2017-18 CBF Prayers of the People

Prayers People of the

The Cooperative Baptist Fellowship’s yearlong guide to prayer

2017-18

Cultivating Beloved Community

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Contents Ways to Use this Guide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Prayers for Beloved Community . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 The Beloved Community . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Cultivating Through Seasons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 Christmas Reflection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 A Disruptive Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 Ash Wednesday Reflection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41 Cultivating Diversity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45 Easter Reflection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52 Cultivating Congregations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58 Cultivating Love . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70

Featured Author Don Durham is the founder of Healing Springs Acres, a not-for-profit farm that grows food to give away. He has served the Church for 25 years as an interim pastor, coach, consultant, and fundraiser.

For personal enjoyment and rejuvenation, Don spends his time working around the farm, riding a motorcycle, experimenting with welding projects, and is an amateur radio operator. He is the father of two wonderful daughters.

CBF Leadership

Design Team

Suzii Paynter

Joshua Speight

Executive Coordinator

Missional Congregations Resources Manager

Steven Porter

Jeff Langford

Coordinator of Global Missions

Editor and Designer

Meagan Smith Ministries Assistant

Š 2017 Cooperative Baptist Fellowship. Calendar information is current as of June 2017 and will be updated June 2018. Unless otherwise noted, Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989, by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches in the U.S.A. Used by permission.

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Ways to Use this Guide

Prayers of the People is a yearlong guide to prayer that invites you to explore how your prayers intersect with CBF field personnel, ministries and partners around the world. This guide is a tool for forming together in shared ministry.

Individual Sacred Space

Children’s Programs

Each day, create time and space in your home or workplace to consider the prayer requests. Pray for transformation and for the courage to be open to God’s love. Discuss with God your connection with this particular ministry or a local variant.

Mission teachers of Form and Spark can use the guide to make connections with the lessons they are teaching.

Share copies of Prayers of the People with parents and families of children.

Small Group Experience Use Prayers of the People in a missionoriented group, a prayer group or a Sunday school class. Ask your group members to consider the prayer request within a section’s particular prayer theme.

Worship Gathering Create a monthly “Mission Moment” in your worship, sharing a story or prayer request from the prayer guide.

Use the guide to shape a children’s sermon or reflection time during worship.

Family Time Prayers of the People is a great tool to teach children about the various aspects and experiences of prayer.

Allow each child to look at the photos and ask questions. Explore other information about the culture of the people for whom you are praying.

Get Prayers of the People on your E-reader

Visit www.cbf.net/pray to get a copy of Prayers of the People for Kindle, Nook or other e-readers.

More Prayer Resources

To receive updates as well as more detailed and current prayer requests from CBF field personnel, visit www.cbf.net/pray. Subscribe to CBF’s weekly e-newsletter to receive regular Prayer Associates updates.

Download copies to share with others.

To Order More

Contact the CBF Store at www.cbf.net/OGMorder or 800-352-8741 to order more copies of Prayers of the People. Include in welcome packets to church visitors and display on magazine racks.

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Explore CBF’s missional formation resources for all ages in the CBF store at store.cbf.net.

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PRAYING FOR CBF MINISTRIES

Prayers for Beloved Community www.cbf.net/ministries

With the 2017-2018 edition of the CBF Prayer Guide you are invited to be a participant in cultivating the Beloved Community. This community is Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s incredible vision for reconciliation among all people of the earth boldly embracing the transformational love demonstrated in the life of Jesus Christ.

As CBF moves into its next 25 years and beyond of Forming Together, it is the prayers of the people that sustain the work that God calls each of us to share. In these pages you will find a guide to help you cultivate your part of the Beloved Community.

During the year ahead you will read stories and prayer concerns about field personnel, church starters, chaplains, pastoral counselors, and CBF staff. It is a humbling and incredible honor to know that you take time to speak their names to God in prayer. What a gift you give to each of them!

Authoring this year’s edition is Don Durham. Don has served numerous congregations in various capacities these past 25 years, including as interim pastor, coach, consultant, and fundraiser. He is the founder of Healing Springs Acres, a not-for-profit farm that grows food to give away.

His love for farming and agriculture informs his theology and writing, much of which you will encounter woven throughout this prayer guide.

As you pray and cultivate the Beloved Community, my prayer is that you will listen to the Spirit of God in your own life and be led by your prayers to be aware of God’s work in the world and your active role in it.

May the God of reconciliation and hope give you love and grace in abundance along the way.

Joshua Speight Missional Congregations Resources Manager Director, CBF Fellows

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The Beloved Community The Beloved Community. Perhaps the most comprehensive and enduring proclamation of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King’s work for reconciliation among the people of the earth.

From the King Center: “Dr. King’s Beloved Community is a global vision, in which all people can share in the wealth of the earth. In the Beloved Community, poverty, hunger and homelessness will not be tolerated because international standards of human decency will not allow it. Racism and all forms of discrimination, bigotry and prejudice will be replaced by an all-inclusive spirit of sisterhood and brotherhood. In the Beloved Community, international disputes will be resolved by peaceful conflict-resolution and reconciliation of adversaries, instead of military power. Love and trust will triumph over fear and hatred.

Peace with justice will prevail over war and military conflict.”1 As much as we might embrace, laud, and revel in the depth, breadth, and beauty of the idea of The Beloved Community, we must approach it from a very specific starting place — with prayers of confession. We have no option but to confess that — for all our reverence for both the proclaimer and the proclamation — after lo these many years it is still not real.

We have not built The Beloved Community. What if we can’t build it?

What if it can’t BE built? What if “building” isn’t even the right idea?

Building is binary. A building is either finished or it isn’t. There is little allowance for progress along the way. Children, women, and men created in the image of God are still poor. Human beings are still hungry.

Neighbors are still without homes. If we insist on “building” The Beloved Community, we can only speak – ultimately – of failure.

Perhaps there is another way and another language more fitting the production of a living reality as worthy as The Beloved Community.

Planting, fertilizing, tending, watering, harvesting; the rhythmically repetitive language of cultivating.

What follows in these pages is an invitation to be led through your own prayers into a cultivated awareness of your part in planting, fertilizing, tending, and watering The Beloved Community. Cultivating Beloved Community is work that is never done, but it brings forth life all along the way. Put your hand to the plow…

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http://www.thekingcenter.org/king-philosophy

Brittany and Casey Ramirez

SEPTEMBER 1-8

Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China www.cbf.net/ramirez

Over the past 10 years, CBF has cultivated beloved community and partnerships with churches and church leaders in Chengdu and Sichuan Province. The current ministries are at a point of self-sustainability; however, this creates an opportunity to bear witness to Jesus Christ in new ways, building on the foundation that has been laid to develop new and different ministries. The local church has a vision to start new congregations around the city and will welcome assistance and support.

Brittany, a graduate of University of Mary Hardin-Baylor and Truett Seminary is a former CBF Global Service Corps member, where she served in Chengdu. Casey, a graduate of Baylor University and Truett Seminary comes to the Fellowship with a background in film and digital media.

Pray for: • The Ramirez family as they prepare for this new season of life • The ability to learn this difficult language and a new culture • Ease in making connections and building relationships and that they will bear witness to Christ in their lives and relationships

Your words were found, and I ate them, and your words became to me a joy and the delight of my heart; for I am called by your name, O Lord, God of hosts.

Jeremiah 15:16 www.cbf.net/pray

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Stephanie Vance

SEPTEMBER 9-15

Athens, Alabama www.cbf.net/vance

Stephanie serves as the manager of Together for Hope, CBF’s rural development coalition partnering in over 25 counties and parishes across the United States. She also serves as the Area Coordinator for Mission Teams for the Rural Americas Team of CBF field personnel.

Launched in 2001,Together for Hope is a long-term commitment to working with people in the nation’s poorest counties in order to affect change and break the cycle of economic disparity. The ministry is about establishing long-term relationships, listening, learning and walking alongside local leaders. The hope is that communities will be transformed as will the churches and individuals who serve in focal counties.

Pray for: • Stephanie’s transition as she continues to learn her new role • Those working in the rural Americas • The future of rural communities in the U.S., Latin America and the Caribbean

Owe no one anything, except to love one another; for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law.

Romans 13:8

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Lesley-Ann Hix Tommey

SEPTEMBER 16-22

New York City, New York www.cbf.net/tommey

Lesley-Ann Hix Tommey is ministry facilitator for Rauschenbusch Metro Ministries in New York City, which seeks to encourage the social, educational, spiritual and economic growth of the “Hell’s Kitchen” community. The ministry offers non-sectarian, multifaceted educational opportunities and direct services to community residents through partnerships between Metro Baptist Church, area residents, mission organizations and community service providers.

A North Carolina native, Lesley-Ann has a passion for storytelling, with a degree in journalism from University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill and her Master of Divinity degree from McAfee School of Theology.

Pray for: • Lesley-Ann and her husband Blake’s transition to New York City, as they learn about their surroundings and partners in ministry • Blake as he works to engage his call in our new context • Faithfulness to God’s guiding, that we are courageous in facing any challenges that may come and that we are compassionate bearers of peace and love

The Lord is my strength and my might, and he has become my salvation; this is my God, and I will praise him, my father’s God, and I will exalt him Exodus 15:2 www.cbf.net/pray

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Mira and Sasha Zivanov

SEPTEMBER 23-30

St. Louis, Missouri

www.cbf.net/zivanov Mira and Sasha Zivanov help and serve refugees in St. Louis from the former Yugoslavia including the Roma people as well as those from other war-torn countries. Through fellowship, pastoral care, food pantry, tutoring and other classes, they seek to provide opportunities for community and to hear about the gospel.

Pray for: • The families who are separated from their native communities and extended families and striving to adapt to an unfamiliar culture with limited language skills • The children in our tutoring ministry that they may acquire the learning skills necessary to be successful in school • Local churches to find ways to participate in connecting with the “strangers in their midst”

Only, live your life in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that, whether I come and see you or am absent and hear about you, I will know that you are standing firm in one spirit, striving side by side with one mind for the faith of the gospel…

Philippians 1:27

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1 Terry Eddinger, Winston-Salem, NC (CH) 1 Lucy Hearne, 2013, Danville, VA (FPC) 1 Bisser Ovcharov, Dallas, TX (CH) 1 Milton Snyder, Milledgeville, GA (CH) 1 Ralph Stocks, Emeritus (FP) 2 Bob Coons, Owensboro, KY (CST) 2 Ruth Cuellar, Newnan, GA (CST) 2 Dennis McDuffie, Atoka, TN (CH) 2 Sara Moran, Greer, SC (CH) 3 Jenny Jenkins, Haiti (FP) 3 Ann Owen, Viera, FL (CH) 4 Vicki Lumpkin, Greensboro, NC (CH) 4 Shirley Massey, Chapel Hill, NC (CH) 5 Eddie Aldape, Spain (FP) 5 Kelly Belcher, Asheville, NC (CH) 5 Roger Benimoff, Grand Prairie, TX (CH) 5 Becky Brannon, Gainesville, GA (CH) 5 David Brown, France (FP) 5 David D’Amico, Emeritus (FP) 5 Alexandria Geovanni, Iowa, LA (CH) 5 David Julian, Dublin, GA (CH) 6 Carla Cherry, Worthington, OH (CH) 6 Daniel Edward Tatum, Marietta, GA (CH) 7 Martha Harper, Madison, MS (CH) 7 Lee Hendricks, Greenville, NC (CH) 7 Lita Sample, San Francisco, CA (FP) 8 Daniel Hall, Pineville, KY (CH) 8 Jody Harrison, Dallas, TX (CH) 8 Trey Lyon, Atlanta, GA (FP) 8 Chad Mustian, Dallas, TX (CH) 9 Wayne Weathers, Philadelphia, PA (CST) 10 Timothy Brown, Dublin, GA (CH) 10 Nancy Campbell, Kansas City, MO (CH) 10 Matthew Hallenbeck, Liverpool, NY (CH) 10 Rick Jordan (S-North Carolina) 10 Marv Knox (S-Southwest) 10 Sarah Montoya, San Fransisco, CA (CH) 11 Courtney Hester, Cartersville, GA (CH) 11 Larry Hovis (S-North Carolina) 12 Ryan Berlin (S-Decatur) 12 Bryan Lake, Cumming, GA (CH) 13 Andrew Gee, Marietta, GA (PC) 13 Richard Morris, Lebanon, PA (CH) 13 Ron McCaskill, Cairo, GA (CST) 13 Scot McCosh, Hope Mills, NC (CH) 13 Alan Redditt, Georgetown, KY (CH) 13 Kathy Turner, Charlotte, NC (CH) 14 Bart Grooms, Birmingham, AL (PC) 14 Priscilla Howick, Jacksonville, FL (CH) 15 Brandy Mullins, Manvel, TX (CH) 15 Martha Perusek (S-Decatur) 16 Dick Allison, Hattiesburg, MS (CH)

16 Jeff Ellison, Rowlett, TX (CH) 16 Karen Heistand, Rochester, MN (CH) 16 Byron Johnson, San Diego, CA (CH) 16 Charles Leggett, Lawton, OK (CH) 17 Angela Clark, Matthews, NC (CH) 17 Jean Craddock, Lexington, KY (PC) 17 Tammy Latimer, Springfield, MO (CH) 17 George Rossi, Columbia, SC (CH) 18 Susan Barnett, Green Valley, AZ (CH) 19 Larry Baker, Commerce City, CO (CH) 20 David Bluford, Lenoir City, TN (CH) 20 Katherine Moneypenny, Douglas, GA (CH) 20 Renée Owen, Marietta, GA (CH) 20 Tanya Parks, Slovakia (FP) 20 Adam Ridenhour, Winston Salem, NC (CH) 20 Robert Randolph, Swannano, NC (CH) 21 Mark Flores, Lynchburg, VA (CH) 21 Timothy Wagoner, Carlisle, PA (CH) 22 Kim Chafee, Virginia Beach, VA (CH) 22 Josh Reglin, Tahoka, TX (CH) 22 Becky Shoaf, Atlanta, GA (CH) 23 Donna Seay, Baltimore, MD (CH) 24 William Stewart, Seabeck, WA (CH) 25 David Christensen, Brownville, NY (CH) 25 Angel Pittman, Miami, FL (FP) 26 Randy Brookshire, Greenville, SC (CH) 26 Sunny Mitchell, Whidbey Island, WA (CH) 26 Keith Parker, Brevard, NC (PC) 26 Beth Sexton, Lincolnton, NC (CH) 26 Lynwood Walters, Gainesville, FL (CH) 26 Jeffrey Walton, Richmond, VA (CH) 26 Gloria White, Pearland, TX (PC) 27 Cathy Anderson, Kennesaw, GA (CH) 27 Peggy Johnson, Hurst, TX (CH) 28 Renate Kruklis, Braselton, GA (CH) 29 Asbrubal Forte, Miami, FL (CST) 29 John Harris, Pelham, AL (PC)

September Birthdays

CH = Chaplain CST = Church Starter FP = Field Personnel

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Hunter and Mary

OCTOBER 1-8

Southeast Asia

www.cbf.net/huntermary Hunter and Mary walk beside local believers. Together, they help others to experience the love, grace, acceptance and forgiveness of Christ. They do this by assisting with translation of scripture and other materials, building networks, training and mentoring. They also provide assistance with development work, ensuring human rights and obtaining legal status for immigrants.

Pray for: • Those Hunter and Mary serve to understand and accept the love, grace and forgiveness that can only be found in relationship with Christ Jesus • The local churches and believers to have a greater desire to reach out to the people we serve • Spiritual and numerical growth in new believers from among those they serve • The unity of Christ’s body and the understanding that we all need each other

Make me to know your ways, O Lord; teach me your paths. Lead me in your truth, and teach me, for you are the God of my salvation; for you I wait all day long.

Psalm 25:4-5

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Kim and Marc Wyatt

OCTOBER 9-15

Research Triangle, North Carolina www.cbf.net/wyatt Kim and Marc bear witness to Jesus Christ among the immigrant and refugee populations of North Carolina’s capital, an eight county region of approximately 2 million people. The Wyatts say, “In this ever changing day of global migration, the ‘foreign mission field’ just might be your own hometown.”

Pray for: • Opportunities to share the Gospel in culturally relevant ways with refugees, immigrants, international students and trafficking victims • An atmosphere of welcome towards immigrants and refugees in North Carolina • Cooperation and collaboration between organizations and institutions that serve internationals in the Capital Region • Churches and individuals to develop and extend their cross-cultural witness among internationals

…then do not exalt yourself, forgetting the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery…

Deuteronomy 8:14

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David Harding

OCTOBER 16-23

Orlando, Florida

www.cbf.net/harding David Harding addresses Ethiopia’s drinking water crisis, extreme poverty and recurring drought through the “Water is Life” program.

David constructs new wells and repairs dilapidated pumps to make clean drinking water available for community use. Access to safe drinking water improves health and saves time and energy, particularly for women and girls.

David also coordinates CBF’s international disaster response efforts, building alliances with local churches and other partners. The objective is to transition quickly from disaster response to long-term transformational development, particularly among the most vulnerable.

Pray for: • David’s work on the Baptist World Aid Committee of the Baptist World Alliance and in the Baptist Relief and Development Network • Sustainable Living Teams (SLTs), in poor communities to encourage individual, household and community health and growth

I am the Lord, and there is no other; besides me there is no god. I arm you, though you do not know me, so that they may know, from the rising of the sun and from the west, that there is no one besides me; I am the Lord, and there is no other. I form light and create darkness, I make weal and create woe; I the Lord do all these things.

Isaiah 45:5-7 14 |

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Jenny Jenkins

OCTOBER 24-31

Grand Goâve, Haiti www.cbf.net/jenkins Jenny Jenkins serves through medical and relational ministries in Grand Goâve, Haiti, a rural community approximately 60 miles southwest of Haiti’s capital. Many of the 125,000 people of Grand Goâve are farmers, tradesmen, small business owners and educators, living in the mountains and countryside with limited access to medical care and other services including electricity. A lack of literacy, education and business skills plagues the community and there is an overwhelming need for full-time work, but God’s presence is strong and the local churches are active in discipleship, education and other efforts to transform the community.

Pray for: • The mobile medical clinics that provide basic family medicine and follow-up on chronic issues like hypertension and diabetes • The Grand Goâve Education Initiative that offers tutoring, Christian mentoring and meal fellowship, literacy classes, educational seminars and other opportunities like Vacation Bible School and youth sports • Jenny’s outreach to widows through food kits, worship, medical care, visitation and home repair

He said to him, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the greatest and first commandment.”

Matthew 22:37-38 www.cbf.net/pray

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1 Tina Bailey, Southeast Asia (FP) 2 Maha Boulos, Lebanon (FP) 2 Jordan Dollar, Edwardville, IL (CH) 2 Keith Holmes, Netherlands (FP) 3 Jonathan Bailey, Southeast Asia (FP) 3 Andrew Finkler, Fayetteville, NC (CH) 3 Greg Long, Elgin, TX (CST) 3 Matt Norman, Spain (FP) 4 Matthew Eddleman, Travelers Rest, SC (CH) 4 Michael Metcalf, Evans, GA (CH) 5 Kate Blackshear, Austin, TX (CH) 5 Jo Ann Hopper, Emeritus (FP) 5 Gregory Thompson, Oakwood, GA (CH) 5 Christopher Towles, Pfafftown, NC (CH) 5 David White, Murfreesboro, TN (CH) 6 Gerald Richards, Apex, NC (CH) 7 Daniel Brockhan, Cheektowaga, NY (CH) 8 Lucas Dorian (S-Alabama) 8 Lisa Jeffcoat, Concord, CA (CH) 8 Robb Small, Geismar, LA (CH) 9 Claire Ehlinger (S-Decatur) 10 Larry Aaron, Danville, VA (CH) 10 Joseph Boone, Cold Spring, KY (CH) 10 Beth Duke, Smithville, TN (CH) 10 Jay Martin, Woodland Park, CO (PC) 10 Tina Woody, Spartanburg, SC (CH) 11 Randi McFarland, Lynchburg, VA (CH) 11 Michael McGrath, Little Rock, AR (CH) 11 Laura Senter, Everett, WA (CH) 11 Lesley-Ann Hix Tommey, New York (FP) 11 Sing Yue, Bakersfield, CA (CH) 12 Melba Miller, Gainesville, GA (CH) 12 Ben Newell, Emeritus (FP) 12 Terry Newell, Zebulon, NC (PC) 12 Greg Sink, Augusta, GA (CH) 13 Lloyd Blevins, Fayetteville, NC (CH) 13 Bob Newell, Emeritus (FP) 13 John Painter, Charleston, SC (CH) 13 Fran Turner, Emeritus (FP) 13 Gretchen Watson, Louisville, KY (PC) 15 Bruce Guile, Mexico, MO (CH) 16 Matthew Andrews, Birmingham, AL (CH) 16 Karen Black, Fort Worth, TX (CH) 16 Betty Drayton, Sumter, SC (CH) 16 Greg Greason, Kansas City, MO (CH) 16 Monty Self, Little Rock, AR (CH) 17 Frank Broome (S-Georgia) 17 Bob Cheatheam, Abilene, TX (CST) 17 David Fambrough, Greenville, NC (CH) 18 Jenine Crew (S-Decatur) 18 Hank Demous, Opelika, AL (CH)

18 Danny Garnett, Irmo, SC (PC) 20 Carl Brinkley, Fayetteville, NC (CST) 20 Chuck Hawkins, Pearland, TX (CH) 20 Luke Langston, Durham, NC (CH) 22 Keith Cooper, Lubbock, TX (CH) 22 Paul Robertson, Sugar Land, TX (CH) 22 Missy Ward-Angalla, Uganda (FP) 23 Adele Henderson, Roanoke, VA (CH) 23 John Lassitter, Martindale, TX (CH) 23 Carl Price, Lebanon, TN (CH) 23 John Roberts, Louisville, KY (CH) 23 Michael Weaver, Beaumont, TX (CH) 24 Ben Collins, Deland, FL (CST) 24 Charles Lumpkin, Greensboro, NC (CH) 24 Wes Monfalcone, Casselberry, FL (CH) 24 Robert Powell, Birmingham, AL (CH) 24 Rick Ruano, North Miami Beach, FL (CH) 25 Doug Cobb, McGregor, TX (CH) 25 Suzie, Thailand (FP) 26 Dean Dickens, Emeritus (FP) 27 Robert Carter, Virginia Beach, VA (CH) 27 Kathy Hope, Albuquerque, NM (CH) 27 Terrell Moye, Palm Beach Gardens, FL (CH) 29 Mike Hutchinson, Togo (FP) 29 Sam Scaggs, Dublin, GA (CH) 29 Troy Todd, Sneads Ferry, NC (CH) 30 Richard Brown, Troutville, VA (CH) 30 Hazel Thomas, Houston, TX (CH) 31 Phyllis Boozer (S-Northeast) 31 David Gunter (S-Decatur) 31 Abina Johnson, San Francisco, CA (CH)

October Birthdays

CH = Chaplain CST = Church Starter FP = Field Personnel

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FPC = Child of Field Personnel PC = Pastoral Counselor S = CBF Staff Member

Cultivating Through Seasons No. We have not built The Beloved Community. Even if we manage to move beyond the language of building and explore instead the language and ways of cultivating, we would still be inclined to lament the fact that we have not yet lived in that dreamed-of world.

The hopes we gain from considering the ways of cultivation are the ability to observe that we have made progress from time to time, and that we have not reached the end of the row – we are not finished. As usual, Wendell Berry offers wisdom worth considering.

If the crop of any one year was all, a man would have to cut his throat every time it hailed.

But the real products of a year’s work are the farmer’s mind and the cropland itself. …

Let him receive the season’s increment into his mind. Let him work it into the soil.

The finest growth that farmland can produce is a careful farmer.

Make the human race a better head. Make the world a better piece of ground.1

We try. We fail. We learn.

We try again and make a measure of progress. Yes, the poor are still with us, there are still people who are not sure of their next meal, and there are still neighbors who do not have homes. But – we have learned to stand in solidarity with the poor. We have learned ways to secure access to food. We have learned to relate to those who have lost the relationships which make them at home. Do we do these things enough? No. We can and must do more if the faithfulness of Christ is to be made manifest in our lives and communities.

Let us not lament though. We do make progress. Let us receive each season’s progress and incremental wisdom. Let us cultivate our own capacity for cultivating The Beloved Community.

The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. Lamentations 3:22-23 (NRSV) Berry,Wendell. (1970) excerpted from Prayers and Sayings of the Mad Farmer. in Collected Poems 1957-1982, p. 114. North Point Press, San Francisco

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PRAYING FOR CBF MINISTRIES

New Church Starts www.cbf.net/churchstarts

CBF is a supportive home for those discerning and living out a call to church starting. Within CBF Church Starts, one finds a creative space for visioning, contextualization, coaching and training. The goal is to expand and diversify the Fellowship by empowering church starters from various contexts, genders, incarnational approaches and ethnicities.

CBF covenants with new churches to provide three years of professional coaching, site visits for leadership development, spiritual renewal retreats, financial grants and the development of partnerships.

Church Starts bless the Fellowship by modeling innovative practices for ministry and by providing avenues for established churches to enter into missional partnerships and mentorship with a new church.

This year’s commissioned church starters bring several firsts. The states and regions of Virginia, Kentucky, and Colorado (CBF West) will commission their first church starters. The Fellowship will partner with its first church created out of the need for community among immigrants and refugees resettling in the United States.

Join us in praying for opportunities to partner together in renewing God’s world through starting new churches. Support CBF Church Starting by giving to the 25th Anniversary campaign. Share the story of the CBF Church Start Initiative with individuals discerning a call.

Work with your state or regional organization to identify areas where a potential CBF church could start.

Read more about the 2017 CBF church starters: • Clint Akins in Fort Walton Beach, Florida, on page 22 • Henrietta Anderson in Henrico County, Virginia, on page 30 • Cole Chandler in Denver, Colorado, on page 40 • Felix and Nicole Iyoko in Raleigh, North Carolina, on page 53 • Todd Toole in Hebron, Kentucky, on page 67

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Pray for CBF Church Starters commissioned in 2016 Asdrubal Forte | Fraternity Baptist Church

Pray for energy, wisdom and patience for Asdrubal and his family. Pray for generous hearts among church members and other supporters. Pray that people will respond to God’s call.

Christopher Jones | Restoring Hope Fellowship

Pray that God will empower the church’s efforts to help people envision their potential in Christ. Pray that the church will faithfully continue to work together with Christ and promote abundant life.

Russ Jones | Mosaic Fellowship

Pray for the church as they strive to follow God’s purpose for them in Belton, Texas. Pray for patience among the church leaders. Pray for Russ and his wife, Victoria, as they serve the church and the community.

Ron McCaskill | Christ Church

Pray for God to show the church how to reach young people with the good news of Christ. Pray that God will provide creativity. Pray for church leaders to continue to sense God’s guidance.

Dustin Payne | The Forum Christian Church

Pray that God will bring transformation, renewal and healing to northwest Houston. Pray that members will continue living life to the fullest as disciples of Christ. Pray for the church to see Jesus in all they do.

Carrie Tuning | HOPE Christian Fellowship Church Pray that God will bless the church with a building where it can fulfill its vision of a holistic ministry. Pray that God will give stamina to the church’s leaders so they will not become disheartened in well-doing.

Wayne Weathers | Vision of Hope Baptist Church

Pray that the church will continue to walk by faith. Pray for an innovative spirit as the church seeks ways to show others the Kingdom of God. Pray that they can effective serve the Strawberry Mansion community of Philadelphia. www.cbf.net/pray

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Gennady and Mina Podgaisky

NOVEMBER 1-8

Kiev, Ukraine

www.cbf.net/podgaisky Gennady and Mina serve in Kiev, Ukraine, a major urban city with a population of more than 4 million people. They minister through the Village of Hope, foster family ministry center, home Bible study groups, women’s groups, counseling, the Life Skills Manual and partnering with ministries to refugees.

Pray for: • Peace in the east of the country — The Donesk and Lugansk regions • The thousands of refugees in the country, that they may find jobs and a new home • The children and families at the Village of Hope and their continuous financial support • The Podgaiskys’ ministries as they continue to be the presence of God to a country and people in crisis

O send out your light and your truth; let them lead me; let them bring me to your holy hill and to your dwelling.

Psalm 43:3

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www.cbf.net/pray

Pat

NOVEMBER 9-15

Persian Ministry www.cbf.net/persianministry Pat, together with her husband, Mich, serves among Persian speaking people on both a personal and community level. Their goals are to bear witness to Jesus Christ, to cultivate beloved community, to assist the Global Church and seek transformational development among Persian speaking peoples. Their methods involve evangelism and discipleship among Persian speakers, leadership training and equipping Persian Christian workers, partnership and networking with others among Persian Speakers Worldwide, Persian Christian resource development and distribution and humanitarian relief and human rights advocacy for Persian speakers worldwide.

Pray for: • Persian speaking people to know the love of Christ and to follow God’s calling • Persian Christian leaders to be trained and equipped for service • Communities of faith to develop among Persian speakers • Partnerships with other organizations, churches and individuals in this effort

Now therefore revere the Lord, and serve him in sincerity and in faithfulness; put away the gods that your ancestors served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord.

Joshua 24:14 www.cbf.net/pray

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Clint Akins

NOVEMBER 16-23

Fort Walton Beach, Florida Clint Akins is pastor of a new church start in Fort Walton Beach, Fla. After serving through church planting movements and providing leadership training in Madagascar, Akins served as the pastor of Bluewater Community Church in Niceville, Fla. In early October 2016, a church starts core group gathered for the first time at Clint and Yolande Akins’ home. The group continues to seek God’s vision for contextual ministry and missions in the Florida panhandle. Their desire is to bond with the wounded and stranded in a post-church culture, as well as live honestly to the way of Jesus found in the Gospels.

Pray for: •

• •

The Fort Walton Beach church start to discover a church name that reflects their vision of being seekers after the life and mission of Christ, seekers for stronger families, seekers for peaceful communities, seekers for effective leadership Finding a place for group worship Financial needs to be met

As the eyes of servants look to the hand of their master, as the eyes of a maid to the hand of her mistress, so our eyes look to the Lord our God, until he has mercy upon us.

Psalm 123:2 22 |

www.cbf.net/pray

Carson and Laura Foushee

NOVEMBER 24-30

Tokyo, Japan

www.cbf.net/foushee Carson and Laura Foushee serve in Tokyo in partnership with the Japan Baptist Convention. Prior to moving to Tokyo, they led English ministries alongside churches in Kanazawa and Toyama. Carson and Laura also helped to bear witness to Jesus Christ in regular preaching through translation in both congregations and by leading English Bible studies for adults at various levels of English abilities.

Carson and Laura cultivated beloved community through activities like weekly English classes for kindergarten mothers and English summer camps for families. They also welcomed Japanese and internationals interested in Christianity and English to join in worship and fellowship at Kanazawa International Baptist Church, the English ministry of Kanazawa Baptist.

Pray for: • Carson and Laura as they continue to learn the Japanese language and culture • New ministry and partnership opportunities in Tokyo and other cities in Japan • Future projects with the Japan Baptist Convention, serving alongside local congregations

Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!

2 Corinthians 9:15 www.cbf.net/pray

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1 Lynne Mouchet, Johns Creek, GA (CH) 2 Karen Alford, Uganda (FP) 2 Clint Akins, Fort Walton Beach, FL (CST) 2 Mark Elder, Spartanburg, SC (CH) 2 Jesse Hunt, Fort Drum, NY (CH) 2 Mickie Norman, Leland, NC (CH/CST) 2 Suzii Paynter (S-Decatur) 2 Ryan Yaun, Wetumpka, AL (CH) 3 Javier Benitez (S-North Carolina) 3 Michael McCawley, Carthage, NY (CH) 3 David Reid, Boise, ID (CH) 3 Jeffrey Ross, Virginia Beach, VA (CH) 4 Cyndi Abbe, Waco, TX (CST) 4 Mary Stinson, Berea, KY (CH) 4 Mark Westebbe, Waynesboro, VA (CH) 5 Cameron Gunnin, San Antonio, TX (CH) 6 Kyle Fishbaugh, Fayetteville, NC (CH) 6 Jeff Lee, Macedonia (FP) 6 Meghan McSwain, Winston-Salem, NC (CH) 7 Craig Butler, Sugar Land, TX (CH) 7 Pat Coley, Port Hueneme, CA (CH) 7 Darrell Hudson, Georgetown, TX (CH) 7 Roland Kuhl, Round Lake Beach, IL (CST) 8 Jay Kieve (S-South Carolina) 8 Mark Weiler, Greeley, CO (CH) 9 Debby Bradley, Owensboro, KY (CH) 9 Charles Seligman, Germany (CH) 9 Audrey Wilson, Durham, NC (CH) 10 Brooke, Southeast Asia (FP) 10 Kevin Crowder, Fredericksburg, VA (CH) 10 Holly Johnson, Atlanta, GA (CH) 10 Angela Lowe, Lawrence, KS (CH) 10 Ralph Mikels, Jr., Seymour, TN (CH) 10 Jim Smith, Emeritus (FP/S-Decatur) 11 Phoebe Angel, 2010, Belgium (FPC) 11 Scott Blair, San Antonio, TX (CH) 11 Dana Durham, Sacramento, CA (CH) 11 Victor Perez, Knoxville, TN (CST) 11 Troy Petty, Palmyra, VA (PC) 11 Bert Sanders III, Winston-Salem, NC (CH) 11 Steve Sweatt, Birmingham, AL (PC) 12 Jason Coker (S-Mississippi) 12 Michael Cox, Elizabethtown, KY (CH) 12 John Lepper, Crestwood, KY (PC) 12 Harry Rowland (S-Decatur) 13 Shelia Earl, Emeritus (FP) 13 Earl Martin, Emeritus (FP) 13 Devita Parnell (S-Decatur) 13 Gail Smith, Hillsborough, NC (CH) 13 Cindy Wallace, Carpentersville, IL (CH) 14 Katie Anderson, Louisville, KY (CH) 15 Cris Avila, Newnan, GA (CST) 15 Elizabeth Eaton, Fredericksburg, VA (CH) 15 Marcia McQueen, Eden, NC (CH)

15 David Simmons, Harrisburg, PA (CH) 15 Eric Whitfield, Round rock, TX (CH) 16 Anita Snell Daniels, Emeritus (FP) 16 Edwin Hollis, Odenville, AL (CH) 17 Chuck Strong, Olive Branch, MS (CST) 17 Elizabeth Thompson, Littleton, CO (PC) 17 Cade Whitley, 2004, France (FPC) 17 Dylan Whitley, 2004, France (FPC) 18 Elaine Greer, Frankfort, KY (CH) 18 Kristin Long, Richmond, VA (PC) 19 Will Kinnaird, Keller, TX (CH) 19 T. Nancy Cox, Georgetown, KY (CH) 19 Deenie Grubbs (S-Mississippi) 20 Chuck Christie, Loganville, GA (CH) 20 Kevin Park, Bellingham, WA (CH) 20 Steven Porter (S–Decatur) 20 Dean Vonfeldt, Marietta, GA (CH) 21 _______, Middle East (FP) 21 Fred Madren, Indianapolis, IN (CH) 22 Becky Smith, Atlanta, GA (FP) 23 Dihanne Moore (S – Decatur) 23 Julie Walton, Richmond, VA (CH) 24 Will Barnes, Savannah, GA (CH) 24 Carol Lynn Brinkley, Fayetteville, NC (CST) 24 Peggy Gold, Durham, NC (CH) 24 Will Manley, Johnson City, TN (CH) 24 Callie McManus, Birmingham, AL (CH) 24 David Posey, Medina, TN (CH) 24 Ruth Santos-Ortíz, Gainesville, GA (CH) 25 Gary Batchelor, Rome, GA (CH) 25 Tony Biles, Richfield, NC (CH) 25 Robert Cooke, Selma, NC (PC) 25 Ed Farris, Topeka, KS (CH) 25 Brad Hood, Knoxville, TN (CH) 25 Chan Shaver, Jamestown, NC (CH) 25 Sue Smith, Fredericksburg, VA (FP) 25 Lee Weems, Pineville, LA (CH) 25 Cassandra Wilson, Gahanna, OH (CH) 26 Carol Fletcher, Athens, GA (CH) 26 Blake Hart (S-South Carolina) 26 Randy Penneroud, Anderson, SC (CH) 26 Michael O’Rourke, Alexandria, VA (CH) 26 Charles Reynolds, Vicenza, Italy (CH) 27 Macarena Aldape, Spain (FP) 27 Posey Branscome, Charlotte, NC (CH) 27 Saul Burleson, Weaverville, NC (CH) 27 Joshua James, Salisbury, MD (CST) 28 Ronald King, Midland, GA (PC) 28 Abigail Parks, 2004, Slovakia (FPC) 28 Mark Tidsworth, Chapin, SC (PC) 28 Joel Whitley, France (FP) 29 Paul Mullen, Clemmons, NC (CH) 30 Rick McClatchy (S-Texas) 30 Lucas Pittman, 2003, Miami, FL (FPC)

November Birthdays

CH = Chaplain CST = Church Starter FP = Field Personnel

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www.cbf.net/pray

FPC = Child of Field Personnel PC = Pastoral Counselor S = CBF Staff Member

PRAYING FOR CBF MINISTRIES

Reference & Referral www.cbf.net/leaderconnect

Transitions cause anxiety for churches and apprehension for ministers.

The Reference and Referral ministry of CBF helps ease the burden of change for congregations and clergy with practical resources throughout the process of search and call. Among those resources is LeaderConnect, our high-tech database that matches CBF ministers with CBF churches.

Trusting the Holy Spirit is never more evident than in a pastor search process as stress runs high. Amid uncertainty, congregations in transition must choose spiritually mature leaders who serve the best interests of the entire church as the pastor search team. Those with a comprehensive perspective look beyond their own preferences and agendas leaving room for the Holy Spirit to inhabit their worshipful work.

Like the searching churches, ministers in transition embrace the ambiguity of where God might lead them. Their discernment is also multi-layered and disruptive to the typical ministerial rhythms. The push-and-pull of discernment is both a push from one ministry and a pull to a new ministry. These insecurities are alleviated with prayer.

Pray for: • Churches to discover all of what God wants them to be and do during the interim.

• Ministers to experience the “the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding” throughout the search and call process.

• Search committees and candidates to exercise mutual hospitality, seeking clarity and discernment before making decisions.

• Leaders who support ministers and churches by dedicating their time to listen, inquire, observe and coach them through each phase of transition.

www.cbf.net/pray

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Jon and Tanya Parks

DECEMBER 1-8

Kosice, Slovakia

www.cbf.net/parks Jon and Tanya strive to be the presence of Christ among the Roma people in Kosice, Slovakia. Through personal relationships, partnerships with local Christians and initiatives that support Roma education, they believe God’s people can together form a new future for people who have lived in poverty and oppression for generations.

Pray for: • Local Christian leaders as they work to start community development and evangelism programs in Roma villages • Village leaders who will be open to learning and guiding their communities toward true transformation • Parents and teachers committed to solid education for Roma children • Slovak leaders willing to change unjust and prejudiced social systems • Young Roma leaders who can model effective change for their people

God is faithful; by him you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

1 Corinthians 1:9

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www.cbf.net/pray

Karen Morrow

DECEMBER 9-15

Fort Worth, Texas www.cbf.net/morrow Karen Morrow is an advocate for the needs of newly arriving refugees, seeking to inform, educate and engage Christians and churches in relational ministries with refugees. She is passionate about walking alongside refugees as they adjust to life in the U.S. through ESL and a family literacy program: “Ready for School.”

Pray for: • Refugees as they adjust to life in the U.S., learn English and find jobs • Christians to become involved in relational ministries with refugees and share the love of Christ with them • New struggling refugee churches — that they would grow in their faith and reach out to non-believers with the gospel • The “Ready for School” program and its impact on refugee preschoolers and parents • Volunteers to teach the class and funding to expand the program

But, in accordance with his promise, we wait for new heavens and a new earth, where righteousness is at home. Therefore, beloved, while you are waiting for these things, strive to be found by him at peace, without spot or blemish…

2 Peter 3:13-14

www.cbf.net/pray

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Greg and Sue Smith

DECEMBER 16-24

Fredericksburg, Virginia www.cbf.net/smith

Greg and Sue serve the first-generation Latino community through LUCHA Ministries, a non-profit agency founded in 2004 providing social and spiritual support to Spanish-speaking individuals and families.

Services include immigration legal services, women’s empowerment ministry, emergency assistance, after-school mentoring, summer youth programming, pastoral counseling and cross-cultural training for nonLatino providers.

Pray for: • Newly-arrived Latino families to adapt to the realities of life in a different land • Local communities and congregations to be open to and accepting of their immigrant neighbors • The relationships formed and the services rendered among the Smiths’ immigrant friends, that they will meet their needs and reveal the Lord they serve • Greg and Sue to bear witness to Jesus Christ • Opportunities to cultivate beloved community among their Latino neighbors and friends

“My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant. Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed…”

Luke 1:46b-48 28 |

www.cbf.net/pray

CHRISTMAS REFLECTION | DECEMBER 25

Anticipating the Unexpected When I think of Christmas, the word that comes to my mind often is “anticipation.” I can remember as a child a particular Christmas Eve where I was ready to fall asleep because I knew that when I awoke the next morning, I would find that coveted Lamar snowboard that I had been begging for over the last few months, much to my parent’s dismay.

After all, I did have that big ski trip the following month to prepare for.

I wonder, when was the last time you waited for God to show up in your life with great anticipation? The better question may be when was the last time you allowed that anticipation to move you to a posture in which to receive something from God? Yes, Christmas is a time for moments shared with family and gathering as a community of faith to remember the greatest gift of all. But I also think Christmas can serve as a reminder to allow ourselves to be open to move into new positions where God wants to do something unexpected.

For the young Mary, it was to the position of unwed mother. For the shepherds in the field, it was to a position of announcers of good news!

Pray that God will reveal to you what new thing you may be directed towards. Pray for the strength to willingly make yourself available to this new direction, and enter into this Christmas season with great anticipation for what God wants to do in and through your life!

Joshua K. Owens Associate Minister, First Baptist Church Monroe, North Carolina and 2016-2018 CBF Fellow

www.cbf.net/pray

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Henrietta Anderson

DECEMBER 25-31

Faith Ministries | Henrico County, Virginia Henrietta Anderson served as an associate minister at Quioccasin Baptist Church in Henrico County, Virginia, for over 10 years. While there, she established the Young Adult Ministry and became the teacher of the Disciples Ministry class. In 2010, she felt God calling her to “preach to the nations,” leading her to start the Faith Ministries congregation as a place where all of God’s children are welcome.

Pray for: • The church to remain faithful to the will and ways of God • The church not to stray from the core values, freedom in worship, love for all and the care for all who enter our doors • Peace to see outside their present circumstance and gain insight that there is sustainability in faith and Jesus Christ • The value to serve God and show others that there is possibility to grow and gain with the love of Christ for all who desire to move away from their past

For as the earth brings forth its shoots, and as a garden causes what is sown in it to spring up, so the Lord God will cause righteousness and praise to spring up before all the nations.

Isaiah 61:11

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1 Joseph Farry, Greenville, SC (CH) 2 Beth Joyner, Rochester, MN (CH) 2 Connie Madden, Kirkwood, MO (CH) 2 Laura Roach, Morgantown, NC (CH) 3 Rosemary Barfield, Jeffersonville, IN (CH) 3 Ed Beddingfield, Buies Creek, NC (PC) 3 James Heath, Dry Prong, LA (CH) 3 Shane McNary, Slovakia (FP) 3 Gennady Podgaisky, Ukraine (FP) 3 Rachel Gunter Shapard (S-Florida) 3 Jim Tillman, Swansboro, NC (CST) 3 David Wilson, Chapel Hill, NC (CH) 4 Jose Albovias, Louisville, KY (CH) 4 Elizabeth Richards, Emeritus (FP) 5 Chuck Gass, Gainesville, FL (CH) 5 Kenn Lowther, Elizabeth City, NC (CH) 5 Chris O’Rear, Nashville, TN (PC) 6 Joe Mills, Roswell, GA (CH) 7 Phil Hester, Emeritus (CST) 7 Robert Wilder, Jacksonville, FL (CH) 8 Tommy Deal, Dalton, GA (CH) 8 Edward Erwin, Pensacola, FL (CH) 8 Shane Gaster, Deland, FL (CH) 8 Virginia King, Columbia, SC (CH) 8 Donald Kriner, Canton, GA (CH) 8 Robert Pitts, Greenville, MS (CST) 9 Julie Brown, France (FP) 9 Tim Gregory, MD (CH) 9 Wayne Hyatt, Spartanburg, SC (PC) 10 Cecelia Beck, Shelby, NC (FP) 10 Terri Byrd (S-Alabama) 10 Beth Roberts, Chapel Hill, NC (CH) 10 Gary Strickland, Sioux Falls, ID (PC) 10 James Williams, Emeritus (CH) 13 Rick Landon, Lexington, KY (PC) 13 Scott Lee, Snellville, GA (CH) 13 Jim R. Smith (S-Decatur) 13 Frank Stillwell, Lexington, KY (PC) 13 Robin Sullens, Dallas, TX (PC) 13 Will Yarborough (S-Decatur) 15 Anna Anderson, Scotland Neck, NC (FP) 15 James Close, Louisville, KY (CH) 15 Sheree Jones, Winston-Salem, NC (CH) 16 Cayden Norman, 2000, Spain (FPC) 16 Lee Ann Rathbun, Austin, TX (CH) 16 Ina Winstead, Emeritus (FP) 17 Maria-Grace Angel, 2014, Belgium (FPC) 17 Craig Cantrall, Louisville, KY (CH) 17 Buddy Presley, North Augusta, SC (CH) 17 Ronald Wilson, Northport, AL (CH) 18 Loris Adams, Indian Trail, NC (CH) 18 Joel DeFehr, Oklahoma City, OK (CH)

19 Anna-Grace Acker, 2005, Uganda (FPC) 19 Bernard Morris, Chester, VA (CH) 19 James Palmer, Pensacola, FL (CH) 20 Robert Brasier, Queen Creek, AZ (CH) 20 Melissa L. Dowling, Austin, TX (CH) 20 Larry Glover-Wetherington, Durham, NC (PC) 20 Kyle Kelley (S-Louisiana) 20 Alan Willard, Blacksburg, VA (PC) 21 Lynn Hutchinson, Togo (FP) 21 Bethany McLemore, Roanoke, VA (PC) 21 Deborah Wall, Smithfield, NC (CH) 22 William Thompson, Los Alamitos, CA (CH) 22 Sarah Wofford, Mooresville, NC (CH) 23 Frances Brown, Surfside Beach, SC (PC) 23 Robert Elkowitz, Cumming, GA (CH) 23 Steven Ivy, Indianapolis, IN (CH) 23 Hal Lee, Clinton, MS (CH) 23 Linda Strange, Denton, TX (CH) 24 Michael Carter, Dallas, TX (CH) 25 Natalie Moore (S-Decatur) 26 Freddy Hinson, Rocky River, OH (CH) 26 Scottie Stamper, Charlotte, NC (CH) 26 Nicole Tota, Perry Point, MD (CH) 27 Larry Austin, Fredericksburg, VA (CH) 27 Juan Luís Barco, Raleigh, NC (CST) 27 Steve Clark, Louisville, KY (FP) 27 Michael Mills, Fort Worth, TX (CST) 27 Solon Smith, Louisville, KY (CH) 28 Claudia Forrest, Cordova, TN (CH) 28 John Halbrook, Pound Ridge, NY (PC) 28 Thomas Holbrook, Berea, KY (PC) 29 Kimberly Miller, Winston-Salem, NC (CH) 29 Art Wiggins, Triangle, VA (CH) 30 Shay Crenshaw, Raleigh, NC (CH) 30 Revonda Deal, Emeritus (FP) 30 James Garrison, Arden, NC (CH) 30 Kenneth Kelly, Black Mountain, NC (CH) 30 Ramona Reynolds-Netto, Orlando, FL (CH) 30 Lex Robertson, Oklahoma City, OK (CH) 31 David “Tod” Smith, Farmington, NM (CH)

December Birthdays

CH = Chaplain CST = Church Starter FP = Field Personnel

FPC = Child of Field Personnel PC = Pastoral Counselor S = CBF Staff Member www.cbf.net/pray | 31

A Disruptive Process “Agriculture is, in its essence, a disruptive process.”

Those words were jarring when I first heard them from a friend in a conversation. As I thought my way through them, though, I heard the ring of truth.

A rolling field of wild flowers warmed by a low sun against a wispy blue sky evokes a soothing calm in all but the most jaded souls. One could be tempted to think there was actual serenity in such a place. In truth, there lies a more intense collection of competitions than any college sports rivalry one could imagine. Every blade of grass fights on every front for sunlight, soil nutrients, moisture and carbon gases against every other tree or weed within a root’s reach. Every microbe, insect and animal is in relentless pursuit of an upper hand in the cycle of feeding that will eventually consume them all and make them food for the next one up the chain.

Our world is a fiercely chaotic place. We may have trained ourselves to focus instead on appreciation of the beautiful episodes of order which we have celebrated ever since the time when Genesis was written, but you will find no promise in Genesis that the chaos ever went away. God reached into the midst of the chaos and brought forth some order — a disruptive process — but the chaos was not banished. Leave a city block uninhabited for even a short time and the chaotic competition of wildness always returns.

We disrupt the fierce competition of wildness with cultivation. We plow under all the competitive species until they rot into fertile soil for the tender seeds we plant to bring forth a beloved crop. In cultivating our own food we do not praise the wildness of competition. We intervene. We disrupt.

Why then, when it comes to the poor, the hungry, the homeless do we so often capitulate ourselves to the praise of economic competition and blame the poor for losing? Why do we not vigorously and aggressively intervene to disrupt the political and economic principalities and powers of our day until their chaos rots into fertile soil so that we may participate with God in cultivating The Beloved Community?

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Eddie and Macarena Aldape

JANUARY 1-8

Albacete, Spain

www.cbf.net/aldape As the world gets smaller, more people are being displaced across the globe. Whether it is because of war, economic crisis or the search for a better life, people are migrating. The Aldapes are in Spain to offer hope and to be the presence of Christ to those that are on the move and searching. “And you are to love those who are foreigners” (Deuteronomy 10:19a).

Pray for: • Those the Aldapes cross paths with, that they may see Jesus in them • The people of peace in communities as they introduce the Aldapes and open the way for them • Local leaders as they learn to demonstrate genuine love for their neighbors • The Aldapes’ team and other field personnel as they seek to work together in order to make a greater impact for the Kingdom of God and not just their own areas of ministry

May the Lord give strength to his people! May the Lord bless his people with peace!

Psalm 29:11

www.cbf.net/pray

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Brooke and Mike

JANUARY 9-15

Southeast Asia

www.cbf.net/brookemike Brooke and Mike serve university students and the local church in a country where Christians make up less than 10% of the population. They serve their neighborhood and schools through education initiatives and ESL programs. Brooke and Mike serve the community’s many religious groups by pursuing religious freedoms and tolerance for all.

Pray for: • Peace between their country’s many religious groups • The universities and the students Brooke and Mike serve • Christian and other religious minorities, that they would have the freedom to worship fully • Their family’s continued adjustment to life in Southeast Asia

Now the Lord came and stood there, calling as before, “Samuel! Samuel!” And Samuel said, “Speak, for your servant is listening.”

1 Samuel 3:10

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Missy Ward-Angalla

JANUARY 16-23

Kampala, Uganda www.cbf.net/ward

Missy Ward-Angalla is the refugee women’s advocacy coordinator for Refuge and Hope International, ministering among urban refugees from more than 10 different countries. The ministry serves more than 1,000 people annually, walking alongside them as they rebuild their lives.

Missy began a program at Refuge and Hope called Amani Sasa, which helps refugee women and girls who are traumatized, abused, trafficked and vulnerable to exploitation. Amani Sasa features a shelter recovery program for young women who have faced severe trauma and exploitation, a school sponsorship program for vulnerable children, two vocational training programs for women at risk, self-help community groups that assist women to save, support and disciple one another, as well as a social work ministry for refugees in crisis. Amani Sasa also includes a scholarship program for refugee children from at-risk families.

Pray for: • The physical, emotional and spiritual health of the women and girls that Amani Sasa serves • Refugee families at Refuge and Hope International • Support for Amani Sasa’s programs

And Jesus said to them, “Follow me and I will make you fish for people.” And immediately they left their nets and followed him.

Mark 1:17-18 www.cbf.net/pray

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Chaouki and Maha Boulos

JANUARY 24-31

Beirut, Lebanon

www.cbf.net/boulos Chaouki and Maha Boulos have a vision to reach the people of the Middle East with the good news of the Lord Jesus. They have been sharing Christ’s love through celebrations, women’s ministry, children’s camps and medical/dental clinics. The light of Jesus shines amidst darkness.

Pray for: • Peace and stability in the Middle East • More people to come to know Christ as their Savior • Women and children we come in contact with • Safety in a turbulent area

… yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist.

1 Corinthians 8:6

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1 Sam Bandela, Emeritus (FP) Engagement Partner 1 Noy Peeler, Cambodia (FP) 1 Christina Pittman, Summerville, SC (CH) 2 Misael Marriaga, Greenville, NC (CST) 2 Jon Parks, Slovakia (FP) 2 Daniel Sostaita, Rural Hall, NC (CST) 2 Tammy Stocks, Emeritus (FP) 3 Christopher Bowers, Powhatan, VA (PC) 3 William McCann, Madisonville, KY (CH) 4 Joshua Hickman, Japan (CH) 5 Richard Durham, Mount Pleasant, NC (CH) 5 Charles Kirby, Hendersonville, NC (CH) 5 Kevin Lynch, Spartanburg, SC (PC) 5 Calvin McIver, Sacramento, CA (CH) 5 Linda Serino, Memphis, TN (CH) 6 Larry Hardin, Topeka, KS (CH) 6 Santiago Reales, Winston Salem, NC (CH) 7 Richard Catlett, Richmond, VA (CH) 7 Denny Spear, Emeritus (CH) 8 Rachel Hill, Shelby, NC (CH) 8 Ethan Lee, 2009, Macedonia (FPC) 9 Paul Hamilton, Lodge, SC (CH) 9 Patrick Moses, Mansfield, TX (CST) 9 Jeffrey Perkins, Knoxville, TN (CH) 10 Melody Harrell, Emeritus (FP) 10 Jill Zimmer, Columbia, TN (CH) 11 Ed Waldrop, Augusta, GA (CH) 12 Neil Cochran, Greenville, SC (CH) 12 Larry Connelly, Decatur, GA (CH) 12 Scott Smallwood, Englewood, FL (CH) 13 Dianne McNary, Slovakia (FP) 14 Thomas Cantwell, Paducah, KY (CH) 14 Steve Graham (S-Oklahoma/Kansas) 15 Keith Ethridge, Yorktown, VA (CH) 15 John Foxworth, El Paso, TX (CH) 16 Jerry Hendrix, Abilene, TX (CST) 16 David Hormenoo, Durham, NC (CH) 17 Matthew Hanzelka, Round Rock, TX (CH) 17 Donna Manning, Fort Worth, TX (CH) 17 Aaron Norman, 2005, Spain (FPC) 17 Glenn Norris, Sherwood, AR (CH) 18 William Beaver, Ft. Gordon, GA (CH) 18 Jeanell Cox, Camden, NC (CH) 18 Justin Nelson, Mount Airy, NC (CH) 19 Nicholas Hughes, Blountstown, FL (CH) 19 Kaelah-Joy Acker, 2008, Uganda (FPC) 19 Jackie Ward, Goshen, KY (CH) 20 Marshall Gupton, Smyrna, TN (CH) 20 Kevin Morgan, Pisgah Forest, NC (CH) 20 Paul Tolbert, Scott AFB, IL (CH) 21 Jim King, Newport News, VA (CH)

22 Jim Hylton (S-North Carolina) 23 Richard Atkinson, Bastrop, TX (CH) 23 David Bass, Cambodia (FP) 23 Brent Raitz, Cleveland, OH (CH) 23 Trevor Wilson, Knoxville, TN (CH) 24 Heather Kaye Lee, Austin, TX (CH) 24 Stephen Reeves (S-Decatur) 25 Chris Nagel, Houston, TX (CH) 26 Sandy Hale, Emeritus (CH) 27 Darrell Bare, Charleston, SC (CH) 27 Ben Sandford, Hampton, VA (CH) 27 Eric Smith, Willow Park, TX (CH) 28 Chuck Ahlemann, Des Moines, IA (CH) 29 Christopher Bowers, Powhatan, VA (CH) 29 Glen Foster (S-West Region) 29 Darryl Jefferson, Charlotte, NC (CH) 30 Matthew Benorden, Lawrence, KS (CH) 30 Hal Ritter, Waco, TX (PC) 30 Nathan Rogers, Anchorage, AK (CH) 31 Rebecca Adrian, Irving, TX (CH) 31 John Manuel, Fort Benning, GA (CH) 31 Paul Smith, San Diego, CA (CH)

January Birthdays

CH = Chaplain CST = Church Starter FP = Field Personnel

FPC = Child of Field Personnel PC = Pastoral Counselor S = CBF Staff Member www.cbf.net/pray | 37

PRAYING FOR CBF MINISTRIES

Chaplains and Pastoral Counselors www.cbf.net/chaplains

Soldiers know something about suffering. It may involve the physical demands of marching for miles with a heavily loaded ruck sack and weapon or operating in a harsh and unforgiving environment. Suffering may entail the loneliness of separation from family and loved ones for months at a time. It can involve the grief of losing a colleague through combat or a tragic accident. These days many suffer with the aftermath of war such as a traumatic brain injury, PTSD, the loss of a limb or some other physical injury. No one seeks out suffering, but it can come to any one of us.

Chaplains are there to help military members bear the burden and shoulder the load. By living among and working with the troops, they daily share in their sufferings. The CBF has over 100 chaplains serving in the U.S. Armed Forces and 34 who serve at Veterans Affairs Medical Centers.

Pray for: • CBF-endorsed chaplains and pastoral counselors as they communicate the care and compassion of Christ among those whom they serve.

• All chaplains who serve in specialized settings and work with people who suffer.

• Clinical Pastoral Educators who skillfully train ministers to provide excellent spiritual care.

Share in suffering like a good soldier of Christ Jesus.

2 Timothy 2:3

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Ministry in the Middle East

FEBRUARY 1-7

Middle East

www.cbf.net/middleeast CBF field personnel serve in the Middle East, where they plant churches, lead Bible studies, disciple new believers, focus on education and leadership development in local congregations as well as facilitate a variety of vital programs and ministries to children, women and migrants. They are very involved in providing life-changing relief alongside local partners to Syrian refugees living in dire conditions.

Due to the dangerous areas where these CBF field personnel reside, in addition to the rising levels of persecution in the Middle East against Christians, their identities must remain anonymous.

Pray for: • Ministries to the local orphanage, deaf school and blind schools that share Jesus’ love for children and provide for those at the lowest level in society • The thousands of displaced refugees leaving Syria and other countries due to war and religious persecution.

• Local churches and national leaders, for their strength and perseverance

See, I am sending my messenger to prepare the way before me, and the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple. The messenger of the covenant in whom you delight—indeed, he is coming, says the Lord of hosts.

Malachi 3:1 www.cbf.net/pray

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Cole Chandler

FEBRUARY 8-14

Beloved Community Mennonite Church Denver, Colorado Cole Chandler serves as co-pastor of Beloved Community Mennonite Church in Denver, Colorado, alongside Vern Rempel. When Rempel was in his 19th year as senior pastor of First Mennonite Church of Denver, he felt the call to establish a new community. As he undertook this enterprise, he invited Chandler, a CBF-trained minister, to join him as co-pastor.

The result is Beloved Community Mennonite Church, a joyful, inclusive congregation with soulful, spiritual purpose. The congregation and its leadership draw from the deep streams of Mennonite peacemaking practices, courage and renewal work; they enjoy the joy and sorrow of blues music and the justice-oriented community building of the Catholic Worker movement.

Pray for: • The church to bring about creative, authentic, equitable, restorative, beloved community on the face of the earth in the Spirit of Christ

Yet even now, says the Lord, return to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning; rend your hearts and not your clothing.

Return to the Lord, your God, for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love, and relents from punishing.

Joel 2:12-13 40 |

www.cbf.net/pray

ASH WEDNESDAY REFLECTION | FEBRUARY 14

Waiting for Resurrection Remember that you are dust…and to dust you shall return.

These are the words many of us will hear today as we gather with our communities of faith to be anointed with ash. These words and these ashes remind us of our mortality, of our limitedness. They remind us that repentance is urgent.

On this day, we embark on a journey to the cross.

The road to the cross is heavy and hard. Our bodies, our minds, and our beings both feel and inflict the pains of betrayal, of abandonment and of death. As we make this pilgrimage to the cross, we walk through the wilderness, and we name that we are complicit in its desolation. We confess the ways we violate the dignity and humanity of ourselves and of others. We mourn the injustices we so often perpetuate.

But in all of this, there is the hope of resurrection. For on this journey, in our waiting, our pain, our confessing, and our repenting, we walk alongside Jesus in some of his most human hours. We are reminded the God of all creation knows what it is to have a body. God meets us in our wilderness wandering.

And so together we wander and we wait. We wait for the resurrection. We wait because God’s work of renewal and redemption in this world is not yet finished.

Pray, on this day, that our waiting is not stagnant. Pray these ashes confront our complicity, convict us to repent, and call us to action. Pray that we, as the beloved community, might wait for the resurrection with eager and active anticipation, opening ourselves up to be instruments of God’s renewing and redeeming work in this world.

Meagan Smith Associate Minister First Baptist Church, Lexington, NC www.cbf.net/pray

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Scarlette Jasper

FEBRUARY 15-21

Somerset, Kentucky www.cbf.net/jasper

Scarlette serves in Southern Kentucky in some of the poorest counties in the United States, working with families in crisis. This includes families facing homelessness, survivors of domestic violence and families in medical and financial crisis. She assists these families with locating resources to help them including clothing, emergency food, personal care items, housing, employment, application for eligible benefits and transportation to doctors’ appointments. She facilitates workshops on various skill-building topics such as budgeting, building credit, parenting, physical health and nutrition. Each workshop also involves a devotional or Bible study element.

Pray for: • Those who feel trapped in generational poverty • Those facing addictions or other barriers to finding stability • The community of partners that exist and those to whom we are reaching out, that they will feel inspired to join in our ministry with these families • The financial well-being of this ministry, that those whom God is calling to become financial partners will surrender to that call in order to help carry out the work of the Kingdom through this ministry

I have set my bow in the clouds, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and the earth.

Genesis 9:13 42 |

www.cbf.net/pray

Bill and Noy Peeler

FEBRUARY 22-28

Cambodia

www.cbf.net/peeler Bill and Noy engage national pastors and church leaders in leadership training and equip them for effective Christian ministry. They offer themselves in support of these ministries by invitation, working in partnership with Cambodia Baptist Union. Bill and Noy also host and lead the Southeastern Medical International Team for two weeks of medical evangelism every year.

Pray for: • Dedicated pastors and church leaders • Effective leadership training for pastors and church leaders • Spirit-led evangelism among the nation’s Christians • Government leaders to champion justice and human rights

He called the crowd with his disciples, and said to them, “If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it.”

Mark 8:34-35

www.cbf.net/pray

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1 Susan Collins, Stone Mountain, GA (CH) 1 Carrie Dean, Atlanta, GA (CST) 1 Brad Jackson, Springfield, OH (CH) 1 James Touchton, Ithaca, NY (CH) 2 Joe Alverson, Nicholasville, KY (CH) 2 John Fogarty, Freeport, FL (CST) 2 Veronica Martinez-Gallegos, Concord, NC (CH) 2 Terry Tatro, Louisville, KY (CH) 3 Richard Dayringer, Grove, OK (PC) 3 Rachel Erickson, Atlanta, GA (CH) 3 Marianna Hilldrup (S-Decatur) 3 William Elliott, Lexington, KY (CH) 4 Delores Kay Smith, Hickory, NC (CH) 5 Brian Cleveland, New Orleans, LA (CH) 5 Rubén Ortiz (S-Decatur) 5 Joanna Tarr, Kansas City, MO (CH) 6 Donn Poole, The Villages, FL (CST) 8 John Boyles, Lynchburg, VA (CH) 8 Biju Chacko, Morrisville, NC (CH) 8 Larry Johnson, Midlothian, VA (CH) 8 Taisha Seabolt (S-Decatur) 9 Shaquisha Barnes, Durham, NC (CH) 9 Nathan Cooper, Greenville, SC (CH) 9 Ray Johnson (S-Florida) 9 Jo Kirkendall, Biloxi, MS (CH) 9 Elizabeth Milazzotto, Louisville, KY (PC) 9 Willie Smith, Fredericksburg, VA (CH) 10 Karen Estle, Indianapolis, IN (PC) 10 James Rentz, Spartanburg, SC (PC) 10 Sam Southard, Naples, FL (PC) 10 Cynthia Thomas, Houston, TX (CH) 10 Todd Toole, Hebron, KY (CST) 11 Lauralee Estes, Northport, AL (PC) 11 Katee Harris, Rose Hill, NC (CH) 11 Will Runyon, Maryville, TN (CH) 11 Rick Stevenson, Odenton, MD (CH) 12 Sasha Zivanov, St. Louis, MO (FP) 13 Dianne Swaim, North Little Rock, AR (CH) 14 Roger Bolton, Conyers, GA (PC) 14 Charla Littell, Burlington, NC (CH) 15 Tolly Williamson, Decatur, GA (CH) 16 Rebecca Hewitt-Newson, Glendale, CA (CH) 16 Carter Sapp, Houston, TX (CH) 18 Edward Fleming, Winston-Salem, NC (CH) 18 Jean Pruett, Charlotte, NC (CH) 20 Amanda Ducksworth, Columbus, MS (CH/CST) 20 Younsoo Park, Aiea, HI (CH) 21 Rebecca Church, Louisville, KY (CH) 21 Linda McComb, Clinton, MS (CH) 21 Jeffery Thompson, Gainesville, GA (CH) 22 Stephanie McLeskey, Mars Hill, NC (CH)

23 24 24 25 25 25 25 26 26 26 26 27

February Birthdays

CH = Chaplain CST = Church Starter FP = Field Personnel

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Michelle Robinson, Columbia, SC (CH) Edwin Badillo, Levittown, Puerto Rico (CH) Danny Tomlinson, Belton, TX (CH) Lindell Anderson, Fort Worth, TX (CH) Rick Foster, Lynchburg, VA (CH) Craig Janney (S-Decatur) Mira Zivanov, St. Louis, MO (FP) Christa Chappelle, High Point, NC (CH) Rodney Craggs, Louisville, KY (CH) Sheryl Johnson, Richmond, VA (CH) Louise Mason, Richmond, VA (CH) Linda Moore, Greenville, NC (CH)

FPC = Child of Field Personnel PC = Pastoral Counselor S = CBF Staff Member

Cultivating Diversity Homogenous units were part of the prescribed formula for church growth for a few decades beginning in the late 1960s. The idea was essentially that birds of a feather flock together and that people prefer to go to church with other people like themselves. Those intent on growing a larger church pointed to a manifest destiny type justification of the principle.

Attracting more people from the same racial, ethnic, cultural and socioeconomic “people group” already in a given congregation did seem to be a comparatively efficient way to increase the numerical size of a congregation.

The result of intentional reliance upon, or even casual participation in the homogeneous unit principle of “church growth” has been to deepen our entrenchment in the reality that “eleven o’clock on Sunday morning is one of the most segregated hours … of Christian America.”1 The cultivation of The Beloved Community will necessarily involve the cultivation of diversity. Wendell Berry writes in defense of diversity in agriculture: I am making a plea for diversity not only because it exists and is pleasant, but also because it is necessary and we need more of it … I am beginning to see what is needed, and everywhere the need is for diversity. This is the need of every American rural landscape that I am acquainted with. We need a greater range of species and varieties of plants and animals, of human skills and methods, so that the use may be fitted ever more sensitively and elegantly to the place.2 Berry is not making an aesthetic argument for the mere enjoyment of variety, or an argument that we should go out of the way to accommodate diversity as though it is optional or generous. He is observing that a rich diversity IS the way that we enhance our very capacity for thinking more deeply and broadly about both challenges communities face and about more elegant responses to those challenges.

Cultivating diversity IS a way of cultivating The Beloved Community.

A community like Paul describes in Colossians 3:11 (NRSV). In that renewal there is no longer Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave and free; but Christ is all and in all!

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Meet The Press, April 17, 1960 Berry, Wendell. (1990) An Argument for Diversity. In What Are People For? p. 114.

North Point Press, San Francisco. www.cbf.net/pray www.cbf.net/pray 1 2

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Janée Angel

MARCH 1-8

Antwerp, Belgium www.cbf.net/angel Janée and her husband, Hary, who is a Syrian evangelist and “tentmaker,” are church starters among Arabic speakers in Antwerp, Belgium. They also minister to the increasing number of refugees from Syria and Iraq. “Our heart is to see the Arabic world know Jesus!”

Pray for: • Arabic speakers to have a relationship with Jesus Christ • Protection of those who come to know Christ from a Muslim background • The spiritual and emotional maturity of our church • Protection, wisdom, direction and provision for our family of four

For God’s foolishness is wiser than human wisdom, and God’s weakness is stronger than human strength.

1 Corinthians 1:25

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www.cbf.net/pray

Lynn and Mike Hutchinson

MARCH 9-15

Togo, West Africa

www.cbf.net/hutchinson Mike and Lynn Hutchinson serve in Togo, West Africa. They seek to bear witness to Jesus Christ and to help people move from poverty to transformational development and hope through personal relationships, partnerships with local Christians and an asset-based approach that leads individuals and communities to recognize and build on their own God-given gifts.

Pray for: • Lynn and Mike to build strong relationships in their community, which will allow them to bear witness to Jesus Christ in word and deed • Good ideas and initiatives for Togo House Ministries, which will allow people to build capacity in order to reach their God-given potential and to build healthy communities • The growth of the beloved community with local partners, including pastors, church leaders and Christian groups addressing development or health needs such as AIDS • Churches to be inspired and motivated to look beyond themselves and to reach out to their community in creative and meaningful ways

And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.

John 3:14-15 www.cbf.net/pray

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Angel and Jason Pittman

MARCH 16-23

Miami, Florida

www.cbf.net/pittman Touching Miami with Love has been serving the high need Miami-Dade communities of Overtown and West Homestead for over twenty years.

Compelled by the love of Christ, Angel and Jason serve children, youth, and parents as they inspire, educate, and empower over 400 individuals each day in TML programs.

Pray for: • The safety of the children and youth Angel and Jason serve in communities plagued by violence • The hope of Jesus to shine through dark situations • Wisdom and strength within the leadership of TML • Opportunities to abound for Miami children and youth so that that they can explore their God-given potential

But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.

Jeremiah 31:33

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Butch and Nell Green

MARCH 24-31

Houston, Texas

www.cbf.net/green After a long-term ministry overseas in Africa and Europe, the Greens continue a strategic ministry to help churches care for refugees and raise awareness about the travesty of human trafficking. The Greens help churches understand Islam, develop multidisciplinary ministries to meet the needs of internationals, share the gospel of Christ and become effective global partners.

Pray for: • Churches who will come alongside refugee families and journey with them as they adjust to a new life in the United States • Strength and courage for the coalition the Greens are helping to form as they address human trafficking on the Texas/Mexico border • Churches and individuals to grow in their understanding of the Muslim neighbor and build relationships that lead to peace and sincere friendship • Effective partnerships with existing organizations that can minister to the needs of refugees, victims of human trafficking and immigrants

I have told the glad news of deliverance in the great congregation; see, I have not restrained my lips, as you know, O Lord.

Psalm 40:9

www.cbf.net/pray

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1 Brent Peery, Conroe, TX (CH) 1 Chris Scales, Lubbock, TX (CH) 2 Michael Patterson, Harker Heights, TX (CH) 2 Laurice Rogers, Hodgenville, KY (PC) 2 Hector Villaneuva, Siler City, NC (CST) 2 Glenn Williams, Louisville, KY (PC) 3 David Bosley, Vienna, VA (CH) 4 Kristin Akins, Maitland, FL (CH) 4 Ed Lemmond, Athens, TN (CH) 4 Jane Martin, Emeritus (FP) 5 Buddy Corbin, Asheville, NC (CH) 5 Ray Higgins (S-Arkansas) 5 Donnie Marlar, Rochester, NY (CH) 6 Ronnie Adams, Emeritus (FP) 6 Jarrod Foerster, St. Augustine, FL (CH) 6 Chad Hawkins, Pearland, TX (CH) 7 Laura Foushee, Japan (FP) 7 Wade Rowatt, Louisville, KY (PC) 8 Marian Boyer, Nottingham, MD (CH) 8 Isaac Pittman, 1999, Miami, FL (FPC) 9 Stuart Collier, Vestavia, AL (CH) 9 Michelle Norman, Spain (FP) 10 Dean Akers, Washington, DC (CH) 10 Cindy Bishop, Piedmont, SC (CH) 11 Julia Flores, Lynchburg, VA (CH) 11 Lisa Nisbet, Louisville, KY (PC) 11 Ronald Nordon, Frederick, MD (CH) 11 Beth Ogburn, Knoxville, TN (CH) 11 Rebekah Ramsey, Concord, NC (CH) 12 Jim Crumpler (S-North Central Region) 12 Leah Leath, Concord, NC (CH) 14 Mary Beth Caffey, Lewiston, ME (CST) 15 Carita Brown, Catonsville, MD (CH) 15 Mary van Rheenen, Netherlands (FP) 16 Trisha Miller Manarin (S-Mid-Atlantic) 17 Mary Gessner, Madison, AL (PC) 18 Dodie Huff-Fletcher, Louisville, KY (PC) 18 Gregory Qualls, Mooresboro, NC (CH) 18 Beth Riddick, Fredericksburg, VA (CH) 18 David Robinson, Newport News, VA (PC) 19 Jennifer Bordenet, Orlando, FL (CH) 19 Kim Schmitt, Fayetteville, GA (CH) 20 Anna Allred, Asheboro, NC (CH) 20 Cynthia Corey, Brunswick, GA (CH) 20 William Hemphill, Stone Mountain, GA (CH) 21 Cole Chandler, Denver, CO (CST) 21 Walter Jackson, Louisville, KY (PC) 21 Alan Melton, Waynesboro, VA (PC) 21 Michael Strickland, Falls Church, VA (CH) 21 Aaron Weaver (S-Decatur) 23 J. Claude Huguley, Nashville, TN (CH) 24 Gina Biddle, Dallas, TX (CH)

24 Michael Gross, Roswell, GA (CH) 24 Emory (Chip) Reeves, Martinez, GA (CH) 24 Mark Spain, Canyon Lake, TX (CH) 24 Todd Walter, Inman, SC (CH) 25 Jade Acker, Uganda (FP) 25 Bryan Cottrell, Abilene, TX (CH) 25 Gary Nistler, Oak Ridge, TN (CH) 25 John Thompson, Texarkana, TX (CH) 26 Gale Dollar, Glen Carbon, IL (CH) 27 Ken Chapman, Jefferson City, MO (CH) 27 David Gladson, Pendleton, SC (CH) 27 Amy Karriker, Great Falls, MT (CH) 27 Joshua Witt, Jefferson City, TN (CH) 28 Lynda Schupp, Corinth, TX (CH) 28 Megan Whitley, 2002, France (FPC) 29 Phil McCarley, Charles Town, WV (CH) 29 Michael Shea, Mars Hill, NC (CH) 30 Phyllis Borchert, Oakridge, TN (CH) 30 John Emmart, Stoughton, WI (CH) 30 Layne Rogerson, Winterville, NC (CH) 31 William Davidson, Wetumpka, AL (CH) 31 Tim Madison, Clearwater, FL (CH)

March Birthdays

CH = Chaplain CST = Church Starter FP = Field Personnel

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www.cbf.net/pray

FPC = Child of Field Personnel PC = Pastoral Counselor S = CBF Staff Member

PRAYING FOR CBF MINISTRIES

Advocacy

www.cbf.net/advocacy

CBF Advocacy is rooted in a spirit and call to demonstrate the love of Christ by loving our most neglected and marginalized neighbors.

As Christians dedicated to service, we often encounter situations and issues in need of a strong voice. CBF Advocacy is about encouraging, equipping and promoting the voice of passionate advocates. In doing so, we strive to exercise responsible Christian citizenship by modeling a more effective, positive and inclusive public witness for the church.

Pray for: • Our elected officials called to public service in city, county, state or national office • Wisdom to know what’s right and the courage to do it, regardless of political consequences • Leaders to put the common good first and pay special attention to those whom Jesus called the “least of these” - the poor, the widow, the orphan, the sick, the imprisoned, the immigrant, the hungry, the marginalized, the abused and the outcast • Churches to bear witness to the love of Jesus Christ by first being servants in their community, but also by raising their voice on behalf of, and alongside, those whom they serve • CBF pastors, church members and staff to provide a positive, inclusive and effective public witness

www.cbf.net/pray www.cbf.net/pray

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EASTER REFLECTION | APRIL 1

Life-Giving Community I was baptized on Easter Sunday 1986 when I was 16 years old, in a Baptist church halfway across the globe, in a small country called Singapore.

I found my way to this little church before I even knew about Jesus. This beloved community welcomed me with open arms and provided the safe space for me to hear about the good news. A Baptist missionary family took me under their wings to disciple and nurture my young faith.

It was a difficult time for me as my parents came from a traditional Buddhist background. The love and support I experienced from the church and the missionary family opened the doors of faith that led to a brand new life that I never thought possible.

Jesus said in John 11:25, “I am the resurrection and the life.� On this Easter day, I am reminded of the life-giving work of CBF field personnel around the world who are cultivating beloved community, just like the one I experienced, so that the world can experience the kind of abundant life that only the resurrected Christ can give.

May we, through cultivating beloved community wherever we are, always be bold in our witness of the risen Christ!

Shauw Chin Capps Laity, The Baptist Church of Beaufort, Beaufort, SC and CBF Moderator 2017-18

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www.cbf.net/pray www.cbf.net/pray

Felix and Nicole Iyoko

APRIIL 1-8

Restoration Church | Raleigh, North Carolina Felix and Nicole Iyoko serve as pastors and organizers of Restoration Church in Raleigh, North Carolina. Their call to ministry began in Nigeria at the Agape Community Baptist Church. From Agape, they were called to serve as missionary pastors in charge of church planting.

Upon coming to North Carolina, while helping another pastor with his ministry, Felix and Nicole felt a call from God to launch a Swahili church in the community to provide hope to Swahili-speaking folks who are dealing with challenges and despair in their lives.

The mission of the church is to be a Biblically-based community of believers, dedicated to impacting the world with the Good News of Christ. The congregation of the Restoration Church is a multicultural, multi-generational group focused on reaching out to refugees and immigrants who, due to language barriers, are not attending any congregation.

Pray for: • The churched and the unchurched they seek to serve in the community • Efforts to share Christ’s love with immigrants and refugees

Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord”; and she told them that he had said these things to her.

John 20:18 www.cbf.net/pray

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Dianne and Shane McNary

APRIL 9-15

Kosice, Slovakia

www.cbf.net/mcnary Dianne and Shane work alongside local partners in Slovakia and the Czech Republic. They are involved in church starting and faith sharing, as well as educational and poverty ministries among Roma. Shane works on freedom and justice issues through his involvement with European Baptist Federation and Baptist World Alliance. Through Community Health Evangelism (CHE), Dianne trains community leaders throughout Europe in health education and community development.

Pray for: • Continued good cooperation with local partners and encouragement as they face everyday struggles and discouragement • Safety as they travel to various ministry sites • Expansion and utilization of Community Health Evangelism (a community transformation ministry) throughout Slovakia • Opportunities to advocate locally, nationally and globally for those without a voice

See what love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of God; and that is what we are. The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him.

1 John 3:1

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Jonathan and Tina Bailey

APRIL 16-22

Bali, Indonesia

www.cbf.net/bailey Jonathan and Tina facilitate arts in community, including study and performance of Balinese traditional music, commissioned works, improvisational dance, a visual art program in Bali’s prisons and contemplative practices through the arts. This ministry invests in artists, builds bridges between cultures and religions and models indigenous expression of faith.

Pray for: • • • •

Understanding and peace between faith communities Openness to the link between the arts and spirituality Expressions of justice and mercy in the prison system Encouragement for youth whom God has gifted with artistic skill

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord my whole life long.

Psalm 23:6

www.cbf.net/pray

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Trey Lyon

APRIL 23-30

Atlanta, Georgia www.cbf.net/lyon Trey Lyon serves in partnership with Park Avenue Baptist Church in Atlanta, Georgia. He lives and works in the community of Grant Park, especially through community development and education initiatives.

Trey’s work alongside Park Avenue is at the intersection of gentrification and generational poverty.

Through asset-based community development, Trey’s goal is to meet community needs with community assets and support. A result of this ministry priority is that the most sustained projects have been focused on character education, literacy and leadership development with children and youth.

Pray for: • Homework Hotspot, a weekly after-school program for elementary, middle and high school students • Volunteer leaders through Passport Camps who serve each summer at Literacy Camp • Trey’s teaching at Urban Seminary of Atlanta, which provides free theological education to urban ministers

I am the vine, you are the branches. Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit, because apart from me you can do nothing.

John 15:5 56 |

www.cbf.net/pray

1 Frank Dawkins, Greenville, NC (PC) 1 Jennifer Dill, Pittsburgh, PA (CH) 1 Greg Smith, Fredericksburg, VA (FP) 1 Craig Walker, High Point, VA (CH) 2 Christie McTier, Dearing, GA (CH) 2 Leonora Newell, Emeritus (FP) 2 Wayde Pope, Crestview, FL (CH) 3 Charles Mason, Mansfield, OH (CH) 3 Mark Reece, Elkin, NC (CH) 3 Wayne Sibley, Pineville, LA (CH) 3 Thomas Wicker, Salado, TX (CH) 4 Truett, 2011, Southeast Asia (FPC) 5 Patrick Baxter, Atlanta, GA (CH) 5 Darcie Jones, Columbia, SC (CH) 5 Eddy Ruble, Southeast Asia (FP) 6 Lauren Deer, Wallace, NC (CH) 6 Ka'thy Gore Chappell (S-North Carolina) 6 Felix Iyoko, Raleigh, NC (CST) 6 Steven Mills, Flat Rock, NC (CH) 7 LaCount Anderson, Scotland Neck, NC Engagement Partner 7 Tricia Baldwin, Fort Worth, TX (CH) 7 Nathan Dean, Atlanta, GA (CST) 7 Bonnie Hicks, Woodstock, GA (CH) 7 Mary Timms, Hawkinsville, GA (CH) 7 Mary Wrye, Henderson, KY (CH) 8 Laura Johnson, New Bern, NC (CH) 8 Tangie McKinley (S-Decatur) 8 Drexel Rayford, Birmingham, AL (CH) 9 Olen Grubbs, Hixson, TN (CH) 9 Jessica Hearne, Danville, VA (FP) 9 Scarlette Jasper, Somerset, KY (FP) 9 Jim Pruett, Charlotte, NC (PC) 9 Steve Vance, Charlotte, NC (CH) 10 Joi Fitzgerald (S-Decatur) 10 George Hemingway, High Springs, FL (CH) 10 Ben Hodge, Winston-Salem, NC (CH) 10 Alan Rogers, San Diego, CA (CH) 11 Laura Broadwater, Louisville, KY (CH) 12 Ryan Clark (S-Decatur/CST) 12 Andy Hale, Clayton, NC (CST) 12 Beverly Hatcher, Winston-Salem, NC (CST) 13 Landon Alberson, Chula, GA (CH) 13 Steve Sullivan, Little Rock, AR (CH) 13 Brian A. Warfield, Spencer, OK (CH) 14 Kerri Kroeker, Calgary, Alberta, Canada (CH) 15 _______, Middle East (FP) 15 Jeff Flowers, Evans, GA (CH) 15 Jeff Langford (S-Heartland) 16 Kaitlyn Parks, 2006, Slovakia (FPC) 16 Victoria A. White, Richmond, VA (CH) 16 Kay Wright, Virginia Beach, VA (CH)

17 Allison Anderson, Morgantown, WV (CH) 17 David Jones, Newberg, OR (CH) 17 Doug McKinney, Salisbury, MD (CST) 18 Cyrus Bush, Pfafftown, NC (CH) 18 Ray Cooley, Wallingford, CT (CH) 18 Susan Crumpler (S-North Central Region) 18 Mason Jackson III, Fort Myers, FL (CH) 18 Nathan Solomon, Swansboro, NC (CH) 19 Michael Lee, Hendersonville, NC (CH) 20 David Chan, Houston, TX (CH) 20 Susan Stephenson, Edmond, OK (CH) 22 Tere Canzoneri (S-Decatur) 22 Judith Wortelboer-Grace, Temple, TX (CH) 22 Barry Pennington, Blue Springs, MO (CH) 22 Brittany Ramirez, China (FP) 23 David Kolb, Lexington, NC (CH) 23 Isaac Lopex, Crowley, TX (CH) 24 Brenda Atkinson, Greenville, SC (CH) 24 Rhonda Gilligan-Gillespie, Wichita, KS (CH) 24 Laura Mannes, San Antonio, TX (CH) 24 Travis Smith, Forest City, NC (CH) 24 Leslie Stith, Liberty, MO (CH) 25 Connie Graham, Fitzgerald, GA (CH) 25 Megan Francis (S-Decatur) 25 Victoria Whatley (S-Decatur) 27 Pat Davis, Baton Rouge, LA (CH) 27 Pete Parks, Williamsburg, VA (CH) 28 Carol Wilson (S-Decatur) 28 Gary McFarland, Charlotte, NC (PC) 29 Ted Dougherty, Winston-Salem, NC (PC) 30 Joseph Caldwell, Alameda, CA (CH) 30 Melissa Neal, Floyd, VA (CH) 30 Charles Wallace, Fort Worth, TX (CH)

April Birthdays

CH = Chaplain CST = Church Starter FP = Field Personnel

FPC = Child of Field Personnel PC = Pastoral Counselor S = CBF Staff Member www.cbf.net/pray | 57

Cultivating Congregations One of my most vividly-remembered conversations took place with two friends late at night over a board game. I don’t remember what I’d just said, but I’ll never forget my friend’s surprised and appreciative realization.

He said, “Huh – you’re not actually against the church, are you?”

It cut like a knife. I had never thought of myself as “against the church.” It hurt knowing that I’d given that impression. It was understandable though.

I’m often quick to note misgivings in how congregations live out their calling and purpose. That can, all too easily, sound negative. I confess that I’m still not always careful enough to make sure my expressions of hope for congregations are consistently louder than my misgivings, but I’ll never forget the conversation when I learned that I needed to.

So, let me say with absolute clarity, congregations are our best hope to be the seedbeds for cultivating The Beloved Community. I truly believe that congregations can and should be essential elements in bringing Good News to the poor, in helping those who are hungry have secure sources of food, and in weaving the networks of relationships which make it possible for people without houses to recover the comfort of being at home.

Seedbeds require work though. You can just toss out a few handfuls of seed on bare ground and hope for the best if you want to. Your results will likely be sparse and disappointing. Soil needs to be prepared and amended to a healthy state if it is to produce a good stand of crops.

Our congregations are no different. Cultivating their spiritual and organizational health is necessary work if we are to have the capacity to cultivate The Beloved Community.

The misgivings are real though. The distractions of myopic inward focus, preoccupation with comfort and aesthetics, and the stingy hoarding of resources are often like acidic soil or choking weeds preventing the precious seeds of The Beloved Community from taking root.

Let us tend prayerfully to the health of our own soil that we may have the capacity for a thriving and purposeful engagement with our neighbors to share the Good News. There’s too much at stake.

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Matthew and Michelle Norman

MAY 1-8

Barcelona, Spain

www.cbf.net/norman The Normans minister alongside local churches and individuals, training and demonstrating an approach to ministry that addresses the social, emotional and spiritual needs of those they serve. They model an assetbased approach that recognizes the giftedness of those they serve with and among.

Pray for: • Relationships to develop with individuals interested in learning about the Christian faith • Discipleship opportunities to build Christian leaders • Social ministries among immigrants and refugees • The Norman family’s safety as they live and minister in Europe

Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth; break forth into joyous song and sing praises.

Psalm 98:4

www.cbf.net/pray

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Jade and Shelah Acker

MAY 9-15

Kampala, Uganda www.cbf.net/acker

Jade and Shelah Acker live and serve in Uganda through Refuge and Hope International, which addresses the needs of the urban refugee community in Kampala, the capital city of Uganda.

Each year, the organization offers skills and business training programs, youth and women’s ministry, spiritual development and social work programs to more than 1,000 refugees through the Center of Hope.

These programs help refugees recover from the effects of war, realize self-sufficiency and become catalysts for change in their communities.

Pray for: • Educational programs for adults and youth, which provide practical knowledge, English and computer skills and high school diplomas • Ministries for women who have been traumatized and are especially vulnerable to exploitation • Opportunities to bring the hope and healing found in Christ to hundreds of people who have experienced trauma or have not had the opportunity to learn about Jesus • Refuge and Hope’s fully-staffed social work team that ministers to refugee families and individuals in crisis situations

And this is the testimony: God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. 1 John 5:11 60 |

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Anna and LaCount Anderson

MAY 16-22

Scotland Neck, North Carolina www.cbf.net/anderson

Serving in Eastern, N.C., Anna (field personnel) and LaCount (engagement partner) work with Together for Hope, CBF’s rural poverty initiative, helping the homeless with food and clothing, and attempting to assist them with housing. The Andersons also counsel with the working poor. These neighbors have jobs but do not make enough money to pay for utilities and food. Living in one of the poorest counties in N.C. presents challenges. One great challenge has to do with the lack of funds to assist people with great need.

Pray for: • The Andersons’ wisdom and strength to meet the challenges of ministry in Halifax County • Resources that can help in their ministry • Those with whom the Andersons work will gain understanding of God and also how to take care of their health. Good nutrition is important

“… I will put my spirit within you, and you shall live, and I will place you on your own soil; then you shall know that I, the Lord, have spoken and will act, says the Lord.”

Ezekiel 37:14

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Kirk and Suzie

MAY 23-30

Thailand

www.cbf.net/kirksuzie Kirk and Suzie are serving in translation and literacy among neglected people groups in Southeast Asia.

Pray for: • The translated word in print, audio and the smart phone app will renew hearts and lives • The mother tongue literacy efforts will bring transformation to marginalized communities • Kirk and Suzie’s children to grow in faith and grace as they explore God’s purpose for their lives

Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” And I said, “Here am I; send me!”

Isaiah 6:8

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1 Michael Coggins, Navarre, FL (CH) 1 Bob Whitten, Springfield, VA (PC) 2 Karen Borchert, Talbott, TN (CH) 2 Cathy Cole, Aiken, SC (CH) 2 Stephen Murphy, Hull, MA (CH) 2 Deborah Reeves, Atlanta, GA (CH) 2 Lynn Walker, Chickasha, OK (CST) 2 Terry Wilson, Mt. Pleasant, SC (CH) 4 Johann Choi, Decatur, GA (CH) 4 Gary Metcalf, Kingsport, TN (CH) 4 Skip Wisenbaker, Atlanta, GA (CH) 5 Austin, 2004, Thailand (FPC) 5 Bruce Gourley, Bozeman, MT (CST) 5 Karen Long, Birmingham, AL (CH) 6 Carol Dalton, Swannanoa, NC (CH) 6 Terry Maples (S-Virginia) 8 Rusty Elkins, Edmond, OK (CH) 8 Bruce Hunter, Midlothian, VA (CST) 8 Brenda Pace Jones, Hendersonville, NC (PC) 8 Christopher Jones, Carrollton, TX (CST) 9 Rich Behers, Lakeland, FL (CH) 9 David Harding, Orlando, FL (FP) 9 Leigh Jackson, Austin, TX (CH) 11 Larry Ballew, China Engagement Partner 11 Leah Boling, Waipahu, HI (CH) 11 Robbi Francovich, Emeritus (FP) 11 Jonna Garvin, Manassas, VA (CH) 11 Cy Miller, Marion, NC (CH) 13 Tracy Dunn, Hereford, TX (CH) 13 Samson Naidoo, Denison, TX (CH) 14 Scott McBroom, Charleston, SC (PC) 14 JoAnne Morris, Louisville, KY (CH) 14 Kevin Pranoto (S-Decatur) 14 Rob Norman, North Brunswick, NC (CST) 16 Lauren Bass, Cambodia (FP) 16 Lauren Hall, Wilmore, KY (CH) 16 Steven Harris, Salem, VA (PC) 16 John Reeser, Sautee Nacoochee, GA (CH) 16 Alex Ruble, 2001, Southeast Asia (FPC) 16 Barry Wright, Jacksonville, FL (CST) 17 Jennifer Call, Salem, VA (CH) 17 Robert Duvall, Lawrenceville, GA (CH) 17 Nell Green, Houston, TX (FP) 18 Clay Polson, Waco, TX (CH) 18 Greg Slate, Littleton, CO (CH) 19 Mary Ahn, Round Lake, IL (CH) 19 Gwyen Driskill-Dunn, Fort Worth, TX (CH) 20 Eddie Hammett (S-North Carolina) 20 Julie Perry, Charlottesville, VA (CH) 20 Marcy Thomas, Brentwood, TN (CH) 21 Carson Foushee, Japan (FP)

21 Pat, New Jersey (FP) 21 Ron Winstead, Emeritus (FP) 22 Jon Ivy, Tuscaloosa, AL (CH) 22 Gabe Lyon, 2005, Atlanta, GA (FPC) 22 Steven Unger, Emeritus (CH) 22 Travis Yelton, San Antonio, TX (CH) 23 Cheryl Adamson, Conway, SC (CST) 23 Polly Barnes, Brandon, MS (CH) 23 Jared Neal, Atlanta, GA (CH) 23 John Schumacher, Columbia, SC (CH) 23 Stephanie Vance, Athens, AL (FP) 24 Harold Phillips (S-Heartland) 24 Paulette Porter-Hallmon, Spartanburg, SC (CH) 25 Megan Francis (S-Decatur) 26 Stephanie Coyne, Conyers, GA (CH) 26 Hunter, Southeast Asia (FP) 26 Gerry Hutchinson (S-Decatur) 26 Daniel Todd (S-Decatur) 28 Hardy Clemons, San Antonio, TX (PC) 28 Kenneth LeBon, Fayetteville, NC (CH) 28 David Smith, Alpharetta, GA (PC) 29 Aleesa Naish, Birmingham, AL (CH) 30 Randy Ridenour, Norman, OK (CH) 31 Stacey Buford, Murfreesboro, TN (CH) 31 LouRae Myhre-Weber, Twin Bridges, MT (CH) 31 Kelley Woggon, Louisville, KY (CH)

May Birthdays

CH = Chaplain CST = Church Starter FP = Field Personnel

FPC = Child of Field Personnel PC = Pastoral Counselor S = CBF Staff Member www.cbf.net/pray | 63

PRAYING FOR CBF MINISTRIES

Young Baptists www.cbf.net/youngbaptists

Within Fellowship congregations, there are young adults – maybe only a few – who are waiting. They are no longer a part of the youth group, where specific programs were planned with them in mind. They may not even feel like they have a place to call home within the congregation. They may be sitting in our pews on a weekly basis, while others are on the fringes, making an appearance every now and then. They are waiting and wishing for deep and meaningful relationships. They are waiting and hoping that someone will notice them.

Before making accusations or casting judgment on a younger generation, consider their absence and their quiet presence as a call to pay attention.

Get curious. Get to know and understand them. Undoubtedly, you will share much in common: the struggles to find a job and adequate financial support, questions about life’s calling and meaning and the search for love and friendship. And you will likely learn a lot, particularly about the uniqueness of this young generation and the world in which they live.

The young adults of 2018 have only known a world in which change and transition are constants; where the use of technology is second nature, diversity is a given, economic depression is a reality and threats of violence and war are daily occurrences. This makes their perspective different than any other generation. It also means they just might have some thoughts about how the church can survive through this current era of uncertainty.

Young adults are ready to serve and contribute to the well-being of our communities of faith. They have God-given gifts and abilities and are ready to be included at the leadership table. They want to serve as deacons and committee members, welcome desk volunteers and communion servers, offering collectors and greeters. They are waiting! Are you open and ready to invite them? Pray that your answer might be “yes!”

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Jessica and Joshua Hearne

JUNE 1-8

Danville, Virginia

www.cbf.net/hearne Jessica (field personnel) and Joshua (engagement partner) serve with and among people experiencing homelessness, housing insecurity, hunger, poverty, addiction and other injustices through Grace & Main Fellowship, an intentional, ecumenical Christian community devoted to the practices of hospitality, simplicity, shared life and resources, common prayer and grassroots community development.

Pray for: • The multiplication of peace, justice and love in their neighborhoods • People who are/were experiencing homelessness, poverty and other injustices • Developing grassroots leaders and new expressions of God’s kingdom in their neighborhoods • New homes to join them in hospitality and opening extra rooms to provide shelter, food and family

“There is no Holy One like the Lord, no one besides you; there is no Rock like our God…” 1 Samuel 2:2

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Joel and Tiffne Whitley

JUNE 9-15

Strasbourg, France www.cbf.net/whitley

The Whitleys partner within the international community of Strasbourg to encourage projects that meet the physical and spiritual needs of immigrants, refugees and those trapped in human trafficking. They also seek to encourage members of the European institutions and to mobilize local international ministries to women, children and youth.

Pray for: • The Whitleys as they seek to encourage those coming from countries with little or no access to the Gospel • Members of the European institutions • Victims of human trafficking • International women, youth and children

So we do not lose heart. Even though our outer nature is wasting away, our inner nature is being renewed day by day.

2 Corinthians 4:16

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Todd Toole

JUNE 16-22

MercyChurch | Hebron, Kentucky Todd Toole serves as lead pastor of MercyChurch in Hebron, Kentucky.

Partnering with CBF, Mercy’s core group began meeting in the summer of 2015 and officially launched in October of that year. MercyChurch began meeting in the Cincinnati Airport Marriott conference room, moving to a leased facility in January of 2016. The church has grown substantially as a result of the excitement and dedication of the congregation.

MercyChurch’s vision is first to impact Boone County, Kentucky (the fastest growing county in the state) and to be missional in their attempts to reach the world. MercyChurch has already participated in three mission trips and is active in monthly community service projects.

Pray for: • The church’s mission to offer impactful worship experiences and effective discipleship opportunities centered around small groups • The church’s efforts to be focused outwardly by serving others

It is good to give thanks to the Lord, to sing praises to your name, O Most High; to declare your steadfast love in the morning, and your faithfulness by night, to the music of the lute and the harp, to the melody of the lyre.

Psalm 92:1-3

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Alicia and Jeff Lee

JUNE 23-30

Skopje, Macedonia www.cbf.net/lee

Alicia and Jeff Lee seek to be the presence of Christ by engaging in holistic, relational and healing ministries among the ethnic groups of Skopje. They are working alongside local, grassroots organizations to address the needs of families living in extreme poverty, people neglected by society and children rescued from or at-risk for human-trafficking.

Pray for: • Our friends at Poraka, a group home for adults with developmental delays • Continued growth of the cow-bank program at Aya Farm • The growth of the International Church of Skopje • The Lee family as they continue to build relationships, live in community and share the love of God with those around them

He woke up and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Peace! Be still!” Then the wind ceased, and there was a dead calm. He said to them, “Why are you afraid? Have you still no faith?”

Mark 4:39-40

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1 Thong Lun, Houston, TX (CH) 2 Carmen Beard (S-Decatur) 2 Caitlyn Furr (S-Decatur) 2 Susan Hunter, Troy, VA (CST) 2 Inakali Kuruvilla, San Antonio, TX (CH) 2 Gary Sparks, Tyler, TX (CH) 3 Susan Arnold, La Grange, KY (CH) 4 Sarah Smith, Winston Salem, NC (CH) 5 Jennifer Clamon, Indianapolis, IN (CH) 5 Stacy Sergent, Mount Pleasant, SC (CH) 5 David Smelser, Lucedale, MS (CH) 6 Erskine Alvis, Jacksonville, NC (CH) 6 Wayne Bruner, Augusta, GA (CH) 6 Michael Costner, Valdese, NC (CH) 6 Parker Ebling-Artz, Aurora, CO (CH) 6 Greg McClain, Lillington, NC (CH) 6 Norberto Prado, Oak Ridge, TN (CST) 7 Bill Peeler, Cambodia (FP) 7 Diana Place, Tucson, AZ (CH) 7 Gary Skeen (S-Decatur) 7 Butch Stillwell, Candler, NC (CH) 7 Diann Berry, McAllen, TX (FP) 7 Carol Wilkinson, Winston-Salem, NC (CH) 8 Larry Lawhon, Stephens City, VA (CH) 8 Janice Newell, Emeritus (FP) 8 Randy Parks, Sparta, NJ (CH) 8 Clay Porter, Stanton, TX (CH) 8 Joseph Primeaux, Pensacola, FL (CH 8 Jeromy Wells, Beale AFB, CA (CH) 9 Michelle Cayard, Emeritus (FP) 9 Sara Stubbs, Monroe, NC (CH) 9 Patricia Taylor, Tuscaloosa, AL (CH) 9 Doug Wiggington, Pineville, LA (CH) 10 Cindy Goza, Little Rock, AR (CH) 10 Christopher McDaniel, Charleston, SC (CH) 10 Ansia Picou, Rensselaer, NY (CH) 10 Michael Osment, Martin, TN (CH) 10 Kim Wyatt, Raleigh (FP) 11 Joshua Hearne, Danville, VA Engagement Partner 12 Mark Chambers, Ness City, KS (CH) 12 Emma Jane Conley, Round Rock, TX (CH) 12 Brady Lanoue, Danville, VA (CH) 13 Richard Forest, Louisville, KY (CH) 13 Kim Thompson, Columbia, SC (CH) 14 Chaouki Boulos, Lebanon (FP) 14 Tracey Lopez, Vienna, VA (CH) 15 Robbin Mundy, Fairview, NC (CST) 15 Josh Speight (S-Decatur) 15 Melissa Whaley, Winston-Salem, NC (CH) 16 Kimberly Emery, Hartville, OH (CH)

17 Linda Jones, Winston-Salem, NC (S-North Carolina/CST) 18 Bill Hayes, Bogart, GA (CH) 18 George Linney, Durham, NC (CST) 20 Tim Johns, San Diego, CA (CH) 20 Wanda Kidd (S-North Carolina) 20 Jeff Lancaster, Cartwright, OK (CH) 20 Cherry Moore, Bryan, TX (CH) 20 Lonnie Turner, Emeritus (FP) 21 Jim Cook, Salisbury, NC (CH) 21 Susan Harthon, Indianapolis, IN (CH) 21 Jeff Hoppe, Albuquerque, NM (CH) 21 Ken Lake, Fort Mill, SC (CH) 21 Adam Page, Kingsport, TN (CH) 22 Sharon Eldridge, Smithfield, NC (CH) 22 Joanne Henley, Winston-Salem, NC (CH) 22 Kirk, Thailand (FP) 22 Jessica Prophitt, Anchorage, AK (CH) 23 Sarah Ballew, China Engagement Partner 23 David Lowe, Fort Worth, TX (CH) 23 Dustin Payne, Houston, TX (CST) 24 Robert Brown, Henrico, VA (CH) 24 Robert Fulkerson, Tulia, TX (CH) 25 David Weatherspoon, Memphis, TN (CH) 26 Elias Crosby, Lilburn, GA (CH) 26 Michael Ferguson, El Paso, TX (CH) 26 Anna Jacks, Birmingham, AL (CH) 26 Otto Mazzoni, York, PA (CH) 26 Tamara Witte, Glen Burnie, MD (CH) 27 Alicia Lee, Macedonia (FP) 28 Michael Brainerd, Alexandria, VA (CH) 28 Roger Rich, Lexington, SC (CH) 28 Scott Sterling, Panorama City, CA (CH) 29 Kevin Adams, Cincinnati, OH (CH) 29 Jeni Cook, Poquoson, VA (CH) 29 Carrie McGuffin (S-Decatur) 30 Ira Campbell, Nashville, TN (CH) 30 Margaret Guenther, Richmond, VA (PC) 30 Amy Holtz, Richmond, VA (CH)

June Birthdays

CH = Chaplain CST = Church Starter FP = Field Personnel

FPC = Child of Field Personnel PC = Pastoral Counselor S = CBF Staff Member www.cbf.net/pray | 69

Cultivating Love It is my prayer that we would all cultivate within ourselves a loving spirit.

The most important part of The Beloved Community may well be the “beloved” part. Only when we see absolutely every person as a neighbor created in the very image of God will we have King’s hope of ending poverty, hunger and homelessness. Wendell Berry observes: “…in affection we find the possibility of a neighborly, kind, and conserving economy.”1 But, why? Why listen to an old famer who writes more about agriculture than anything considered timely, relevant or practical? Perhaps because the old prophetic poet has cultivated as much wisdom worthy of prayerful consideration as any preacher. Berry writes: The mentality that exploits and destroys the natural environment is the same that abuses racial and economic minorities, … that makes war against peasants and women and children with the indifference of technology. The mentality that destroys a watershed and then panics at the threat of flood is the same mentality that gives institutionalized insult to black people [or brown people, or any other persons not in the dominant culture] and then panics at the prospect of race riots.2

Once we cultivate a spirit of love within ourselves, my only other prayer would be that our work not become a moral movement. If we avoid the motives of mere morality, perhaps we will aspire to a localized love that refuses to be satisfied with the poverty, or hunger or homelessness of any neighbor. …I do not believe…that morality, even religious morality, is an adequate motive for good care of the land-community. The primary motive for good care and good use is always going to be affection, because affection involves us entirely.3

Only love will be an adequate measure or method for cultivating The Beloved Community. Pray as you feel led. Then, let’s get back to work.

1 Berry, Wendell. (2012) It All Turns on Affection. In It All Turns on Affection: The Jefferson Lecture & Other Essays. p. 14. Counterpoint, Berkley.

2 Berry, Wendell. (1972) Think Little. In A Continuous Harmony: Essays Cultural & Agricultural. pp. 72-73. Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, San Diego, New York, London.

3 Berry, Wendell. (2012) It All Turns on Affection. In It All Turns on Affection: The Jefferson Lecture & Other Essays. pp. 32-33. Counterpoint, Berkley.

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Steve Clark

JULY 1-8

Louisville, Kentucky www.cbf.net/clark Steve Clark serves among the large population of refugees from Burma who began being resettled in Louisville, Kentucky, in 2006. Steve welcomes Karen, Chin, Karenni and other refugees from Burma while encouraging churches in Louisville and across the country to build relationships with these refugees and develop ministries to meet their spiritual and physical needs.

For those who struggle with English, unfamiliar social systems and cultural differences, small problems often become big problems. Helping a refugee work through a problem, while relieving anxiety and fear, builds their confidence for working through similar issues in the future.

Pray for: • Hospitality work among the more than 1,000 refugees from Burma living in Louisville • Advisory effort with the Karen Community Committee, the local school district and hospital systems • Churches that seek to connect with refugees from Burma and other countries

The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.

Lamentations 3:22-23 www.cbf.net/pray

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David and Lauren Bass

JULY 9-15

Phnom Penh, Cambodia www.cbf.net/bass

David and Lauren are working alongside the Cambodia Baptist Union as the Cambodian church planting movement matures from new and dynamic to deep and sustainable. The Basses’ vision is to support Cambodian pastors by equipping them with church leadership and pastoral training programs and by promoting opportunities for economic development.

Pray for: • David and Lauren’s Khmer language and culture acquisition • The work God is doing in starting local churches in Cambodia • Initiatives in leadership and economic development • Continued discipleship within the Cambodian Church

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places…

Ephesians 1:3

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Lita and Rick Sample

JULY 16-23

San Francisco Bay Area, California www.cbf.net/sample Lita and Rick serve internationals who come from different countries to the San Francisco Bay Area including immigrants and refugees fleeing their home countries. A large number are Muslims from Afghanistan and surrounding countries. The Samples welcome these internationals and build relationships with them through teaching English, tutoring children and filling out paperwork, such as job applications and immigration documents. Their goal is to share the gospel through actions and words.

Pray for: • Refugees’ and immigrants’ needs to be met holistically • That refugees and immigrants will open their hearts to Christ • The Samples’ Homework Club for refugee children • That refugee families will feel the love of Christ • That Lita and Rick will be bold in sharing the gospel in every opportunity • Strength, protection and for the Holy Spirit to guide them • That God will use their ministry events to communicate God’s love to internationals

Then I myself will gather the remnant of my flock out of all the lands where I have driven them, and I will bring them back to their fold, and they shall be fruitful and multiply.

Jeremiah 23:3 www.cbf.net/pray

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Cindy and Eddy Ruble

JULY 24-31

Malaysia and Indonesia www.cbf.net/ruble

“Justice is integral to the Good News,” declare Cindy and Eddy. “As people of faith, we are called to free the captives and to care for the poor and the vulnerable.” The Rubles’ ministry focuses on advocating for and aiding victims of human trafficking, facilitating disaster response and development and empowering economically disadvantaged students through educational scholarships.

Pray for: • Justice and restoration for the survivors of human trafficking • Local and global partners joining hands, resources and skills to bring Christ’s love and justice to those in need • Staff and resources to increase the capacity of the Penang Shelter for Trafficking Survivors and Migrants in Crisis • The empowerment of bright economically disadvantaged students through higher education scholarships. Pray that resources will match the needs and the students will pay it forward

I pray that, according to the riches of his glory, he may grant that you may be strengthened in your inner being with power through his Spirit, and that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, as you are being rooted and grounded in love.

Ephesians 3:16-17

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1 Rick Bennett (S-Tennessee) 1 Debra Walters, Lawrenceville, GA (CH) 2 Jennifer Dockum, Ashland, VA (CH) 2 Aaron Mussat, Shreveport, LA (CH) 2 Steven Smith, Springfield, MO (CH) 2 Kyle Tubbs, Round Rock, TX (CST) 3 Elizabeth Ellis, Crestwood, KY (PC) 3 Brenda Lee, Williamsburg, VA (CH) 3 Ascanio Peguero, Fort Worth, TX (CH) 3 Leland Parks, Louisville, KY (CH) 5 Coy Callicott, Spartanburg, SC (CH) 5 Jeff Fryer, Murfreesboro, TN (CH) 5 Amy Dills-Moore, Atlanta, GA (CH) 5 Bob Potts, Emeritus (FP) 5 Mark Snipes (S-Virginia) 6 Shelah Acker, Uganda (FP) 6 Sam Harrell, Emeritus (FP/S-Decatur) 6 Debbie Kubo, Arlington, TX (CH) 6 William Womack, Columbia, MO (CH) 7 Barbara Dail, Greenville, NC (CH) 7 Steven Flowers, Waynesboro, VA (PC) 7 Julie Rowan, San Antonio, TX (CH) 7 P. Randall Wright, Rockhill, SC (CH) 8 Ruth Perkins-Lee (S-Decatur) 8 Renato Santos, Miami, FL (CH) 8 Steve Sexton, Knoxville, TN (CH) 8 Robert Summers, Lexington, KY (CH) 9 Miriam Dakin, Lynchburg, VA (CH) 9 Charles Godfrey II, Charlotte, NC (CH) 10 John Helms, Jefferson, GA (CH) 10 Heather Rothermel, Conyers, GA (CH) 10 Whitney Edwards Russell, Whiteville, NC (CH) 10 Tiffne Whitley, France (FP) 11 Steven Shaw, Norfolk, VA (CH) 12 Christopher Morris, Winston-Salem, NC (CH) 12 Stacey Pickering, Laurel, MS (CH) 12 Mark Podgaisky, 1999, Ukraine (FPC) 12 Jerell Wesley, Rembert, SC (CH) 13 Craig Stevens, Saluda, SC (CH) 14 John Deal, Emeritus (FP) 14 Nicole Iyoko, Raleigh, NC (CST) 14 Denise Massey, Lilburn, GA (CH) 15 Jean Randolph, Swannanoa, NC (CH) 15 James Tippins, Fernandina Beach, FL (CH) 16 Mark Hart, Fair Oaks Ranch, TX (CH) 16 David McDaniel, Kansas City, MO (CH) 16 Amy McPherson, Raleigh, NC (CH) 17 Wayne Boyd, Honolulu, HI (CH) 17 Cindy Meadows, Roanoke, VA (CH) 17 Leanna Pearse, St. Louis, MO (CH) 17 Kimberly Sheehan, Nashville, TN (CH) 18 David Graves, Atlanta, GA (CH)

18 Timothy Hunter, Gatesville, TX (CH) 18 Tom O’Neal, Charlotte, NC (PC) 19 Steven Hill, Knoxville, TN (CH) 19 Jason Pittman, Miami, FL (FP) 20 Carol Ashworth, Richmond, VA (CH) 20 Tim Mayhall, Birmingham, AL (CH) 21 _______, daughter, Middle East (FPC) 21 Peter Arges, Durham, NC (CH) 21 Susan Lanford, Vancouver, WA (CH) 21 Twyla Nelson, Jackson Springs, NC (CH) 21 Walter White, Arlington, TX (CH) 21 Lavonia Winford, Doraville, GA (CH) 22 Steve Abbe, Waco, TX (CST) 22 Jessie Kearns, Abbeville, SC (CH) 22 Dorothy Potts, Emeritus (FP) 22 Bonnie Reedy, Lumberton, NC (CH) 22 Natasha Nedrick (S-Decatur) 23 Butch Green, Houston, TX (FP) 23 Donald Proctor, Lubbock, TX (CH) 23 Mark Traeger, Peoria, IL (CH) 24 Christiana Bentz, King George, VA (CH) 24 Glynn Ford, Reston, VA (PC) 24 Jeff Huett (S-Atlanta) 24 Laurel Link, Winston-Salem, NC (PC) 24 Ronald Oliver, Goshen, KY (CH) 24 Casey Ramirez, China (FP) 26 Scott Jensen, Saint Joseph, MO (CH) 26 Richard Min, Dallas, TX (CH) 26 Rick Sample, San Francisco, CA (FP) 27 Kathryn Callaway, Smyrna, GA (CH) 27 Peter Ott, Oak Harbor, WA (CH) 27 Sandra Smith, Moore, SC (CH) 28 Emily, 2000, Thailand (FPC) 28 Daniel Fairchild, Goldsboro, NC (CH) 28 Seth Hix (S-North Carolina) 29 Wayne Morris, Lawton, OK (CH) 29 Carrie Tuning, Roanoke Rapids, NC (CST) 29 William (Butch) Wise, Spokane, WA (CH) 29 Karen Morrow, Aledo, TX (FP) 29 Martha Crocker Strong, Olive Branch, MS (CST) 29 Briana Whaley, Clearwater, FL (CH) 30 Paul Byrd, Birmingham, AL (CH) 30 James Francovich, Emeritus (FP) 30 Garnett White, Midlothian, VA (PC) 31 Amber Blackwell-Childers, Inman, SC (CH) 31 Cindy Thorpe, Greenwood, SC (CH) 31 James Tille, Lakewood, WA (PC)

July Birthdays

CH = Chaplain CST = Church Starter FP = Field Personnel

FPC = Child of Field Personnel PC = Pastoral Counselor S = CBF Staff Member www.cbf.net/pray | 75

PRAYING FOR CBF MINISTRIES

Ministerial Excellence www.cbf.net/mei

According to Lilly Endowment research data, financial stress is the number one obstacle to effective pastoral leadership. Pastoral leaders who are stressed about their personal and/or their congregational financial situation have a difficult time leading with excellence. CBF pastoral leaders are no different. Many of our leaders are struggling with debt levels twice their salary level or more.

To respond to the challenges of personal finance and congregational finance, CBF has received a grant from the Lilly Endowment. These grant funds will help pastoral leaders get a handle on the financial stresses they face. Through training events, coaching, and financial advising, pastoral leaders have an opportunity to learn more about how to cope and manage finances more effectively. Through a direct financial award, pastoral leaders have the opportunity to receive funding for direct debt relief or retirement supplement.

Many of our pastoral leaders are underpaid and under-appreciated.

Many are unprepared for retirement or medical challenges. The Ministerial Excellence Initiative is one way wee can help pastoral leaders relieve financial pressures!

Pray for: • • • •

The many pastoral leaders serving in our Fellowship Them to make wise financial decisions for themselves Them to make wise financial decisions for their congregations Money and money matters not to be such a burden on the spiritual leaders of our congregations

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Keith Holmes and Mary van Rheenen

AUGUST 1-8

Westervoort, Netherlands www.cbf.net/holmes Keith Holmes and Mary Van Rheenen create and coordinate culturally appropriate resources for Romany and for outreach with Romany including Scripture media in Romani languages (in partnership with Wycliffe Bible Translators and Faith Comes By Hearing), educational materials, cultural background and economic development resources.

Pray for: • The Holy Spirit to work through scripture resources in Romani languages • Equal access to education for Romany (development and use of materials like davar-education.eu).

• Safe travel to and from project sites and ongoing encouragement in their work

Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.”

John 6:35

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Diann Berry

AUGUST 9-15

McAllen, Texas www.cbf.net/berry Diann’s work as a field personnel calls for her to engage individuals and communities located on the U.S./Mexico border, through ministries and partnerships which address systemic poverty. Since 2011, Diann’s primary focus has been on literacy.

Literacy is a long-term development ministry which, in this case, targets Latino adults and families who want to address their lack of education or English skills in order to find better employment. Diann has helped to lead and maintain a local Literacy Center offering ESL and GED classes to the community.

Pray for: • • •

Literacy initiatives, projects and grants that are part of Diann’s continuous efforts Partnerships with local, area and state organizations that also focus on literacy and poverty Strength and wisdom as Diann lends support to other community needs that stem from poverty

O magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt his name together. I sought the Lord, and he answered me, and delivered me from all my fears. Look to him, and be radiant; so your faces shall never be ashamed.

Psalm 34:3-5 78 |

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Karen Alford

AUGUST 16-23

Mbarara, Uganda www.cbf.net/alford After serving in Indonesia for the last nine years, Karen now serves in Southwest Uganda to help meet the medical needs of incoming refugees from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Burundi, Rwanda and other African countries. The most vulnerable refugees are pregnant women, lactating mothers, newborns and children under five years of age, persons living with HIV/AIDS, persons with disabilities and the elderly who need special consideration in order to access critical health services.

Karen sees patients, works with local medically-trained staff, promotes health among refugee families, identifies and registers pregnant women, and promotes prenatal care, skilled deliveries, postnatal and new born care.

Pray for: • The partnership with Medical Teams International • The newly-opened fistula repair clinic and the women in need of its services as a result of maternal complication or sexual violence.

• Opportunities to demonstrate the love of Christ to people affected by disaster, conflict and poverty around the world

Praise the Lord! I will give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart, in the company of the upright, in the congregation. Great are the works of the Lord, studied by all who delight in them.

Psalm 111:1-2 www.cbf.net/pray

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Cecelia Beck

AUGUST 24-31

Shelby, North Carolina www.cbf.net/beck Cecelia lives intentionally in a community challenged by issues related to poverty, literacy, unemployment and crime. Through hospitality, personal relationships and presence she seeks to offer hope for transformed lives and futures.

Pray for: • Discernment of the best use of time and resources when the needs are endless • The safety of neighbors, particularly children • Spiritual, physical, mental and emotional strength • Continued spiritual growth among youth whose lives are exhibiting transformation

Pray in the Spirit at all times in every prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert and always persevere in supplication for all the saints.

Ephesians 6:18

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1 Steven Safreed, Waynesville, NC (CH) 1 Stephen Saunders, Live Oak, TX (CH) 2 Mike Beach, Knoxville, TN (CH) 3 Mina Podgaisky, Ukraine (FP) 3 Scott Uzzel, Marietta, GA (CH) 3 Mary Ellen Yates, Louisville, KY (PC) 4 Hannah, 1999, Thailand (FPC) 4 Paisley, 2012, Southeast Asia (FPC) 4 Mark Pruitt, Martinsburg, WV (CH) 4 Diane Stamey, Clyde, NC (PC) 4 Matthew Wysocki, Augusta, GA (CH) 5 Susan Allen, Midway, KY (CH) 5 Charles Hamilton (S-Decatur) 5 John Henson, Shreveport, LA (CST) 5 Ronald Howard, Tuscaloosa, AL (CH) 5 Donald Lederer, Kingsport, TN (CH) 5 Mary, Southeast Asia (FP) 5 John Oliver, Durham, NC (CH) 6 Larry Hamm, Greenwood, IN (CH) 6 Deborah Jenkins, Novato, CA (CH) 7 Merrie Harding, Emeritus (FP) 8 Janée Angel, Belgium (FP) 8 LuAnne Prevost, Knoxville, TN (CH) 8 Donald Robinson, Spring, TX (CH) 10 Elliott Sample, 2004, San Francisco, CA (FPC) 10 Nicholas Wright, Waco, TX (CH) 11 Robbie Byrd, Fayetteville, NC (PC) 11 Justin Murphy, Leesburg, FL (CH) 11 Karen Rector, Jacksonville, FL (CH) 12 Charline Berry, Baltimore, MD (CH) 12 Rudolfo Rodriguez, Kernersville, NC (CST) 13 Henrietta Anderson, Henrico County, VA (CST) 13 Clyde Angel, Indianapolis, IN (CH) 13 Rodney Bolejack, Denton, TX (CH) 13 Thomas Dougherty, Mechanicsville, VA (PC) 13 Martha Kate Hall (S-Georgia) 13 Wayne Maberry, Alturas, FL (CH) 13 Fortino Ocampo, Siler City, NC (CST) 13 Johnny Taylor, Plano, TX (CH) 14 Mike, Southeast Asia (FP) 15 Daniel Shadix, Blue Springs, MO (CH) 16 Don McNeely, Emeritus (FP) 17 Joe Moffitt, Wetmore, CO (CH) 17 Susan Rogers, Jacksonville, FL (CST) 17 Anna Sample, 2001, San Francisco, CA (FPC) 18 Ben Craver, San Antonio, TX (CH) 18 Thomas Riley, Wilson, NC (CH) 18 Brickson Sam, Charlotte, NC (CST) 20 Joyce Cleary, Emeritus (FP) 20 Jim Ivey, New Albany, IN (CH) 20 Sharon Spivey, Wilmington, NC (CH) 21 Inetta Taylor-Shuetz, Lubbock, TX (CH)

21 Alice Tremaine, Corbin, KY (CH) 22 Doug Brown, Franklin, IN (CH) 22 Daniel Hix, Maryville, TN (CH) 22 Ana Podgaisky, 2001, Ukraine (FPC) 22 William Thompson, Los Alamitos, CA (CH) 22 Vickie Traynum (S-North Carolina) 23 Mike Bumgarner, Norman, OK (CH) 23 Keith Little, New Bern, NC (CH) 23 Allen Williams, Emeritus (FP) 23 Richard Woodall, Memphis, TN (CH) 23 Marc Wyatt, Raleigh, NC (FP) 24 Timothy Boschen, Waynesboro, VA (CH) 24 Craig Klempnauer, Hewitt, TX (CH) 24 Brian Wilson, Louisville, KY (CH) 25 Arville Earl, Emeritus (FP) 25 Robert McMillan, Oklahoma City, OK (CH) 26 Cindy Ruble, Southeast Asia (FP) 26 Alan Tyson, Rogers, AR (CH) 27 Bernie Calaway, Franklin, NC (CST) 27 Jim Kirkendall, Biloxi, MS (CH) 27 Verr Dean Williams, Emeritus (FP) 28 Sarah Greenfield, Honolulu, HI (CH) 28 David Morrell, Jacksonville, FL (CH) 28 Randal Walton, Lynchburg, VA (CH) 29 Robert Blackwood, Durham, NC (CH) 29 Pam Foster, Haslet, TX (CH) 29 Blake Strother, Durham, NC (CH) 30 Teresa Darnell, Louisville, TN (CH) 30 Becky Buice Hall (S-Decatur) 30 Christiana Liem, Houston, TX (CH) 30 Stacey Painter, Charleston, SC (CH) 31 Karr La Dickens, Emeritus (FP) 31 Michael Pimpo, Grayslake, IL (CST) 31 Cecelia Walker, Montgomery, AL (CH)

August Birthdays

CH = Chaplain CST = Church Starter FP = Field Personnel

FPC = Child of Field Personnel PC = Pastoral Counselor S = CBF Staff Member www.cbf.net/pray | 81

BELOVED

COMMUNITY

Starts with welcoming one person home.

Your gift to the Offering for Global Missions will change a life.

helps sustain the long-term presence of CBF field personnel serving around the world. This means that you will help care for refugees. You will welcome people, share the Gospel and create Beloved Community.

www.cbf.net/give

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GIVE A HOME IN VIRGINIA

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WELCOME REFUGEES IN NORTH CAROLINA

RESTORE LIVES IN UGANDA

This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. — John 15:12 www.cbf.net/pray

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