appointed an interview committee which interviewed and hired a Finance and Administrative Officer for the hospital. This young man, Julius Gulama, comes as a member of King Memorial U.M.C. church in Freetown. Julius has a very strong accounting background and has wide work experience, including working as an administrative officer for a clinic in Conakry, Guinea.
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