NAD Ministerial Convention - June 28 - July 1, 2015 - Austin, TX
Fresh Strength MSA
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April 1, 2014 
Donna Jackson
Donna Jackson
Ministerial Spouses
Association leader

From the pen 

of Donna... 

 

 

Hi friends,

 

What do each of the following innovators of highly-impactful ministries have in common?

  • Established and directed an E-Van-gelism ministry to take the gospel directly to the people on the streets of New York City along with literature, food, health screening and intensive prayer counseling. Hosted and produced a television program, "Power to Cope," which aired in New York and nationally. In their retirement, she and her husband set up a non-profit Christian message tourist ministry, A Key Encounter, which she has directed since 2007. --Juanita Kretschmar    
  • After a career in education as a teacher and principal, she began to train women in evangelism in her 50s. She has witnessed more than 2,000 people accept Jesus Christ during her own preaching and with those of whom she trained,. --Nicolle Brise   
  • Founded a non-profit organization, Women's Health & Empowerment Network, which addresses domestic violence and sexual abuse from a Christian perspective with four healing centers in the United States and affiliate programs in the UK and Africa, and has done training in many countries. --Mable Dunbar   
  • Re-enrolled in school in her 50s, completing family counseling studies, and soon after began a Hispanic family evangelism ministry. Preached around the world and on television, resulting in the Holy Spirit bringing more than 40,000 individuals to God's kingdom. --Adly Campos    

You probably guessed it: They are all ministerial spouses in our Division who possess a passionate love for God, their families and the people in their world. In this issue of Fresh Strength, you can view these and many others who weren't afraid to say, "Yes!" to God's leading - from Alaska and northern Manitoba in the North to Texas and the tip of Florida in the South, and from Guam in the far West to Bermuda in the East. Praise God that He invites each of us to partner with Him -- whether from a wheelchair or at full-run -- in a ministry tailor-made to suit our unique self and the needs that surround us.

 

Friends, do you also know that we have launched an exciting ministerial spouses evangelism initiative that you can be a part of, along with your pastor-husband and church family? You can download the brochure here to find out more about it. In two weeks look for a special Fresh Strength newsletter featuring stories of ministerial spouses who have been involved in this initiative.

 

We'd love to feature your ministry story in another issue. Please send in a 90-second or so video, or short article, and help us spread the good news of how God is at work in your life and ministry. May God bless your "Yes!"to Him! 

TAKE OUR SURVEY ...
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Ministry Spouses Tracks 

We extend a warm invitation to all spouses of ministers (of both genders) employed by the Adventist Church in the North American Division to attend the June 28-July 1, 2015 Ministerial Convention in Austin, Texas. This convention will feature tracks for ministerial spouses and children 3 years and up.   


Please take a couple of minutes to complete a survey regarding the topics that you would like featured at the ministerial spouses meetings.  

 

Click here to take the survey.

FAITH ALIVE! 
Barbara Livesay
The Other Side 
of Stewardship

Barbara Livesay's parents made difficult decisions that honored God, but sometimes their commitment resulted in financial challenges and losses for their family. Listen as Barbara tells how their faithful examples blessed her and her husband, Pastor Don Livesay, who wrote about his in-laws in his President's Perspective, (page 3)

 

Barbara serves as an associate superintendent of education in the Lake Union Conference of SDAs. She lives in Berrien Springs, Mich., with her husband, Don, who is president of the Lake Union. They have two married daughters, and were blessed with their fourth grandchild in August.

TEAM MINISTRY
Partners in Ministry

 

Kathleen and Pastor Ivan Williams have served in ministry together for more than 20 years. In an interview, conducted by Claudio and Pamela Consuegra, the Williamses share some of the things they learned on their journey. 

 

Kathleen is a Human Resources benefits specialist with Westat Research Company, a leading research company in the U.S. Pastor Ivan is director of the Ministerial Department of the North American Division. The Consuegras are the directors of the Family Ministries Department of the North American Division.

 

View Part I

View Part II

Couples Counseling Couples

 

After decades of providing pre-marriage counseling, Pastor Dave Gemmell discovered the service was enhanced by great magnitude when his wife, Eileen Gemmell, joined the team. Since then, the Gemmells have conducted pre-marriage counseling as a team, preparing new couples using the PREPARE/ENRICH Assessment tools. As a result, Eileen says they have strengthened their own marriage. 

 

Pastor Dave is associate director of the Ministerial Department of the North American Division, and Eileen is a family nurse practitioner. This interview is conducted by 
Pastor Ivan Williams, director of the Ministerial Department of the North American Division, and his wife, Kathleen Williams, a Human Resources benefits specialist.

 

View here

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Growing Closer in Ministry 

 

Pastoral spouse Kathleen McKey and her husband, Duane McKey, reminisce about their long journey serving as a pastoral leadership team in the Seventh-day Adventist denomination. This segment is part of the "Keeping It Real" project produced by the North American Division Ministerial Spouses Association for "Pastor's DVD 20," released January 2012 to all pastors of the Division.

 

Kathleen McKey is the Southwestern Union Conference Ministerial Spouses Association director, and Duane McKey is a vice president and ministerial director of the Southwestern Union Conference.

 

View here

TOGETHER FOR A PURPOSE

Karen Holford
Karen Holford

 

Together for a Purpose: 

Finding a Shared Ministry  

 
Ministering together is not for every ministry couple. It has profound challenges as well as joys, and working on a shared project isn't always easy. We may still find ourselves doing some of the work alone, and may still struggle with our different ideas about how and what we should do, but many couples find that even a small shared ministry can enhance their closeness and happiness. "Two are better than one," writes the teacher of Ecclesiastes, "because they have a good reward for their labor" (Ecclesiastes 4:9, NKJV).

 

Read more to discover God's unique ministry for your marriage.
 
Prolific author Karen Holford lives in Scotland, where she works as a couples and family therapist. She and her pastor-husband, Bernie, have lived and ministered together for three decades. 
COUNSELORS CORNER
De Leons
Carolann and C�sar 
De Le�n
Where do I turn 
for help?

 

Question: I need help! My pastor-husband and I always have had problems communicating. Though we have been married 12 years, I just can't take it anymore. He gets very angry when I tell him he is not listening to my heart, and says I am too emotional and needy. 

 

My husband spends most of the day in his church office, and then comes home for dinner before leaving again to visit or give Bible studies. 

We have two children who attend school, and they hardly see their father. Read more

 

_____________________________________________________ 

Click here to submit questions to the counselors, Carolann and C�sar De Le�n.

MINISTRY STORIES
Ministry Spouse Stories 

Click on each picture to read their story.


Mabel Dunbar Cynthia Nguyen Cheryl Knowles  

      Mabel Dunbar          Cynthia Nguyen         Cheryl Knowles  

Maureen Tap Juanita Kretschmar
     Maureen Tapp       Juanita Kretschmar       Herbert Eisele
 Judy Evenson null null
      Judy Evenson           Paula Johnson            Adly Campos

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Your ministry exploits will inspire other ministerial spouses. Please share them.

In This Issue
Take Our Survey
The Other Side of Stewardship
Partners in Ministry
Together for a Purpose
Counselors Corner
Ministry Spouse Stories
Prayer and Praise

He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When they are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us.
 
II Corinthians 1:4 NLT

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On the MSA Facebook page, share with the other ministerial spouses how the Lord comforted you this week.

 

Submit a personal prayer request. Each prayer request will be prayed for individually.
Special 
Prayer Requests
Edward DeVasher

Please pray for continued healing for 17 month old Edward, son of Pastor Kameron and Emilie DeVasher and grandson of Elder Ted and Nancy Wilson. If you want to keep up with Emilie and Kameron's blog, go to: posthope.org/edward 


Ministerial Spouses Evangelism

Please pray for the ministerial spouses evangelism initiatives throughout the North American Division.
Artistic Musings
Rachel Hyman Gutierrez
Sings "V'ahafta"

 

Listen to Rachel Hyman Gutierrez sing "V'ahafta," a song from her Jewish heritage. She grew up in a Jewish family and became a Seventh-day Adventist in 2000. Since then, she has been involved in several capacities, including doing Bible work, literature evangelism and Jewish music ministry. She performs for religious Jews and Christian audiences alike, singing about the Lord she loves and introducing many, for the first time, to the soulful quality of Hebrew music and opening hearts to the majesty of our Maker. Rachel also is co-host of the 3ABN program, "Back to Our Roots," which explores the Hebrew roots of our Christian faith. Last year, Rachel married Gabriel Gutierrez, a pastor in the Rocky Mountain Conference, and they reside in Wyoming.

To learn more about Rachel, visit her website.

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Carol Torres performs "The Holy City" 
with her husband, 
Louis Torres
 
Listen to the Torreses play "The Holy City." Carol Torres is an accomplished violinist and wife of Pastor Louis Torres, president of the Guam-Micronesia Mission. In addition to creating a musical recording together, Carol has co-authored a book with her husband and has assisted in running the Mission College of Evangelism.

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In this section, we want to feature what you have created: a poem you've written, a painting you've completed or original music you've performed, etc. Submit here.   

Fit for Life
Gina Guiboche
Managing Your Weight
 
Watch Gina Guiboche, Ministerial Spouse from The Pas, Manitoba, Canada and co-host of Native New Health, share useful advice for
managing your weight with a no-nonsense lifestyle change that works.

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Share health tips that work for you, like how you lost weight; healthy, quick, delicious recipes; depression busters, etc.
Something to Ponder

TICK TOCK

 

Imagine there is a bank account that credits your account each morning with $86,400. It carries over no balance from day to day. What would you do? Draw out every cent? Of course you would!  

 

Each of us has such a bank. Its name is "Time." Every morning it credits you with 86,400 seconds. Every night it writes off as lost whatever seconds you have failed to invest to a good purpose. It carries over no balance. It allows no overdraft. 

 

Each day it opens a new account for you. Each night it burns the remains of the day. If you fail to use the deposits, the loss is yours. There is no drawing against tomorrow.

 

You must live in the present on today's deposits. 

Tomorrow, for some, may never come.  

 

What have you done with your time today for the Lord? Have you wasted it, doing what you thought was important, or did you do what the Lord asked you to do?  

 

Make the most of today. Invest in the time you have been given so when the Lord comes, He will be able to say, "Welcome home, my faithful servant."  

 

The clock is running.

 

Unknown author. Shared by Becky Johnson

 
Fresh Strength is published by the Ministerial Spouses Association of NAD Ministerial. Publisher: Ivan L. Williams; Editor: Donna Jackson; Managing Editor: Diane Thurber; Editorial Assistant: Henry Juarez. Copyright 2012 North American Division Corporation of Seventh-day Adventists. v(301) 680-6418