November 2003
Page 1 - Nobody Ever Told Me by Jack Deere
Page 2 - A Tale of Three Countries by Paul Anderson
Page 3 - Stewardship Strategies For Effective Christian Giving by Orlando Logelin
Page 4 - The Not-So-Perfect Storm by Paul Anderson
A Tale of Three Countries
by Paul AndersonMy wife Karen and I just returned from a nine-day ministry trip to Europe. We sensed God's hand on our time with our European brothers and sisters.
Iceland: We went on a two-day retreat with one hundred members of Christ Church, an independent Lutheran church in the capitol city of Reykavik. The pastor, Fridrick Schram, is a solid, renewal-minded leader. Our connections with this congregation are growing. They are praying about affiliation with the Alliance of Renewal Churches (ARC) and establishing an MI (Master's Institute).
Latvia: A one-day conference, attended by sixty pastors and spouses, also had two archbishops present, both Lutheran Latvians. After nine trips as a "single man," Karen's presence confirmed that my stories were true. Martins and Gunta Irbe, Latvians born and raised in the States but now living in Latvia, are key people in helping with the rebuilding of a nation. It is a privilege to have a small part in its reconstruction. Janis Vanags, the archbishop in Riga, the capitol city of the Baltic country, thanked me for our renewing work among the pastors. He expressed gratitude for those who have supported this endeavor, especially The American Association of Lutheran Churches and Lutheran Renewal.
Finland: Some Finnish pastors are looking at their options to the state church system and saw the ARC as one good possibility. As I shared about MI, they saw this as a potential for raising up a new crop of young leaders. When Finnish pastor Markku Chovisto was healed of cancer, he began to see healing take place in his church. Now it has grown into a revival movement in the city of Nokia. Thousands have visited his warehouse-like structure. The hierarchy doesn't know how to deal with this movement. We need to pray for wisdom for Markku concerning his future. It is a key contact because of the potential of reaching into all of Scandinavia.
