This Newsletter is produced by the Communication department of the London Seventh-day Adventist Church

Date Speaker/Facilitator Event/Theme Time

4 Alex Golovenko Preparing for Lord’s Supper 7 pm

6 Alex Golovenko SEDER Communion “Cup of Blessing” 7:30 pm

7 Alex Golovenko Resurrection Power 11 am

11 Kirmane Allen Focus on Prayer 7 pm

14 Glen DeSilva Men of God 11 am

14 Glen DeSilva Men’s Ministry Rally 2 pm

18 Jack Polihronov Answered Prayers 7 pm

21 Alex Golovenko Philadelphia Hospitality & House Churches 11 am

25 Ray Thompson Sounds of Silence 7 pm

28 Alex Golovenko Passionate Spirituality for Laodiceans 11 am

Schedule of events and speakers for APRIL 2012 London Seventh-day Adventist Church

805 Shelborne Street, London, ON

April 2012 Volume 8 Issue 4

The Ontario Conference launches the School of Evan-gelism for the Southern and Western regions at 3 loca-tions: Kitchener, Hamilton & London, rotating teachers, and allowing students to attend closest to home!

Cost of the 12 month long program is only $200, with sponsorship available from the local churches.

The registration deadline is April 15, 2012. Two tracks are available – Lay Evangelism and Creden-

tialed lay Preacher. Classes will begin on April 22 and will continue until

official graduation June 29, 2013 at the Campmeeting.

Bible Doctrines Church History Homiletics How to give Bible Studies Hermeneutics Understanding Ellen White Understanding Secular Mind Addressing world religions Preaching practicum Classes offered for students in 12 sessions during the

year. Be equipped to serve!

Conference training events

Come celebrate Seder with us! First annual Communion Service

Upper room style, with footwashing, Experience dynamics of Jewish Passover with new Messianic meaning

Friday, April 6, 2012

Month of March had seen flurry of

reactions on Dan Jackson’s retraction

letter and his apology to the General

Conference leadership for overstepping

the constitution by advocating for

women being allowed in top leadership

positions, to serve as Presidents of Con-

ferences and Unions.

General Conference consists of 13

Divisions or Regions overseeing the

work in different parts of the world.

These “divisions” do not have their own

separate constitution and independent

policies, but are integral part of the Gen-

eral Conference. Dan Jackson serves as

the president of the North American Di-

vision, and is a member of the General

Conference Executive team, and the Di-

vision has no right to vote independ-

ently.

However, local Unions and Confer-

ences of churches have the power of

decision making as self-determining and

autonomous bodies.

First reaction on Jackson’s letter of

January 31, 2012 took place at the meet-

ing of the Mid-America Union Confer-

ence Executive Committee, where mem-

bers voted to ordain women on March 8.

The meeting was regularly scheduled

but the action taken was not originally

on the agenda, says the President Tho-

mas Lemon.

The Executive Committee felt that

the issue of women in leadership will

never be solved until we ordain women.

35 members representing 6 conferences

were present and all voted unanimously

to support the ordination of women in

the Mid-America Union.

A week later, on March 15 the Pa-

cific Union Conference executive com-

mittee reaffirmed their strong commit-

ment to the ordination of women. The

committee decided to put specific ac-

tions in place at their next meeting on

May 9. Meanwhile, union administrators

will work with local conference admin-

istrators to develop proposals for spe-

cific actions.

These actions were taken to affirm

the priesthood of all believers, includ-

ing women, in regards to the call to gos-

pel ministry.

March 20, the Columbia Union Ex-

ecutive Committee passed the following

action: “Whereas the North American

Division (NAD) Leadership has encour-

aged each union to be intentional in af-

firming women in ministry, we vote to

establish an AdHoc Committee to study

the issue of women in ministry and rec-

ommend to the Columbia Union Execu-

tive Committee how we can be inten-

tional in affirming women in ministry. In

addition, we vote to affirm our previous

action requesting the NAD to grant us

permission to ordain women in minis-

try.”

On March 22 the Executive Commit-

tee of the Southeastern California

Conference voted “to remove the term

‘Ordained-Commissioned’ and replace it

with the term ‘Ordained’ on all ministe-

rial credentials, regardless of the gender

of the credential holder” effective imme-

diately.

The movement continues as on

March 27, the Potomac Conference

became the fifth North American Divi-

sion entity to vote unanimously “to re-

quest the Potomac Conference Standing

Articles & Bylaws committee to begin a

review process of its bylaws that would

enable us to ordain women.”

This latest action was added to the

earlier one taken in January 2011, when

the committee "voted, that regardless of

gender, each qualified candidate for pas-

toral ministry should receive ordina-

tion….We will make this request at each

Columbia Union Executive Committee

until permission is granted."

While these actions are taking place

there is another call to consider the the-

ology of this issue. Back in 2010 our

church leadership admitted that we do

not have the Theology of Ordination and

the Biblical Research Institute is given

the task to study Biblical perspectives on

the matter of ordination.

On March 12 the editor of Adventist

Today, pastor J. David Newman, repub-

lished his original article

from winter 2009 edition

under title “Why Men

Should Not Be Or-

dained.”

He is working on PhD

dissertation titled “How

the Adventist Practice of

Ordination Came from

the Catholic Church and Not from the

New Testament.” His studies trace the

three-tiered ordination system our de-

nomination follows currently, which

emerged from our Methodist roots origi-

nating in the Anglican church, and the

Lutheran church, back to the Catholic

Church. Faithful to the Adventist heri-

tage all our praxis should be based on

the Bible, and not traditions.

Could it be that the current argument

in the Adventist Church over whether or

not women can be ordained is asking the

wrong question? Maybe the real ques-

tion should be “Why should men be or-

dained beyond eldership?”

Roman Catholic Church has three-

tiered leadership, deacon, priest, bishop.

Whereas Biblical model has only dea-

cons and elders, outlining responsibility

of elders as that of pastoral nurture and

bishopric oversight. Elders are pastors

and bishops!

Doctrine of Spiritual gifts teaches

that God gives gifts for service to all

without respect to race or gender, in-

cluding those of evangelist, prophet,

teacher, and pastor. Let’s embrace the

Priesthood of ALL believers!

You have seen her on 3ABN television hosting her show “Celebrating life in

Recovery.” It is a series on recovery – not just from drugs and alcohol – but what-

ever people are hurting from. Recovery issues covered include pornography and

sexual addictions, eating disorders, rage, depression, perfectionism, workaholism. Author of a book “Miracle from the Streets,” she has experienced herself deliverance

by God Who loves us. She says God has put a burden on her to help people of all ages

who have lost sight of the meaning of love in their lives, and have accepted the delusions

of Satan. For this reason True Step Ministries, Inc. exists.

It all got started while she was sitting in church and someone asked her if she would

share her testimony on how she came to know God. At first hesitant she shared with the

congregation how she came to know our Savior. After that more requests to hear her story

came. She was surprised, “why would anyone want to hear the lurid details of my past?”

Then she realized, it was not those awful experiences that people were focusing on, it was

the testimony of the power of God to reach down to those whom Satan had chained to his

will, and God had set free.

Join us in spreading the healing and saving word of the Gospel. More details will be

communicated in posters and bulletins, as she would minister in different setting at our

city night after night.

Learn more about her ministry at http://truestep.org/

May 5-12, 2012

Meet

Chuck

Burkeen

June 1-3,

2012

Maple Grove Christian

Retreat Centre Methodist Campsite,

Pioneer Village

Western Ontario Men’s Retreat

Chuck has served as pastor of several churches in Oregon,

and was an Associate Director in the Oregon Conference Min-

isterial Department. His current position is Director of the

Member Ministry Department in the Oregon Conference.

Chuck wrote the book A Place for Us Guys and has written

articles for several Adventist publications, including a regular

column for Renewed and Ready Magazine.

His passion is to engage men and guys in taking responsibil-

ity for personal spirituality, for their family and for mentoring

the new generation of boys to be men.

The cost of the retreat is $70 per person, including lodging

and meals. For families, father-son teams, we offer a reduced

rate.

For details and registration speak to Gord Rayner.

519-472-6066

gord.rayner@sympatico.ca

Canadian Union of Seventh-day Adventist

Churches President Mark Johnson

Visit with Western Ontario Churches

London, May 26, 2012 Sir Wilfrid Laurier Secondary School

450 Millbank Drive

The president will speak at two sessions, at 11 am for the Worship Hour, and then after fellowship lunch at 2 pm, sharing the Vision for reaching and serving community. A time for questions and dialogue will be provided at 3:30 pm.

Johnson, 61, was appointed to fill vacancy left by

Dan Jackson moving to serve as the Division presi-dent for North America, and then was re-elected by Canadian constituency in 2011 to lead 356 churches with membership of 62,817.

Plan to spend the day interacting with fellow be-

lievers from neighbouring churches and our national church leadership.

Country Population Adventists Prayer needs & challenges faced by people

1 Kazakhstan 15,753,460 3,360 Predominantly Muslim country, Christianity is declining as Europeans emigrate and Kazakhs return

2 Kenya 40,862,900 620,520

Nairobi is 80% Christian but only 12% goes to church, pray for revival of spirituality among people

3 Pastoralist animistic tribes (Massai among them) to be evangelised, pray for Muslim Arabic people

4 Kiribati 99,547 2,225 3 archipelagos, formerly protestant are losing to Baha’i, Mormons & Catholics, pray for revival

5 North Korea 23,990,703 866 Pray for religious freedom, majority never heard about Jesus, people are dying of starvation

6 South Korea 48,500,717

Fastest growing Christian church in Asia, problems with spiritual pride, divisions & leadership 224,450

7 Less evangelized groups where shamanism is resurgent, youth is becoming more secularized

8 Kosovo 2,084,224 NONE! Predominantly Muslim, large financial support from Saudi Arabia and Iran, lacks Christian witness

9 Kuwait 3,050,744 167 Affluence, materialism lead to godless values, Christian media is the main outreach tool

10 Kyrgyzstan 5,550,239 1,096 Poorest and smallest central Asian country, predominantly Muslim, Christian community shrinks

11 Lebanon 4,254,583 389 Christian community dropped from 65% to 30% population, Orthodox obstruct Protestant growth

12 Latvia 2,240,265 3,983 Reconciliation between Russian minority and Latvian nationals, Church needs mission and vision

13 Laos 6,436,093 1,914 Church suffered much after Communist takeover, Christians are less than 2%, pray for unity

14 Liberia 4,101,767 26,739 Recovery from civil war, from compromised Christianity by freemasonry, help for children of war

15 Lesotho 2,084,182 6,806 An “island” mountainous nation within the South Africa, Christians are nominal & syncretistic

16 Liechtenstein 36,190 NONE! Entirely Catholic nation emerged from feudalism to become banking centre, need Reformation

17 Lithuania 3,255,324 859 About 70% Catholic, the rest a non-religious as result of Soviet domination, recovery from atheism

18 Libya 6,545,619 72 Recovery from the recent tyranny of Qaddafi and civil war, for emergence of good leadership

19 Luxembourg 491,772 77 Catholic nation, with only few foreigners being Protestant, translation of Bible to native language

20 Macedonia 2,043,360 587 Ethnic diversity challenges, 30% Albanians, quarter are Muslim, outreach to Roma Gypsies

21 Malaysia 27,913,990 50,569 60% muslim, it is illegal to witness to Muslims, pray for constitutional religious freedom to stay

22 Malawi 15,691,784 305,090 Growth of Islam, 90% of Yao people converted, AIDS epidemic, youth outreach is much needed

23 Madagascar 20,146,442 108,066 Current freedom of religion after years of Marxism is contributing to growth among evangelicals

24 Maldives 313,920 NONE! Global warming and rising sea levels threaten existence of these 1200 coral reef islands

25 Mali 13,323,104 1,570 87% Muslim, pray for Christian growth, Sahel ecological crisis opens doors to missionaries

26 Malta 409,999 27 First to learn Christianity from Apostle Paul, no Protestants until 1964, influx of African Muslims

27 Martinique 406,001 14,724 French Caribbean island, Adventists are the second largest religious group, pray for integrity

28 Moldova 3,575,574 11,079 conflicts with Gagauz turks, Transnistrian separatists, and Communists disturb church growth

29 Mauritius 1,294,569 4,555 Major Hindu-ization of government challenges Christian growth. older Catholic churches decline

30 Mayotte 199,065 56 Predominantly Muslim island north of Madagascar, protestant witness is new and only beginning.

In a half a year since October 2011 we prayed for 106

countries where 64% of world population live. We con-

tinue praying and growing in knowledge of the vast mis-

sion field—the whole world yet to be reached for Christ.

This month we will pray for 28 countries with 3.6% of

world population, with significant Adventist presence in

Africa and small presence in Europe and Middle East.

Three of these countries have no Adventist presence at all.

We invite you to research and read more about coun-

tries you pray for. Take time and befriend someone at your

workplace, or school from countries you are praying for.

This is the intent of our One Year Challenge—to be

changed and to become agents of Change in this world.

We pray for the “ends of the earth” as we anticipate the

end of Cosmic battle between good and evil. Your Prayer

interferes with the disorder of this world!