| The Official eNewsletter of the Anglican Mission in the Americas
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Dear ,
As families gather for Thanksgiving next week, I
encourage you to offer praise in your own way for all the Lord has done in our
midst. We have such blessings to share in our individual families, in our local
faith communities and in the life of the Anglican Mission. Consider the words
of Psalm 100 as we seek to faithfully serve the Lord in our day and time:
Make a joyful noise
unto the LORD, all ye lands.
Serve the LORD with
gladness: come before his presence with singing.
Know ye that the
LORD he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his
people, and the sheep of his pasture.
Enter into his gates
with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and
bless his name.
For the LORD is
good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations.
Blessings,
Cynthia Brust
Director of Communications, Anglican Mission in the Americas
Click below to send a copy of Currents to a friend.  |
Only Two Months Until
Winter Conference 2010!
Don't miss out on
discounted early bird registration for Winter Conference. Register today!
Who's Who?
Click here to learn about our wonderful line-up of Winter Conference plenary speakers!
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A Great Advent Read
Do sheep really know
their shepherd's voice? How often does a grapevine need to be pruned? What does
it mean for a land to be described as overflowing with honey?
Critically acclaimed author Margaret Feinberg invites
readers on a spiritual (and real life) adventure for deeper insight about how
scripture applies to life today.
In her quest to better understand what God wants to
communicate through the Bible, Feinberg explores the symbols and metaphors
within the stories. To discover these deeper meanings, she spent time with a
shepherdess in Oregon, walked the fields with a farmer in Nebraska, explored a
vineyard of California, and talked with a veteran beekeeper in Colorado. Along
the way, this modern woman discovered surprising answers to puzzling ancient questions.Back to top
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CHURCH PLANT UPDATE
Addison Texas Welcomes Restoration
Following four months of preparation, the Rev. Jed Roseberry (left)
and team launched Restoration Church in Addison, Texas, (north of Dallas) with
an opening service on Sunday, October 18. Over 200 people, including family and
friends from Christ Church Plano across the city, attended the celebration.
In order to let people in the surrounding neighborhoods know
about Restoration, the launch team used tools such as a direct mail campaign to
20,000 households in the area, handed out flyers door-to-door and utilized
social networking.
Jed's wife Stacy says, "Words cannot even describe the
amazing ways that God brought everything together. It was a glorious morning!"
Meeting in what was once a restaurant with staging for
entertainment, worshippers found places to sit atop bar stools and on cushioned
booths around the perimeter of the room.
"Our unconventional worship space helps people get over any
preconceived ideas they might have about church," shares Jed.
Jed kicked off the morning with the first of a series of
sermons addressing questions people have about God but have not always felt
comfortable asking in church. "We want to be a church that walks with people
through real life issues," said Jed.
Worship team at Restoration
For more information check out the Restoration website.
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Mission Network News from Heart
of North America
Regional Retreat Renews Hearts and Sets Course for
2010
Forty
leaders gathered for worship, powerful teaching and fellowship October 22-24 at
the Heart of North America region's (HONA) annual retreat held at Pokagon Park
in northeast Indiana. Bishop Doc Loomis and other Anglican Mission leaders
spoke on "Renewing Our Hearts," addressing the various challenges of ministry
including the importance of balancing and guarding personal and family life, the
need for discipline in the church and the value of sharpening preaching skills.
Andy
Piercy, Director of Worship Development for the Anglican Mission, led worship
and offered two teaching sessions in which he described worship as a key tool
in successful church planting and growth. Andy was joined by his wife Judy who
shared her ALPHA testimony and encouraged HONA leaders to put this proven discipleship
and evangelism program into practice.
Special
guest Sayward Elliott, the Anglican Mission's Interim Coordinator of the Student
Ministry Initiative, joined the retreat to share ministry news and to field
questions about beginning youth ministries in smaller church plants like those
that make up most of the HONA region.
Casting a
vision for next year, Bishop Loomis outlined plans to plant and
nurture 20 new congregations. HONA will also focus on four initiatives
for 2010: discipleship, mentoring new church planters, worship arts and
regional fundraising.
Read more here.
City Ministry Blossoms
Retaking our downtowns is something very much in the heart
of the Anglican Mission's church planting efforts. But this difficult calling
requires strong faith and tireless determination. New works in cities usually
begin quite small, sometimes with just a husband and his wife.
Increasingly over
the last year, young pastors are
joining HONA with a passion for picking up and moving to a new place to set up
"Kingdom shop" in city centers. HONA leaders have settled in urban areas
of Ohio, Pennsylvania, Indiana, Michigan and Kentucky as part of a vibrant
movement that is carrying Christ back into the inner-cities.
HONA
Lay Pastor Dean Simmer and his wife Giles spent the summer months getting to
know their neighbors and spending time getting their hands dirty in Corktown, a
gang-laden community of inner-city Detroit.
HONA News
St. Barnabas
New Way Corktown
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Roanoke church dedicates new sanctuary
Bishop Terrell Glenn was on hand last month when Church of the Holy Spirit, Roanoke, Virginia, celebrated the dedication of their new 1000-seat church.
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Thanking God for A Safe Landing
As an
experienced business traveler, Mark Hood knew something was wrong when his
flight from La Guardia took a left turn moments after take-off. But it was his
faith, Hood told the congregation at the Church of the Apostles in October, that
braced him for whatever happened next.
Hood attends King of Kings Church in Charlotte, North
Carolina,
and was one of the passengers on Flight 1549 that landed in the Hudson
River in January of this year. He and wife Lisa recently visited Church of
the Apostles in Fairfield, Connecticut, to give testimony of God's glory and
faithfulness through that harrowing experience.
Excerpts from Connecticut
Post
Read more here.
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 Bishop Ng Launches 100 Days of Prayer
For phase two of 100 Days of Prayer, Bishop Silas
Ng is focusing on the power of the Holy Spirit. Read the excerpt below and visit his blog for the full
entry:
"But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit
comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and
Samaria, and to the ends of the earth." Acts 1: 8
Jesus told His disciples to wait for the power of
the Holy Spirit, and they waited. Without that power, they could not do
anything. They learned that the hard way, and so they waited. Have you
waited enough until you receive the power of the Holy Spirit to do His Kingdom
work?
Sign up here to participate in our 2nd phase 100 days/24 hours Prayer
Campaign, November 29, 2009 to March 8, 2010.
Dial in daily to
Bishop Ng's daily Devotion on Fire blog.
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NEW BLOG
call2disciple
By Thad and Erilynne
Barnum
Learn more about being a disciple of Jesus
Christ, check out Ariel Ministries' new blogspot, written by Anglican Mission
Bishop Thad Barnum and his wife Erilynne.
Their new blog is also on Facebook
and Twitter at call2disciple.
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