Kip McKean of Los Angeles: The following announcements were made Sunday: 1) Coming from Sao Paulo, Tyler & Shay Sears will lead the new North Region! This is the City of Angels Church’s tenth region, and it will be initiated on our Workshop Sunday, January 6, 2013! 2) George & Angelica Grima are being sent by the Spirit to strengthen the Paris Church on that same Sunday! They will serve as a full-time (self-supported) Shepherding Couple for six months! 3) Jim & Donna Fenton are nominated to be our Congregational Deacon Couple for Kids Kingdom! Lord willing, they will be officially appointed at the Winter Workshop!
With a few more days left in 2012 and four more baptisms this week, the Lord has blessed us in 2012 with 419 additions: 270 baptisms, 50 restorations and 99 place memberships – about half of whom have joined us from our former fellowship seeking revival!
Raul Moreno of Sao Paulo: “Paul chose Silas and left, commended by the brothers to the grace of the Lord.” (Acts 15:40) This Sunday, the Sao Paulo Church was full of tears – sad and joyful at the same time – as we saw our dear heroes, missionaries, and fellow Evangelist and Women’s Ministry Leader – Tyler & Shay Sears leave for LA to the lead the future North Region of the City of Angels Church, and God willing, plant the Dallas Church in August 2013!
While in Sao Paulo, Tyler & Shay have been best friends to Lynda & me, and they go “commended by the brothers [and sisters] to the grace of the Lord” for the great work that the Lord has done through them! During their year-and-a-half stay, they led the Campus/Teen Ministry which grew from 0 disciples to now 19 disciples, while they were learning Portuguese and adapting to a very different culture plus being newlyweds!!! I remember them sleeping on the floor for their first month as a married couple (without one complaint), as we were looking to find apartments. What a way to start a marriage being totally sold-out for God! The church feels a great loss in their departure, but we are fired-up to be part of a worldwide movement that will evangelize the world in our generation, and thus, we understand that all of us will be “torn… away” from each other just as in the early church to see God’s will be done! (Acts 21:1) Then one day, we will all be reunited in Heaven as we celebrate with the Lord and each other!
Also, it was really cool to see Sergio be baptized this Sunday as well! He is our first campus conversion from a Jewish background and actually speaks some Hebrew! We saw his heart for God, as even before he was baptized, he purchased his ticket to go to the Central & South American Missions Conference in Santiago, Chile this February! We love you with the love of the Lord!
Krista Cameron of Paris: Bonjour de Paris! God is doing incredible things in the “City of Lights!” Philippe & Prisca Scheidecker have been diligently leading the church, and we are so proud of them! Philippe preached a hardline sermon this Sunday on Birth And Rebirth. He very clearly laid out the meanings and parallels of Jesus’ resurrection, the resurrection of baptism, and the resurrection of the church. There was a mother and daughter in attendance for the first time today, who were met in September by Blaise & Patricia Feumba on their train from London to attend our Inaugural Service. After service, the 17 year old daughter said that she wants to study the Bible and be baptized! It’s so encouraging to be a part of a worldwide fellowship!
Friday night was bittersweet as many tearful goodbyes were said to our sisters, Nicole Garland of NYC, Deanna Lawrence of DC, and Bridgette Martin of LA! Nicole came as a university exchange student and met Deanna who was baptized in October. She had no idea that the woman sitting next to her on her plane ride to Paris, would leave as her sister in Christ! Of special note is Bridgette Martin, who heroically gave up everything to be on the Paris Mission Team. She served the church and the lost of Paris tirelessly. We are well-pleased to send her back as one who has been, “tested and approved.” (Romans 16:10)
Lastly, the campus women have been fighting “to win as many as possible!” In the month of December that is typically quiet, we have seven campus women who are studying the Bible! I believe this is God blessing our perseverance, as well as the women’s focus and drive to improve their French! Please pray for a harvest in the Campus Ministry! Thank you all for your love and prayers around the world! We are grateful for the support and sacrifice from all of the churches!
Argo Arneson – the overseeing Evangelist of Russia: (Colossians 1:3-6) We are so glad to share with you that the gospel is continuing to bear fruit in Moscow, Russia! We are so encouraged by the faith of the Moscow disciples and proud of our dear friends Fred & Alja Moratov, who are leading the Moscow Remnant Group.
A few months ago when our dear brother Dima was sharing his faith on the streets of Moscow, he saw a group of guys rapping at a cafe. He sat with them and boldly began to share his faith. One of the rappers, Boris, started to study the Bible with the brothers! He’s had a very tough background involving drugs and living in a very poor neighborhood. As he studied the Bible, he understood that he had to change his life. Of course, his group was not very happy with that. They began to threaten him and threaten the church! They gave Boris a choice – to choose the church or them. Boris chose Jesus and was baptized this past Sunday as a sold-out disciple of Christ!
Jason Alejandro of Manila, Philippines: Greetings from the Far East! Just a few weeks ago, only a handful of “remnant” disciples worshiped God on Sundays, but God blessed that seed of faith – led by John Malnegro and Gina dela Pena – to grow to an attendance of 30 (19 adults, two teens and nine kids) this past Sunday! This truly is the work of the Lord! On a special note, a great couple from our former fellowship (Arnold & Masah Melicor) traveled eight long hours to be one with the Metro Manila International Christian Church! When Masah witnessed first-hand the fellowship, she said that she had “goose bumps” and remembered the zeal, love and sold-out commitment that she once had!
Meanwhile, God is wide opening the doors for the MMICC Business Bible Talk! Our Women’s Ministry Leader, Gina (a licensed Guidance Counselor), did a phenomenal job in presenting the “Business Seminar – Bible Talk” in one of the companies in Makati City (the business capital of the Philippines). Six employees were impacted and are now drawn closer to the church through the disciples’ professionalism, wisdom and life testimony. We pray for the conversions of company owners, professionals and managers in the next few months to help supply for the needs of this multiplying church. And to God be all the glory!
Coltin Rohn of Boston: What an amazing time it was today as 49 people gathered in “the upper room,” and were all encouraged by God. We also recognized Mercedes Bonilla, as our own Mercy Worldwide Director! Janah & Corinne – accompanied by Sal DiFusco (Berklee School of Music Professor) on the guitar and Kevin Dawson on the keyboard – were outstanding in singing O Holy Night! It was also encouraging as one of our new sisters, Naamah Armstrong, did an interpretive dance to the playing of the guitar by Sal DiFusco. One visitor said the performances moved him to tears!
Ron Harding of Washington DC: Greetings from the “City of Magnificent Intentions,” where quite different from the world’s intentions that usually amount to nothing, all of the disciples’ “intentions” are turning into impact for the Lord! We traveled almost two hours to Dulles Airport in Virginia, where 42 disciples gathered to greet our dear young sister Deanna, who moved here to place membership from our incredible Paris Church. It was truly like a church service, impacting many who were standing by!
What was inspiring to me personally was finding out that our very own spiritual daughter, Brittany Lukins, met and converted the woman who went on the Paris Mission Team (Nicole) and met Deanna! It’s awesome to see the spiritual lineage grow! Witnessing all of these miracles was a record crowd of 159 in attendance! We are now at 98 with three people predicted to be baptized and two possible people to be restored in the next two weeks! Pray that we reach our prayer goal of 100 by New Year’s Eve!
Raja Rajan: Greetings from the city of Chennai, where we have only three seasons ’round the year – Hot, Hotter and Hottest! It’s “Hot” right now! (1 John 2:14) The disciples rejoiced as two more souls were added to the Kingdom of God! Suguna, who works as a nurse in a private hospital, was invited by Jayasree while traveling in an auto rickshaw. Suguna hails from a Hindu family. Through the years, she had started to believe in Jesus and was baptized in a Pentecostal church. Suguna’s life had never changed, and while she was musing about this, she was invited. Suguna took the God-given opportunity, studied the Bible, and was baptized on Sunday!
Our brother Thomas made a new goal for himself of inviting five people every day and that’s how he met Fredrick. Fredrick has completed his Master’s Degree (Commerce) and is also a professional soccer player for the Chennai Customs! Fredrick was so hungry for the love of God and truth that he got baptized in five days! The disciples of the Chennai Church are looking forward to our retreat during the last week of December titled, Ablaze for God!
Finally; our next Good News Email will be Sunday January 13, 2013! Please keep in your prayers possible new remnant groups forming or joining us in early 2013: Caracas, Venezuela; Davao, Philippines; Istanbul, Turkey; Minsk, Belarus; Port-au-Prince, Haiti; San Pedro Sula, Honduras; and Sydney, Australia! Indeed, 2012 has been another year that God has done “immeasurably more than all we asked (prayed) or imagined (dreamed)!” (Ephesians 3:20-21) Pray that in 2013 the Lord will accomplish “even greater things” through our “faith, hope and love.” (John 14:12; 1 Corinthians 13:13) And to God be all the glory! Merry Christmas and a very Happy New Year!
Much love,
Matt Sullivan
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