APRIL 3 – 5, 2006
Within weeks, Nazarenes with interest in urban ministry opportunities will gather in Philadelphia for a historic event that could renew the church's passion for urban missions. “To the City with Love,” the theme of the conference is designed to provide a learning marketplace for practitioners, as well as facilitating a network of professionals who can share their knowledge and experience.
Three plenary sessions feature renowned experts in the urban context – Dr. Cheryl Sanders, Dr. Tom Nees, and Dr. Gustavo Crocker.
The workshops are intended to bring to participants a rich storehouse of ideas by which communities could be transformed and congregations could be poised to for new approaches to minister effectively in the city. Nazarene Publishing House would be available as a resource to purchase books on urban ministry topics.
Highlights of the conference include Blood Donation to the Children’s Hospital, and a One Heart, Many Hands Community Work Project.
Registration for the conference could be done on-line at: http://www.urbannazarene.org/urban_renaissance.html
NAZARENES DEMONSTRATE SUPPORT FOR URBAN INITIATIVES
The Board of General Superintendents has approved and endorsed March 12, 2006 as an opportunity for the denomination to support the renewed urban initiatives of the US/Canada Mission Evangelism department. The 10% Mission Special (Urban Mission Awareness Offering) is designated to coincide with the upcoming Nazarene Centennial Urban Renaissance to be held in Philadelphia, April 3 – 5, 2006.
We are asking for every Nazarene member in North America, to contribute $1.00 on Sunday, March 12th. This is a one-time offering only, and will guarantee that the urban ministry office can fulfill its calling to challenge and to change the equation that will leverage urban ministry in an unprecedented surge of missional efforts.
Oliver Phillips, director of Mission Strategy stated that this could be the catalyst for a new day in missions for the denomination. He challenged recently, “Join me in this challenge. As Ezekiel closed his book with the wonderful phrase, ‘And the name of the City was: The Lord is There,’ so too, let your one-time contribution allow some of God’s money to also be there.”
What would your generosity do?
- Help train leaders for the urban church
- Help start churches in urban centers
- Help develop resources for urban practitioners and volunteers
- Help scholarship students to the Urban Renaissance
- Help support Urban Ministry Resource Centers
- Help develop immigration resources for ethnic pastors and leaders
- Help develop evangelism literature for reaching urban centers
Local churches have received bulletin inserts to facilitate this offering. Donations could also be made electronically through: http://www.urbannazarene.org/donate.html
All donations should be sent to:
General Treasurer
Global Ministry Center
17001 Prairie Star Parkway
Lenexa, KS 66220
Indicate: Account AMS1106
TROTMAN CALLED TO HIGHLAND PARK NAZARENE
Larry W. Leonard, senior pastor of Highland Park Church of the Nazarene is pleased to announce the hiring of Eon Trotman as the Magnification Pastor (music pastor). He is a native of Guyana and a product of missionary service. A purpose-driven church of 1200 plus members, Trotman will lead a team of gifted and committed servants in music, drama, and multimedia.
Eon served previously as worship pastor at Community Worship Center, Brooklyn, New York; Yakima First Nazarene, Yakima, Washington; Concord Nazarene, Concord, California, and Santa Cruz Nazarene, Santa Cruz, Trinidad. A graduate of Caribbean Nazarene College and Southern Nazarene University, Eon will utilize a worship experience that encourages participation while maintaining quality musical presentations that encourage the believer and non-believer to "connect to the hope found in Jesus Christ."
In addition, Eon has traveled extensively presenting the gospel through music. While with the Collegians of Southern Nazarene University, Eon traveled to the Philippines and to Australia with Northwest Nazarene University's "Hallelujah Brass." He also traveled with Discovery and International Student Ministries, two student musical groups of Youth in Missions. Eon has directed the music for the National Black Nazarene Conference and PALCON on the Eastern Nazarene Region.
Eon is married to the former Cassandra Ballard-Savage and they have three children, Alandria, Damien (DJ), and Ceyanna. Congratulations to Eon and Cassandra for their continued service to the church.
BEYIOKU URBAN REPORT
Excitement was in the air recently as the leaders of Pilgrim Congregational UCC spent time in a retreat facilitated by the Alliance of Church-Based Community Developers to focus on team building and prime spiritual priorities. The retreat started on Friday night with the pastor and ministers only, and the Saturday session included the members of the board of trustees along with all the other leaders of the church. The team celebrated God's goodness in their midst and spent time to explore ways to improve and increase the work of God's grace in their church and community. I sincerely commend Pilgrim for their desire to serve the Lord in a bigger and better way.
I look forward to preaching at Westside Baptist Church Long Beach (ACCD member church), later on this morning (Sunday) and at Alhambra Church of the Nazarene in the evening service. It's good to be an instrument in the hand of God.
Please pray for ACCD ministry along with Pilgrim Congregational and the other members of ACCD.
CHICAGO FIRST CHURCH OPENS MINISTRY CENTER IN THE CITY!
On November 19, 2005, the Chicago First Church of the Nazarene under the leadership of Pastor Kevin Ulmet, celebrated an Open House at the newly rehabbed Chicago Austin Hope and Light Ministry Center.
The Ministry Center is the culmination of a vision and months of effort and hundreds of dollars of investment in rehabilitating a vacant and rapidly deteriorating church facility in the western Chicago neighborhood of Austin. Austin is the largest of Chicago's 77 neighborhoods, with a population of over 100,000.
The Ministry Center will house a worshipping congregation, Chicago Reaching Out Community Church, pastored by Rev. Kenneth Robinson, as well as several community outreach and service ministries.
We congratulate Chicago First Church and Pastor Ulmet, as well as Pastor Robinson and the Chicago Reaching Out Community Church, and we celebrate with them this very significant vision fulfilled.
The Ministry Center is an approved 10% missions giving special. Contact Chicago First Church or the District Office for information on how to give or be involved in this ministry.
MVNU’S SINGLETARY HONORED
MOUNT VERNON, Ohio – Mount Vernon Nazarene University Director of Multicultural Affairs Jim Singletary was named a “Sprit of the Vision” Award recipient at the recent Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration Breakfast. The annual event is co-hosted by MVNU and nearby Kenyon College. Rev. Dewayne Hubbard, pastor of The Way of God Apostolic Church in Mount Vernon, Ohio, was also a recipient.
The “Spirit of the Vision” Award recognizes an outstanding individual in the community who is perpetuating the dream of Dr. King—to ensure that everyone has an equal opportunity to pursue their dreams. “Since Jim has been at MVNU, he has made it his personal mission to encourage minorities to pursue their education with the help of the University,” explained Terri Hubbard, chairperson of the Dr. King Legacy Committee. “He is responsible for reaching out to minority groups who have been previously overlooked. Through his unrelenting pursuit, he has influenced other colleges to do the same. Jim is committed to making a change, not only in his immediate community, but beyond Mount Vernon as well.”
As director of Multicultural Affairs at MVNU, Singletary is responsible for assessing, developing, implementing and monitoring ways to improve and promote educational equity and diversity and assisting in the recruitment of minority faculty. Other responsibilities include serving as a resource for classroom presentations, chapel programs, residential life seminars, mission and ministry programs and student activities. He also serves as key contact for prospective minority and international students, as well as an advocate for enrolled minority and international students.
Since coming on board at MVNU in the summer of 2004, Singletary has established the AIM for Excellence program, serving American students of color (African, Hispanic, Asian, and Native Americans), missionary students and international students. He as also developed the Diversity Leadership Scholarship program for first-year AIM students which emphasizes leadership, Christian character, academic excellence and service to others.
Singletary has also worked very hard with nearby communities to enhance relationships with high schools traditionally serving minority students and families. He created Project RECRUIT as a partnership between Ohio’s Project GRAD program and Mount Vernon Nazarene University. Enrollment of undergraduate multicultural students at MVNU has increased by 47 percent since 2004.
Originally from Youngstown, Ohio, Singletary has 15 years of professional background in student affairs administration, minority student support services and the federal TRIO grant Upward Bound. He has worked in both public and private education at The University of Akron and Waynesburg College (Penn.). He also has ministry experience as a church elder, head of Christian Education and Sunday School teacher. He is married to Trudy, a medical social worker, and they have two children: Luisa and Emmanuel.
Mount Vernon Nazarene University is a private, four-year, intentionally Christian teaching university for traditional age students, graduate students and working adults. U.S. News & World Report ranks MVNU in the Top 50 Best in the Midwest (Bachelor’s) for the second year in a row. With a 401-acre main campus in Mount Vernon, Ohio, and seven satellite Adult and Graduate Studies campuses throughout the state, MVNU emphasizes academic excellence, spiritual growth and service to community and church. MVNU offers an affordable education to more than 2,540 students from 29 states and nine countries/U.S. territories.
NEW BLACK MINISTRIES REGISTERED EVANGELIST
Rev. Fred L. McCarty is a newly registered evangelist and NewStart pastor serving the Lord Jesus Christ on the West Virginia South District under the tutelage of Dr. Mervin Smith, district superintendent. Fred graduated from the Nazarene Bible College extension, the WV South District School of Ministries, August 3, 2000, and was ordained as an Elder on August 5, 2004. In November and December, 2005, he successfully completed New Church University and the New Start Assessment Center. Prior to accepting the call as a evangelist and New Start Pastor, he served as the Associate Pastor at the Institute Church on the WV South District.
Fred and his wife [Patricia] currently reside in Nitro, WV, and are in the preparatory stages of hopefully launching a New Start - Judah United Church of the Nazarene, Huntington, WV, later this year or early 2007. They are currently bi-vocational, but are aggressively working to restructuring their secular occupations in order to devote the majority of their time towards fulfilling their call to ministry. References are available upon request.
Rev. McCarty is available for engagements by contact information:
Home Phone: 304-755-5252
Work Phone: 304-746-8033
Cell Phone: 304-552-0281
TESTIMONY FROM JEWISH CONGREGATION
I would also like to share with you a testimony about our Shabbat service this past weekend! While Rabbi Jack was off teaching at the Southwest Messianic Conference in California, we had Rob Wardheim from Jews for Jesus share with our congregation about their 'Behold your God!" campaign which they have been conducting worldwide and are beginning in the Greater Phoenix Metropolitan area this week. What an exciting time and blessing for us to be a part of this outreach. As leads are generated from this campaign, Jews for Jesus will send a portion of them to Beth Simchat for follow-up. The leads will include new converts as well as other individuals that are interested in receiving more information.
As great as that testimony is, what happened after the service is even greater and reminds Rabbi Jack and I why we are in the ministry, because as Rob sat down, I got up and made an appeal for helpers to follow-up on the leads. Immediately after I had dismissed the congregation with the benediction, Eric, one of our Jewish Christians who had accepted Jesus as Messiah about a year and a half ago and had been discipled for most of that time, was the first individual to talk with me and signed up to be a part of the follow-up team. That is exciting as one of our spiritual children is growing up in the spirit and is ready to work in the mission field along side of the rest of us.
I also had an opportunity to speak with Rob regarding our church planting efforts in the Church of the Nazarene with specific emphasis on the Jewish culture. Rob was extremely excited and is willing to talk with Rabbi Jack and myself on ways that we will be able to partner with Jews for Jesus through out the United States and Canada in our church planting areas. We will keep you updated in our efforts to bring this about.
As each of us continue to labor together in our own areas of God's vineyard, it is important that we continue to encourage and support each other to move forward, especially in the times when we really don't feel like moving forward. It is for that reason I am going to try my best to send an email of encouragement and exhortation once a week. If you have any suggestions and ideas on ways to make this communiqué better or you might have a short devotional that you would like to share, please feel free to contact me at mcoble@bethsimchat.org
Rev. Monty Coble, Beth Simchat HaMashiach, Phoenix
mcoble@bethsimchat.org
NAZARENES PREPARE FOR BLACK CONFERENCE
AUGUST 3 – 6, 2006
click here to go to the conference information page
There is a spirit of excitement and expectancy as the time draws closer to our “Empowerment Conference” in Dallas, Texas. Nazarenes from across the country will convene in the Long Horn State for what is building up to be an unforgettable season of refreshing. This is a God-initiated and God-directed moment that could very well define our place in the kingdom. We have been designed for destiny, but we must pursue the dreams that God has gifted to us. This is a pivotal time in the history of our Church and therefore, we must aggressively claim our place in the Church. This will be a heightened spiritual atmosphere of celebrating our cultural distinctiveness in the power of the Holy Spirit. We are coming together in the power of the Spirit to experience a mighty visitation from God.
Our conference theme is “Reclaiming and Empowering the Black Family for the 21st Century”. We have been ushered into a higher level of God’s anointing and a sense of belonging and ownership at every conference.
Our children need to capture these sacred moments of the Black Church empowering each other for the Kingdom mandate. Many of us are isolated and we need this time to renew our vision and recapture God’s dream for our lives. We have also seen a number of marriages as a result of our conferences.
In the Book of Leviticus, the people of God were instructed to celebrate the “Year of Jubilee”. “Proclaim liberty throughout all the land unto all the inhabitants thereof: it shall be a Jubilee unto you; and ye shall return every man unto his possession, and ye shall return every man unto his family” (Leviticus 25:10). During the “Year of Jubilee,” Israel was instructed to focus on three items. They were challenged to (1) Reaffirm their Commitment (2) Reclaim their Inheritance and (3) Repossess their Possession. We are going in oneness to this sacred assembly to recommit ourselves to God and henceforth we will reclaim and repossess our souls, our children, and our community.
Pastors, you are the catalyst to encourage and to enlist your people expeditiously for the conference. Now is the time to register! We believe that our fine pastors will mobilize their people to come in full force to the great State of Texas. In addition to the conference this could be a prime time for a well deserved vacation. Texas has a lot to offer with various amusement parks and museums. The “Adams Mark Hotel” is on prime real estate where food is plentiful and the atmosphere is family friendly. God desires for us to be in Texas on August 3-6, and He will make a way for you.
Dr. Elmer Gillett, Mission Director
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NAZARENE CENTENNIAL URBAN RENAISSANCE