NORTH BROWARD, Florida—It has been the vision of the North Broward WCG congregation to meet in some way the needs of the community to which God moved us.

At the same time Frank Fitzsimmons, pastor of the Parkway United Methodist Church, where the North Broward congregation meets, had the same vision. On Aug. 25 the two congregations joined with the greater Body of Christ in an ecumenical worship service with more than 170 people participating. Included was the Haitian Pentecostal Church of God, a Creole-speaking congregation.

Mr. Fitzsimmons led the service accompanied by pastors Henry Sequor and Larry Hinkle of the WCG. Pastor Frank gave a sermon about unity in the Body of Christ. The message was translated into Creole. The Haitian youth choir and Luciendo Camblard, a college student and WCG member, provided music. Everyone sang in their own language.

Larry Hinkle

The WCG congregation and two people from the Parkway group had a prayer walk in the neighborhood Aug. 31. This is the second WCG prayer walk this year in which members asked God to bring peace and revival to the area. Whenever possible they approached individuals for conversation. Louis Doig led two people to accept Jesus as their Savior.

These activities culminated on Sept. 11 in a community memorial service and outdoor revival activities under a tent in the parking lot Sept. 12 and 13. Especially moving was the presentation of plaques honoring the service of community police and fire department personnel. The WCG led the revival on Sept. 12. Charlie Nickert presented the music, and Charles Fleming and Larry Hinkle led worship and gave messages. We all sensed the presence of the Holy Spirit. During the altar call 32 people, including many children, committed or recommitted their lives to Christ. Children were seen kneeling and praying at the cross in front of the church after the service.

Charles Fleming

The Haitian congregation led the Friday night, Sept. 13, service. Their deep appreciation at being invited to join with us was effusive. The speaker urged everyone to be sure we are ready as we are directed in Scripture. In attendance were Pastor Jairo Da Cruz and some of his congregation of the Evangelical Assemblies of God Missionary Church, a Portuguese congregation that meets in the Haitian church building.

This was a new experience for us in the WCG. God has been preparing us for some time for evangelism and prayer. We continue to pray that we can open the eyes of many in the community to God’s great love and salvation through Christ. Carolyn Kieswetter.

IRVING, Texas—Evangelist Billy Graham addressed overflow crowds at Texas Stadium in Irving, Oct. 16 to 19.

Some 1,400 local churches assisted with the campaign, including the Dallas Central WCG congregation. Thirty-five Dallas Central members, including at least one teen, signed up to counsel those who accepted Jesus. Counselors were so numerous that the Billy Graham organization had more available than were needed.

Several other Dallas Central members sang in the campaign’s 5,000-member choir.

The four-day campaign included performances by Christian recording artists, a children’s service with costumed characters, a youth night and sermons by Dr. Graham.

The longtime evangelist addressed a total of 250,000 people, including 83,000 the last night, a record attendance for the stadium. The campaign received considerable positive media coverage in the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex. Over the four days, about 11,000 people came forward to accept Christ as their Savior.

Before the campaign, many of the members attended part or all of a five-session Christian life and witnessing course.

"What impressed me was seeing so many teenagers and pre-teens involved," said Pastor Lynn Hebert. He witnessed older children and preteens counseling younger children, laying hands on them and praying for them. Frank Lewandowski.

NASSAU, Bahamas—On Sept. 10 Bishop Samuel Green, president of the Christian Council, and Shannondor Evans, superintendent of the Elizabeth Estates Police Station, asked all pastors of the eastern district of the island to come together for prayer and to discuss crime and social ills.

"It was felt that we need a joint and unified effort to address these problems," said Robert McKinney, WCG pastor.

Fifteen of the 20 pastors from the area attended. The group plans to have community outreach programs with emphasis on reaching young men.

Robert McKinney

The group agreed to organize as the Eastern Church Pacesetters. "When it came time to nominate officers, Pastor Joshua Sands was chosen as president. And as I was sitting back minding my own business, I suddenly heard Bishop Green say, ‘What about Mr. Worldwide for secretary?’ And without giving me a chance to respond, he said, ‘Done! Now who will be the treasurer?’ "

CALAMBA CITY, Philippines—Pastor Rene Marquez and Arji Cruz baptized 18 more male inmates at the Calamba City jail Sept. 11, bringing to 96 the number of inmates they have baptized there thus far. Ten of the inmates are women. Some of the baptized inmates have already been transferred to the provincial jail in Sta. Cruz, Laguna. Mr. Marquez conducts regular Bible studies there.

Rene Marquez

"We are now looking for a place in Calamba City that we can use to continue providing spiritual nurturing for those who are now freed from jail and back to their normal social lives," Mr. Cruz said.

QUEZON CITY, Philippines—Some 300 new members from four barangays (neighborhoods) in Quezon City met for a praise and worship service Oct. 30 at the national office in Quezon City.

This ministry is being spearheaded by WCG missionary and church planter Arji Cruz and his wife, Juliet, in partnership with Fred Cacanando’s All for Christ Ministry.

During the worship service, about 50 children were blessed and after lunch, 41 new members were baptized by Randal Dick, Eugene Guzon, George Escara, Andrew Teng, Arji Cruz and Len Joson.

QUEZON CITY, Philippines—After a combined worship service of all Metro Manila churches Nov. 2, where Curtis May, a U.S. district superintendent, gave a message on reconciliation, Randal Dick, superintendent of missions, officially announced and inducted into office the nine new directors for the Worldwide Church of God board in the Philippines.

They are Amado Aquino, Jessup Bahinting, George Escara, Maxzix Fabricante (chairman), Len Joson (secretary), Jose Manzano, Carlos Pizarro, Ezra Raduban and Rey Taniajura. The new board will function as a governing board to assure that the WCG Philippines will continue to be an instrument in God’s hand that he can use to achieve what he wants accomplished and avoid those things against his will.

BRISBANE, Australia—For more than 11 years, Bill and Daphne Sidney served in the Philippines, most of that time as regional director for the Northeast Asian area, which includes Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Guam, the Mariana Islands and Micronesia. Mr. and Mrs. Sidney and their daughters plan to move to Brisbane in December. Mr. Sidney will continue to visit the Philippines and other countries in the region several times a year.

Bill and Daphne Sidney

WASHINGTON, Pennsylvania—The Fountain of Life Church, the WCG congregation in Washington, honored Pastor Tom Smith and Ken Alderson, associate pastor, on Oct. 27.

The congregation took up a collection, and each couple was given a card and gift certificates for two restaurants and for Wal-Mart. After the service, the Sunday School class gave Mr. Smith handmade cards to show their appreciation. A potluck took place after the service. Shirley Collins.   

Tom & Pam Smith

Ken & Kathleen Alderson

WCG members release CD in Myrtle Beach

NEW ORLEANS, Louisiana—Three brothers who are lifelong WCG members from New Orleans released an original Christian CD titled No Ordinary Man at the Come Celebrate Christ 2002 concert in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. The group, known as Jay3, performs a blend of jazz, rhythm and blues, hip-hop, alternative and contemporary Christian music on their new CD.

"My brothers and I have performed musically since we were children, but we were all influenced by different forms of music," said Jay3 member David Jackson. "This project represents a culmination of our thoughts, musical input and Christ’s everlasting spirit."

The Jackson brothers, Donald, Tyrone and David, worked for almost a year on the CD before compiling the album. Donald and David traveled between their homes in Louisiana to Tyrone’s studio in Atlanta, Georgia. Tyrone is the primary producer of the CD.

Tyrone studied under jazz patriarch Ellis Marsalis at the University of New Orleans. He said: "I feel I have something to give musically, but I didn’t want to do the same old gospel songs. I wanted to put our musical influences in it. I just wanted to do something different."

All music and lyrics on the 15-song CD are original compositions of the three brothers. All three are worship leaders in their areas.

The trio performed songs from their CD at the praise and worship concert at the Myrtle Beach festival.

No Ordinary Man is the first CD released under the Jackson’s new music production company Brothers Grimm Productions. For more information visit the website www.brothers-grimm.net Rashida Jackson.

GAINESVILLE, Florida—Friendship International’s "A New Song" musical troupe sang, shared testimonies and inspired the Gainesville congregation Oct. 12, and the Ocala congregation Oct. 13.

Friendship International is an interdenominational faith mission founded by Del Huff in 1990. It is committed to equipping and training Christians to build up the Body of Christ, and to communicate the gospel through education, humanitarian relief, orphanage ministry, summer camps, music evangelism, seminar training, evangelistic outreaches and construction and work projects.

"A New Song" is a musical group of a dozen young people from Romania, Hungary and Chile. They were selected for their musical talent and their desire to reach the lost in their homelands. The singers and musicians dressed in their native costumes and sang songs in their native languages for the first part of the service. Songs included melodies on the pan flute and strong rhythms on the box board. The second half of the service was filled with praise songs.

"Advertising the musical event was a great way to invite new people to the service," said Pastor Ken Smylie. The musical group tours the country twice a year and would like to come to big or small congregations.

"A New Song" has performed at WCG festivals and in WCG congregations. Mr. Huff is familiar with the WCG journey and offers encouragement to each WCG congregation.

To invite the song troupe to your congregation contact Mr. Huff at Friendship International, Box 50884, Colorado Springs, Colorado, 80949-0884. Phone 1-719-386-8808; e-mail FRINT@aol.com; web site friend shipintl.org

MIAMI, Florida—The Miami South church conducts a worship service the first three Sundays of each month at the Agape Women’s Center, a rehabilitation center for women who have serious problems with substance abuse.

The service is from 7 to 8 p.m., Sunday evenings. The format includes three songs, testimonies, two more songs, a short message from the Bible, a final song and prayer.

"The women enjoy participating in the service," said Pastor Ted Ralph. "Some of their testimonies are quite moving and inspirational.

The Miami South church arranges for the women to visit the congregation on the last Sunday of each month. Thirteen visited Sept. 22.

Ted Ralph

The congregation has conducted Bible studies for some of the women after they moved into residential housing. Mr. Ralph baptized three of them, and two are members of the Miami South church. One is part of the ministry team at Agape.

"Our ministry at Agape has had a positive influence on our local church," Mr. Ralph said. "If Agape were strictly a secular program, it would still be a good work, but the fact that they let Jesus in the door really makes it a special place. We thank God for opening these doors whereby we can help some of the hurting people in the world."

NEWARK, New Jersey—"To the least of these my brethren the gospel should go," was the challenge set forth by the late Pastor Ronald Robinson for the 24-7 Community Church in Newark.

On Sept. 8, Newark members were allowed to conduct church services to minister the gospel of Jesus Christ at Essex County Detention Center in Newark, the largest youth detention center facility in the state.

The 24-7 Community Church can conduct a service on the second Sunday of every month. This allows them to spread the gospel to detainees who are heavily gang affiliated, in despair and looking for hope. Several teachers and staff of the detention facility are church members.

The goal is to reach as many at risk youths as possible and help them become model citizens. Members focus on their Christian faith that all are God’s children and should be approached in that manner. The detainee’s past is not considered.

To do this, members teach the importance of respect for authority (parents, teachers, public officials, Youth Center management) and especially God. Our goal is to make it clear that respect for God and authority are necessary for success.

They equip the detainees with character skills needed to stand for what is right and to be a positive influence on their peers. They show how these character skills can be transferable to society.

An extended goal is to provide former detainees with a post outreach program with the expectation of decreasing the return to detention. Lawrence Evans.

More than 500 adults and children assembled in Grand Junction for a fall worship festival bearing the name "A Celebration of Grace." The festival was coordinated by the Grand Junction congregation with principal speakers provided through Church Administration in Pasadena.

Mr. Albrecht presented sermons concerning a believer’s complete rest in Jesus alone (Matthew 11:28-30) and the salvation that comes by grace alone through faith in Christ alone (Ephesians 2:1-10). Mr. Albrecht also presented a two-part seminar on methods of Bible study that help careful students of the Bible avoid errors in biblical interpretation.

Ted Johnston, Great Lakes district superintendent, presented sermons outlining how Jesus’ sacrifice ended the Law of Moses as the identifying marker of God’s people (Ephesians 2:11-18) and concerning Jesus’ invitation to the Jews assembled at the Feast of Tabernacles to "come to me and drink" (John 7:37). Mr. Johnston also gave a seminar titled "We Believe," which examined the core doctrines of the WCG from the perspective of the Apostles’ Creed.

Allen Bullock, pastor of the Denver North and Colorado Springs, Colorado, churches, presented a sermon that discussed the importance of solitude as a spiritual discipline and another concerning how our receipt of the gift of eternal life affects us now. Ted Johnston.

Three hundred forty members celebrated a festival in De Haan, Belgium, Oct. 26 to Nov. 2.

The theme was faithfulness. Gerard Claude, national director of Belgium, spoke on Caleb’s faithfulness as an example. Gerard Stevenin, president of the French board, addressed the subject of God’s faithfulness toward his children and his promises. Dominique Alcindor, pastor of the Paris church, proved the faithfulness of the Scriptures regarding Christ’s mission. Donat Picard, national director for France, spoke first on faithfulness to the church as a whole (Christ’s Body), and second, on bringing the lost to Christ through consolation. Guest speaker Jesse Korver, national director of the Netherlands, could not come because of a storm that damaged his home.

During the festival, prayer groups were organized every morning. The pastors led a question and answer session on Christian life and doctrines. People suffering from loneliness were invited to a heart-to-heart discussion.

The highlight of the festival was the celebration of the 35th anniversary of the WCG in France with a slide show. Marie-Angelique Picard.

About 250 members and friends of the WCG enjoyed a wonderful and instructive time as we corporately celebrated Jesus Christ in fellowship and worship. Our strategic regional vision calls for the festival to offer a bridge of cooperation for other Christian denominations as we seek ways in which we can further the Great Commission while promoting the true ecumenical spirit of John 17.

Markus Wagner of the Evangelical Alliance spoke on "The Jesus Strategy: Multiplication," and Andreas Hildebrandt of the Evangelical Alliance spoke on "Joyful Be He Who Has Character—Christ’s Government Program." WCG sermons covered the following topics: "The Significance of the Transfiguration," "The Love of God," "The Generation Gap," "Jesus, Our Judge," "Personal Commitment," "Blessed Are Those Who Are Poor" and "Spiritual Maturity."

Two seminars covered "Ways to Holistic Discipleship" and "Living as a Christian in a Multi-cultural Society."

Worship services were translated into English for about five English-speaking guests. We would like to welcome more English speakers in 2003. Santiago Lange.

Twenty-eight adults and children attended the festival in Malta. Worship services were conducted on three days, and the group donated generously to the offerings. The relationship between Christ and the church was the subject of the main messages.

Communication, especially within marriage, emerged as a dominant theme for the three evening studies.

Members generated their own activities for the younger members, and on two evenings members took part in dinners with a Maltese theme. Members attended a farewell dinner to say their goodbyes. Barry Bourne.

PASADENA—Several members of Pasadena NewLife Fellowship prayed for Muslims during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, which this year was Nov. 5 to Dec. 5.

The event was coordinated by Mervin Walton, an associate pastor of the congregation. Mr. Walton distributed booklets produced by Youth With a Mission giving suggestions of what to pray for each day. An estimated 20 million Christians participated in the event.

He purchased the booklets from World Christian News & Books, P.O. Box 26479, Colorado Springs, Colorado, 80936.

MOSSY GROVE, Tennessee—The violent storms on Sunday evening Nov. 10 will long be remembered by people in East Tennessee. Bert and Patsy Gouge, who attend the New Beginnings Fellowship Church in Crossville, Tennessee, were at home watching television reports tracking the paths of the many tornados spawned by a powerful weather system.

At 8:40 p.m. suddenly everything went dark. Telephones and electricity went out, and the sound of the wind and thunder was incredible. A force 3 tornado swooped down and wiped out a development in Mossy Grove and killed seven people, including a three-month-old infant and a 93-year-old woman.

Later, the Gouges learned from a neighbor that the tornado was heading straight for their home, but about a quarter mile away it abruptly turned.

Other members in Cumberland County experienced property damage from the storms, mostly by hail, some more than two inches in diameter. The outpouring of support for the victims by churches, businesses and community groups has been phenomenal, a wonderful example of neighbor helping neighbor. Dewey Peterson.

BELLEFONTAINE, Ohio—The Great Lakes district youth ministry will be host for a Discovery Weekend at Camp Cotubic near Bellefontaine on the Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday weekend of Jan. 17, 18 and 19. The weekend is open to all young people ages 12 through 19 and any parents, pastors, youth ministers and youth workers who would like to participate.

Registration forms are available at www.wcg.org/youth/sepohio or by e-mail from Pastor Jim Valekis at jim_valekis@wcg.org

The theme for the weekend is "The Case for Christ," based on Lee Strobel’s book of the same name. Through messages and dramas we will examine the evidence that Jesus is, indeed, the Son of God. The goal is to equip participants to defend their beliefs about Jesus against the attacks being waged against him in school and in our culture in general.

The cost of the event is $75 per person and includes two nights and five meals (including a formal-semi-formal banquet and dance on Saturday night). Registration with payment in full must be received by Jan. 11 to avoid an additional late charge. Ted Johnston.

Copyright © Worldwide Church of God, 2002