BMH Editor's Blog

Vernon Harris With the Lord

Posted by Terry White on September 12, 2008  |  No Comments

The following e-mail was just received from Pastor Dan White of the York, PA, Grace Brethren Church, who is Vernon Harris’ nephew:

I just got off the phone with my Aunt Glyn who shared with me the inevitable news that Uncle Vernon (Harris) had entered into the presence of his Lord at approximately 1 am (Central), today, Friday, September 12, 2008. In the unquestionable timing of our Lord, it was on her 87th birthday. He had turned 87 back in April of this year.

Pastor Vernon J. Harris had come from a single parent family, being raised in the Yakima Valley of Washington State in pre-and post-depression years. He had excelled at sports and music as a young man. So much so that his high school football coach challenged him to “go collegiate” at Washington State University. Serendipitously, during those formative years, he met one Dr. Herman A Hoyt, whose impact upon him influenced his eventual decision to attend the fledgling Grace Theological Seminary following his undergraduate education.

He attended and graduated from both Moody Bible Institute and Wheaton College in Chicago and its environs. It was there during those undergraduate years that he met his wife, Glyndowyn, with whom he celebrated 65 years of marriage in August of this year. They were the parents of six children. Five of them survive. A son, Rudy, went to be with the Lord in October of 2007.

Pastor Harris served for some 54 years in the local church ministry of a variety of the churches of our fellowship: Clayton, OH; Portland, OR; Roanoke, VA; Akron (Fairlawn), OH; Philadelphia (First), PA; Lancaster (Rohrerstown), PA; and Lancaster (Southern Lancaster—now, GBC at Willow Valley), PA. Following retirement, he also served in associate roles at GBC of New Holland, PA, and Gateway Grace Community Church of Coatesville, PA.

In late 2002, he and his wife moved to Texas. In 2007, they moved to Longview, TX, where they have lived until now.

Among other ministries outside of the local church, Pastor Harris’s burden for souls led him to serve for a time on the Brethren Board of Evangelism.

He is survived by his wife, Glyn; children: Ron, Ramah Lee Stewart, Roy, Ruth Blake and Randy, who live in Texas, California, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Illinois, respectively. There are also grandchildren and great-grandchildren who mourn their loss at this time.

“A saint in glory stands” is written in the “subject line” of this e-mail with apologies to author Norman Rohrer and Alva J. McClain. Vernon James Harris was one of the generation who followed McClain from the small-town (First Brethren) church in Sunnyside, WA.

Vernon Harris was a man of God who finished well.

Sincerely,

Dan White (nephew)

Lost Dog Helps Missionaries Meet Neighbors

Posted by Terry White on September 12, 2008  |  No Comments

A lost dog is providing opportunity for Grace Brethren missionaries Kevin and Holly High to meet some of their new neighbors in northern Argentina. The Highs have recently moved to a new area, and the following is excerpted from one of their updates.

“We’ve been in the midst of a type of family crisis since last Friday night when our two boxer puppies, seven months old, escaped after dark from our home. They have been part of the family since March and are brother and sister, Spike and Samantha.

“In Argentina, this is something that both the police nor the SPCA helps with and the rule of finders-keepers is legal.

“On Monday, around lunchtime we recovered Samantha about five miles away in a dark mechanic’s shop inside the cab of a wrecked pickup truck. She was dehydrated and weak but is making a good recovery at home. It is a miracle of the direct intervention of God’s mighty hand that led us to find her.

“Please pray that God leads us to Spike and His awesome power would be demonstrated again to us and our Correntino friends. Every day we have been in the streets walking and distributing flyers offering a reward for his return. Truly it has been a good way to meet more neighbors and see more of our neighborhood, both the good and the bad areas.”

Je’Rod Cherry Talks About His Desire to Help Others

Posted by Liz Cutler Gates on September 12, 2008  |  No Comments

During Momentum East in late July, Je’Rod Cherry was moved to do something for the needy children around the world. By the end of the week, he and his wife, Samua, had committed to selling one of his most prized possessions — the ring he received as a team member of the Super Bowl-winning New England Patriots — and donate the proceeds to organizations such as Asia’s Hope and Feed My Starving Children.

Craig Snow Named CEO of Crop Insurance Firm

Posted by Terry White on September 11, 2008  |  No Comments

Silveus Insurance Group of Warsaw, Indiana, the nation’s leading crop insurance agency, has announced the promotion of Craig Snow (pictured) to Chief Executive Officer. In addition to overseeing all agency functions, Snow’s new responsibilities will include defining a new corporate structure and culture, focusing on future acquisitions, and setting the overall strategic direction of the agency.

Snow previously served as sales agent since 2006, selling crop insurance as well as property and casualty insurance. Prior to joining Silveus, he was employed by DePuy, Inc, a world leading orthopaedic company, where he served in various leadership positions.

“We are pleased that Craig has accepted the position of Chief Executive Officer,” stated Scott Silveus, president of Silveus Insurance Group. “We are confident our firm will continue to grow and prosper under Craig’s leadership.”

Snow holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from Grace College, Winona Lake, Indiana. Snow and his wife, Sherri, and their three children reside in Warsaw, Indiana.

He has served as councilman for the town of Winona Lake, Indiana and has also taught computer courses at Grace College and Ivy Tech Community College. The Snows are members of the Winona Lake (IN) Grace Brethren Church (Bruce Barlow, lead pastor), where they are are active in One Direction ABF and leaders of one of the First Impressions teams of the church.

Pastor Prays at Presidential Campaign Rally

Posted by Terry White on September 10, 2008  |  No Comments

Pastor Scott Distler of the Grace Brethren Church of Lititz, PA, offered the public prayer at the McCain/Palin presidential campaign rally in Lancaster, PA, on Tuesday of this week (Doug Kegarise photo).

To read more on the rally, which was held on the campus of Franklin & Marshall College and was attended by about 7,000 enthusiastic fans, click here. You can read Scott’s prayer by clicking here.

Unique Outreach Makes Front Page "News"

Posted by Liz Cutler Gates on September 10, 2008  |  No Comments

FGBC World Reports on National Conference

Posted by Liz Cutler Gates on September 9, 2008  |  No Comments

Six congregations were welcomed into the Fellowship of Grace Brethren Churches (FGBC) during the annual meeting of the Fellowship on July 31 in Tampa, Fla. It was the final session of a week that had focused on outreach and evangelism. Read more and see photos from the conference in the September-October issue of FGBC World, which is available at no charge at at your local church or see http://www.fgbcworld.com/.

Jamie Hoffman Begins Internship at BMH

Posted by Liz Cutler Gates on September 9, 2008  |  No Comments

Jamie Hoffman, a senior at Grace College, began working this week as the editorial intern at the Brethren Missionary Herald Company. A journalism major, she has worked on the college newspaper, the Sounding Board, and the yearbook, the Heritage. She has been published in Lines, the Grace College literary and art magazine and has worked as a writing lab assistant at the Grace College Learning Center. She is looking toward a career as a writer, possibly on magazines.

Jamie is from New Carrollton, Md. and is a member of the Grace Brethren Church at Lanham. Md. (Paul Mutchler, pastor).

Dan Beaver Talks About Football, Ministry

Posted by Liz Cutler Gates on September 9, 2008  |  No Comments

Tori Beaver reports that she and Dan had a memorable time at the University of Illinois Renaissance Celebration weekend. (See August 29, 2008 entry.) (The couple are global associates with Grace Brethren International Missions.) Dan was honored over the weekend among the top 10 football player for the University of Illinois. He was a place kicker from 1973 to 1976.

Click here to read more about the weekend and to see an interview with Dan. He not only talks about football, but shares about he and Tori’s ministry in the Philippines. (Look for a VIDEO link toward the end of the story. Dan’s interview begins about three minutes in.)

Momentum 2009 Planned for Robert Morris University

Posted by Liz Cutler Gates on September 8, 2008  |  No Comments

According to CE National’s web site, Momentum 2009 will be held at Robert Morris University at their campus outside of Pittsburgh, Pa.. The university is just minutes away from the Pittsburgh airport and is close to service opportunities in the Pittsburgh vicinity. The beautiful campus has air-conditioned dorms and great facilities for what will be accomplished during the week of conference. Sports facilities available to students on campus are basketball courts, tennis courts, soccer fields, a baseball diamond, a football stadium, and more.

In addition, the annual youth conference will be held one week earlier than previous years, beginning on Monday, July 13 and continuing through Sunday, July 19. This change has been widely supported by youth pastors who indicate that sports camps and school starts earlier each year, according to officials at CE National.

For more information, click here.

Authors Peugh, Schultz to Speak at Conference

Posted by Terry White on September 8, 2008  |  No Comments

Two BMH Books authors, Dr. Roger Peugh and Dr. Tammy Schultz of the Grace College & Seminary faculty, will be speaking at the Society for Christian Psychology Conference on September 19 in Chicago, Illinois. Their topic is “The Remarriage of Prayer and Counseling.”

Peugh and Schultz are the authors of Transformed in His Presence: The Need for Prayer in Counseling, which was published recently by BMH Books of Winona Lake, Indiana, and is available at www.bmhbooks.com and wherever Christian books are sold.

Kittannning Church Sponsors 5K run/walk

Posted by Terry White on September 8, 2008  |  No Comments

The West Kittanning (PA) Grace Brethren Church, Mark Cornwell, pastor, will host a “Brain Freeze” 5K Run/2.5-mile walk and 1/2 mile kid’s race on Sept. 20 beginning at 9 a.m.

All participants will receive a T-shirt and sundae compliments of Jordan’s Soft Serve. Kid’s race is $4, and adult race is $13 with registration before Saturday.

For entry form or questions, call the church at 724-543-4019.

Wooster GBC Youth Pastor Leads County Fair Worship

Posted by Liz Cutler Gates on September 8, 2008  |  No Comments

Today’s Wooster (Ohio) Daily Record reports on the large turn-out for the Sunday worship service at the Wayne County Fair, which opened on Saturday and continues through September 11. The service was led by Nick Cleveland, youth pastor at the Wooster Grace Brethren Church (Bob Fetterhoff, pastor).

So many people attended Sunday morning’s worship service in the coliseum at the Wayne County fairgrounds that pastor Nick Cleveland had a hard time finding his way to the podium.

“I had to walk all the way around (the coliseum) to get arranged,” he said. “I’m impressed to see all the generations (represented in the crowd).”

Cleveland is a high school youth pastor at Grace Brethren Church of Wooster, which took several of its youth to the fair to provide worship services for a crowd of more than 600.

To read the complete story, click here.

Je’Rod Cherry To Sell Super Bowl Ring to Raise Funds to Help Needy Children

Posted by Liz Cutler Gates on September 8, 2008  |  No Comments

Word of Je’Rod Cherry’s desire to sell his Super Bowl ring has made the “Inside Track” Column of the Boston Herald:

And that retired New England Patriot Je’Rod Cherry is auctioning off one of his most prized possessions – his Super Bowl XXXVI ring – to raise money for needy children. Word is, Je’Rod was inspired to sacrifice his bling after attending the annual Grace Brethren youth conference with wifey Samua and hearing about the suffering of children around the world. The ring represents the first Super Bowl victory for both the Patriots [team stats] and Cherry. Raffle tickets are just $2 each and can be purchased at www.netraffle.org. You’d be crazy not to buy a bunch . . . .

To read the entire column, click here.

To see the raffle for the Super Bowl ring, click here.

To learn more about JeRod and Samua Cherry and their desire to help raise funds for groups like Asia’s Hope, Feed My Starving Children, and others, click here.

Pearlington Responds to Hurricane Gustav

Posted by Liz Cutler Gates on September 5, 2008  |  No Comments

Bob Shoemaker, a member of the Grace Brethren Church in Canton, Ohio (Joe Cosentino, pastor) has followed hurricane recovery work at Pearlington, Miss. since the students at Momentum 2007 participated in rebuilding efforts there. In fact, he led a group from Canton to the area in January of this year. (Click here for more details about the trip.) He provides information about the area in the aftermath of Hurricane Gustav.

Although I have not heard directly from Pearlington, I have heard from Waveland and Hattiesburg. They are doing well and the only damage in Waveland is in the low lying areas. When I hear from Pearlington, I will send it on.

http://www.pearlington.blogspot.com/ (This is the blog of the Pearling Recovery and Resource Center.)

The link above has some great information and will keep you up-to-date on Pearlington.

One item of interest to the teens and volunteers who helped build homes in Pearlington… ALL HOUSES ON STILTS OK!!!

Exciting Updates From the Pygmy Forest Church

Posted by Terry White on September 4, 2008  |  No Comments

Barb Wooler, of Grace Brethren International Missions, has sent an exciting update on what’s happening in ministry with the Pygmies in southern Central African Republic and northern Congo region.

Barb reports, “Our goal for blanketing the forest with Christ followers and churches is coming into focus. The new church plant in the new region of the west (fruit of the AkaLand Expedition of 2004) is going great!

“The church planting team of two couples are enjoying their new ministry. Pastor Louis (in yellow shirt) and Francois (pictured next to Louis), both of whom you may have met during their USA visit of 2000, are seeing conversions on a regular basis. They have started a literacy class in their new church and will be sending a Ngenze man to Bible Institute!

“Back at Moale the church is doing well, but not without its struggles. They have been flooded by many people from the outside. The Moale church will be sending nine couples to Bible Institute this month! This is the culmination of many years of effort; when these couples return from their training we expect the work among the forest people to catapult into a new phase of growth and health!

“These added couples also present a wonderful opportunity for involvement by small groups, ABFs, or individuals.

“1 – We are looking for seven groups or individuals to help seven of these couples attend Bible Institute this year. The cost is $800 per couple per year. Since we are not sure if all the couples will survive the year, we are only asking for one year commitments. Interested? Please call me (Barb) at 574-453-6479 or email me at bwooler@gbim.org

“2 – Can’t help with financing sponsorship? You can still make a difference. These couples will need prayer as they adjust to life “on the outside,” out of the forest. This will be as foreign to them as moving to the moon would be for you and me!

Thanks for your partnership.”

Operation Barnabas Applications Due Nov. 19

Posted by Terry White on September 3, 2008  |  No Comments

CE National has announced that the deadline for applications to be part of next year’s Operation Barnabas high school teams is Wednesday, November 19.

The Operation Barnabas domestic teams travel within the United States helping churches with outreach, VBS programs, camps, physical improvement projects, and more.

The Operation Barnabas International team (OBI) has traveled in Brazil twice, the Philippines and Hawaii, Mexico City, Thailand and, most recently, Cameroon. Participants on OBI receive much of the same training as domestic OBers, but OBI has a special emphasis in cross-cultural ministry.

Further information and downloadable application forms are available by clicking here.

FGBC World Ready for Distribution

Posted by Liz Cutler Gates on September 2, 2008  |  No Comments

The September-October issue of FGBC World has been mailed to churches and subscribers. FGBC World is an all-Fellowship, all-Grace Brethren newspaper that is published six times a year. In its pages you will find stories about the Grace Brethren family around the world – from individuals who are on the front line of ministry to organizations that help impact lives for Jesus.

BMH Websites Get Facelift

Posted by Liz Cutler Gates on September 2, 2008  |  No Comments

Want to know what is happening in the Fellowship of Grace Brethren Churches? Need to order a book (or several) to use in your Bible study? Check out the two newly redesigned Brethren Missionary Herald websites – www.fgbcworld.com and http://www.bmhbooks.com/.

The fresh face of www.fgbcworld.com is the companion site for the bi-monthly FGBC World newspaper. It now includes regularly updated news and web-only features. You’ll also find a complete calendar of Grace Brethren events and an expanded Grace Brethren almanac that lists historical events.

This blog also may be easily accessed, but you’ll find so-much more – it’s the site for all things Grace Brethren.

At www.bmhbooks.com, you’ll find the new site searchable, with up-to-date bios and photos of BMH authors. You’ll also be able to follow the latest news about BMH Books – new releases, author appearances, and other information.

Bookmark these pages (or make one of them your homepage) so you can regularly visit them to learn more news about Grace Brethren churches and people or so you may easily order books by Grace Brethren authors.