CONNECTIONS
News from Converge
MidAtlantic
July 2008 - Vol 2, Issue
3 |
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| Greetings! |
 Thanks for your interest and
partnership in Converge MidAtlantic. May God
richly bless you in your ministry as the summer
season unfolds. In Christ, Dan
Peterson | | |
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Converge MidAtlantic commissions
missionary leaders to Ukraine
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 Through
the impact of our Love Lift Ukraine movement, God has touched
the hearts of 2 leaders from Converge MA churches to serve
Jesus as term missionaries to Ukraine. What a great story!
Tania Martin and Natasha Parker are being sent from our
District and District churches to serve Christ in Ukraine
under the auspices of the international mission department of
our Converge Worldwide (BGC) movement.
Tania is an
active member of First Baptist Church of Glenarden and Natasha
is actively involved in New Vision Church of Bowie, MD. Both
ladies have been involved in the Love Lift for Ukraine short
term ministry in recent years. Both ladies' lives have been
touched through this ministry. Now, they both are choosing to
give back to the Ukrainian people as they prepare to serve in
discipleship, mentoring, orphanage and local church outreach,
and other ministries in Ukraine for at least 1 full term (4-5
years) of service.
Both of these quality servants were
commissioned at the recent Biennial meetings of Converge
Worldwide (BGC). Both, also are currently involved in personal
support development for their ministry in Ukraine. If you or
your church would like to hear more about their vision, plans,
and needs, you can contact them directly, and they would be
happy to come and share with your church. Please pray for
these gifted leaders and for our movement as it continues to
expand in Ukraine. Yes, God is up to something. He has a big
vision for reaching his world. What a thrill to see these
ladies find their part in His purpose of evangelism and global
impact.
You can find out more about Tania's ministry
plans here, and
Natasha's here. Thanks for
praying and for considering partnering in their
ministry.
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| Branding Update |
As you no
doubt know by now, our District is in the process of using a
new missional name called Converge MidAtlantic. This is part
of an effort all across our movement worldwide to more clearly
align our name with the mission that God has called us to
fulfill. During this coming year, our District retains its
legal name of the Mideast Baptist Conference. Yet, we will be
"doing business as", or using the trade name of Converge
MidAtlantic. We anticipate that one year from now, we will
take action to legally change the name (with the State of Ohio
where we are incorporated) of our District to Converge
MidAtlantic.
Converge means "come together" for
something significant and important. It has the same root
meaning as the word "conference", part of our legal name.
Converge Worldwide, and Converge MidAtlantic is a picture of
what happened in Acts 2: the believers were all together, and
as a result of this coming together, the Holy Spirit moved in
their midst. The result was transformation all over the world.
Thus, our strategy of "connect", "ignite", and "transform" -
of coming together as followers of Jesus and as churches, so
that the Holy Spirit can ignite our hearts for the ultimate
purpose of transformation of culture, of communities, and of
individual hearts. What an exciting recasting of the vision
that we are really all
about!
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| God's
Obsession (Church Planting Sunday 2008)
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 People
today are obsessed with many things . . . sports, celebrities,
money, and mostly with themselves. We plan our lives around
these obsessions and often go to great extremes to satisfy
them. These obsessions we pursue bring us only moments of joy
and frequently, no joy at all.
However, there is
another kind of obsession that produces a joy that lasts
beyond a lifetime. It is God's obsession with lost people.
Jesus is the incarnation of this concern on God's part. Yes,
His life and ministry reflect God's obsession with the lost.
He came to seek and to save those who are
lost.
Research shows that the planting of new churches
is one of the best ways to reach lost people. In Converge
MidAtlantic, this is one of our core values. The development
of a new church in a community is the result of an obsession
so great that many lives are changed as a result of its
pursuit. For our district, its not even just about planting a
church; it's about creating a movement of churches that plant
churches according to God's obsession.
This summer and
into the fall, we want to share this passion with every church
in our district. We want to introduce your people to
those who are on the front lines of God's obsession in our
movement of churches. We want to pray for them. We want to
support them financially. We want the movement to continue to
grow and expand. As Anna from our Converge MidAtlantic office
calls you to suggest a Sunday when your church can be updated
on this vision and share in its results, please respond with a
hearty "yes" to her invitation. Please help Converge
MidAtlantic in 2008, on Church Planting Sunday, by partnering
in God's obsession! To schedule a presenter for Church
Planting Sunday, you can also call Anna at 330-757-7970.
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| New
Pastors Called to Multi-cultural Churches |
Earlier
this Spring, Hope to You Community Church of Bowie, MD called
Rev. Leo Genota (along with his wife Liz) to serve as the new
full-time pastor of Hope to You Church. Pastor Genota
previously served as a Pastor in the Philippines, and with his
wife and family has now lived in the Metro Washington area for
the past several years. Pastor Genota and his family have now
moved to the Bowie area, and are excited to begin ministry at
Hope to You. Pray for this leader and his family, and pray for
this church, as it begins to reach out again to the
Filipino-American community in and around Bowie, MD. Welcome,
Pastor Leo and Liz, to the Converge MidAtlantic
family!
 On Sunday, June
29th, 2008, Pastor Nhan Phan was officially installed as the
new permanent pastor of our Vietnamese Baptist General
Conference Church in Fairfax, VA. Attending the installation
service were Rev. Tri Troung, Director of Vietnamese
Ministries for the BGC. Also attending were Dan Peterson of
Converge MidAtlantic and several DC area pastors including Ron
Crawford, Nurney Mason, Minister Holmes from Millennium Bible
Fellowship, and Daryl and Rose Godlock of Calvert County
Baptist Church. Pastor Phan comes to the DC area following the
completion of his theological studies in the U.S. and also
most recently from his home in Vietnam. Pray for this brother
as he leads this strategic church community in the days ahead.
Welcome, Pastor Nhan to the Converge family as
well!
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| Upcoming Events and Opportunities |
October 14-15, 2008 - Next
Steps Training Conference for Pastors and Church Planters at
Grace Point Church, Newtown, PA
October 25, 2008 - Celebrate
Love Lift Ukraine at First Baptist Church, New Castle, PA with
Ivan Kunderenko and our Ukraine team of leaders. Anyone
interested in Ukraine trips for 2009 is encouraged to
attend!
November 6-9,
2008 - MVM Men's Conference, Valley Forge, PA - This
national men's conference is an incredible opportunity for men
from across our movement. Log on to: www.menofvalor.com
for more info.
November
18-21, 2008 - Church Planters Assessment Center at
First Baptist Church of Glenarden, Landover, MD. Contact Anna
at the Converge office for more
info.
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| Prayer
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| Please
pray for our BGC President, Jerry Sheveland, as he continues
to mourn the loss of his dear wife, Dawn Sheveland. Our hearts
go out to Dr. Sheveland, and our prayers are with him.
You can send a note or letter to Dr. Sheveland by writing to:
Dr. Jerry Sheveland, BGC, 2002 Arlington Heights Rd, Arlington
Heights, IL 60005.
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| Thank You
for your prayers and your partnership in the work of Christ
through our Converge MidAtlantic ministry. The involvement of
so many in praying, in leading, in giving, and in caring and
serving is what makes this movement of churches alive and
growing for Christ. Our Overseers, executive staff, and
support staff all say thank you for the privilege of serving
Jesus together with you. You remain in our prayers and
thoughts consistently.
Yours in Christ,
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Dan Peterson
Executive Minister, Converge
MidAtlantic
Mideast Baptist
Conference
20 E. McKinley Way, Poland,
Ohio 44514 · 330-757-7970 ·
bgcmideast.com
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