February/March 2025

CENTRAL GULF COAST

CONNECTION

A WORD FROM PASTOR RYAN

These are good days to be CGC!

Jamie and I continue to find so much joy in traveling our great district and worshipping Jesus alongside you.

We had a great time at our CGC Ministers’ Christmas Banquet. We were reminded that we are to be the light of Christ in the darkest of places. Landmark’s Worship Team led us well in worship and Christmas songs.

We had a great turnout at Celebrate 2025! Our district is blessed by so many talented teens who have a heart for the Lord. WE ARE CGC!!!

We also had our very first Training and Equipping Weekend at River Region COTN. Dr. Tim Gaines was our speaker and did an amazing job. Many who were present are still talking about it. We interviewed 26 candidates, including 3 for ordination this year. Dr. Kevin Knight led us well as the Board of Ministry chair. While sitting in on many of the interviews, I was reminded that God is still calling, still equipping, and still preparing people for ministry. The CGC has a bright future! Congrats to Pastors Yolanda Cordon, Theo Cox, and Lou Reyes for being recognized for ordination at this year’s District Assembly.

Rev. Ryan Brown

District Superintendent

Churches in Transition:

East Brewton

Landmark

Please continue to be in prayer for both of these great churches as they seek the will of the Lord.

CGC MISSION

CGC VISION

MINISTERS' CHRISTMAS BANQUET

TRAINING & EQUIPPING WEEKEND

WITH CGC DISTRICT BOARD OF MINISTRY

UPCOMING TRAININGS

M25 CONFERENCE - FEB 2025 - KANSAS CITY, MO

M25 is a USA/Canada Regional quadrennial Nazarene conference focused entirely on evangelism. It will further the Regional Vision, our CoRe Strategy of the Cycle of Resurgence, and in particular our 2025 emphasis of Bringing People to Jesus. The agenda will include plenary speakers, break-out workshops, affinity group meetings and corporate worship times. Pastors, Lay Leaders, and Students will leave this conference encouraged, equipped, empowered and ready to engage in new ways of Bringing People to Jesus.

MARCH 20, 2025

IN-PERSON OR VIRTUAL OPTIONS

9:30 AM - 4:30 PM

Join other church leaders as we explore how secularity is affecting churches and how holiness enables us to engage with hope and vision in a secular age. Registration includes multiple sessions throughout the day and lunch. Lifelong learning credit is available. Register online at Pastors Day on the Hill.

In-person attendance - $50/ virtual attendance - $25

For more information on the Center for Wesleyan-Holiness Formation visit https://www.trevecca.edu/center-for-wesleyan-holiness-formation

NAZARENE BIBLE COLLEGE PARTNERSHIP

The CGC and Nazarene Bible College are Covenant Partners. This scholarship initiative offers huge benefits to our district students. These benefits include 50% tuition scholarships for English speaking students and 100% tuition scholarships for Spanish speaking students.

Our NBC Annual Offering is 1/10 of 1% of your annual church income. For more information visit https://nbc.edu/covenant/.

If you have not sent your annual offering, please do so at www.nbc.edu/give.

DISTRICT NEWS & REMINDERS

CHURCH PROOF OF INSURANCE & INCORPORATION PAPERS

The District Advisory Board requests that all churches provide proof of insurance, in addition to filing incorporation papers at the District Ministry Resource Center; unless your church has already done so.

AUDIT OF TREASURER'S BOOKS

Every church is advised to conduct an annual audit of the financial records of the treasurer(s) of the church. This includes the NYI, NDI, NMI, Nazarene childcare/schools, and any other financial records of the church as mandated in the Manual of the Church of the Nazarene.

District Finance Report and District Calendar

For Global Nazarene News visit the Nazarene Communications Network (NCN)

Nazarene Discipleship Ministries (NDI)

Brian Aaron, District NDI President

Children's Bible Quizzing News

Rev. Laura Kramer has been appointed as our new District Children’s Bible Quizzing Director. Pastor Laura has a passion for children to know the Word of God and a desire to see this ministry flourish on the CGC District, especially as a parent of children involved in quizzing. We want to extend a special word of thanks to Rev. Dr. Bill Hamby for his years of dedicated service and commitment to leading the ministry of Children’s Bible Quizzing.

February 22 – Quiz 4 (Columbiana) Dig Sites 16-20

March 8 – District Quiz (River Region) Dig Sites 1-20

April 25-26 – South Central Children’s Quiz (Atlanta, GA) Dig Sites 1-20

A Word from Pastor Laura, District Children's Quizzing Director:

I wonder sometimes if our time period will be known for how fast and easy we tried to make everything in our lives. Fast-food, two-day shipping, Microwave meals, and Insta-cart… these have all made our lives “easier.” As a working mom, it is easy to fall into the trap of going with what is easy. I work, yet I still have homework, laundry, cleaning, and cooking waiting when I get home. We can keep up the pace for so long before decisions have to be made. Over the last few years, instead of asking “What is easy?” I have started asking, “What is actually good for my family?”

UPCOMING EVENTS

THERE IS STILL TIME! REGISTER BY FEB 17

Contact Moneica Fowler for Details

251.269.3366 or mcfowler57@aol.com

WOMEN'S RETREAT REMINDERS

DISTRICT NDI CONVENTION 2025

The 2025 District NDI Convention will be one that you don’t want to miss!

From dynamic worship led by Rev. Sam Evans with a team of gifted vocalists and musicians on our district to our speaker, Dr. Jeff Stark, NDI Convention will be a time of worship, business, and teaching/preaching on how to live as faithful disciples of Christ. Dr. Stark is one of the Church of the Nazarene’s excellent teachers and preachers. From serving in a local church that grew exponentially in just a short time to his experience serving on staff at Olivet Nazarene University, he is well-known for his passion for reaching the lost through missional theology focusing on the intersection of Church and culture. Please make plans to attend and come with an expectation of what God is going to do through our time together.

MAY 14, 2025 - PENSACOLA FIRST CHURCH OF THE NAZARENE

Click Here to Read the Global NDI Newsletter!

Nazarene Missions International (NMI)

Diane Thompson, District NMI President

centralgulfcoast.org/cgc-nmi

FEBRUARY IS ALABASTER MONTH

NACA Nazarene Missions Trip

April 5-11

If you have been interested in getting involved in a stateside mission trip, now is your opportunity! CGC NMI has a trip planned to Arizona to the Native American Christian Academy to do some awesome things. We will build a chicken coop, put up a greenhouse, host a VBS for the elementary students and do repairs in the dorms. Call me for questions.

DOWNLOAD YOUR APPLICATION HERE

Deadline for the deposit is Feb. 15. Keep those applications coming in!

Diane Thompson

CGC District NMI President

Applications are also posted on the CGC website and CGC NMI Facebook page.

Global Week of Prayer

March 2-8

As the 2025 Global Week of Prayer approaches, NMI would like to invite the church to pray for the needs of our global churches and districts with requests from the regions.

DOWNLOAD PRAYER GUIDES for ADULTS and CHILDREN in multiple languages.

NEW Updated Crisis Care Kit Instructions

Nazarene Compassionate Ministries has made a slight change in the Crisis Care Kit packing list to include 7 medium sanitary pads. Please see the links below for complete instructions and details for packing. You will need 2.5-gallon size Ziploc bags to make everything fit nicely. Continue to prepare your boxes and hold on to them until we need them in disaster areas close to us, rather than shipping to the Global storage centers. We do ask that you send $12 per box to Central Gulf Coast Office in Prattville to help us deliver when needed.

NEW!

One page instruction sheet

in English and Spanish

STAY IN THE KNOW ... subscribe to:

Nazarene Youth International (NYI)

Rev. Susan Broadhead Sawyer, District NYI President

Follow us: Instagram @cgcnyi

Facebook @Central Gulf Coast NYI

CELEBRATE and TNT@TNU Updates

Celebrate 2025 was a blast and success. 62 Youth, 18 Adults, Refuge Band of 7, Pastor Chris as our speaker and his wife Katy put us close to 90 at Blue Lake Campground. We missed a few of our churches, but we look forward to seeing them next year!

Oops I did it again, we also had the awesome Jamie Brown and her husband Pastor Ryan Brown, our DS, visit us.

This was my first year as coordinator and I learned so much on what to do again and what to improve on next year. God was moving in the life of our youth over this weekend as Refuge led worship and Chris spoke about this year's theme, “Our Story.”

CGC NYI is super excited for TNT@TNU May 8 - 11, 2025!

Within a few months we will be Tennessee bound representing CGC NYI and CGC in general. Pray for each and everyone of our youth and leaders as prepare for this excursion.

Key Dates for TNT:

If you are a parent or adult who would like to attend, contact Theo Cox. You will be responsible for all the same due dates and fees as students, including completing a registration form and having it notarized. Your deposit of $200 is due February 24th.

All student participants/spectators and adults attending remaining balance of $90 per person is due by April 10th.

We do have some open categories and spots for TNT available first come first serve. Please contact Theo @ 615-450-3763 if interested.