JESSE PENNA| ASSOCIATE SUPERINTENDENT OF YOUTH & PASTORAL CARE
Camp 2013 registration is now open and campers
and counselors can start signing up today with the
new registration system on our website. The directions for this new registration system can be found
at efcmaym.org/news/camp-2013.
Camp posters and bulletin inserts were sent out to
all the churches. Please contact the Ministry Center
if you need more.
FIND US ONLINE
Also, please be thinking now about which counselors your church can send along with your students.
“Like” the official Evangelical Friends Church
Mid America page on
Facebook and interact
with Friends Church followers from
all over our region, as well as catch
up on the latest news and updates.
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v “…that take Good News (Romans 10)”
UPCOMING EVENTS
CAMP 2013 REGISTRATION IS OPEN
May 13-16 – Pastor’s Sabbath Retreat, Horn Creek Camp, Westcliffe, CO
June 1-4 – Kids Camp, Camp Quaker Haven, Arkansas City, KS
June 4-7 – Junior Camp, Camp Quaker Haven, Arkansas City, KS
June 7-11 – Senior High Camp, Camp Quaker Haven, Arkansas City, KS
June 11-15 – Junior High Camp, Camp Quaker Haven, Arkansas City, KS
June 20-July 1 – Saltshaker, Sinaloa, Mexico (Required Orientation June 4-6)
June 28-July 5 – Wyoming Leadership Retreat, Centennial, Wyoming (Required Orientation June 20-22)
July 24-27 – EFC-MAYM Ministry Conference, Haviland, KS
August 31-September 2 – Family Camp, Camp Quaker Haven, Arkansas City, KS
September 27-29 – Friends Women’s Retreat, Airport Doubletree Hotel, Wichita, KS
“…that take Good News” (Romans 10)
MINISTRY CONFERENCE 2013
MINISTRY CONFERENCE| ANTICIPATING OUR BEST DAYS
The annual ministry conference of Evangelical Friends Church Mid-America Yearly Meeting will be July 24-27 at Barclay College in
Haviland, KS. The theme is “Anticipating Our
Best Days: Faithful Ministry, Fulfilling Mission”.
The theme is based on Isaiah 43:19, “For I am
about to do something new. See, I have already begun! Do you not see it?”
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2013 JUNIOR HIGH BIBLE QUIZ FINALS
JESSE PENNA| ASSOCIATE SUPERINTENDENT OF YOUTH & PASTORAL CARE
Another wonderful, fruitful, and memorable season has come to a close with
the Junior High Bible Quiz Finals at Northridge Friends Church on Saturday,
April 27. The quiz program continues to provide a chance for students to
grow out of their comfort zones, study God’s word, and build trust with team
members and adults in the local church and across EFC-MAYM. A huge
thanks to Gene and Linda Stratton for their leadership as Quiz Directors this
year! If your church would like information about how to be involved in the
2014 quiz season, please let the Ministry Center know.
PERMIT NO. 774
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WICHITA, KS 67213
spring insights
The 2013 All Star Team: (Left to Right) 4th–Lane Lundeen (Fowler), 3rd–
Will Hancock (Friendswood), 2nd–Willow Corliss (Tribe of Friends), 1st–
Ben Pohlman (Northridge)
EVANGELICAL FRIENDS CHURCH
MID AMERICA YEARLY MEETING
2018 WEST MAPLE ST
WICHITA, KS 67213
dates: @EFC_MidAmerica. Mention @
LEADERSHIP INSTITUTE
The newest Leadership Institute course
is called “Special Ministries.” The subject for May 6 was “Youth Ministry,”
taught by Jesse Penna, Associate
Superintendent of Youth and Pastoral
Care. The topic for June 3 will be, “Crisis Ministries,” taught by David Wolfe,
Director of Chaplains at Salina Regional Health Center in Salina, KS. The topic for July 1 is “Children’s Ministries,”
co-taught by Jodi Kinniburgh (Director of Children’s Ministry at Northridge
Friends), K.C. Lingafelter (Children’s
Minister at Haviland Friends) and Janet
Black (Children’s Education Minister at
Friendswood Friends).
We offer the Leadership Institute in
these locations: Friends Community
Church (Angleton), Sudanese Community Church (Omaha), Faith Friends
Church (Rocky Mountain Yearly Meeting), Booker Friends Church, Chandler Friends Church, Iglesia Amigos
(San Antonio), Friends Ministry Center
(Wichita), Miami Friends Church, Hesper Friends Church, and Barclay College (Jackson Hall). I hope you will
join us at 7:00 p.m. (Central Time) on
June 3 and July 1.
Dave Kingrey
Leadership Institute Director
2013 FRIENDS
WOMEN’S RETREAT
“Oh, Taste and See that the Lord
is Good...” Psalm 34:8
September 27 - 29, 2013
Double Tree Hotel
Wichita, KS
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CHURCH MULTIPLICATION UPDATE
RANDY LITTLEFIELD |CHURCH PLANTING DIRECTOR
Oasis Church Dodge City, KS: The congregation is moving to a larger location
in south Dodge City. After some renovation, they plan to begin services there
by June 1, 2013. Churches and individuals can help with funds for additional
chairs and classroom needs. Donations may be sent to Barbara Whitney at
100 E 10th Fowler, KS 67844.
Iglesia Amigos Oklahoma City, OK: Isai and Sucely Ramos from Philadelphia
have accepted the call to pastor this congregation in Oklahoma City, OK.
They arrived there on May 4, 2013 and are settling in and excited to lead the
planting of Amigos OKC.
Sudanese Community Church Omaha, NE: Pastors Lazarus and Veronica John
were asked to serve as Chaplain by the diplomatic leaders of South Sudan,
Africa and to travel with their team to meetings in Sydney, Australia during the
first weeks of April 2013. Pastor Lazarus has reported very successful meetings
and a leadership that desires God’s direction and guidance for this newest
country at the United Nations. During his absence, Pastor Lazarus reported
that the local church leadership carried on the ministry in Omaha with excellence.
The Refuge Fellowship Danbury, TX; Pastors Paul Wainwright of the Refuge
and Drew Davenport of Friends Community Church in Angleton, TX have reported that The Refuge has recently relocated from the community of Oyster
Creek, TX to Danbury, TX. The move has opened new outreaches in their new
location for the martial arts outreach to youth and teenagers and also a new
community coffee house ministry managed by Amy Wainwright and a team.
Iglesia Amigos San Antonio, TX: Pastors Runy and Noemi Moscoso have developed this new congregation over the last two years. They recently communicated their desire to resign this position and will remain with the group in
lay leadership. Please pray with the Partner Advisory Team and local council
as the search has begun for a new planter/pastor.
Wichita, KS Area Missional Network: The communities of incarnational leaders
across the greater Wichita metro area continue to multiply and a quarterly
Campfire was planned for May 18, 2013 at Crossroads Friends in Wichita. Several network leaders recently joined with the missional leaders of our South Texas Area at the Friendly Grounds Ministry Center in Oyster Creek, TX. Other Tribe
of Friends connections are being developed in other areas of Mid America.
WANTED! STORIES FROM YOUR CHURCH
ADAM MONAGHAN |ASSOCIATE SUPERINTENDENT OF MISSIONS & EVENTS
We are interested in providing a connection for all of our local churches to
the stories that are happening in Friends churches across our region. What is
happening in your congregation? What’s the latest news that other churches
would be interested and encouraged to hear? What special events or ministry
opportunities are you celebrating?
BEING IN THE FIRST CHAIR
DR. DAVID ROBINSON | GENERAL SUPERINTENDENT, EFC-MAYM
Ken Anderson wrote some very penetrating poems in a little booklet called “Stains on Glass Windows” (Word, 1969). One of his insightful poems, not written with politically correct sensitivity, deals
with a very significant issue faced by the church: Manda Beel was sure to be at the mission lady’s
tea, cutting, rolling, tying knots, praying for the Hottentots. But though she wept when told the plight
of rickshaw boys in heathen night, coolies, waifs, and Chinese sages, unevangelized for ages, millions who had never heard – said to her neighbor not a word!
He seems to have hit many of us right where it hurts. There seems to be something quite noble and
satisfying about praying, giving and supporting missions across the oceans of the world. We find it
more gratifying to attend missions conferences, financially support a missionary, or put together
“layettes” for a “foreign mission” than to share the gospel with a neighbor, minister to a hurting teen
or touch lives in the neighborhood around us. In the first case we distance ourselves from any consequence and in the second, there is a face to face involvement, which is less comfortable.
In Acts 1:8, after assuring His disciples of the empowering of the Holy Spirit, Jesus promised that their (our) witness would
take place in Jerusalem (home cities), AND in Judea and Samaria (neighborhood countries and cities), AND to the ends
of the earth (foreign missions). There is no order of priority. There is no “either-or.” There is only “AND.” We are called to
the neighborhoods of our own cities and to the neighborhoods around the world. That is our commission.
While we have emphasized the planting of new churches, some have wondered how we can stimulate our smaller
churches to growth and stability. A major answer to that dilemma is through the new revolution in the church called the
“Missional/Incarnational Movement”. Friends are now seeing that the typical church is just not getting it done in reaching
our neighbors for Christ. There has been so much emphasis on “come to church” that it is time for us to “be the church”. It
doesn’t take the investment of outside resources for the people in the pews to become the people in the neighborhoods.
Perhaps we should not be so concerned with filling the church building, as with the church filling the neighborhoods.
The late evangelist and author Leonard Ravenhill passed along an indictment to the church when he wrote: “The church
began with these men in the upper room agonizing and today is ending with men in the supper room organizing. The
church began in revival; we are ending in ritual. We started virile; we are ending sterile. Charter members of the church
were men of heat and no degrees; today many hold degrees, but have no heat!” My prayer is that this statement will
not be true of EFC Mid-America. I pray that the evangelical fervor that started our movement will be revived, that we
will be strong, passionate and on fire for God. I pray that we can leave the comfort of our buildings to encounter the
discomfort of the world.
UPDATE FROM EVANGELICAL FRIENDS CHURCH BURUNDI
DOMITIEN SABONGERWA | LEGAL REPRESENTATIVE, EFC BURUNDI
We celebrate the official opening of a secondary school (picture below) in the Muyinga Province built by Evangelical
Friends Church in Burundi in collaboration with Fields of Life in the place where the Friends church in Muyinga is located.
This is a school with 7 classrooms, a principal’s office and a teachers’ meeting room. It is equipped with desks, and it was
proclaimed the first well-built secondary school in Muyinga Province. It was officially opened by His Excellency the President of Burundi Republic Peter Nkurunziza on March 2, 2013. It was a pleasure and honor to Burundi Friends Church that
this event was reported by different radio and television stations. This school will open its doors in September this year. For
more updates from Evangelical Friends Church, Burundi, see efcmaym.org/2013/03/
When you have a story to share, please send it (and pictures) to [email protected] and we will soon get it published on the website for all the
Friends in our region to read and celebrate with you!
For examples of recent church stories that have been published on the website, go to efcmaym.org/blog and search for Northshore Friends Church or
Friendly Grounds or Plains Friends Church or Oasis Church.
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