4 minute read
Our impact
A little girl with a head full of ringworms, dressed only in an oversized, dirty, tattered t-shirt peeked through the window into the church building wondering about the excitement. Unknown to the ministry team, this little girl appeared to be another uneducated child in Africa, living a life of hardship and poverty. Curiosity moved one foot after the other until she found herself inside the church with strangers all around her.
A CityLight graduation ceremony connected local church pastors, CityLight graduates, and the CityLight ministry team to celebrate men and women who received diplomas for graduating from CityLight programs.
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While all of the other children were moved aside to make way for the graduates, the little girl did not move. She was stuck in her tracks staring up at Bishop Redfern.
He smiled at her. She smiled back.
He took his seat. She moved a little closer.
He began to preach. She moved closer to listen.
At the conclusion of the program, the little girl scurried away and he lost track of her.
When Bishop Redfern returned home, he shared many stories with his wife of lives changed, hearts moved by the Lord, graduations, new church buildings, and a community transformed. e spoke of the excitement of the mothers in the village when the CityLight ministry team distributed food, clothing, soccer balls, and toys to the children.
The face of the little girl in the tattered t-shirt afected him the most.
With the help of the church pastors and village locals, Bishop Redfern searched for two days to nd the little girl.
He found Juliet.
Bishop Redfern prayed with her family, gave them resources for medical treatment, and made arrangements to send uliet to a private, Christian boarding school at no expense to her family.
If you educate a girl, you educate a nation.
uliet s siblings have all oined her at boarding school where they are learning to read and write in nglish. hey are safe, sheltered, and exploring a world of choices and opportunities.
uliet s father was curious as to what kind of people would care for his poor village daughter with such love, re uiring nothing in return. e was truly amazed and said, “I don’t know much about this Jesus you talk about. But if because of Him, complete strangers would come from thousands of miles away to care for the concerns of my daughter, I must consider this Jesus.” uliet s parents attend church and Bible study weekly and are watching their children thrive.
As Presiding Bishop and General Overseer of the Ecumenical Church of Christ Worldwide, Redfern II established a mission-minded church in 1995 in Columbia, SC, to reach the unchurched, homeless, Juvenile delinquents, incarcerated, single parents, and their children. Bishop Redfern, and Rev. Dr. Luella J. Redfern, now oversee the planting of churches, schools, and CityLight Catalyst Centers in 16 southern states of the US and throughout countries on fve continents.
Ecumenical Church and University have planted congregations in nine states in India, twelve countries in East Africa, six countries of Central Africa, South America, and the Caribbean. Bishop Redfern pioneered the idea of using one church building to plant several church congregations to train pastors in real time for ministry. The Ecumenical Church and University have sent and supported full-time missionaries to several Asian and African countries. Some of which are places where Christians are severely persecuted.
Bishop and Rev. Dr. Redfern II serve as the international directors of CityLight and Cross Style International Ministries. As the directors of CityLight, they organized a chain of worldwide prayer cells covering the eight regions of the world. In their position at Cross Style, they developed the strategic plan with Dr. Stephen Manley for 125 Bible training centers in 22 countries.
Rev. Dr. Luella J. Redfern is a Licensed and Ordained Minister with the Ecumenical Church Worldwide, currently serving as Executive Director of CityLight Women’s Ministry, The Esther Women of Infuence. She equips women, teens, and young girls, with sound Biblical teaching and character development. Rev. Dr. Redfern encourages women to focus on turning ideas into action on issues fundamental to women’s spiritual growth and economic empowerment, giving them the confdence to thrive.
In 2012, Bishop Redfern founded Ecumenical University to train missionaries, pastors, and laypersons in the Cross Style Theology of Dr. Stephen Manley. The University also provides the fundamentals of a liberal arts education. To facilitate the fnancial growth of programs abroad, the University has added a school of Philanthropy and Non-Proft Development and Management.
Your gifts over the next three years will multiply CityLight’s impact.
EDUCATE A CHILD - $500 PER YEAR
Children who attend school are saved from a life of hard labor or being married o at the age of or .
TRAIN A MINISTER - $1,000 PER YEAR
Work through a rigorous -month curriculum named Cross-Style theology that prepares them for full-time ministry. U raduates teach in primary, elementary and high schools. raduates form and lead sther Women of n uence and en n the Wall discipleship groups.
ENDOW A SCHOLARSHIP - $10,000 PER YEAR
cumenical University s future is upon us. ndowment ensures students and ministers receive the training they re uire for years to come.
BUILD A CATALYST CENTER - $50,000
Build a CityLight Catalyst Center using the -Step Community evelopment odel. housands of men, women, and children will have access to electricity, internet, clean water, healthcare, opportunities to learn skills to earn a living, and opportunities for children to attend primary school.
There are many reasons why a gift to CityLight is a good and smart investment. Empowering families to ecome self-su cient lifts the entire world.
Your gift will help rescue children and families from the ravages of abject poverty. But most of all, your support is a testament of how strongly you believe that every person is precious, every person deserves a chance to thrive.
