THE ROOF TOP CONFERENCES LIFEWAY PANAMA
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WELCOME TO MY NEW
NEWSLET TER I hope you like the new format which will enable you to see what has been happening rather than just read about it. Things are good with family at the moment, Gregg is doing well in New York and Amy is enjoying her job in London. Scott continues his training to be a teacher and is also really pleased that his football team, Witham Town FC, have just won the league and cup. Lynn continues her one-on-one work and it is great to see how she is making such a positive difference in the life of the young boy that she is working with. One piece of news for me is that my website www.dennispethers. com is now live and it includes blogs, articles, my calendar, and a link to my new ebook ‘The Rooftop – A crisis of oppportunity’ available from Amazon. I recently returned from a month long trip in the United States which was, once again, filled with so many things that were clearly a result of the Lord’s leading.
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During the trip I visited around 12 states in four weeks so I was constantly travelling. It would take too long to go into detail about
everything that happened so I have included an overview below and then expanded on just a few things in a little more detail in the following pages: » Spoke at the California State Evangelism Conference, ‘On Target’. » Led ‘The Rooftop’ in Arizona, Nevada, and in four cities across North Carolina.
» Spoke at the Kentucky State Evangelism Conference. » Preached in West Virginia and Virginia. » Attended meetings at the Baptist World Alliance in Washington DC. » Had meetings with Lifeway regarding ‘The Rooftop’. » Spoke at the Sunday ‘School in High Definition’ conference at 1st Baptist Church Woodstock Georgia.
THE ROOF TOP ‘The Rooftop’; in Reno, Nevada was held on the top floor of a hotel that had views across Downtown. Around 25 leaders gathered and looked across the city to pray for a fresh vision of God’s heart for the lost people in Reno. It was so good to witness leaders praying for the lost people in the city. A really enduring memory for me took place as we were making our way to the top of the hotel. As we came through the hotel entrance, we passed through the gambling casino. Scattered all around were people sitting at the various machines and seeking to win enough money to give them all that they wanted in life. I found myself silently praying as I could see the faces of so many people who looked, I can only say, ‘empty’. I prayed that these
people may see that there is so much more to life that winning at the casino! I also prayed that,
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Some of the Leaders looking out and the skyline of Reno Nevada
as Christians, we wouldn’t just write these people off but would develop a love for them and offer them the life that Jesus gives! In Arizona, we didn’t go to a rooftop but to a mountain top. From there we looked across and could see more mountains and the desert. We could also see a huge number of homes where people lived. As we were looking across the community and considering what we would see if we saw it with the eyes of God, Debra, who works View from the mountain in Mesa, Arizona
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with the local Baptist Association, pointed towards the road that could be seen running by the mountain. She then shared that what she felt God had impressed upon her heart. She said “This road was only built recently and for it to be built there was a need to deconstruct so much of what had been there before the road could be built.” She mentioned homes, buildings and land that was once used for other purposes, all of this had to be removed so the road could be built. She then continued: ‘I feel that this is what needs to happen in the church. There is so much that we need to deconstruct and remove if we are to make straight paths for the gospel!’ As I was reflecting on what she had said, Debra also told me a moving story that illustrates how the new generations of people growing up in the United States are becoming less familiar with the gospel.
From the deserts of Nevada and Arizona, I travelled to the Greener hills of North Carolina and led ‘The Rooftop’ in four cities across the state. Below are just a couple of pictures.
As you can see ‘The Rooftop’ continues to spread across the United States as momentum build towards the simultanteous national event happening 1st October 2012.
Leaders gathering for an ‘Indoor’ rooftop in North Carolina.
Leaders seeking a fresh vision of God’s heart for the lost in North Carolina.
BREAKING NEWS BREAKING NEWS The website for ‘The Rooftop’ has now been updated which means you can now download all the free materials that you need to host ‘The Rooftop’ in your local community. You can also register your Rooftop!
Please go to: www.lifeway.com/therooftop
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STATE-WIDE AND NATIONAL CONFERENCES As well as leading ‘The Rooftop’ in several cities I had the opportunity to speak at a number of significant state-wide and national conferences. It was great to address leaders in California and Kentucky and to present the need that there is for them to face the ‘new reality’ that generations of people are not attending church in the ways that people did in previous generations. The opportunity that this presents is enormous and it was great to see leaders responding to this challenge. It was also great to speak at the Sunday School in High Definition conference at 1st Baptist Woodstock. Hundreds of Sunday Speaking at Sunday School in High Definition Conference
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School leaders had gathered for this annual conference. Again, I presented the need to face the ‘New Reality’ and at the end of my talk I invited people to come and stand on the platform and think of it as ‘The Rooftop’. Then to look outwards and imagine the community that they come from ‘beyond the walls’ and pray and earnestly seek God’s heart for the lost people that live there! The response was so moving People responding to the challenge to seek a fresh vision of God’s heart for the lost at SSinHD The platform became ‘The Rooftop’. As well as speaking at conferences, churches and leading ‘The Rooftop’ I also had some key meetings at Lifeway and the Baptist World Alliance. I would appreciate your prayers about these.
People responding to the challenge to seek a fresh vision of God’s heart for the lost at the Sunday School in High Definition Conference.
The platform became ‘The Rooftop’.
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LIFEWAY I have been working in close partnership with Lifeway for the past 24 months developing ‘More to Life’ and ‘The Rooftop’. As from 1st November this year this partnership will change in significant ways. As from this time Lifeway will no longer be covering my costs in relation to these initiatives. Whilst this presents a challenge, I genuinely believe that it is a good thing as opens up new doors of opportunity that will enable me to continue to develop a global movement using ‘The Rooftop’. I am tremendously grateful to Lifeway for the huge amount of support they have given to get things to where they are. Now it is time to move ahead! As a key part of this I am seeking to add depth as well as continue with the breadth of the ministry. I am in close contact with some 20 churches where I am discussing the possibility of acting as a ‘Mission Catalyst’. This will mean that I devote some
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of my time in helping/equipping the church to be more effective in reaching lost people in the ‘New Reality’ that we now face. As well as my helping the church, they will support the wider work that I am seeking to do around the world. Please pray that God will make His will clear to each of the churches I am in discussion with, and to me. Related to this, I am now very much living by faith again and need financial support to enable me to continue with what the Lord has called me to. It is now possible to donate online at my website www. dennispethers.com/donate. If you could make a one-off or regular gift to support this ministry I would be SO grateful.
MORE TO LIFE IN PANAMA The meetings I had at the Baptist World Alliance went well and the most exciting meeting during the week was regarding Panama.
The Panama Baptist Convention is planning to use ‘More to Life’ (La Vida Es Algo Mas) as a key component of it’s national five year evangelism strategy and I will
be training leaders from across the country in June this year. Please pray that plans come together for this.
THE NEXT FEW MONTHS The next few months will be a really busy time where I will be travelling and speaking an enormous amount. In the midst of this I am now working through the transition from Lifeway being the key partner to the establishing of a number of new partnerships. On the following page you can see my April/May itinerary. I am so grateful to you for your prayers and support – please keep praying! Dennis.
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UP AND COMING EVENTS APRIL 14 15 16 17 18
Travel to Arkansas Preaching at Park Hill Baptist Church Arkadelphia Leading ‘The Rooftop’ in Arkansas Leading ‘The Rooftop’ in Arkansas Leading ‘The Rooftop’ in Raleigh Durham, Yates Association - at the University Tower 19 Leading ‘The Rooftop’ at Hickory, Catawba Association 21 Training in Florida at 1st Baptist Church Frostproof 22 Preaching at 1st Baptist Church Frostproof 23-26 Speaking at Exponential Conference Orlando, Florida 27-29 Time off in NYC 30 Meetings at Lifeway
MAY 1-3 4-6 7
Speaking at Lifeway Collegiate Summit Meetings at ‘The Heights’ Texas Travel back to the UK
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DESIGN BY SIMON PETHERICK