By Mike and Heather Webb

Tanzania—This was our sentiment as we returned from the Kondoa area earlier in September. We drove two and a half hours over pothole-studded roads and sand as fine as talcum powder to encourage our sixteen theological education by extension (TEE) students in their studies. Our visit marked the halfway mark for their first book Following Jesus, and we were eager to see their progress. We hadn’t been face to face with them since leaving them with books and training five weeks earlier, so we were thrilled to see students’ books filled out, witness a lively discussion among them about what they had learned, and see the leaders keeping great records.

Anderson University will receive $375,000 from Indianapolis-based Lilly Endowment Inc., for a sustaining proposal to provide students more opportunities and incentives to keep them in Indiana upon graduation.  The Anderson University sustaining grant proposal approved by the Endowment is entitled, INvision AU.  The grant comes from the Endowment’s “Initiative to Promote Opportunity through Educational Collaborations.”

By Susan Kane
Church Multiplication

But if I say, “I will not mention him or speak any more in his name,” his word is in my heart like a fire, a fire shut up in my bones. I am weary of holding it in; indeed, I cannot. (Jeremiah 20:9 niv)

I love a good fire! I love watching fires. I love sitting by fires. Actually, I love starting fires, but that is a whole other story. (Sorry, Dad and Mom!) There is something about a fire that has always drawn me towards it. And I don’t think I am all that different from most people. Fire draws a crowd. That is just what fires do.

It is time to honor our congregational shepherds and servants of the church. October is Pastor Appreciation Month, a time to express our appreciation for our pastor’s selfless service to the ministry of the Father. These servants have responded in obedience to God’s call to serve in his kingdom as they give leadership to their local congregations.

The challenge of ministering to many different people and communities has a way of leaving them emotionally, spiritually, and physically depleted. Tangible acts of appreciation and gratitude help to strengthen and encourage the pastor and their family.

Efforts continue at Church of God Ministries (CGM) to obtain detailed assessments on the extent of damages to Church of God congregations affected by Hurricane Ike. While some churches have been able to provide initial assessments, contact has remained difficult with several congregations in the most severely affected areas due to power outages, closed roads, and downed phone lines.

“Contact with the Churches of God in Port Arthur, Orange, and Beaumont, Texas, has been difficult,” reports Robert Pettit, hurricane relief coordinator for our churches in Texas. “They were hit hard, and at this time we are unable to make contact to assess the situation. As soon as information is available, we will be able to have a better understanding of what type of response to initiate.”

The following is a letter of update provided by Pastor Don Bergstrom, Houston First Church of God regarding their experience and situation following Hurricane Ike.

Dear Church Family and Friends,

Houstonians who stayed in town will never forget the night of September 12, 2008.  We went to bed (well, some went to bed) not knowing what the morning would bring.  Hurricane Ike was coming, and all we could do was wait…and pray.  Around 1:00 a.m. our power went out (and would remain out for the next ten days, but we were just one of some 8 million homes from the Gulf Coast to Canada that would experience power outages due to Ike).  The sound of wind that rattled our house through the night is permanently etched in my memory!  I’ve been through a few earthquakes.  They hit and then it’s over.  I now know that hurricanes hit - and continue hammering!  I wondered throughout the night if it would ever end. 

A few months ago, Church of God Ministries sent a simple and free gift to your congregation via e-mail that you could use in your worship: PowerPoint slides for welcome and announcements. The response was very positive. Good news! We now have a new set of slides that you can use. Simply click here to download, from the Church of God Ministries Web site, new announcement slides for use in your worship. It’s a great way to have professional slides for your worship service and identify with the Church of God family.

Church of God Ministries, Inc., is offering eleven books on Christian discipleship as free downloads from its Web site (www.chog.org). To access an online directory of CGM’s electronic books for download, click here.

Titled Bridges: Invitation to Discipleship, the series was published by Warner Press, Inc., in 1996 and 1997. You can now download, print, and reproduce any of these books for use in your congregation.

Church of God Ministries has advanced Rev. Tim West, area administrator for Texas an emergency distribution of funds to assist our congregations there following the devastation caused by Hurricane Ike. But more money will be needed for the relief and recovery operations.

Rev. West has been in close communication with Rev. Obadiah Smith, coordinator for compassionate ministries at CGM. In spite of the difficulties with communications due to phone lines being down, West was able to provide an initial report of the damages from a few churches affected by Ike:

By Susan Kane
Church Multiplication

At the age of fifty-three, Rev. Jim Brooke never thought he would be planting a church. Yet after leaving a pastorate he had served for nine years, during which time he increased weekly attendance from four to 125 and navigated a building project, that is exactly what he found himself doing in late 2005.

As the state church planter for the Oklahoma Church of God, Brooke was responsible for targeting areas throughout the state for possible new church plants. At that time, his focus was on the town of Norman, a small, but growing, community south of Oklahoma City. Although Norman was home to the University of Oklahoma, two previous congregations had failed over the years. The community was full of young families, however, so it was a prime opportunity for a new plant.