2012 May.pdf - International Baptist Convention

Connecting Closer at MLCJoe McKeever draws Kim and Mason Smith.Coffee breaks allow time to meet and mingle.The praise team calls the group to worship.photo by Glenn HerschbergerPhoto by Judith Lynn MaxwellPhoto by Judith Lynn MaxwellPhoto by Judith Lynn MaxwellAn afternoon trip to Pompeii provides time to see sights in the area.• The International Baptist Convention’sMinistry Leadership Conferencewas held, 23-27 March, in Seiano, Italy,on the Almafi Coast near Sorrento. Theweekend conference provided pastors andleaders in IBC churches an opportunityto enjoy fellowship, relaxation, encouragement,teaching, and the weather andscenery of the Italian coast. The themefor this year’s conference was “Growing,Healthy Churches ... through Closer Connections.”Keynote speaker for the weekend wasJoe McKeever, preacher, cartoonist, andretired director of missions for the greaterNew Orleans association. In addition tohis speaking, McKeever made drawingsof all the participants and entertained thegroup and the wait staff with caricaturesand drawings during the Saturday eveningbanquet.In his Friday evening message, McKeevershared seven facts about the church:1. It’s God’s church and He wants it back.2. The size of your church is irrelevant (noexcuse for not doing anything).3. Romans 12 is God’s blueprint for ahealthy church.4. Whatever we do for the church, Jesustakes personally.5. If you don’t like change, you are goingto have trouble with Jesus.6. After the Gospel itself, the best thingyour church has to offer is fellowship.7. What a sick church will do occasionallyand accidentally, a healthy church willdo regularly, consistently, and intentionally.McKeever expanded on the third fact –Romans 12 is God’s blueprint for a healthychurch – in his message on Sunday evening.Verses 1-2 talks about the foundation– our commitment to God, McKeeversaid. Verses 3-8 provide a description ofthe framework for the church – the relationshipwithin ourselves. We need to takecare of the members of the church and everyoneneeds a job to do. The final versesof the chapter describe the finishing workof a church – our relationship to each other.We are called to not only have fellowshipwithin the church but to love our enemies.Love is not an emotion, McKeeversaid, love is an action.In his Monday night message, Mc-Keever reminded the group to be persistentin prayer and to be specific in prayer.Prayer, McKeever said, is like us takingnotes and reminding God of what He hasdone and what we need. He challengedthe group to study some of the greatprayers of the Bible – Hezekiah’s, Nehemiah’s,Jehosophat’s, David’s, Solomon’s,the young church in Jerusalem’s – and tolearn from them.Other speakers for the weekend includedRoger Roberts, pastor of Brussels IBC;Sam Owens, IBC president and pastor ofAviano Baptist Church; and Dave Hodgdon,pastor of Rome Baptist Church. AshkanUssefi, former member of Sofia IBC,shared of his work with Iranian immigrantsin Paris. Luigi Esposito shared how the Italianchurch and the American church inNaples became one church – Il Faro IBCNaples. Gene Selander and Joe McKeeverled seminars on Sunday and Monday.Seventy-two people representing 27IBC churches attended the conference inaddition to the speakers and IBC staff. •4 | Highlights 05/2012

Executive Council ApprovesVolunteer Development Director• The Executive Council of the InternationalBaptist Convention met 24 Marchas part of the Ministry Leadership Conferencein Seiano, Italy. The council heardreports from General Secretary JimmyMartin and from the ministry team coordinatorsand regional coordinators whomake up the council.The council approved the naming ofAaron Johnson as IBC Development Director.In this role, which will be voluntary atits beginning, Johnson will cultivate relationshipswith pastors, churches, associations,state conventions, individuals, andother organizations that will lead to partnershipsand financial support of the IBCand its churches, including new churchplants. Johnson will work closely with theInternational Baptist Church Ministries (IB-CM) which helps U.S. taxpayers to contributeto various IBC ministries and itschurches. Johnson is no stranger to theIBC having most recently served as the interimpastor at IBC Nürnberg, Germany.Johnson will be attending the InterlakenSummer Experience to meet with pastorsand leaders.Martin, in his General Secretary’s report,gave an update on the potentialpartnerships with the Georgia (USA) BaptistState Convention and the MoldovaBaptist Union. Due to budget cuts in Georgia,the IBC will not be able to partnerwith that convention. However, Martin isworking with Aaron Johnson to see if wecan partner with several larger churches inGeorgia. Martin will be meeting with theexecutive council of the Moldovan unionat end of April. The IBC executive councilapproved a draft agreement betweenthe unions. Martin and Missions MinistryTeam Coordinator Bill Tully will visit someof the Indigenous Church Planters (EuropeanBaptist Federation) that the IBC supportsduring this trip.Martin also announced that Grace InternationalBaptist Church in Heidelberg,Germany, would hold its last service onEaster Sunday.•Impressions of Men’s Conference in Lenk, Switzerlandphotos by Allan Grosskrueger5 | Highlights 05/2012

LEAD Teams Meet near Sorrento• Pastors representing each of the fourLEAD Teams of the International Baptist Conventionmet for a two-day spring meeting nearSorrento, Italy, 21-23 March. Taking advantageof the scheduled Ministry Leadership Conference,the pastors arrived two days earlyfor prayer and planning the future of churchplanting for the IBC. LEAD Teams are regional“bands of brothers” dedicated to the establishingof healthy, reproducing churches withintheir portion of the globe. Currently, LEADTeams are focused on the Baltic, NorthernEurope, Southern Europe, and Central/SouthAmerica regions. LEAD is an acronym for Learning,Encouraging, Achieving, and Dreaming.The meeting focused on each of those components.LEARNING. A major part of the focuswas the identifying and recruiting of potentialchurch planters. The group discussed thequalities and traits of church planters and thefact that often the best place to find a churchplanter is within our current churches or socialnetworks. As this information was presentedand discussed, each person was encouragedto write down the name of anyone whom Godmight bring to their mind. After considerablediscussion and review, the names were shared,and a total of 54 individuals were identified forinitial contact.ENCOURAGING. With the great distancesbetween most team members, the times of encouragingare crucial. Thursday morning wasdedicated to an extensive time of prayer foreach other and a time of getting to know oneanother better, including sharing meals togetherwith the wives of pastors who were present.ACHIEVING. At the last LEAD Team meeting,just after the IBC Annual Meeting in Rome, 20cities were identified as potential “Hot Spots.”Those cities have since been the focus of furtherinvestigation, which will eventually resultin feasibility studies of the top four target cities.The work done thus far was reviewed, andthe target cities were narrowed by the regionalteams.DREAMING. Praying “God-sized prayers”and dreaming “God-sized dreams” is a wonderfulthing. It results in men of faith like Joshuaasking God to stop the sun. It causes menlike Elijah to soak the alter of the Lord with 12large jars of water before calling down fire fromheaven. It allows the men of the LEAD Teamsto dream of healthy, reproducing churches incities all over the world reaching the internationalpopulation of each with the Gospel ofChrist. Twenty potential cities? Fifty-four potentialplanters? Just the beginning! •Bob MarshPhotos by Bob Marsh & Glenn HerschbergerBaltic LEAD Team: Scott Corwin (Berlin), Glenn Herschberger (Central/SouthAmerica LEAD Team, Panama City), David Fresch (Stavanger), Erik Nielsen(Copenhagen), and Bernard Faulhammer (Bremen).South Europe LEAD Team: Tim Faulkner (Naples), Jim Troutman (Rota), BillTully (Bucharest), David Hodgdom (Rome), Scott Chadwick (Sofia), and SamOwens (Aviano).North Europe LEAD Team: David Pettis (Munich), Jimmy Martin (GeneralSecretary, Oberursel), Darryl Evetts (Ramstein), Carsten Lotz (Oberursel), andBob Marsh (Darmstadt).6 | Highlights 05/2012

Diane Smith to Help IBC Churcheswith Children’s Ministry• The IBC is thrilled to introduce DianeSmith to you. Smith has served inthe area of children’s ministry on the localchurch level and as children’s strategiston the convention level. In December2011, she retired after serving 28 yearswith the Virginia Baptist Mission Board.She is a sought-after conference leader.Through children’s conferences here inEurope, Smith has developed relationshipswith some of the IBC churches as shehas given leadership in Bremen, Cologne,and Ramstein, Germany; and Copenhagen,Denmark.This fall, Smith will be available to theIBC churches as she will be based outof Frankfurt, Germany, for three months,September – November. If you would likefor Smith to lead a conference for yourpreschool and/or children workers or forparents, please contact Lorraine Stringerin the IBC office. We are requestingchurches to cover her travel expenses to/from Frankfurt and to take care of herhousing and meals while she is with yourchurch. Conference possibilities include:• Learning that Sticks• Brain Research and Implications for BibleTeaching• Choosing Bible Learning Activities thatChallenge Children• Using Drama as Bible Teaching• Bible Games to Develop Children’s BibleSkills and Knowledge• Teaching to Children’s Learning Styles• Parents as Faith Shapers• Helping Children Grow Spiritually• Guiding Children to Become like Jesus• Teacher/Leader Growing as a Christ-followerWe hope that many of our churches willrequest Smith to spend time with theirpreschool and children’s workers. It willprovide an opportunity of equipping, encouraging,and enriching your workers.•Pamela CulbertsonDiane SmithLarry Jones, former IBC Pastor,Retires in Texas, USA• The International Baptist Conventionexpresses congratulations, heartfeltthanks, and continued prayers for Larryand Linda Jones – long-time pastor,church planter, and a founding memberof the International Baptist Church Ministries(IBCM) organization. Jones will be retiring15 July. He is currently serving as theDirector of Missions of the Lubbock BaptistAssociation in Texas (USA).The Jones were called to IBC Stuttgart(then named the Neckar Valley BaptistChurch, Stuttgart) in November 1979.They served the church until June 1993.While in Stuttgart, the church transitionedfrom ministering almost exclusively to U.S.military members and their families tofocusing on English-language ministriesto reach internationals from around theworld. In 1984, the paradigm shift was reflectedin its name change to InternationalBaptist Church Stuttgart. During thistime the church grew in many ways andeventually bought land and built facilitiesthat included space for worship, SundaySchool, administrative offices, bookstore,and apartments for staff.While in the IBC the Jones served asconvention leaders. Larry served as chairmanof numerous ministry teams – Interlaken,Church Support, Finance – and asPresident of the IBC (then called the EBC).Leaving in 1993 to serve a church inTexas, Larry continued to work with theIBC. In 1997 he helped to start the IBCM,an organization that assists the IBC andits churches by allowing tax-deductiblecredit for Americans living abroad. Larrycurrently serves on the board of directorsof the IBCM and has served twice aspresident.Larry has served for 12 years as the Directorof Missions for the Lubbock BaptistAssociation, a ministry to churches inand near Lubbock, Texas. A retirementreception will be held in Lubbock on 17June. While serving as DOM, Larry wasthe founding pastor of International ChristianFellowship in Lubbock. ICF joined theIBC in 2010.A friend of mine, David Glenn, definesretirement as “Putting on new treads fornew journeys of ministry with Him.” Larry,we know that God has special plans foryou and Linda as you continue to followHim. Who knows? Perhaps we will see youin an IBC church serving as an interim pastor.I have personally been blessed to servealongside Larry and Linda, seeing them asgodly examples of what it means to serveChrist with joy and faithfulness. •Larry and Linda JonesJimmy Martin7 | Highlights 05/2012

Interlaken Summer Experience“Making Disciples,Growing Disciples” ThemeLindsay BrownJohn IvinsBillie Hanks, Jr.• “Making Disciples, Growing Disciples” is thetheme for the International Baptist Convention’sannual Interlaken Summer Experience in Switzerland,7-12 July. The Interlaken Summer Experienceis a popular event offering daily Bible studies, worshiptimes, seminars, and activities for all age groupsin one of the most beautiful areas in Switzerland.Morning Speaker: Lindsay BrownLindsay Brown is a native of Wales. He studiedhistory in Oxford and theology in Paris and has adoctorate from the Caribbean Graduate School ofTheology. He has been involved in student ministryfor 34 years, serving first in Wales, before becomingthe European Regional Secretary for the InternationalFellowship of Evangelical Students (IFES),based in Paris. In 1991 he became General Secretaryof IFES, a position he held for 16 years. In 2007he became the International Director of the LausanneMovement for World Evangelization. Muchof his first few years with the Lausanne Movementwas spent in preparation for the Third Congress onWorld Evangelization, held in Cape Town in October2010. This congress brought together 4,300 evangelicalleaders from 197 countries. Brown is also theauthor of Shining like Stars: The Power of the Gospelin the World’s Universities (lVP). He is married to Ann,and they have one son Owen, who is also involvedin university student ministry.Evening Speaker: Billie Hanks, Jr.Pastor Ric Warren has said that Billie Hanks, Jr., isone of the most influential people in his life. Hankswas raised in a ranching family in Texas. As a freshmanin college, he read Born to Reproduce by DawsonTrotman, founder of the Navigators, and gavehis life to becoming a disciple-maker. At the age of20, Billie became the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association’sfirst intern. He traveled with the Billy Grahamteam and became an experienced evangelist inhis own right, preaching in 29 countries. As a minister-at-largefor BGEA, he helped to equip severalthousands of disciple-makers, allowing them to ministerto new Christians. In 1972, he formed the InternationalEvangelism Association which today guidesthe highly effective ministry of Operation Multiplication.Hanks has followed in Trotman’s steps andis teaching thousands of Great Commission-mindedpastors, from 40 denominations, to equip churchmembers to grow and multiply spiritually.Worship Leader John IvinsIvins is from Richmond, Virginia (USA), where heserves as the worship leader for the 1500-memberPowhatan Community Church. In addition, for thepast 10 years, Ivins has also served in a student-focusedministry as the worship leader for his Christianrock band – The John lvins Worship Band. Throughthese experiences, Ivins has been privileged to leadworship in conferences and retreats, as well as worshipworkshops around the world: Hong Kong,Birmingham, and Leipzig, as well as Austria, Bangladesh,England, India, Nepal, South Africa, andThailand. In his spare time, he is a business-litigationattorney for a major law firm in the Richmond area.Seminars and LeadersServing with Commitment: The Letter of JamesIn one of the more demanding documents in theNew Testament, James calls believers to live daily ingenuine commitment to Christ as His disciple.The Apostle of Paul: Servant of ChristSaul of Tarsus? A Pharisee passionately seeking8 | Highlights 05/2012

Bob MarshWes BlackSandi Blackto serve God by persecuting Christiansbefore God changed his life and moldedhim into the greatest follower of Jesus.This study explores how this transformationtook place.Lorin L. Cranford taught New Testamentfor 35 years at Southwestern BaptistTheological Seminary and Gardner-WebbUniversity. He has served as interim pastorand Bible conference speaker on bothsides of the Atlantic. He currently lives andserves in San Jose, Costa Rica.Book of JonahOften overlooked or viewed as a storyabout a big fish that swallowed a disobedientprophet, the book of Jonah is veryimportant in the history of lsrael and themission of the church.Bob Marsh, previously the pastor of theSecond Ponce de Leon Baptist Church ofAtlanta, Georgia (USA), has served in variousIBC churches throughout Europe formore than 20 years. He has also served asa board member of numerous Christianorganizations. He and his wife Myra haveone grown son.Parenting TeenagersWho can understand what’s going oninside the teen-age brain? How can onerebuild the heart connection and improvecommunication? A conference for parents,grandparents, or youth workers.Wes Black is professor of student ministryfor the School of Church and FamilyMinistries at Southwestern Baptist TheologicalSeminary in Fort Worth, Texas(USA). He has written and taught extensivelyon parenting and leading teens.Counseling in the ChurchWhat are the practical counseling skillsneeded to help people in the church whoare struggling with personal problems? Aconference for those who want to be usedmore in encouraging others.Sandi Black is a licensed professionalcounselor who works with teens, marriedcouples, and parents in her practice. Sheand her husband Wes have two grownchildren and are actively involved in theministry of Travis Avenue Baptist Church,Fort Worth, Texas.Equipping Men for Battle: Five Prioritiesof a Man’s LifeThis seminar is for men that sense thebattle we face as we seek to be godly husbands,fathers, and servants in Kingdomwork.David Glenn is a retired petroleum geophysicistand co-founder of Kardo InternationalMinistries that oversees MotherWiseand FatherWise Ministries. He shares fromhis own struggles and experiences in thetrenches to encourage men to know theTruth that will set them free.From Frustration to Freedom in FamilylifeThe demands of parenting, marriage,ministry, and work can leave you feelingdrained and empty. Come join us as weseek biblical answers to challenging questionsand discover the truth that will setyou free.David and Denise Glenn live in Houston,Texas, and travel internationally whilebalancing their time with their first ministry– three married daughters and 9grandchildren.Making Sense of all the Craziness: FivePriorities of a Woman’s lifeYou’ll learn to bring order to your daywhen you discover the truth about theimportant relationships and priorities inyour life.Denise Glenn is an author, popularspeaker, and the founder of MotherWise.This ministry had grown to include womenfrom America and around the world.Preschool and Children’s Ministry Certification(Part 2)This second half of the certificationworkshop will involve exploration of generalchild development and brain researchwith an emphasis on children’s faith development.The sessions will include tips fordiscipline of preschooler. lf you were notable to attend last year’s class, you will stillbenefit from this (you will not completethe certification).Janice Haywood of Cary, North Carolina(USA), has taught certification courses forCampbell University Divinity School for 10years and for the Baptist General Associationof Virginia for 5 years.They are Nothing Like Me: Learning toThrive in a Culturally Diverse SettingThis seminar is for women who findthemselves living, leading, and ministeringin a new place with people who havedifferent life stories than themselves. Aswomen living at the crossroads we havethe opportunity to not only experienceand impact the world but also to uncovernew facets about ourselves – truths wecould not learn any other way.Lana Packer is an author, speaker towomen’s groups, and mentor. She hasexperience in leading women’s ministryboth in international and U.S. churches.Currently she serves at lBC Stuttgart.where her husband David serves as SeniorPastor.Denise and David GlennJanice HaywoodLana Packer9 | Highlights 05/2012

Gary PrestonJim and Gigi WilsonRob JacksonDave GardnerChurch ReFresh SeminarThis seminar will enable church pastors and staff toexplore the ReFresh process that is designed to helpchurches renew and refocus on God’s vision for theirspecific church in its community.Gary Preston is the Executive Pastor of Rock CreekChurch in Boulder, Colorado (USA). He has previouslypastored an international church in Vienna, Austria,and Naples, Italy, and has been involved with ministryto internationals throughout his career. Gary andhis wife Suzanne live in Louisville, Colorado, and havetwo grown sons.A Christian Witness’s LifestyleOvercoming Challenges as a Disciple-MakerJim Wilson has proclaimed a message of hope andlife, through a relationship with Jesus Christ, in 43countries of the world. Having grown up under thepersonal counsel of his evangelist father, T. W. Wilson,and his uncle, Grady Wilson, personal friends and associatesto Billy Graham, Wilson has an understandingand giftedness from God for the work of vocationalevangelism. His scriptural messages speak to wherepeople live in the 21st century.Gigi Wilson is the eldest of Billy and Ruth Graham’schildren. She is the mother of seven children and thegrandmother of 19 ... so far. She lived in both Europeand the Middle East before returning to the UnitedStates to raise her children.She is the author of several books, including Currentsof The Heart, For Women Only, and A Quiet Knowing.She enjoys her position as Ambassador of the BillyGraham Training Center at The Cove near Asheville,North Carolina, when she is not travelling and ministeringwith her husband.A Disciple-Maker’s Prayer LifeA Disciple-Maker’s LifestyleRob Jackson has been the Senior Pastor of CentralBaptist since December 2003. He also serves as anAdjunct Professor for the New Orleans Baptist TheologicalSeminary and as a trustee for the InternationalMission Board. Since 1992 he has served as an AssociateBoard Member of International Evangelism andworked with Operation Multiplication since 1992.He and his wife Tonya have been married since August1987 and have one daughter Abigail.How to Personally Disciple a New ChristianDave Gardner, or “Brother Dave” as he’s called byhis friends, has been a board member of the InternationalEvangelism Association since 1999. He and hiswife Ann are residents of Salado, Texas, and serve theLord in several ministries. Dave teaches their church’slargest Sunday School class and is actively involvedin the men’s ministry. Together, they serve on theWorship Committee and the church’s Ministry Team.Gardner has also been blessed to personally mentortwo outstanding young men who are engaged intheir church’s new member training process.Gardner is a manufacturer’s representative for thehome furnishings industry and has worked in thatcapacity for more than 38 years. Ann is a retired retailstore owner and continues to do interior designwork on a part-time basis. They have 3 children and5 grandsons.Singles attending the assembly will find a number ofspecial activities planned during the afternoon andevening times. Dorm rooms have been reserved atthe Backpackers Hostel across from the conferencecenter. This option also includes a daily breakfast, andthere is a kitchen facility for preparing other mealsyourself. Singles who wish to stay with this groupmust register early to ensure their accommodationsare confirmed. The deadline for registration with accommodationsis 15 June.Euroventure attracts a large number of youth eachyear. Held simultaneously with the summer assembly,it provides youth with a time packed with Biblestudy, worship, small group sharing, recreation andmuch more. Conference fee, lodging, and meals areincluded in the registration fee. Space is limited soplease sign up early.This year’s speakers will be Derrick Campbell andTom Hufty. Campbell has been a traveling communicatorfor more than 15 years and recently becomepastor of young adults at a church in Houston, Texas.Hufty has been speaking to students and theirfamilies for more than 30 years. Hufty and his familycome each year to provide teaching and assistancewith the camp.There is something for the children as well. Duringall the scheduled meetings, children of all ages willenjoy a biblically based program designed just for Interlaken.Led by a team of trained volunteers, the children’sprogram provides Bible learning, music, recreation,and activities for all ages.Registration fees for the week are• € 195 Family ”Early Bird” / € 215 Family• € 100 Individual ”Early Bird” / € 120 Individual• € 330 Single ”Early Bird” meals & accommodation/ € 350 Single meals & accommodation• € 260 Euroventure ”Early Bird” / € 280 Euroventurebefore 1 July / € 300 after 1 July (Two or more familymembers attending will save € 20 each). Save € 20 ifyou register and pay before 1 May.Early Bird rates are available before 1 June.For more information or to register for these events,log onto www.ibc-churches.org or see informationpackets mailed to IBC churches.For more information on the accommodations availablein Interlaken, please refer to the brochuresmailed to the churches from the local tourist bureausor contact:Tourist Office InterlakenHoehenweg 37CH-3800 InterlakenTelephone: +41.33.826.5300Email: mail@InterlakenTourism.chWebsite: www.interlakentourism.ch.•10 | Highlights 05/2012

Region 4 Holds Regional Seminarfor Deacons and Elders• On November 12, 2011, leaders and membersfrom five churches in Region 4 met at the AntwerpInternational Baptist Church for a day seminar.Churches represented included IBC Brussels, IBCJur bise, Hope IBC Rotterdam, IBC Antwerp and OostendeBaptist Church, Belgium (non-IBC church).The objective of the seminar was to encouragedeacons and elders in a servant-leadership understandingof the office. The seminar began with theexamination and exploration of the biblical backgroundwhere particular attention was giving tothe service-oriented occurrences of “deacon” andrelated words terms.The theme of the seminar was “The Servant Leader,”and the topics discussed included qualificationsand biblical role of deacons and elders and the dutiesand effectiveness of these offices. Speakers inthe seminar were IBC Brussels' Senior Pastor RogerRoberts and his assistant Brian Hughes, AdeliousStith from IBC Jurbise, and Richmond Ofori-Tawiah,HIBC Rotterdam pastor and regional coordinator.At the end of the first session the participantsenjoyed a meal provided by the host church whichprovided an opportunity for contextualization, informalchat and discussions, and exploring variousavenues through which they can exercise theirservant-leadership ministries. The topics discussedwere particularly suitable for prospective deaconsand new deacons and for a church that is contemplatingcongregational structure.In conclusion the seminar looked at the ApostlePaul’s address to Epaphras in Colossians and encourageddeacons and elders to work in the samespirit as a “dear fellow servant, a faithful ministerof Christ,” and “a messenger” to exalt Jesus, theChrist (Colossians 1:7a,7b,8).•Richmond Ofori-TawiahRegion 4 holds seminar for deacons and elders.11 | Highlights 05/2012

News from the ChurchesNürnberg, Germany• On Saturday, 10 March, the InternationalBaptist Church, Nürnberg, Germany,held a seminar on “Leadership andOrganization,” led by Andy Earl fromBielefeld. Through the presentation, Earlbrought out different aspects of what achurch should and could do to help inmaking it more effective in its ministry.Discussion included the general organizationof church life as well as each elementof a worship service and how each wereequally important. It was a great time ofsharing of ideas and fellowship for the 12people from IBC.On Sunday, Earl’s sermon focused onGod’s love for us, how He has gifted us tocarry out His mission, and how importanteach one of us is to His plan. •Andy EarlBreak times provide times of exchanging ideas at IBC Nürnberg’s seminar.The improved facilities at Brackley allows formore outreach to the community.Brackley, England• Brackley Baptist Church, England,runs a pre-school five mornings a week,and we are coming to the end of the firstyear in improved facilities made possibleby a large capital grant from the countycouncil. This enabled us to increase thenumber of children we can take from 22to 30, and we are now full until the end ofthe academic year. We rejoice and thankGod for excellent staff who daily showGod’s love to the children and their parentsor caregivers. Many of the childrenwill move on to “big” school in September,and we pray that we shall have a goodintake of new children at that time.We also run a playtime for parents/caregiversand tots on Tuesday mornings. Werecently had 117 adults and tots attendwhich is a record as far as we know.Both of these are seen as importantoutreaches into the local community,and we pray for all those involved andfor the homes into which we show God’slove.•Roger LewryHamburg, Germany• We had another great baptism serviceon 19 February at the International BaptistChurch, Hamburg, Germany.Last year, following in the footsteps ofthe founder of the modern Germany Baptists,Johann Oncken, we had a baptismservice in the Elbe River. Our timing withthe tide was a bit off, so we had to sloshthrough the mud to get to deeper water.It has been a bit too cold, and there istoo much ice in the river to do that now,so we had the service in our usual building.And as you can see from both my faceand the face of one of the candidates, itwas a day of great joy.•Dave Stemmett12 | Highlights 05/2012

News from the ChurchesLubbock, Texas, USA• On Sunday, 25 March, between 150and 175 internationals from churches inLubbock came together at an event calledthe “International Praise Celebration.”Our theme was based on Rev. 5:9,13:“And they sang a new song: ‘You are worthyto take the scroll and to open its seals,because you were slain, and with your bloodyou purchased men for God from every tribeand language and people and nation.’ ThenI heard every creature in heaven and onearth and under the earth and on the sea,and all that is in them, singing: ‘To him whosits on the throne and to the Lamb be praiseand honor and glory and power, for ever andever!’” and Psalm 67:3-4: “May the peoplespraise you, O God; may all the peoplespraise you. May the nations be glad and singfor joy, for you rule the peoples justly andguide the nations of the earth.”After a time of praise in English led byHyung Chae (Korea) and a brief theme interpretation,the celebration time began.Worship teams/choirs/groups presentedthe music they had prepared in their ownlanguage – Chinese, Filipino, French, Korean,Portuguese, Spanish, and Vietnamese.Lubbock celebrates its first International Praise Celebration.The countries represented included Brazil,China, Cuba, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras,Indonesia, India, Ivory Coast, Korea,Mexico, Nicaragua, Peru, Philippines,Taiwan, Tunisia, Venezuela, and Vietnam.In addition, there were former missionariespresent from Brazil, Germany, andGuadeloupe.This was a first for Lubbock, but hopefullynot the last!•Al GarySan Jose, Costa Rica• The last several months have beenvery busy in the life of the InternationalBaptist Church, San Jose, Costa Rica. Wehave had the opportunity to have numerousdiscipleship and outreach events. Hereare some of the highlights.40 Days in the WordWe had a great response to a churchwidespiritual growth emphases called 40Days in the Word. Many of our peoplecommitted to Scripture memory and toreading the Bible every day for 40 days.We also offered the companion course insmall groups on Sunday morning and duringthe week. It was a great time for us aswe committed to loving the Word, learningthe Word, and living the Word.Yale Acapella ChoirIn March we were able to have Shades,an acapella choir from Yale University, singin our services. This was not only a greatopportunity to hear beautiful songs fromthe African-American tradition, but it alsoserved as a way to invite people from ourcommunity. We had a very strong attendancethat Sunday, and it turned out to begreat outreach event.A Night with the NFLOn a Monday evening we hosted severalcurrent players from the National FootballLeague as well as several collegiateathletes. They were in Costa Rica on a missiontrip. We had a hot dog supper andhad lots of people, especially boys, cometo meet these athletes and get their picturestaken with them. Several of the athletesshared their testimonies, and it wasan exciting evening.Men’s RetreatWe took a great group of men to the LaMontana Christian camp for a Men’s Retreat.We had several leaders come fromthe U.S. to lead in our worship and Biblestudy. In addition to wonderful times ofBible study and worship, we had a greattime of fellowship along with plenty ofoutdoor activities.•Paul DreessenAmerican football playerssign autographs at IBC San Jose.13 | Highlights 05/2012

News from the ChurchesHoensbroek, The Netherlands• We would like to share with the Highlightsreaders that on 17 March the EmmanuelBaptist Church, Hoensbroek, TheNetherlands, Ladies’ Ministry had a TeaTasting Night with 19 women from 14 differentnationalities.Leena Sundaram, one of our ministryleaders, shared with us, “My cup of tea isserving God.” It was an evening of worship,personal testimony, and fellowship.The Tea Tasting Night was one of themonthly activities we have here at EBC-Hoensbroek that we organize for all theladies, Christian and non-Christian, in ourcommunity. In April, we had a Ladies’ Retreatin Maastricht and in May we willhave a Barefoot Walk in Brunssumheide(a big park next to the town where EBC islocated), and of course, we will celebrateMother’s Day.We hope for even more good news inthe coming months!•Menchie BolkEmmanuel women enjoytasting different teas.Kaiserslautern, Germany• Pastor James L. (Jim) Goforth, Jr., andhis wife of 26 years Lisa have come toGermany as Senior Pastor at Faith BaptistChurch, Kaiserslautern, Germany. Goforthwas born in New Orleans, Louisiana, andwas raised in Ohio and Texas (USA).Lisa was born and raised in Texas. Theyhave two grown sons, students in KansasCity and Dallas, both very active in ministryand preparing for life in ministry. Lisahas been a public school teacher for 28years and is looking forward to the beautyof European living as well as ministry tothe wonderful families of Faith.In his 31 years in ministry, Pastor Goforthhas been a concert and recordingartist, song writer, and musician. He wasin full-time evangelism for eight years afteruniversity. He is a sports fan and participant.An avid golfer, he served as a golfteachingprofessional while serving as apastor of a church plant in Houston, Texas.The Goforths come here most recentlyfrom serving the last 11 years in St. Louis,Missouri. They look forward to the greatopportunities for life and ministry here inGermany.•Jim GoforthFreiburg, Germany• We are happy to be able to testify toGod’s goodness and mercy in our ministryat Royal Family International BaptistChurch, Freiburg, Germany. These havebeen successful months since the beginningof the year, and we are looking forwardto seeing the hidden blessings thatGod will reveal to us in the coming time,according to 1 Corinthians 2:9: “But as it iswritten, eye hath not seen, nor ear heard,neither have entered into the heart ofman, the things which God hath preparedfor them that love him” (KJV).We are in the midst of our fasting periodthis year, and we are confident that Godwill answer our appeals in a great manner.One focus of our prayers these days willbe that our ministry will become a plainlyaudible voice in our environment thatwill be able to save the lost by the powerof the Almighty. In the last Highlights,we mentioned the dedication of twins inour ministry. We have attached a pictureof the event so that you can take a lookat the parent’s joy and the two blessingsyourself.All in all we are expecting the rest of thisyear to be filled with joy and certainty inGod’s plan, and we know we’ll not be disappointedaccording to His great, unfailingname. May God bless everyone in theIBC with abundance of miraculous blessings!•Sylvester Peprah-Kwakye14 | Highlights 05/2012

News from the ChurchesOberursel, Germany• Sixty ladies and little girls drank tea,ate pretty food, and enjoyed spendingtime with one another at the Daughters ofthe King Tea Party on Saturday, 24 Marchat the International Christian Fellowship,Oberursel, Germany. The bright springday matched the mood of the party andthe bright smiles on the participants.Each table had a hostess attending tothe guests – filling tea cups or glasses oflemonade and encouraging conversationthat allowed the ladies to relate to and encouragethe little girls.Jan and Fiona Brown shared a positivemessage of what God thinks of eachof his children. Fiona opened up with afunny skit where she gave away two freename changes. In contrast, she talked seriouslyabout how the orphan children sheworked with in Malawi were given tragicnames by their birth mother: names suchas Disappointment and Wish You WereDead. She told about the joy of renamingchildren with names that had positive,hopeful messages of biblical names.Jan unpacked balloons from a backpackand grocery bags she had been carryingaround. The balloons had hateful,negative words written on them – wordsthat any of us could have heard said ofus at one time in our lives. One by one,she asked a little girl to read the negativewords and then helped her to pop the balloon.Inside the balloon was a slip of paper.“Let’s see what God’s word says ...”she said and read a wonderful truth fromthe Scripture that reflected God’s thoughtstoward each of us.Jan and Fiona also led us all in a children’ssong about being a daughter of theKing. They ended the program by singinga beautiful and moving duet.After the program, Adrienne Hannonoffered a craft project: a bookmark thatused colored threads as symbols of importantpeople and events in everyone’s life.The various colored threads were wrappedaround a red cord that represented Jesus’blood. The bookmark is a reminder that Jesusis the center of all of our lives and thatwe are made stronger through our experiences.Our lives are a part of His plan.Beate Hudson, one of the participants,commented that she came to the Ladies’and Little Girls’ Tea Party last year and hadsuch a good time the she looked forwardto this year’s. She said she really enjoyedit.•ICF Special Events TeamPortimão, Portugal• On Easter Sunday, the InternationalChristian Fellowship, Portimão, Portugal,celebrated this special day by baptizingsix people who have made a professionof faith – two from our usual church congregationand four who also come to oursoup kitchen. It was a beautiful service.Baptism is such a great picture of thedeath and resurrection of Jesus, so it wasvery meaningful for us to have this celebrationon Easter Sunday. The most touchingpart was a spontaneous time of prayerafter the baptisms where each person whohad been baptized prayed in their ownlanguage – English, Portuguese, and Slovakian,thanking the Lord for what He haddone for them. Please pray for those baptizedthat God will bless them and continueto work in their lives and work throughthem to reach others.After the baptismal service we servedlunch at the soup kitchen to approximately70-80 people. It is amazing to ushow God has blessed this ministry overthe last two years. We began with 12-14hungry mouths once per week, and nowwe are feeding up to 85 men and womenthree times per week. The economicsituation in Portugal is very bad with manynot only out of work but also sleepingin abandoned or unfinished buildings. Aswell as food, we have a supply of usedICF Portimao serves nearly 80 people at the soup kitchen on Easter Sunday.clothes which we give out to those whoneed them.On Sundays in addition to soup, sandwiches,fruit, cake, and cold drink, weshare our faith with them through Christianvideos, preaching, and Bible studies.During the showing of the Billy Grahambroadcasts in the last few months, severalhave prayed to accept the Lord andnow the first of these have been baptized.Please continue to pray for these new believers,many of whom have never reallyheard the Gospel before. Today after soup,sandwiches, fruit, and chocolate Eastereggs everyone listened intently to an Eastermessage by our friend Don. As he invitedpeople to pray to invite Jesus into theirlives, you could have heard a pin drop.Only the Lord knows how many reachedout to Him in faith, but please would youpray for them that God will work in theirlives and they will grow in their new-foundfaith. Pray for wisdom for us to know howbest to teach them.At this time when the Lord is blessingthe soup kitchen ministry so much, unfortunatelywe have to move premises, andwe would ask you to pray that God willprovide a new place for us – either free ofcharge or at a very low rent. •Joy Borgan15 | Highlights 05/2012

News from the Churchesphotos by Richmond Ofori-TawiahRotterdam, The NetherlandsRescuing Village Churches in Ghana• From February through May 2011,our church, Hope International BaptistChurch, Rotterdam, The Netherlands, undertooka mission trip to Ghana. Our workin Ghana included among other ministerialduties, teaching and working with ourorphanage and deaf and mute ministryin three locations in Ghana. We have donethis ministry once or twice every yearfor the past 15 years. For a small churchlike ours in Rotterdam, making such tripsto remote areas in Ghana is not withoutchallenges and difficulties. But it is inthese challenges and difficulties that Jesus,teaching of “And surely I am with you always,to the very end of the age” is experienced,and we have come to realize howimportant it is to display a quality of lifethat will make the love of Jesus visible to abroken and dying world as we move fromvillage to village.In our visit this past year we met PastorFrancis Oteng of the Baptist InternationalChurch at Tema, about 25 kilometers eastof Accra, who took us to some of the villagechurches that his church has plantedin the Volta region of Ghana. One ofthose churches is the one you see in thepicture with its interior. It is on a hill andis surrounded with beautiful landscape.The story is that before the church cameinto existence in the village about fiveChairs such as these are needed for achurch in Ghana that IBC Rotterdamsupports.years ago, the villagers were worshippingidols they themselves had crafted withtheir own hands. Today because of thischurch in their vicinity and at their reach,more than 90 % of the village populationof about 100 have dismantled their littlegods and turned to the true God, givingtheir lives to Christ. The interesting story inthis is that the village head, known in Ghanaas “chief,” became a believer of Christ,and he regularly assembles the villagersand encourages them to come and seekand worship the true God. What is sadthough is that we were told that he laterbecame sick and died. Today this churchis still standing and saving many lives fromthe neighboring villages every Sunday, butit is in need of help.As you can see from the inside of thechurch there are only few chairs for a congregationof approximately 60 and growing.The chairs cost the equivalent of € 5per chair and are available in the stores inGhana. There are three of these Baptistchurches in the vicinity that also need between70-100 chairs for every church. Ourchurch has made some contributions towardspurchasing some of these chairs tofill the churches.Each year we also ship boxes of differentitems to Ghana for our orphanageand deaf and mute ministry there. Yourchurch probably has some items like Biblesand teaching materials that you arenot using anymore and could be usefulfor both the adult’s and children’s ministryin this church. Our church has committedto help these churches meet their otherneeds and we will appreciate your helpto make the love of Jesus visible in thesevillages. Also every member of our churchhas made a pledge to give 50 cents everydayto help 30 orphans and abandonedchildren in a home at Tema stay in schooland learn a profession. You can help inthis area too.Over the past several years our smallchurch in Rotterdam has received exceptionalhelp of different kinds from ImmanuelBaptist Church, Wiesbaden, Germany,to make our ministry in Ghana fruitful.I want to encourage you after readingthis article to join us rescue these villagechurches to the glory of Jesus, the Christ.A.W. Tozer once said, “Let the seekingman reach a place where life and lips jointo say continually, ‘Be thou exalted.’” Webelieve as we come together we can helpthese villagers experience the Lord’s loveand shout continually to Him, “Be thouexalted.” If you want to join us to rescuethese village churches please contact us atthe church.•Richmond Ofori-Tawiah16 | Highlights 05/2012