New Around the Mission

Raleigh, North Carolina. You could have heard a pin drop in the lunchroom of Ravenscroft school on February 2nd. Upper school students absorbed the candid stories shared by Rwandan Bishop Jered Kalimba and the Rev. Jean-Pierre Rukundo, learning firsthand of the genocide and Rwandan culture. The two clergyman fielded questions and engaged in a spirited discussion with a classroom of AP French students; French is spoken across 31 francophone African countries, including Rwanda.

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PRESS RELEASE
For Immediate Release
More Information: Ellen Loomis erloomis@yahoo.com

Chosen, Partners in the Harvest Comes to Life

When we got married there was another woman in the picture. She was younger than I and was taking almost all of his time. I love my husband, but sometimes I worry that we're growing apart.

“That comment is painfully typical of what I’ve heard from some Anglican Mission clergy wives,” reports Ellen Loomis, co-founder of a new initiative to support the wives of clergy in theAM. That other woman is sometimes named St. Thomas, or All Saints Church, and she lives wherever the husband is spending his days and, all too often, nights. But the issue of sharing a husband with the parish is just one of many issues which face our leaders’ wives.

“I’ve learned after almost thirty years of marriage to a pastor that wives need support; especially the wives of church planters…that’s why we began Chosen,” Loomis continued.

A vision, as Bishop Chuck Murphy defined it in his Chairman’s address at the 2010 Winter Conference, is: seeing a need, seizing the opportunity and taking action. Late last year the Lord encouraged a few women with a common vision to minister to wives of pastors in theAM. They decided to share this vision with bishops’ wives.

“The bishops’ wives agreed that there was a pressing need to teach, support, and encourage these women, and we committed to partner together and take action,” said Loomis.

The Chosen team partnered with theAM’s Acton Beard, a counselor and expert in the area of clergy marriage. With Acton’s guidance, Chosen will be offering retreats across theAM through network-based gatherings in the US and Canada. The retreats will offer pastors’ wives an opportunity to worship, hear biblical teaching and testimonies from bishops’ wives, and share and pray with one another.

In addition to helping wives answer the difficult questions and weather the storms of being partnered in ministry, Chosen is designed to recognize and encourage women in their own unique gifts and talents.

“This is not simply a crisis ministry,” continued Loomis, “We believe that God has something to offer even the most blessed partnerships. His divine encouragement, direction, and blessing are things we all seek in our lives and ministries. We call the ministry Chosen, Partners in the Harvest because we believe that while the pastor is called, his wife has been chosen by God to share in the work and joy of her husband’s ministry. In Ecclesiastes God’s word tells us how important it is for the called and the chosen to be one. ‘Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their toil. For if they fall, one will lift up his fellow’.”

A fundamental ingredient of each retreat will be the opportunity for wives to explore their own unique identity in Christ and gain a stronger understanding of their appointment by God for kingdom work. Retreats are also designed to assist women as they discern their gifts, acknowledge God’s plan for their marriage and keep their vineyard safe and producing fruit.

“We want our wives to be empowered to walk in confidence as they fulfill their role as a partner in the harvest,” Loomis concluded.

Retreats are already being scheduled with the first coming late this spring in Georgia. Interested leaders are encouraged to find out more about Chosen retreats on their new website where they can find a complete overview of the ministry as well as contact information, prayer support links, and counseling information.

Photo Courtesy of Kyle Hale

How would you handle 450 people showing up for your Super Bowl party?

No problem for the volunteers of Trinity Anglican in Atlanta, GA. Eight years ago, the Lazarus Ministry initiated their first Super Bowl party with the homeless of downtown Atlanta, starting with only two volunteers and 25 guests.

This year Lazarus volunteers transformed a known homeless hang-out parking lot into a festival atmosphere. The music, games, photo booth, big screen TV and food drew in more than 450 locals; 75 entered the chili cook-off competition.

“The poor usually get the expired and leftover food, but here they get our absolute best at this party,” notes Allison Mitchell, Lazarus Ministry Founder.

Photo Courtesy of Kyle Hale

Winning the trophy and apron for the best chili has become a sought after honor among “Trinitarians”. Six judges, comprised of volunteers, people from the community and the homeless make the decision as to who gets bragging rights each year.

“One of the major complaints we hear from the homeless regarding churches is that they have an agenda and people tend to preach at them,” explains Allison. “We let the homeless come to us and if they want to come to church later, it is a natural out-flowing of relationship.”

Authentic relationship is at the core of Lazarus Ministry and resonates throughout every aspect of the Super Bowl party. “When I email volunteers, I make it clear that they are signing up to go to a party, we don’t project what we do as an outreach or a volunteer opportunity. They are doing it with the homeless, not for the homeless.”

For more information about the worship and ministries visit Trinity Anglican.

Acts of kindness prove to be heartwarming for lonely soldiers.

Every year young men and women training to be soldiers in the United States Army are given the opportunity to go home for Christmas. Unfortunately, not all personnel make it home during the “Christmas Exodus” for various reasons. Because most personnel on-post is away on leave, services are shut down and there is little activity. Furthermore, as trainees, the young soldiers may not leave post for any reason.

To help ease the pain, forty-three parishioners from Apostles Church in Columbia, South Carolina, participated in a Christmas service held at the Ft. Jackson Chapel. Soldiers from all across the across the country as well as Egypt, Guam, and Lebanon, experienced “Christ” in Christmas enjoying fellowship, food and prayer with Apostles’ members. A simple request for one person to assist with the worship service developed into a great opportunity to show the love of Christ. Parishioners of all ages volunteered as musicians and readers for the service while others brought Christmas goodies to share.

Parishioners share a Christmas meal and fellowship with soldiers who stay behind.

The worship service featured telling the Christmas story through Gospel readings, poetry and Christmas carols, concluding with Eucharist. Following the service, the soldiers were treated to a feast of homemade food provided by Apostles, and most importantly, soldiers were able to enjoy fellowship in the love of Christ.

Joyful participants of the Rwandan youth camp

Responding to the call to “Remember your Creator in the days of your youth” (Ecclesiastes 12:1), over ninety young Rwandans committed their lives to Jesus last month at an annual youth camp in Cyangugu, Rwanda. In their fifth year of participation, a team from Cambridge Church in Leawood, Kansas, helped lead the camp for 250 youth ages 14 to 30. Team members taught on purity, leadership and following God.

The camp is the brainchild of Bishop Geoffrey, but participants are invited by several area pastors representing multiple congregations. As leaders invest in the future generation of Rwanda, the students give back by walking to a pre-selected site and spend one day building a house for someone.

Pastor Josh Yerton, practicing the ministry of presence with Daniel, a camp participant.

“The kids took turns shaving off the mud to make the sides flat, dug a trench and carried pieces of wood up the hill for repairs,” explains Laurie Milton, Mission Team Leader. “The home belongs to an orphan-led family of five. The oldest girl tearfully told us that every nail that she heard being pounded was showing how much we loved them. She told us they had asked God to provide and their prayer was answered.”

“It was an amazing trip,” exclaims Josh Yerton, Pastor of Worship, Discipleship and Ministry, “Many years of great relationships and joint efforts are really starting to yield some awesome fruit!”

Team members not only spend time teaching and building relationships with those in Rwanda on short term mission trips, but as Laurie explains further, Rwanda is a year round focus at Cambridge Church.

Rwandan students learn how to follow Christ as they hear teaching and search the scriptures.

“Each year we designate a particular Sunday as “Rwanda Sunday” to share our experience there with our congregation. We love our relationship with Rwanda, and in order to keep everyone informed, we have a Rwanda table set up throughout the year with pictures, crafts and Rwanda coffee for sale. During the month of April, we raise the $10,000 needed to sponsor the camp students by sharing video and testimonies from previous years.”

A long term commitment to invest in the lives of young Rwandans at Cambridge Church is yielding a fruitful harvest both at home and abroad.

“Wait until Christmas!” Parents often say this to their children around the holidays, but it's certainly not what kids want to hear! For 88 teenagers, nestled in the mountains of Asheville, NC, the word “wait” took on new meaning that created receptivity and newfound freedom.

Middle and high school youth representing five southeastern Anglican Mission congregations – Church of the Good Shepherd in Davidson, NC; The River in Blacksburg, VA; Church of the Apostles in Columbia, SC; Grace Church and All Saints Church, both in Pawleys Island, SC –gathered at Camp Cedar Cliff to participate in a Winter Retreat weekend December 11-13. Nate Harrison, Youth Director from Grace Church shared the Gospel message with a relevant theme of “waiting” on the Lord; both for His return and in everyday life.

“A number of our students said that they clearly heard the Lord requesting them to lay down certain things and let them go,” shares Sayward Elliott, Student Ministries Director for All Saints. “One even heard clearly that they were to go home and encourage their parents to start a family Bible study, wanting the Lord to be part of their daily life, not just on Sundays.”

Mixers and games kicked off each of four meetings and led students into an ancient-future style of worship led by Todd Murden and Ross Wisle, both from The River. Cabin time allowed kids to unpack what they heard in the message with leaders, and late night activities cultivated laughter and opportunities to deepen friendships.

“The kids really enjoyed meeting kids from other churches. The high school boys even performed their own “rap” that included the line, ‘hangin’ out with my Anglican brothers’,” laughs Sayward.

"This has been the best Christmas ever," exclaims an eight-year-old at the Celebration of Christ outreach at All Saints Church in Pawleys Island, South Carolina. She is the daughter of an unemployed, single mother who is 24 and battling lupus while raising two young children, a typical profile for many of the 156 children participating in the morning festivities held at the church campus on Saturday, December 13.

In its third year, “Celebration of Christ” reaches out to 63 single parent families of Georgetown County that struggle during what can typically be a stressful time of year. The outreach incorporates a hearty breakfast for close to 300 people and a jovial presentation of the Christmas Story by the Rev. T. Brown, Assistant Rector. Each child receives a new sweatshirt and pair of Levi jeans, two wrapped gifts and a bag of groceries for their family, all donated by individual volunteers.

“What a privilege it is to look the children in the eyes and let them know they are special to Jesus,” shares Helen Jones, founder of the outreach for All Saints Church. “We always have prayer teams available after the presentation, and many parents take advantage of the opportunity.”

“Celebration of Christ” is an extension of the “Give a Kid a Chance” program founded by Grant Cole of St. Andrews in Little Rock, AR, and introduced by Jones to All Saints in 2005, to provide back-to-school supplies for children fitting hte same set of circumstances. Families that attend the summer program are on the mailing list for the Christmas outreach, and registration fills up in one day.

“We had a participant of “Give a Kid a Chance” offer to volunteer her time for the “Celebration of Christ” outreach. Now she is a member of our church, and her son is active in the youth group,” explains Jones. “My prayer is that God would be glorified in all aspects of the outreach, no matter how tedious the details, and He has answered that prayer every year.”