Axe21′s public launch is scheduled for January and we hope to send some Terra people there to encourage them.

Dear supporters,

Yesterday we held our first Sunday service. It was incredibly encouraging for me to see everyone getting involved and helping out. When I entered the building where we have our kids program, to see all these people coming together and work as the body of Christ was beautiful and all I wanted to do was praise God for the work He’s doing in the lives of His children.

It was very encouraging to see all the different ministries unfolding, and every member doing its part.

Close to a 150 people showed up for this first Sunday, which was above our expectations and the atmosphere was very fun and pleasant. Everyone seemed to be having a good time.

We started out a series on called TRUTH, which aims at helping Christians re-establishing the truths of the Gospel and helping them build their lives on those truths. This past Sunday the emphasis was on the fact that GOD IS the source and judge of all truth, NOT ME. Next Sunday we’re dealing with the lies we believe about our identity and how we must replace those lies with the truths of our identity in Christ.

Pray that the Spirit of truth would guide us into all the truth and that our hearts will be inclined to want to hear and live according to the truth.

Thanks so much for your prayers.

We still have much work ahead of us, but we are very excited and looking forward to our public launch which should be held on the 30th of January.

We love you and are thankful to God for your partnership with us for the advancement of the Gospel in the province of Quebec!

Marc Pilon

Lead Pastor and Planter

www.axe21.org

This past Sunday, we continued in our Spiritual Discipline Series as we looked at the Stewardship of our Time and Money. (Listen to the teaching HERE). I put Terra Nova’s Stewardship Pastor, Paul Gordon, in front of a camera and asked him to share his heart on Financial Stewardship. This video was shown in the middle of the teaching on this topic yesterday.

Click here to view the embedded video.

I also asked Paul to pull together some statistics from Terra Nova Church’s giving patterns. I only had time to share a couple of them on Sunday during the teaching time, but here is the rest of what Paul’s research on the giving patterns at Terra Nova showed. I know that some of you are bored as soon as you hear the word “statistic”, while others eat this stuff up. If you would ever like to learn more about how Terra’s Finance Team works, how we do budgeting, auditing etc. don’t hesitate to email Paul Gordon.

Terra Nova specific stats::

63% OF HOUSEHOLDS SUPPORT TERRA FINANCIALLY

37% OF THE HOUSEHOLDS AT TERRA DO NOT GIVE.

Of these:
The top 10% of households comprise 53% of the operating budget.
The top 20% of households comprise 74% of the operating budget.

The top 10% of giving households comprise 42% of the operating budget.
The top 20% of giving households comprise 61% of the operating budget.

The average giving household gives about $2,500 per year    or   $48 per week   or   $215 per month.

The median giving household gives about $1,220 per year    or   $23 per week   or   $106 per month.

Stats from America in general::

·       70% of people in America live paycheck to paycheck.
- The Wall Street Journal

·       17% of Americans do not have enough savings to cover 1 week without a paycheck
- USA Today

·       The estimated average credit-card debt per US card-holding households is $9,312.
- Time Magazine

·       The personal savings rate in the US has now fallen to -2.2% – meaning people are spending more than they make — the lowest in 60 years.  – The Department of Commerce

·       The average American has 2.7 bank credit cards, 3.8 retail credit cards and 1.1 debit cards, for a total of 7.6 cards per cardholder.  – CardWeb.com

General Stats from American Churches::

·       Overspending: 40 percent of church members say they overspend monthly; also, 40 percent of church members pay more than $2,000 a year in interest, not including their mortgage.  – The United Methodist Foundation

·       Christian Wealth and World Poverty:  On average, American Christians enjoy an annual household income of $42,409, while 1.2 billion of the world’s poorest people must survive on $1 a day.  – Sider, Ronald. The Scandal of the Evangelical Conscience. Books and Culture

·       Giving Not a Priority: It is estimated that Christians worldwide have personal incomes totaling more than 16 trillion but give only 2 percent, to Christian causes.  – International Bulletin of Missionary Research

·       A Reachable Goal: “According to the Borgen Project, annual expenditures of $19 billion between now and 2015 could eliminate global starvation and malnutrition.  Another $12 billion per year over that same time period could provide education for every child on earth.  And an additional $15 billion each year could provide universal access to clean water and sanitation.”  – Stanford Social Innovation Review

Thanks to Brandon Balkenbush at Living Stones Church in Reno, NV for sending me these stats.

This Friday night is our next gallery opening. Show opens at 5PM and runs till 9PM. Our featured painter this month, Carole Warburton is showing her “Vanishing Barns” series. Why barns? In the early 1600’s the first farms were established in NY State. Farmers built timber barns using the styles and techniques they brought with them from Europe. Carole says “I have chosen Barns as a theme for my most recent group of paintings in the hopes of heightening awareness of their importance and the precious heritage they represent in New York State.”
Also on display is work by featured Photographer Ann Fantauzzi. She has captured the wildlife and culture of Namibia on recent visits to Africa. You won’t want to miss it. As always this gallery opening is in conjunction with TROY NIGHT OUT. Be sure to check out the map of other galleries and shops that are open.

Terra Nova Gallery annual Abolition/Injustice show September 24th thru October 27th.
The Gallery had a successful opening last month with photography by Gina Meola and an exhibit about child sex slavery by Bethany Marcelle. Gallery visitors came away from this event pensively; you are left with a sense of the world’s injustice in your gut and a desire to do something about it. Not often have I viewed art and been so moved. 
Responds Gina Meola when asked of her experience at the Gallery opening: “In my opinion, it isn’t so much the experience itself that matters, but what you take away from it and then do with it. This was an opportunity to push forward in my art, and share the core of why it was created – God’s call to love. I’m so grateful to Terra Nova for opening this door, and eagerly anticipate what lies ahead.”

New Show Friday October 30
Come join us for this month’s Terra Nova gallery opening on Friday October 30,  featuring photography by Ann Fantauzzi  titled Eyes to Namibia  and a painting collection by Carole Warburton titled Vanishing Barns.

Greetings to our family and friends at Terra Nova from Roman and Stephanie Jaquez.  We would like to start by saying that we are so blessed to have you all in our lives, and thankful for the opportunity to know you, and be known by you.

We are pleased to announce that we are organizing a group, in partnership with two local churches – King’s Chapel and Mountainview Evangelical Free Church – to go down to the Dominican Republic and serve.  We will be there for one week (February 13th, 2010 to February 20th, 2010) working on building a school in the village of Cotui.  While we are there, there will also be opportunities to interact with the community and share the gospel through a VBS style program.  This project is in association with a missions organization called Vision Trust whose mission is to develop orphaned and neglected children into mature Christians equipped to live in their own culture by enabling Christian nationals to meet the physical, educational, emotional and spiritual needs of these children.  Our project, The Grace School in Cotui, fits into this mission by providing education, meals, and medical care to the children of this small village where in most cases they would not have had access otherwise.  To date, the security wall has been built, and the foundation set, but there is still a lot of work to be done building this school.  The hope for this project is that it will have the same success as a similar project executed by Vision Trust in Herrera.  They built a school in this village initially to serve a small number of children which now serves 400+ children, is used as the church in the village, and provides clean drinking water and medical care to the community. The school in Herrera has become a beacon of light in the community, and turned many hearts to Christ.

As mentioned above, the trip will be from February 13th, 2010 through February 20th, 2010.  The approximate cost per person is $1,500 which will include flight, hotel, ground transportation and food. Right now we’re exploring some fundraising options both within Terra exclusively and in concert with King’s Chapel and Mountainview.  Our hope is that these efforts will reduce the cost per person in a meaningful way.  We will be holding an informational meeting at 409 on October 4th at noon.

It is our prayer that a team from Terra Nova could come together with the teams from King’s Chapel and Mountainview to work hard, and leave a lasting impression on this community.  If you would like any further information or are interested in traveling with us, please feel free to contact either of us.

Yours in Christ,

Román and Stephanie

About a year ago, Abbie Marcelle began begging her Spanish teacher to take the class on a mission trip. The teacher told her to pray, so she got a few friends together and started praying. This Thursday, April 9, Abbie and her sister Bethany, one of the two group leaders, will be heading off for a 10-day trip to minister to the people of Peten, Guatemala.

Abbie and Bethany will be joined by 6 adults and 31 other students, including one of Gerry and Ruth Henry’s daughters. The group will be living on a ranch in the jungles of Guatemala, where they will be serving children and traveling to schools and villages throughout the region.

In Guatemala there is little or no separation of church and state, so the team has been given full permission to share the gospel through skits, dances, testimonies, teaching, prayer, and by bringing much-needed school supplies, clothing, and medicine to the people. The team will visit a total of 19 schools, 12 villages, and one hospital over the course of 10 days. They also will present a Purity Pact, which they are expecting approximately 100 area girls to attend.

Please pray for the safety of the entire team as they travel throughout northern Guatemala. Pray for their hearts to be pure and focused, and that the Holy Spirit will work through them to bring the life-changing, life-saving message of hope, love, and forgiveness that only Jesus can offer. Pray also for protection spiritually and physically. They have extremely high expectations of what the Lord can do with willing hearts and hands. We ask you to join with us to see their efforts bear much fruit for the glory of God.

“For in You the orphan finds mercy”. (Hosea 14:3)

 

This is Hernan, Giovani, and Jonathan playing Matchbox cars at Casa de Ninos.  Giovani is making snow (more impressive on video than a still shot!)   I look at this picture and long to go all the way back there just to see and hug these boys again.  In July, Emily Armstrong, Christin Henry, and I stayed at Casa De Ninos, an Orphanage in Tepic, Mexico.  The trip was long and hard and expensive and the food beans, beans, and more beans, but the payoff was the children there – wonderful, delightful, and charming.  Hernan and Jonathan especially hungered for hugs and attention, delighting in us just being there. 

 

Perhaps most amazing is the peace and joy so abundant at the Casa.  Peace and joy, laughter and happiness, are not words one would naturally use to describe an Orphanage.  However, the Spirit of God is generously poured out on the staff and children here.  Even though we had expected this because of reports from those who have gone before us, to experience it in person was astounding nonetheless.  I continue to be so humbly grateful for all I saw the Lord doing there that it continues to renew and deepen my love and trust in Him.

 

We accomplished important things there – rehabbing an old classroom into a new Library and beginning to transform an unused space into what will immediately be a Prayer Room, and possibly a Church eventually.  While these things were valuable to us task-oriented Americans, I learned that playing cars in the dirt or just sitting and talking with the Staff to be most important.  As “not everything that counts can be counted”, it is hard to quantify the impact of our brief visit to the Casa where we loved the children and came alongside the amazing staff. 

 

The Casa has a Website (www.casadeninos.org) that includes pictures and a link to a brief video that will give you a good idea of what Casa de Ninos is all about.  If you feel the Lord calling you, “arise my beloved and come away”, consider Casa De Ninos in Tepic, Mexico.  Another trip is being planned for February.  Maybe I’ll see you there.   

see photos of Phil Tomkins summer HERE.

I am having a pretty amazing summer I wanted to let you all know about.  As some of you have heard, God has led me to Waxhaw,  North Carolina this summer to intern with the engineering department at Jaars.  Jaars is a division of Wycliffe Bible Translators, which provides technical and logistical support for missionaries.  One of the things they focus on the most is providing missionaries with aviation support.  That means flying people, supplies, and Bibles into remote landing strips in the middle of unreachable areas all over the world.

This summer I get to work with a wonderful man named Terry Heffield.  He is the research and development department of Jaars.  We are working on making improvements on the Pilatus PC-6′s that are flying in  Papua New Guinea and other places all over the world.  There are two main projects.

The first is reverse engineering the mud guard accessories.  These work like the mud flaps on your average truck, keep things from getting all over the plane and protect the prop from damage.  Unfortunately they cost as much as a small car when bought from the original manufacturer.  So we figure if we can make them ourselves, it will save us a lot of money.

The second one is the one I am even more excited about.  One of the accessories you can buy for the plane is a set of wing mounted fuel pods.  They look like bombs that hang under the wings and allow for longer flights.  What we heard from those using these planes in the field is that they love the pods, but would like to put stuff in them other than fuel.  Therefore, we are designing storage pods that are the same shape and strength as the fuel pods.  If we do that we don’t need to get them fully certified by the FAA, we only need to have them tested.

Anyway it’s really cool and fun to be doing actual engineering.  I love that this is what God has for me, and that this is where he put me.

I would really appreciate your prayers.  I always need prayer.  The PC-6 needs to be shipped out by the first few weeks in August.  There are still incredible amounts of work to be done and I don’t know how else but by Gods hands it will all get done.  Secondly, please pray for me as I struggle to learn more about engineering than I normally cover in months in the hours between when it is introduced to me and when I have to use it.   On that note I basically had to learn all of solidworks (a computer aided design program) in two days to keep up, which was crazy.   Lastly, as always, I need prayer for wisdom as I go back to Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute this summer.  I am always in need of help to handle the craziness of school.

Also I have some practical needs. I am a Jaars employee, so I am getting paid a little. The cost of living here and traveling will take up most of what I’m earning.  I am working here as a short-term missionary of Christ Jesus, and considering what God has for my future.  Please pray that he will provide for my needs.

[donate to Phil Tomkins by mailing checks to Terra Nova Church.]

Anyway I am glad that I have a great group of people who love and support me always in so many ways.  I thank you for all the support you have given me over the years and look forword to seeing you all again.

Thanks,

Philip Tompkins

A 4 am alarm, two thousand pounds of luggage, 5 chaperones and14 traveling teenagers, three flights followed by a three-hour cross-country ride sardined in 2 mini-vans, mattresses on the floor, beans for breakfast lunch and dinner, sporadic tepid showers and dust everywhere…what an adventure! This was our 9th visit to the Casa and each time is sweeter than the last. We don’t go for leisure or accommodations- we go for the kids, and know each one by name.

Casa de Ninos is a home for about 20 abandoned, abused and orphaned children ages 4-20 on a hillside suburb of the small city of Tepic, located between Puerto Vallarta and Guadalajara. Most of the children have a living parent who is an alcoholic or drug addict, in prison, a prostitute or abusive. Most of the children are there long-term and are not adoptable.  

Days are full, beginning with the breakfast bell at 7am. Team members work in the kitchen doing meal prep and clean-up, and occasionally catch a Mexican cooking class (we learned how to make tamales once!). The kitchen is always bustling with activity and conversation, samples and chores. With 3 daily meals for 40-60 people, there is lots of cooking. I advise team members that if they can’t find something to do, go to the kitchen!

There are always maintenance projects to tackle- walls to plaster and paint, concrete to repair and pour, plumbing, electrical and grounds-work create a never ending to-do list. Cleaning, childcare, sewing and organizing are ongoing activities. Part of our team training is understanding Mexican culture and de-programming the “chop, chop” New York attitude of multi-tasking productivity. It’s just not that way there. “Quizas” has become a favorite word in Spanish, meaning “maybe” and usually said with a shrug.

After lunch and homework, the team presents a Bible teaching and activity, and after that, the games begin! Staff, teams and older kids mix it up for competitive volleyball, soccer and basketball until supper. Many of these kids are at their best on the field and are very willing to show you a move or two that will put your athletic ego to shame. Younger ones are eager to engage in hand-clap games, puzzles, playground and sandbox play and crafts.

Casa de Ninos is a success story. A spirit of love, joy and wholeness transcends. Children are loved, counseled and cared for by Christian staff who provide a safe and consistent environment. Visitors must often remind themselves that these children have been broken, because they seem quite well-adjusted and happy. One group member summed it up when he said,

“Casa de Ninos is a place where God is restoring to these children what Satan has stolen from them.”

We are gauging interest in a July mission trip and we have some flexibility in scheduling. Additionally, we will be returning for February President’s week 2009. Cost ~ $1,200 pp inclusive. Email Ruth Henry for more information. 

Psalm 82:3-4 Defend the cause of the weak and fatherless; maintain the rights of the poor and oppressed. Rescue the weak and the needy; deliver them from the hand of the wicked.

 

When I first saw the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina on the news back in 2005, the social justice part of me was ready to drop everything to go down to the Gulf Coast to help out. Regretfully, I listened to the practical side of myself and decided that I shouldn’t skip the grad classes that I begun that semester. Why do the little things like school and earning a living get in the way?

Now, in 2008 I’m trying to make good on the conviction I felt back in 2005. It’s only our first day in Pearlington, MS and we’ve already helped a couple folks. We met Miss Henrietta, an 83 year-old lady who is almost ready to move into her new home. The only thing in her way is getting a fridge for the kitchen. So as a surprise we went shopping in Slidell and picked out one that we are going to install tomorrow. Then later that day we also began cleaning up her home in preparation for the big move.

I didn’t really know what to expect in Pearlington, but folks here are very happy to see the volunteers and are amazing positive despite the duration of being without their homes. That’s a personal quality that I’ve been trying to strive for. Being able to have an optimistic outlook even though circumstances are far from good. So in an effort to help others, I think there is going to be a number of things that we are all going to learn.

March 31, 2008 | Kathleen Claydon

Sister Rawls and Sister Mayola along with others in the congregation of the First Missionary Baptist Church of Pearlington have been preparing lunch for the volunteers and residents of the town for two and a half years. I had the privilege of spending the afternoon serving these gracious women.

Much food has to be prepared on one stove top and one oven. Macaroni and cheese, jambalaya, dirty rice, smoked sausage, red beans and rice. All hot and all ready by 11:30 am. Our group of four worked for a couple of hours getting things ready. Working quickly, rushing in our usual way.

Sister Rawls and Sister Mayola came in, things began to slow and the frenzied pace lessened. I have noticed that the pace of life is slow in the south. Many times during the day I had to slow down to let Sister Rawls catch up, to hear what was being said, to understand. My life, the frenzied pace, needs to become more southern…slower. I need to slow down to hear God, to understand. I need to learn to “be still and know.”

April 1, 2008 | Kate Bird

I got to hammer a nail today and it was fantastic! Kate Bird here everyone and boy did I have a grand Tuesday. I was part of a team that was assigned to clean debris from a yard at one of the sites. I personally love yard work so for me this project was perfect. My fellow teammates and I worked in the yard for a few hours and made a great improvement in the yard.

We had another wonderful lunch, which was a great time to hydrate, refuel, and prepare for the afternoon. I wasn’t exactly sure what was in store for me, but that’s what makes it exciting. A group of us were sent to a house that was built brand new after the storm. We were told that we would be working on the framing, which I had never done before, so I was pretty excited. I moved a lot of boards, hammered a lot of nails, and by the end of our times there, the frame of a wall had been constructed. It was perfect timing for a nice Mississippi rainstorm!

This is my first time doing work like this for someone other than my mother or other family members or friends. When I chose to come on the Mississippi trip, I wasn’t sure what to expect. I still don’t have any expectations and I think that has helped me truly appreciate what is happening. I have been able to use my skills and do what I enjoy doing to help others. The conversations and interactions with everyone here have also made this time interesting and very enjoyable. I’m excited to see what the rest of the week will bring!

April 2, 2008 | David Jenkins

I am part of a team of five that has been working on a house for a lady named Miss Dallie Dawsey. She has been gone all week due to an illness in the family, so it has been difficult to turn a porch into a four season living portion of the home without any input as to where walls need to go, or where she wants electricity.

When we arrived at Miss Dallie’s home, it was simple. All we had to do was frame in a few missing walls, put some new plywood on the floor and run wires. The situation quickly changed when I climbed under the back of the house and found years of neglected wood, rotten and destroyed by termites. Our 2 day job turned into a project that will extend long into our absence. We jacked the house up, fixed what we could, tore the floor out and re-framed it. While the home may look virtually the same as it did when we started, it now at least has a good foundation to stand on.

This whole remodeling process has been a great example of what faith really is. Miss Dallie, having never met any of us face to face, placed her faith in us to take care of her home. She blindly let us demolish a good portion of her home and has trusted us to take care of her needs. To see the way God is working in my team, and myself it truly amazing. I pray that I will take with me a small portion of the faith and gratefulness the people of this small town have.

April 3, 2008 | Judith Belt-Smith

An awesome, amazing trip! I had no idea what to expect, even on a daily basis. Each day was new and filled with lots of hard work. My days were spent framing and sawing windows, tiling and grouting floors. It was hard at times to keep a focus on the project at hand. Imagination is strong here…God is strong here. Our reward was a day in New Orleans. What a great day we all had – we listened as many people shared their stories. It is a slow process, a labor of love rebuilding. God can do anything –imagination comes from God.

April 4, 2008 | Luis Pestana

This is Friday evening April 4th, just about 6:30 PM. As I sit here in our large and airy breakfast and supper tent. It is Humid as usual and hot besides. A similar ending to an equally humid beginning though a bit cooler.

Thoughts of thankfulness surface for the break in the monotony of sleeping on a cot —- it was OK. Mine that is. On arrival my pod mate Ray picked out his. Old, delapidated, and creaking with every toss and turn of his body (I felt sorry for him”why Ray?” I thought to myself) I had forgotten the camp manager telling us to bring anything of concern to his attention or Jeremy, his assistant. By Tuesday evening I offered to swap cots with him (while he was hesitant he agreed). Upon swapping however, I found it to be unsafe to sleep on. You are brave Ray. I brought the matter to John (camp manager). “THERE IS ONE BY THE WASH TUBS” – I was informed, just set up for that exact purpose.
I was shocked, and immediately grateful (in the intent of the thoughts of your heart where we establish the recompense of blessing or cursing upon ourselves), that old assurance that God knows our needs and is able to provide even as we take the step of faith to ask and to seek.
Isn’t HE Wonderful ?
So, as I tap, tap away at this keyboard, our group is the the sole camp tenant. A Tornado watch given for the evening. Sal. from Brunswick on the barbecue grill. Cheese Burgers is on the menu. The other Groups from Nebraska Washington and Pennsylvania either returned or have gone to New Orleans for the day. They have done a terrific job of hosting the breakfast and supper when assigned.
I miss the PA group already. They left this morning, and though there were only four ladies, the zeal and spirit working through them is an inspiring and humbling desire . They were funny, serene, quiet, and instantaneously the distant relatives that you missed when absent.
The day advances though, and your family is still with you.

April 5, 2008 | Susannah Corey

How quickly a week goes! Today we finished our work here in Pearlington, recognizing how very large the task of rebuilding this town is in comparison to the tasks we have completed. A group of us finished tiling Mr. Quentin’s house and I probably speak for us all in saying that I wish we could have done so much more. I found myself constantly stretched in my own frailty (aching muscles I never knew I had, using a hammer and power tools with minimal hand-eye coordination, the heat, limited bathroom facilities, and BUGS, BUGS, BUGS!) but I am constantly reminded of God’s strength and power through it all.

I have heard so many people tell stories of heroism, loss, faith, and the slow process of moving on past it all and rebuilding more than just a house, an entire life. As is so often the case in missions, I find myself leaving this place with a sense that I did so little and gained so much through the experience.

I know that I will come home and my life will soon return to some state of normalcy while the people of Pearlington will continue to struggle with overwhelming loss, mess, lack of plumbing and electricity, and the bureaucracy and red-tape that surrounds the Katrina rebuilding efforts. I know that the stories I have heard here and that some of the memories I have made here will fade but my hope is that I will not forget God’s presence in the midst of it all. More than that, I hope that the people of Pearlington come to know that they are not alone, that no matter what small things we can do to help, God is bigger and stronger than Katrina and will continue to provide comfort and aid to them in this long process.