June 30, 2010
“We see the world through the cross,” says Andy Kikuta, who has pastored Hawaii Kai (Alliance) Community Church for nearly 30 years. The Honolulu suburb of Hawaii Kai takes on a crimson hue viewed through a red cross centered in the middle of a “stained glass” window transparency. “That’s our community out there,” says Andy, pointing beyond the cross to the city skyline.
It’s All About Community
Andy’s passion is community outreach, which begins in the church. “We look to our own people first,” he says, “building them up to be Great Commission Christians. They, in turn, can reach out to people around them with Christ’s love and minister to their needs in whatever way that might be.”
The Hawaii Kai family connects with the community in countless ways through practical demonstrations of God’s love. Andy serves on the board of the Independence Day at Maunalua Bay Foundation (IDMBF), which hosts an annual Fourth of July benefit that provides scholarships for east Honolulu public high school students who desire to go to college.
Andy also serves as vice president in charge of the scholarship fund-raising and distribution, and the church rents a booth at the fireworks extravaganza each year. Hawaii Kai Community Church was the first church in the city to contribute to the fund, donating more than $500.
At the IDMBF festival on July 4, Hawaii Kai members will provide games for the kids and also distribute business-card-sized invitations to visit the church to the hundreds of people attending the celebration. “This event opens doors for us to meet people and build relationships,” Andy says. “Last year, our church gained a family through this outreach.”
Love Your Neighbor
Occasionally, Hawaii Kai Community Church “moonlights” as a coffeehouse, providing free refreshments and featuring a local band, Heartsong, of which Andy is a member. Friends and neighbors are invited to hear Heartsong’s smooth jazz and contemporary pop in a warm, friendly setting. “We had 78 people attend recently,” says Andy. “Only 28 were from the church.
“Through the years church members have shared the gospel through varying ministries in our church,” says Andy. “Much of our contact with lost people has come through one-on-one encounters, which we believe were divine appointments.
“Children and youth have come to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ through the witness of our Sunday school teachers and also through our partnership with Youth for Christ. One child accepted Jesus as his Savior, and he is still a part of our church as a young adult. Another young adult member shared the good news with a peer through friendship evangelism. The man became a believer and has been a solid church leader, consistently sharing his faith with others.”
Sometimes neighbors come to the church. “I have received calls for many things,” Andy recounts. “One morning, a friend was waiting at the front door when I arrived. He was crying as he told me that his grandson had choked on a gumball and died.” After offering a compassionate shoulder for his friend to lean on, Andy prayed for the man, who later began attending the church.
On Mission
Missions is always a priority at Hawaii Kai, whether at home or overseas. One way that the small church supports overseas missions is through an innovative stamp ministry that is facilitated by Alliance Women Ministries. Each year, thousands of used stamps are collected from around the world, including from the Hawaii Kai church family, and sent to Shell Point (Alliance) Retirement Community in Florida, where they are categorized and sold to wholesalers who buy them for distribution to collectors. All proceeds are designated for Publicaciones Alianza, a ministry in Argentina that produces curriculum emphasizing Scripture for youth in Latin America.
For 25 years, Andy also has served as an Alliance chaplain in the Honolulu Police Department. On more than one occasion during his tenure, Andy has been called upon to intervene in a life or death situation. When a man threatened to jump from a cliff to the rocky coastline below, it was Andy who went out on the slippery ledge and dissuaded the would-be jumper. “I have kept a pair of hiking boots in my police vehicle ever since that day,” he quips.
Living the Call
Holding fast to Christ’s Command in Matthew 28:19, Hawaii Kai is a disciplemaking church. “Recently, the people have rededicated themselves to being a Great Commandment and Great Commission church,” Andy says.
Hawaii Kai Community Church members are impacting their neighborhoods for Christ through every door that God opens, reaching lost and hurting people with the hope of the gospel.
“I have been preaching through our Alliance Core Values,” says the impassioned pastor. “The people reflect those vital beliefs and commitments in their lives, thus we get excited over outreach opportunities like the one coming up on the Fourth of July.
“Lives are being transformed and families are being restored for the glory of God as our little church looks at its big world through the cross.”
June 29, 2010
The Christian and Missionary Alliance met and even exceeded its $36,947,015 budget with a surplus at the close of the fiscal year. The fiscal year ends June 30, 2010. Now what?
Allocations of additional funds will be held in reserve until revenue trends in the new fiscal year are determined. If allocations are made, we will follow this formula.
- Cash reserves to equal 40 days.
- After the cash reserve target is met, 85% of the remainder would be allocated to International Ministries and Church Ministries. From this amount, 75% would be appropriated to International Ministries and 25 % to Church Ministries.
- The remaining 15% would be allocated to Development and Operations/Finance.
We invite you to consider giving an extra gift to the GCF to further the mission of Christ through the Great Commission Fund today!
Give now to the GCF using the secure online giving tool.
For the first time in more than a decade, The Christian and Missionary Alliance met and even exceeded its $37,500,000 budget with a projected surplus of $ $3.2 million at the close of the fiscal year.
The Great Commission Fund (GCF) not only supports current workers and their ministries but also enables Alliance workers to establish new initiatives in parts of the world where there is very little access to the gospel.
In addition to supporting field personnel allowances through the GCF, Alliance people gave $1.7 million toward Haiti earthquake relief efforts and another $386,000 for the Great Commission Sunday offering to help establish a gospel witness in North and Central Asia.
“Praise God for His grace and provision in the midst of America’s worst economic crisis since the Great Depression,” says Alliance president, Gary Benedict, “and for the sacrificial giving of the Alliance family.”
June 25, 2010
The following is an excerpt from Betsy Blanchard’s recent newsletter. Betsy serves with The Alliance in Spain, where she and a small team are establishing Cinderella’s House, a ministry for women exploited by sex trafficking and prostitution.
A pioneer ministry takes time. Preparing for a season of rich harvest can be slow going- sometimes confusing and frustrating-especially at the beginning.
Recently our regional director sent us a reminder that in our efforts to “Push Back the Darkness,” we must not lose sight of the “seasons” involved in the analogies Jesus used of the farmer. His reminder was that before we reap a harvest, we must lay a foundation by preparing the soil, which may be rocky, under-nourished, and unproductive at the beginning.
This is a necessary task that sometimes takes a long time. But once the soil is ready, we sow the seed, fertilize, water, and then WAIT. Eventually, the seed grows into a harvest—in its season because it’s the work of the Holy Spirit, not ours.
This reminder was especially encouraging to me, since God has called me to a new ministry to address, in my context, an unfolding problem of epidemic proportions. Cinderella’s House will be a safe haven for women who have been exploited through sex trafficking-a place where they will learn of their value and worth as well as Jesus’ love for them.
Three Cinderellas
Alsa,* my beautiful new friend, has taught me much as she shared her story with me. God miraculously freed Alsa from prostitution and brought her to Himself some years ago. She told me many things regarding the special needs of women caught in this world of darkness.
While Alsa lived in the world of prostitution, not one person offered her a way out or met her in her desperation. She didn’t know how to get out until God opened the way for her. As a result, she is passionate to Push Back the Darkness—to help other women learn that there is a way to leave this bondage and gain true freedom through the Prince of Peace!
Jesus ministered amazing healing into Alsa’s life, which has given her wonderful opportunities to share the love of Christ with other women. She is a leader in her church and has become a real prayer warrior for the Cinderella’s House project. God has encouraged my heart through Alsa, and I praise Him for bringing her into my life in this season.
Millie* is a young woman in Madrid who has been leading a double life for several years, even attending church quite regularly. She is in a real spiritual battle, trying to free herself from the pain of her past and of her own sinful choices today. One of her biggest struggles with leaving prostitution is the “fast life and fast money,” she says, even while she acknowledges that these are destroying her life.
This is the case with many who “choose” this lifestyle. Pray for Millie to listen to the whispers of the Holy Spirit to her heart and to have the courage to follow through with choices to be free and at peace. Pray also for wisdom, discernment, and timing regarding whether or not she should come and work with us, since it will be vital for her to have a complete change of environment once she takes that final difficult step to leave her current lifestyle. Pray that she will encounter the Prince of Peace!
Elizabeth* is a Romanian woman who was trafficked to Spain for prostitution by a false promise of a good job. But in God’s grace and mercy, she was able to escape her bondage after only a month. At present, she is in a personal crisis; she has no income, a broken relationship, and much desperation. She is lonely and lost.
But ever since Elizabeth’s escape from prostitution, she has been eager to help other girls to break out. She works with the Red Cross, providing translation when the volunteers visit girls in the night clubs, since many in that area of the city use Romanian girls who have also been trafficked.
Please pray for growth in our relationship with Elizabeth. Pray that God will give us real wisdom as we consider how best to help her in this time of crisis. She has agreed to come along to visit one of our services, though twice there has been “interference.” Pray that she will desire to know more deeply the God whom she acknowledges freed her from prostitution!
As we prepare to better understand the various and specific issues related to women caught in sexual exploitation and lay the groundwork for this daunting outreach to introduce them to Christ and to find freedom in Him, we are trusting God to lead. For unless we follow God’s time frame and the seasons He has established, our efforts are in vain!
*Names changed
Read Betsy’s latest update or comment on the topic in MyCMA
by Rev. Karl Emerson, pastor of Nashwauk Alliance Church, Nashwauk, Minnesota
Last fall I was invited to travel to the Middle East to explore partnerships that might develop between our church and the Arab Lands team. As I boarded the plane, I found myself wondering what God had in store. While other pastors on the trip talked about the possibility of funding major building projects, our small church in a tiny northern Minnesota town was struggling with the depths of the recession. Forming an effective partnership seemed well beyond our limited means. While there was no doubt in my mind that God had called me to go on this trip, I couldn’t figure out why.
Each of us traveled with two suitcases. While we had packed light (about half a suitcase) for ourselves, we carried treasures across the ocean to our workers. We brought Christmas presents from grandparents, favorite snacks, cooking items, and supplies for medical clinics. All was well until we arrived at the Frankfurt airport, where we discovered that the weight limit was significantly under what we had been told. Frantically repacking in a corner of the airport, we were forced to decide what to leave behind. Cookie sheets or Christmas presents? Maternity clothes or medicine?
Open Doors/Heavy Hearts
After arriving in the Middle East, we observed various ministries. As we toured medical clinics, visited coffeehouses that supplement our English programs, and stood on recently purchased land dreaming of a new school being built, I was struck by the incredible doors God was opening for Alliance work there. We have a tremendous group of workers doing amazing things. The need for was readily apparent.
I also couldn’t help noticing that our workers are under a great deal of stress. The challenges of operating in an environment among the predominant religion are great. In some places we are pioneering new works with all of the risks that entails. On top of this, almost all of our workers are in the crazy years of starting families. Most have preschoolers or elementary age children. There were several women expecting new children any day. They are dealing with all of this away from the support of family and church friends. Times of prayer with them were filled with tears. My pastor’s heart longed to do something to encourage or support them, but what?
Inspiration!
One evening I noticed that a short-term worker was teaching an ESL class had a small electronic device that I had never seen before. When I asked her about it, she explained that it was a Kindle-an electronic book reader available through Amazon. Light-weight and about the size of a 100 page book, it allowed her to purchase, download, and read deeply discounted books anywhere in the world. With a screen like an etch-a-sketch rather than a backlit computer screen, it is easy on the eyes and has a long battery life. It can hold more than 1,000 books. I was amazed.
I sensed the Holy Spirit nudge me. “This is why you are here.” Quietly, I began asking the workers if they would use a Kindle. Their eyes lit up. “Yes!” It quickly became apparent that access to Christian books was sorely needed. Weight restrictions and finances kept the workers from being able to read things that I took for granted. Whether it was James Dobson, A. W. Tozer, or a Bible commentary, our workers were craving good reading material.
Effective Partner
I talked to the field director and developed a partnership with the Arab Lands team to provide every family with a Kindle. We would also contact their home churches with the idea of providing gift certificates for books. Within a couple of months, our church had raised the nearly $4,000 to fund the project and workers were ordering their Kindles.
We’ve received grateful responses, like the one below from the one of the families:
“We want to thank you all for your kindness and generosity in the purchasing of our Kindles. Honestly, you have blessed us TREMENDOUSLY, and we are so appreciative that you thought to bless us in such a creative way. We love to read, and it’s wonderful to buy books as quickly as we need to, instead of trying to figure out who is coming to visit and making sure that they have room to sneak a few books in. Thank you for partnering with us in our work here!” – Alliance worker in the Arab Lands.
I am continually amazed by the way God opened a door for us to be a strategic part in supporting our workers. If we are open to the leading of the Holy Spirit, even the smallest of churches in the most out-of the-way places can have a tremendous impact in reaching the nations.
June 21, 2010
TEAM Isaan’s Development Center was burglarized earlier this month, according to C&MA workers Jon and Joy Chase. The couple, who serve with TEAM Isaan—an Alliance church-planting initiative in northeast Thailand—had just taken up residence in the center, where they serve as on-site managers.
“The person who broke into the center and stole a wallet and phone a few months ago had been released from prison,” they wrote in their June prayer update. Someone had been seen lurking around the property recently, but the Chases weren’t sure who it was. They thought it might have been one of the many construction workers.
Later, other residents of the center confirmed it was the same thief. This time, he stole some money and jewelry.
The Development Center was established for the purpose of training workers for ministry and for income-generating farming projects.
What You Can Do
“Pray for the Lord’s protection over us and our home while we are still making the place more secure,” the Chases said.
Learn More
Check out our work in Thailand.
June 18, 2010
Several members of Wadena Alliance Church were injured and lost homes when a tornado swept through the town of Wadena, Minnesota, June 17.
None of the injuries were life-threatening, but 10 homes belonging to church members were either severely damaged or completely destroyed. “We are in shock mode,” says Pastor Vaughn White. Neither the church nor White’s home were damaged.
An hour before the tornado, White was called to the hospital when a church member died. “I was there to comfort his wife [when the storm hit],” White says. “She lost her husband and her home within an hour.
“We ask you pray for those with so much devastation and loss, as well as for our church family as we reach out to serve our community. Thanks!”
June 15, 2010
Mrs. Margarete Anna Larsen, retired missionary to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, entered the Lord’s presence on March 24, 2010, in Deland, Florida. She was 91 years old.
Margarete, known to her friends at the Alliance Retirement Community as “Gretta,” was born into a Christian family in Stuttgart, Germany, on November 1, 1918. At the age of 21, she resigned from and renounced the Hitler Youth and immigrated to the United States, becoming a naturalized citizen.
Margarete enrolled in the Missionary Training Institute (now Nyack College) in Nyack, New York, in 1940 and married fellow student Norman J. Larsen after graduation. Together they took on pastoral duties for churches in Fredonia, New York; and Susquehanna, Pennsylvania, in preparation for foreign missionary service with The Christian and Missionary Alliance.
In 1947, they were appointed to the former Belgian Congo (now the Democratic Republic of the Congo) where they served for 21 years, building two new mission stations, establishing numerous schools, and developing the African Bible Institute for national pastors. During the revolutionary violence of 1960, when all Europeans were advised to flee the country, the Larsens were the only missionaries to remain in their district under the protection of the local church.
In 1968, they returned to the United States due to Margarete’s health issues. Norman enrolled in Simpson College and the University of California, Berkeley, to complete his certification in social services. Margarete continued in a supportive role to Norman’s chaplain/counseling ministry with the Salvation Army’s social services outreach, serving in Oakland and Santa Monica, California.
Norman and Margarete retired in 1980, living in Salem, Oregon; Brea, California; Boone, North Carolina; Bradenton, Florida; and Deland, Florida, until Norman’s passing in 2005.
To the end of her life, Margarete practiced her linguistic skills and kept her mind sharp by reading her German, French, and English Bibles every day. Margarete is survived by her sons Timothy Larsen of Las Vegas, Nevada; and Lance Larsen of Poughquag, New York; her daughter Marian Samson of Danville, California; five grandchildren, and five great grandchildren.
As told to Janice Greenfield, serving at Lion of Judah (Alliance) Church in Guadalajara, Mexico
Rodrigo Perez, a 24-year-old recent graduate from Monterrey Technical School, arrived in Guadalajara looking for work. A believer, Rodrigo visited the Lion of Judah (Alliance) Church, not knowing that he would find old family friends worshipping there as well. A short time later, he found a good job and rented an apartment. A few days after that, April 10, Rodrigo was downtown buying a few things for his apartment, when he was assaulted by three men who stole his cell phone and tried to take his backpack, beating him severely.
Rodrigo arrived at the hospital with a broken nose and deep cuts on his face. His shoulder had been dislocated and, although no bones were broken, all the tendons and ligaments were torn. He could not move his arm. The cuts on his face were stitched, and surgery was scheduled for his other injuries.
Hovering Between Life and Death
In the following days, Rodrigo underwent surgery on his nose and shoulder, but he did not wake up after the shoulder surgery. The doctors gave him something to awaken him, but instead Rodrigo lapsed into a coma. He was taken to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU), and his condition worsened. After several tests, the doctors discovered that he had tetanus. Rodrigo became deathly ill. The tetanus bacteria had seriously affected his brain, and he did not talk or show any response.
The doctors performed a tracheotomy because Rodrigo had difficulty breathing, and he also had pneumonia. After six weeks of treatment, Rodrigo became more stable. He was moved from ICU and has shown signs of life; the encephalogram disclosed that there is now brain activity, and he has squeezed the hands of people when they talk to him. Rodrigo has survived many life and death moments; he still is unconscious, and the doctors say the recuperation will be long and hard.
In the Midst of the Storm
During these two months, Rodrigo’s family and fiancé have been in Guadalajara, staying in the home of their good friends Polo and Lety, who are members of Lion of Judah. They have attended the Sunday services and participated in a prayer vigil that, in part, was for Rodrigo. His fiancé, Angela, came to know Christ as her Savior four months before this incident. Recently, she was baptized along with a group of believers from Lion of Judah and has given testimony of her faith in Christ.
God is at work and is being glorified through this difficult time. Two doctors, a neurosurgeon and a trauma specialist, have received Jesus as their Savior. Family members of other patients also have trusted in Christ through the witness of Rodrigo’s family members. Their faith and joy in the midst of such a serious crisis has been a source of amazement and comfort to many in the hospital, including the lead doctor, who was a silent Christian and is now openly sharing his faith in Christ.
Many people have been impacted with what they have seen and heard. God is being glorified! Our prayer is that more people will come to Christ, Rodrigo will recover fully from this brutal attack, and God will be honored and glorified through it all.
June 9, 2010
The following report was sent to us from Bob Hepokoski on June 8, 2010
During my June visit to Talca, in Chile’s central valley, I was awakened by an aftershock at 4:15 a.m. It was one of three that gently shook that night. Three months after the 8.8 cataclysm, the ground has ceased to tremble with the same frequency or intensity; now the aftershocks that are most evident are the personal tremors of the millions who lived through the disaster.
To my eyes, Talca looked worse than it had in the first weeks after big quake, when the streets were congested with piles of rubble and partially collapsed buildings.
As I lay awake, I reflected on what I had seen driving into town that evening. Bulldozers and front end loaders had trucked away mountains of rubble and torn down the remains of hundreds of former homes and businesses. Several city blocks were almost barren, except for a few temporary wooden homes that had been placed there by the government. There were still hundreds of buildings with walls cracked and split and I wondered if how many, if any, could be saved. The images brought tears to my eyes, and I thought how Nehemiah had cried over the walls of his city so long ago.
Despite the devastation, the church in Talca was celebrating. For two Sundays they had not met, while they worked on an emergency structure where they could meet during the winter. With help of a Santiago men’s group they had taken the old rafters and placed them over the courtyard where they could make a temporary meeting hall for 120 people. It was filled on Sunday and there was great joy and more than a few tears. Tears for their old building, now a broken shell, and joy for being together once again.
The day before we had traveled from Arauco, a small logging town on the southern coast of Chile. They were spared from February’s tsunami, but they were struck by the power of seismic waves that moved the sandy soil almost as if it were liquid. Most of the streets were broken and the entire city water system was ruined. In the 50 member Alliance church, five families lost their homes and the church building will need to be rebuilt. Despite such widespread damage, Pastor David Cabezas says that local church giving has increased, because the people want to rebuild as soon as possible.
That night, as I waited for more tremors (none came), I meditated more on the story of Nehemiah. It is natural, I thought, to shed tears when one’s city is in ruins. It’s ok. But it is also natural to take steps to rebuild. Many of our churches here are doing major repairs and others are speaking to architects about new plans. But not one of them has the funds they need.
Just as in the days of Nehemiah, rebuilding the walls will take a concerted effort of all the people working together. Several of the churches have been helped by a special offering of all the Chilean Alliance and others are being assisted through a cooperative project set into motion by CAMA Services. Offerings were received from other Alliance national churches and from interdenominational agencies as well. We are currently trying to help establish partnerships for earthquake recovery.
I share the sense of loss and the sense of hope that is present in so many of our Chilean brothers and sisters. I know that many of you do as well. On behalf of the Chilean church, I want to personally thank the individuals and churches who have shown fellowship and compassion by giving for this reconstruction. We have felt your love and we praise God for you
Grace and peace,
Bob Hepokoski
What You Can Do
We encourage you to send your gifts through The Christian and Missionary Alliance for the approved special fund, Chile Earthquake Church Reconstruction. In addition, we are seeking partner churches that will stand with a Chilean church throughout the recovery process, in prayer, in giving, and in working side-by-side in reconstruction.
You can also give to the Chile Earthquake Relief Fund of CAMA (Compassion and Mercy Associates), the relief and development arm of the C&MA.
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