Thanks for taking the time to check out our newsletter! There are lot of events happening in the Eastern Region this Fall.  To me that says our people are about doing Kingdom Work!  Hooray for the Victory!  Let's not let the Evil One get any foothold or spirit of discouragement amongst us!  Pray for each other, send encouraging notes, smile, or say to someone you don't know "Good Morning"!  Let the enemy be defeated!

 

The mailings have gone out both by USPS and on-line.  If you have not received any information, just go to the Eastern Regional Website or click on the Register Now link below.  

A Conference for Advent Christian Church Leaders

Sponsored by the

Eastern Regional Association

 

November 12-14, 2013

Alton Bay Christian Conference Center

Tuesday 1PM - Thursday 1PM

 

Registration to begin on-line, Monday September 30, 2013

 

Go DEEPER in your preaching!

 

Dr. Edwards is professor of preaching and leadership as well as Director of the Doctor of Ministry program at Talbot School of Theology of Biola University. 

 

Dr. Edwards' ambition is to change people's lives with the Word of God and equip others to do the same.  Known for his passion for preaching, he brings to the classroom more than 30 years of pastoral experience, both as a senior pastor and a church planter and currently serves as the founding/senior pastor of OASIS Community Church in Yorba Linda, California.   

 

In addition to ministering regularly at churches throughout the country, Dr. Edwards is a popular conference and seminar speaker and lectures internationally in academic settings.  Dr. Edwards previously served on the faculty of Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary.  He has published numerous articles and papers in the area of homiletics and is the author of two award-winning books:  "Effective First-Person Biblical Preaching" (Zondervan, 2005), and "Deep Preaching" (B&H, 2009).  Dr. Edwards serves on the Executive Board of the Association for Doctor of Ministry Education (ADME) and as Editor of their publication, "The Journal of Christian Ministry," and is the past president of the Evangelical Homiletics Society (EHS).  Contemporary issues in preaching, pastoral ministry concerns and leadership development are some of Edwards' professional interests.

 

Schedule   

Tue.   2-3:30        Session 1 - What is the 'Big Idea'? - how to find the main point of a 

                                             biblical passage

          4-5:30        Session 2 - How to sleep Saturday night - how you can know if 

                                             Sunday's sermon is going to work

          7-8:30        Time of worship and a sermon given - Narrative Story-Shaping sermon

 

Wed.   8:30-10     Session 3 - Understanding  God's Stories - how to interpret the stories 

                    of Scripture

         10:30-12      Session 4 - Digging into God's Stories - practicing 

           2-3:30       Session 5 - Digging Deeper into God's stories

            4-5:30      Session 6 - How to preach God's stories

            7-8:30       First-Person sermon Or Q&A session

 

Th.      8:30-10      Session 5 - Deep Preaching - Why Preachers Need the Holy Spirit

         10:30-12      Session 6 - Deep Preaching - How Preachers can work with the Holy Spirit

 

Registration to begin on-line, Monday, September 30, 2013 

  

Mission Opportunity

The Haverhill Advent Christian Church is sponsoring a mission's team to San Felipe, Mexico beginning the last day of February, 2014. The trip will most likely see us doing construction at the compound or a nearby orphanage. We just added an additional member to the team bringing our tally up to eight persons. Our goal is to have least ten persons which will allow us to take advantage of a round trip ticket to San Diego of just over $300. [The total trip is just under $1000.] You may want to consider joining us on this year's trip as we pray for at least two more of you.

 

I would like to ask for your prayer covering while we prepare our team for this ten day adventure. We are going to cooperate again with 99 Plus 1 Ministries which has a compound in the Baja. [5 hours from San Diego.] They regularly host work teams from the States. Some of the teams Pastor Jewett has led there in the past have actually helped build the dorms we will be staying in. It is possible there may be some more work on the dorms as part of what we will be doing on this trip.

 

Thanks for considering this assignment. If you are interested or feel lead to be a prayer partner or help sponsor a member of the team, please contact, Pastor Frank Jewett at either [email protected]

or by phone at (978) 374-8878                                  

 

Family Builders Ministries Presents . . .

From the Historical Files . . .

Berkshire Christian College's Adventual Library at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary in honor of Alton Bay's 150th anniversary.

 

Campmeetings are very common at the present day, much more so than a century ago.  It has been only about a hundred years since these open air religious gatherings received the name of campmeetings.  Then there were few and very far between.  Now they are scattered all over the country, and found among many denominations.  In their early history the campers gathered for devotion and wrestled mightily with God for the salvation of perishing men, and God was with them in wonderful power.  For their personal comfort they cared but little, sheltering themselves beneath cloth tents, agonizing for the salvation of lost men.  In later years as campmeetings increased, more care has been taken for personal comfort and ease; fine summer cottages have taken the places of cloth tents and these gatherings have come to be regarded by many as places for rest and recuperation from the toil and noise of city life.

 

In the summer of 1863, Brn. Charles Willey, Eld. Z. Boodey and Eld. J. G. Smith selected a site for an Advent campmeeting on the shore of Lake Winnipesaukee, at a place called Alton Bay at the southern extremity of the charming lake.  Having selected the spot, arrangements were made, and in August of that year the first meeting was held, arrangements were made, which lasted eight days.  Preachers were present at the meeting sounding the solemn note of alarm, who are now sleeping in their graves, awaiting the call of the Master to an unending life.  The first sermon preached at this meeting was by Eld. Albion Ross, from the second Psalm.  The second sermon by Eld. H. L. Hastings.  This was a very successful meeting, and so very prosperous that arrangements were made to hold another the following year.

 

At this first meeting there was only one wooden cottage on the ground except the preachers' stand; and the cloth tents were pitched wherever most convenient without much regard to regularity.  At the next meeting many of the campers found it less expensive to shelter themselves under wooden tents as cotton cloth had become extremely high on account of the Civil War.  And so year after year the cloth tents disappeared, the wooden ones taking their places.  As time rolled on and these meetings were held each succeeding year, these old, rude structures began to rot and rendered the place unhealthy so that more substantial buildings have taken their places, and now it looks more like a city in a forest. 

 

More than five hundred cottages on the different streets and avenues are quite closely packed together, and in the time of the general meeting, as a rule, all well occupied.  Broadway, as seen in the picture on this page, is the widest street on the ground, the others being comparatively narrow.  Some very fine residences are found on Beacon st. and Mt. Pleasant.  One passing among these buildings would hardly realize they were cottages of a campground, and less so if they were to enter them and note the conveniences for housekeeping.  At the other end of the ground may be found a very fine street gradually ascending until it reaches a beautiful, never-failing spring of water, which supplies the whole encampment.  On either side of this street, extending far up the hill are cottages arranged at convenient distances, good enough for a residence the entire year in any of our popular cities.  Every building spot, seemingly, on Broadway, Beacon St., Beacon Ave., Mt. Pleasant, Lake Ave., Lake Shore Ave., Concord Hill, Advent Circle, Manchester Ave., Bay Circle, Lawrence St., Market Sq., Bay St., Boutelle Ave., and some other streets is occupied by a cottage.  Only a few building spots are available, but when these are taken other streets will, doubtless, be opened up.

 

Besides these cottages there are two very large buildings, owned by the Campmeeting Association, one used as a lodging house, containing a goodly number of well-furnished rooms, rented to parties not owning cottages on the ground.  The lower story of the larger of the two buildings is occupied as a dining room and cooking department in which, during the meeting, perhaps thirty hands are employed.  The upper floors contain furnished rooms which are rented like the rooms in the lodging house.  Near this boarding house is another large building used as a store, owned and run by the association, in which are kept groceries, tin ware, crockery, and almost anything campers would be apt to need.  These articles are kept especially for the convenience of the thousands of campers who care for themselves while on the grounds.  A large amount of cooked food is also sold from this store.  From five to seven bushels of dry beans are sometimes cooked at one time, and none left to go into the waste barrel - all eaten at the tables and sold at the store to those who take food to their cottages.

The large building seen in the picture near the group of singers is the Secretary's office where we have spent many busy hours during the campmeetings in years gone by, but from which we are now relieved by a much more able and efficient man.  The lower story is used as an office for the Secretary and a place of meeting for the Board of Managers of thirty or more elected by the Campmeeting Association to transact the business of the campmeeting.  The two floors above contain free, furnished rooms for our ministers who have no cottages of their own on the ground; these ministers , of course, are expected to furnish their own sheets, pillow slips, towels, etc.  There is accommodation in the building to lodge about thirty persons where they are much more comfortably sheltered from than in former years, when they slept under canvass.  The association owns other rooms also for the ministers which have been recently fitted up, so they can furnish free rooms to about forty ministers.

 

Eld. William H. Mitchell, Editor of the World's Crisis

The World's Crisis, 1 Aug 1900, p. 1

 

 

From the Super

 

Highlights from August-September Ministry

 

I visited many camps over the summer and was able to minister and be a part of some great ministry.  Many decisions were made, some were baptized, and several felt called to ministry as a result of their time at camp.  Many thanks to all of you who volunteer and serve to keep these ministries going strong.

 

 

 

Children at Camp Washington

Camp Faithful

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On August 18th my family and I were able to attend the Northwood AC Church and follow them to a baptism down the road after the service.  Pastor Don Plumber baptized two ladies who had recently committed their lives to Christ.

 

 

 

 

Calvary Bible Church of Meredith held their annual Camp weekend at Mechanic Falls AC Campground.  With about 70 in attendance, they had a great time of fellowship and celebrating life in Christ!

 

Lauren & Missie Twitchell

Roger Brown, Greg Twitchell, & Matt Larkin (ACGC)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Westfield AC Church held a work day on Saturday, August 31 and over 20 people from 5 States and 7 different Churches showed up to help out.  Roof repairs, painting, and cleaning were all accomplished to help this church body maintain their building for ongoing Kingdom ministry in the Westfield community.  

 

 

 

 

On Saturday, September 7th Alton Bay Camp Meeting celebrated it's 150th Anniversary.  The Governor of New Hampshire, Margaret Wood Hassan, proclaimed the week of September 7-13 as Alton Bay Campmeeting Sesquicentennial Week.   There were various activities, music, food, historical displays, special services, and great fellowship throughout the day.  Praise God for His work on those grounds in winning many Souls for the Kingdom through faithful ministry!  May His work there continue till the day of his return.

Sam Warren, Ron Thomas & Greg Twitchell

Picnic on the grounds at the ABCA 150th Celebration

 

On September 6-7, we were blessed to have Sean Barber of the Antioch School come and share with us about "Church in the 1st Century".  After studying and learning together a different model for "doing Church" than what we currently use, we were able to ask a lot of tough questions about how this may be applied in new Church Plants as well as existing churches today.  The goal of the Convergence was to expose people to a different model for planting and to begin the conversation of planting.  As Superintendent, I believe that one of our greatest hinderances to planting is that we are comfortable with what we have and most of our Pastors have been inundated with the Mega model that "bigger is better".  Serious planting has not been on the radar for most of us if we are honest.  So how do we even begin moving in that direction?  By starting the conversation, asking tough questions, and studying together.  Thanks to Sean and those who attended, the process has begun!

 

 

At the close of the summer, I was able to say "good-bye" to our first Summer Ministry Team as we debriefed during a White water weekend in Jackman, Maine.  Devin Weems, Forrest Grant, Taylor Poli, and Lauren Purdy were a great team who will be long remembered!