Be The Church

One Child At A Time

cardinal@tomokachristian.com (Joe Putting) — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 14:58:00 +0000

Andrew Ward, whose organization heads up Good New Clubs across the nation, wrote recently regarding the brand new clubs Tomoka Christian began last week at the Ormond YMCA and Pine Trail Elementary. Both were a success beyond our expectations! A portion of Andrew’s note is here.

I imagine that you’ve heard the great news about how God has blessed the efforts at the clubs -- at Pine Trail we had 48, and there were 42 children at the YMCA club. Praise God, your children’s ministry just grew by 90. Thank you for your help and support in efforts to reach the children of Ormond Beach. What an answer to many months of prayer this has been. I am so humbled to work with such a great team of volunteers as those from Tomoka. We now look toward growing the clubs and working to establish those children and families that don’t have a church home in TCC.

Thank you for your wonderful work and for allowing me the privilege of helping with the ministry of Tomoka.

FYI: The Pine Trail club meets on Tuesdays from 2-3:30 p.m. The Ormond Beach YMCA group meets from 3:30 -4:30. Those interested helping with either group may e-mail Marc Wooten here.

Scripture Memorization: Acts

cardinal@tomokachristian.com (Joe Putting) — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 12:50:00 +0000

Here is another list of powerful Bible verses that would be good ones to commit to memory. From time to time, I'll publish others.

But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. Acts 1:8 (NIV)
Peter replied, "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. Acts 2:38 (NIV)
They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Acts 2:42 (NIV)

They Will Know Us By Our Love

cardinal@tomokachristian.com (Joe Putting) — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 14:50:00 +0000

God is moving in unbelievable ways through the ladies of the Power of Love ministry to area strip clubs. You’ve got the read the story below from ministry leader Jennifer Colella about one lady whose life, through Christ, may never be the same.

I wanted to give you an update on some things that have happened since our last outreach. The Sunday after our October outreach I received a phone call from one of the dancers we met at a lounge. She was very anxious and upset explaining that she had been abandoned, abused and was far away from home. When she told me her name was Susan,* I immediately remembered her and her story from the night of the outreach. When she called, she was a few hours from being homeless, had about $15 to her name and it became clear to me we were in a crisis situation. I told her to sit tight and I would make some phone calls. One of our team members met with her and spent many hours talking and praying with Susan to better understand her situation and figure out how we could help. We realized that Susan had come to a fork in the road. She had been abandoned by a man who had hurt her and would likely continue to do so if she went back to him. She had family members that care about her, have been praying for her and trying to keep her sober and in the church for many years now. Susan knew that going home was the right thing to do but, she was afraid, ashamed, embarrassed and convicted. The bottom line was, we couldn't force her to do the right thing. She had to make that decision for herself. So we explained to her that we wanted to see her start over and begin trusting God with her life. We told her we'd get her a bus ticket back to her family in New Jersey if she decided she wanted to start over. She was still undecided so we told her she could have until 6 PM to make a decision, then the offer expired. The following hours were tough, but we prayed and prepared for whatever would happen next.

Praise God, Susan called and asked us to purchase the ticket! We picked her up at her hotel and drove her to the bus station. As her departure time approached, we reached for her shaky hands and gathered in a circle at the bus station to pray with her. All the time I kept praying, Lord, she's not a waste, please stay close to her and don't let her go. As we departed and walked back to the car, I just kept wondering: What would become of her? Did we do enough? Did we do too much? What would have happened to her if we didn't help her?

All night and the next morning I kept picturing Susan's bloodshot eyes, the weary look on her face from all the years of drug use, abuse and pain. I thought to myself: Will she really try and turn her life around, or did she hop off the bus at the first stop and get herself right into another crisis situation? That afternoon, my outreach partner called me to say Susan has been in touch with her and is “doing fine so far." When Susan finally made it back to New Jersey, she continued calling and my partner has even been on speaker phone with some of Susan's family members! Susan is living with her sister, going to church, asking spiritual questions, considering work and school and still needs lots of prayers. She is working on changing her life. She needs prayers for emotional and mental stability and prayers that she will maintain her sobriety.

Your prayers, encouragement, donations and support are what keep this ministry going into our mission field to help these ladies find their way out of these strip clubs. This is the second time we've met a woman on an outreach in a crisis situation who has called us and we were able to pray with her and see her leave the business. If it weren’t for your faithfulness in donating the items for bags, volunteering your time and the financial support to be able to purchase a bus ticket, we wouldn't be a part of the lives of these ladies. I'm already looking forward to the December 11 outreach, anxious to see what God will do next! Thank you for your commitment to the Kingdom. May God bless your faithfulness. You are all loved and appreciated!

* The lady's name was changed to protect her identity.

"Carry Me Back to Old Virginny"

cardinal@tomokachristian.com (Joe Putting) — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 18:02:00 +0000

One of Tomoka Christian’s mission teams each year heads up to Virginia to help with Equipping the Saints (ETS), a nonprofit provider of necessities to missionaries all over the world. Gene McCullough, who headed up the industrious team, shared below some highlights of an extremely productive trip.

Tomoka sent 10 team members to ETS. Eight more joined us from a church in Michigan, who called themselves the Michigan contingent of the Tomoka team. It was their first mission trip and from what I heard it was a huge success for them. We all worked together Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.

Each morning started with a devotional. Then a list of the projects was discussed and team members worked where their skills were most needed.

Part of the team replaced 16, 10-foot windows on the second story of an old school building. The wooden windows leaked so badly that vinyl plastic was taped to the trim to keep the weather out. After the plastic and trim had been removed, members of the team sanded and painted the trim. We completely remodeled an old school room so that it could be used as a dorm and meeting room. Ten-foot blackboards and frames were removed from the walls, and then the walls were mudded, spackled, sanded, primed and painted by team members.

Other members were able to sort out a variety of new light bulbs that ETS had purchased at a great discount. The bulbs were sorted, counted and cataloged so that they could be sold on e-Bay. One team member helped the staff with Quickbooks. Members of the team also moved a kitchen cabinet, including the sink, from a room that was being used as a library for children’s books to another room that will become the new kitchen. Now, the library no longer has the kitchen in it.

Some members of the team packed boxes of clothes for an upcoming shipment to Papua, New Guinea. Other members worked in the electronics area repairing wireless microphones that will be sold on the Internet or provided to worship leaders who need them. The office supply room was cleaned and organized. Another group addressed and stamped envelopes. We were all blessed to work with the Michigan contingent and the staff at ETS.

We look forward to a return trip the second week of August 2010. This is an inexpensive trip that gives help and relief to a team of volunteers and the staff of ETS. We welcome new members who can commit to the trip within the next couple of months.

Thanks for providing us with the freedom and opportunity to go. It was a real blessing for all of us.

Pure Religion

cardinal@tomokachristian.com (Joe Putting) — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 16:49:00 +0000

I recently heard from two missionaries who founded and continue to run Christian World Adoption. Bob & Tomilee Harding’s note below illustrates how God is moving in Ethiopia.

We have just returned from our Ethiopian trip with our spirits and batteries recharged!

It was so good to visit the children’s homes and have the opportunity to see two new homes recently added to our growing list of locally run homes that we support. Some of this support goes to children who are able to stay in their homes with their families or guardians with some financial aid from us through the local centers.

The major thrust of our trip was to visit and approve finishing touches on the children’s home in our new Acacia Village complex. This building is nearing completion, and we needed to approve some final layout decisions. Thanks to all of you, this is becoming a reality. It will be housing children this coming year! This is a big project for us but God has been faithful to guide us. Several more buildings are about to start, including a mission outreach apartment building, a clinic, and an enrichment center (school).

We were honored to have another audience with the President of Ethiopia including a short photo opportunity where he offered his continued support and thanks for our programs in Ethiopia.

The trip was truly blessed. CWA’s future programs in Ethiopia look very positive and we will continue to place the rights and concerns of the children first.

"Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world." James 1:27

Get Me My Hat!

cardinal@tomokachristian.com (Joe Putting) — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 16:03:00 +0000

In front of 65,110 screaming fans in Pittsburg, the 2009 NFL season got under way. The Steelers against the Titans, a showdown of powerhouse defenses on display at Heinz Field.

At the end of regulation, the score was a 10-10 tie. As the Steelers were about to get the ball, Ben Roethlisberger, the defending Superbowl champion quarterback, turned to a ball boy and said, “Get me my hat. I’m about to take us down the field for the winning score and I want to cover my sweaty hair when I do the postgame interview with Andrea Kremer.” That play yielded the game-winning drive in overtime.

Now I have to tell you that from age 5 to at least 23, if I wasn’t in class or church I had a baseball cap on. I had dozens of options. I had my St. Louis Cardinal caps, of course, caps of teams I played on, caps bearing the logos of banks, farming equipment and seed companies. I’m not sure why I wore them — security perhaps, or team pride. Or maybe cap-wearing was just a habit that made me feel more like others around me. What I do remember is that I never left home without a cap.

While I never will lead an NFL team or drive for a final score, I have a much larger task: Leading people to heaven. The Bible is quite clear about who will go to heaven. In Acts 4:12, we read: “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved."

Research shows that on our current course, America will be less than 14% Christian in the next generation. Christ followers need to be more aggressive in sharing the story of Jesus. After all, the opposite of heaven is hell.

Heaven = In God’s presence, joy, worship, peace, rest, celebration
Hell = Cut off from God, weeping and gnashing of teeth, fire and pain. See Matthew 25

The apostle Paul reminds us that Jesus will be returning soon in 1 Thessalonians 4:13 to 18:

Brothers, we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope. We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. According to the Lord's own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. Therefore encourage each other with these words.
Are you ready to go?

When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, "Brothers, what shall we do?" Peter replied, "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. Acts 2:37-38.

Have you accepted Jesus as your Savior?
Have you repented (turned from sin)?
Have your been baptized (buried in water)?
Have you committed to following Jesus even unto death?

We all want to go to heaven, yet most are unprepared for the most important trip they will ever take. So are you ready?

I guess what I’m saying is, get your hat!

Scripture Memorization: More from Romans

cardinal@tomokachristian.com (Joe Putting) — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 13:01:00 +0000

Here is another list of powerful Bible verses that would be good ones to commit to memory. From time to time, I'll publish others.

He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification. Romans 4:25
Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Romans 5:1
But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:8

A Man Of My Word

cardinal@tomokachristian.com (Joe Putting) — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 15:15:00 +0000

This is an e-mail I received from my friend, Steve Jones, that illustrates the kind of obedience God desires from us. It begins with Jeremiah 35:5:

I set cups and jugs of wine before them and invited them to have a drink, but they refused. “No,” they said, “we don’t drink wine, because our ancestor Jehonadab son of Recab gave us this command: ‘You and your descendants must never drink wine'...Then the Lord gave this message to Jeremiah: "Go and say to the people in Judahand Jerusalem, ‘Come and learn a lesson about how to obey me. The Recabites do not drink wine to this day because their ancestor Jehonadab told them not to. But I have spoken to you again and again, and you refuse to obey me.' "

Talk about a legacy! Here's a clan of families that were so zealous about keeping their promises that not one of their family members had drunk a drop of wine for TWO HUNDRED AND FIFTY YEARS! And what does God say? "Learn a lesson about how to obey me." The abstinence from alcohol is not the point, (though that would serve you well), but the determination to obey God no matter what. Let's keep our promises, men. The Recabites prove that it can done. I pray that today you will keep your promises. Please pray that for me.

Scripture memorization: Romans

cardinal@tomokachristian.com (Joe Putting) — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 12:15:00 +0000

One of the best ways to keep God's Word close at all times is to memorize Scripture. The Bible is full of truths that can help keep you on His path, as well as help you minister to others you know during the day.

Below are a few of my favorites. From time to time, I'll publish others. You might choose to write or type the verses on index cards or paper and tape them up here and there around your house.

Romans 1:16-17: I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: "The righteous will live by faith."

Romans 2:1: You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgment on someone else, for at whatever point you judge the other, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things.

Romans 3:23: For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.

Obeying the Call

cardinal@tomokachristian.com (Joe Putting) — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 13:52:00 +0000

Lysa TerKeurst, a nationally known speaker and author with Proverbs 31 Ministries, published an inspiring post about the joys of adoption and of obeying God. Check it out on her blog here.

While you're there, scroll down and check out the video of Lysa and her amazing adoption story that appeared on Oprah. Or just view it here.

Tacos, Anyone?

cardinal@tomokachristian.com (Joe Putting) — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 21:07:00 +0000

We received word from our missionaries in Mexico, Steve and Kay Carpenter. A team of nine from TCC are serving with them right now. Below is an excerpt of the letter.

It is great to have nine excited men ready to go to work. But first they will attend worship services at the Northside Church this morning and then, after tacos, we all head up to the Eagles Church for the afternoon service. They came armed with small wooden crosses to hand out and enough toys for over 100 children. That's a good thing because this last Thursday we had 85 children and adults in attendance with at least 65 of those being children. Looks like we're in for a good week.

The Northside Church is the main project for the team. They will be digging, doing plumbing and mixing concrete. They may also lay brick, put in some lights and do a small bit of painting. All the tasks they will accomplish will move the construction along its schedule and bless the church congregation in a big way.

The rain seems to be a big story right now in lots of places. We read about the flooding in the Southeast and pray for those people. There was a need for rain but now I think the need has passed. Hopefully we will have some clear days, at least during the hours that we are working at the church. As an update for those of you who read about the flooding near us due to a break in a huge drainage tube and a lot of runoff water, the city gave appliances and items to the victims of the flooding. Alejandra received a new refrigerator, her son received a new bed and they received new tile for their floors. Their house isn't back to normal yet, but it is getting there.

The community ministry known as Community Health Evangelism is set to begin with a Vision Conference with community leaders from the Eagles neighborhood this October. We have two nights set aside for the presentation to community leaders. It is our prayer that from this Vision Conference that momentum can be built for the ministry in the neighborhood. Please keep this conference and the community leaders in your prayers. We need to bathe this in prayer!

Thank you so much for your prayers and support. You are the ones who make this ministry possible and we praise our Lord for each of you.

Answering the Call

cardinal@tomokachristian.com (Joe Putting) — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 15:08:00 +0000

Tomoka Christian Church is truly a body of Christ followers. Your response to the call for an adoptive family for Sheila was amazing. Thank you for answering the call of Christ which was heard through the cry of a lone teenager in Ghana.

We have forwarded your emails — some from out of state — to Kevin and Cara Boone, who are in Ghana this week picking up their daughter, Ruth. I am sure that we will soon have another report from Cara on Sheila (the two are pictured here) and her search for a family. When Cara returns and spends a few days acclimating Ruth to a new life, she will get us the needed information for adoption procedures and we will make sure that you are updated.

I want to remind you that “some estimates put the number of orphans at 50 million while other estimates put the number as high as 200 million. Sadly the orphans are even abandoned by the statistics.” There is never a shortage of children looking for a family. Prayerfully, Sheila’s cry has brought to our attention again the need for the body of Christ to step up and care for the orphans. And what better way to celebrate National Adoption Month in October than to have 25-30 families from Tomoka Christian begin the process to bring their child home from around the world!

I know that God has spoken to many of you whether you e-mailed us or not. I challenge each of you to take action on what He has placed on your hearts to do whether it is to adopt or to help make it financially possible for another "Sheila" to find her Mommy.
…To Be Continued

Young girl aches for a family of her own

cardinal@tomokachristian.com (Joe Putting) — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 12:52:00 +0000

Cara and Kevin, friends of the Tomoka Christian family, are working through paperwork to adopt a young girl, Ruth, from Ghana. In their visits to Ruth at her orphanage in Ghana, they met another child, Sheila, who is Ruth's best friend. Sheila's deepest desire is for a family of her own. Adoption requirements are few and costs have been reduced, but time is running out. Below is a note Cara sent me about Sheila's situation. Please e-mail me if you can help her.

I am sending out a desperate plea to all my God-fearing friends: We need to find a family for Sheila, a sweet, godly, wonderful 14-year-old girl living in Ghana.

Sheila has been praying for a family for years. I told her that I would make it my personal mission to help find her one. A few weeks ago she got the chance to call me and the first thing she asked was, "Did you find me a mommy yet?" I had to tell her no. When I go to Ghana next week, I would love to be able to tell her that God has brought her a family. Someone, please be the answer to this sweet girl's prayer! Time is running out for her as she is about to turn 15. The U.S. government will not allow children to be adopted once they turn 16. The process has to be finished before they turn 16. Sheila is such a kind, humble, peaceful, loving soul. The only thing she needs is a family and a chance.

Says Sheila: "My prayer is that someone that you will send my picture to will accept me as their child and have mercy on me because I am no one. People always say that I don't have a mother. Please, please have mercy on me."

The enemy has sold this sweet girl a lie: Having her believe, because she is an orphan, she is no one. Who is willing to show Sheila that she is not "no one"? She is someone very special in Christ. He cares for her! As the body of Christ, so do we. Please allow Jesus to come to her rescue through you!

Because of her desperate situation, the fees for her adoption have been greatly reduced and several people already have volunteered to raise money to help with the cost of her adoption. Please don't let money be an obstacle!

Requirements for adoption:
Must be 21 years older than the child. In this case, one of the parents must be at least 35 years old
Must be married
Must be Christian
The first time I met her, she was bent over stirring a pot of banku over a small charcoal stove. When I looked a little closer, I saw that she was silently weeping as she worked to make lunch for the 30 children living at her orphanage. I bent down to look her in the eye and asked her what was wrong. She wouldn't return my gaze, but instead wiped away her tears and said, "I am so happy that my best friend, Ruth, has found such a wonderful mother. I am going to miss sister Ruth and I pray one day a woman will come for me and she will be my mommy forever."

Needless to say, my heart was broken for sweet Sheila. I promised her that day that I would help her on her journey to find a mama and a family.

Sheila looks just like her birth mother. They both have light skin and a long face. They both radiate beauty from the inside out. Sheila loved her mother dearly, but her mother passed away. Unable to care for her, Sheila's father took her to the orphanage and left her there.

Sheila is a smart girl and loves school. Unfortunately, the orphanage where she is staying cannot pay for her to go to school anymore and she had to drop out of school this year. Sheila is very sad about this. She has dreams of one day becoming a journalist.

Sheila loves to sing and dance to Jesus. As the oldest girl in the orphanage, Sheila has had to take on the mother figure role for 30 other children. She is very nurturing and a hard-worker, but she has been robbed of her childhood and forced to grow up far too early.

Getting the Job Done

cardinal@tomokachristian.com (Joe Putting) — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 18:47:00 +0000

Every two or three years, we publish a prayer journal listing all of the missionaries that Tomoka Christian financially sponsors. Since the last journal, called “Be the Church,” was published, we’ve added many missionaries to the Tomoka Christian support roster. They are listed below. Please remember them as you pray.

Mike & Teresa Grant — Haiti
Barry & Charlene Owensby — Cuba
White Water Christian Church, Wyoming — USA
Robert & Natalie Braden — England
St Louis Christian College (scholarship) — USA
Shelly Hilvety — Ethiopia
New Missions Systems, Halima — Kenya
Grace House DeLand — USA
Compassion International: Christian Tejeno — Philippines
Compassion International: Rachel Niyonkura — Rwanda
Eric & Shelia Jenkins — North Africa
Charlie & Fern Peters — USA
Chris & Aubri Casey — Europe
Melonnie Kelly — Haiti
Zeca & Gabia Sales — USA
Chaplaincy Endorsement Commission — USA
Bill Frans, Toba Lake Church — Indonesia
Thomas Guiteres — Timor Leste
Pastor Martin Roberts — USA
Daniel Meyers Bread Ministry — USA
Kelly Bender — USA
April Roam — Honduras
Beth Ramos — New Guinea
Barbara Beute, Justice Missionary — USA
Sam & Karen Kohler — Japan
Richard & Chris Rice — Guatemala
Garry & Weiling Klinel — Japan
Providence County, RI, church — USA
Equipping the Saints — USA
Bong Barredo — Philippines
Mary Williams — USA
Doug & Carol Baldwin — Ecuador
Christ Reaching Asia Mission — North Korea
Every Home for Christ — Mongolia, Niger & Senegal
Voice of the Martyrs — Pakistan, Vietnam, Laos & Sudan
Team Expansion — Bosnia
Assemblies of God World Missions — Algeria

For those who don't have a journal, I want to encourage you to pick one up in the Worship Center lobby. For those who already have one, we printed stick-on labels with the above names that fit on the inside back cover of the journal. You can pick up a label in the Worship Center lobby.

Power of Love ministry highlights

cardinal@tomokachristian.com (Joe Putting) — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 14:13:00 +0000

Below is another report from Jennifer, who leads Power of Love, Tomoka Christian’s ministry to women working in area strip clubs.

Praise God for another wonderful outreach. The team began the evening with a powerful time of prayer, then set out.

At the first club, the owner met us at the door. He was very friendly and invited us in. One of the girls would not accept a bag from us, but the rest of the ladies were very friendly. After we passed out the bags the owner invited us to come back later when more girls were working. While there we had quite a conversation with the owner, reminding me how much the men employed by these clubs need our prayers as well. They are caught up in a world of sin and bondage and are just as lost, trapped and hurting as the women.

The owner of the second club was outside when we arrived. He was very friendly and welcomed us in. One woman we conversed with told us she goes to church every Wednesday and Sunday and was embarrassed to be stripping. She knew it was wrong, but had recently been diagnosed with cancer and was working to pay for her medications. If that weren't enough, her daughter was recently killed by a drunk driver. She said she was stripping because she feels she has no other choice. She was crying tears of desperation. We need to keep her in our prayers.

A third club allowed us to give out bags to the bartender and two dancers that were working. The atmosphere at the club was very dark and depressing. Please keep this club and the employees in prayer.

Two other clubs did not allow us in. Another club’s management allowed us to leave five gift bags. We left a gift for that manager, too.

We thank our Heavenly Father for His favor and timing on this outreach. Our next ones will be in October and December.

Note: Jennifer may be reached via e-mail here.

Over the Rainbow Ball - Sept. 4, 2009

cardinal@tomokachristian.com (Joe Putting) — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 15:47:00 +0000

Hispanic ministry shifts into higher gear

cardinal@tomokachristian.com (Joe Putting) — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 11:58:00 +0000

Yolanda Cintron helps lead Tomoka Christian’s Hispanic ministry, currently meeting at 7:30 p.m. on Thursdays in The Point. She and Pastor Rafael and Eloisa Ortiz, at right, are excited about changes that will open the door to growth of that ministry. These modifications include switching the Hispanic worship service to 3:30 p.m. on Sundays in the Worship Center, along with preserving the ministry’s Thursday evening time slot for Bible study. The Hispanic ministry changes take place on Sept. 13. Below is a listing of ministry highlights and changes from Yolanda.

Fall kickoff will be on Sunday, Sept. 13, to start our first Sunday service in Spanish in the Worship Center. That service will include worship and preaching from 3:30 to 4:30 p.m. Child care will be available.

Tomoka’s Hispanic ministry started in October 2008 with the Thursday evening service held in The Point. We now have over 40 in attendance. We plan to keep the Thursday evening service and make it a Bible study, while the actual service will be on Sunday.

We are setting up a screening process for those wishing to help in the ministry. We will follow Tomoka’s present procedures that include a background check.

Pastor Rafael Ortiz is in the works of planting another Spanish service in Jacksonville.

Mission trips: Pastor Rafael and his wife Eloisa have already gone on mission trips to Guatemala, El Salvador and Mexico and are excited to partner with Tomoka’s mission trips. The goal is to have those who attend a Spanish service go on trips with Tomoka teams to Spanish-speaking countries, where they will serve as translators and be able to share the Gospel.

Communion is offered every week at the Spanish service.

Baptism is open to anyone. We will start having a Decision Night, as Tomoka does, in a few months.

Good News Club: Eloisa will discuss with Andrew Ward assembling helpers at Pierson Elementary School to help start a Good News Club there. Linda Weaver, who attends Tomoka Christian, works as a teacher at the school and is seeking volunteers who speak Spanish to help with the club.

Angel Food ministry has menus available in Spanish, so anyone interested can contact Tomoka’s office to place an order.

We look forward to seeing what amazing things God has planned for the Hispanic community!

Sunday's Coming by Perry Noble

cardinal@tomokachristian.com (Joe Putting) — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 14:51:00 +0000

Perry Noble wrote something recently that really inspired me that he called "Sunday's Coming." It went something like this.

Who have you invited? (Acts 1:8)

Who are you bringing with you? (John 1:40-42)

Have you told God, “I am available!” (Isaiah 6:8)

We’re praying for HUGE things on Sunday… (Acts 4:29-31)

Eternal destinations will be altered… (John 5:24)

Life Change WILL HAPPEN… (II Corinthians 5:17)

So…what are you waiting on? (II Corinthians 6:1-2)

Let’s have that uncomfortable conversation… (Acts 1:8)

HE REIGNS… (Revelation 4)

He CAN save anyone… (Acts 9:1-18)

See you on Sunday! (Matthew 16:18)

Evangelizing in the darkest corners of the world

cardinal@tomokachristian.com (Joe Putting) — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 15:22:00 +0000

A 59-member team of young evangelists in Ethiopia that those of Tomoka Christian financially supported has returned to their home base after a month of mission work to dangerous Orthodox- and Muslim-dominated Ethiopian cities. Shelly Hilvety, their mentor in the capital city of Addis Ababa, recently threw a party for them all to celebrate their safe return. At the party, the young evangelists shared many victories with her — including healings and conversions of those they met, but also beatings and a failed poisoning attempt of team members by those dead-set against the gospel. Below are some details from Shelly.

Greetings from Addis Ababa. Just wanted to share with you what I know of the 59 young people who went to the countryside to cities to share the gospel in Ethiopia. In one month's time they shared with 9,964 people. Those who accepted Christ will be discipled by the host churches in those cities where the young people stayed. We still don't have a complete account of how many accepted Christ. In these cities, residents are mostly Orthodox and Muslim so the conversion rate will be lower than what we expect. But their job was to plant the seeds and God will bring the increase.

God's hand was completely upon this trip. In one city they cast out six demonic spirits. In another city many deaf people were healed and backsliders came back to Christ.

With all these victories came many persecutions. The water was bad, the food was not good and the sleeping conditions were not something that any of us would have accepted. Some had stones thrown at them. Others were told they would be killed if they shared the gospel, but they shared and no one was killed. One person was whipped and two were beaten by police in the jail. A whole team would have been poisoned if it hadn't been for a waitress telling them to order something else. This happens often when people try to share the gospel.

Upon their return, I bought three sheep for the celebration camp fire and they ate and ate and ate! But the food was not the blessing. The joy on their faces as they shared what had happened was amazing. God's glory was all over those young people. I had the chance to challenge them to continue to share the word in Addis Ababa and the villages. This work is God's work and He protected them all the way.

Thank you so much for allowing these young people to experience mission work in their own country. Thank you that your faithfulness to bless us financially, allowing for 9,964 people to hear the gospel message in one month’s time. Please keep these young people in your prayers because when victories come here, Satan in not very far behind trying to choke out the joys of all the work that was done.

The $20 Challenge

cardinal@tomokachristian.com (Joe Putting) — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 12:30:00 +0000

Tim Paneitz, our interim youth pastor, recently coordinated a very special summer activity for both middle and high school students called the $20 Challenge. Students struck out in small groups, each of which invested $20 to bring the love of Jesus to complete strangers. Below are some amazing highlights.

Random acts of kindness. They can bring smiles to a mother’s face, joy to a young child and tears to the eyes of a homeless man.

All of these reactions where shared by our youth during the Summer 50 $20 Challenge. Our youth were split into groups and sent into the community with very simple instructions: “Share God’s love with someone else.” The highlights of the day were amazing.

One group of our youth made their way to Wal-Mart where they blessed people in different ways. From handing out cash to families in line checking out to buying some little toys that they passed out to the children in the store and the parking lot, they made an impact that day. Mothers were thrilled beyond words to receive some cash just as they went to check out.

At the Dollar Store, another group bought soap, toothpaste, sunscreen, snacks, ponchos and a backpack. The money that wasn’t used was put onto a gift card for McDonald’s. On that very hot summer Sunday, they didn’t even mind sweating as they spent a good deal of time looking for the right homeless person to bless with the bag. After some prayer, they found a man walking solo on the side of the road. As he received the bag, the tears started rolling. He shared an amazing story of being kicked out of his house, of years of addiction and of God’s healing power.

For a third group, the dollar menu at McDonald’s was the starting place. Bags of double cheese burgers in tow, they went out into the town to bless anyone they came across. The students brought smiles to the faces of many people.

The creativity and passion the youth had for this project was awe-inspiring.

When we really think about the amount of money we spend on little things throughout our day, why couldn’t we do our own $20 or $5 or $50 challenge every day? Maybe we could do something simple, like pay for the next person in line at Starbucks, or pay the toll for the person behind us on the road.

God has blessed us with it all to begin with, so why not just share it?

The Largest City in the World

cardinal@tomokachristian.com (Joe Putting) — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 15:33:00 +0000

A team from Tomoka Christian recently spent a week at an orphanage in Mexico City called Ninos de Mexico. Bryan Maynard was a member of that team. A report from him is here.

I was a late addition to the Ninos de Mexico mission team after someone else canceled. It was my first mission trip, but hopefully not my last! I really did not know what to expect, except for long busy days with lots of work to do. Our work project included work at the houses and at the church helping with Vacation Bible School.

We arrived in Mexico on Saturday afternoon and met some of the staff: Matt, Tiffany, and Erin. Such young people doing great work at Ninos! We also met the kids of Esperanza House and toured their facility. Afterward we played a nice game of supposedly non-competitive volleyball. We failed miserably against those teenagers!

A friend had given me Philippians 1:2 for our journey. During our devotion time Saturday night I read Paul’s words in Ephesians 6:19. I would pray this verse at the start of each day during our trip.

Sunday morning we went to the church and met the pastor and attended the worship service. It was different hearing songs we sing at Tomoka translated to Spanish. It actually made the worship service very comfortable for me. The building sits beside a busy street and sidewalk that was very noisy all morning. However, one thing that really struck me was when the worship leader began to pray before communion the street became very quiet. At that moment I felt that the Holy Spirit was in control. After the worship service two young ladies were baptized. Could this day get better?

Sunday afternoon the church staff invited us to dinner at the church. We met more of the staff and also planned some of the activities we would use during the week for Vacation Bible School. After our dinner we broke into two vans and went into the community to parks, playgrounds, and a grocery store to hand out flyers to children inviting them to VBS.

VBS was an amazing experience. We arrived early Monday morning only to find a few children running about. Soon after, the vans started arriving with many children. When everyone was finally counted the Monday total was 150. We thought that it couldn’t get any better. We were wrong! It wasn’t up to us. Tuesday’s total was 162. Wednesday’s total was 170. Thursday was 210, and on Friday they counted 230. By Friday there were not enough chairs for everyone to sit. The room was filled! It was a great feeling just being in the room.

Our team was very busy all week. We took care of the games at VBS. We also helped with the arts and crafts, in the nursery. Anywhere we were needed we did our best to help.

We had the opportunity to visit each of the four houses, meet the children and the house parents. We also met Dr. Noe and saw the medical clinic.

Ninos and the church are a tremendous outreach to the community there. They do so much with so little, in contrast to the U.S. culture that has so much and does so little.

As for me, it was definitely an eye-opening experience. I look at things differently than before. I can still see the look on the kids’ faces, the smiles. I remember the way they had trouble communicating with me, and me likewise. I must learn how speak some basic Spanish before going back!

I hope to have the opportunity to return to Ninos, and also have my wife and son share the experience with me.

May we give God all the glory. Adios for now.

Mission trip memories

cardinal@tomokachristian.com (Joe Putting) — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 12:52:00 +0000

Earlier this year, I led a team of nine on a mission trip to Egypt. We spent a lot of time ministering to people of that region, then took some time for sightseeing. Want to see a video of our time there? It's online here.

Tomoka adds new missions

cardinal@tomokachristian.com (Joe Putting) — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 18:24:00 +0000

Pat Bolles recently published a post on Tomoka Christian’s Missions blog that introduces new additions to the 200+ that TCC financially and prayerfully supports. These newcomers are from the Philippines, Ecuador and the south side of Chicago. Pat’s post is online here.

God-Style Camping

cardinal@tomokachristian.com (Joe Putting) — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 15:07:00 +0000

A Tomoka Christian mission team recently returned from Camp Chenaniah in Honor, Michigan. They ran a week of summer camp there. Two members of the team, Scott Hale and Ryan Houser, shared some of the trip highlights.

From Scott:

My experience at Camp Chenaniah in Michigan was unbelievable. My beautiful wife and our three kids (Jay, 12; Kieran, 6; and Riley, 2 1/2) started our trip at 4:30 a.m. in the TCC parking lot and arrived at camp by 8:30 p.m. that same day. This was their first mission trip but they were all troupers!

Now I've been on mission trips overseas before, and while I'm not at all lessening those experiences, the realization that some of the same occurrences are happening here in the states just ate me up.

After you get past the "rustic" atmosphere, I thought the camp itself was an incredible scene. The reason that Camp Chenaniah may not have the latest living conditions or best of modern technology is because the owners, Mike and Belva, do not charge much for the campers to be able to come. Part of this is due to the economy, but mainly this is because the surrounding area just does not have a lot of money. In some cases they don't charge anything. They may have kids who are allowed to attend on a volunteer work basis, say, to help in the kitchen, or take out trash. The philosophy there is that Mike and Belva would rather have the kids there learning about Christ than not.

I would have to say that my favorite part of the week was the worship. The camp's chapel collapsed last winter due to weather and age. So we met in an old Army surplus tent. It was damp, dirty, and dusty and had wooden pews nailed down to two-by-fours. But the worship was pure. These kids let it pour straight from their hearts. These kids are truly looking for Christ; they are clinging to the hope of His promises.

Being out at Camp Chenaniah with these kids reminded me that it's not about the building, it's not about the facilities, it's not about how many are in attendance. It's about offering God our hearts and getting back to what is pure.

My family and I are already trying to plan our trip back for next year!

From Ryan:

I was nervous about Camp Chenaniah at first. I had never been there, and I wasn’t sure what the campers would be like. I had to trust in God that he would use me however He needed to that week.

Chenaniah turned out to be one of the best and most “Seriously Ridiculous” weeks I’ve experienced all summer. I loved every minute of it. From the team, the campers, the games and everything else, God was under control of every aspect. By the end of the week, I didn’t want to leave — despite the spiders and moths everywhere — and I wished I could have stayed longer.

The team from Illinois and Michigan were great to be with. I am blessed to have met them and still be talking with them almost a month later. It was fun to hang out with not only the new counselors I met, but the ones from Tomoka, as well, especially knowing that we all shared the same goal of reaching the kids and showing the love of Christ to them.

One of the most incredible experiences I had with the campers was on the last night. It was about 11 at night, and some of the kids were still up. They were talking with each other and just playing around. I thought it was funny and eventually they began to talk with me about salvation and baptism for a while. They had a lot of questions to ask and I just talked with them and tried to answer their questions. A lot of them didn’t know much about different Bible stories and how to get a close relationship with God. It was powerful to see such young people desiring God and wanting to know more about Him.

The last day, we all went to the lake and saw 11 baptisms! It was such an amazing experience to see the kids I had been with all week accept Christ as their savior and be baptized! Even one of our staff got baptized!

I went away from camp knowing nothing that had happened this week happened because of us. Everything was under God’s control and it was comforting to know that. I pray that the campers and even the staff take the lessons we learned and grow closer to God each day. I am excited to go back next year and see them again, and I can’t wait to see what God has in store next July!

Real Religion

cardinal@tomokachristian.com (Joe Putting) — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 16:01:00 +0000

I received some statistics about the worldwide orphan crisis from Duane Hull of Orphan’s Lifeline International.

Around the world, 42,000 children become orphans every day.
Nearly 150 million children are orphans worldwide.
The number of orphans worldwide is expected to grow to 250 million in five years, and about 400 million by 2015.
10.8 million children under age 5 die each year from preventable causes (30,000 each day)
Almost 41% of all child deaths occur in sub-Saharan Africa.
50% of worldwide deaths in children under 5 occur in six countries (India leads with 20%, followed by Nigeria, China, Pakistan, Congo. Statistics show that 90% of child deaths occur in 42 underdeveloped countries.
Orphan children in poor nations are suffering through malnutrition, disease, abandonment and neglect. They are victimized, exploited and abused.

My question to you: Is God asking you to do something about it? Tomoka Christian's Bringing Children Home ministry helps with adoptions. Find out more about it by calling the church office.

FYI: A portion of every dollar given to Tomoka Christian goes toward this ministry.

“Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.” James 1:27