FAMILY SABBATH SCHOOL

Most parents are used to dropping their children off for Sabbath School and then picking them back up for Kids Church. On August 30, things are going to be a little different. A special Family Sabbath School will held for moms and dads, and their kids. “Every parent is the spiritual leader of their home, and we want to give our families and opportunity to model this,” explained Pastor Ann Roda.

The program will start at its usual time of 9:30am. Each family will be given a special worship activity bag to use. They will be encouraged to find a special place on campus, such as the lawn or under a tree and participate in family worship together. “I really hope families will catch the vision and experience a valuable time together,” said Rajinie Dixit, director of Sabbath Schools.

SUPERVISION IN SERVICE

Do you ever feel that you could use a little help with…..

…setting the stage for staff success?

…communicating with staff of a different generation?

…an employee with whom you seem to “butt heads”?

…inspiring an unmotivated staff person?

…maximizing the creative problem-solving of staff?

…managing conflict within your organization?

If so, then the ACS Supervision Series is for you!

ACS is pleased to offer a series of four workshops that will explore the many facets of effective supervision. Facilitated by experts in human service management consulting and life coaching, this series has something to offer both the very new, and the highly-experienced supervisor.

September 18 The Impact of Generational Differences

September 25 Managing Conflict

October 2 Supervising the Difficult Employee

October 9 The Role of Coaching

All sessions will be held at: Bridgeway Community Church, 9189 Red Branch Road, Columbia, MD

Sessions will run from 8:30 – 11:30 a.m.

Resources for Missions

Resources for Missions

Books:

Wess Stafford, “Too Small to Ignore,” Waterbrook Press, 2007.

Ronald J. Sider, “Rich Christians in the Age of Hunger: Moving from Affluence to Generosity,” Thomas Nelson, 2005.

David May, “A Call to Arms: Out of the Pews and into the Streets,” Outskirts Press, 2007.

Organizations:

Sharing Our Strength - New Hope Church Mission Arm

www.sharingourstrength.blogspot.com

Adventist Missions

www.adventistmission.com

Maranatha International

www.maranatha.org

SPECIAL CONFERENCE EVENT

Chesapeake’s Thy Kingdom Come! Mission Conference, September 20—This one-day gathering in Hagerstown, MD features speakers Ron Halvorsen, Sr., well known evangelist and author; and Gary Krause, director of the Office of Adventist Mission for the General Conference; the music of Ponder, Harp and Jennings, award-winning gospel group; and a palette of practical seminars and children’s programs. Morning services will be held at Hagerstown Community College and the Hagerstown Church. Afternoon and evening services follow a church potluck picnic at Highland View Academy. Check your bulletin on Sept. 13 for the complete schedule and directions or contact your church office.

INTERNATIONAL COOK OFF WINNER

New Hope's first annual international cook off was held last week. A crowd of over 250 people gathered in the church auditorium to sample food dishes from twelve different countries.

Despite Pastor Dixit's prediction that the Indian delegation would win the contest, a very small contingency from Venezuela was able to claim the top prize.

New Hope Church is one of the few churches in America that is completely diverse. Only 5% of US churches are considered diverse. With over 40 nationalities, no specific racial majority, the church is in a unique position to celebrate this unique quality.

Click here to see more pictures from the event.

MISSION TRIP RETURNS

S.o.S.: New Hope Church members and friends "Sharing our Strength" in Mozambique, Africa this summer

What started as a personal invitation to go to Africa from Monty Jacobs, long-time Maranatha Volunteers International (MVI) board member, to friend Dave Wooster, head of "S.o.S." missions at New Hope, somehow blossomed into a group of 39 people on a mission trip to Mozambique. On Sunday, July 13, the group of members and friends of New Hope in Fulton, Md headed to Africa for a 2 1/2 week mission trip. After a 17 hour plane ride to Johannesburg, S. Africa, the group boarded a bus for a 9 hour ride to Maputo (the capital city of Mozambique) where they stayed in tents at the MVI volunteer camp which was their home for the next 12 nights.

Mozambique, among the poorest nations in the world, was chosen by MVI to receive 1001 churches, 8 schools and a water well for each of those structures. MVI moved into Mozambique in February, 2007 and has currently completed around 50 churches (with more under construction) and is working on their 2nd school, with the assistance of the New Hope group on this trip.

The New Hope group divided into 4 crews for the specific missions that were planned for this trip:

1) A BUILDING crew helped to construct a 400-capacity school in the area of Mahotas. The crew consisted of anywhere from 20-24 people of all ages, with only one person in the group having laid brick before. Approximately 40% of the school was completed while they were there.

2) A WATER WELL DRILLING crew assisted Garry Berndt, who is heading up the water well project in Mozambique. The New Hope group helped drill 4 water wells, 2 of which were at the school property. The first well they drilled at the Mahotas school was designated as a community well, providing water at no charge to the local community, who were there daily, anxiously watching the whole process.

3) A MEDICAL MISSION team went out into remote villages and treated over 900 people in 8 working days. Most everyone they saw suffered from illnesses as a result of poor nutrition, dehydration, and parasites in their drinking water, in addition to AIDS/HIV, tuberculosis, etc.

4) A VACATION BIBLE SCHOOL team shared the simple and pure gospel message of God's love with a group of kids that grew from 80 the first day, to over 500/day by the end of the trip. The kids were also taught about simple hygiene and given bars of soap that New Hope sent over after learning how precious this item is in Mozambique.

What struck the New Hope group most about Mozambique was the overwhelming amount of poverty that they saw: people living in little more than shacks, children taking care of children (often scarcely dressed with no shoes), and rampant hunger and disease. The medical team drove 1-2 hours one-way, everyday, to remote villages to offer medical care to those who have no money or means to get it on their own. "The poverty was so overwhelming that we didn't even realize until our third day on the same route that there was an ocean laying just beyond - "The poverty was just so devastating, it's all we could see. It was like watching a bad movie." commented one team member.

The primary goal for this trip was to follow the Matthew 25:35 principle, which states "For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.' Being the "hands and feet of Jesus" and meeting basic needs in this tangible way was the most powerful evangelism tool we could ever use.

Click here to visit the SOS blog.

CONGRATULATIONS TO THE PILLAI FAMILY

Raj and Tina Pillai are proud parent's of their third child, Gemma.

Both mother and baby are doing well.