Ministry Matters
May
2008
Encouraging, Establishing & Equipping Churches to become
Thriving and Healthy
In this issue
Easter Stories
-Shorelife
-Ontario
-many more
Pine Summit
-Men’s Retreat
-Escrow
-New Owner
News Around Other CB Regions
-National Office
-Health Minute
-Southwest Annual
Meeting
Church News
-Guam
-Hollywood
-Fallbrook
-Rialto
Training Events Go Well
-Amazing Race
-Youth Workers
Helpful Seminars
-Free Lee Strobel
seminar
-Truth Project
-more CB events
Support Opportunity
-missionaries
going to Argentina
The
Bibles Kept Coming
Wow. As soon as I heard this story, I started telling it to others. Then
I wanted to make sure it was true. So I contacted Ben Brown and Bryce
Madsen and they confirmed it was all true. Who are these guys? Read on.
Grace Church of Glendora and Pastor Gene Wood have a great
ministry called
Grace for Asia, which distributes free Bibles to the poor in China.
This past month, many teams distributed over 50,000 Bibles in China! One
team, led by Ben Brown,
Pastor of International Baptist Church in Singapore, traveled to a
church in China to verify and distribute 340 Bibles. However, over 600
people gathered to get a free Bible and only 340 Bibles were shipped to
that location. They were short over 260 Bibles! This count was double
checked and verified. Ben realized that many people would be
disappointed and could perhaps create a “scene” that would attract
unwanted attention. As the final two boxes of 40 Bibles were opened and
hundreds were still in line, Ben asked his team to pray for God to
intervene. God did, in an unexpected way. The last two boxes of Bibles
never ran out until everyone received a Bible! Bryce Madsen, one
of those handing out the Bibles wrote, “when we hit the half way point
and half of the church…was still waiting for their Bibles, I looked down
at the boxes and noticed that there were only two left! At this point, I
started praying even more for a miracle. I started distributing Bibles
out of my box. It seemed that every time I would take Bibles out, I
would turn back to see the same amount of Bibles still in the box. I
felt like my eyes were playing tricks on me. The church kept filing
past, and we kept handing out Bibles!” In fact, after all received a
Bible, only one Bible was left. The Pastor returned saying one person
did not get a Bible. That person received the last Bible.
God still does miracles!
“For
nothing is impossible with God.” Luke 1:37
Jim Smith
Executive Director
jim.smith@cbasc.com
PS. Don’t forget Mother’s Day, May 11th
Note: If this format doesn’t work well for your email program and
you can’t see the graphics, please look for this publication on our
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E-Ministry Matters May 2008.
San
Antonio Heights
Community Church
Our Easter was great!
We started our weekend with the youth conducting a good Friday service.
It was outstanding. Our outdoor Sunrise Service up on the hill was great
with good weather and 125 in attendance. We also served breakfast to
nearly 100. Our 9:00am service attendance was 140. Last year we had
approximately 70 for the Sunrise service and 100 in the 9:00am service.
God is ever faithful!! Our regular Sunday service has been averaging
about 80. We enjoyed having many visitors.
ShoreLife Church, Huntington
Beach
Normal attendance is about 275. We had an incredible two-week series
held on Palm Sunday and Easter entitled, The Impact of a Life. We
had 429 people on Easter and are doing follow-up work. On Palm Sunday,
we had Dr. JP Moreland, Professor of Philosophy at Talbot School of
Theology, speaking on “Why Should I Believe. Our Pastor, Dr. Brent
Strawsburg, followed up next with, “What’s the Big Deal Anyway?” This
message focused on a series of questions that the resurrection answers
for each and every person. Our goal for the two weeks was to challenge
the congregation to bring friends and family to the services where their
heads and hearts would be confronted with the truth of Jesus Christ and
His Gospel. We continue to hear of how people were impacted.
Lakehills
Community Church,
Lake Elsinore
Lakehills
averages about 70, and we had 100 on Easter. I presented the
gospel using the wordless book and encouraged people to pick up a letter
if they trusted in Christ. Five letters were picked up!! The letter
explained about trusting in Christ and the next steps in their walk with
the Lord. We also gave each family a nail in a block of wood as a
reminder of this Easter and free CD’s of past messages.
New Song Community Church, San
Dimas
We average 340 regularly and almost doubled our attendance on Easter
with 610 attending our services.
New
Song Community Church, Oceanside
New Song’s
average attendance is 950. They had 1,517 attend on Easter, with 51
people who made professions of faith!!! “I had
Tonia Sargent share her faith
story during each of our Easter services. Tonia’s husband, Ken, is a
wounded warrior, having lost 1/3 of his brain, 1/2 his hearing, and most
of his eyesight in Iraq. Her testimony was powerful!”
Grace Church of Glendora
Over the weekend, we had close to 3,200 people visit our church. On
Easter we rented the Event Center at APU. We encouraged people to make a
commitment in one of the following areas: Believe, Baptize, Belong (join
the church) and Bonding (sign up for a small group). Afterwards, we had
four tents outside that people could visit to commit one of the four
areas. Hundreds filled our cards, and we are still working through the
follow up.
Fil-Am Church, Long Beach
The
church averages approximately 75. On Easter they had 100 in attendance.
Pastor Pol Pili writes, “Our
choir did a mini musical in the morning during our church service. In
the afternoon, we presented the same musical in an assisted living
facility, Bellagio Manor, on 4th Street in Long Beach. We ministered to
about 30 residents. It was well-accepted and appreciated by the
residents, mostly senior citizens. I gave a message after the musical
and five people accepted Jesus!”
Sunrise Church – Ontario
“We have been averaging around 300-320 each Sunday, since our merge with
Rialto. On Easter, we had 424 with at least 10 people accepting Jesus as
their Savior. Overall, during Easter Week, all three campuses of Sunrise
Church had 11,500 people come to one or more events we held throughout
the week. On Saturday we had an Easter Egg Hunt for the kids and
parents, with a gospel message presented just prior to the hunt. We had
an amazing turnout to this event and several salvations as well. Over
300 people made salvation commitments sometime during the week!”
Rancho Baptist Church, Temecula
Rancho averages 350 – 380 on a
weekend. On Easter, they had 550 with at least 1 person accepting Jesus
as their Lord and Savior.
Calvary Baptist Church,
Bishop, CA
“We are doing great. [They had 330 on Easter, 100
more than their average.] We kicked off the
"One Month To Live"
campaign on Easter Sunday. We probably have over 2/3 of our congregation
taking the challenge along with some outside the church who have joined
us. This is helping us clarify and live our priorities - living for what
really matters. We also joined in a community Easter egg hunt with our
inflatable bounce house, as an outreach, and had great contact with a
hundred or more kids and were able to share God's love with them the
Saturday before Easter.”
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Men's
Spring Retreat
May 16-18
This will be a great event. Don’t miss it. We have a great weekend
planned for all men interested in growing stronger in their
understanding of God. With the Summer Olympics coming soon, we have
chosen the theme, "One God, One World." Pastor Rene Schlaepfer
from Twin Lakes Church, a dynamic church in the Monterey 
Bay
area, will be our speaker. A former broadcaster and gifted communicator,
he has a quick sense of humor and clear insight into Biblical
application in everyday life. He often incorporates the latest
multi-media technology in his messages to help present the message of
God’s transforming grace in a relevant, celebratory way. Gregory
Hooper, the energetic and effective worship leader of Sunrise
Church, will be leading the men in worship this weekend. Call Pine
Summit at 909.866.5801 to register.
PLUS!!! HARD TIMES DISCOUNT is being offered for the dorms only.
Only $96 for the whole weekend.
Find out more.
We
signed Escrow!
On
Tuesday, April 1, 2008, Jim Smith, Ed Reingrover and Mike Harris of
Peacemaker Enterprises, signed the escrow papers for Mike to purchase
Pine Summit. If all goes as planned, it should be a win/win for all
involved. Mike has spent many months getting investors together that
believe in the future of Pine Summit. Pray that: the funds are deposited
in a timely manner, the buyer’s loan is approved, existing permits are
honored by the city of Big Bear, titles are approved, and deeds are
transferred. Once all these items come together, the deal should be
completed by early June, if not sooner. Please pray that escrow is
completed in a timely manner.
New
Owner
We are excited about Mike Harris and his new Christian
organization, “Peacemaker Enterprises,” purchasing Pine Summit. Mike,
the future new owner and camp director, and his wonderful wife Tamie,
have been at Pine Summit for three years. Mike is the marketing
director for Pine Summit and has a wonderful heart for the Lord. He is a
graduate of Grace College in Indiana with a Biblical Studies degree and
has a Masters in outdoor education. Mike knows the 
history
of Pine Summit and wants to continue a close relationship with CBSC. As
soon as escrow is completed, changes will occur, like expanding the
registration area and snack room, upgrading the Sugar Pine rooms, having
an architect look at remodeling each “A” frame cabin in the near future
to include a loft, expanding the toboggan run to become the longest run
on the mountain, allowing skateboards and bikes on campus, and more. It
is his desire to continue operating Pine Summit as an outstanding
Christian Camp and Conference Evangelistic Center and to expand the use
of the Lodges to the general public. You’ll want to come up and see the
new Pine Summit. Some major improvements should be obvious within 6
months.
National
CBAmerica Offering
We are asking each congregation to pick a Sunday in May to receive a
special offering for CBAmerica. These funds are necessary in this
transitional phase to continue our ministry operations in networking and
serving the Regional fellowships. This is an opportunity for churches to
give beyond their regular support of their Regional ministries and to
unite in the bigger scope of national service. Please send all gifts to
our
National Office in Longmont,
CO.
A
Health Minute
Paul Null is the Executive Director of the CB Region in Northern
California called “Next Generation Churches.” He is a good friend and
has written an article about his treatment of the cancer he is battling.
I have asked him if I could reprint it, so enjoy….
“I must admit that I approach my subject today with a certain amount of
fear and trepidation. So, let me begin with every kind of disclaimer I
can possibly think of. First, I am not a "health-nut." I just want to
stay as healthy as I can so I can live as long as I can and do what I
want as long as I can. Second, I'm not attempting to offer up any "magic
cancer cures," or cures for any kind of disease for that matter. What
I'm going to share with you was shared with me as a portion of a regimen
to deal with my cancer. I'm happy to add that what I'm doing does seem
to be working, or it could simply mean that God is answering our
prayers.
Anyway,
lots of people have been asking what is involved in my treatment
program. Well, I've run across a book that fairly well summarizes what
my life looks like now and thought it might be beneficial to share it
with you. The book is entitled, The Seven Pillars of Health, by
Don Colbert, MD. Dr. Colbert is a follower of Christ and has written a
great number of books on health and dealing with disease. One of his
books was recommended to Renee by our family doctor who is also a
believer. If you are struggling with a particular health problem there's
a good chance Dr. Colbert has written about it.
Predictably, the book is divided into seven chapters, each one
representing one of the pillars of health. They are entitled; Water,
Sleep and Rest, Living Food, Exercise, Detoxification, Nutritional
Supplements, and Coping With Stress. But what makes it even easier to
digest is that each of the seven chapters is broken down further into
seven sections, with chapter seven containing eight. The book is
designed to take fifty days to go through so, as I said, it is easier to
digest.
First of all, what this book contains is essentially the program I'm
following. So, now, if anyone asks, I simply point them to the book.
Second, although following a plan like this does involve a major change
in lifestyle for most of us, Dr. Colbert helps to make it very doable.
He is not a "health purist" who advises us to totally escape the
environment we live in. He appears to be very sensitive to the
realities, both economic and cultural, that we ordinary folk must live
with.
Although the book retails for $19.99 I found it online through
www.bestbookbuys.com
for
anywhere from $6 used to $16 new. You can get the book in a kit which
includes the book, a fifty day workbook and a fifty day journal, along
with two DVDs, one with fifty mini-lectures by Doctor Colbert to go
along with the fifty day journey and an exercise video. I went ahead and
bought the kit because it didn't wind up costing that much more than the
book.
Hey, I like what he says. You may not. This whole cancer thing and this
treatment has changed my life. I only wish I had begun to do this
earlier. So, for whatever it’s worth, I pass it on to you.”
And "I am praying that all is well with you and that your body is as
healthy as I know your soul is." (3 John 2, NLT)
Southwest
CB Annual Meeting
Dr. Jay Pankratz, the senior pastor of Sunrise Church in Rialto,
California has been busy speaking at Annual Meetings. He did a fantastic
job at our CBSC Annual Meeting in March and will do the opening keynote
for the Southwest CB Annual Meeting in Phoenix on Saturday, May 17.
Their meeting will be held all day, starting at 10:00 am and concluding
around 5:00 pm on the campus of Southwestern College. If you’re in the
area, drop in to see what is going on. At the same time, Rev. Art
Lucero, also from Rialto, will deliver a similar keynote to our
Latino attendees.
Changes
at Bayview Baptist Church in Guam
Pastor Robert Spiegel (left), who has been the Senior Pastor of
Bayview for the past 15 years, announced his resignation to the
congregation which will become effective May 1. Pastor Robert brought
Bayview through many changes, including a devastating typhoon that
destroyed their worship center 5 years ago. They are moved 
into
their new worship center and Pastor Rob decided to return stateside to
be closer to his now adult children. Pray for Rob and his wife Marti, as
they go through this transitional phase in their life and for the
leadership at Bayview as they search for their next Pastor. Mike
Albin (right), a retired Pastor currently living in Oregon, has
agreed to be the Interim Pastor while Bayview looks for their next
Senior Pastor.
Good
Exercise Equipment Needed
Our CB church in Hollywood,
Hope International Bible Fellowship, is starting a new health
awareness ministry. They are converting a room in their building into an
exercise room, since many in their congregation cannot afford a gym
membership, and street exercise is not a very safe option. They started
last week with two treadmills and had seven people waiting in line to
use them, so additional equipment and exercise stations are needed. If
you have good exercise equipment you aren’t using, they would appreciate
donations. Please contact Pastor Ed Carey at 323.481.5830 to make a
donation, or to find out more about Hope and this new ministry.
New
Youth/Worship Pastor at Fallbrook
Eric
Durso
has accepted the position of Worship/Youth Pastor at First Baptist
Church of Fallbrook. Pastor Gary Golike and his leadership team spent
most of the first part of 2008 searching for the right person for this
important position. Eric is from Simi Valley, CA and will graduate this
month from The Master’s College. He has been the worship leader for his
church’s college group and was the summer youth interim last year. I
want to also mention that in June, he is marrying a wonderful graduate
of Master’s College named Ashley Smith, who happens to be my
daughter. Well done, Eric.
Internship Program
Sunrise Church is
devoted
to encouraging and developing those who are called to serve God in
Christian 
ministry.
Our Internship Program is designed to help teach, train, and develop
those who feel a calling to serve in ministry. The internship program is
open to students, both in undergraduate and graduate programs, as well
as lay ministers who desire to become more involved in the day-to-day
activities of church ministry. Interns are given the opportunity to see
and serve in a vibrant, growing, fruitful, multi-campus ministry.
Interns will be exposed to the variety of challenges and opportunities
of serving as intern ministry staff at Sunrise Church, both on the
primary and extension campuses. If you are interested in the Sunrise
Church Internship program, or would like more information, visit our
internship page,
or contact Steven Valadez at (909)875-5566 or
svaladez@sunrisechurch.org.
Free
Apologetic Lectures at BIOLA
Throughout the year, Biola has been offering some great lectures on
Christian Apologetics for a minimal cost. This month, Craig Hazen and
Lee Strobel will be giving FREE lectures. Craig Hazen has
written a groundbreaking new book that captures the heart of modern
apologetics--but it's a page-turning novel receiving five-star reviews.
The Gospel is being lost to our generation, but there's a way to
reinvigorate clear Christian thinking through compelling storytelling.
Come hear key thinkers lay out a new path for effective cultural
engagement. As a seasoned journalist, Lee Strobel has written
several books on Apologetics. As Strobel cross-examined expert after
expert, he discovered credible evidence that Jesus of Nazareth is the
Son of God. Come hear Strobel give a lecture on the “Case for Christ”
and find out how to get a FREE DVD for each family in attendance.
For more information click here.
Truth
Project Training
I have seen this innovative, DVD-based small group curriculum. It is
good. It practically and personally re-introduces believers to the
character and nature of God while seeking to instill a systematic and
comprehensive Christian worldview within the body of Christ. To qualify
to present this small group curriculum you must attend their one day
training seminars. Two of these training events will be held
near Palm
Springs in May. A number of our CB churches, like
Fellowship Baptist in Riverside and
Mission Hills in Mission Viejo, will be hosting churches for a
simulcast in September.
Find out about all other CB Events by
clicking here.
Amazing
Race
It was truly an Amazing Race through some very key doctrines.
When Tony and Jim originally started talking about doing this training,
they were hoping for 15-20 people. As the weekend drew closer, the
numbers rose to a maximum of 35 men and women filling up the room,
leaving no room for any more tables or chairs. They came up to Pine
Summit not only to enjoy the mountain air and good camp food, but mainly
for a chance to study 10 doctrines in 10 one-hour sessions. The Ten
hours of doctrine were taught by Tony Pezzotta, Rod Wilson, Dale James
and Jim Smith. Many expressed their appreciation for the opportunity sit
down for one weekend, instead of having ten Saturdays, to study these
subjects, and they hope we will do it again. The 6 inches of snow on
Saturday night did little to dampen the enthusiasm. Another Amazing Race
Weekend has been scheduled for March 13-15, 2009. Cost is $200, but only
$150 if you register before February 14. Put it on your calendar and get
your volunteers, leaders and ordination candidates up to Pine Summit.
Please call the CB office to register at 909.944.5900 or you may
register online at
www.cbasc.com
Youth
Pastor Summit
Thirteen
Youth Workers gathered at Pine Summit April 15 and 16, to hear Dr. Steve
Gerali. Steve has been in youth ministry for over 30 years, leading
youth groups from Chicago (Willow Creek Church) to the Phoenix area. He
has also developed youth ministry programs at Judson College and APU,
and written several books. He did a fantastic job leading our group
through three uplifting themes—Refreshing the Spirit, Restoring the Soul
and Renewing the Mind. During the last session, Steve shared 16 values
that all youth ministries should have in place. His insights were
exceptional. If you would like his list, request it from our office.
Camp
Ministry in Argentina
If
you can support this family preparing to be missionaries at a Christian
Camp in Argentina, read on…
“Greetings! I would like to introduce myself. My name is John
Hollingsworth, and in November 2006 my family and I were appointed as
missionaries with WorldVenture. We have been members of FBC Salem,
Oregon for ten years, and I graduated from Western Seminary in April
2006. We are currently trying to develop relationships with individuals
and churches in preparation to serve in Argentina. We will be joining a
team of missionaries in the northwest Argentine provinces of Jujuy,
Salta and Tucuman. Our goal is to serve local pastors and leaders
through encouragement and training. We will also be working in a Bible
camp in the foothills of the Andes. God has used Dave and Nancy Greenman
in the camp ministry for more than twenty years. We will work with the
Greenmans for a couple years with the intention of filling their
position as camp director upon their retirement. Here is a link to our
website:
www.worldventure.com - enter the keyword 'hollingsworth' to access
our information.
-John and Carol Hollingsworth”
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CB Southern California
Phone:
909.944.5900
Fax:
909.944.5991
9640 Center Avenue, Suite 100
Rancho Cucamonga, CA 91730
www.cbasc.com
cbministries@cbasc.com