ECC March 2013

A TRIANNUAL PUBLICATION OF THE EAST COAST CONFERENCE OF THE EVANGELICAL COVENANT CHURCH 

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www.issuu.com/eastcoastcovenanter

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MARCH 2013

THE

EAST COAST COVENANTER www.eastcoastconf.org

The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” Isa. 58/61 in Lk 4

HAVING A PROPHETIC CHARACTER HOWARD K. BURGOYNE SUPERINTENDENT, EAST COAST CONFERENCE

As I write this front piece our nation’s president has been inaugurated again.

The rituals and liturgy invoke an oath that binds a nation to its elected leader.

President Obama’s selection of the Bible of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. on which to take the oath invoked the legacy of a civil rights crusader whose influence is portrayed as foundational to this President’s vision of America.

On the day the President privately took the oath of office, the Epiphany Gospel lesson depicted a more enduring and universal inauguration – the beginning of the public ministry of our Lord, as told in Luke’s account (Luke 4). Luke’s story telling clearly depicts Jesus’ as standing in the legacy of the prophets of Israel – especially the legacies of Moses, Elijah/Elisha, and Isaiah. In Israel’s day the Spirit of the Lord came upon various women and men to enable them to carry out a particular duty. The prophets of Israel were sent on a mission with a message.

While their specific duties and times varied, prophets by and large were entrusted with sacred responsibilities that centered in these crucial and enduring works: First, prophets stand in the gap between God’s will and the people’s experience, embodying in their very being and bearing

the passion of God for His people. This passion elicits both agony and exhilaration – God is as a jealous lover who longs for the covenantal intimacy of his chosen bride.

Second, prophets are ministers of restorative justice and healing. The power of God’s Spirit flows through their prayers, their touch, their words, and their actions in mysterious ways and to miraculous effect.

These works benefit those at the margins of society, especially the poor who called upon God, their only hope and salvation.

Third, prophets are prosecutors of God’s covenant – they speak truth to power and preach with searing conviction about what is right and wrong. A proverbial sword comes from their lips cutting us to the quick and laying bare the motives, conspiracies and compromises of our day. Their illumination of darkness with the light of Truth makes their ministries controversial and often brief in tenure. Prophets rarely enjoy a comfortable retirement.

Moses prayed in his day, “Would that all God’s people were prophets!” Samuel led

a school of prophets, and Jesus taught his disciples to become prophets and apostles.

The Apostle Paul was convinced that common Christians could prophesy as the Spirit gave them a message and boldness to speak.

Is there a prophetic character to your life? To the life of your church? If we are followers in the way of Jesus this ought to be apparent. The same Spirit that anointed Jesus for his vocation as prophet, priest, king, servant and son of God is poised and eager to anoint the Church and each follower of Christ to stand in the gap, to minister justice and healing, and to speak truth to power in a way that illumines the darkness with unavoidable light.

On the move,

Have a question for howard?

Email him at howard@eastcoastconf.org

EAST COAST CONFERENCE 52 Missionary Road Cromwell, CT 06416 860.635.2891 www.eastcoastconf.org

www.facebook.com/eastcoastconf www.issuu.com/eastcoastcovenanter

a recap & testimony from

winterfest 2013 Winterfest 2013 was a fun, different, and spiritually challenging weekend in January for the 446 kids from 23 Conference churches. Promised Land Covenant Church (Bronx, NY) Pastor Michael Carrion spoke on "Telling Your Story."

The East Coast Conference and Pilgrim Pines has set aside the first weekend in January for youth leaders to build relationships with student leaders. Below is a testimony of Alex Apollon, a member of the youth group at Covenant Congregational Church (Boston, MA)

My life is like any other average life. I go to school, I play sports, and like everyone one else, I have my fair share of problems. These problems cause setbacks for me as they would do to anyone. But these problems have given me an empty feeling over the years. Troubles with my dad and lots of insecurities have left me an empty shell of a person. I’ve tried filling this gap in my soul with many things, and all of these things have not given me the feeling I was looking for.

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After Winterfest I can say that that empty feeling was filled a bit. At Winterfest the environment and the people were amazing. It gave me the feeling of never wanting to leave. But the most important thing at Winterfest was the thick presence of God in the atmosphere. It was as if the more I sang the more I praised and the more I let my heart open to God I was being filled with this warm peaceful feeling that I can only describe as love.

When I managed to crawl out of my shell and embrace God during the singing and sermons, God was there to show me his love. It was a feeling that had no words to describe it. It was as if I was being washed from the inside. I could feel myself letting go to God and when I did he was there waiting. His love was there to embrace me. When I say love I don’t mean your everyday love. When I say love I mean true soul raising love that can only be given by the Lord himself.

The songs we sang had touched me so much I would sing them to myself days after I had left.

When I returned home I was filled with such peace; I could see the world through different eyes.

Although I will admit I don’t feel the same exact peace I once felt I do believe however that I have changed as a person and become closer to God.

At one point a new friend I had made spoke into the microphone and said “when you get home God is still there, he is just harder to feel because you aren’t in the same environment that we are in now.”

I believe those words because I can see how one can feel Gods endless love when surrounded by hundreds of people just like you, feeling the same way, and calling for God the same as you.

Upon going home, you are not in that type of environment anymore - therefore, some may think they can’t feel God. However, God is always within you - and what I learned is that you just need to search inside yourself for Him. And when you find Him you can feel that peace right in your own room.

Without a doubt in my mind, I can say that going to Winterfest was the best experience of my life.

I had heard that there will be a camp over the summer similar to this and I plan on going. I believe going to Winterfest changed my outlook on life, and changed me as well.

Although I still have my problems and I still have much of my insecurity, and yes I still have an empty space in my soul but I truly believe that empty space is slowly being filled everyday by the grace of God's love.

To learn more about Winterfest 2014, please visit: www.pilgrimpines.org/retreats/youth-retreats/winterfest

CRISIS RELIEF ITINERARY On Friday, November 16, 2012, Superintendent Howard Burgoyne met with Stan FrIEdman of Covenant Newswire and Rev. David Husby, the director of Covenant World Relief, to get a first hand glimpse of the destruction of Hurricane Sandy on the

a merging of compassion post-sandy by pastor michael carrion

Bronx and Staten Island and experience the work and renewal many local Covenant churches are participating in during the relief process. here’s a rundown of the day:

On Saturday, March 9th, 2013, 36 short term missionaries from Wisconsin drove to NYC to partner with Promised Land Covenant Church and its partners to support with Sandy relief efforts in NYC through Covenant MERGE Ministries.

These Covenanters came in ready to rock and roll, fully equipped with a trailer, electric tools, energy, and the desire to serve the least of these. Early Sunday morning, the group first prayer-walked with pastor Michael Carrion through the South Bronx Millbrook projects - a housing development known for its crime, gangs, and violence.

As the team toured the neighborhood, Milbrook residents were hanging out the windows asking what was going on. Immediately, the MERGE missionaries were meeting, praying, and evangelizing to those curious members of the neighborhood. It was altogether amazing, authentic, and powerfully Spirit-led. After the prayer walk, Pastor Michael continued the Bronx tour by taking the team to Elements Covenant Church, where they experienced the church's dynamic hip-hop service, before going to worship at Promised Land Covenant Church. Afterwards, the team received an orientation of engagement for the week's events and were dispatched to Brooklyn to setup for their assignment.

Team One was dispatched to Breezy Point, Queens, where the assignment was to build, insulate, and rebuild a house that was devastated by hurricane Sandy. Breezy Point had become a totally desolate environment, literally with hundreds of destroyed homes damaged by Hurricane Sandy.

Team Two was dispatched to Staten Island where they were engaged in building a mercy station warehouse operated by Third Day Missions. Third Day Missions is the hands and feet of Promised Land Covenant Church on Staten Island, and provided resources, rehabilitation to destroyed homes to the 28,000 families left homeless because of Sandy.

Noted Pastor Carrion afterwards, "Honestly, I have been amazed at the earnest efforts, sincerity, and humility of the MERGE Missions team. They really came to love, serve and support the least, the last and the lost. It's good to be Covenant."

Michael Carrion, pastor of Promised Land Covenant Church, Bronx, NY

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7:00 AM - cromwell, CT

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9:00 AM - bronx, ny

Depart for New York City.

Arrive @ Kingsbridge Armory, Bronx, NY – meet up with Stan Friedman (Covenant News Service) and Rev. David Husby, Director, Covenant World Relief; and with NaLEC Board members Dr. Gabriel Salguero, Dr. Ray Rivera, Dr. Michael Carrion, also Rev. Jose Humphreys, Rev. Phil Bonano, Rev. Ernie Rodriguez.

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9:30 AM - bronx, ny

Tour the NaLEC Relief Project at the Armory; meet iwth Relief Team Leaders and NaLEC Board members; observe their organization and the loading of vehicles to deliver resources.

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10:00 AM - bronx, ny

Prepare the deliveries and depart in convoy for Staten Island, NY.

See mobilizing during a crisis" graphic on the following page

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For the latest updates on the affected areas of Sandy, please visit the following websites: interoccupy.net/occupysandy/updates www.iddrnalec.org www.eastcoastconf.org/sandy

Make a donation to provide help to those still in need! Visit: www.eastcoastconf.org/sandy

cont’d pg. 5

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MOBILIZING DURING A CRISIS At the end of October 2012, Hurricane Sandy swept the East Coast from Maine to North Carolina - hitting hardest in the New York City metro area. Nineteen East Coast Conference churches lay between the boundaries of the deepest impact. Here are just a few ways our churches responded and God moved through their hands after the storm.

Area Covenant pastors team together with the National Latino Evangelical Coalition (NALEC) to transform the Kingsbridge Armory (Bronx) into a distribution and donation hub - distributing food, water, clothing and gasoline to effected New Yorkers for weeks after the storm.

Over 500 TONS of food, water, coats, baby needs, and cleaning supplies were distributed to the hardest hit areas in Staten Island, Far Rockaway, Long Island, Breezy Point, Lower East Side of Manhattan, Coney Island, Jersey City, and other parts of NJ. NALEC received a grant from the East Coast Conference Sandy Relief fund to continue the work, which concluded November 23, 2012.

Trinity Covenant Church (Livington, NJ) opens its doors as a warming/charging station to the community in the hours after the storm has cleared.

Hope Church NYC (Queens) teamed up with the local Occupy Sandy movement and hosted a collection site at their Sunday Worship Gathering for donations. They also hosted two Benefit Worship Concerts - which offered live music, times of prayer, and a chance to hear from a Rockaway resident whose home was wrecked by the storm.

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Even 80-100 miles inland, St. Paul’s Wolf’s Covenant Church (York, PA) experienced Sandy - experiencing flooding in the educational wing of the church

CONFERENCE NEWS

cont’d from pg. 3

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12:00 pM - staten island, ny

Arrive Staten Island; walking tour of affected communities, meeting with residents, FEMA, local community first responders, relief providers.

Evangelical Covenant Church of East Northport received a grant from the Sandy Relief Fund through the East Coast Conference. Their mission for the funds was two-fold: to be able to respond to needs that come to them directly through our congregation and to collaborate with other organizations providing relief as we become aware of the needs and opportunities.

As the storm died down, Evangelical Covenant Church (E. Northport, NY) was able to supply meals, showers and electricity/charging stations to anyone who needed it - many people from the community & congregation where able to benefit.

Within a week or two afterward Sandy, Pastor Peter Nielsen started bringing supplies to many make-shift supply centers along the southshore of Long Island. Since that time, Pastor Nielsen has been volunteering with Samaritans Purse on a weekly basis to assist in cleaning out homes. Samartians Purse, which arrived shortly after Sandy had receded, began with 600 requests for homes to be gutted. “This is ongoing work," he noted. "If I’m surprised to learn that the first phase of work has yet to be wrapped up, what is the rest of the country thinking?”

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3:00 pM - staten island, ny

Lunch with on-site responders along with NaLEC Team at local fraternal lodge building which housed relief coordination.

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4:00 pM - staten island, ny

Begin return to Bronx via LaGuardia airport to drop off Husby and Friedman.

Promised Land Covenant Church (Bronx) began a Sandy Food Pantry using funds from the Sandy Relief monies from East Coast Conference, focusing on the South Bronx families that are struggling for food in light of the Sandy aftermath.

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6:00 pM - BRonx, ny

Four staff members were tasked with running the project, with food being distributed on a weekly/as needed basis.

Depart Bronx for Connecticut

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Make a donation to provide help to those still in need! Visit: www.eastcoastconf.org/sandy and click

DONATE

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kreig's corner thoughts on

by kreig gammelgard | director of congregational vitality

As Director of Congregational Vitality I have the privilege of working with churches and pastors who long for new life for their congregations. I get a first-hand perspective of how God is at work, both individually and corporately, as the VIM (Vision, Intention, and Means) of a pastor and church leadership team grows and develops.

ONE - A Unifying Approach to Strategic Ministry Planning is a workshop centered around the discovery, development, and deployment of a strategic ministry plan that can align you churches future with God’s purposes and priorities.

Beyond the free workshops above available to our churches, the Covenant offers PULSE, which is a congregational assessment that measures a churches current reality and trajectory using the metrics of the 10 Healthy Missional Markers. It has proven to be a valuable tool that gives direction to a churches strategic ministry plan.

Our VITALITY PATHWAY is a comprehensive journey towards missional health as a church (or group of churches) engages in the workshops and resources that I have been offering around the conference:

Veritas - Telling the Truth About Congregational Vitality is a workshop that helps a church identify its’ current reality and how to “re-missionalize” their ministries around the 10 Healthy Missional Markers.

EPIC - Empowering People, Inspiring Change

Co-Op Coaching is offered to pastors in the Vitality Pathway that desire assistance in organizational leadership during the implementation phase of their ministry plan.

is a workshop that offers the tools for change management and the importance of leadership within the church. Most churches fear two kinds of change: too much too soon, or too little too late. EPIC helps balance what will work in your context.

Navigate - The National Conference that catalyzes momentum for Vitality Churches is offered in November and partners other regional churches with the Conference and Denomination for a kick-start of the vitality journey. The article below is a testimony of the influence of Navigate for one of our pastors, Paul Guiliano.

MOVE > Empower Leaders Paul Guiliano Navigate testimony

I began serving at my congregation a year ago.

Upon starting, I found that the local Covenant churches we participating in a vitality cohort under the guidance of John Wenrich. Even though I was fresh out of seminary I found this time to be very beneficial as I was facing challenges that I was not prepared for. It became evident that my congregation was a critical moment church and needed to take intentional steps to seek congregational vitality and become a healthy missional church.

Upon being invited to Navigate, I thought of it mainly as an opportunity to get members of my church on board with the idea of congregational vitality. During the weekend, I found that Holy Spirit was working mightily in the individuals who came along and God was stirring in my heart as well. During the retreat for the pastors, I began to feel a distinct indication that I had a growing point that God wanted to work on. As

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a stabilizing leader who likes to avoid conflict, I have often wondered why God called me to a church that needs revitalization. One of the leadership constructs presented helped me to find a “strike zone” for change. Along with that image was a challenge that as pastors we need to develop ability and comfort to operate in both catalyzing and stabilizing roles. The challenge God was putting on my heart was to develop my catalytic leadership.

Throughout the retreat, God spoke in multiple ways. In our workshops I found resources to develop my leadership skills. In conversations with others I found encouragement and exhortation to boldly lead change. In my quiet times with God I found my heart being transformed. The biggest question that I hadn’t asked God but had on my heart was if God was right in calling me to this church. I came back from Navigate being able to give a resounding ‘yes’ to that question. In a

Paul Guiliano is pastor at Paradise Holtzschwamm Evangelical Covenant Church in Thomasville, PA, where he has been serving since 2011, following his graduation from North Park Seminary. Aside from the joys of ministry, Paul enjoys cooking, baking, board games, and gleaning new opportunities from his congregation such as piano lessons and knitting. Paradise Holtzschwamm is currently journeying through the vitality pathway, embracing the challenge of being an aging yet healthy missional congregation. Paul is excited to be a part of the vitality process.

meeting with my vitality team just a week after Navigate we have laid out goals to begin work on, beginning with establishing a process of pervasive prayer especially as leaders. Through coordination with our DCV we have Veritas scheduled.

Finally, I was able to tell my leaders that, “As John says, ‘There is no growth without change, and there is no change without pain.’ God wants us to be a healthy missional church but it is going to be a difficult process. We may even get to a point where we ask if this is worth it and want to quit. Should we get there, I will not chicken out or walk away. I believe that God wants us and our church to be healthy and missional.” I didn’t think that I had that kind of leadership in me.

With the prayer and guidance I received at Navigate, I feel confident that God will faithfully lead, equip, and provide support for our journey toward congregational vitality.

To learn more about the ECC's Congregational Vitality initiatives, visit: www.covchurch.org/vitality

POWERED BY

Beginning October 1, 2012, Covenant congregations across the U.S. and Canada began participating in Hope Sundays.

This event presents the great need in DR Congo along with the invitation for individuals and families to sponsor a child through Covenant Kids Congo powered by World Vision.

A number of congregations in the East Coast Conference have sponsored Hope Sundays so far.

Here are just a few of their stories of how God has moved in our Conference through the Covenant Kids Congo mission:

HOPE SUNDAYS across the conference We had a Hope Sunday in November and sponsored about 25 children. We also gave the Thanksgiving offering from our combined service with Orchard Covenant to Covenant Kids Congo. In addition, following the death of one of our members, the family chose to have memorial funds donated to CKC. I am grateful that our church has responded to this need so generously.

Michael Mirakian

evangelical Covenant Church  springfield, ma

We did have a Hope Sunday at Wilton. There were two sponsored children from the group but moreover, I am proud to share the church itself is sponsoring one child for this year!

Earl Dunbar

WILTON Covenant Church  WILTON, CT

We celebrated Hope Sunday on October 28, 2012. On Election Day, November 6, we held a bakesale that raised enough (and more) to sponsor a child for a full year. On November 24 we held a Craft Fair where tables were sold to crafters. That brought in enough to sponsor another child for one year. We also gave the congregation the opportunity to pledge monthly amounts to help in sponsorship.

Several families have taken on one or two children on their own. As a congregation we have commited to sponsoring two children, a boy and a girl, and have set up a line item in our budget so that the pledges and any more that comes in will allow us to continue the sponsorship into the next years. Our plan is to have another Hope Sunday next year.”

Karen Palmatier Covenant Church of Quincy  QUINCY, MA

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On October 14, armed with a giant inflatable globe and sobering statistics of extreme poverty and soaring child mortality, Bethany Covenant Church (Bedford, NH) hosted a Hope Sunday for Covenant Kids Congo Powered

by World Vision - the culmination of over a year of preparation and prayer. Sr. Pastor Joel Kruggel and Associate Pastor J.T. Shupe were instrumental in the success of the event through their support and promotion. In addition, Stu and Celeste Sherman of the World Vision Ambassador Leadership team for the East Coast region came to answer questions and lend support.

I had hoped to get sponsors for 25 children that day, but I wasn’t too confident. I wondered if the economy or a potential building campaign would be inhibiting factors. I spoke at both services and incorporated my family’s story, a World Vision video, and a children’s sermon using that big inflatable globe. As people filed out of the church the excitement was undeniable.

By God's grace, 47 children were sponsored on the spot! In addition, the youth group held a fundraising event to cover sponsorships for four children for a year with the plan to continue its giving and fundraising efforts. To date, a total of 57 children have been sponsored at Bethany!

We are not done yet. Our group of sponsors will get together to pray, share letters from our sponsored children, sample bits of Congolese culture, and continue to learn how sponsorship through Covenant Kids Congo powered by World Vision helps to transform a community out of poverty. Our group of children come from the same Congo community. It is a way for our community to help another on the other side of the world and to join with other Covenant churches to affect change in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Courtney Crowder BETHANY Covenant Church  BEDFORD, NH

Learn how to make a difference with your church community today! Visit: www.covchurch.org/covenantkidscongo

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The 123rd Annual Meeting of the

CHURCH PLANTING UPDATE

East Coast Conference

by jason condon, director of church planting

The winter months tend to provide the briefest of lulls between the launching of new church plants (though there's still plenty of ministry activity underway!) Most recently this has provided the opportunity to create, launch, and test a new monthly reporting process that is fully online. Church planters and church plant are held to a very high standard of ministry stewardship and accountability, with monthly reporting, both Coach and Supervisor meetings, and Cohort gatherings with peers. With this new upgrade, we trust that God will bless these faithful efforts to wisely measure and evaluate both the quality and quantity of the fruit he has called us to produce.

God Gives the Increase

This faithful stewardship is paying off as several of our new church plants have plans to add second or even third worship services in the coming weeks and months. A combination of significant growth and wanting to maximize facility resources creates both this challenge and opportunity to provide new openings for people to experience Jesus and his people in the context of a worshiping community.

Hope Church NYC (Drew Hyun, pastor/planter; www.hopechurchnyc.org) is the latest, launching a second service on March 3, only a few short months after their public launch. Other plans are well underway, from Bronx to Boston, but we won't give away the details just yet (they may want their own folks to know first :)

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Preparing New Soil

A new configuration for church plants' monthly Missions Giving of 15% total (expected and required of every church plant) is providing a clearer pathway to parenting or partnering in further church planting. Every newly approved church plant already has this as a value and expectation, we're just further supporting that desire with good strategy and systems.

Christ Covenant Church of Harleysville (PA). will be hosting the Conference Annual meeting this year on April 12-13, 2013; while the Ministerial Association Annual Meeting will be held at St. Peter's Church of Hilltown (PA), on April 11-12, 2013.

Church plants as young as 1-2 years old are already partnering in new church plants, with some even making near-term plans for fully parented projects.

We're also tremendously blessed by churches from 5-125-years-old increasingly partnering as well!

God has blessed us with a steady influx of high caliber candidates. Several now in the pipeline are approaching the significant milestone of an official Assessment Center in May (with more likely in Sept). Please be in prayer for these candidates, the national Assessors Team, and the community context they would plant in if approved. Potential areas include Baltimore, Virginia, Quincy, NYC, and New Jersey. It’s a wide cross-section of personalities, ethnic and cultural backgrounds, and missional contexts. My sense is 3-6 approved church planters will emerge in the next 3-9 months, but we're trusting God will use our rather rigorous discernment process to give clear direction!

As we gather together, we discover what God has been doing, is doing and WILL be doing in our churches, camp, agencies, and Conference ministries.

We hope you will join us for this important meeting - whether as a delegate from your church or as a guest - to remember what Covenant President Gary Walter says, that we are “In It Together!”

As a Conference that is “on the MOVE,” we hope and pray that YOU will make the move to beautiful Montgomery and Bucks Counties for our time together this April.

Register today at:

www.eastcoastconf.org/annualmeeting

transitions

comings & goings

within the conference

EAST COAST COVENANTER

THE

Fruitful Measures

Paul W. Kahn Editor / graphic design & layout / writer

Alicia Sturdy Editor

James Choi

to Bowie, MD (Interim) - part-time 1/13

James Kim

from Long Island City, NY 12/30/12

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Whitney Hall

from Nashua, NH (Interim) to Pastor (part-time) 1/6/13

Linda Williams

to Washington Depot, CT (Interim) Feb-13

EAST COAST CONFERENCE

52 Missionary Road, Cromwell, CT 06416  (860) 635-2691 FAX: (860) 398-5071  www.eastcoastconf.org

Kevin Swanson

from Englewood, NJ (Executive Pastor) 4/1/13

Thomas A.P. Baskett

to Arlington, MA (Highrock) Worship Director - part time 1/1/13

Howard Burgoyne publisher

contact the covenanter:  email us at: eastcoastcovenanter@gmail.com

Austin Eisele

to Worcester, MA (Salem) Assoc. Pastor - part time 2/13

READ the covenanter ONLINE:

www.issuu.com/eastcoastcovenanter

Superintendent:

dir. of church planting:

Dir. of congregational vitality:

OFFICE MANAGER:

Finance manager:

Howard K. Burgoyne

Jason Condon

Kreig Gammelgard

Alicia Sturdy

Robin Jones