Region I: Pacific Northwest - Scott Myers

Mountain View Bible Church of Post Falls, ID is rejoicing in a wonderful (and fast!) summer of ministry activities. We have had two “host  weeks” as we continue to participate in Family Promise, a multi-church ministry to homeless families in the Coeur d’Alene/Post Falls area. Our  most recent host week gave us the joy of serving 14 people from three families. In the present economy there are a growing number of families  who have lost their housing due to lost jobs and other factors, and it has been our privilege to help see them through these tough times and get into housing again.

Over the Memorial Day weekend over 40 of our folks attended the GGF Region I, Family Conference in Leavenworth, WA. The theme was  “Living to the Praise of His Glory,” and we enjoyed challenging messages about how God’s glory is reflected in our families, our churches, and in  the marketplace. We enjoyed great meals together, fun and recreation, and overall, great relaxing fellowship with friends from Grace churches of  our region.

During the week of August 17 we had our Vacation Bible School, “Wildwood Forest,” and the children celebrated the attributes of God. About  120 children attended, many from the neighborhood around the church. We are praying and asking God to let us reach into the homes of  unchurched families whose kids joined us for this week.

Our Youth Group was busy all summer under the leadership of our Youth Pastor, Ryan Phillips, along with his wife, Abigail. There were camps,  retreats and a variety of other activities. It is exciting to see God at work in so many of our young people!

Our summer officially ended with our annual Labor Day retreat at Bear Paw Camp in Washington. We had a great time of fellowship as we  enjoyed the outdoors and had much time for games, tasty meals, and conversation.

As we begin our fall activities, we are excited that our AWANA Clubs have kicked off with 75 kids attending on opening night. We look forward  to hosting the Uganda Orphan Choir in October, followed by our missions conference, featuring missionaries from Things to Come Mission,  Grace Ministries International, and Campus Crusade for Christ.

Please pray for us that God would grant us growth in grace as we study and work together, and that we would have an impact on our community  for the sake of the Lord Jesus.

Region II: Southwest - Rob Warmouth & Chuck Williams

Anaheim Grace Bible Church celebrated the many different ethnic groups that attend the church with a Cultural Evening on September 5.  Countries represented were: Indonesia, Philippines, Nigeria, Brazil, South Africa, El Salvador, Vietnam and the good old USA. Each country had a  table to display their flag and other items as well as some of their favorite ethnic foods. The festivities began with everyone visiting the tables  and helping themselves to the tasty dishes. After everyone had filled their dishes the music began. Pastor Phil played recordings of the national anthems of each country. The Vietnamese youth group presented a song in their native language followed by the English version. Leah (Bigelow)  Allen led her group in performing some Sunday School songs that they had learned growing up in the Philippines. The evening ended with  everyone singing our national anthem. It was an awesome evening of food, music and fellowship.  

Region III: West - Steve Blackwell

Berean Bible Church, Denver, CO (Pastor Ron Fox): Ron has been teaching at Berean for 25 years and in the past several years has taken the  church to a strong grace theology position. He ministers to a predominently Afro-American congregation in the central Denver area. Ron is  presently enrolled in school to begin his journey to a Masters of Theology degree. Some of you met him at the Family Bible Conference.

Closer Walk Bible Church, Denver, CO (Pastor Bobby Hill): Closer Walk is meeting on Friday’s as a church routinely, so that several of its  members can be involved in teaching at Harvest Fellowship weekends. Joan Hill, Bobbie Hill and Narissa Hill are teaching adult classes on the  weekends and Roger Haskell just started a New Christian class with some new believers last week.

Cope Community Church, Cope, CO (Pastor Terry Covert): Fall is here and Cope Community is in gear for the season. Our ladies began their  weekday Bible studies in September. The men have begun studying Mrs. Baker’s, A Pilgrims Progress On the Highway of Life.

We celebrated the new school year with a Sunday School picnic after church on August 30th. We are also considering some building projects  around the church. One being the refurbishing of the education building next door to the church. This is the former Things to Come Mission  building. We use it for Sunday School classes and also for Vacation Bible School. This is a very old building and in desperate need of  improvements.

Denver Bible Church, Arvada, CO (Pastor Bob Enyart): Denver Bible just hosted a visit from our grace missionaries from Costa Rica, Jeremy and  Andrea Clark and their wonderful children. They’ve encouraged us to press on further preaching the Gospel of Grace to those around us and  around the world.

Grace Bible Fellowship, Englewood, CO (Pastor Eddie Cook): The youngest daughter of Eddie and Bonnie Cook, Karlyn, was married on Friday,  September 18. GBF joined with Eddie’s home school basketball team parents and players, along with members of Harvest Fellowship to assist in  the marriage Karlyn and Seth at Harvest’s new location. A large tent was set up in the parking lot for the reception and the wedding went well.  The church is doing well and members are excited as they reach out to the people in their neighborhood. The church is growing and they are waiting on the Lord for their next step.

Grace Bible Church of Lakewood, Lakewood, CO (Pastors Harl Hargett; Mark Smith; David Thunselle): Grace was “hard hit” by hail and high  winds the velocity of tornados in the recent weeks. We will need a new roof, windows and other major repairs – but thankfully we had good  insurance. Our summer attendance has been down some, but usually as autumn approaches people return from vacations. We’ve a new guitar  player and we enjoy a very upbeat and inspiring worship time. As winter comes, it is our hope to offer new home Bible studies and continue to  reach out to others with the gospel of Grace.

Harvest Fellowship, Brighton, CO (Pastors Steve Blackwell and Clyde Roy): Things are settling down from the move five months ago. We have  been working on our processes at the new building to help everyone know what the channels of communication are. If you have moved or built,  you know what I’m talking about. It’s been a stressful time and sometimes we forget the fun side of all this. But we are really starting to enjoy the (new) ministry here with twice the people that we had before. There is lots of discipleship and teaching going on. We’ve added a Wednesday night  to our services with AWANA, teens and adults following a low cost dinner. We have seen many come to Christ and getting involved. We  sure appreciate Bobby Hill and his church for helping us during this time. It has increased our ability to minister to the new members of our  church. We also restarted our men’s ministry on Tuesday evenings. We had 30 men at the last meeting. We watched the Promise Keeper’s video with John Maxwell on sexual purity, filmed in 1994 (Can it really be that long ago?). It was well received and all the men want to join together in  accountability with other men each week.

Region IV: Upper Midwest - Mark Matychuk & Les Takkinen

Lakeview Bible Church, Carter Lake, IA (Pastor Dave Holton): Over the summer Lakeview Bible was honored to have Cowboy Lee and his “posse” spend a  weekend ministering to the children and families of Carter Lake. The children  enjoyed getting their picture taken on horses provided by Pete Christina. Our  VBS, Son Castle Faire, was a huge success – over 75 kids in attendance. Seven children asked Jesus to be their Savior. Throughout the 2008-09 school year we  were able to minister to over 120 kids and families in Carter Lake. Late in the summer we held our annual road rally. Adam and Becky Smith were the champions. Our Building to Reflect program continues. We participated in Carter Lake Days with a food booth. We also distributed “Jugs for  Change” that will be collected Celebration Sunday, Nov.15. We’re also working with Mt. Crescent Ski Resort to hold a fundraiser. Praise the  Lord! We’ve added three new Board Members. Our ladies are enjoying our Yada Yada Women’s Book Club. The men are involved in our Men’s  Prayer Breakfast and Fellowship. Our youth group is up and running. We’re making use of the Boys and Girls Club in town to provide a less “threatening” atmosphere for the teens! On Sept. 20 we held a miniature golf tournament and a Sundae Sunday. We are excited about our children’s ministries, too. We have dedicated Sunday School, Children’s Church, and nursery workers. Our Coached by Christ program began Oct.  7. Continue to pray for our church and community. The Lord is working!

Grace Bible Church, West Allis, WI (Pastor Les Takkinen): It is with great excitement and joy that we begin to focus on the fall and winter  months of 2009. God has given us a very special summer and we are thankful for what He has done within the body of believers at our church.  Pastor Randy Brown has been meeting with a group of adults on Sunday evenings to discuss and prepare for their first venture to evangelize our world for Christ. They have gone through the book, Share Jesus Without Fear, by Bill Fay. It was very profitable as they discussed each chapter and learned the five questions and the presentation of the gospel with another person.

On July 8, I had a counseling session with a woman who was a senior citizen and wanted to chat about her funeral service. She had attended our  church and professed to trust Christ as Savior in a morning service a few years ago. As we talked, she shared her fear of dying. It led me to ask the  questions in Bill Fay’s book and share the gospel with her. She had her eyes opened and she placed her faith in Christ as Savior. She has had  the peace of God ever since. What a special joy!

August 15 was set for the first evangelism outreach at a local park. We purchased 200 tracts, 3 cases of New Testaments, and a couple cases of  water. A table was set up in the park along a walkway with these items available and given to those who would accept them as gifts. A group of eleven met for prayer at 10:00 AM and this prepared the way for the time to share Christ with those that they met that day. God opened the doors for the gospel to be shared with a few people. They had a great time interacting with individuals about the truth of God’s Word and  spiritual matters. The team was able to pass out 20 Bibles, 24 bottles of water, and 100 tracts. One couple shared with a fisherman the entire  gospel plan as he fished in the pond. I was on another venture of moving a new family in our church that day and I had the opportunity to share  the gospel with one of the movers in our group. He listened as I asked the questions from Bill Fay’s book and shared the simple way of salvation  through our Savior. Sharing Jesus Christ is a privilege that we should not take for granted. It is the greatest news in the world. On August 9, I had  the opportunity to share the gospel with a 17 year-old girl who placed her faith in Jesus Christ. What a special treat to be used of God in this way.

Region V: Lower Midwest - Ed Jeude

St. Louis Bible Fellowship, St. Louis, MO (Pastor Rick Owsley): We had a very busy Summer. Joel and Susan  McGarvey came and conducted VBS. The theme was the “Seven Cs of History.” We had three children trust the  Lord as Savior. The two Cowboy Camps kept lots of our folks busy working with Bible Doctrines To Live By and “Rounding up  Strays for Jesus.” Pastor Rick was the speaker at the Nittany Bible Church for their “End Time Prophecy  Conference” in State College, PA. He will be also speaking at a prophecy conference in Prattville, AL in October,  as well as speaking at Dan Lippincott’s church in Fairhope, AL. In October we will also conduct a marriage  seminar.

STLBF has been on one or more AM radio stations since early 1940’s and has been attempting to get a slot on a Christian FM radio station the  last 10 years. The Lord permitted us to get a 15 minute slot on KSIV FM from 11:45 to noon every Sunday, the time when people are coming  home from their churches and listening to the car radio. Now they will hear Paul’s “Grace message.” We’ve already heard from many new  listeners.

With our central US location, we are privileged to have many visiting Christian workers and their families stop by, like the Bentons, the Vintons,  the Kempers, to name just a few. If you are in the area, please stop by. And finally, St. Louis Theological Seminary continues to experience  growth.

Region VI: Southeast - Phil Cereghino

Grace Bible Church, Palm Bay, FL (Pastor Dave Cannon): It’s been good to see many of our summer travelers  come back. We still expect a few more to return soon who summer in the mountains. There were some unusual  and unexpected changes over the summer. From a combination of job transfers to unknown reasons, the board of  Grace Bible saw five of its members leave. Even though it started to feel like the leadership roles were experiencing a setback, within a few months, five other men of the church have come forward to fill those  positions as leaders on the board.

It’s never pleasant to see families leave the church, but as with most of the country, Florida’s employment has  taken a hit, and this has begun to affect many in our congregation. We covet your prayers concerning those members who are struggling to find  work and facing many decisions about their future here in Palm Bay.

Our prayers were answered about AWANA starting back up so early this year – since our county schools began the new school year the second  week of August. The clubbers were eager to get back into it, and the kickoff meeting was well attended with a good group of church folks  faithfully serving in the various areas. Our club meets every Wednesday evening at 6:30 p.m. during the same time the adults meet for a time of  Bible study and prayer.

The Grace Bible Church School of Theology, which meets on Sunday evenings, has just started a new course on apologetics for the fall semester  with 22 attending the first class. Each week, evidences which point to the accuracy of God’s Word are studied. Either for credit or by audit, these  classes have been faithfully attended by many who desire to delve a bit deeper into God’s Word.

With new classes and growth, comes the ever pressing need for more space. Plans for an addition have been in the works, and we are awaiting the  Lord’s provision to proceed with the building. It is the desire of the board members to pay down the existing mortgage before incurring more debt.  Even with all the setbacks in the economy, so many folks have been able to give toward that debt reduction, and it has been a blessing to  watch the numbers drop. We are looking forward to all the Lord has in store for Grace Bible Church this season.

Pastor Jim Helan writes: The 4th annual SW Alabama Grace churches picnic was held on Sep 19. Folks from Grace Bible Church (Fairhope, AL);  Greystone Bible Church (Mobile); Grace Bible Church (Mobile); and Forest Park Bible Church (Mobile) had great time of fellowship, plenty of  hot dogs and hamburgers, and we had a special treat – Christian Illusionist Jim Chester from Slidell, LA. He amazed kids, grandpas and grandmas  alike – and brought a strong gospel message and challenge to believers.

Greystone Bible Church is beginning and supporting a Child Evangelism Good News School Club in the largest elementary school in Mobile  (1000+ students). The first club meeting was Oct. 19.

During the summer and fall, Greystone Bible and Grace Bible have met together for joint worship services (at Grace on Aug. 2 and at Greystone  on Oct. 4). The joint worship services were followed by potluck fellowship dinners. It has been wonderful to worship the LORD together and we  look forward to developing more times of joint worship, joint service and outreach ministries, and warm fellowship.

The 4th Annual SW Alabama Grace Churches Joint Missions Conference will be Nov. 4-8. We will have the Reeds (GMI); the Marshalls (GMI);  and the Tollars (TCM); and Aimee Johnson (GMI). The conference will conclude with a joint missions potluck banquet on Sunday evening, Nov.  8 (5pm). All are welcome. We’ve got a trip to the Naval Museum at Pensacola, FL planned for our missionaries on Friday, Nov. 6.

Region VII: East - Cal Lowder

Valley Bible Church, Stephens City, VA (Pastor Cal Lowder): It is an honor to announce that our former  associate pastor, Josh Bowen, is attending Johns Hopkins University, studying for his doctorate in Assyriology. Adult Sunday School modules are increasingly popular among the members of the church. Our current series  includes: a study on marriage using the movie, Fireproof, as a backdrop; a “New Members” class, “A War  Against Humanity;” and, a study for young women, “Embracing Strengths,” using a curriculum published by Women of Faith.

Our CBC club has just started up again for the school year, and already we have had a good response, averaging about 40 children per week. We  hosted a Good News Club a few months ago at a local middle school after regular school hours – we hope to make this a monthly venture. Our  first Club had an attendance of 29 children. The Lord blessed us with the opportunity to lead 3 children to Him! Praise God!

We were able to send one young member of our church on a missions trip to Guatemala this past summer, and she blessed us all on her return,  telling us how amazing it was and how the Lord had used her in a great work – over 4300 people came to know Him during that ten days.  Thankfully, her experience has sparked an interest in several other young people, and many of them have expressed desire to be used by God in the same way.

Region VIII: Ohio - Trent Boedicker

Community Bible Church, Tipp City, OH (Pastor Jeff Seekins): We’ve had a great summer of ministry outreach  with VBS and sharing the gospel at the county fair. Over three hundred children and adults heard the gospel and  some trusted the Savior. Pray for those who have received follow-up letters. There was great praise to the Lord  in July as we burned the mortgage on our Family Activity Center due to an unexpected gift! That was a real blessing in these uncertain times. Summer highlights for fellowship and encouragement included Camp Berean  Way, a church picnic and Mother-Daughter Banquet. Our mission’s emphasis will continue throughout the fall,  and we’re excited that we’ll have two of our own report on their trip to Tanzania. Plans are in place for our  annual float in Tipp city’s Mum Festival, for a fall hayride and Thanksgiving Singspiration and Christmas programs.

First Grace Gospel Church, Ashtabula, OH (Pastor David Adams): In early August, about 30 of our fellowship took different shifts tending a  church literature table at the county fair. New Bible study applications are always received as a result, for both Mailbox Bible Club lessons for  children and Bible Correspondence Courses for adults. It’s a blessing to be able to do it yearly; it provides an evangelism outreach for many of us.  Some tracts clearly present the plan of salvation and other tracts and booklets teach God’s Word rightly divided. Praise the Lord His Word does not return unto Him void! (Isaiah 55:11 ). September 20, we were blessed to have the David Malans, South African missionaries, in the Morning  Worship service along with Adrian and Sharon VanHouten and their wonderful messages in song.

Grace Gospel Church, Ada, OH (Pastor Trent Boedicker): The congregation has enjoyed an active summer. In June, VBS came to Grace Gospel  and we were blessed to share God’s Word with nearly 30 children from the community. In July, members of the church volunteered at the local  food pantry on Saturday mornings and Tuesday evenings each week. We had the chance to meet a number of families from our community and to allow the love of Christ to flow through us as we ministered to their needs. Our prayer is that the seed of the gospel has been planted for those we  encountered who may not know the Lord. It was a wonderful blessing in August, to visit with Dan and Mary Sue Reed and their family and  to hear how the Lord has been working through their ministry in Bolivia. It seems like only yesterday when they were ministering here in Ada.  Now, what a joy to see how the Lord is using them to touch the lives of others for Him in a different part of the world, just as they have also  touched our lives. After morning services, we enjoyed a potluck dinner and a good time of fellowship. It was also an honor in September to meet David and Elsa Malan from South Africa, and to learn about how the Lord is working in that country.

Even though summer is over, we are looking forward to fall, which will bring Coached by Christ and Youth Group on Wednesday nights, a  cookout and bonfire in late October, and a Bible Conference sponsored by the ministry of Tony and Barb Sistelos in Massillon, OH Nov. 20-21.

And now, a special note from Pastor Roy J. Kelsey: As the self-appointed “Bishop of Ohio,” I strongly encourage all of the pastors in Ohio to  attend our monthly Pastor’s Fellowship at Perkins Restaurant near Ashland, OH. The restaurant is located just a bit east of I-71 on Route 250.  We have the meeting at this location because it is very nearly at the center of Ohio. Some would have a long drive, but we believe it would be  worth it for all who take the time and effort to attend. We meet the second Tuesday of each month at 11:30 A.M. The restaurant allows us to use  the private meeting room at the back, and we usually meet for about two and one half hours. I realize that you pastors are all busy, but it would be time well spent to come together. I am retired, but available to preach anywhere anyone will let me.

Region IX: Western Michigan - Kathy Molenkamp

Parkside Bible Church, Holland, MI (Pastor Rob Renberg): We held a “9/11” remembrance service with a  special guest speaker from Holland who was in New York on the 43rd floor of the South Tower when the 2nd terrorist attack with the plane hit it. It was a powerful evening of praise and tears as we reflected on the tragedy  of that day. May we never forget!

Our women’s ministry held its fall kickoff entitled Seasons of a Woman’s Life. Each ministry for the coming  year was highlighted and Amy Renberg brought a message to touch the ladies’ hearts. Some of their ministries  this year will include Bible studies, mentoring, stamp & scrap, LEO (Ladies Evening Out), BRIDGE (Building  Relationships In Dinner and Games Each month), Book About Me, Secret Heart Sisters, and others. The Men’s ministry, Ironmen, hosted a  similar kickoff breakfast to highlight opportunities for growth and fellowship in the coming year. One continuing blessing is the 52 Prayer  Partners who pray on an assigned day of the week for Pastors Rob and Matt, and then rotate during worship services with 4 men praying through the entire service. Way to go, men!

The church will begin a 2-year stewardship effort during the months of October and November using the 40 Day Spiritual Journey to a more  Generous Life material and a series of messages through 2 Corinthians 8-9 , as we are getting closer to paying off phase 2 of our building plans.  The next project will be the Christian education wing, which is much needed as the church continues to see growth in our children’s and youth ministry.

Speaking of youth, Pastor Matt Amundsen reports: We had a tremendous summer with various youth trips and an awesome VBS with 7 kids  accepting Christ! Now that our fall programs have begun, we are so excited for what the Lord has in store for youth ministry. We’ve started a new  rotation within our youth groups that will have youth focusing on fellowship, service, small groups, and outreach.  We pray that this will  give students balance in their lives, along with opportunities to actively live out their faith. We have begun BIG, which is our Bible Instruction  Group, an in-depth, 2-year study for our Senior High students using materials from Pastor Craig MacDonald. Our goal for this class is that each  youth would build a strong foundation dependent on God’s Word that, in turn, will give them confidence to stand up for their faith. Some other  events that we seek your prayer about include our fall retreat and our monthly outreach nights that will feature the Youth Praise Band and guest  speakers from Grace Bible College and Grace Adventures. What an amazing God we serve! To God be the Glory!

Beacon Light Community Church, Muskegon, MI (Pastor John Shyne): We have just finished two festivals. First, we participated in a 7-church  ComeUnity Festival on August 22. It was held at a local park, with good local support. This was a new adventure for us and we were seeking to  promote the church and make some new friends. The overall goal was to reach people for Christ. We certainly agreed with the goal and emphasis.  We “manned” an information table, Cynthia sang in the ComeUnity Choir and I volunteered for the dunk tank. A good time was had by all who  came and/or participated.

Second, we held our own ComeUnity Festival on September 5; we had a good turnout and involved another ministry, Child Evangelism  Fellowship. We had food and fun, which turns out to be a good combination! Our 4th Anniversary was October 4, 2009. We had a good time  around God’s Word and a wonderful potluck following the 11 o’clock morning service. Continue to pray for BLCC as we are attempting to follow  God’s leading and direction.

Grace Bible Fellowship, Jenison, MI (Pastor Pat McGillicuddy): We’re also using Pastor Craig MacDonald’s material to teach a confirmation  class for our Junior High School youth. This takes place on Wednesday evenings during the same time frame as Coached by Christ. We have  resumed our MOPS (Mother of Preschoolers) ministry, which has been a very effective outreach into our neighborhood. We all know how moms  need a break!

We have changed the structure of our small children’s Sunday School so that it flows smoothly for both children and teachers. We are calling it  Act I and Act II, with the first act taking place during church and the second act during the Sunday School hour. The lesson is taught during the  first act and reinforced during the second. In between the two acts, the kids remain together to enjoy some snacks and games. We are also excited  about our Sunday School offerings going for the support of Travis and Patti Nielsen, as they are raising support to serve at Rift Valley Academy  in Kenya.

Women’s Monday night volleyball and Men’s Thursday night basketball games have resumed and all are welcome to join in the fun!

Region X: Central Michigan - John Lowder

LifeTrak Church, Caledonia, MI (Pastor Clint Abbott): We have had a terrific summer. We were involved in a  Dutton Days community outreach and we also co-sponsored the first Dutton Days Community Worship  Service.

We have been blessed with new visiting families, and this continued with our have a Friend Day on 9/27. Pastor  Clint will be preaching a new series called One Month To Live. We are also restarting small groups. We are  praying about the possibility of forming an ET youth ministry (Early Teens). God is good!

Frontline Bible Church, Byron Center, MI (Pastor John Lowder): Our focus has been on bringing everyone back to their own personal walk with  God. What we saw was that our vision of equipping people to make an eternal impact will go nowhere until each one of us has God working  personally in our own lives. As each one of us regularly encounters God through His Word and prayer on our own, the church can’t help but be  changed and then that eternal impact will happen. We’ve been focusing on the need for this through a fall series we’re doing called, Encountering  God. Along with this series we have suspended Wed. PM Bible study for the fall to do what we’re calling Frontline Prayer. Rather than a little bit  of prayer and a lot of Bible study, we are simply spending the entire time praying for God to open our hearts and our church to more of what  He wants to do in us and through us. We’re also seeing a lot of interest in small group Bible studies, specifically the Beth Moore ones for our  ladies. It’s been exciting to see the growth, that started in our men’s ministry, positively impacting our women as well.

Grace Community Church, Belmont, MI (Pastor Tim Hall): Greetings! We are excited about the beginning of our regular ministry programs, which  started in September. After a busy summer schedule, it seems good to get back to a routine of Bible hour, youth ministry, Coached by  Christ, youth worship and small groups. I think of fall as a family reunion from vacations and activities that take us away from regular church  attendance, coming back home to the church family for the next nine months. It is good to see the congregation working together to make the ministry happen for the glory of God.

I pray that God will bless your faithful service to Him in your fall ministries. May God grant us the joy of seeing many come to know Christ as  Savior and Lord. May we all grow in the nurture and admonition of the Lord as we study together in the word of God and apply it in our life.

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