The Global Advocate - January/February 2024

The GLOBAL ADVOCATE

a publication of the Churches of God, General Conference

Region by Region: Great Lakes Conference

IN THIS ISSUE

2

Earl Mills: a Pastor's Pastor by Jacob Clagg

The World Comes to College First with Kimberly Reese, Nancy Hiser, & Ben Tobias

Ministry in the Military: an Interview with Chaplain Byron Denman

A Foundation for the Future by Bill Reist

Earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints (Jude 3b).

THE GLOBAL ADVOCATE (ISSN 0009-630X) is published bi-monthly by the Churches of God, General Conference.

Vol. 189, No. 1

Established June 5, 1835 as THE GOSPEL PUBLISHER, re-established on May 1, 1846 as THE CHURCH ADVOCATE, and re-established on October 1, 2019 as THE GLOBAL ADVOCATE.

Rachel Foreman, Managing Editor

The Global Advocate, official publication of the Churches of God, General Conference, exists to encourage members of the CGGC to maximize their collective potential for Kingdom impact.

Correspondence: Address correspondence to The Editor, The Global Advocate, Churches of God Publications, PO Box 926, Findlay, OH 45839, or email to RachelF@cggc.org

Periodical rate paid at Findlay, Ohio.

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© 2024, Churches of God, General Conference

Earl Mills: a Pastor's Pastor

by Jacob Clagg, with Earl and Kim Mills

Dr. Earl Mills retired from the position of Executive Director of the Great Lakes Conference (GLC) on the last day of 2022, having faithfully served in the position for a little over a full decade. Now a year out from retirement, and while recovering from a serious and unexpected illness, Dr. Mills (or General Mills, as some call him) is reflecting on his work at the GLC and his whole ministry career.

On the cover: Pastor Derek Pryer and his wife, Taylor, being sent out as the first fellow to graduate from the LIFT program (story on page 15).

Ashe recalls it, Earl’s entrance into the GLC wasn’t anticipated, at least not by him or Kim, his wife. Just prior to that, Earl was the lead pastor at Chambersburg Church of God in Chambersburg, PA, (now Grandpoint Chambersburg) before the church went multisite. Things were going well for Earl and Kim, and at the time, they really didn’t see a reason to leave. As Earl said, “We were so happy, things were going well, and we were growing. It was the largest church in the denomination, that doesn’t mean a lot, but you feel good about it.”

Yet, he was aware of how long he and Kim had been there and that the time to leave might be soon approaching. “I saw way too many people that stayed too long,” he said, referencing pastors who had perhaps overstayed their calling at a church and caused discord and division. “I didn’t want to outstay my welcome... I had been the pastor at Chambersburg for 19 years. I was 59 years old. If I didn’t take another position, I would need to retire.” Around that time, Dr. Bill Reist called from the GLC. They were looking for their next executive director. “We’ve been looking for some time. It hasn’t worked out. We all think you’re the right person for this. Now don’t tell me no!” Bill had said.

“Well, I can’t say I won’t pray…” Earl responded, remaining unconvinced.

A couple of days later. Dr. Bill Reist sent the job description and as Earl recalls, [Kim] asked, “Why would you want to leave here?” Do keep in mind Kim was present for this interview and kept Earl on track. “I didn’t say I wanted to leave!” he said. But they were already about to go away for a weekend to pray and fast anyway so they figured they might as well add this to the list of things to pray about. While they were praying, Kim read the job description and said, “No wonder they think you’re right for the job. This is who you are!” So, they spent the whole weekend hiking and enjoying nature, but all the while they were wrestling with what to do. Finally, they settled to go out and talk to the GLC search team. They would be noncommittal, but still serious. Seriously non-committal or not, the talks went smoothly, and by the end of the year, about six months later, Earl had stepped into the position of Executive Director of the GLC.

Moving from a lead pastor to an executive director wasn’t an entirely seamless transition. Earl seemed to recognize right away that the roles were going

to be quite different, so he took an opportunity to get administrative training from Duke University. The professor told Earl, “When you were at Chambersburg, you were a player-coach. You were the star player, and you were the coach. You are no longer the player. You are just the coach.” This analogy seemed to be really helpful for Earl as he considered his new role. He’d have to trust the pastors and leaders in his new region to “play” their role. “If you can’t deal with that, you are in the wrong position,” the professor said.

Even with that knowledge, it was a tough transition for Earl and Kim, who had moved far away from home, from their church family. As a pastor in the community for 19 years, Earl had done weddings and funerals for countless people, dedicated children and baptized babies. “I was a part of every family in the church,” he reflected. “What a tremendous privilege… then I came out here and I’m not even a part of a church family.” Kim also felt that she had lost her own ministry. Kim was heavily involved with the ministry of Chambersburg. For about two and a half years in Ohio, Kim felt lost without a purpose beyond her tax job. It wasn’t until she got involved with Campus Ministry at UF that she found her ministry again in mentoring and meeting with young women from the campus.

Earl next spoke about how Chambersburg dealt with their transition as he left, but Kim interjected and said, “Can we get back to Great Lakes, please?” so you can thank her for getting this interview back on track.

When Earl arrived in the position, he found that the churches were getting along well, and they could do ministry well together. Even the relationship between Ohio and Michigan was solidified and going strong, which isn’t something that all regions, perhaps even now, can say about the relations between their states. He gave credit to Dave Green, the previous executive director who “did a great job of helping the pastors fellowship, and most of the pastors liked each other.” But that didn’t mean that there weren’t conflicts within churches. In fact, on his first week of the job, a church called and told Earl that they wanted to get rid of their pastor. “The first Sunday I was at a church, and they had basically kicked their pastor out… that happened a couple of times that first year.”

Earl’s first goal was to help churches discover why they existed, and what their vision was. “Every church

needs to have a vision for their community,” he said. “If people don’t know where they're going, they don’t want to be a part of it.” Earl talked about a special balance that needed to be played in these conversations.

Helping churches find their vision wasn’t about him telling them what they ought to be, but about genuine discovery and guidance. This gets to the core of Earl's philosophy of what it means to be a regional director, the hard limit of what his job entailed in the office.

“We aren’t where the rubber meets the road, that’s the local church,” he said. “Our job is to teach them how to be the best they can be... To help the local church know that they have vision, so they can discover that and develop that themselves.” Each church is unique and has a culture of its own. Earl didn’t want to force on the church a vision contrary to itself.

Earl’s second goal was to focus on raising young leaders. It was immediately apparent that, like most places in American Christianity, the leaders are getting older, not younger. A couple promising churches closed, and Earl felt strongly that the GLC had a lack of pastors, especially young pastors, to fill roles. And so he began to work closely with Winebrenner Theological Seminary to recruit up and coming pastors, and Earl admits he didn’t care “what denomination they were from.” Largely, the strategy seemed to work. Anecdotally, I was, myself, a product of Earl’s mentorship through seminary at Winebrenner and he recruited me for a pastoral role. But we don’t just need anecdotes. The data confirms it. By the end of Earl’s tenure, the region was trending 6 years younger on average, which is pretty tremendous considering there was a 10-year gap from start to finish.

From this push toward a younger conference came the LIFT initiative, which you can also read about on page 15 in this issue. Initially called the Leadership Fellowship Initiative, LIFT is an initiative to see local churches select young promising leaders, to train them up into ministry, and then to send them out and release them. The GLC has seen a number of churches receive grants from The Foundation of the Great Lakes in order to support these interns and fellows. The goal is to see each church in the region have an intern, a fellow, or a trainee in training through this program. Ultimately, this is discipleship by another name, and it takes the intentional model of Jesus, pairing eager learners with capable mentors.

Even still, there are fewer young pastors coming up and Earl attributes this to a lack of respect among

pastors. When asked why he thinks this lack of respect exists, Earl didn’t mince words. “A lot of people don’t think that pastors believe what they are saying. Pastors aren’t honest about their own doubts or concerns,” he said. “And the younger generation, if they don’t trust you or respect you, they don’t want anything to do with you.” He did admit that it’s not just pastors, but all forms of leadership are under scrutiny right now. Authority of all kinds is suspicious and high-profile public failures, from clergy to Hollywood execs, are damaging the very idea of leadership.

Earl emphasized that pastors are just like everyone else, and they struggle just like everyone else, but they aren’t candid about that with their congregations, and this creates false expectations and unreasonable standards. Reflecting on his time at Chambersburg, Earl mentioned that he tried hard to be open about his faults and weaknesses, and asked Kim if she thought that was true, to which she responded, “Pretty much.” Kim calls it like she sees it.

Earl and Kim’s pattern was to go to a different church every week, and that way they were in each church of the region at least once a year. He felt that, over time, he developed a reputation with the congregations that he was present, and he cared. Through connection with the churches of the GLC, Earl and Kim reclaimed that church family feeling they had at Chambersburg. Strangely enough, though, Covid brought about some of Earl’s best connections with the pastors. As churches came online with weekly livestreams, Earl used Sunday sermons and worship services as his daily devotional, picking out one sermon for each day. Whether they knew it or not, Earl was listening to every sermon he could get his hands on throughout the week, and frequently calling and encouraging pastors about their messages. “I felt like I was more a part of the local church. I felt like I connected to the churches that way.”

Coach, Player, General, or Director, what many still call Earl is a pastor’s pastor. What he missed in leaving a congregation, he found in cultivating a new congregation of pastors to help guide and support. A year after his retirement, it’s still easy to see the legacy of ministry that he has left. By helping the churches establish clear visions for ministry, by raising up young leaders, and through meaningful connection with his pastors, Earl has set the Great Lakes Conference on a course to do faithful kingdom work, and we couldn’t be more grateful.

The World comes to College First

by Jacob Clagg

with Pastors Kimberly Reese, Nancy Hiser, & Ben Tobias

This past November College First Church of God hosted a Thanksgiving meal for the college students at the University of Findlay, specifically targeting international students. Most students on campus returned home to spend time with their families but that’s rarely an option for international students, especially over a short holiday week like Thanksgiving. That means many of them were holed up in their apartments with no school, no work (since most work at the now closed school), and few if any of their college friends around. 85 people showed up to part take in the Thanksgiving meal, and about 70 of them were international students. A sizeable portion of those students attend College First weekly as their house of worship. Those numbers aren’t astronomical, but with proper context, they tell a whole story.

When school started last year in 2022, there were less than five international students attending College First, and not all of them were regular. Within a single year, College First has pivoted toward providing more and more ministry toward international students, and it’s led to explosive growth. Or maybe the growth has required College First to pivot. To be honest, even the pastors aren’t quite sure which came first, but the unique circumstances, along with College First’s faithful response to it, are worth talking about. It’s a story worth telling and a question worth asking. Why is the world coming to College First?

In early 2023, I sat down for an interview with College First’s Connections Pastor Kimberly Reese, Student and Young Adult Ministries Pastor Nancy Hiser, and former Global Reach Director Ben Tobias. It was the first of three interviews that will help us track the progression of College First’s steps into international student ministry. I began by asking Pastor Nancy and Pastor Kimberly how this all started, and they both looked at each other for a moment with raised eyebrows, waiting for the other to respond. Finally Pastor Kimberly opened up. “We had, I think, one international student who attended College First for the last couple of years,” she said. And it seemed to stay that way through 2021 and the beginning of 2022. But by fall of 2022, something changed. Covid regulations had relaxed, and the doors were being swung wide open for international travel again. That meant that UF was about to have a lot more international students again.

Suddenly, that one international student was bringing new friends to church. “They were just naturally bringing them in… We didn’t have to advertise for the Bible study, they just told their friends, and they started coming,” Pastor Kimberly said. And as College First staff started interacting and talking more and more with these students, staff saw how different the needs of international students were from the needs of American students. Pastor Kimberly remarked, “We realized we didn’t have the right stuff to meet the needs they had. But God was doing more. It seems like God put the pieces of international ministries into place.”

The first need College First recognized was space. The international students were often renting a single bedroom apartment, even though multiple might be staying there. They had no place to meet, hang out, or even eat. Pastor Kimberly described their first idea. “We had an extra room in the building, and we tried it out, having an international student room. We didn’t know if they would show up… and they have!” The International Student room had been an office, and multiple other spaces, but had become something of a storage room when Pastor Nancy was hired on. So, they cleaned it out, bought some furniture, a tv, and a fridge, stocked the fridge with snacks and leftovers from church events, and turned it into a place for international students to hang out, study, and eat.

Pastor Nancy spoke on the initial impetus. “If their families were living here, what would they have that they don’t have? They could go and crash on the couch, have some snacks, and have a conversation with their family, and they don’t have that [here].” And students

turned up to use it. In fact, on the day of the interview, we had planned for the interview to take place in the room but a few international students were in there studying at the time, so we moved elsewhere, and we were glad to. Can you imagine how welcome new international students feel when they arrive and learn that the church has a room just for them?

Well, the students noticed, and that has brought more students and more ministry. Pastor Kimberly mentioned, “Because of that, they started coming to the church with needs. They don’t know who else to call, and this is becoming a safe place.” Because of this, College First and UF have also been working closely to see that these students' needs are met. In a number of areas, there are things that College First can do that UF can’t, and vice versa. UF can provide laptops, but they can’t help a student navigate the asylum process. Likewise, UF can’t take food donations and distribute them. UF can distribute coats and gloves, but not other clothing. There are a host of needs, and each partner works together to see them met. Pastor Kimberly said, “The relationship between UF and CF was forced to grow in a fantastic way. It didn’t exist at College First before.” In the past, each institution operated in their own domain, but now both are on mission to see these international students flourish; they’ve united around ministry.

It’s not just “ministry” in the way we typically think about it. Of course, sometimes it looks like Bible studies and coffee, but other times it looks like long rides to the airport, working through health insurance issues, helping them understand legal documents, or providing them with car seats for their young children. These needs come from every part of their lives, but that means the ministry does too. Understanding College First’s ministry requires us to take a broader and more historic view of the term than we sometimes do. College First ministers to international students in the same way that a medical professional ministers to the sick, the way a government official might be a minister to the public, the way an office clerk might administrate, and, of course, the way a pastor ministers to their congregation. It’s a wholistic view of ministry that encompasses all of life.

This new ministry is also letting College First have brand new intercultural and interfaith experiences. Pastor Nancy related a story of a

Muslim student who had a host of cultural issues which we might call ‘culture shock’.

“The female students cannot live the way they are supposed to live here. [They’re asking,]

‘How do I practice Islam in this new context, where most of my friends and coworkers aren’t Muslim?’ A Muslim woman cannot practice Ramadan faithfully without seeing men. A lot of traditions they grew up with are eroding and they are trying to find out what it means to be a Muslim in the United States, and sometimes being a bread winner. All of their roles are flipped upside down.”

It's in these upside-down moments when College First finds the opportunity to serve. Students like this young Muslim woman are having their first authentic experience of meeting Jesus, and of getting to know what Christians are like. Here College First serves people before they ever come to our faith. Our American world looks “upside down” to international students, and so the ministry has to be upside down too. When the church serves people who are far from home, far from their family, and far from their lifeline, the church becomes their home, their family, and their lifeline. College First has become the church for these international students in precisely the way we wish it could for the whole world.

And this has led to interesting interfaith dialogue. Pastor Nancy related a story where an Islamic international student asked why the church is meeting all of these needs, and Pastor Nancy replied, “Well, we do it because we are followers of Jesus, and this is what Jesus says we should do. Help other people and care for God’s people.” Once, Pastor Nancy asked if she could pray with an Islamic

student, the somewhat comical response came when the student said, “I’ll pray to Allah, and you pray to God, and maybe something will work.”

The upshot is that this kind of ministry gives back in tangible ways for the Church. College First has experienced firsthand how international students have stepped up to volunteer for ministry. Some are regularly volunteering for children's ministry like VBS this past summer, and other youth events. Three students recently signed up to help serve at a dinner function at the church, and they were all Muslim students. But this also brings up potential issues. Larger churches might be used to running background checks on volunteers who are working with kids, but that’s difficult for international students who don’t have a Social Security Number. Pastor Nancy said that College First has had to reconsider and change processes which worked for Americans but don’t quite fit international students. “Sometimes what happens is, when students try to do something, when they don’t fit into the normal process, people just stop helping them… their square peg doesn’t fit in the round hole, but that doesn’t mean we can’t figure it out though.”

Pastor Kimberly echoed the same concept but sees how it applies to the whole church. “That idea is applicable to every ministry that a church would interact with,” she said. “If you see a need and God is bringing you to it, you change your culture to meet the need. It can’t always be convenient. That’s not what Jesus taught us.”

So, it seems that the world is coming to College First. In many of our mission fields, local people have taken up the work and we no longer need missionaries. But Pastor Nancy is hoping that God brings mission-minded people here that have a desire for global ministries. Isn’t that a paradox? We need people to come to Findlay, Ohio, to do global ministry work. It’s an upside-down world. “There is a huge opportunity for people to do global missions here at this church because the world is here, the world has come to Findlay, Ohio, for grad school,” Pastor Nancy said, laughing. “They are so open to hear and to have those relationships and conversations.” Why is the world coming to College First? Who knows? Pastor Nancy and Pastor Kimberly seem to think God is up to something, and so College First is heeding the call to serve.

Ministry in the Military an Interview with Army Chaplain Byron Denman

The CGGC has an interesting and tumultuous history with the armed forces of the United States. At the outset, John Winebrenner was rather against war and even called civil wars “sinful,” saying that “saints of the Most High ought never to participate.” Yet, Winebrenner and many of the early CGGC leaders were staunch abolitionists, and when the American Civil War broke out, Winebrenner’s pacifism became less popular within the church for quite understandable reasons. Many felt that that the war was a regrettable, but ultimately necessary way to bring about their abolitionist aims.

To this day, the CGGC doesn’t have a clear and guiding principle about war or the military like Winebrenner did. But one thing is clear, the CGGC has chosen to support and sponsor military chaplains who might be ambassadors for Christ, extending His love, care, and sacrifice even to places the church might not otherwise dare to tread. The GLC is fortunate to have an Army chaplain of its very own. Chaplain Byron Denman is a licensed pastor of the GLC and served as pastor at Hopewell First Church of God for a while before moving into full time chaplaincy. We’ve had the pleasure to ask Chaplain Denman a number of questions about his role, and the impact God is making through him.

Can you give us a brief background of your work with the Great Lakes Conference, and how you moved into Chaplaincy?

I was raised an Army child, and then served as an enlisted soldier for 10 years. I felt early on that God was calling me to bridge the gap between my passion for developing soldiers and ministering to His people. So, I started with an understanding that I was called to be an Army chaplain and then developed a relationship with the Great Lakes Conference as I pursued seminary and chaplaincy. I was connected with the GLC while I was serving in Germany in 2012. I had called Dr. Earl Mills in order to discuss becoming an Army chaplain through the GLC. While I was in seminary, I was licensed by the GLC, served two years as an associate pastor and church planter out of Hopewell First Church of God in Tiffin, and then was called up to resume Active Duty in 2019. You’ve served in both traditional ministry and military chaplaincy. What are the core differences between these two ministries?

Where soldiers are in their faith journey is very different from what you would see in the typical church congregation. They come into the Army with wildly diverse upbringings that have formed their worldviews. Many soldiers who profess faith do not actually know what the Bible says about sin, grace, and salvation. Some are strong believers and some are ambivalent or even antagonistic about faith. I provide support and training through all sorts of problems and situations, hoping that those who do not know Christ might come to understand his love for them through the ministry he has set before me. The challenge in this is that I am not permitted to proselytize. I have to present the Gospel as my personal beliefs without doing anything that could be perceived as pushing those beliefs onto others. It really shifts into a gentler evangelism than what you see from a civilian pulpit.

What is your ‘congregation’ like? Is the demographic similar to most of our churches, or different?

As a chaplain, I have two main duties. Primarily, I am assigned a battalion of soldiers, usually 500-700 people, for whom I provide support, counseling, and training. This includes unique things like marriage and single soldier retreats, suicide awareness training, and ethical training for leadership. I provide regular worship services and Bible studies to these soldiers while deployed. The chaplain also serves as a liaison between the soldiers and the unit leadership. Secondarily, I serve alongside other chaplains providing chapel services on post. This includes everything a traditional (civilian) pastor would do. The congregation typically consists of believers from a variety of protestant denominations and across generations, as young soldiers and retired Army personnel.

Based on your experience in the military chaplaincy, what unique issues are young men and women in the military facing?

Soldiers today, especially the younger generation, are lacking connection on a deep level. I see this with the high numbers of suicidal ideation, as well as an overall sense of searching and loss. A vast majority of our soldiers are looking for purpose in their lives. That is why they join the military: they want to be a part of something bigger. They want to be included in something that matters. I also see many soldiers who lack a sense of personal identity. The responsibility of the church is to provide an environment that offers the connection, purpose, and hope that is found at the cross of Christ. When we do that well, we will meet the needs of those soldiers who are hurting the most. Many of them, however, do not realize the extent of these spiritual needs. My position as a chaplain allows me to open them up to this reality and share with them the answer that we all know Jesus is.

Most of our pastors don’t have to regularly serve people of different faith traditions. What is that like?

As a chaplain, one of my duties is to make sure that soldiers of every faith have their religious accommodations met. This includes making sure they are provided special meals (specifically for Jewish or Muslim soldiers) and that they have access to religious services. I do not provide services to different faith groups, but I will ensure that they

have their sacred text available to them. This gives me a unique opportunity to reach people and forge relationships that most pastors don’t have the opportunity to do. I am confident that people who are genuinely seeking the truth will find it in the love of Jesus, so that is what I am to provide, regardless of their starting faith or lack thereof.

Where have you seen God active in your ministry?

Several soldiers have come to understand the grace of Christ and accepted Him as their Savior. I’ve seen soldiers step up to lead Christian groups and Bible studies. One young man in particular went from an infantry soldier to transition into ministry. He’s currently in the process of becoming a religious affairs specialist, which is an enlisted position that serves alongside Chaplains, with the goal of eventually going to seminary to become a Chaplain himself. On a heavier note, I’ve talked at least five soldiers away from the cliff of suicide by offering them the peace of God, and getting them the help they needed. My phone is on 24/7 so that these people can reach me in their direst need.

How can the Great Lakes Conference or the CGGC at large support your ministry?

My family has received tremendous support over the past few years. The prayers that have covered us, the phone calls or text messages to see how we are doing, and the fellowship of GLC/CGGC pastors when we have been able to connect have all given us assurance that we are not navigating the Army chaplaincy alone. I have also had excellent guidance and professional mentoring from CGGC leaders who have taken me underwing. Continued support in all of these ways is everything that we desire, and we are confident that it will endure.

The Denman Family

Who is Investing in You?

by Kathy Foor, CGWM Director

Alittle over a year ago, Lance Finley, Executive Director of the CGGC, asked me, “Who is investing in you?” We were discussing Women’s Ministries during a break at Ad Council, and his question so stunned me that I had no words—a rare occurrence!

No one had ever asked me that question before! I am familiar with the other side of the question. “Who are you investing in?” l know the answer to that one! I’m investing in my children. I’m investing in my grandchildren. I'm investing in the lives of other friends and family. I’m investing in my church family as a worship leader. I’m investing in the lives of the choir members I direct. I’m investing in my CGWM leadership team and the women I meet at retreats and events where I am speaking. I am investing in a small group of women through a one-year coaching huddle. Wow! I’m exhausted just sharing the list.

I know you have a similar list. It’s what women do. We pour ourselves into the lives of others. We teach Sunday school, lead Bible studies, collect shoeboxes, provide funeral meals, and visit shut-ins. Many of us have full-time jobs and full-time families we’re still trying to juggle as well. So, I know you understand why Lance’s question caught me by surprise.

I was a little embarrassed to admit that I couldn’t think of anyone who was investing in me, but I’m thankful for Lance’s question, though. That brief discussion led to a new relationship with a woman who has been discipling me in a prophetic coaching huddle for the past year.

As a teacher, it is my nature to take whatever I am learning and pass it on to others. It is not what I do, it is who I am. It is how God wired me, so when I learned how important it is to not only invest in others but to have someone invest in me, I naturally wanted to share it.

What does this have to do with Women’s Ministries or the upcoming Flourish Conference? Funny you should ask! The theme of this year’s Flourish Conference takes us beyond last year’s theme of living boldly for God to Boots on the Ground: Advancing the Kingdom Together.

We are all different. God made us that way on purpose. Each of us is called to serve Him in our own unique way, but all of us are called to serve Him together to advance His Kingdom on the earth until He returns. None of us can do it alone. We need each other. When we grow together and serve together, the Holy

Saturday

6 Pray for Victor Montalvo as he travels to the Latino fields and builds relationships with the leaders and churches.

13 Lift up in prayer the people of the Dominican Republic. Pray for faithfulness and to stand firm in God’s truth.

20 Uplift the USA President and other elected leaders. Ask the Holy Spirit to direct them in a way that brings all glory and honor to God.

27 Praise God for John and Toni Thumma and their faithful service at our Southwest field.

January 2024

Global Advocate Prayer Calendar

Friday

5 Join together in prayer for Travis Bodden as he leads the Midwest Region that the Lord will provide clarity and discernment in 2024.

Thursday

4 Have faith that the ACTS teams in 2024 will provide opportunities to serve those in need and provide encouragement for all participating.

12 Pray for peace and order to prevail throughout all of Haiti in 2024 and safety for our pastors and leaders.

11 Trust the Lord to provide ample support for the International Field Leaders who oversee 10 Global Reach fields.

Wednesday

3 Happy birthday, Dr. John Costa ! Support him in prayer as he leads the Bangladesh mission.

Tuesday

2 Ask the Lord to guide the CGGC Executive Director Lance Finley throughout 2024 as he juggles many concerns and responsibilities.

Monday

1 New Years Day! Join in prayer for strength and renewed vision for all our GR missionaries and field leaders as we begin a new year.

Sunday

10 Happy birthday, Rev. Samir Singha ! Pray for grace as he juggles so many government requirements for the Mission.

9 Be in prayer for all Global Reach fields as they deal with government regulations. This is required for transferring funds and maintaining integrity.

8 Intercede on behalf of the people of Mexico to grow in Christ-like character. Praise God for new ministry expansion!

7 Uplift in prayer the Haiti Conference in 2024 as the leaders work towards unity between all the churches and pastors.

19 Remember in prayer the people of Nicaragua. Pray that they experience increased love and encouragement.

18 Praise God for Pastor Phil Scott , Director of the Allegheny Regional Conference.

17 Ask God for spiritual growth for Everett & Mary Teller as they serve the Tsaile Community Church in the Navajo lands.

16 Cover the Global Reach Commission in prayer as they meet throughout 2024.

15 Happy Birthday Dave Kapaku! Pray for wisdom as he continues to assist with post-fire rebuilding in Lahaina, Hawaii.

14 Intercede for clear vision and discernment as Rod & Mila Ayers coordinate the Sister Church Ministry for Project Help-Haiti.

26 Remember in prayer Pastors Denis Droicin and Stanley Lambert as they lead Project Help in Haiti.

25 Seek spiritual growth and protection for Jacob & Haley Day as they minister in Gamerco.

24 Unite in prayer for David Odegard , CGGC President and Great Lakes Conference Director.

23 Trust the Lord to provide for the people of Kenya. Pray for mercy and comfort.

22 Thank God for Ryan & Karla Myers who serve as Mission Advancement Volunteers.

21 Unite in prayer for the Allegheny Region Conference. Trust that the Lord will provide encouragement through 2024.

31 Appeal to the Lord for Director Tim Welsh as he leads the California Eldership. Ask for God’s blessings and protection.

30 Ask the Holy Spirit to encourage and guide pastor Ernesto Nunes as he shepherds the church in Brazil.

29 Remember in prayer the Eastern Regional Conference and Director Nathan Buck. Call upon the Lord for wisdom and unity in 2024

Lift up in prayer

28

Jeff & Julie Burns who serve as Mission Advancement volunteers and serve on the Global Reach Commission.

Saturday

3 Appeal to the Lord for Jacob & Haley Day as they prepare for mission teams in 2024.

Friday

2 Uplift the Project Help Executive Team as they meet throughout 2024 to oversee the ministry in Haiti.

February 2024

Global Advocate Prayer Calendar

Thursday

1 Call on God’s protection for the churches in Mexico . “ For our struggle is not against flesh and blood … ” (Ephesians 6:12).

Wednesday

Tuesday

10 Happy birthday Elli Crabtree ! Ask the Lord to bless her with health and joy in Udon Thani, Thailand.

9 Appeal for ongoing protection and good health for Pastor German & Silvia Baquedano as they serve faithfully in Nicaragua.

8 Pray for the ministry in Argentina being led by Pastor Maria Grigioni , and for her radio ministry to reach thousands!

7 Request the Lord’s direction and guidance for Rod & Mila Ayers as they seek to minister in Haiti.

6 Lift up the leaders who are receiving training through Winebrenner Seminary in Kenya.

Monday

Sunday

5 Ask God to continue blessing ministry partnerships between the USA and the Dominican Republic.

4 Pray for clear knowledge of God’s will for each of the fields and wisdom so GR Director Travis Helm can advise accordingly.

17 Pray for teams visiting India and Bangladesh right now for their safety and fruit from ministry partnerships.

16 Pray for the many children who seek education in India , and for the ministries to provide it.

15 Pray for the growing ministry of the Nicaragua Conference during political tensions.

14 Intercede for the strengthening of marriage, that the Holy Spirit would give each one grace to love his or her spouse unconditionally.

13 Intercede for the churches in Sao Paulo, Brazil , as they continue to struggle from the pandemic shutdowns.

12 Lift up in Prayer Global Reach Director Travis Helm to trust the Lord for wisdom and discernment as he works with Field leaders.

11 Praise God for Pastor Kendall Hughes , Director of the Western Regional Conference.

24 Seek the Lord’s protective and peaceful hand to settle over Chaplain Matthew Shenton as he ministers to military personnel and families.

23 Pray for University of Findlay Campus Ministries and protection of their leadership.

22 Praise God for Dr. John Costa’s leadership and commitment to provide medical ministry in Khanjanpur and Bogra, Bangladesh .

21 Pray for the Haiti government leaders to begin to form again and actively lead with integrity.

20 Happy birthday Kenda Kapaku! She and David serve at the Kahana Open Door Church in Maui. Praise God for their leadership.

19 Pray for future missionaries and leaders in our Southwest field as the Thummas pray for God to raise up leaders in Hooghan Nizhoni.

18 Pray that many will step out in faith to serve on the ACTS Teams being sent this year.

29 Pray for safe travels of all international and local mission trips in 2024.

28 Intercede for the pastor and leaders of your church. Ask that the Lord provide knowledge and discernment.

27 Join together in prayer for Bryan & Katie Crabtree as they reach out to their neighbors in Udon Thani, Thailand.

26 Pray for Pastor Denis our PHH Liaison as he helps guide the Haitian conference pastors and communicates with GR Director Travis Helm.

25 Praise God for Pastor Travis Bodden , Director of the Midwestern Regional Conference.

Spirit builds a beautiful community that can spread the Gospel.

We are all commanded, “Go and make disciples.” When we obey that command together, God can multiply our efforts in amazing ways. God loves to multiply! All of creation testifies to this. From Genesis to Revelation God demonstrates multiplication.

You can multiply by one, but the outcome does not change. When you multiply by two, look what happens. The results double! With three, the results triple. Imagine what God could do with all of us working together to advance His Kingdom!

We are excited to present an incredible panel of six women at The Flourish Conference this year rather than one main speaker. Each of these precious women is actively advancing the Kingdom of God in her unique context. Kimberly Reese, Discipleship Pastor at College First Church of God, will share with us her passion and strategies for reaching into the lives of the least, the last, and the lost. She and her family live life on mission together for Jesus.

April Ocasio, Pastor at Uplift Church in Halifax, PA, and founder of Isaiah 61 Ministries, will share the call she and her husband, Angel, have to minister to the homeless and less fortunate in their community.

Heidi Guyer is advancing the Kingdom in various ways. Passionate about helping those struggling with loss in various forms, she began co-leading a GriefShare at her church a few years ago that helps people in various stages of the grieving process. She is also very involved in Sweet Grace Ministries, a local ministry that works with individuals, couples, and families dealing with miscarriage, stillbirth, neonatal death, and SIDS.

Carey Simms, founder of CreatedSpace, is passionate about how the church can make a social impact while proclaiming the gospel. As a spiritual director, she delights in helping people develop practices that deepen and enliven their friendship with God. She is passionate about equipping young leaders through life-on-life discipleship and leading new forms of church.

Elly Maconochie and her family came to America from the UK nine years ago in answer to God’s call to be a part of a missional community. Elly and her daughter, Grace, Creative Director of the 3D Movement, will share what it is like to live as a family on mission together. We look forward to hearing their practical ways to love our neighbors and the people God has placed in our lives!

Most of us are not pastors or ministry leaders. In fact, most of us are just ordinary women whom God has called to build His Kingdom. Our calling is different, and yet when we gather to learn and grow together it often motivates, inspires, and activates us, so that multiplication results.

We want everyone who attends Flourish to go home empowered to participate in Kingdom-building in her unique context. We want to encourage you to live out your calling. We want to invest in you! More than that, we would love to invest in you beyond Flourish! We want to help you advance God’s Kingdom wherever you are in 2024. The harvest is ripe! We are praying for the Lord of the harvest to send forth workers (Matthew 9:38).

Come join us March 1-3, 2024, in Findlay, Ohio.

Register now at https://www.theflourishconference.org/

LIFT

Several years ago, the Great Lakes Conference recognized its greatest need was for more leaders who would have the ability to revitalize existing churches or plant new ones. It also recognized that many of these leaders were outside the CGGC. We wanted to create better paths for those within or without the CGGC to be able to gain competency in ministry and respond to God’s call on their lives. This led to the creation of the Leadership Fellowship Initiative, a program that allows us to recruit new, young leaders, scholarship their M. Div. at Winebrenner Seminary, place them in a church alongside a seasoned pastor, discover their ministry strengths, and ultimately deploy them in a way that maximizes their potential for Kingdom impact.

We hoped this would be a way to help assimilate leaders into the ethos of our denomination. In turn, they would have a support group around them who walk with them while they learn the practical skills to be successful in main street ministry. Initially, we thought that the scholarship for the M. Div. would be the most valuable offer that we made to our Fellows, but it turned out it was the support network which surrounds them.

To facilitate this vision, the GLC Executive Board designed an oversight committee to create and then evaluate Teaching Churches. These churches were those who showed good health, best practices, and were those ultimately that we most wanted to duplicate. The support network needed to be able to evaluate the progress of each Fellow, their spiritual gifts and entrepreneurial abilities. Also, it had to evaluate each teaching church to ensure quality in all the various nuances would be maintained through time.

by David Odegard, GLC Executive Director

The fellow also is provided much guidance, prayer, and evaluative oversight as she or he progresses. A series of standards, made deliberately high, was enacted for quality assurance in this program. Not that anyone who did not finish the program was in some way deficient as a minister, but that this program was not a fit, and there remain many other programs which are still available.

We graduated our first Fellow, Pastor Derek Pryor, last summer who currently serves as the senior pastor at Wharton First Church of God. He excelled at his studies with a very high GPA and served at Celina Church of God for three years where he learned from Pastor Craig Flack. He and his wife, Tay, are providing excellent ministry to the people in the Riverdale School District.

Currently, we have three more Fellows who are placed in teaching churches experiencing the same qualitative mixture of formative and instrumental knowledge. Our hope is to expand the fellowship to accommodate more Fellows in the future as an aid to the entire CGGC and in partnership with our beloved Winebrenner Seminary.

A further expansion came as a result of the Executive Board recognizing that the LFI oversight committee had become proficient with evaluating pastoral and church health and they decided that it would be good to include all of the GLC internship program and trainees under their oversight as well. Thus, LIFT was born: Leadership: Interns, Fellows, Trainees. We remain grateful to the many churches who pay their Fair Share and also to The Foundation of the Great Lakes Conference which make programs like this possible; this has really enabled the GLC to pivot in these crucial times.

A Foundation for the Future

by Bill Reist

The Foundation of the Great Lakes Conference (GLC) was chartered in 1997 by the Ohio Conference of the Churches of God, General Conference (forerunner of the GLC) with proceeds ($6.5m) from the sale of Winebrenner Village. In the intervening 25 years since the first nine grants were awarded (1999), The Foundation has awarded over 300 grants totaling $6.8m and holds assets without donor restrictions in excess of $7m. The Foundation is larger now than when it first began even after distributing the equivalent of its original balance!

The Foundation’s mission is to “stimulate lifechanging ministry.” As a catalyst precipitates or incites an event, The Foundation encourages and supports transformational ministry throughout the Conference. One of the former directors—now in Glory—suggested during a planning meeting that the sole reason of The Foundation’s existence is to see more people in heaven! In that spirit, The Foundation exists to support those who equip people to follow Jesus.

Slightly more than half of the grants have been awarded to local congregations; the remainder were awarded to the GLC Executive Board, Commissions, and Camps. In addition, The Foundation manages $1m in church finances under the Investment Facilitator Program and $235k of endowments and

assets with donor restrictions. The Lord has incredibly blessed the Conference through the work of The Foundation.

The Foundation awards two types of grants. For most of its history, The Foundation received Preliminary Grant Applications in January, and by invitation, Formal Grant Applications in March. Awards were announced in May for the year beginning June 1. These traditional grants are awarded for both capital projects as well as ministry and programming projects. They do not necessarily require a match by the congregation.

With the onset of the pandemic in 2020, The Foundation began to award Fast-Track grants, designed to bless the community, either inside or outside the congregation. These Fast-Track grants could not exceed $5k per congregation and were generally matched by the requesting body. In 2021, The Foundation continued the program with Micro Grants, providing resources to stimulate missional outreach and/or reproducing disciple-making in congregations and agencies of the Conference. Micro Grant awards will not exceed $5k and are generally matched by the requesting body. Multiple grants may be submitted by the same congregation or agency in any one calendar year.

Especially in the early years of The Foundation, grants were awarded for new construction and

renovation of existing congregational and camp facilities. Numerous capital campaigns were supplemented by support of The Foundation, helping take meaningful projects over the top. But congregations are only as strong as their witness and The Foundation is focused on stimulating personal discipleship and spiritual growth, equipping people to follow Jesus.

This year has been quite fruitful as The Foundation awarded 25 traditional and micro grants totaling over $400,000. Most of these grants were for programs and ministries—as opposed to brick and mortar—thereby directly benefiting individuals. The grants underwrite such programs as ministry on the University of Findlay campus; camping ministry at Otyokwah, in Michigan, and even in Alaska; support of pastors and families for sabbaticals or pastoral care; children headed back to school; and food and supplies in places of food insecurity. The Foundation is blessed to be able to join congregations and affiliates in supporting these transforming ministries for the singular purpose of helping people live increasingly like Jesus.

The accompanying photo below shows participants at the GLC Youth and Family Camp (GLCYFC), held June 20-23, 2023, and supported by a modest Micro-Grant from The Foundation. The camp focused on “fostering an atmosphere in which the Holy Spirit could break

through barriers to inspire spiritual growth.” In addition to campers and staff from the Michigan congregations, interns from Campus Ministry at the University of Findlay were invited to provide music and small group leadership throughout the week. The grant also provided scholarship money for unchurched campers to participate in the week and hear the Gospel.

A number of GLC congregations built bridges into their communities by hosting a back to school extravaganza, providing students with backpacks and school supplies, sponsoring a community movie night, upgrading the church’s playground equipment, or sending unchurched children to camp. In addition to GLCYFC mentioned above, Wooster, Risingsun, Ridgeway, Wharton, Mendon, and World Wide Living Faith congregations were all awarded grant support to focus on summer activities that served children and their families in the congregation and across the community.

The Foundation is an integral part of the life and ministry of the Conference. It is in early conversation to begin a significant financial campaign that will broaden ministry support. As The Foundation completes its first quartercentury of existence it looks forward to stimulating even greater transformational ministry that results in many more people in heaven. To God alone be the Glory!

Global Reach Updates

Thank you for partnering with our friends and fields in Global Reach. The following are a few updates from some of our Global Reach fields. Please continue to pray for our leaders and believers as they serve God and share the Good News with seekers.

Bangladesh

Teams of pastors and other mission-minded folk from the Churches of God traveled to Bangladesh to celebrate 125 years of ministry there. That’s right. 125 years! That’s a tremendous amount of time. Really, a daunting amount of time to consider and appreciate.

The celebration itself took place on October 25, 2023, and saw about 70 pastors, mission leaders, hospital staff, teachers, and their families gather in a beautiful Catholic mission house for worship, messages, encouragement, history lessons, fellowship, food, and fun. This represents a rare occasion where our pastors in Bangladesh can come together, refresh themselves, and be encouraged about the importance of their work.

A mixture of pastors from India and the U.S. were welcomed as special guests and speakers, to encourage the pastors in Bangladesh, and to help train them for the challenges they are facing in that field. The Christian population in Bangladesh is not even 1% of the total, and +90% are Muslim, with the remaining being mostly Hindu. While Bangladesh isn’t the most dangerous of a field for Christians, the cultural climate can still be quite demanding (and the normal climate too, for that matter).

Our Bengali brothers and sisters are so grateful for our partnership and support. But the pastors and travelers from the US found themselves learning from the Bengali pastors too. Their experience preaching God’s love from a minority position isn’t easy, but as one pastor said, “You can trust that if they become a believer, it’s genuine.” Americans in particular are interested to understand and learn from the way that Bengali pastors do gospel ministry. In many ways, American pastors need to relearn how to reach out. There is then a wonderful sense of mutuality between us.

If you’re interested in experiencing some missions work, come to Bangladesh on an ACTS team or travel with Travis during an annual visit some future year. Meet fellow Christians who are doing God’s work here, sharing the love of Christ, teaching children, healing the sick, and creating community. It’s a genuinely beautiful thing.

India

Our India field had celebrations in West Bengal in late October and early November in Malda (up north) and at the Mission Campus in Uluberia near Kolkata (Calcutta). Pastors, school teachers, students, and their families arrived in both places to welcome guests from the U.S. and Bangladesh, including Dr. John Costa, our Bangladesh field leader. Both celebrations were a time for numerous sessions of teaching, prayer, and worship, along with meals, tea, and fellowship.

Gatherings like these allow for pastors and their families to come together, sharing ideas, joys and struggles. For the guests like Dr. David Odegard (GLC) and Dr. John Costa, the opportunity for relationship building is immense, and being witness to all the good work our mission is doing in India only motivates us to offer more support, and encourage them to continue on.

One bright spot of this trip was getting to spend time with Pastor Sanat Tudu and his family who live at the Uluberia Mission campus and who were very hospitable, feeding the guests and welcoming them into their home. They even took the U.S. guests around Uluberia town to get traditional Indian clothing to bring back home.

Kenya

Nancy Boyer and Lisa Wilt recently facilitated a teaching session in Kenya. The teachers, Pastors Arnie Kaufman, Paul Rutledge, and Jason Boroff did a great job. They taught New Testament Foundation. Nancy provided this update during that recent trip. “It has been such a blessing to watch the spiritual growth of the Kenyan pastors as they continue to learn. Our classes provide the way to earn a diploma in Christian studies that will protect their ministries from government forced closure. As we use what God gives us, the Kenyans use what God has given them to impact the gospel of our Lord, Jesus Christ. Lisa Wilt and I are grateful for the support to help us travel and lead the teaching team. Thank you for the prayers and support.”

700 E. Melrose Ave., P.O. Box 926

Findlay, OH 45839

Phone (419) 424-1961

Fax (419) 424-3433

www.cggc.org