Myriads and Myriads....

A two-hour worship service on Sunday night is typical at Providentia Baptist Church in Bucharest. Last Sunday night two young children read a poem and recited scripture. A 12-year old boy playing a guitar (as big as he was) played and led us in "Our God is an Awesome God."  Tiger Pennington would preach to our gathering on the Good Samaritan passage.

During the service the pastor read from Revelation 5:11-13 -- "...many angels surrounding the throne; they numbered myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, singing with full voice, 'Worthy is the Lamb that was slaughtered to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!'" (NRSV)

The majority of the worship time was congregational singing accompanied by a 30-member mandolin orchestra. We sang the English words to familiar hymns and choruses. We stumbled badly pronouncing the Romanian words of songs we did not know.

Toward the end of the service Tyler Tankersley brought greetings from his home church. I brought greetings

CBF Missouri changes name to CBF Heartland

In a unanimous decision, the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship of Missouri Coordinating Council has voted to change the name of the organization to CBF Heartland.

“The shift from CBF of Missouri to CBF Heartland recognizes the ongoing work of the Spirit prompting and nudging us in this direction,” said Kathy Pickett, moderator of the Coordinating Council and pastor of congregational life at Holmeswood Baptist Church in Kansas City. “The name change frees us as a fellowship to be more inclusive of our partnering congregations not located in Missouri while providing a way to be more inviting and welcoming of others in the future.”

CBF Heartland’s ministry to churches and Christians beyond the borders of Missouri has been growing for several years.

“For over a decade, CBF of Missouri related to churches in neighboring Kansas and Iowa, but church relationships in Illinois and other states helped us realize the need for a more inclusive identity,” said Harold Phillips, who remains as coordinator of the organization.

CBF Responds in NJ and NY

(an update from Charles Ray, CBFResponds Coordinator)
 
CBF's response team, led by CBF Partner, Rev. Moose Jackson, National Director, American Baptist Association, entered the NJ area early Saturday, November 3, three days after Sandy struck the area.   Within 72 hours I was notified of a special gift being arranged by a supporting group from a US military base to assist us in quick response to the predicted winter storm following the hurricane.

The assessment team had determined that the greatest need at the moment was heat.  With power off to much of the area we were working in (Union Beach, NJ), families were about to enter a second week of cold.  Over the next several days we purchased and distributed 23 state of the art liquid gas heaters along with 20 gallons of fuel each, 56 winter jackets, many heavy duty battery powered lanterns and food and water to more than 100 families.

On the weekend, 30 very excited, and willing to work, students from Eastern University in Wayne, PA joined our team in assisting in debris removal, pressure spraying and general cleanup. After nine days our group returned home.  Rev. Jackson shared that he needed an emotional break since recipients of the heaters always asked how much we were charging for them, but then began crying when told they were free and given by people who care. 

While our work in NJ was progressing we were in constant contact with Pastor Alan Sherouse, Metro Baptist Church, NYC.  This CBF church will be our base for long term relief in the NYC.  Alan is preparing to assistance in the Rockaway area of Long Island, where CBS 60 Minutes based its report last Sunday night.  To help in this effort CBFResponds has shared the special financial gift with Metro; however, additional funds are greatly needed and can be sent direct or through CBFResponds.

Charles Ray

CBFResponds Coordinator

1504 Martin Luther King Drive

Little Rock, AR 72202

cray@cbfar.org

www.thefellowship.info

Kingdom Kia

Last week I was in mid-Missouri – a beautiful week to be on the road enjoying fall foliage and the rolling terrain of south central Missouri.  As I entered Rolla I noticed a huge new car dealership beside the interstate – Kingdom Kia.

In conversation with a friend, I learned that Kingdom Kia had once been the home to a large bustling church. Along the way, tensions filled the church and eventually it closed down – with the building probably returned to a local bank for lack of payment.

A car dealership spotted the superb location.  Probably also spotted a good deal from a bank wanting to unload a defaulted loan! As my friend in Rolla commented wryly, at least now the parking lot is filled with cars.

Turning Left

A favorite recent movie is The BestExotic Marigold Hotel about seven “British retirees who decide to ‘outsource’ their retirement to less expensive and seemingly exotic  India.” The movie chronicles the exploits of the energetic young owner trying to make the hotel look as good as the brochure he provided his clients. It is also the story of new residents adjusting to a new place of living and how they cope with change. One of the seven eventually decides to return back to native England and expresses pride that when she boards the plane she will “turn left.”

On a recent trip to Atlanta I got bumped from economy class to first-class --- this meant I also would get to “turn left” as I boarded the plane.

New Friend from Taiwan

Allen (Ming-Chi Shih) and Isaac

After my sabbatical this summer, our family decided to be more intentional about opening up our home to neighbors and strangers. An opportunity presented itself almost immediately; we were invited to host a high school student from Taiwan for a two-week exchange program.

By the time we picked up Allen at the airport on a Sunday afternoon, he had already been traveling for over 12 hours. He was friendly but understandably quiet and tired. Over the next two weeks, it was fun to see Allen become more and more a part of our family. Some significant things we shared:

• Giving Gifts – I had forgotten the importance of gift-giving in many other cultures. The first day, Allen presented each of our family members with a small gift. He gave us other gifts throughout his stay. After he left to go home, we discovered notes he’d written for us (in Chinese and English) as well. The gifts he gave and the ones we gave in return sealed our friendship.
  

Being a Stranger in a Strange Land

Four years ago, CBF of Missouri provided me with the excellent ministry gift of a sabbatical.  



HAP, "Dracula," Tyler, and Gio at the Bran Castle



One of the components of my sabbatical was to experience “being a stranger in a strange land.”  I chose to do this by visiting Bucharest, Romania.

The plan was that I would meet up with a guy I had never met before (other than via the internet). “Gio” would rent an apartment for me, he would show me around Bucharest, we would travel to Transylvania and visit the Peles Castle and Bran Castle (where "Dracula" lived), and he would take me to visit the Ruth School for Roma kids in the Ferentari sector of Bucharest.

I deliberately made no Plan B for lodging, transportation, etc. in case no one was at the airport.  As the plane descended into the Bucharest airport a sense of panic and fear struck me like a fist in the gut.  Like I said, there was no Plan B!