Missionary Renegade: The Global Church of the Nazarene news of Lenexa, Kansas, United States: "General Assembly registration open" from The Global Nazarene Communication Network News Volume 1642 for Friday, 21 October 2016 "This week in the Church of the Nazarene..."

The Global Church of the Nazarene news of Lenexa, Kansas, United States: "General Assembly registration open" from The Global Nazarene Communication Network News Volume 1642 for Friday, 21 October 2016 "This week in the Church of the Nazarene..."

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Indianapolis, Indiana

Registration, housing now open for General Assembly 2017

Excitement is growing as Nazarenes from around the world anticipate gathering for worship, fellowship, and business next summer in Indianapolis, Indiana, USA, at the 2017 General Assembly and Conventions. Housing and event registration is now open.
The General Assembly is the "supreme doctrine-formulating, lawmaking, and elective authority of the Church of the Nazarene" (Manual, 300). The General Assembly and auxiliary conventions (Nazarene Missions International, Nazarene Youth International, and Sunday School and Discipleship Ministries International) convene every four years, bringing together Nazarenes from around the globe.
The General Assembly Arrangements Office has established a housing block of approximately 3,400 rooms near the Indiana Convention Center. This number is based upon past attendance figures, expected popularity of the site, and the Arrangements Office’s best projections for attendance. All hotels are within walking distance of the Indiana Convention Center. Hotel prices range from US$124 to $170 per night plus tax (currently 17 percent per night).
By contracting hotel rooms, the Church of the Nazarene secures the convention center at no cost and is able to be good stewards of its resources. As with any contract, there is a legal obligation with financial penalties should we not meet the agreed terms. Delegates and visitors are encouraged to stay within the housing block to ensure these obligations are met and that the church does not incur penalties.
Visitors (non-delegates) from the USA and Canada can register now for General Assembly 2017 and make hotel reservations. Registration is available at nazarene.org/ga The event will begin June 21 and run through June 30.
Visitors from outside the USA and Canada may register and make reservations through their regional general assembly coordinator. They may contact their regional office for details.To register as a USA/Canada visitor, check hotel availability, and make a reservation, please click here or visit the General Assembly and Conventions website at nazarene.org/ga.

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Philippines, Asia-Pacific Region

Churches respond as Typhoon Haima hits PhilippinesTyphoon Haima (locally known as Lawin) hit the northern Philippines in the early morning hours of October 20, making it the 12th typhoon to hit the Philippines this year and the second in a week.
More than two million people were affected by the typhoon and at least eight people died amidst flooding, landslides, and power outages. At least 44 Nazarene churches and 24 preaching points were impacted by the typhoon.
Nazarene Disaster Response teams are conducting rapid assessments and reporting back as they are able given the electricity and communications disruptions in many areas. Several churches served as shelters for neighboring families.
As teams continue their assessments, Nazarene Compassionate Ministries relief goods and Crisis Care Kits previously shipped and warehoused in Manila are being moved into the affected areas.
Continued prayer is requested for those who have been and will be impacted by Typhoon Haima as it moves over Hong Kong and heads toward southern China. Prayer is also requested for Nazarene Disaster Response members conducting rapid assessments.[Church of the Nazarene Asia-Pacific Region]

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Middle East

Nazarene schools in Middle East teach refugee children to hopeIn the five and a half years since Syria began experiencing a complicated, brutal civil war, more than 400,000civilians have died in the crossfire. Another 11 million have left their homes to flee violence or persecution, either displaced within the country or living as refugees outside its borders. That number represents fully half the pre-war population of the country. The vast majority of Syrian refugees are living in neighboring countries in the Middle East, including Jordan and Lebanon. Almost 2 million refugees from Syria are living in those two countries, where Nazarene churches have been ministering to the growing numbers of refugees in their communities for more than four years.
The process for Syrian refugees to obtain legal work permits in Jordan is costly and difficult, and Lebanon has chosen not to issue work permits. As a result, the vast majority of refugee families are living below the poverty line in their host countries. Parents struggle to provide the basic necessities for their children, and the costs related to schooling for children is out of reach for most refugee families. Jordan and Lebanon do not have the resources and infrastructure to provide free public education to all of the children living there as refugees, and hundreds of thousands of children have lost out on years of schooling. Experts warn that without education, the children born to the war in Syria will become a “lost generation.”
In response to the needs of refugee families in their communities, Nazarene churches in Jordan and Lebanon have been working to address the problems of poverty and hunger and education for children. Over the course of four years, churches have provided food and household supplies for many thousands, and Nazarene schools have provided education for hundreds of children affected by the war.
In Jordan, church leaders recently completed the construction of a training center geared for those living as refugees, including those from both Syria and Iraq. The center offers English classes at various levels, handcrafts training, and computer courses, along with Bible studies and children’s activities. Currently more than 110 students are taking English classes.
In addition to food aid and education, one church in Lebanon is also making sure refugee families can access health care. They recently set up a clinic that received more than 200 patients over the few days it was open. Congregations in Lebanon are helping resettle both Syrian and Iraqi families, who have fled their countries for similar reasons. They are currently providing food packages to 210 families a month with plans to increase the number to 300 in January, as well as providing hot meals and fellowship for a smaller number through the Agape Table ministry.
Nazarene schools in both Jordan and Lebanon are also providing scholarships to children living as refugees who would not otherwise have an opportunity to continue their education. In Lebanon, the church is also providing informal education to children through STEP, the Syrian Temporary Education Program.
In addition to addressing gaps in education, the schools and educational programs must address the psychological and social needs of children who have been traumatized by war and displacement.
Tarek* and his family fled from Syria when they began to fear for their lives. When they arrived in Jordan a few years ago, they were exhausted, homeless, and out of money. The trauma Tarek experienced manifested as a speech impediment, making him an easy target for bullies in his new home.
“Actually, I was destroyed from the inside out,” said Tarek, now age 11.
When he began attending the Nazarene school nearby, he slowly experienced healing. Not only did he catch up in his school work after missing years of formal education, but his speech problems also subsided.
“Thanks for the Nazarene school for helping me to feel that I’m still a human being,” he said.
Like Tarek, Halil* and his family fled the violence and persecution in their homeland. Haili’s father was kidnapped in Syria, and his mother took him and his brother to safety in Lebanon.
Unable to afford to pay for her boys’ education, Halil’s mother turned to the Nazarene school in their new neighborhood.
“I love my mom,” Halil said. “She sacrificed so much for us.”
Halil says that school is a struggle sometimes, but he knows it will help him achieve his dreams and help improve life for his family.
“The Nazarene school always encourages us and gives us hope to continue our education,” he said. “They are like a family to me and they help me move forward and evolve in life.”
Halil has also found hope in his newfound faith. “My spiritual life is great,” he said. “I know Jesus, and I took Him as a personal savior.”
With no end to the violence in Syria in sight, families like Tarek’s and Halil’s continue to seek refuge in Lebanon and Jordan. Right now, the countries are collectively hosting almost 2 million people. Half of them are children.
Children living as refugees in Lebanon and Jordan have experienced death, fear, and dehumanization in a way that no one should ever experience. As Nazarene schools have provided a place of safety and stability for children living as refugees, they have opened the door to healing.
This year’s NCM Christmas Project will provide more scholarships so children can experience healing and hold on to hope for the future.
To learn more or support education for children living as refugees, visit ncm.org/Christmas.[Nazarene Compassionate Ministries]*All children’s names have been changed for their protection and safety.

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Kansas City, Missouri

NTS economic summit speakers discuss keys to develop givingJ. Clif Christopher addresses those attending the NTS economic summit.
Nazarene Theological Seminary's economic summit, “Funding Clergy and the Church in the New Millennium,” explored several realities pastors are currently facing.
J. Clif Christopher, the author of several books, including Not Your Parent’s Offering Plate: A New Vision for Financial Stewardship, explained in his keynote address that all pastors should be able to answer the question “Why should we give to you?”
Christopher told the group the church has done a poor job of articulating its mission and saying thank you to contributors over the last three decades.
“The church used to receive 60 percent of all charitable contributions in America. Today, it’s 31 percent,” Christopher said. “You need to understand that you are in a competitive environment. And it’s not that you’re competing against the Baptists and the Methodists and the Lutherans and the independents. You are competing against one-and-a-half million nonprofits in America who are making their case.”
The failure of churches to tell their story of changed lives and saying “thank you” to contributors were high on Christopher’s list of why churches have seen reduced giving. He emphasized that many pastors can’t say thank you to their contributors because they don’t know who is or isn’t giving to the church.
“It doesn’t serve the Kingdom that our head person is not in many cases even able to go up to a major donor and say thank you because the church doesn’t let ‘em know,” Christopher said. “Every other nonprofit thanks that person for that gift except for the church.”
Molly Marshall, president of Central Baptist Theological Seminary, addressed the question “Can the church and the minister afford each other?”
Marshall cited a study by the Lilly Endowment that indicates educational debt is making it difficult for those pursuing pastoral ministry to follow their call for economic reasons.
“What it costs to prepare for effective ministry may never be fully discharged if one stays in ministry unless there are some radical changes,” she said. “I believe churches will continue if they are nimble, if they are service oriented, if they are missional. As they learn to be outwardly focused for the sake of their community, they will flourish in gospel witness. But they may not be able to afford all of the amenities or the same staffing.”
The summit included a panel discussion of matters related to church and clergy economic issues. It featured Christopher and Dan Copp, Nazarene education commissioner and Global Clergy Development director; Jerry Kester, superintendent of the Washington Pacific District; Megan Pardue, bi-vocational senior pastor of Refuge, a church-type mission in Raleigh, North Carolina; Bill Sawyer, a former bi-vocational pastor currently serving as chief administrative officer of the Church of the Nazarene's Global Ministry Center; Carla Sunberg, NTS president, and Don Walter, director of Pensions and Benefits USA.
The summit was sponsored by Pensions and Benefits USA, Nazarene Theological Seminary, the denomination's USA/Canada Region, and Stewardship Ministries. Videos of the keynote addresses and the panel discussion are available for viewing here.[Pensions and Benefits USA]

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Mesoamerica

Flags of the Nations: Dominican RepublicThe blue on the flag stands for liberty, the white for salvation, the red for the blood of heroes.
Since September 1, 2009, the Church of the Nazarene's Global Ministry Center (GMC) proudly flies a flag each week of one of the many nations in which the denomination is present in ministry. Leaders were invited to send a national flag to be flown at the GMC alongside the flag of the United States*. The national flags rotate weekly, and photos of them raised are sent to the church leaders of that country.
This week: Dominican Republic
The Church of the Nazarene officially entered Dominican Republic in 1974.
Dominican Republic had a population of 10,478,756 in 2015. That same year, Dominican Republic reported 180 Churches of the Nazarene, 177 of which have been officially organized. Dominican Republic has 15,071 total members.
Located on the Mesoamerica Region, Dominican Republic has one Phase 3 district and four Phase 2 districts. For more information about the Mesoamerica Region, visit mesoamericaregion.org.
* = The weekly highlighted flag is raised on the middle of three poles in compliance with U.S. government protocols. It flies to the left of the GMC host-nation United States flag, which flies above the host-state flag of Kansas. The Christian flag flies on the third pole.
The Global Ministry Center is the mission and service hub of the Church of the Nazarene.

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South America
Pilar, Argentina

South America pastors, district superintendents focus on Living the Great Commission
District superintendents and pastors involved in “Living the Great Commission,” an initiative of the South America Region, met for a retreat from October 3 through 6 at the South America Region Convention Center in Pilar, Argentina.
The event began Monday with 62 district superintendents from across South America. Regional Director Christian Sarmiento shared Vision 2020 and Jonathan Salgado addressed the holistic health of those who serve God. Ildo Mello, a bishop in the Free Methodist Church, shared from experience about revival and the universal priesthood of believers. General Superintendent Eugénio Duarte presented a messaged called "Created for Mission."
On Wednesday, 94 pastors joined the conference. North Andean Field Strategy Coordinator Dwight Rich delivered a devotional illustrating situations from his personal life and ministry. Lucas Leys, director of e625, presented on “The Best Leader from History” based on his book. Salgado led other sessions called “Pastoral Leadership Today” and “Pastoral Dangers.” Mello addressed “A Wesleyan perspective of Pastoral Care” and “Entire Sanctification as a Platform for Missions and Evangelism.”
The final afternoon session consisted of an open forum about the “Living the Great Commission” where inspiring testimonies were shared, adaptations for different situations were made, and a time of questions and answers was held to clarify points of the initiative in the remaining months.
The conference ended with a message from Duarte and Communion led by Brazil Sub-Regional Director Manuel Lima.
For a recap video, click here. [Church of the Nazarene South America Region]