SINGAPORE--On March 22 Edwin F. Lua, a native Filipino, became the first person baptized in the newly registered WCG congregation here.
The ceremony was performed by Larry Dinger, a local church elder, at his home.
Before registration, members traveled across the border to fellowship with the church in Malaysia.
Weekly attendance in Singapore averages 60 people, and the church is looking forward to growth in their country. James Chew.
Edwin Lua (right) and
Larry Dinger
BIG SANDY--Space is available for campers at the Summer Educational Program (SEP) to be conducted in Big Sandy June 17 to July 3 for teens ages 13 to 18. The cost is $495.
Applications are available by contacting SEP Administration at Box 111, Big Sandy, Texas, 75755, by calling 1-903-636-2373 or through the Internet at Summer_Educational_Program@ambassador.edu
PASADENA--You can enter your artwork in a one-day show in Pasadena July 12 to celebrate the Pasadena church's 50th anniversary. The theme will be to depict either memories of church headquarters or God as creator, potter or weaver.
All works, including sculptures, will be selected from slides only. Please do not send originals until your work has been selected. You may enter up to five slides. Call Nancy Del Pesco/Thornton at 1-800-361-6375 for details and address. A prospectus will be mailed, faxed or e-mailed to you. Please do not send slides before receiving the prospectus.
All shipped works will be limited to no larger than 20 by 24 inches. Hand delivered works can be no larger than 30 by 40 inches. No glass will be accepted. Please use only plexiglas where appropriate.
The deadline for receipt of slides is May 30. Please include a self-addressed, stamped envelope if you want your slides returned.
DETROIT, Michigan--The Detroit churches will be hosts for a workshop on racial reconciliation and healing May 17 and 18. Guest speakers will be from the Center for the Healing of Racism, and WCG headquarters. Topics will include defining racism and prejudice, institutionalized racism, the oneness of humanity and ally building. For more information call Pastor Ron Washington at 1-313-451-0886.
TULSA, Oklahoma--Tulsa singles invite singles to their Memorial Day weekend.
A dinner dance, workshops and a picnic are scheduled. The cost is $40.
To register send a $10 registration fee to John Rollins, 1610 S. Memorial Dr. No. 246, Tulsa, Oklahoma, 74129, or call 1-918-664-4285 or 1-918-486-2305.
Deadline is May 15. Make checks payable to Local Church Activity Fund. Jim Martin.
HAMILTON, Ontario--The Hamilton and St. Catharines churches will sponsor a weekend with Malcolm Smith, an internationally known evangelist, May 24-25, at the Hamilton Convention Centre.
A family dance will take place Saturday evening. (The dance will be covered by donations.)
To attend, contact Kim Wenzel at 33 Princess Blvd., Grimsby, Ontario, L3M 5A8.
MACOMB, Illinois--The Macomb, Illinois, church will celebrate its 25th anniversary June 7 at the 4-H center in Macomb (Route 136, west edge of town).
The worship service begins at 2:30. A video and slide history of the Macomb church will be shown afterward. Food, games and socializing will round out the evening.
Please contact either Rod and Joanne Fortner at e-mail: rfortner@glenqcy.glenayre.com or phone 1-217-224-9431; or Mark and Josie Bannier at 1-319-394-3636.
YORKTON, Saskatchewan--The Yorkton congregation will celebrate its 25th anniversary May 17 and 18.
The worship service will be at 2 p.m. at St. Mary's Cultural Center, followed by a catered meal and dance.
If you plan to attend, please call Jean or Ed Windysh at 1-306-795-2768.
Everyone in the sixth to eighth grade class (pictured above) at the Chicago Northwest church accepted Christ March 29. They are (back row, from left) Javiar Hernandez, Mark Fieder, Dan O'Malley, Erica Dean and Marianne Dean; and (front row) Zeb Dean and Karen Pirog. Not pictured, Crystal Cocomise. The co-teacher is Vikki LaRocco.
CHICAGO--I don't know quite how to say this but apparently my entire youth class accepted Jesus Christ as their Savior today, March 29.
My name is John Pirog, and I teach the sixth to eighth grade class at the Chicago Northwest church.
For the past year, we have gone over God, his relationship with them, his love for them, Jesus and his role to them, and various orthodox Christian doctrines.
We have emphasized that it is not what you do that saves you but who you believe in.
We have never made a call for them to accept Christ as their Savior mostly because of our old WCG way of doing things and my own fear of not doing it right.
My plan today was to go over the death and resurrection of Christ. We discussed why he died and a few reasons why some people don't believe in the resurrection.
At this point some of them started peppering me with questions. As the questions continued, I threw out the rest of the lesson because it was obvious something was at work here.
Several in particular were interested once I said that they did not have to wait until they were 18 but could accept Christ right then and there and have him be with them from that moment on.
We read Romans 6 and discussed that the penalty for sin is death. We discussed how each of them is a sinner and therefore deserving of death.
We saw in John 3 that God's love for each of them individually caused him to send Jesus to die for their sins.
We read in Romans 10 that to be saved you must believe and confess. We read in Romans 5 that it isn't what you do that makes you righteous before God but faith and belief.
Our normal lesson time is 20 minutes. This class went 90 minutes and they asked question after question.
Several of them said they wanted to accept Christ right then.
It was becoming obvious that everyone was interested in this. I actually tried to dissuade them at first saying that it had to be their total decision and that I would not tell or even ask them to do it.
At the end, I said if anyone wanted to receive Christ as his or her Savior we could say a prayer, but anyone who didn't want to should not do it.
So I started out a prayer for everyone thanking God for his love for us and Jesus for dying for us.
Then I told those who wanted to do this to pray to God and admit that they were sinners, that they were sorry for their sins and to repent and ask forgiveness.
Then, they prayed and thanked Jesus for dying and asked that his death pay the penalty for their sins.
Then they prayed that the Holy Spirit would guide them from that moment on. They ended by thanking God.
I had been thinking about preparing a class where I would offer the chance to do this but I guess I was moving too slow for God. John Pirog.
Beginning with this issue the church has added a new logo to the WN (see mailing label below and staff box, page 2).
Our new logo depicts the church's commission to take the gospel into all the world. Some members are already familiar with the logo, having seen it on the church's Internet home page.
The church conducted focus groups, and church members and employees reviewed alternatives in selecting an additional logo. What you see below is the product.
April 22, 1997, WN, page 16
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