BMH Editor's Blog

The following prayer request, which was also posted on this blog, is currently posted on one of the Fellowship’s missions websites:

Pray that pastor M, his wife, son and another believer who were kidnapped near Baghdad two weeks ago will be released without harm.

Pray, too, that they will remain faithful to Jesus in anything they face, and that those who kidnapped them will find Jesus as Savior. All four are members of a church that has been developing a relationship with the GBC.

The following article appears in today’s CT Online from Christianity Today magazine’s weblog:

The lay leadership team of Baghdad's St. George's Anglican church is feared missing after being attacked. The attack occurred on the road as the team returned from a conference in Jordan.

"Anglican leaders in Baghdad have been missing for two weeks, and they are presumed dead," said Canon Andrew White of the Foundation for Reconciliation in the Middle East. White is the Anglican representative in charge of St. George's, one of the largest churches in Baghdad.

According to the London Times, the missing Iraqi-born Anglicans include: "Maher Dakel, the lay pastor; his wife, Mona, who leads the women's section of the church; their son Yeheya; the church's pianist and music director, Firas Raad; the deputy lay pastor; and their driver, whose name has not been disclosed."

The last time anyone heard from the group was after they had been attacked on September 12 on the treacherous road between Ramadi and Fallujah.

"It is the most dangerous area in Iraq," White said. "One of two things must have happened. They either got kidnapped, or they died. But we have had no ransom demand or anything."

Ruth Gledhill of the Times reports, "The loss brings to 12 the number of Iraqis that Canon White has lost in his reconciliation work in Iraq, although these are the first connected to the church."

"We are all devastated," White said. "This is the very core of our Anglican church in Iraq. With such a large congregation of about 800 strong, losing key leadership will be devastating."

Gledhill reports,

The Right Rev. Colin Bennetts, Bishop of Coventry, said: "I find this news particularly sad and poignant. When we first visited Iraq in 1999, it was my privilege to preach at the re-opening of St. George's Church in the center of Baghdad. We all saw this as a sign of hope and a new beginning under the desperate and despotic regime of Saddam.

"Since that time the church has grown from a handful of worshippers to a congregation of hundreds. For them to lose their leadership in this way is a sad and terrible blow. I urge Christians everywhere to continue to pray for the church in Iraq in these even more troublesome times."

This companion article, which contains much of the same information, appears today on www.christianpost.com:

Iraqi Church Leaders Missing for Two Weeks after Attack

Friday, Sep. 30, 2005 Posted: 7:51:54AM EST

The entire lay leadership team of a main Anglican church in Baghdad, Iraq, has been missing for two weeks after they were attacked while returning from a conference in Jordan via a dangerous road west of Baghdad.

According to the U.K.-based Times newspaper, Canon Andrew White of the Foundation for Reconciliation in the Middle East, who is the clergyman in charge of the church, said, "Anglican leaders in Baghdad have been missing for two weeks and they are presumed dead."

The five missing lay ministers are all Iraqis. They are top leaders of the St George's Anglican Church in Baghdad, which has an 800-strong congregation. White had helped reopening the Church after the Iraqi war in 2003 and now it has one of the largest congregations in Baghdad, the Times reported.

"We are all devastated. This is the very core of our Anglican Church in Iraq," White commented.

The missing leaders were last heard from on Sept. 13 when they reported to White that they were being attacked traveling on road between Ramadi and Falluja, the Times said.

The Times reported that U.S. forces have been helping to check for their whereabouts, but there has been no sign of them till now.

"It is the most dangerous area in Iraq," White continued as saying, "One of two things must have happened. They either got kidnapped or they died. But we have had no ransom demand or anything."

White told the Times they were not likely to be targeted because they were Anglicans. He reiterated the fact that attacks actually happen very often, especially on people who appear to be richer.

Those missing include Maher Dakel, a lay pastor; his wife, Mona, who leads the women's section of the church; their son Yeheya; the church's pianist and music director, Firas Raad; a deputy lay pastor; and their driver, whose name has not been disclosed.

The Right Rev Colin Bennetts, Bishop of Coventry, England, commented the lost of five church ministers as "sad and poignant", while speaking to the Times.

"When we first visited Iraq in 1999 it was my privilege to preach at the re-opening of St George’s Church in the center of Baghdad," the bishop said. “We all saw this as a sign of hope and a new beginning under the desperate and despotic regime of Saddam. Since that time the church has grown from a handful of worshippers to a congregation of hundreds. For them to lose their leadership in this way is a sad and terrible blow."

The alleged killing of the Anglican ministers is one of several recent incidents of violence in the unstable Baghdad area. On Sept. 29, a female suicide bomber blew herself up outside an army recruiting center, killing at least seven people and wounding 37, according to Times.

At a mainly Shiite town, suicide attackers exploded near-simultaneous car bombs Thursday, killing at least 60 people and wounding 70.

The new surge of violence is said to be triggered by the upcoming Oct. 15 referendum on Iraq's constitution, which has caused divisions among Iraqis.

Bishop Bennetts urged “Christians everywhere to continue to pray for the Church in Iraq in these even more troublesome times."

The following article about Peggy Owens, who works in the resources area at CE National in Winona Lake, Indiana, appeared in the October, 2005 issue of "Senior Life" newspaper, Milford, Indiana. It and the photo by Rebecca Whitesel are reproduced here by permission of the paper. Peggy's church is Winona Lake Grace Brethren Church (John Teevan, pastor).


Jail Ministry is Peggy Owens' Calling

By Rebecca Whitesel, Staff Writer

Every Sunday morning Christians may be found in churches throughout America, but Peggy Owens of Warsaw goes to a different place to worship. She is part of the Kosciusko County Jail Ministry and not only spends time there Sundays, but Wednesdays as well.

For six years Owens has been taking part in bringing hope into what can be a very somber place. Yes, she missed her regular church's services at first, but now feels quite at home in her main place of ministry.

Owens explains how it was she came to be involved. It started when she went to a conference for ministry teams.

"While I was there the leadership asked the question, 'What percentage of your time do you spend with people who don't know God?' and I was very 'churched' and I was teaching piano students from my church, and I was teaching a Bible study, and I worked at a Christian organization, and all the people I knew were already Christians . . . " she relays.

The question challenged her to move out of her comfort zone. She heard of the need for volunteers with the jail ministry and started playing keyboards with the small group led by John Boren that ministers in jail. "Pretty soon I was hooked," Owens declares.

She has a real love for those who are incarcerated. "I see them as people who have families and really want them to love Christ," she says. "I think I have a grandmother's heart," Owens says, noting her age of 61 is an advantage in this kind of ministry.

Grandmothers tend to take time and listen, something those who have experienced tough times really need. For example, the day of the interview, Owens had talked with a guy who thought God had forgotten about him. They prayed together and went through Scriptures.

Sometimes Owens helps individuals in other ways. One time a man's wife was due to deliver their baby so she made a call for him and found out his wife was already in labor. She'll arrange to bring them their reading glasses, etc. One recent urgent request was to look up a word for someone - "shekinah" - "God's presence." She takes pictures of their baptisms and bakes goodies.

"When people get out, I disciple the women if I can," Owens states.

"It's hard. I know it is when they get out. It's hard to get a job and some bail on jobs then employers don't want to hire again . . . some will get right back in. I don't feel it's my responsibility to see that they stay out of jail. It's my responsibility to share Christ with them."

There is discouragement, but some real good things, too. Owens tells the story of a farmer who was in jail and desperately needed rain for his crops back home. They prayed together that it would rain and rain came.

She later received a letter from him about rich soil, the soil of a heart that has received God's Word and it has taken root. The man had come to realize that whatever happened at his court date was in God's hands. "Those are the rewards, they're great rewards," Owens says about knowing that faith is making a difference in a person's life.

"When they change, they're not so angry anymore," she says. She wants them to have hope. "My goal is to someday be in heaven with them."

 

Grace Brethren pastor and church planter Neil Cole has a new book, published by Jossey-Bass, entitled Organic Church: Growing Faith Where Life Happens.

Descriptive copy says Cole shows readers how to plant the seeds of the kingdom of God in the places where life happens and where culture is formed: restaurants, bars, coffeehouses, parks, locker rooms, neighborhoods. The book offers a hands-on guide for demystifying this new model of church.

About the book, Cole says, "My new book is out and already selling pretty well on Amazon.com. There was a day last week when it dipped below the 1,000 mark in the sales rank of all the books on Amazon.com (out of about 4 million books). It sold out at two pretty big conferences this past month.

"It is available at Barnes and Noble, Borders or most Christian bookstores."
 

Peter Smith, pastor of the Hope Valley Community Church in Red Hill, Pennsylvania, is leading a multi-church relief team to Mississippi. Here are photos and his "Gulfport Journal" report. (photos courtesy Peter Smith)

GULFPORT JOURNAL
Wednesday, September 28, 2005
Longbeach, Mississippi

Chris Bartholomew, one of our team members, had a contact in Longbeach
who was an ex-coworker. Tommy Kellog's house was supposedly only one block off the beach. We had heard that his house was still standing and that he had requested our help.

We had to go through a National Guard checkpoint and they gave us a very hard time. We were beginning to wonder if they were going to let us through but finally they did.

The roads are blocked by the military at the railroad tracks. The tracks run parallel to the beach and are up from the beach about five blocks. The area seems to be guarded because of a combination of things, including fear of looters, dead bodies, dangerous utilities, and an extreme amount of damage and debris. Sections of Highway 90, that runs next to the beach, are gone or are impassable.

We were on Highway 90 but were having a hard time finding Destiny Drive because most of the street signs are gone. We finally found it but the entire area as far as you could see had no homes standing--only horrible devastation and debris everywhere.

The rotten stench in the air was strong and a smell you would never forget. We began driving up hill on Destiny Oaks Drive, trying to avoid construction debris in the road so we would not get a flat tire.

As we approached the top of the hill there was a lot of activity as some large excavation equipment was removing tons of debris with huge dump trucks. There were no houses standing on this road, or so it seemed. Then we saw a white house at the very top of the hill.

There must have been 15 to 20 house lots we had gone by that had nothing left but a cement pad and debris, but now there were a few houses on Destiny Oaks Drive, that were left standing at the crest of the hill. The houses on the streets to the right and to the left of Destiny Oaks Drive were all gone.

It was an eerie feeling to know that for some reason God choose to spare this family's home. Theirs was the first house the 25 + foot ocean surge wave spared. Their house is a half-mile or more from the beach. It was unbelievable! It was a miracle!

We worked on Tommy's house and his next-door neighbor's house. Our goal with his neighbor's house was just to dig down and try to find where the driveway was and then to clear it off. Then we began to clear debris all around both houses.

The neighbor's property had not been touched since the hurricane and we found ourselves digging through mud and a soupy mixture of debris. We prayed that we would not come across any body parts or anything that would be too disturbing for the team. Thankfully, we did not. The kind of work we did here was the most physically demanding of the whole week.

Tommy Kellog and his wife were so thankful for the work we did. It was a great feeling to see how the little work that we did was such a blessing to them. These people just need some hope and many are not getting any. They are emotionally in shock and they need people to love them and be there for them. Everywhere we go people say that only the faith-based groups are doing anything to help them.

If anyone has a heart to help these people, there are tremendous needs. There will be opportunities for mission teams for the next nine to 12 months.

Thank you everyone for your continued prayers!

Peter  

Katrina/Rita devastation in Mississippi. 

Remains of houses in Longbeach, Mississippi. 

Grace Brethren Church of Winchester, Virginia (Matt Lohr, pastor), 143 Greenwood Road, will host Faith Made Sight, a ministry of Gospel chalk artistry, with drawings by master artist David Teuling at 10:30 a.m. on Sunday and 7 p.m. Monday- Wednesday. For more information, call (540) 662-6360.

Vintage Base Ball will be featured this weekend as teams from all over the midwest gather in Winona Lake, Indiana, to participate in the Huzzah Hoosier Pennant tournament. Host team is the Winona Blue Laws, shown here as the fielding team. Ron Henry (right) is pitching (hurling), Tracey Own is behind the plate, and Marie Owen (in bonnet) is the scorekeeper. (Al Disbro photo) 

As part of the Village at Winona Fall Festival this weekend in Winona Lake, Indiana, a vintage base ball (yes—they spell it as two words!) will take place in various locations. The following information is from Tracey and Marie Owen, who are part of the Winona Blue Laws team. The teams play with rules from the 1860s.

Saturday, October 1 will be the first day of the Huzzah Hoosier Pennant, a new national level vintage base ball tournament. Ten clubs from around the Midwest are coming to Winona Lake to play at total of 20 nine-inning matches.

Participating clubs include: Village at Winona Blue Laws, Warsaw Fleetfoots, Hobart Deep River Grinders, Marmont Saints, Huntington Champion Hill Toppers, Elkhart Bonneyville Millers, Indianapolis Blues, Carriage Hill Clodbusters, Cincinnati Red Stockings, and Kent BBC.

The Winona Lake Blue laws will be playing two games on Saturday--1 pm at Miller Field A, 4 pm at Miller Field B. They will play two games Sunday at 12 pm at Celebration Field on S. 250 East, and 3 pm at Miller Field B.

Four fields will host the games -- Tabernacle Field in the Village at Winona across the street from the BoatHouse Restaurant, two fields at Grace College Miller Field Athletic Complex at 1101 Pierceton Road, and Celebration Field at Celebration Church, 1289 S. 250 E. Each field will host matches as well as individual competitions such as the Golden Arm Longest Throw, Billy Sunday Speed Contest, Big Lumber Longest Strike, and Soft Hands Juggling Contest.

Strolling musicians Liza and Mark Woolever will provide period entertainment to the delight of the crowd both days. Village at Winona Fall Fest, which includes live craft demonstrations, kettle corn, and live music will also be happening on Saturday only.

Event sponsors for the Huzzah Hoosier Pennant are: the Village at Winona®, Grace College, Bill and Joan Darr, Al Disbro, Warsaw Rotary, 19th C Base Ball, Bibles & Books, Greater Warsaw Ministerial Association, Warsaw Community Schools, Warsaw Christian School, Monarch Academy, and H.E.L.P.S. Home School Group.

The second day of the Huzzah Hoosier Pennant, Sunday, October 2, gets underway with a performance of the off-Broadway musical "Sunday in Manhattan" at Lakeview Middle School Auditorium. Admission is $3 per person (or $10 per family over three) at the door, day of the event for the general public.

Matches are played the remainder of the day in Winona Lake with strolling musicians Liza and Mark Woolever and food vendors at games. The Awards Ceremony will be Sunday at 5 p.m. at the Hillside Amphitheater behind Tabernacle Field (rain site - Billy Sunday Visitors Center).

Individual competitions held at each field during warmup prior to each match:
Field 1 - Tabernacle Field - Billy Sunday Home to Home Speed Contest
Field 2 - Miller Field A - Golden Arm Longest Throw
Field 3 - Miller Field B - Heavy Lumber Longest Strike
Field 4 - Celebration Field - Soft Hands Juggling Contest

For more information log onto www.villageatwinona.com.

The following story appeared in this morning's Gaithersburg, Maryland, Gazette.news.

Future pilot leads Eagles


by Ted Black
Staff Writer

Long after her high school playing days are over, Grace Brethren senior Shelly Engel plans to follow in her parents’ footsteps and fly military fighter planes.

Engel gained an appreciation for fighter planes while growing up in California, where her parents, Richard and Connie Engel, were stationed at Edwards Air Force Base. Her father has since retired, but her mom continues to fly and Engel would like to follow in her footsteps someday. But in the meantime she is seeking to hone her volleyball skills this year before heading to college next fall.

As the midway point of the season approaches, Engel is one of the main reasons the Eagles could be soaring to a Potomac Valley Athletic Conference title this fall.

Monday afternoon against a young, inexperienced Barrie School squad, Grace Brethren (7-4 overall, 5-1 in the PVAC) made quick work of the Mustangs by sweeping the visitors 25-8, 25-19 and 25-18. The match wasn’t as tight as the scores indicate, as Engel had limited playing time in the last two games.

‘‘I know it’s not about me, it’s about the team,” said Engel, whose two older sisters Lindsey and Jen also graduated from the school. ‘‘The other girls have to learn how to play together. Most of them will be back here next year and I won’t, so they have to begin playing together.”

Grace Brethren 15th-year coach Dan Schlueter left Engel on the floor long enough to ensure that his team would attain the victory Monday, but he wasn’t about to embarrass the Mustangs by keeping her in the game at all times. Barrie players had difficulty with Engel’s crisp overhand serves. In the third game, after the talented senior rattled off eight straight service winners, including five aces, Schlueter replaced her.

‘‘I have a couple of seniors on the team, but no juniors,” Schlueter said. ‘‘So I wanted to get the sophomores in there so they could get used to playing together.”

Barrie (0-6) was overmatched early when Grace Brethren vaulted to 8-0 and 15-2 leads.

Engel, who plays club volleyball year-round with the Metro American 18-and-under squad, is hoping to play in college next fall. This weekend, she plans to visit Liberty University in Lynchburg, Va., to meet with the coach and some of the players. Before she embarks on flying F-16’s, Engel has a few more years of volleyball ahead of her.

With her team trailing 8-2 early in the third game, Engel whistled eight consecutive overhand serves at the Barrie defenders, many of which appeared incapable of handling the incoming shots. Four of her serves were true aces off the floor, while two others punished Alea Safier and Michelle Gilbert, who reacted slowly to one serve and took the ball off of her chin.

After Engel had rallied the Eagles from an 8-2 deficit to a 10-8 lead in the third game, Schlueter removed her from the game. With their best player on the bench, the Eagles traded points with the visitors until a surge by the Mustangs gave them an 18-16 edge. Schlueter inserted Engel and Rhonda Curry back into the game.

Bolstered by their return, Grace Brethren closed the match with a 9-0 run.

The following story appeared in this afternoon's Warsaw (IN) Times-Union newspaper.

Cotton Patch Gospel To Perform This Weekend

BY TERESA SMITH, Times-Union Staff Writer

More than 25 years ago Rick Meads attended a theatrical performance at Grace College.

He thought it looked like fun. He soon stepped on the stage and hasn’t stepped off.

Meads appears in performances of “Cotton Patch Gospel” Friday and Saturday at Rodeheaver Auditorium, which is a return to his alma matter and reunion with mentor Steve Grill.

“I was an athlete. I met Steve and was in ‘You’re A Good Man Charlie Brown,’ Meads said.

Meads spent time on the Wagon Wheel Theatre stage and graduated with a master’s in divinity from Grace Seminary.

Initially joining the Lamb’s Players Theatre company in San Diego, Calif., he has embarked on an independent theatrical career, performing all over the country in various productions as actor and director.

He looks forward to this weekend and urges folks to attend.

“This is Broadway-caliber theatre, the show is that good,” he said. Meads will appear with Ryan Drummond, Mark Christopher Lawrence and the 7th Day Buskers, a San Diego-based band.

‘Cotton Patch Gospel’ began as a one-man show adapted from Clarence Jordan's book, “The Cotton Patch Version of Matthew and John.”

Jordan decided that many people saw the gospel story as an old, dusty thing, too removed from present day to be interesting. Jordan set the New Testament story of the Bible in his own time, culture and geography – the American South – and regular people started listening to an old story with new ears.

Actor Tom Key adapted Jordan’s work into a one-man show. Then the production captured the imagination of singer-songwriter Harry Chapin, who added music. More actors were included and the play enjoyed a successful run in New York.

The show is unique, Meads said. “It’s very folksy and interesting, a lot of fun. There’s clogging’ and bluegrass performed by a great band.”

The actors take assume the roles of many characters.

Meads, originally from Michigan, performed at Grace in March. He likes making the trip because his family still lives in the Grand Rapids area and it’s an opportunity to see them.

“There’s no better place to be in the fall than the Midwest. It’s my favorite season.”

Friday and Saturday’s performances begin at 7:30 p.m. The musical, sponsored by Grace College and the Village at Winona, is free and open to the public.

On September 18, Bellflower (CA) Brethren Church (Tom Hocking, pastor) welcomed Keith Ko as their new associate pastor of youth ministries.

Keith is a graduate of Wheaton College and Denver Seminary, serving most recently as the Youth Pastor at Sunrise Church of Wrightwood, CA.

While Keith is new to the Grace Brethren Fellowship, his new bride, Shelley, was part of Grace Community Church of Seal Beach while she attended Long Beach State.
 

The internationally-acclaimed Harlem Ambassadors 2005-2006 Tour, covering Europe, Asia, and North America, will include a stop in Winona Lake for a game at Lancer Gym tonight, Wednesday, September 28 at 7 p.m.

"It's amazing, but with eight overseas tours each of the past four seasons, the Ambassadors actually cover more of the globe than that other 'Harlem' team that has 'globe' in their name," observed Ambassadors President Dale Moss.

It's Not Your Grandfather's Basketball Show, is the slogan for the Ambassadors. "It means we offer a younger, fresher, livelier basketball show," explained Moss.

The Ambassadors will play a team of "Grace legends" which includes Tim Bailey, Scott Blum, Brian Elliott, Joe Graham, James Joiner, Jolie Eckhardt Miller, Dan Pacheco, and Jon Yeh. Also playing will be basketball icons from the Warsaw/Winona Lake community, including Jeff Grose, Steve Hollar, Coach Doug Ogle, and David Wayne.

Cost is a suggested $5 minimum donation. All proceeds go to the Hurricane Katrina Relief efforts, and tickets are available only at the door, beginning at 6 p.m.

The Harlem Ambassadors Basketball Show features high-flying slam dunks, dazzling ball-handling, and comedy routines led by Ladè Majic, Queen of Show Basketball. The only woman coach/player of an all men's professional team, Ladè Majic has played more show basketball games than any woman in history. She competes against opposing men players on a nightly basis and represents a great positive role model for young girls.

The Ambassadors do not travel with a pre-selected opponent or present a choreographed show. "We like to be challenged by the best local players," said Ladè Majic, "There are always a few tough players in any place we go." Dealing with opposition who do not know exactly what will happen next creates an Ambassadors show that is loaded with spontaneous improvisation humor.

The Ambassadors Tour has carried the team to 39 states and 19 foreign countries. The Harlem Ambassadors are the leading provider of entertainment to the United States military, having performed at over 120 different bases worldwide.

"We are extremely proud of our relationship with the military," Moss noted. The team has performed for troops deployed in front-line positions in the Balkans and Korea. The Ambassadors also recently performed for the Marines guarding captured Al-Queda terrorists at Naval Station Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

"Cotton Patch Gospel," the musical that depicts the life of Christ as told by a bluegrass troubadour and his ensemble, comes to Winona Lake, Indiana, this weekend.

Grace College alumnus Rick Meads (BA 80--standing at left in photo) directs and performs in this show, which is being presented Friday, September 30 and Saturday, October 1. Both performances are at 7:30 p.m. in Rodeheaver Auditorium and are free and open to the public.

The musical is being presented by Grace College and the Village at Winona - and coincides with the Village's Fall Festival this weekend. The festival features live demonstrations at the Artisan Court, plus the Huzzah Hoosier Pennant Vintage Baseball Tournament at Tabernacle Field near the Hillside Amphitheater in Winona Lake.

The Village at Winona® will host a day of demonstrations and harvest time fun at the annual Fall Festival on Saturday, October 1, from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Live demonstrations in the Artisan Court by a blacksmith, wool spinner, basket weaver, wood carver, paper silhouettes cutter, wood turner, soap maker, metal smith, kaleidoscope maker, glass bead artisan, and chain saw carver will bring these trade crafts of the past back to life.

This is a great opportunity for kids of all ages to learn about the heritage and skills of our forefathers. If you need to quench your thirst, Doud’s Orchards from Denver, Indiana, will demonstrate old-fashioned cider making using their antique cider press. Apples, apple butter, jams, and preserves will all be available for purchase.

If it’s entertainment you want, the Cotton Patch Gospel quartet will provide live music from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. in the Artisan Pavilion, and then the main show takes the stage in Rodeheaver Auditorium in the evening. All programs for the Fall Festival are free and open to the public.  

San Diego Christian College--formerly called Christian Heritage College--inaugurated Dr. Jerry Huson (pictured) as its new president during a September 23 morning ceremony at the Shadow Mountain Community Church.

Huson was appointed as President of SDCC in May, succeeding former president and Grace Seminary alumnus David Jeremiah, who now serves as SDCC's Chancellor.

While interested in developing the athletic programs at SDCC, Huson will focus his attention on academic excellence and ministry and continue the school's mission to provide rigorous and biblically-based education.

Huson received his master's in Education at Azusa Pacific University and a Ph.D. in Intercultural Studies at Biola University. Huson continued his career with thirteen years at Biola University, where he was involved in teaching, coaching baseball, and developing the Department of Church Relations.

Huson is no stranger, however, to SDCC. A graduate of the class of 1979, Huson returned to SDCC after his work at Biola to serve as a teacher, coach, and executive vice president of the college.

SDCC was established in 1970 and is affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention. The college currently enrolls about 650 students and offers bachelor's degrees in fifteen programs, including biblical studies, business, music, psychology, and aviation.
 

A delightful personal memoir of the late Archer Baum (pictured here with his wife, Eileen) is online by clicking here. Reproduced here is a brief section of that memoir:

Archer Baum Memoirs
"My Journey to Faith and Beyond"

As I write it is Saturday morning, February 5, 2000. On February 23rd I will observe my 59th birthday as a born-again Christian. The next day, on February 24th I will observe my 77th physical birthday.

During the early summer of 1939, I had gone to work for Mr. McMahan in his country grocery store and gas station where I was clerk, soda jerk, butcher, gas station attendant and janitor but mostly as a clerk behind the counter. I was 16 years old when I began.

I worked 6 days a week, 12 hours per day. I was paid $12/week. The store was closed on Sunday. I continued to go to Wapato, Washington High School during the school year. At this time I worked 37 hours/week. The school bus brought me to the store at 4:00 pm and I would work until 9:00 pm (or later).

Each Saturday I would work 12 hours/day. I have written the above that you may see that I had no time for sports (which I loved) nor any other kind of social life. I had no friends with which I could spend much time. At this time I never set foot in a church. It was a very lonely life.

Though I was happy in my job, I longed for companionship with other young people. At this time, my sister, Beth, was 15 years old. Unbeknownst to me, my parents had told her that she could not date boys without first asking their permission. A young boy named Bill Schilperoot (sp?) asked Beth to go with him to a 3-week revival meeting to be held at the Grace Brethren Church of Harrah, Washington. The meetings were from February 2nd to February 23rd, 1941.

Without asking our parents, my sister told Bill, "yes." When told, my parents said, "no." After much persuasion (and tears?), which I was not privy to, my parents relented and said she could go with Bill, only if they were accompanied by Archer (me). Glad to have an occasion to lord it over Beth, I agreed to be their chaperon.

Thus, I find myself sitting in the last row of the balcony of this little Brethren church. It is February 2, 1941. I do not remember the message. I only remember that the preacher seemed to be looking at and preaching to me only (not true of course). It is a little scary to me and I thought it to be unfair that he spent so much time looking at me.

It is February 23rd, 1941. It is the last night of 3 weeks of meetings. I was there on the first night but I have not returned until tonight. I did not like to be preached to and be looked at. I later learned that, after 3 weeks of meetings, not a single person had responded to the invitation to receive Christ.

The minister, Conrad Sandy, has preached his last sermon. I am sitting in the balcony, last row. God's Holy Spirit has brought the conviction to my heart that I need to give my heart and life to Christ the Savior. The last hymn is being sung and with eyes full of tears, wearing shoes with leather heels and steel cleats, I clatter down the wooden stairs to the altar and give my heart to Christ. This is my spiritual birthday. Tomorrow I will be 18 years old.

My going forward seems to have broken a spiritual dam. About 20 others followed in my footsteps. I consider the decision to receive Christ to be the most important decision of my life. I have never regretted it.

Dedication to the Ministry

Exactly four weeks later, with others of our youth at Harrah, I attended a Christian Endeavor conference in Sunnyside, Washington. In response to a message by the president of Whitworth College, I dedicated my life to the service of Christ. After spending all summer working 60 hours/week in a fruit warehouse, I left home to enroll in Multnomah School of the Bible in Portland, Oregon.

Multnomah was only the beginning. After earning a diploma and marrying my lovely and beautiful wife, Eileen, we, still on our honeymoon, rode in a Pullman coach back to Winona Lake, Indiana where I spent a year as a student in Grace Theological Seminary.

In 1945 and 1946 I spent a year and a summer at Wheaton College in Wheaton, Illinois. I then transferred to Lewis and Clark College in Portland, Oregon, from which I was graduated with a B.A. degree in 1949.

After spending almost two years as pastor of Wishram Community Church in Washington, we (including Eileen and our two little girls, Rebecca and Colleen) returned to Grace Theological Seminary.

While a student at the Seminary, I was a student pastor at West Etna Community Church from 1950 until 1953 where I preached and taught the adult Sunday School class. Just as God had blessed our ministry at Wishram with converts, so He did at West Etna. I was among the first to use the baptistery in the then new McClain Hall.

After receiving a Master of Divinity degree from Seminary in 1953, our little family and I were called to the First Brethren Church of San Diego where I became its fifth pastor. Here we served for over 7 years. Today I have been given the title, "Pastor Emeritus" of the church.

As I am writing this I am 77 years old.

Some day the silver cord will break,
And I no more, as now, shall sing.
But, Oh! the joy when I shall wake
Within the palace of the King.

Life's evening sun is sinking low
A few more days (weeks, years) and I must go
To meet the Savior, God's dear Son
Where there will be no setting sun.

After spending 59 years of study in philosophy, religion and Christianity, I am firmly convinced that in Christ we find truth and life.

With firm conviction, I can say with the apostle Paul, "For me to live is Christ and to die is gain. To be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord."

Reverend Archer Baum


60th Wedding Anniversary

Archer and Eileen Baum are celebrating 60 years of marriage on May 14, 2004. They met when they were students at Multnomah Bible College in Portland, Oregon, and married soon after. With Eileen's support, Archer pursued his goal of becoming a Christian minister, as he graduated from Multnomah Bible College, Lewis and Clark College and received a Master of Divinity degree from Grace Theological Seminary.

Archer served the Lord as a pastor, an army chaplain and later in life as a public school teacher. Eileen worked with the Traveler's Insurance Company. They continue to serve with the Gideon Bible organization.

God blessed them with three daughters: Rebecca (deceased and with the Lord); Colleen, married to Pastor Phil Teran; Deborah, married to missionary Mark Schrock; eight grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.

Archer and Eileen have been godly role models to all who know and love them. They have provided a rich legacy. Proverbs 20:7 says, "But who can find a trustworthy man? A righteous man who walks in his integrity, how blessed are his children after him."  

Tom Hocking, moderator of the Southern California/Arizona District of the FGBC has sent word of the homegoing last Friday of Archer Baum, pastor emeritus of the San Diego Grace Brethren Church.

Hocking’s message says Baum went home to the Lord after a three-year battle with cancer.

Pastor Phil Teran and Mark Schrock (Archer’s sons-in-law) relayed details of the memorial service, which was Tuesday, September 27, at Scott Memorial Church in San Diego.

Dave Mitchell, pastor of the Waipio Grace Brethren Church in Mililani, Hawaii, has always had a penchant for streetrods and loud riding machines.

He says, "This midlife crisis urge really hits hard, but what better way for a pastor to get around than this? Betty Lou doesn't mind working three jobs while I learn to ride..."

Hard to tell whether or not he's kidding!
 

Paul R. Humberd, 85, died at 7:30 p.m. Sunday, September 25, at Mason Health and Rehab Center in Warsaw, Indiana.

Humberd was the son of well-known pastor/Bible/prophecy teacher R.I. Humberd and was the brother of Dr. Jesse Humberd, who for many years taught science and mathematics at Grace College in Winona Lake, Indiana

Paul Humberd was a grain farmer in Carroll County, Indiana, for 50 years, a U.S. Army veteran, and a member of the Winona Lake Grace Brethren church. He and his wife, Leila, had lived in the Winona Lake/Warsaw area for the past 20 years.

In addition to his wife, Humberd is survived by a son, Stephen J. Humberd of Chandler, Arizona; a daughter, Mrs. Richard (Susan) Brundage, Warsaw, Indiana; two grandchildren, a great-grandchild and two brothers, Jesse D. Humberd of Winona Lake, Indiana and James T. Humberd, Burbank, California and a sister, Martha Allbaugh, of Delphi, Indiana.

Services will be at 10 a.m. Thursday at Titus Funeral home in Warsaw, Indiana, with Pastor John Teevan and the Rev. Charles Ashman officiating.

The following article appeared in this afternoon's Warsaw (IN) Times-Union newspaper:

Grace Administrators Back From Helping With Hurricane Relief

BY TERESA SMITH, Times-Union Staff Writer

WINONA LAKE – With the ideal of service foremost in their minds, Grace College managers left their regular jobs for 10 days to volunteer in hurricane-ravaged Louisiana.

A call for people with managerial skills from Grace alumnus Dan O’Deens reached the ears of John Boal, of Grace College and Seminary. O’Deens, in addition to being a pastor in Pennsylvania, is an American Red Cross volunteer.

Boal took O’Deens’ request to senior management and Paul DeRenzo, Scott Sharik, Tom Caron and John Yeh agreed to go, along with Jim Robinson, husband of Grace employee Tammie Robinson. They were packed and ready in less than two days, leaving Sept. 9 and returning Sept. 19.

Boal left a couple of days earlier to assess the situation, linking up with O’Deens in Shreveport at the American Red Cross Northwest Louisiana Chapter headquarters.

“The Red Cross volunteers had been working for two weeks, housing, feeding and clothing 25,000 to 27,000 people in shelters, churches and in people’s homes,” Boal said. “The Red Cross was overseeing five major shelters.”

When the Grace team went down, DeRenzo stayed in Shreveport while Sharik, Caron, Yeh and Robinson went on to Northwestern State University, Natchitoches, La., southeast of Shreveport, where they managed a shelter on the campus.

The men became part of a brigade that wore distinctive red and white Red Cross volunteer vests.

“Natchitoches was a lot like Warsaw with the exception that there were 5,5000 extra people in town,” Sharik said. “When we left, there were less than 700 still sheltered.

At NSU, 435 people were stayed in the physical education building, an auxiliary gymnasium. That number swelled to about 1,600 each day as people living in motels drove in for meals and to visit a distribution center.

Northwestern has an enrollment of about 10,000 students. The shelter was set up in the physical education building, basically the campus’ auxiliary gymnasium with offices and classrooms.

The volunteers from Grace joined 27 other volunteers.

Folks continued to arrive from the New Orleans area. When people checked in from a contaminated region, they were given a health assessment, new clothes, a shower and a bed. Their old clothes were burned.

Their old clothes were often the only personal possessions they had.

The campus shelter offered social services, medical care, mental health care and the means to provide eyeglasses and mental health services.

Children were provided with uniforms and rode a bus to school each day.

“This time is unique in that the Red Cross doesn’t usually run shelters more than three days,” Sharik said. “So many people had no other place to go, no relatives in other parts of the country, no credit cards, no way to stay anywhere else. They had never traveled.

“We arrived not only having to deal with a disaster, but with the poorest of the poor.”

The men interviewed new arrivals and took information based on driver’s licenses or Louisiana identification cards, if people had them.

Part of their job was to reunite families. Young children would be handed through an open bus window in New Orleans, into the arms of strangers, and then the bus would leave.

Some parents arranged to move the children as Hurricane Katrina approached. The mother might leave later while the father stayed behind. When a man finally reached a shelter, he had no way of knowing where the rest of the family was.

“The No. 1 goal in sheltering is a zero population,” DeRenzo said. “As soon as they received money, they were supposed to get a bus ticket and leave. But this was so unprecedented, they don’t know what to do.”

The Red Cross offered 14-day hotel stays. Activated debit cards arrived from Baton Rouge with an armed guard escort. National Guardsmen and sheriff’s deputies patrolled the area, armed with M16s.

“There was a lot of miscommunication,” Yeh said. “Every day we heard 50 rumors that might or might not be true. We had to be sure information was accurate. I was surprised it was not seamless.”

Franklin Graham, evangelist Billy Graham’s son, Al Sharpton, a Louisiana state senator’s assistant, mayors and other dignitaries visited the campus shelter.

Boal described the situation as very political. “Churches are very involved in politics in the south, too. Although the Red Cross is not a government agency, they do get government funding during disasters. It took a couple of days before they realized we were there to help and to serve. That breaks down a lot of walls.”

Many Red Cross volunteers are finally using training they received three years ago.

The men talked with “regulars,” though, who shared stories about the aftermath of Sept. 11, 2001, and hurricanes Ivan and Jeanne they may have received disaster training for three years ago.

“They’d say, ‘See you at next disaster.’ It was kind of neat to hear,” DeRenzo said.

Louisiana was the first state to offer help to New York City after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. The New York police and fire departments came immediately in a 50-car caravan and served as couriers to and from Baton Rouge.

Red Cross-affiliated and other volunteers would fly into Houston, just show up and say they were there to help. Many had been in the South for two or three weeks before the Grace volunteers arrived.

“We had permission from Grace College to ‘adopt’ a family for, say, three months to a year,” Yeh said. “I asked six families to come and didn’t have any takers. It may be a year or two before they can go back.”

Most plan to return to their communities “but they don’t know their housing conditions,” Yeh said.

“They haven’t been back to their house,” Boal said. “Once they see it destroyed, they may change their mind and relocate. Right now they just don’t know.”

Members of NSU and community organizations arrived daily offering help or activities. The Northwestern women’s volleyball team ‘adopted’ some of the girls. Volunteers served as tutors.

There was live entertainment outside the building every day. The most interesting musical group, the Grace men thought, was a performance by the Louisiana Department of Corrections’ prisoner band.

“We went down as part of the Fellowship of Grace Brethren Churches and stepped into the world of the Red Cross. We tried to go down as ambassadors of God, helping our fellow man,” DeRenzo said.

“We stepped into someone else’s story, one that’s going to go on after we leave. We tried to make a little bit of difference in a monster of a situation, one person at a time.”

Katrina First Responders Dave Guiles (left), Jay Bell (right) and Dan O'Deens (center) are now assessing steps necessary to have the Fellowship better positioned for coordinated response to national disasters. A detailed first-person report from Dan O'Deens follows. 

Pastor Dan O’Deens of Gateway Community Church in Parkesburg, Pennsylvania, played a key role from the start in the Grace Brethren response to Hurricane Katrina. As our “point man on the ground,” he recruited, trained, and deployed managers recruited from all over the Fellowship. This is an edited version of a first-person report he recently gave to his church. It is long, but it is very worthwhile reading.

Hurricane Katrina had hit. The worst disaster on American soil in our history. My heart was pulled toward the people--I knew their need was great. What does anyone do when 1.3 million people are displaced overnight?

Shortly after the hurricane hit I was on the phone with each of our Elders, letting them know my heart and asking them to free me to go down and serve in this very needy crisis. I was so thankful for our men, who immediately said, go…yes, that IS our mission.

In less than an hour I had my plane reservation and was headed to Houston. The Baton Rouge airport was not functioning, so all Red Cross National Disaster responders were flown into Houston.

The Astrodome was already full to capacity and then some. I went through an orientation and was deployed to Baton Rouge. We rented a car and drove 5+ hours to Baton Rouge, The American Red Cross Headquarters for Louisiana.

As I walked into headquarters I knew I would then receive my assignment. This would prove to be the most difficult decision I would make, but also the best. Just a month prior I had secured my ERV license and training with the Red Cross (Emergency Rescue Vehicle – The Red/White Red Cross Trucks).

I could have at that moment been assigned to drive the ERV’s into New Orleans giving food to those who were still stranded. There was a big part of me that wanted to do that. I had already prayed and asked God to give me the greatest opportunity to influence people for Him and help as many people as I could.

Going Where the People Are
The other choice was go where the people were. Very few people were still in the city. Most of the residents had been bussed up north and to bordering states. I knew I needed to be where the people were.

Leadership was needed, so I stepped up to the plate and said I could manage a shelter. Immediately I was deployed to Shreveport. I am so grateful that I did not know that Shreveport was another five-hour drive to the northwest part of the state. It was like God’s call to Abraham. He said go, Abraham said where? God said, I will tell you when you get there.

I showed up in Shreveport at about 11 p.m. I was already dog-tired from flying and driving. I met a wonderful elderly lady who was a volunteer with the NWLA Red Cross Chapter and she set me up with sleeping arrangements and told me to be back in the morning by 7:30.

When I arrived the next morning this same lady said, “I have been thinking about you all night. I don’t want you to go to one of our shelters, I think we need someone like you to stay here and organize our efforts.” She then told me about the Executive Director of the Northwest Louisiana Region. She said she needed to talk with him. I told her that I was here to serve.

By the next day I had won the confidence of the Director of the Region. His staff was in a position of great need. The day of the hurricane their full-time staff person over “disasters” quit her job and took off. The following week the full-time employee overseeing all their local volunteers had also resigned.

In two days’ time I was running the daily operations in his office, overseeing his staff and beginning to put a plan together to help these people. When I arrived I began to organize our seven official Red Cross Shelters. We had three Civic Center Arenas, two universities and two churches. Those shelters held 7,000 people.

In a normal Red Cross “shelter” the Red Cross provides sheltering and food. This disaster would require much more. In essence, we would build temporary city/communities. We had to work with school systems to enroll all the children from New Orleans into a new district. That also required logistics including the bussing of children to and from our shelters to school.

We had to set up job placements. We had to enroll all the people in the shelter and get that on the web so lost family members could find them. Of course we had to work out the logistics for feeding over 7,000 people three meals each day. We had to provide security, using the National Guard and local law enforcements.

I also had to develop the plan that would staff all these shelters. We set up a phone bank and started calling all the locals and assigned them to shift work. Gradually I was given some relief with DSHR’s. (National Red Cross Disaster Service Human Resources).

When I arrived there were fewer than five trained Red Cross workers and over 7,000 people in our shelters. I had to find lodging for them and transportation to get them from their hotels to the shelters. I had to secure vehicles and forms of communication.

In total we had now acquired 25,000 evacuees in my territory. These were little churches and homes of refuge.

'We Needed Leadership badly'
We needed leadership badly. I called down to HQ’s earlier in the day and asked for 21 shelter manager types. They told me what I already expected--pretty much anyone we send you will be a newbie, who signed up with the Red Cross the day before yesterday! I immediately responded by saying, “I have to have good management. Since everyone else is new, can I go outside the box and recruit some executive managers of colleges and business and national organizations, bring them here and train them and deploy them?” He said, “Do what you need to do.”

I called Dave Guiles, our Director of International Missions, and said, “You have a program called ‘Rapid Deployment.’ Do you mean it?” Then next day I had 14 men ready to serve. I trained them in Red Cross procedures, gave them an overview of the shelters they would be leading, and sent them out.

Over the next two days I would receive over 200 national Red Cross volunteers. All of them needed to be trained and oriented. I did all that training. By this time I had identified a very competent staff for our Operations Center.

Our objective was singular…find these evacuees a home so that we no longer needed to be sheltering. We had now organized T1 lines and communications with Chamber of Commerce people and had a job assistance and relocation program. We had organized programs allowing church groups and individuals to come in and take people all over the United States to relocate them.

I had worked out a plan to start consolidating our seven shelters into one. By the time I left, we were down to three shelters, one in each region and fewer than 450 people in our shelters. That was before Hurricane Rita.

As I was leaving, the shelter populations in Southern Louisiana were being shipped up to the Northwest and all the Hurricane Rita people would soon be making their way to our shelters. A system was in place and operational to accommodate the masses of people. All of our hotels, vehicles, and vendors had been approved for National Billing with FEMA and Red Cross.

I woke up one morning in a sweat, realizing I had been entrusted a great stewardship. I was responsible with making decisions that would result in hundreds of millions of dollars of expenditures. That God would put me in that position was mind-boggling. He put me there and He enabled me to make decisions. I am so grateful that I could rely on Him and know that you were here praying for me.

Preparation is the Key
I would never have had this opportunity had I not prepared. Preparation is one of the greatest keys to both opportunity and influence. Shortly after 9-1-1 I decided that the Red Cross was the organization that would best prepare me to serve during national disasters. I filled out an application and began to take all the courses necessary to be able to be deployed.

There were times during that training that I thought…so much training…so little time doing what I am being trained for? But game day always comes. A few weeks ago…game day came! And the Lord put me in the game!

Why get involved? Because to whom much is given much is required. Jesus said, “I did not come to be served but to serve!” Serving is a privilege and when you serve, you lead. We get involved because Christianity is not a spectator sport. We all are called to be in the game.

For God so loved the world…that he “gave.” If I want to be like Jesus, I have to love the people of this world. The essence of that love is giving. True Christianity is not only the Written Word…It is the Living Word. People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.

I often had to remember the hat I wore. As I changed hats I was so glad that I did not ever have to change who I was. There were many times I had to encourage our over-zealous brothers who wanted to proselytize rather than serve. I had to remind them that our mission with the Red Cross was to serve these people.

My chaplain’s hat was most evidenced by reminding people where we draw the strength to get the job done and Who gives us the daily wisdom and direction. When we serve people they see Jesus. There were plenty of opportunities to name Jesus.

There were also plenty of opportunities to roll up my sleeves and do the hard work of whatever needed to be done at the moment. Christianity is NOT a hat we wear. It is who we are. I am IN Christ. When we respond knowing that, we flesh out our Christianity in a way stronger than we might imagine.

Tomorrow this CRISIS will be over…and we will get back to normal…but all over the world, people experience CRISIS just like this. Let’s be a church that does not become complacent. Let’s keep up God’s work serving others every day. It is the most Christian work that we can do!

LOS ANGELES, California (AP) -- Author M. Scott Peck, who wrote the best-seller "The Road Less Traveled" and other books, died Sunday. He was 69.

Peck died at his home in Connecticut, longtime friend and Los Angeles publicist Michael Levine said. He had suffered from pancreatic and liver duct cancer.

Born in New York City, Peck received his bachelor's degree from Harvard College in 1958 and his doctorate from the Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine in 1963. He served in the U.S. Army between 1963 and 1972.

Peck spent more than 10 years in the private practice of psychiatry and had his first book "The Road Less Traveled" published in 1978. The self-help book that begins "Life is difficult" has sold more than 6 million copies in North America and been translated into 20 languages. By the mid-1990s, the book had made 258 appearances on The New York Times best-seller list.

Other books he wrote included "People of the Lie: The Hope For Healing Human Evil," "Meditations From the Road," and "Further Along the Road Less Traveled."

Peck was the recipient of the 1984 Kaleidscope Award for Peacemaking and the 1994 Temple International Peace Prize. He also received The Learning, Faith and Freedom Medal from Georgetown University in 1996.

Here is a report from Mike Mason, of thequest church in Columbus, Ohio (Mike Jentes, pastor), about his recent ministry with fellow church member Larry Totzke in Shreveport, Louisiana.

We went for about nine days and we worked quite a bit. Most of our team of Grace Brethren people were in some kind of leadership position. I rose all the way to Laundry Coordinator by the end of my time there :)

Our Grace Brethren team consisted of about 13 people who were spread out over various shelters. I went to a shelter with Larry Totzke (from the quest) and Steve Kern (from Wooster, Ohio). It was a really interesting experience.

We got to meet so many wonderful Red Cross people and also many wonderful New Orleans people. I was amazed at the attitude of the evacuees. Even though they lost everything, they were in good spirits, usually.

Because the disaster was so huge, the shelter I was at was unlike any Red Cross shelter previously. Usually a Red Cross shelter lasts about three days. You get in, you get out. Because of the severity of Katrina, the shelter I was at will be open for at least two more weeks (over a month total).

The shelter was named Hirsch, although I don't know why. It was located on a fairgrounds. The fair begins October 10, so they would like to be shut down by then.

The shelter was located in a decent-sized basketball arena. We were about 200 yards away from the football stadium where they play the Independence Bowl. Tulane University, which is in New Orleans, will play some of their home games there. We got to go to their "home opener" Saturday night.

This was no ordinary Red Cross shelter because it was started before the Red Cross could get there by a local Assemblies of God church. Our leader, Steve, was one of the pastors there.

Overall, Steve did a great job. Many, many interesting things happened. We had a great team show up from a Billy Graham organization. My job would have been much more stressful if they hadn't been there.

Besides handling new supplies/laundry, I had a lot of interaction with the "clients"/evacuees on the floor. The most stressful day was when we doubled our population from 300 to 600!

One last cool thing. We had a group of nine show up from Lincoln, Nebraska. One hundred churches in Lincoln pooled their resources and sent these nine down with two charter buses to take evacuees back to Nebraska. They agreed to give up to 60 people free housing and food for up to a year.

Not only that, but they would help them find a job and also agreed to pay to send them back to New Orleans whenever they wanted. I thought it was an amazing way to share the love of Christ.

An important new book on the need for prayer in counseling, entitled Transformed In His Presence, has just been released by BMH Books of Winona Lake, IN.

Written by Roger Peugh and Tammy Schultz of the Grace College and Seminary faculty, the book fills a much-needed gap in the training and practice of Christian counselors. Its subtitle is "The Need for Prayer in Counseling."

In the preface, the authors say, "Most Christian caregivers have received beneficial training in skills, theories, and practices of counseling . . . However . . . it is our conviction that so many of us are trying to do naturally what can be done only supernaturally."

Written for caregivers and helpers everywhere, the book will be a challenge and help to counselors, pastors, and anyone who seeks, in Jesus' name, to help the hurting.

Each chapter uses scripture to teach about topics relevant to caregivers: the essence of prayer, counseling, suffering, waiting, burnout, the need for supportive friends, and a vision for renewal. The authors have a combination of more than 50 years of counseling, pastoral experience, and working in mental health settings from which to draw their observations and concepts.

Roger Peugh, M.Div., is Associate Professor of World Missions at Grace Theological Seminary. He previously was chaplain at Grace College and Seminary and spent 20 years as a church planter in Germany.

Tammy Schultz, Ph.D., LMHC, is Department Chair of the Graduate School in Counseling & Interpersonal Relations at Grace College. She has taught in the U.S. and Canada and has been active in counseling practice.

The 136-page paperback includes helpful reflection exercises and notes following each of the ten chapters. The book's ISBN number is 0884693007 and it retails for $10.99. The book is available online through www.bmhbooks.com and other online sellers, or by calling (toll free) 1-800-348-2756.
 

# posted by Terry White @ 12:17 PM 0 comments

This story, about last year’s standout football player from Grace Brethren High in Simi Valley, California, appeared this weekend in the Ventura (CA) County Star. Brethren High is affiliated with the Grace Brethren Church of Simi Valley, John McIntosh, pastor.

Blessing in disguise

Chad Kackert feels fortunate he will get a chance to play in college after an injury in high school led to the discovery of a tumor in his leg

By Rhiannon Potkey
September 26, 2005

In Chad Kackert's mind, there is only one explanation -- divine intervention.

Unknowingly playing with a small tumor in his lower leg last season, the former Grace Brethren High running back was potentially one direct hit away from ending his football career.

But before doctors discovered the non-malignant mass, Kackert finished his senior year with a CIF-Southern Section championship, 3,445 yards rushing and a joyous celebration among teammates.

To top it off, he found a college coach who believed in him enough to offer him a full scholarship despite the injury.

"I could feel God working throughout the entire process," Kackert said. "Everything pretty much turned out perfectly. I got to play every game of my senior year and win a championship."

The tumor in Kackert's right tibia was discovered only by accident. During the third quarter of Grace Brethren's Division XII title game, Kackert tore a ligament in his right ankle.

He went to the doctor a few days later to have the ankle examined, and an X-ray revealed the tumor.

"It could have been there for up to four years, and it was growing," Kackert said. "It had eaten through about 50 percent of my bone, and the bone was really weak."

After enduring so many tackles during high school, Kackert realizes how lucky he was to escape without a more serious blow to the leg.

"It's possible I would have been done playing football for life because it would have shattered the bone," he said.

Although thankful he would be on the field again, Kackert wondered how the injury would affect his collegiate hopes.

People had already told the 5-foot-8, 180-pounder he was too small to play Division I football, and that Grace Brethren's schedule didn't provide him with enough challenges.

The injury was yet another hurdle being placed in the path of his dreams.
But University of New Hampshire coach Scott McDonnell put Kackert's worries to rest by offering him a scholarship.

"In our history we have taken some chances with kids we believe are the right chances to take," said McDonnell, who has recruited six players with ACL injuries in the last seven years. "With Chad, I had a gut feeling that he would be able to come here, work hard and have a great career on and off the field."

What McDonnell saw on Kackert's recruiting tape didn't hurt either.

"He scored a lot of touchdowns. That was pretty evident," said McDonnell referring to Kackert's 131 career touchdowns. "He was running by people and making great cuts with his great vision. He's not the biggest guy, but we've had some great players here who haven't been that big."

Last February, Kackert had surgery performed in which bone from his hip was used to fill the hole in his tibia.

He is grayshirting at UNH this season -- where a high school graduate delays enrollment -- and won't arrive on campus until January.

Kackert has been training at full speed since April, and is assisting at Grace Brethren to stay connected with football.

When UNH played at UC Davis three weeks ago, Kackert went to watch and McDonnell brought him into the locker room after the game.

Having his future teammates and coaches already sticking by him only reaffirmed Kackert's decision to attend UNH.

"Going through this I found out which teams really wanted me or not," he said. "It's good to know people care about me out there. I can't wait to start."

Carmen Franchino, of the Peninsula Grace Brethren Church in Soldotna, Alaska, has called to our attention the following article on an outstanding young Christian athlete from the Peninsula church. The article appeared in the Clarion newspaper on Tuesday (Clarion photo).

Pfaffe leads SoHi football

By JEFF HELMINIAK
Peninsula Clarion

Faith and singing have always come before football for Soldotna senior Aleks Pfaffe. Pfaffe's father, Greg, said Aleks was timid when he was a little kid.

"He's always been a singer, so he was asked to sing in church when he was young," Greg said. "He overcame that fear and timidity really early.

"It gave him the opportunity to perform in music and helped his confidence."

In turn, Greg said the opportunities Aleks had to perform music shaped the type of athlete he would become in high school.

"In music, you just have to play your part," Greg said. "Whether it's band, or singing a part in the choir, you have to know how to be a part of a group and work together."

That explains why Pfaffe is the quarterback of the Soldotna football team this year. After being the junior varsity quarterback as a freshman and sophomore, Pfaffe was moved to wide receiver as a junior.

Pfaffe said, thanks to games he had always played with friends, going up and grabbing a ball in a crowd came naturally to him. In 2004, he was the top receiver on the peninsula, with 22 catches for 320 yards and four touchdowns in the regular season. Pfaffe was named second-team all-small-schools state for his efforts.

Despite his receiving success, with quarterback Cameron Schneider graduating, Pfaffe offered to switch back to quarterback for the Stars.

"I felt it was the position I needed to play for the team," Pfaffe said. "I like both positions, but the team is most important."

Soldotna head football coach Sarge Truesdell said that it was telling that Pfaffe came to him last winter and offered to make the position change.

"When he came to us in the off-season and said he wanted to be the quarterback, that told us we had a leader," Truesdell said.

Pfaffe has been exactly that for the Stars. Friday, Soldotna needed a win against Skyview to keep its playoff hopes alive. Pfaffe rushed for 144 yards and two touchdowns. He also forced a key fumble in the fourth quarter that helped the Stars to a 35-14 victory.

"He is our leader, without question," Soldotna offensive coordinator Galen Brantley said. "We're going to go as far as Aleks takes us."

Brantley is heavily involved in Soldotna's off-season program and said Pfaffe has always attended every camp and weight training session asked of him.

"We were at a camp as a sophomore, and I went in at six o'clock to wake the team up," Brantley said. "Aleks was in there reading scripture with a flashlight.
"He's definitely a kid with really high moral values and great character."

Truesdell said Pfaffe is always one of the first to pick up game film and that he does things like sweeping the locker room and making sure all the helmets are hanging correctly.

"He does a lot of things for this team that, probably, 90 percent of the kids on the team don't even know about," Truesdell said.

Pfaffe also participates in basketball and track at Soldotna.

"I started track as a sophomore to get in shape for football and work on my athleticism, speed and agility," Pfaffe said. "Coach (Mark) Devenney inspired me to like the sport of track itself."

As a junior, Pfaffe finished fifth in the 110-meter hurdles at state.

Despite all his successes in athletics, Pfaffe said he knows he will not be able to make a career out of being an athlete.

"I really enjoy sports, but if I'm going to support a family and have a career, I'm going to have to go into teaching high school music and music lessons," Pfaffe said. Pfaffe plays the French horn in the Soldotna band and also sings in the choir.

Vernel Schneider, the band director at Soldotna, said Pfaffe has qualified for all-state band and choir each year he has been at SoHi.

Pfaffe also was in the All-Northwest Choir as a freshman and the All-Northwest Band as a junior. The All-Northwest groups are put together once every two years. Students can only audition to be in one All-Northwest group.

"Because he has a wonderful singing voice, it has helped him instrumentally," Schneider said. "French horn players have to be able to hear pitch. Aleks has an extraordinary ear for music."

Pfaffe said he switched from the trumpet to the French horn at the start of high school. He said he was inspired to make the switch by the "Gladiator" soundtrack. Hans Zimmer helped write that soundtrack. Pfaffe said he enjoys Zimmer because he has a lot of French horn in his soundtracks.

Pfaffe also has used his French horn skills to play in the pit orchestra of the 2005 Kenai Performers' production of "Brigadoon."

Pfaffe has always been home schooled, and Greg and his wife, Susan, appreciate what the Connections program has been able to do for their son.

"There are so many people in this community who are willing to dedicate themselves to tutoring young kids," Greg said. "Aleks has been able to take advantage of that, and we appreciate what those people have done for him."

Pfaffe has not yet decided where he will attend school next year.

"You don't have kids like Aleks that come on board every year," Brantley said. "He's the complete package. He's a good student, good athlete and a great kid."
 

Just a quick reminder that official registration for the Evangelists' Gathering in Columbus, to be held October 7-9, closes this Monday, September 26. For more information and registration instructions, click here> 

Mike Jentes, Grace Brethren church planter with thequest in Columbus, Ohio, in his weekly e-newsletter has called our attention to the story of one of our Grace Brethren house church pastors in California whose dramatic life-story has recently been published in a book by Felicity Dale entitled “An Army of Ordinary People.” Here is an excerpt with a link to the rest of Hank’s story:

“A couple of us guys get together at Starbucks every week. We read some chapters out of the Bible during the week. Then on Fridays we get together to hold each other accountable for what is going on in our lives and to pray for our friends. We call it a Life Transformation Group. Would you like to join us?” Doug asked Hank.

So began the transformation in Hank’s life. Each week, the three of them would devour whole books of the Bible. Over coffee they would confess areas of their lives in which they struggled, and pray for their non-Christian friends. And things started happening.

The first was devastating. Hank’s wife of more than 20 years left and then divorced him. It was a tough time. At this point, Hank chose to throw himself even more vigorously into what the Lord was doing in his life, and he began growing spiritually like wildfire.... " Read the rest here *

Dr. Mark Soto (pictured), professor of biblical studies at Grace College and Seminary, will this weekend present a series of seminars at the Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Grace Brethren Church (Gary Austin, pastor).

The series is entitled "A STUDY IN LIFE AND DEATH IN AMERICA 2005," and Austin says, "He has prepared some notes that really get into the heart of these issues."

The seminar begins this evening (Friday) at 7 p.m. with session entitled "Introduction to Ethical Issues Related to Life" and "When Does Life Begin?"

Sessions tomorrow begin at 9 a.m. and include "When Does Life End?", "The Right to Die?", "The Ethics of Privacy, the Genome Project, and Genetic Engineering."

Sunday morning in the 10:30 a.m. worship service Soto will speak on "Be Ready to Give an Answer to Any Man Who Asks" based on 1 Peter 3:15.

Soto has had 12 years of experience in the pastoral ministry as well as having been a counselor for a Christian residential childcare facility. He also served Grace College as the Associate Dean of Men. He holds the B.A. and Th.B. degrees from Applachian Bible College, an M.A.R. from Liberty University, and the M.Div., Th.M., and D. Min. degrees from Grace Theological Seminary, and is currently working on a second doctorate.

In other news from the Iowa churches, K. Howard Immel begins his ministry this Sunday, September 25, as pastor of the Carlton Brethren Church in Garwin, Iowa. 

Races and fun planned at Touchpoint event

Osceola, Indiana, Grace Brethren Church (Greg Serafino, pastor) is sponsoring its annual Touchpoint Weekend Activities on Saturday and Sunday.

The church is hosting a 5K run and 5K walk in the countryside near Baugo Creek on Saturday. Race registration, $15, begins at 8:45 a.m., with the races beginning at 10 a.m. Proceeds will go to the Women's Care Center.

Events following the races include a carnival for children and at noon a hog roast.

On Sunday, Touchpoint Weekend adult Bible classes begin at 9:30 a.m. and worship at 10:30 a.m.

For additional information, call (574) 674-5918 or visit www.ogbc.net . 

# posted by Terry White @ 12:28 PM 0 comments

Los Angeles Home to Most Evangelicals
Baptist Press

Contrary to its stereotypical labels like "Godless Hollywood" and "Lost Angeles," Los Angeles is the metropolitan area with the greatest number of evangelical adults.

Its one million faithful Christians are more than those in the New York, Chicago and Boston metropolitan areas combined, according to a study by The Barna Group.

But George Barna was quick to put the statistics in perspective. "Keep in mind that the metropolitan L.A. market is huge; it contains more than 10 million adults," he said in an Aug. 23 news release. "Even though its percentage of Christians is below the national average, its population is so massive that it emerged as the largest accumulation of believers. However, looking at its aggregate score as a Christian place, L.A. is 13 percent below the national average.

"It is not exactly a Christian commune," Barna added, "but like many metropolitan areas, Los Angeles has a significant remnant of believers who can exert tremendous, positive influence on their culture if they so choose."

Barna's "Faith By Market" report also found that Little Rock, Ark., has the highest percentage of evangelicals with 22 percent.

Of the 86 largest metro areas in the nation, those with the lowest portion of evangelicals were Salt Lake City, Utah; Hartford, Conn.; and Providence, R.I. (www.barna.org)

Word has been received that Mary Elizabeth Lingenfelter, 87, went home to be with the Lord on Monday, September 19, 2005.

Mary was the wife of Homer Lingenfelter, who died in February, 2004. Homer was the founding pastor of the Grace Brethren Church at Everett, Pennsylvania, which was organized in 1951 with 18 charter members.

He pastored the Everett church from 1951 to 1982, at which time Kurt A. Miller became pastor. The Everett congregation helped start mission points at Westernport, MD; Pittsburgh, PA; and Milroy, PA.

The Osceola, Indiana, Grace Brethren Church has scheduled an October 9 installation service for its new pastor, Greg Serafino. Paul Mutchler (pictured), pastor of the Lanham, Maryland, Grace Brethren Church, will be the speaker.

About Mutchler, Serafino said, "He was my youth pastor here in 1978-1981 and discipled me for those years. He really had a profound impact on my commitment to full-time Christian service."

The Osceola church building is located at 58343 Apple Road, Osceola, Indiana, 46561. More information may be obtained by logging onto www.ogbc.net or by calling the church at (574) 674-5918. 

# posted by Terry White @ 5:32 PM 0 comments

According to a communication from the Grace Brethren Church of Richmond, Virginia (Dave Kennedy, pastor), four individuals from the Richmond church family – Kimberly Yednock, Kerri Misiano, Lonn Butler, and Michael Bowling – have volunteered to join a Hurricane Disaster Relief Team that will be helping people in Gulfport, Mississippi. The team is being led by Pastor Peter Smith of Hope Valley Community Church in Red Hill, Pennsylvania.

Gulfport, which is on the coast, took the brunt of the hurricane and had more than 50 percent of its homes destroyed. The group will be helping families whose homes were damaged but can be fixed up enough to be lived in again.

The team, which will have a maximum of 20 people, will leave this Saturday, September 24, and will return Monday, October 3. They will be camping in tents on the grounds of the First Baptist Church of Gulfport and going out each day to the surrounding community to repair homes and bring hope to those devastated people.

According to the Richmond church, the National Guard has put the entire shore area – the mile between I-10 and the ocean – off-limits due to the volume of debris. The team will be working just north of that.

The area has running water, but it is not safe to drink. Buildings that can still receive electricity are just starting to have it again. A few restaurants are starting to open up but are overwhelmed with people and there is some gas available but the lines are long.

The team is required to be a completely self-contained team, providing all of its equipment, supplies, food and transportation. This will cost approximately $7,500, and anyone who wishes to help with a financial contribution is encouraged to contact the Richmond church at 2240 Cranbeck Road, Richmond, VA 23235 or call (804) 272-9000.

In the event the church receives more than the total expenses, the surplus will be given to the Gulfport church for the use of rebuilding the Gulfport community. Their needs will be enormous.

The teams from Virginia and Pennsylvania greatly covet your prayers. To see photos from the affected areas visit http://www.sunherald.com/mld/sunherald/news/photos/

Twenty-one Grace Brethren International Missions missionaries from four countries (Chad, CAR, Cameroon & USA) will be arriving this weekend, September 24, in Kribi, Cameroon, for GBIM's first all-Africa missionary conference in decades.

PRAY that this time together will be a time of refreshment and inspiration for the team, and that God will grant wisdom and vision as the team reflects on GBIM's present and future ministry in Africa.

To keep current with updates, including photos of recent orphan-care training in Africa, click on www.womenofcharis.net.

Today is "See You at the Pole" day at schools across America and around the world.

More than two million teens in all 50 states and numerous foreign countries are expected to participate in this year's event, the theme of which is "PRAY: call 2 me" -- based on the scripture Jeremiah 33:3.

The national organization, which provides promotional material and guidance for groups planning a SYATP event, also provides information on students' rights to gather on school grounds for the sole purpose of praying for their nation, their campuses, and their families.

The group encourages SYATP participants to be prepared for possible opposition from school officials, and to know their rights, plan their response, and -- above all -- remember they are representing Christ.

Since its inception in 1990, SYATP has occurred every third Wednesday in September. But beginning next year, the event will be moved to every fourth Wednesday of that month to allow students more time to organize their observance after their school year begins.

CE National is encouraging contributions of reports and digital photos from Grace Brethren teens participating in this year's event. As postings arrive, they may be seen on the "BNYC Talks" forum at www.cenational.org. 

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Pastor Ivanildo Trindade, Associate Pastor of Outreach Ministries from the Wooster, Ohio, Grace Brethren Church (Robert Fetterhoff, pastor), sent this report with the accompanying photos:

A CUP OF WATER -- IN JESUS' NAME

If you are a newspaper manager and you see five semi trucks pulling out of a church parking lot, what do you do? Well, you turn around and ask what is going on!

That's exactly what happened at Wooster GBC this past Sunday night, as our church had just finished a water and food drive for Katrina victims.

The newspaperman asked me: "Was our reporter here?" I said, "No." He mumbled, "How could we have missed this story? This is a big deal for a small town like ours." I said, "We think it is a big deal too, that's why we sent the press release to your newspaper and you wrote two stories about it in the two weeks leading up to this event!"

This story just illustrates why people will generally not hear about the outstanding job that evangelical churches are doing in response to the needs created by Hurricane Katrina. But we don't need the media to make us feel good about what we are doing. In fact, we do it out of an obligation to follow Christ's example to help those who are in need. It's as simple as that.

Our nineteen-man (one woman) chain saw unit is returning from Biloxi, Mississippi, on Tuesday, September 20. They have been there for 10 days and were able to uncover and clean up 170 properties. We are getting ready to send a new team as soon as this one returns.

Our leader, Jeff Wilke, speaks of total devastation, but also a sense of great relief knowing what one team has been able to accomplish in just a short period of time. He states: "I am surrounded by believers from all across the country, who have responded in an amazing way to this need."

History will probably record this as the time when the Church of Jesus Christ responded more united, more focused, and in greater numbers than any other disaster until now. We praise God for that!

On the home front, we had a food and water drive on our campus this past weekend. Over 350 volunteers participated and an entire assembly line of traffic controllers, unloaders, sorters, boxers, palletizers, shrink wrappers, loggers, bobcat operator, etc., made it possible for us to fill five semis with food and water, which are now being transported to Louisiana.

And to think that we managed to "hide" five semis from our local newspaper reporters. Maybe we should lend our services to Hollywood types trying to elude the paparazzi!

It is indeed great to know WHY we do what we do. God loves people and so should we. What a delight to serve Him in this way, media attention or not!
 

 

 

 

According to a report from Agape Press, the Reverend Billy Graham and his wife have loaned a spare home they own in Montreat, North Carolina, to a New Orleans family left homeless by Hurricane Katrina.

The family of five expects to stay in the small house where the Grahams first lived when they were married for a few months while they try to get their lives back to normal. The Grahams often use the empty house to accommodate visiting missionaries or members of their large family.

Graham says he wept and prayed as he watched scenes of devastation on television. The evangelist said he felt that he had to help Jose Medrano and his family after they met Graham's son Franklin at a shelter in Shreveport, Lousiana.

Billy Graham says that if every church in American adopted a family, "it would solve the problem of how to house and help so many evacuees."

Dr. Ronald Manahan, president of Grace College and Seminary, is recovering from ear surgery which took place on Friday, September 16.

According to a memo from Grace this morning, the doctor removed a cyst, which was twice the size as anticipated, and the surgery went well. Doctors were not able, however, to do the expected reconstructive work on the ear at this time.

Your prayers for Dr. Manahan's recovery will be appreciated--this morning's Grace memo said his recovery is "coming along remarkably well." 

This past summer the Lititz, Pennsylvania, Grace Brethren Church (Scott Distler, pastor) raised enough money in a love offering after the Operation Barnabas Service to buy O.B. a new bus for t