By Pedro Luis Espinales with Ken Zacharias, Director of Global Outreach
Pedro Luis Espinales, a pastor in the FIEMN, our sister conference, and member of the Anabaptist Emergency Committee, updated us on the pandemic’s effects on Nicaragua and FIEMN within it. Here’s his report with additional thoughts.
Nicaragua is vulnerable in health, economy, and environment. Since 2018 we have been in an economic recession because of the socio-political crisis. Many companies have closed and there are many unemployed people. Then COVID-19 arrived and it spread rapidly through Central America, affecting us with illnesses, deaths, and more unemployment. Continue reading What is Happening Now in Nicaragua? →
A missionary and their sending church need a strong family bond, and yet, like a family, can suffer from misunderstood needs and expectations. Each needs to communicate expectations and serve their partner well. Even a supporting church should clarify its expectations and might need to assume a larger role. If your church is welcoming a missionary for home assignment (HA) or sending a new worker, be open about your expectations. Circulate your commitments. Perhaps these examples will help. Continue reading Expectations: What Do Missionaries and Churches Say to Each Other?→
BOLIVIA – On Jan. 9, 2020, an EMC prayer team of 10 people from across Canada met in Toronto with the purpose of traveling to Bolivia to meet and pray with each EMC and MEM missionary, listening to their heart for the ministries with which they are involved. Continue reading EMC Prayer Team Sees Need for Ministry→
Are you interested in foreign missions? EMC Missions is currently recruiting for the following fields:
Minga Guazú, Paraguay
Many of the national Parguayans in the neighbourhoods of Minga Guazú, a city near the border with Brazil, are unreached by the Gospel and do not have an active church. Many of these communities have a few believers who are often open to and desire a Bible study in their homes, which has proven to be an effective way to reach the community. Continue reading Jerusalem, Judea, and Samaria and the Ends of the World→
GERMANY – I woke up on Jan. 4 and resolved to learn how to drive a scooter to work. I’m not sure if that counts as a New Year’s resolution. This report is probably already too late to be talking about New Year’s resolutions anyways. But I digress. Continue reading A Scooter, eh?→
Mennonite World Conference (MWC) represents the majority of the global family of Christian churches rooted in the 16th century Radical Reformation in Europe, particularly in the Anabaptist movement.
MWC membership in 2018 included one international association and 107 Mennonite and Brethren in Christ national churches from 58 countries, with around 1.47 million baptized believers in close to 10,000 congregations. About 81% of baptized believers in MWC member churches are African, Asian or Latin American, and 19% are located in Europe and North America.
Churches are asked to plan an Anabaptist World Fellowship Sunday worship service close to Jan. 21 that will help them enter more fully into fellowship, intercession and thanksgiving with and for the global faith family. On that date in 1525, the first Anabaptist baptism took place in Zurich, Switzerland. Materials are available to help remember our common roots and celebrate our worldwide koinonia. Churches are invited to take a “one lunch” offering to support the networks and resources of our global Anabaptist church family.
Renewal 2027 is a 10-year series of events commemorating the 500th anniversary of the beginnings of the Anabaptist movement. Each year, local churches host the event in a different region of the world. One such event is Renewal 2027: Jesus Christ: Our Hope, March 28, 2020, Columbia Bible College, Abbotsford, B.C. A series of annual regional events will culminate at MWC Assembly 18 in 2027.
There are two major events ahead: Assembly Gathered, July 6-11, 2021, Semarang, Indonesia. The theme is Following Jesus together across barriers. Seguir a Jesús juntos, superando las barreras. Suivre Jésus ensemble à travers les frontiers. The Global Youth Summit is on July 2-5, 2021, Salatiga, Indonesia. The theme is Life in the Spirit: Learn. Serve. Worship.
POPLAR HILL, ONTARIO —Poplar Hill was our first camp of the summer, and it was the eighth time we were in this community. Team members were Chris Lerm, Muriel LeClerc, Katherine Enns, Don Wiebe, Albert Martens, Taylor Bergen and Jordyn Bergen. Joel Jolly joined us for the last two days of the camp. Continue reading Athletes in Action Camp 2019→
Canada/El Salvador —“Obey My voice and I will be your God and you will be My people; and you will walk in all the way which I command you, that it may be well with you.”
These are the words of God the prophet Jeremiah brought to the people of Israel (Jer. 7). Yet we know they did not obey or incline their ears to Him. Instead they walked in their own counsels and in the stubbornness of their evil hearts. In fact, they were moving backwards and not forwards, doing more evil than their parents. Continue reading Stepping Out of the Boat→
A letter similar to this one was recently given to all EMC Administrative missionaries (Mexico, Bolivia, Paraguay) who, in turn, have sent it to a list of their supporters whom they have invited to be on their Home Team. (This is the letter used by Dallas and Tara Wiebe, who serve in Guadalajara, Mexico.) We share this letter to inform you on how Home Teams will assist EMC missionaries as they serve with EMC Missions in their country of service.
Would you have interest in being on a Home Team? Please consider this opportunity to consider becoming part of a missionary’s home team.
