Praying for Jack & Christine Brown's Daughter, Luisa

From AGBM president Joel Richards:

Urgent Prayer Request from Jack & Christine Brown at North Shore Bible Church in Essex MA.

Luisa is Jack and Christine's daughter. She will be 27 in August and lives in Florida.

She was hospitalized at the beginning of the month with extremely high temps and
acute pain. They determined that she had an enlarged spleen and pneumonia
(probably a result of the enlarged spleen, which caused difficulty breathing).
They have been trying to figure out what is going on ever since.

Luisa is having a bone marrow biopsy this morning.

The biopsy is to determine if she has Hodgkin's-lymphoma. They've already ruled out
leukemia.

Please join me in praying for her. Thank you for your faithful prayers!

Thom Rainer's Seven Mistakes in Ministry

This is an excerpt--to read the entire post, click here.

There are no “do overs” in life and ministry. But there are always opportunities to learn, correct, and improve. So I decided to share with you seven of the key mistakes I made as a senior pastor. Obviously, the list is not exhaustive. Seven just seemed to be a good, biblical number.

Seven for Starters

As I just began thinking about the mistakes I made as a pastor, I realized how gracious most church members were to me. And I realized how my family’s love for me is a total gift of grace. Here are the seven, but they are really just the beginning of many more.

1. I would spend more time in the Word and in prayer. I would follow the biblical pattern of the church leaders in Acts 6:4: “But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the preaching ministry" (HCSB).

2. I would give my family more time. No one remembers the church committee meetings I missed. My family still remembers those times I was too busy for them.

3. I would spend more time sharing my faith. Paul told the young pastor Timothy to do the work of an evangelist (2 Timothy 4:5). Those words apply to all pastors today.

Jan Brumbaugh Passes Licensure Exam

The Nor-Cal district held an examination on Tuesday, May 18, to examine Jan Brumbaugh for licensure to the ministry. Jan passed the exam. Jan is an elder at Tracy Grace Brethren, has a counseling practice at the church, and is a graduate of Grace College.

Signs of the Times!

To see how one Illinois pastor writes for the sign in front of his church building, click here.

1,500 Pastors Leaving Every Month

The following report appeared today on ChristianPost.com. This is an excerpt--to read the entire article, click here.

Falwell: Measurements of Success in Ministry Are Messed Up

By Lillian Kwon|Christian Post Reporter

Half of pastors would leave the ministry tomorrow if they could. Seventy percent are fighting depression and 90 percent can't cope with the challenge of ministry.

Those are the statistics Pastor Jonathan Falwell laid out to thousands of ministers who were in Lynchburg, Va., Tuesday for the "Refuel" conference.

The well-known pastor stated bluntly, "Something is wrong in ministry."

Citing surveys from such groups as Barna, LifeWay and Acts 29, Falwell lamented that 1,500 pastors walk away from ministry every month because of moral failure, burnout, conflict, discouragement or depression. He was also shocked to find that 80 percent of seminary and Bible school graduates will leave the ministry within their first five years.

Part of the problem, he indicated, is trying to make it to the big numbers and most influential lists or aiming for the most Twitter followers.

"I believe that we have self-imposed measurements of success that are skewed, that are wrong," said Falwell, pastor of Thomas Road Baptist Church – which is notably one of the largest churches in the country.

"The measurements of success are all messed up," he said.

Church-Planting in Medicine Hat, Alberta

Steve Mitchell Diagnosed With Leukemia--Prayers Appreciated

With his permission, we’re posting this health update from Steve Mitchell, who pastors the Garden City Grace Brethren Church in Roanoke, Virginia. Your prayers will be appreciated by the Mitchell family—updates will be posted as they become available. In the photo Steve Mitchell is at right. With him is his father, Dave Mitchell, who recently retired after pastoring in Hawaii for many years.

“The latest news as of a few days ago is this: I have chronic lymphositic leukemia (CLL) which has yet to be determined as to whether it is fast or slow moving.

“I have no viral elements of any kind from my work in India and so my wife and child are safe, praise God. BUT I am young (39) to have this level of leukemia. I will require treatment of some kind of chemotherapy in the near future but I do not know when.

“The doctor has estimated that, if aggressively treated, I may have 10-20 years left. Truthfully I hope the rapture happens before then. Feel free to share this info with whoever would want to pray and thank you so much.”

In Christ, Steve Mitchell

Roanoke Clearbrook Pastor's Wife With the Lord

Willa Dean McGuire Sink, 73, of Roanoke, Va., the wife of Pastor Paul Sink of the Clearbrook Grace Brethren Church, went to be with the Lord on Thursday, May 6, 2010.

She was born on July 6, 1936, to the late W. Hatcher McGuire Sr. and the late Bessie Amos McGuire. Also preceding her in death were her brothers, Jackie N., Bobby, and Jimmy McGuire.

She is survived by her husband of 57 years, the Rev. Paul W. Sink Sr.; son, Paul W. Sink Jr. and his wife, Reba, of Rocky Mount; grandson, Matthew P. Sink, of Roanoke; great-granddaughter, Kylee Ann Sink; and brother, W. Hatcher McGuire Jr. and his wife, Nellyce.

Willa was a faithful member and pianist for the Clearbrook Grace Brethren Church. She played keyboard for The Homeplace for the past 12 years and for L.O.A. at Loudon Avenue Christian Church for over 20 years. She will be greatly missed by her family and all who knew her but we rejoice in the fact we know where she is as II Corinthians 5:6-8 reads, "Absent from the body, present with the Lord."

Willa's visitation will be held at Clearbrook Grace Brethren Church on Monday, May 10, 2010, from 2 to 4 p.m. and from 6 to 8 p.m. Her funeral service will also be held in the church 11 a.m. on Tuesday, May 11, 2010, with the Rev. I.W. Sloan and the Rev. Leonard Martin officiating. Interment will follow in Franklin Memorial Park. Arrangements by Botetourt Funeral Home, Buchanan, Va., 540-254-3000.