Dear Pastor/Friends,

I want to congratulate our Cisco congregation on the appointment of their new pastor, Tyler Parson. Tyler has been their interim pastor and they are very excited about him becoming their shepherd.  He is a recent graduate of SNU and is the son of our Hamlin pastor and spouse, Rev. Jeff and Lindsey Parson.  

Susan and I traveled to Decatur this past Sunday to be with Pastor Manuel Rodriguez and his wife, Esther, at Jesucristo es el Camino Iglesia del Nazareno. What a blessing it was to be in Decatur again. Pastor Rodriguez and Esther have been instrumental in starting several churches on our district.  Currently they are active in the Hispanic congregation in Bowie, where he preaches each Sunday afternoon.
 
I want to offer special thanks and appreciation to Ana Carrier who accompanied us to Decatur as our interpreter. Ana also served as a Spanish/English interpreter for the General Assembly!  (Did you know she translates each issue of this newsletter into Spanish?)
 
It was great to see so many of you at the recent General Assembly. Here is a picture of our delegation, of which I was very proud.  We are especially proud of our NMI president, Cheryl Crouch who was elected to our denominational General Board as the one lay representative for the 10 districts on the SNU region. This is a great honor.  Congratulations!

Also, we elected two new General Superintendents, Drs. Fili Chambo and Carla Sunberg.  Dr. Chambo, who is the African regional director, has been helping us with our work/interest in South Sudan. Dr. Sunberg has been the president of NTS and will be in jurisdiction on our district beginning on August 1st. Incidentally, I was re-elected to the NTS board and will be traveling tho Kansas City next Wednesday as we prayerfully begin the search for a new seminary president.  Please join me in prayer for this.

Pastor Michael Gatkek of Amarillo African Church of the Nazarene and Pastor Todd Derbyshire of Fort Worth Crosspoint are in Ethiopia as I write this representing our district in support of Sudanese refugees in and near the refugee camp in Gambela. From what I've seen on Facebook, they are having a wonderful time. Please pray for their safety and for God's anointing of their ministry there.
 

Finally, our CRAVE youth camp was a major success!  Next week, Kidz Camp begins... I hope to be there for at least a couple of days.  Let's all pray for a great outpouring of God's Spirit upon the staff and kids who'll be at Arrowhead next week.

 
For you and with you,
 
Pastor David DownsTop

In This Issue


WOW 2017 will begin in 20 days! If you have not registered please do so soon! We are so excited about our breakout speakers this year! Let me introduce some of our many breakout sessions:

"God's Got You" by Lindsey Burton 
Seeking God through the troubling times rather than pulling away. Pressing into God when the trials are happening is so important and our eyes are opened to so much and the trial seems more bearable
.

Breakout Session - Back by popular demand
"Create a Toxin Free Home Using Essential Oils That Were Created by God"
by Bobbie Bradshaw
God gave us essential oils and told us in Ezekiel 47:12 and Revelation 22:2 that leaves were given to us for healing. In James 5, God tells us that if there is sick among us to call upon the elders of the church to anoint with oil and pray. In this class you will learn about the 11 oils of the bible that can create a toxin free home and makeover your medicine cabinet.

If you haven't registered yet, there's still time! CLICK HERE to open our registration page.

Sandra Porter
WOW Director


Our district treasurer, Dan Davisson, has prepared the WTD 2017-18 "Funding The Mission" report as of July 13, 2017. Pastors, please pay close attention to your church's contributions so far this year. Please make every effort to encourage your people to faithfully maintain their giving for others.






ACTIVATE Kids Camp, July 17-21, 2017

Important Notice : Camp check-in will start on Monday, July 17, at
3:00 P.M.
ACTIVATE Camp will end on Friday, July 21,
after breakfast.


****************************************************

Way to represent West Texas at World Quiz 2017!!! Special thanks to our amazing district quiz director, Chris Burkee. We appreciate all you do for our children!




Because Jesus Loves Kids!

Jennifer Sommers
WTD Children's Ministries Director




Your SDMI delegation just arrived back from the general Convention in Indianapolis. There were so many awesome services and seminars that we attended that it would be difficult to share it all. So  I have asked each of your delegates to share their favorite experience. In this edition, we will hear from Pastor Terry Porter from Borger First Church. 

Anticipating Great Things!

C. B. Glidden.
WTD SDMI Director



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How to Begin a Discipleship Path in Your Church

While at General Assembly, we had the opportunity to attend 6 different breakout sessions, one of which was led by Pastor Daryl Blanks, senior pastor at Springdale Nazarene Church in Springdale, Ohio.  His topic was "discipleship" and he began with a very introspective question, "What will a Christian look like if they spend 10 years in our church?" Discipleship should be the number one priority of what we are doing and we can back that statement up with the Apostles Paul's words to his favorite student in 2 Timothy 2:2, "You have heard me teach things that have been confirmed by many reliable witnesses. Now teach these truths to other trustworthy people who will be able to pass them on to others." The New Testament model of a disciple was someone with Jesus, to learn from Jesus, how to be like Jesus. The church's primary objective; invest in people who will invest in people.  That cannot and will not happen from a good sermon, it is a long process. The Springdale model uses 5 basic expectations,

1. Everyone is journeying with someone.
2. Everyone is reading The Bible.
3. Everyone is involved in the life of the church.
4. Everyone is serving someone.
5. Everyone is making disciples of Jesus Christ.
 
This material is available for you to download, adapt and personalize at snclife.org and follow the link, "connect" to "discipleship" and locate the PDF file under passages.

Pastor Terry Porter





The purpose of NMI is to mobilize the Church of the Nazarene in missions through praying, giving, educating, and engaging children and youth. NMI accomplishes this by doing many things including focusing on the Top 5 Areas of Impact for NMI in order to achieve our objectives and purpose. These are five things in which every church can participate regardless of their size, location, or language.

1. Top 5 Areas of Impact. Click here to access the PDF of the post card which was distributed during the Global NMI Convention in Indianapolis.

2. We Are NMI. Click here to access the We Are NMI video. Other videos will be posted in the next few weeks.

3. NMI 100th Anniversary Video. Click here to access the NMI 100th Anniversary video shown during the Global NMI Convention and in the Thursday night service.

4. What Is NMI? Video. Click here to access the What Is NMI? video shown during the Global NMI Convention.

5. Logo. Click here to access the new NMI logo, which is available in English, French, Korean, Spanish, and Portuguese. Click here to know more about our purpose, methods, and logo.



July focus: International Ministry, Bible Schools, and Seminaries

Our system of institutions includes 52 colleges, universities, and seminaries in 35 countries and is resolute in shaping Christlike disciples and servant-leaders for lifelong service and global impact. These Nazarene educational institutions around the world are training preachers, teachers, evangelists, nurses, and vocational and lay leaders. This education is essential to the success of evangelistic efforts. Please remember the students, faculty, and their staff in your prayers.

This is a great month to pray for "our" 2 classes of pastors from India! West Texas sponsored 12 graduates in Mid-Maharashtra and 13 graduates in Simla. All are currently serving as Nazarene pastors in rural India. West Texans sponsored their education and we want to continue to pray for them as they serve throughout their country!
 
July: Mail District Work & Witness Offering to District NMI Treasurer
Rev. Zack Smithson
500 Live Oak, Euless, TX  76040


Blessings,

Cheryl Crouch
WT NMI Director



Contact Susan McPherson at  westtexasworkwitness@gmail.com to Register!

Click on image to open PDF Flyer



Renovation Community is hosting their 4th annual Summer Feeding and Day Camp program. In previous years, over 300 kids were served. Many volunteers were recruited to help with the day's themes including career day, and c haracter building lessons as part of each day during chapel.

So far this year, they've had a great summer at Camp FUSE... But they are still looking for more youth groups to come help out! Help them by sharing this video to get the word out! Go to  campfuse.com/volunteering  to sign up!


Partner With Camp F.U.S.E.
Partner With Camp F.U.S.E.





July 17-21 - ACTIVATE Kids Camp, Arrowhead Camp & Retreat Center
August 3-5 - WOW Women's Conference, Wichita Falls
September - Alabaster Offering to GTS
September 1 - Children's Mission Project & LINKS offerings due to GTS
Sept. 17 - Oct. 4 - David & Erika Campos on Deputation
September 8 - Nazarene Nite at Six Flags
September 9 - District Children's Council Meeting, Fort Worth First
Sept. 26 - Oct. 3 - Pastors' Master's Plan trip to Cali, Colombia
October 9 - Pastor's Forum
October 9 - 11 - Youth Ministry Summit, SNU
October 13 - 14 - Senior Adult Retreat, Lubbock First
October 19 - 21 - Awakening Prayer Conference, Arlington
October 27-28 - Discovery Weekend
November - Thanksgiving Offering for World Evangelism Fund to GTS
Dec. 27 - Jan. 2 - Commission Unto Mexico

2018
January 19-21 - Shepherds'  Sabbath, Abilene, TX
February - Alabaster Offering to GTS
February - SNU College Days
February 4-18 - Rob & Cindy North (Kenya) on Deputation
February 22 - Vision Conference and District Assembly Planning Session
Feb. 23-25 - District Men's Retreat, Arrowhead Camp
March - Kids Fest
March - Extravaganza at SNU
March 2-4 - PK Retreat, SNU
March 12 - Annual Pastor's Report Due
March 17 - Arrowhead Camp Board of Directors Meeting
April 11-13 - Vision Conference & District Assembly, Fort Worth First


BIRTHDAYS AND ANNIVERSARIES OF OUR PASTORAL FAMILIES FOR THE MONTH OF JULY

7/1 Alan Wallace
7/1 Greg Key
7/1 Marvin Pepper
7/1 Moises Marquez
7/2 Dennis & Awilda Hayes
7/2 Gary Young
7/2 Mike Murphy
7/3 Cori Young
7/3 Katie Young
7/3 Gary & Cori Young
7/4 Eric DeLuna
7/4 Lamar Davidge
7/4 Todd Forest
7/5 Mary Jo Hodges
7/5 Dough & Becky Yates
7/6 Luri Thang
7/6 Michael Gatkek
7/7 Melissa Cisneros
7/8 Rafael Cordero
7/9 Yvette Alvarado
7/11 Micah Angel
7/11 Jairo Maldonado
7/12 Calvary Callender
7/12 Joshua Mora
7/12 Teresa DeLuna
7/13 Gaylord Hayes
7/15 John Lewis
7/15 Phil Patalano
7/16 Josh Cisneros
7/17 Bridget Benn
7/18 Greg & Debra Johnson
7/20 Ish Mora
7/21 Tom & Doris McNutt
7/22 Jim & Patsy Graham
7/22 Alex Marcoe
7/22 Sara Maldonado
7/23 Burnie Burnside
7/23 Olivia Monteblanco
7/24 Mark Banda
7/25 Sophia Boice
7/26 Al Mixon
7/26 Sabbatha Taylor
7/27 Julian Corpus
7/27 Jennifer Sommers
7/27 Dwayne & Debra Edwards
7/28 Katrina Martin
7/30 Audrey Derbyshire
7/30 Ted Taylor
7/31 Harvey & Kathy Basket
7/31 Tracy Ricenbaw