Church Life: Regional Ministry - February 2008
Biblical Foundation Key for Korean Church
Podonamoo Church is located in Fort Lee, New Jersey, and made up of mostly Korean immigrants. The church is established on two verses in the New Testament.
The first verse is Matthew 28:19-20. From the beginning, when seven members started a cell group fifteen years ago, making disciples has been a core ministry of our church. The group did not grow for a long time. For eight years, there were no more than ten church members, but since 2000, the group has grown. Now we have eleven cell groups for the first generation. All cell group leaders are laypeople who are very devoted and spiritual. They care for their own cell members and also preach in worship services. They all take the role of pastors in our church.
We pray for the spiritual leadership of the second generation. Because our church members are generally young couples, there are many Sunday school children. We want to establish them as good soldiers of Christ Jesus in this world. First, we encourage them to memorize the Word of God. Specifically, we encourage our children to memorize the Gospel of Mark. Over the summer, the "Mark Festival" was a contest to memorize Mark's Gospel. Second, we encourage them to experience the Holy Spirit in worship services. Third, we encourage them to serve others. Every year, they go on a short-term mission trip to Washington, D.C., working for a homeless mission. Next summer they are planning to serve children in Kenya, Africa, because we built a school there and missionaries want us to come and teach the children. We are training our high school students so when they become eleventh-graders they can serve as Sunday school teachers.
The second verse that supports our church is John 4:23. This is our key verse: we want to be true worshipers in spirit and truth. From the beginning we worshiped God in a contemporary style, using contemporary music and instruments. We pray that we experience the presence of God during the worship service. Currently we have three worship services on Sunday: a traditional-style worship a 9 o'clock, a contemporary-style worship at 11, and an English worship service at 1:30. Every morning at 6 and every evening at 8 we also have worship services.
We are praying and preparing for spiritual revival in our area, believing that God will give us enormous revival soon. We pray that all the churches in New Jersey be blessed through this revival.
We have been praying for a church building for three years. We need more space but it is hard to find. We request your prayers for Podonamoo Church, that we might have more space as soon as possible to serve God and the community. God bless you and your church abundantly!
Regional Reports
Albany: Church leaders from across the synod are participating in two consistory enrichment events with the theme "Called to Lead Christ's Church: Living into God's Word." The keynote speaker is Dr. Virginia Wiles, associate professor of New Testament at New Brunswick Theological Seminary. Wiles is addressing the work of consistory members in helping people live as disciples in their daily lives. The first session was January 19 at First Reformed Church of Scotia; a second will be February 2 at Trinity Reformed in Rochester. Participants also attend workshops on roles and ministries of elders and deacons and a Wiles-led session on biblical interpretation. (albany.rca.org)
Canada: Anchor, an Ontario Classis weekend youth retreat for 150 seventh-twelfth graders and leaders, was held in October at Countreyside Camp and Conference Centre near Cambridge, Ontario. Matt Pamplin, formerly of Redeemer University in Ancaster, challenged the teens with the theme of Hebrews 6:19: "We have this hope as an anchor for the soul..." Dave Van Wyngarden from Westdale Reformed Church in Hamilton, Scott Nyp from Drayton Reformed Church in Drayton, Connie Eisinga from Mountainview Christian Reformed Church in Grimsby, and Marilyn Meyers from Mercy Ships all led seminars. Worship times were led by Christa and Mark Pluim and a worship band. (www.reformed-church.com)
Far West: Prescott Community Church in Prescott, Arizona, has a radio outreach titled Thought for the Day. Pastor Warren Thompson prerecords a series of one-minute messages that air several times daily on a local country music station. "It's a great way to present the gospel message with a different story every day," Thompson said. The pastor records two months' worth of spots at a time and has accumulated more than 1,000 scripts. Each message concludes with the church address and worship time. "At least 15 percent of our first-time visitors come as a result of the radio spots," he said. (www.rcawest.org)
Great Lakes: "Inside Out! Weekends" in the Great Lakes Region are challenging and equipping congregations to break out of self-sustaining inward focus and to reach out to their communities. The weekends involve two sessions that address aspects of church life that stand in the way of reaching people for Christ and direct the church toward practical next steps. Preparation through prayer is encouraged and the weekend can be followed by a ninety-minute evaluation session. Coaches are then available to partner with the congregations as they take practical steps to turn Inside Out! (www.rcagl.org)
Heartland: Celebrate Community Church in Knoxville, Iowa, and Papio Creek Church in Papillion, Nebraska, participated in a hands-on way as part of a worship series on serving God. Both churches spent a Sunday away from their usual schedules to participate in community service projects as part of a "Be the Church" campaign. According to regional synod director of discipleship Pam Kimpson, the work included weeding a perennial garden at a city hall, raking and spreading mulch at local schools, picking up trash at a veterans' hospital, visiting troubled teens, and weeding a garden at a junior high school. (www.heartlandsynod.org)
Mid-America: Two RCA churches in South Holland, Illinois, recently received special awards from Diversity, Inc., an organization created to sustain diverse communities and to award organizations making efforts toward diversity within their communities. Calvary Community Church is a merger of two RCA congregations now led by two African American pastors. Most of the congregational activities are integrated, including a blended style of worship created to accommodate multiple cultures. First Reformed Church has partnered with an African American congregation to share facilities and activities, with occasional joint worship. First Reformed has been in South Holland for 160 years and is committed to remain in its integrated community and to sustain diversity. (www.midamericasynod.org).
New York: Emmanuel Presbyterian and Reformed Church in the Bronx, New York, welcomed its new pastor, the Rev. Kwame Amoah-Kuma, who is from the African nation of Ghana. The congregation was birthed as a Reformed church in the Bronx, along with another new RCA church start, Community Church of Highbridge, now under the leadership of the Rev. Irving Rivera and elder Cora Taitt. Emmanuel Church recently moved into its own church facility. The congregation is a union church, affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (USA) and the RCA. (www.nysynod.org)
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