To Zambia and Back

Claire Devereaux (in the middle) will be at Whitestone on Sunday, September 29, at 9:30 AM, to tell the story of her trip to Zambia this summer. Here are a few photos from the Teen Missions website to whet your appetite for what she will be sharing.

And just think for a minute: What impact might it have on a young person to take them to a completely different country completely out of their comfort zone...

To put them with other young people they have never met and to form them into a Christian community...

To create opportunities for them to interact with the people and culture of the land they are strangers in...

 To put them to work side by side with the people they have come to serve...

In short, to give them a close up, real time, person-to-person view of a world they have never seen before?

It might just change their life! Come and hear Claire tell her story this Sunday.

Newsline, September 27, 3013

Newsline The Church of the Brethren e-mail news service

Sept. 27, 2013 1) Preachers are announced for Annual Conference 2014, nominations are sought for next year’s elections. 2) Coordinators of NYC 2014 issue challenge for Brethren youth to exceed capacity at host university. 3) BBT eliminates position of manager of Pension Operations. 4) Clergy Women's Retreat is planned for January in southern California. 5) ‘Prodigal Christianity’ author to speak at General Offices, Bethany, N. Ohio District. 6) Advent devotional, outdoor ministry curriculum are among new resources from Brethren Press. 7) Feature: Bethany president focuses on making seminary a priority for the church.     8) Brethren bits: Shine seeks writers, National Childhood Obesity Awareness Month, banquet for Carlisle Truck Stop Ministry, concern for Christians in Pakistan following church bombing, and more. Read the full text of this Newsline in one document at www.brethren.org/news/2013/newsline-for-sept-27-2013.html ******************************************** Quote of the week“What if so many people registered for National Youth Conference (NYC) that Colorado State University ran out of room to house everyone?” -- The NYC coordinators challenging Brethren to send so many youth to Fort Collins for the conference next July that staff will have the “delightful problem” of having to figure out where to house them all. See the full story below. ******************************************** 1) Preachers are announced for Annual Conference 2014, nominations are sought for next year’s elections. The list of preachers and others who will be leading worship at the 2014 Annual Conference of the Church of the Brethren has been announced. The 2014 Annual Conference takes place in Columbus, Ohio, on July 2-6, aWednesday through Sunday schedule. Delegate registration opens in early January. General registration will open in mid-February. Also from the Conference Office: a call for nominations for offices to be filled through elections at the 2014 Conference. “Please prayerfully consider nominating persons for leadership,” said the Conference office. Read the full story at www.brethren.org/news/2013/preachers-are-announced-for-annual-conference-2014.html 2) Coordinators of NYC 2014 issue challenge for Brethren youth to exceed capacity at host university. What if so many people registered for National Youth Conference (NYC) that Colorado State University ran out of room to house everyone? That’s the challenge NYC coordinators Katie Cummings, Tim Heishman, and Sarah Neher are issuing to Brethren youth and to the denomination as a whole. Read the full story at www.brethren.org/news/2013/coordinators-of-nyc-2014-issue-challenge.html 3) BBT eliminates position of manager of Pension Operations. Given the ongoing challenges of providing a competitive and cost effective Pension Plan to members, Brethren Benefit Trust (BBT) has concluded that the agency needs to refocus resources. Therefore, BBT has taken another step to streamline the Benefits Department and has eliminated the position of Manager of Pension Operations, which has been held by John Carroll. Read the full story at www.brethren.org/news/2013/bbt-eliminates-position-in-pension-operations.html 4) Clergy Women's Retreat is planned for January in southern California. “Hand in Hand, Heart to Heart: On the Journey Together” is the theme for the Clergy Women’s Retreat early next year. The event is to be held Jan. 13-16, 2014, at the Serra Retreat Center in Malibu, Calif., sponsored by the Church of the Brethren Office of Ministry. Leading the retreat will be Melissa Wiginton, vice president for Education Beyond the Walls at Austin Seminary. Read the full story at www.brethren.org/news/2013/clergy-womens-retreat-is-planned-for-2014.html 5) ‘Prodigal Christianity’ author to speak at General Offices, Bethany, N. Ohio District. The Church of the Brethren is hosting David Fitch on a speaking tour Oct. 21-23. Workshops and lectures take place at the Church of the Brethren General Offices in Elgin, Ill.; Bethany Theological Seminary in Richmond, Ind.; and the Northern Ohio District Office in Ashland, Ohio. An additional event takes place at Ashland Theological Seminary. Read the full story at www.brethren.org/news/2013/prodigal-christianity-author-to-speak.html 6) Advent devotional, outdoor ministry curriculum are among new resources from Brethren Press. “Good News of Great Joy,” the Advent devotional from Brethren Press, and “Get Real: Finding Your True Self in Jesus,” the outdoor ministries camping curriculum for the summer of 2014, are now available. Purchase these and more resources from Brethren Press at 800-441-3712 or www.brethrenpress.com. A shipping and handling charge will be added to the listed price. Read the full story at www.brethren.org/news/2013/advent-devotional-outdoor-ministries-curriculum.html 7) Feature: Bethany president focuses on making seminary a priority for the church. This interview with Jeff Carter, the new president at Bethany Theological Seminary in Richmond, Ind., was provided to Newsline by Frank Ramirez, pastor of Everett (Pa.) Church of the Brethren. Ramirez interviewed Carter while both were at National Older Adult Conference in early September. “I want Bethany to be your first thought in theological education,” Carter said, “and I want Bethany to be your first thought as a church resource.” Read the full interview at www.brethren.org/news/2013/bethany-president-focuses-on-making-seminary-a-priority.html 8) Brethren bits. This week: Shine seeks curriculum writers, September is National Childhood Obesity Awareness Month, a banquet celebrates Carlisle Truck Stop Ministry, solidarity and concern for Christians in Pakistan following the bombing of All Saints Church, and much more. Read the full Brethren bits at www.brethren.org/news/2013/brethren-bits-for-sept-27.html Contributors to this issue of Newsline include Joshua Brockway, Dana Cassell, Chris Douglas, Mary Jo Flory-Steury, Tim Heishman, Donna Kline, Jeff Lennard, Donna March, Jay Wittmeyer, and editor Cheryl Brumbaugh-Cayford, director of News Services for the Church of the Brethren. The next regularly scheduled issue of Newsline is planned for Oct. 4.

eBrethren, September 25, 2013

eBrethren
Sharing inspirational stories of Brethren Stewards in action. Problems viewing this e-mail? View as a web page.
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September 25, 2013   Help the Haiti Medical Project Click here. CONTENTS Our global community Did you know? Gathering stories Kendra Johnson, manager of the office of Global Mission and Service. Read more about Global Mission and Service ministries online atwww.brethren.org/partners . Photos by Mandy Garcia. Pray through the monthly Global Prayer Guide at www.brethren.org/partners . Become a mission advocate for your district or congregation. Find out how at www.brethren.org/missionadvocate .    Our global community Kendra Johnson is busy settling in as the new manager of the office of Global Mission and Service—and her focus, dedication to ministry, and passion for service make her a great fit for the job. Amid booking flights to South Sudan, wiring reimbursements to Haiti, and acting as liaison between 20 international workers and the Global Mission office, Kendra recently made time to tell me a bit about her new responsibility to tell stories of global community with the Church of the Brethren.—Mandy Garcia, associate director of Donor Communications What excites you about your new job? Global Mission and Service is a wide-ranging program area: There’s Brethren Volunteer Service, Brethren Disaster Ministries, Children’s Disaster Services, and theGlobal Food Crisis Fund as well as international missionpartnerships, including efforts with the Church of the Brethren in Nigeria, Haiti, Spain, Brazil, and the Dominican Republic, and additional mission workers in Vietnam, North Korea, South Sudan, and other countries. I’m excited to support the mission workers and volunteers that are serving around the world. Why are international partnerships important for the Church of the Brethren? The church exists to meet the needs of the world—concrete needs, and a need for hope. I’m passionate about the Church of the Brethren coming alongside sister churches in places like Haiti and Spain, supporting them as they develop their own path. They are sisters and brothers in our family, each doing church in their own way, forming a global community. How can eBrethren readers support/get involved in Global Mission and Service? eBrethren readers can go online to donate to Global Mission and Service, the Global Food Crisis Fund, or Brethren Disaster Ministries. They can stay informed by subscribing to the “Minute for Mission” e-newsletter, praying through the monthly prayer guide, and signing up to be a mission advocate for their congregation and/or district. What is a mission advocate? Mission advocates are volunteers who take up the responsibility to stay informed, know who’s in the field and what’s going on, and share with their congregation. That could mean a monthly, four-minute report to the congregation or helping at district conferences, all to keep our mission workers present in people’s minds. We’re working on getting mission advocates in each congregation and each district to build a wide network of support on different levels. How does stewardship relate to your work? One of my goals is to connect mission workers with the resources that Brethren can provide. That definitely includes financial stewardship, because of the huge cost of running these programs. But it’s a relational stewardship as well. It’s important to keep people who are in far-away countries present in the minds of people in Indiana or Virginia, so that they know who’s working on their behalf and can devote time to pray, or to sending a card, or to taking an offering. The fact that we have people in these places is really exciting, and this ministry couldn’t exist if it didn’t have the whole church's support in all its forms. We are all members of this global community. Kendra Johnson grew up in Cedar Falls, Iowa, and attended Dana College in Blair, Neb. She started as manager of Global Mission and Service on September 1, after completing her second term in Brethren Volunteer Service. Kendra enjoys eating ice cream, speaking German, and reusing plastic silverware. To learn more about Global Mission and Service visitwww.brethren.org/partners or e-mail Kendra atkjohnson@brethren.org . To support these life-changing ministries visit www.brethren.org/give. Forward to a friend Back to top www.brethren.org/church Did you know? Over 1,000 people visit the Church of the Brethren’s "Find a Church" web page each week. Is your congregation’s information up to date? Is there an e-mail address listed? If not, be sure to update your church’s information so that folks who are searching for your church can reach you. There are two ways to update information: Correct any information on “Form B,” which you will receive through the mail in the next few weeks. Or send updates, including your church’s e-mail address, to ebrethren@brethren.org . Thank you for keeping us connected! Donna Kline leading a workshop at the "Strengthening your small congregation" seminar in April.  Photo by Cheryl Brumbaugh-Cayford. Gathering together for deacon training at New Fairview Church of the Brethren earlier this year. "Listen and play: ministry with children in times of stress" workshop at this year's Annual Conference.Photo by Donna Kline. Gathering storiesBy Donna Kline, director of Deacon Ministry It was only mid-afternoon but already the parking lots were nearly full. People poured out of cars, SUVs, and pickup trucks, anxious to hug friends they’d been missing. The day they had been looking forward to for so long had finally come, and they were ready to enjoy time together. This is the beautiful scene I witnessed as I pulled into a Church of the Brethren district conference this summer. We certainly are a "gathering" people, aren’t we? In addition to regular worship gatherings, we gather in chronological cohorts at Junior High Conferences,National Youth Conferences, Young Adult Conferences, and the National Older Adult Conference. We gather to share our passion for ministries in new church development, spiritual direction, deacon ministry, workcamps, disaster recovery, intercultural ministry, and continuing education for pastors. Sometimes we gather just for the sake of gathering! But what happens when the gathered disperse? When youth come down from the "mountain high" of NYC, when the more "seasoned" Brethren board the buses after NOAC, when we shower and return home from cleaning up after a flood, when we turn off the lights in our sanctuaries and fellowship halls? How do we maintain that sense of community? It’s not easy, and, if I dare say so, we don’t always do it well. When I check in with deacons after completing a workshop, more often than not I hear that they just can’t get the rest of their deacon body to share their enthusiasm. It’s not unlike sharing a funny story, only to get a half-hearted smile in return. All we can think to say is, "I guess you had to be there." As much as we Brethren love our gatherings, we simply can’t always be there. But we can share what we learn—our experiences. As a denomination, we’re getting better at sharing our stories through publications likeMessenger, Basin & Towel, Newsline, and this note you’re reading now. Many of you read my deacon stories. But we know there are lots more stories out there of God’s presence in our gatherings, and we want to hear them. We may not always be able to gather shoulder to shoulder, but our shared stories can keep us close, gathered in community. If you have a story to share, send it toebrethren@brethren.org . If you’d like to read others’ stories, visit www.brethren.org/publications . To support the many ministries of the Church of the Brethren, visitwww.brethren.org/give . Thank you for sharing the journey! Forward to a friend Back to top Carl and Roxane Hill, teachers at Kulp Bible College in Nigeria. "Please lift up in prayer Carl and Roxane Hill as they return to Nigeria for another semester of teaching. Pray for health and wisdom as they resume work at Kulp Bible College near Mubi, Nigeria, after sharing their stories with brothers and sisters across the United States." —From Minute for Mission on September 17. Do you have a story about how you and your congregation practice stewardship? E-mail it to mgarcia@brethren.org ! eBrethren: Stories of Brethren Stewards, is produced every other week by the Church of the Brethren's donor communications team. Send feedback to mgarcia@brethren.org or call 847-742-5100 ext. 361. Thanks for reading!  Watch for our next issue on October 9, 2013.

Newsline, September 20, 2013

Newsline The Church of the Brethren e-mail news service

Sept. 20, 2013 "They will no longer learn how to make war" (Isaiah 2:4b, CEB). Quote of the week:“I’d like you to put my trauma center out of business.” -- Chief Medical Officer Dr. Janis Orlowski of MedStar Washington Hospital Center during a press briefing after victims of the shootings at the Navy Yard were brought to her hospital. “I may be the chief medical officer of a very large trauma center, but there’s something wrong here when we have these multiple shootings, these multiple injuries, there’s something wrong,” she said. “The only thing I can say is we have to work together to get rid of it.” She was quoted in a story on MSNBC. NEWS 1) Church leaders discuss moving Syria to peace; General Secretary attends with Syria, Russia, US, Europe leaders. 2) Bethany Theological Seminary welcomes new class for 2013-14. 3) Children’s Disaster Services to work in Colorado following floods. 4) United Nations holds second forum on ‘The Culture of Peace.’ 5) Mid-Atlantic District leader preaches at Antietam’s Dunker Church. PERSONNEL 6) William Waugh called to lead S. Pennsylvania District. UPCOMING EVENTS 7) Many Brethren congregations and communities plan to celebrate Peace Day. 8) Brethren bits: Correction, remembering Mary Workman and Mary Stowe and Olden Mitchell, a Brethren connection to the fragment of stained glass from 16th Street Baptist, and much more. Read the full text of this Newsline in one document at www.brethren.org/news/2013/newsline-for-sept-20-2013.html ******************************************** 1) Church leaders discuss moving Syria to peace; general secretary attends with Syrian, Russian, US, and European leaders. Church of the Brethren general secretary Stan Noffsinger was among a handful of American Christians at a World Council of Churches (WCC) meeting with church leaders from Russia, Syria, the United States, and Europe on Sept. 18 in Geneva, Switzerland. The meeting addressed the role of the church moving all parties in Syria toward a peace agreement. Kofi Annan, former United Nations secretary-general, and Lakhdar Brahimi, Joint Representative for Syria, joined the group of Christian leaders at the WCC Ecumenical Institute Center. Out of the meeting a communiqué was issued calling churches to continue to raise voices for peace in Syria. Read the full story at www.brethren.org/news/2013/christian-leaders-meet-about-syria.html 2) Bethany Theological Seminary welcomes new class for 2013-14. On Aug. 26-27, Bethany Theological Seminary welcomed new students for the 2013-14 academic year to orientation on the school’s campus in Richmond, Ind., including Alexandre Gonçalves from Brazil, a pastor and leader in Igreja da Irmandade (the Church of the Brethren in Brazil). Read the full story at www.brethren.org/news/2013/bethany-seminary-welcomes-new-class.html 3) Children’s Disaster Services to work in Colorado following floods. Children's Disaster Services (CDS) is actively assembling teams to support Multi-Agency Resource Centers in response to the Colorado floods. “CDS teams will deploy soon,” said a Facebook post this morning. “Please keep CDS and the affected children and their families in your prayers.” Read the full story at www.brethren.org/news/2013/childrens-disaster-services-to-work-in-colorado.html 4) United Nations holds second forum on ‘The Culture of Peace.’ Church of the Brethren United Nations representative Doris Abdullah reports on a Sept. 6 “Second High Level Forum on The Culture of Peace” held at the UN. The background for the forum is the passing of, by consensus, Resolution 53/243 on the Declaration and Program of Action on a Culture of Peace, followed by the implementation of the International Decade for Culture of Peace and Non-Violence for the Children of the World (2001-2010). Read the full story at www.brethren.org/news/2013/united-nations-holds-second-forum-on-culture-of-peace.html 5) Mid-Atlantic District leader preaches at Antietam’s Dunker Church. Both words and actions were evident and obvious at the 43rd annual Brethren Service at the Dunker Meetinghouse, the landmark and centerpiece of the Civil War battlefield at Antietam National Park. The service is held each year on the Sunday closest to the battle, which took place 151 years ago on Sept. 17, 1862. This year, the service centered on the words that were spoken by many that fateful day, with a sermon given by Gene Hagenberger, district executive of Mid-Atlantic District. Read the full story at www.brethren.org/news/2013/mid-atlantic-leader-preaches-at-antietam.html PERSONNEL 6) William Waugh called to lead S. Pennsylvania District. William A. (Bill) Waugh will begin as Southern Pennsylvania District executive minister on Jan. 1, 2014. He has 27 years of experience in pastoral ministry serving two congregations, Greensburg Church of the Brethren in Western Pennsylvania District since 1992 and Mohrsville Church of the Brethren in Atlantic Northeast District from 1985-92. Read the full story at www.brethren.org/news/2013/william-waugh-called-to-lead-s-pa.html UPCOMING EVENTS 7) Many Brethren congregations and communities plan to celebrate Peace Day. Peace Day will be celebrated on Sept. 21, and On Earth Peace and the Church of the Brethren Office of Public Witness have teamed up this year to invite Brethren congregations and groups to plan events on the theme “Who Will You Make Peace With?” On Earth Peace reports that more than 120 communities in 18 countries will be praying for peace this weekend. Also, this weekend marks the end date of the 3,000 Miles for Peace campaign. Read the full story at www.brethren.org/news/2013/many-brethren-churches-celebrating-peace-day.html 8) Brethren bits. In this issue: a correction, remembering Mary Workman and Mary Stowe and Olden Mitchell, and the story of the Brethren connection to the fragment of stained glass from 16th Street Baptist, among much more news about and for Brethren. Read the full Brethren bits at www.brethren.org/news/2013/brethren-bits-for-sept-20.html Contributors to this issue of Newsline include Mary Jo Flory-Steury, Matt Guynn, Michael Leiter, Harold Penner, Glen Phillips, Glen Sargent, John Wall, Christy Waltersdorff, David Young, and editor Cheryl Brumbaugh-Cayford, director of News Services for the Church of the Brethren. The next regularly scheduled issue of Newsline is planned for Sept. 27.

The NBA Ride

This is Shirley Devereaux on her Goldwing. She and Arlene Johnson, of the Whitestone congregation, like to travel, and sometimes they take the bike.

One of those times is the annual "NBA Ride." "NBA" stands for "No Boys Allowed." That's when Shirley and Arlene join several other women bikers from the Spokane area for a three day ride. This summer they rode to Fairmont Hot Springs in Canada.

Even though it's no boys allowed, Shirley says it is a mixed group: there are Hondas and Harleys on the ride. And even though sometimes the rumble of the Harleys sets off car alarms as they roll through a town, this is not a motorcycle gang you need to be afraid of.

No, these are Christian sisters and friends celebrating the bonds of Christian fellowship.

An essential part of their time together is Bible study, personal sharing, and prayer.

So the next time you're driving down the road and you hear the rumble of big bikes coming up behind you, get out of the way. But also wave! It could be the sisters of the NBA Ride.

Photos thanks to Shirley and Arlene.