In this edition you will:
- Learn how leaders in two countries partnered to support a Ukrainian church plant in Spain.
- Find out how mentors in Scotland helped a young woman recognize her call to youth ministry.
- Read how a young woman in India was freed from crippling regret and given a new future.
© 2018 Eurasia Region, All rights reserved
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WHERE WORLDS MEET
- Ukrainian church planted in Spain
conflict in the east, some have come together to
form a new congregation. 3
- “Today you are a new creation”
the past -- until Christ gave her a new future.
- A Stranger as Saviour
Meet Amy Warner - Article written by Ted Voigt.
Amy is the youth pastor at Erskine Church of the Nazarene, and the District Nazarene Youth International (NYI) president for the British Isles North District. If you’ve ever wondered whether your investment in a young person is worth it, keep reading.Amy grew up in the Erskine Church, but as a teenager she felt like there weren’t too many other girls in the church, and it would have been easy to wander away. In a church with few female leaders, it would have been understandable for then youth pastor Alan Baird to feel like maybe there wasn’t much he could do. “There really weren’t female mentors in the church,” says Amy, “and that probably would have been a block for a lot of girls who might have been interested in serving, without female leaders to show them how to lead as a female.”
Wth her pastor’s encouragement, when Amy was just 17 she began her ministry career as a youth intern at her church.
“(Alan) taught me everything he knew,” she says. She wasn’t interested in a ministry career at first, but that relationship stayed with her. “As I left school and thought about what I wanted to do in my life, I realised the investment he had in me, and everything he helped me to understand. I wanted to do that for people.”
Amy wanted to be a mentor for her friends and others because she knew firsthand the value of having an older person who cared for her beyond her family.
Amy realised her call into leadership didn’t come in isolation; the church had to accept and encourage her while she searched for her calling. “If I hadn’t been a part of this local church, I wouldn’t have entered ministry, and I don’t even know if I would still be a Christian. Alan and Pastor Derrick really believed in me and helped me to figure out.
Amy Warner grew up in the Erskine, Scotland, Church of the Nazarene, but as a teenager she felt like there weren’t too many other girls in the church and it would have been easy to wander away. In a church with few female leaders, it would have been understandable for then youth pastor Alan Baird to feel like maybe there wasn’t much he could do.
“There really weren’t female mentors in the church, and that probably would have been a block for a lot of girls who might have been interested in serving, without female leaders to show them how to lead as a female,” Warner said.
With her pastor’s encouragement, Warner, then 17, began serving as a youth intern at her church.
“(Alan) taught me everything he knew,” she said.
She wasn’t interested in a ministry career at first, but that relationship stayed with her.
“As I left school and thought about what I wanted to do in my life, I realised the investment he had in me and everything he helped me to understand,” Warner said. “I wanted to do that for people.”
Amy wanted to be a mentor for her friends and others because she knew firsthand the value of having an older person who cared for her beyond her family.
She realised her call into leadership didn’t come in isolation; the church had to accept and encourage her while she searched for her calling.
“If I hadn’t been a part of this local church, I wouldn’t have entered ministry, and I don’t even know if I would still be a Christian,” Warner said. “Alan and Pastor Derrick really believed in me and helped me to figure out my place in the story of God. From there, the church was really willing to be creative in thinking about what my role could look like.”
Becoming the youth pastor at Erskine Church of the Nazarene means Warner is also stepping into the church’s role in the community. In the local secondary school, she is continuing work started by Baird, and she has seen that partnership flourish.
“Alan’s work (in the high school) for all those years has made it possible for me to go into the school and speak in classrooms about Jesus,” Warner said.
Having spent six years working in youth ministry at the age of just 23, Warner says that she has learned in her ministry that “God’s presence is a very long-term thing.”
Recently, her passion for justice has moved her to start looking at ways the church can be a force for good in the wider world.
“I believe that Amy has a compelling passion for social justice,” said Diego Lopez, youth coordinator for the Eurasia Region. “(She) has been able to inspire many in NYI (Nazarene Youth International) and in the wider church … to think deeper about our actions, and how we contribute into a more fair world.”
Warner is living that out through her work on her district, as well as her work for justthreads.org. Just Threads is a clothing company with a three-fold approach to their support of social justice efforts: selling only fair trade products, using design to promote awareness, and sharing the profits with existing charities.
“I want to connect people to use their gifts for justice,” she said.
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Ukrainian church planted in Spain by Nicole Almeida
Through a series of unlikely – but God-ordained – events, a Ukrainian Nazarene congregation was recently organized in Murcia, Spain, and is uniquely positioned to reach other Ukrainian
refugees who are moving to the area.
In the south of Spain, Murcia has become a city of refuge for those who need to start a new life or find help outside of their native country, especially people displaced from eastern Ukraine by the
ongoing armed conflict between Ukraine and Russia.
One of these was Pastor Yuriy, a Ukrainian pastor who relocated to Spain five years ago with his family when he became very ill, and could not get the medication he needed in Ukraine.
Years before, Yuriy had found Christ under the ministry of Nazarene Pastor Roman, when Yuriy was still addicted to drugs.
Having found freedom from addiction through Christ, Yuriy wanted to minister to others who were still in bondage to addiction, and embarked on his own pastoral ministry.
“For about 10 years he wanted to help [those who were] in the same place he once was before,” said Pastor Roman.
After the move to Murcia, “little by little a group of Russian speakers that had moved to Spain were captivated by Pastor Yuriy’s way of teaching.”
Because this group was not affiliated with any denomination, Pastor Roman talked with Pastor Yuriy about the Church of the Nazarene’s teaching and doctrine.
After the group agreed that they wanted to be part of the denomination, Nazarene leaders in Spain, Ukraine and Portugal talked and agreed to work together to help establish this new Ukrainian
congregation in Spain. Since then, the small church in Murcia has been part of the Spain District.
“As a district, we have the mission to plant churches,” said Ignacio Pesado, superintendent of the Spain District.
“We visited [the Ukrainian group] and, from the first moment, we knew that they would be part of the Church of the Nazarene in Spain.”
“We see that the church can help a lot of the refugees.” (Ignacio Pesado, Spain District Superintendent)
The Spain District is now a mix of Spanish-speaking members and members from Ukraine and Russia.
One of the challenges this district faces is communication. Although
both Pastor Yuriy and Pesado communicate through translation, it is not easy.
“Even though we have the language barrier, every time my family and I visit Pastor Yuriy and his family, we feel at home and our friendship is growing,” said Pesado.
Instead of turning the church into a Spanish church, Pesado saw that there was a need to retain the congregation’s original identity. Pesado found that the Spanish government has an official agreement with Ukraine to receive refugees displaced by the armed conflict in eastern Ukraine, and help them start over in Spain. Most of these people have lost family and friends. Therefore, the church in Murcia is uniquely able to reach other Ukrainian refugees in their own language.
Pesado said, “With the will we have to serve and to join strengths, we see that the church can help a lot of the refugees.”
In August 2017, Ukraine sent a volunteer missionary, Sergiy Dzyba, through the Eurasia Region’s M+Power initiative to help Nazarenes serve in other parts of Eurasia as cross-cultural volunteers.
Dzyba had received a call from Scott Rainey, the leader of the CIS Field, of which Ukraine is a part. Rainey told Dzyba about the Ukrainian church in Spain and its desire for more support.
“He told me I was the perfect choice, because I speak English, Russian-Ukrainian and I’m learning Spanish. At the moment, I do not
know why I started learning Spanish, it was just a language that I liked. I had no interest in going to Spain one day,” said Dzyba.
After working with youth and as a pastor for many years, Dzyba felt
God’s call to go help in Spain for almost four months. One of his tasks was to help with the integration of the church into the district life.
“He helped the church understand better the Church of the Nazarene,
since many came from different backgrounds, and this helped them feel part of something more,” said Pesado. “He helped us with the
language barrier.”
While working with the church, Dzyba helped Pastor Yuriy and his
family with the congregation. “It’s a small church, about 40 people,
but it’s a good church,” said Dzyba.
“They started five years ago and are now an organized church.”
At the organization service, Pesado was the main speaker.
“We also had guests from other churches that are close to us in
Murcia. The Nazarene churches in Spain are far from us, so other
pastors could not come,” said Dzyba.
Pastor Yuriy wants to start a rehabilitation centre in Murcia.
“He is planning on starting a ministry with people with addiction
problems, because there are many people from Ukraine and Russia
suffering with this problem,” said Dzyba.
Everybody in the congregation has experienced suffering, he said.
“I have learned from them. Most of them have gone through so much.
They go through economic problems or live without their family and I
have seen how blessed I am.”
Even though the church is still limited with the Spanish language,
they are working to integrate with the district.
Dzyba says, “They have a very strong congregation with a good heart, committed and faithful to the Lord. If they listen to God’s plans for them, I think they will have a great future.”
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‘Today you are a new creation’ A redemption story Testimony by Rev. Kiran Thomas
‘Today you are a new creation’ A redemption story Testimony by Rev. Kiran Thomas
MADYA PRADESH, INDIA -- After completing her bachelor’s degree and
martial arts training in 2015, Ranjita began to give martial arts classes for the girls in nearby hostels and schools. Life was much settled in routines -- until one day something happened that shook her whole life, and brought her to a point where she lost herself in depression.
Ranjita is a beautiful, 22-year-old young woman from Bihar, Madya Pradesh. She lives in a small town with her parents and four siblings, and their needs are somehow met by the small shop run by her father.
Her family comes from an unbelieving background, but is now growing in Christ.
It was a bright day and her happiness had no limits when her best friend Sonu, whom she knew for years, visited her for a few days.
“I was very happy to have her with me. But my happiness did not last for long,” Ranjita said.
“That next day when I was to go for teaching the martial art class in the nearby village, I invited Sonu to accompany me. I was very much excited to have her with me. She, too, was very happy.”
It was some half an hour journey from Ranjita’s village. On the way, they had to cross a a small mud bridge over a dry riverbed, with large, exposed sharp rocks. As usual Ranjita took her scooter, but Sonu insisted to drive. They were enjoying the ride, chatting and giggling together when, suddenly, on the mud bridge their scooter lost balance. They both were thrown ver the bridge onto the sharp rocks.
Ranjita uttered a prayer to God, saying “Lord, please help us.” She was scared and shivering with fear. Her face was covered with blood and she was in deep pain. Her fear was greatest because she could not see her friend. She began calling Sonu’s name, but there was no
response.
“The pastor lady said to me, ‘Don’t cry, Jesus loves you. Forget whatever happened in your past and trust in Jesus, for He is with you. Today you are a new creation.’” (Ranjita)
She heard a small groaning sound. To her distress she saw Sonu had fallen in the deeper side. Ranjita could not reach out to help her, limited by her own pain and dizziness. She tried to call her family but could not get connected.
Ranjita somehow gathered her strength and climbed up to the nearby road. She cried for help to the passing vehicles, but many passed her by. Eventually one passerby came to her rescue. She felt as if God had come down to help her. She remembers telling him about Sonu before she fell unconscious.
“It took me six months to recover from my physical injuries, but to my shock my friend passed away after two months,” Ranjita said. “I was totally broken. I felt guilty, that Sonu died because of me.” She believed that if she had not taken her to the class, this incident would have not happened.
Ranjita was devastated.
Villages in India, being close communities, are socially bound to each other’s family. Ranjita was more and more depressed due to the constant reminder of her friend’s death, as neighbors and relatives
repeatedly discussed the accident, increasing her guilt. She could not avoid her neighbors asking her about the tragedy. So the family
decided to send her to a nearby town for work. But Ranjita could
not adjust there on her own and returned home within one month.
Though Ranjita felt broken, guilty and lonely, God was close to her.
Things in Ranjita’s life changed when she got an opportunity to attend a three-day convention through her church. Ranjita had both emotional and spiritual needs; she sought freedom and peace.
“I was totally broken and felt very lonely,” she said, her eyes watering with emotion. “I needed peace in my heart, so I went to
the convention expecting Jesus to heal my heart and give me peace. To my utter surprise, in midst of thousands of people attending the meeting, one pastor lady from the convention leading team came straight to me, placed her hand on my head and prayed for me. And I felt so much blessed as I cried out my heart to the Lord. I prayed
to my Lord … Please God I need a comforting and caring hug from you,
please help me.”
God answered Rajita’s prayer as the pastor began talking with her.
Ranjita cried as she shared her entire burden with the pastor.
Ranjita’s expression changed to joy and excitement when she said, “On hearing my story the pastor lady suddenly hugged me lovingly; I felt Jesus hugging me. The pastor lady said to me, ‘Don’t cry, Jesus loves you. Forget whatever has happened in your past and trust in Jesus, for He is with you.’ She said, ‘Today you are a new creation and He will bless you.’”
Ranjita says that she will never forget those loving words and hug
that changed her life. The guilt was washed away and God’s peace
entered her heart.
“I believe that Jesus spoke to me through her.”
After the convention, Ranjita returned home with joy and hope.
Ranjita was a changed person, and her pastor noticed. After observing her a few months, Ranjita’s pastor asked if she was willing to go for Bible school training. Ranjita was happy but did not respond immediately, taking time to pray about the matter. Later she was surprised when her church director gave her the same advice. The director was willing to financially support her Bible school training.
Ranjita took this as an answer to her prayer and confirmation of God’s call for ministry.
Ranjita is blessed to be in South India Bible School and is a living
testimony of God’s grace, which restored her life and filled it with
new joy and hope in Christ.
***
WWW.EURASIAREGION.ORG FEBRUARY 2018 - ISSUE 2 7
WWW.EURASIAREGION.ORG FEBRUARY 2018 - ISSUE 2 7
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“He said to them, ‘Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation.’” (Mark 16:15)
Prayer requests:
- Pray for Amy Warner and the many other young adults whom God is gifting and calling into various forms of ministry. Pray they will experience deep personal and spiritual growth and effectiveness in their ministry. Pray also for local churches and mature leaders to continue investing in children, youth and young adults as they develop into mature Christians.
- Please pray for the new Nazarene church in Murcia, Spain, as they continue ministering to other Russian-speaking residents and refugees in Spain. Ask God to develop the congregation into a mature, missional and loving church that shares the love of Christ in their community.
- Pray for Ranjita, as she studies theology and testifies to others about the healing and renewal available to everyone through the power and love of Jesus Christ.
Who are Nazarenes?
As members of the Church Universal, we join with all true
believers in proclaiming the Lordship of Jesus Christ and in
affirming the historic Trinitarian creeds and beliefs of the
Christian faith. We value our Wesleyan-Holiness heritage and
believe it to be a way of understanding the faith that is true to
Scripture, reason, tradition, and experience.
2. We are a holiness people
God, who is holy, calls us to a life of holiness. We believe that
the Holy Spirit seeks to do in us a second work of grace, called
by various terms including “entire sanctification” and “baptism
with the Holy Spirit”-cleansing us from all sin, renewing us in the
image of God, empowering us to love God with our whole heart,
soul, mind, and strength, and our neighbors as ourselves, and
producing in us the character of Christ. Holiness in the life of
believers is most clearly understood as Christlikeness.
3. We are a missional people
We are a sent people, responding to the call of Christ and
empowered by the Holy Spirit to go into all the world,
witnessing to the Lordship of Christ and participating with
God in the building of the Church and the extension of His
kingdom (Matthew 28:19-20; 2 Corinthians 6:1).
Our mission (a) begins in worship, (b) ministers to the world in evangelism and compassion, (c) encourages believers toward Christian maturity through discipleship, and (d) prepares women and men for
Our mission (a) begins in worship, (b) ministers to the world in evangelism and compassion, (c) encourages believers toward Christian maturity through discipleship, and (d) prepares women and men for
Christian service through Christian higher education.
Learn more at: www.nazarene.org/articles-faith
***
"Where Worlds Meet - March 2018" Eurasia Region for Monday, 12 March 2018 - ISSUE 3 WWW.EURASIAREGION.ORG
In this edition you will:
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Two new districts for Bangladesh - Rapid growth leads a district in Bangladesh to plant two more -- with the intent to pioneer new areas. by Gina Grate Pottenger
The roughly 500 people attending the Bangladesh North District Assembly were asked to move to different parts of the building, depending on what village they were from. There was gentle confusion as people tried to sort out which area they needed to move to.
The scene unfolded 30 January, just after the North District received official approval from the denomination’s Board of General Superintendents to create two new districts due to rapid church growth over the past eight years. Those in attendance were asked to
move to the space where their new district was gathered.
“There was a sense of excitement as people voted for the approval of the districts being divided,” said Annemarie Snijders, mobilization coordinator for the Eurasia Region.
“This felt like a special recognition of what God was doing in Bangladesh.”
Since 2010, the Bangladesh Church of the Nazarene has multiplied from one national district to five.
In the last eight years, the North District had grown beyond the ability of one superintendent to effectively support all the congregations, said Milon P.*, national coordinator for JESUS Film and child development ministries.
“A second reason was because creating three districts from one will allow the mother district, as well as the new districts, to expand to new areas where there is not a church yet,” added Trino Jara, field strategy coordinator for the church in South Asia.
Congratulating the district for its missional vision, General Superintendent Dr. Eugenio Duarte announced the approval.
“You will not be weaker, you will be stronger,” Duarte said to the assembly. “Those two new districts will belong to the same church, and all three districts will in some ways do some things together.”
Rev. Anjon Moses B.* formerly the superintendent (DS) Church multiplication Bangladesh church creates two new districts for the North District, has been appointed DS for Rangpur District, and Rev. Puren R.* appointed for Thakurgaon District.
“God called me to serve His Kingdom as DS and I am happy for that,” Anjon said. “My father was a pastor and I am also serving as a
pastor for many years. I will serve wherever I am called.”
Both districts are being started as “phase II” which means they will
receive some financial support, with a planned decrease in amount until the district is fully self-sustaining in three years, said Jara.
Started in 1993, the Church of the Nazarene Bangladesh has rapidly
expanded by following the holistic ministry model of Jesus Christ –
sharing His love with people by meeting their physical, emotional
and spiritual needs together.
From the beginning, compassionate ministries and JESUS Film evangelism and discipleship have been core elements of demonstrating God’s love for people. Congregations not only taught people about God from the Bible and formed local worshipping communities, they also participated in disaster relief efforts; established food security projects; organized women into empowering self-help groups in which they pooled funds to start small businesses; set up child focused community development centers; and much more.
Over the years, dozens of JESUS Film teams showed the gospel in the
Bangladeshi language to hundreds of thousands of people and established discipleship groups, many of which have become organized churches that are now engaged in mission to their communities and nation.
“Life in Bangladesh is tough,” said Eurasia Regional Director Arthur Snijders, reflecting on his impressions during his first visit to
the country*** six years ago. “They were so grateful that they had
heard the gospel, and they were living now for Jesus. I came away
from that time very much aware that Christ brings hope in very dire
circumstances and He also brings gratitude and joy in place
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Glasgow’s only Nazarene pub by Ted Voigt
On Glasgow’s east side, wedged between an Indian take-out and a tiny
convenience store, is a row of shuttered windows.
Above are the words: “THE CHARTER,” with a “For Sale” sign that cuts off the word “BAR.” The paint is shabby, the walls have been tagged with graffiti more than once, and half a mile away, Parkhead Church of the Nazarene are the new owners.
Under the leadership of Pastor Ian Wills, the Parkhead church have made it their objective to continually invest in their community. And with this new property, they hope to breathe a new spirit into an area of their city very much in need.
The bar, which was shut down in 2014, had a reputation for attracting a rough crowd. Now, as the church move in to renovate, they are hoping to offer positive opportunities in a place where real community can form.
The process began back in 2016, says Pastor John Craig, part of the team working to repurpose the bar. As the congregation grew to the limits of their current space, they began to consider church planting. So, when the old bar was put up for sale, the timing seemed right.
The Charter Bar “ticked a couple of boxes,” says Craig. “Firstly, it is local enough to be another space that some groups at Parkhead Nazarene church could use.”
And, in addition to helping ease space constraints, the bar is far enough from Parkhead church to “make it seem like the kind of place where we can explore missional opportunities to that particular
location.”
The church did not have the funds to buy the property, but they secured a loan and moved forward on faith that this new outpost in their community would be supported. They’ve held fundraisers at Parkhead, as well as sought grants and even created an online giving page through the fundraising site Virgin Money Giving.
Want to support this Glasgow ministry?
Click here to donate.
GLASGOW: New space presents opportunities to partner
Acquiring the new building, which they hope to open this summer, has not been entirely seamless. It took some effort for them to even
discover who exactly was selling the building. And then there was the city planning department. Projects like this don’t fit into the traditional boxes for a city — it’s not a cafe, it’s not a bar, but it’s not exactly a “church” either. Eventually they were able to make the case that their use of the building would be classed as a “place of worship.”
The Nazarene church in Parkhead also places a high value on partnerships, and their new endeavour is no different.
Craig says, “The Charter sits almost exactly equidistant between
Parkhead Nazarene and another evangelical church, namely Easterhill
Community Church, with whom there are both historic and current links and overlaps in friendship and ministry.”
The Easterhill congregation is excited for the opportunity to make use of the new community-centred space that the Parkhead church is
pioneering.
As for a new name to put on the building, they haven’t settled on
anything yet. “‘The Charter’ (which means “Royal Decree”) seems to be the default that is stuck in people’s minds,” says Craig, although he points out that discussions about renaming the building are ongoing.
***
“Going where the church is not yet” – that is what one Ukrainian Nazarene pastor has done over the past four years, as he has joined an evangelical missional association to minister in a remote
mountain village where the people had never heard of Jesus.
The isolated people live in a mountainous region that reaches an elevation of 7,649 meters (25,095 feet) as it winds through China, Afghanistan and several Central Asian nations. Tucked in these mountains, the association found a small group living high above sea level, in a climate that does not allow trees to grow.
“The mountains are really high and have a harsh climate. There is a 50 percent deficiency of oxygen and, because of its climate, it is hard to get there,” said the pastor of the Vinnitsya Church of the Nazarene, in central Ukraine. “They have a challenging economic and political situation. [They] have no medical care and have never had electricity.
Their usual meal is tea and bread, so when we came and offered candy
they were all very happy. We want to bring the word of God to them and show His love for them.”
For eight months a year, the village is covered in snow, making travel there dangerous. The mission team can only access the village from May to September, on a 3-meter-wide road with no protection. Cars must be careful to not fall off the cliff.
“There is no plane or train to go up the mountain. Every time we travel, we pray for our driver and those also driving.”
During their repeated visits, the team has seen how this ethnic group has been long isolated from the world. The residents live in humble homes.
“The scariest thing is that, over the history of Christianity, they
have never heard of the gospel,” the pastor said.
The ecumenical team was sent to this previously unreached village, as well as other areas where the gospel had not yet reached, by
the Association of the Missionary Churches of Ukraine.
“This association includes different churches that belong to different denominations and they are united by the idea of preaching the gospel to countries that have not yet been reached by it. It is not about the countries that have a few churches or few Christians, but about the countries or ethnic groups that have not heard of the gospel [at all],” the pastor said.
After seeing the people’s physical and economic struggles, the
association decided to respond to the needs they expressed.
“Our main mission is to help poor and disadvantaged people and
kids,” the pastor said. “The most unprotected layer of society is
children, therefore, we buy food and clothes [for them]. Through this social help we’ve begun to work with the families as well.”
The mission group has gained trust with local administrators of the
small community after providing 200 desks and 400 chairs for schools and orphanages in the past year.
“This way we have been able to create relationships with directors
and teacher of the schools. They have opened the doors to their homes for us to come. The ethnic group has opened their homes.
They allow us to share meals with them at their table. They are open to hear the gospel and they now allow us to pray for their lives. They are Local church missions experiencing God’s love.”
After working four years with this ministry, the pastor from the Church of the Nazarene in Vinnytsya has seen God working not only in the ethnic group in the mountains, but also in the local congregation that has sent him.
“God has encouraged the people at our church, because they realized
that they are part of something much bigger: They are part of God’s
big mission. Being Christian is not just about having a good life, but there is so much more. The church has realized the impact they can have on others’ lives.”
He said that some members of his congregation have also responded to the call of God by joining teams going to minister to the people.
Scott Rainey, who leads the churches in the CIS Field (former Soviet
Union countries), said the Vinnytsia church’s missional heart is shared by Nazarenes across the field. That s why they are making a concerted effort to plant new churches and open work in countries where the Church of the Nazarene was not previously present.
“It is a blessing to have pastors in the CIS, like our Vinnytsia, Ukraine, pastor, who have a heart for missions and reaching the unreached people of the world with the Gospel of Jesus Christ,” Rainey said. “I am convinced that the future of missions in the CIS, especially to the Central Asia countries, is not through Western missionaries, but through our own CIS Nazarenes. The shared history of the Soviet Union and the shared language of Russian open natural doors for the Gospel that are not afforded to all.
“I am also thankful to JESUS Film Harvest Partners (jfhp.org) for
donating 15 Papyrus [audio Bibles] for this outreach,” Rainey went on.
“Each Papyrus is capable of sharing an audio version of the Scriptures in the people’s heart language, to up to 200 people!”
***
In memoriam: Sri Lanka church leader passes away
Mrs. Vathani, spouse and ministry partner of Rev. Daniel, superintendent of the Sri Lanka District, passed away 6 March following a brave battle against illness.
Hermann Gschwandtner, former field strategy coordinator for South Asia, of which Sri Lanka is a part, penned the following words about Vathani: “With great sadness we have heard about the recent passing of our sister Vathani.... Since the beginning of the work in Sri Lanka in the fall of 1999, Rev. Daniel and his wife have served the church. They started the first JESUS Film team in the country and organized the first Church of the Nazarene.
“For many years they did not just house the church in Hali-Ela, but also started dozens of churches and housed regular training sessions for new pastors via South Asia Nazarene Bible College (SANBC). Sister Vathani was herself a graduate of SANBC.”
Vathani also leaves behind four sons: Oshan, Anushan, Dishan and Joy Krishan.
Please pray not only for Vathani’s family as they grieve the loss of wife and mother, but for the church in Sri Lanka, as they honor her dedication and passion for the gospel by carrying on her legacy.
***
Out of gratitude for the redeeming work of Jesus Christ, Nazarene churches globally give an offering for missions on Easter Sunday.
Download promotional resources at nazarene.org/generosity
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Where Worlds Meet is the monthly newsletter for the Eurasia Region of the Church of the Nazarene.
To suscribe, email to:
communications@ eurasiaregion.org or
visit our website: eurasiaregion.org
Our Team
1. GINA POTTENGER
Communications Coordinator
gpottenger@eurasiaregion.org
2. TEANNA SUNBERG
Central Europe Communications Coordinator
tsunberg@eurasiaregion.org
3. ERIN KETCHUM
W. Mediterranean Communications
Coordinator
eketchum@eurasiaregion.org
4. ZEE GIMON
CIS Field Communications Coordinator
zgimon@eurasiaregion.org
5. REV. RAJIV YANGAD
India Communications Coordinator
yangadrajiv@gmail.com
6. RANDOLF WOLST
Website Designer
rwolst@eurasiaregion.org
7. REBECCA MOISIO
Regional Video Producer
rmoisio@eurasiaregion.org
8. ARTHUR SNIJDERS
Regional Director
awsnijders@eurasiaregion.org
Prayer requests
Who are Nazarenes?
We are a Christian people
As members of the Church Universal, we join with all true believers in proclaiming the Lordship of Jesus Christ and in affirming the historic Trinitarian creeds and beliefs of the Christian faith. We value our Wesleyan-Holiness heritage and believe it to be a way of understanding the faith that is true to Scripture, reason, tradition, and experience.
We are a holiness people
God, who is holy, calls us to a life of holiness. We believe that the Holy Spirit seeks to do in us a second work of grace, called by various terms including “entire sanctification” and “baptism with the Holy Spirit”-cleansing us from all sin, renewing us in the image of God, empowering us to love God with our whole heart, soul, mind, and strength, and our neighbors as ourselves, and producing in us the character of Christ. Holiness in the life of believers is most clearly understood as Christlikeness.
We are a missional people
We are a sent people, responding to the call of Christ and empowered
by the Holy Spirit to go into all the world, witnessing to the Lordship of Christ and participating with God in the building of the Church and the extension of His kingdom (Matthew 28:19-20; 2 Corinthians 6:1).
Our mission (a) begins in worship, (b) ministers to the world in evangelism and compassion, (c) encourages believers toward Christian maturity through discipleship, and (d) prepares women and men for Christian service through Christian higher education.
Learn more at: www.nazarene.org/articles-faith
© 2018 Eurasia Region, All rights reserved
***
In this edition you will:
- find out how rapid church growth and missional mindset have helped a district in Bangladesh plant two more
- read the story of Nazarenes in Ukraine helping to reach an isolated, unreached people group with the gospel
- remember the ministry work of a Sri Lanka leader who passed away
- learn how a Nazarene church in Scotland purchased a dilapidated local pub for community outreach.
***
Two new districts for Bangladesh - Rapid growth leads a district in Bangladesh to plant two more -- with the intent to pioneer new areas. by Gina Grate Pottenger
The roughly 500 people attending the Bangladesh North District Assembly were asked to move to different parts of the building, depending on what village they were from. There was gentle confusion as people tried to sort out which area they needed to move to.
The scene unfolded 30 January, just after the North District received official approval from the denomination’s Board of General Superintendents to create two new districts due to rapid church growth over the past eight years. Those in attendance were asked to
move to the space where their new district was gathered.
“There was a sense of excitement as people voted for the approval of the districts being divided,” said Annemarie Snijders, mobilization coordinator for the Eurasia Region.
“This felt like a special recognition of what God was doing in Bangladesh.”
Since 2010, the Bangladesh Church of the Nazarene has multiplied from one national district to five.
In the last eight years, the North District had grown beyond the ability of one superintendent to effectively support all the congregations, said Milon P.*, national coordinator for JESUS Film and child development ministries.
“A second reason was because creating three districts from one will allow the mother district, as well as the new districts, to expand to new areas where there is not a church yet,” added Trino Jara, field strategy coordinator for the church in South Asia.
Congratulating the district for its missional vision, General Superintendent Dr. Eugenio Duarte announced the approval.
“You will not be weaker, you will be stronger,” Duarte said to the assembly. “Those two new districts will belong to the same church, and all three districts will in some ways do some things together.”
Rev. Anjon Moses B.* formerly the superintendent (DS) Church multiplication Bangladesh church creates two new districts for the North District, has been appointed DS for Rangpur District, and Rev. Puren R.* appointed for Thakurgaon District.
“Christ brings hope in very dire circumstances and He also brings gratitude and joy in places where I never expected them.” (Arthur Snijders, Eurasia Regional Director)
“My aim as DS is to strengthen our churches, care for the leadership for the future church and preach the gospel in the area,” Puren said.“God called me to serve His Kingdom as DS and I am happy for that,” Anjon said. “My father was a pastor and I am also serving as a
pastor for many years. I will serve wherever I am called.”
Both districts are being started as “phase II” which means they will
receive some financial support, with a planned decrease in amount until the district is fully self-sustaining in three years, said Jara.
Started in 1993, the Church of the Nazarene Bangladesh has rapidly
expanded by following the holistic ministry model of Jesus Christ –
sharing His love with people by meeting their physical, emotional
and spiritual needs together.
From the beginning, compassionate ministries and JESUS Film evangelism and discipleship have been core elements of demonstrating God’s love for people. Congregations not only taught people about God from the Bible and formed local worshipping communities, they also participated in disaster relief efforts; established food security projects; organized women into empowering self-help groups in which they pooled funds to start small businesses; set up child focused community development centers; and much more.
Over the years, dozens of JESUS Film teams showed the gospel in the
Bangladeshi language to hundreds of thousands of people and established discipleship groups, many of which have become organized churches that are now engaged in mission to their communities and nation.
“Life in Bangladesh is tough,” said Eurasia Regional Director Arthur Snijders, reflecting on his impressions during his first visit to
the country*** six years ago. “They were so grateful that they had
heard the gospel, and they were living now for Jesus. I came away
from that time very much aware that Christ brings hope in very dire
circumstances and He also brings gratitude and joy in place
***
Glasgow’s only Nazarene pub by Ted Voigt
On Glasgow’s east side, wedged between an Indian take-out and a tiny
convenience store, is a row of shuttered windows.
Above are the words: “THE CHARTER,” with a “For Sale” sign that cuts off the word “BAR.” The paint is shabby, the walls have been tagged with graffiti more than once, and half a mile away, Parkhead Church of the Nazarene are the new owners.
Under the leadership of Pastor Ian Wills, the Parkhead church have made it their objective to continually invest in their community. And with this new property, they hope to breathe a new spirit into an area of their city very much in need.
The bar, which was shut down in 2014, had a reputation for attracting a rough crowd. Now, as the church move in to renovate, they are hoping to offer positive opportunities in a place where real community can form.
The process began back in 2016, says Pastor John Craig, part of the team working to repurpose the bar. As the congregation grew to the limits of their current space, they began to consider church planting. So, when the old bar was put up for sale, the timing seemed right.
The Charter Bar “ticked a couple of boxes,” says Craig. “Firstly, it is local enough to be another space that some groups at Parkhead Nazarene church could use.”
And, in addition to helping ease space constraints, the bar is far enough from Parkhead church to “make it seem like the kind of place where we can explore missional opportunities to that particular
location.”
The church did not have the funds to buy the property, but they secured a loan and moved forward on faith that this new outpost in their community would be supported. They’ve held fundraisers at Parkhead, as well as sought grants and even created an online giving page through the fundraising site Virgin Money Giving.
Want to support this Glasgow ministry?
Click here to donate.
GLASGOW: New space presents opportunities to partner
Acquiring the new building, which they hope to open this summer, has not been entirely seamless. It took some effort for them to even
discover who exactly was selling the building. And then there was the city planning department. Projects like this don’t fit into the traditional boxes for a city — it’s not a cafe, it’s not a bar, but it’s not exactly a “church” either. Eventually they were able to make the case that their use of the building would be classed as a “place of worship.”
The Nazarene church in Parkhead also places a high value on partnerships, and their new endeavour is no different.
Craig says, “The Charter sits almost exactly equidistant between
Parkhead Nazarene and another evangelical church, namely Easterhill
Community Church, with whom there are both historic and current links and overlaps in friendship and ministry.”
The Easterhill congregation is excited for the opportunity to make use of the new community-centred space that the Parkhead church is
pioneering.
As for a new name to put on the building, they haven’t settled on
anything yet. “‘The Charter’ (which means “Royal Decree”) seems to be the default that is stuck in people’s minds,” says Craig, although he points out that discussions about renaming the building are ongoing.
***
“It is a blessing to have pastors in the CIS who have a heart for missions and reaching the unreached people of the world with the Gospel of Jesus Christ.” (Scott Rainey, CIS Field Strategy Coordinator)
Bringing the Gospel to forbidden lands by Nicole Almeida“Going where the church is not yet” – that is what one Ukrainian Nazarene pastor has done over the past four years, as he has joined an evangelical missional association to minister in a remote
mountain village where the people had never heard of Jesus.
The isolated people live in a mountainous region that reaches an elevation of 7,649 meters (25,095 feet) as it winds through China, Afghanistan and several Central Asian nations. Tucked in these mountains, the association found a small group living high above sea level, in a climate that does not allow trees to grow.
“The mountains are really high and have a harsh climate. There is a 50 percent deficiency of oxygen and, because of its climate, it is hard to get there,” said the pastor of the Vinnitsya Church of the Nazarene, in central Ukraine. “They have a challenging economic and political situation. [They] have no medical care and have never had electricity.
Their usual meal is tea and bread, so when we came and offered candy
they were all very happy. We want to bring the word of God to them and show His love for them.”
For eight months a year, the village is covered in snow, making travel there dangerous. The mission team can only access the village from May to September, on a 3-meter-wide road with no protection. Cars must be careful to not fall off the cliff.
“There is no plane or train to go up the mountain. Every time we travel, we pray for our driver and those also driving.”
During their repeated visits, the team has seen how this ethnic group has been long isolated from the world. The residents live in humble homes.
“The scariest thing is that, over the history of Christianity, they
have never heard of the gospel,” the pastor said.
The ecumenical team was sent to this previously unreached village, as well as other areas where the gospel had not yet reached, by
the Association of the Missionary Churches of Ukraine.
“This association includes different churches that belong to different denominations and they are united by the idea of preaching the gospel to countries that have not yet been reached by it. It is not about the countries that have a few churches or few Christians, but about the countries or ethnic groups that have not heard of the gospel [at all],” the pastor said.
After seeing the people’s physical and economic struggles, the
association decided to respond to the needs they expressed.
“Our main mission is to help poor and disadvantaged people and
kids,” the pastor said. “The most unprotected layer of society is
children, therefore, we buy food and clothes [for them]. Through this social help we’ve begun to work with the families as well.”
The mission group has gained trust with local administrators of the
small community after providing 200 desks and 400 chairs for schools and orphanages in the past year.
“This way we have been able to create relationships with directors
and teacher of the schools. They have opened the doors to their homes for us to come. The ethnic group has opened their homes.
They allow us to share meals with them at their table. They are open to hear the gospel and they now allow us to pray for their lives. They are Local church missions experiencing God’s love.”
After working four years with this ministry, the pastor from the Church of the Nazarene in Vinnytsya has seen God working not only in the ethnic group in the mountains, but also in the local congregation that has sent him.
“God has encouraged the people at our church, because they realized
that they are part of something much bigger: They are part of God’s
big mission. Being Christian is not just about having a good life, but there is so much more. The church has realized the impact they can have on others’ lives.”
He said that some members of his congregation have also responded to the call of God by joining teams going to minister to the people.
Scott Rainey, who leads the churches in the CIS Field (former Soviet
Union countries), said the Vinnytsia church’s missional heart is shared by Nazarenes across the field. That s why they are making a concerted effort to plant new churches and open work in countries where the Church of the Nazarene was not previously present.
“It is a blessing to have pastors in the CIS, like our Vinnytsia, Ukraine, pastor, who have a heart for missions and reaching the unreached people of the world with the Gospel of Jesus Christ,” Rainey said. “I am convinced that the future of missions in the CIS, especially to the Central Asia countries, is not through Western missionaries, but through our own CIS Nazarenes. The shared history of the Soviet Union and the shared language of Russian open natural doors for the Gospel that are not afforded to all.
“I am also thankful to JESUS Film Harvest Partners (jfhp.org) for
donating 15 Papyrus [audio Bibles] for this outreach,” Rainey went on.
“Each Papyrus is capable of sharing an audio version of the Scriptures in the people’s heart language, to up to 200 people!”
***
In memoriam: Sri Lanka church leader passes away
Mrs. Vathani, spouse and ministry partner of Rev. Daniel, superintendent of the Sri Lanka District, passed away 6 March following a brave battle against illness.
Hermann Gschwandtner, former field strategy coordinator for South Asia, of which Sri Lanka is a part, penned the following words about Vathani: “With great sadness we have heard about the recent passing of our sister Vathani.... Since the beginning of the work in Sri Lanka in the fall of 1999, Rev. Daniel and his wife have served the church. They started the first JESUS Film team in the country and organized the first Church of the Nazarene.
“For many years they did not just house the church in Hali-Ela, but also started dozens of churches and housed regular training sessions for new pastors via South Asia Nazarene Bible College (SANBC). Sister Vathani was herself a graduate of SANBC.”
Vathani also leaves behind four sons: Oshan, Anushan, Dishan and Joy Krishan.
Please pray not only for Vathani’s family as they grieve the loss of wife and mother, but for the church in Sri Lanka, as they honor her dedication and passion for the gospel by carrying on her legacy.
***
Out of gratitude for the redeeming work of Jesus Christ, Nazarene churches globally give an offering for missions on Easter Sunday.
Download promotional resources at nazarene.org/generosity
Follow Us
Facebook: Facebook.com/eurasiaregion
Twitter: Twitter.com/eurasiaregionVimeo: Vimeo.com/eurasia
Website: www.eurasiaregion.org
Where Worlds Meet is the monthly newsletter for the Eurasia Region of the Church of the Nazarene.
To suscribe, email to:
communications@ eurasiaregion.org or
visit our website: eurasiaregion.org
Our Team
1. GINA POTTENGER
Communications Coordinator
gpottenger@eurasiaregion.org
2. TEANNA SUNBERG
Central Europe Communications Coordinator
tsunberg@eurasiaregion.org
3. ERIN KETCHUM
W. Mediterranean Communications
Coordinator
eketchum@eurasiaregion.org
4. ZEE GIMON
CIS Field Communications Coordinator
zgimon@eurasiaregion.org
5. REV. RAJIV YANGAD
India Communications Coordinator
yangadrajiv@gmail.com
6. RANDOLF WOLST
Website Designer
rwolst@eurasiaregion.org
7. REBECCA MOISIO
Regional Video Producer
rmoisio@eurasiaregion.org
8. ARTHUR SNIJDERS
Regional Director
awsnijders@eurasiaregion.org
Eurasia Regional Office
Postfach 1217
8207
Schaffhausen
Switzerland
phone: (+49) 7734 93050
email: communications@eurasiaregion.org
website: eurasiaregion.org
“I will answer them before they even call to me. While they are still talking about their needs, I will go ahead and answer their prayers!” (Isaiah 65:24)Prayer requests
- Please pray for the new Nazarene districts in Bangladesh, that God will bless and expand their missional vision, open doors to new communities, and anoint the believers and leaders in the power and guidance of the Holy Spirit.
- Pray for the family of Mrs. Vathani, spouse and ministry partner of Rev. Daniel, the superintendent of the church in Sri Lanka. Vathani passed away at the beginning of March. Ask God to give a special measure of his comforting presence and sustaining grace to her family, including her four sons, and their friends and the church across Sri Lanka.
- Pray for the Glasgow church as they reach new people with a new space, that God will bless their love for their community by transforming many lives.
- Pray for the Nazarenes in Ukraine as they engage in God’s mission to unreached people groups in Central Asia. Pray for fruit in their work and more doors to open.
Who are Nazarenes?
We are a Christian people
As members of the Church Universal, we join with all true believers in proclaiming the Lordship of Jesus Christ and in affirming the historic Trinitarian creeds and beliefs of the Christian faith. We value our Wesleyan-Holiness heritage and believe it to be a way of understanding the faith that is true to Scripture, reason, tradition, and experience.
We are a holiness people
God, who is holy, calls us to a life of holiness. We believe that the Holy Spirit seeks to do in us a second work of grace, called by various terms including “entire sanctification” and “baptism with the Holy Spirit”-cleansing us from all sin, renewing us in the image of God, empowering us to love God with our whole heart, soul, mind, and strength, and our neighbors as ourselves, and producing in us the character of Christ. Holiness in the life of believers is most clearly understood as Christlikeness.
We are a missional people
We are a sent people, responding to the call of Christ and empowered
by the Holy Spirit to go into all the world, witnessing to the Lordship of Christ and participating with God in the building of the Church and the extension of His kingdom (Matthew 28:19-20; 2 Corinthians 6:1).
Our mission (a) begins in worship, (b) ministers to the world in evangelism and compassion, (c) encourages believers toward Christian maturity through discipleship, and (d) prepares women and men for Christian service through Christian higher education.
Learn more at: www.nazarene.org/articles-faith
© 2018 Eurasia Region, All rights reserved
***
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