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"The start of a new year is a great time to evaluate and make plans for what is ahead. I pray that our congregations and ministry leadership will seek the Lord's leading as we take inventory of our ministries, make commitments to enhance them, and walk together as we mutually encourage each other to flourish."
In ECO, we have polity in place to help our congregations flourish. One of the parts of our polity that is often overlooked, states the following regarding presbytery duties..
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Read More
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| - A word from ECO Synod Executive, Dana Allin |
Are you ready? The 2018 ECO National Gathering is just 18 days away!
We are getting so excited to see all of you in Houston!
Have you:
- Registered? - Booked your room? - Booked your travel?
- Prepared your mind, your heart and your church for Renovation?
Then you are ready! Keep an eye on your inbox for last minute details a week before the gathering.
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Synod Business Meeting
2018 marks ECO's sixth year of existence, now made up of more than 370 churches and church plants. ECO's mission "to build flourishing churches that make disciples of Jesus Christ" continues to inform every decision and choice that the Synod Executive Council and Synod Staff are making to support and resource ECO churches.
Read More
- A word from
Executive Director of Ecclesiastical Support, Nate Dreesmann
Commissioner Packet
Commissioner Packet is live and available for download
here.
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National Gathering Pre-Conference:
Refugees in our Midst - Message from Jen Haddox, Director of Global Engagement
As we plan to gather in Houston for our National Gathering, we will be gathering in one of the most ethnically diverse cities in America. Houston is so diverse, there is no one racial majority. 30 out of 1,000 refugees coming to the U.S. are resettled in Houston because of its stable economy, housing market, and diversity.
In the year 2016, the United States resettled 84,995 refugees, many of them Christian minorities displaced from their homelands by war or persecution. This reality contributes to the astonishing fact that ethnic immigrant churches are the fastest growing evangelical churches in the United States! These refugees are neighbors and brothers and sisters in Christ.
How is God calling us to respond? This question is at the heart of Cindy Wu's ministry in Houston, and the topic of her book,
A Better Country: Embracing the Refugees in our Midst
. Cindy writes,
"Let us be radical in the way we fulfill the hospitality-driven, justice-laden mission of God."
Join us at the National Gathering in Houston to hear from Cindy Wu and other guests as we explore our call to embrace refugees with the love of Christ.
Monday, January 22 at 7:30 pm
Hilton Americas, Room 335B
This global engagement evening program is open to all National Gathering attendees.
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Trauma Healing
:
We live in a world of constant trauma - mass shootings, civil unrest, refugee crisis, massive hurricanes, earthquakes, raging forest fires and volcanic eruptions. Everyday it seems there's another traumatic
event of global proportion. How do we bring the Gospel of Hope to the victims near us and to those in the uttermost parts of the world?
Years ago Bible translators in Africa designed a Bible-based curriculum to help Christians minister to trauma victims in their local churches and communities. It has multiplied around the world, and to date it has been translated and adapted in nearly 200 languages so that over one million traumatized people have received Bible-based hope and healing in the languages they understand best.
This tremendous Scripture engagement tool is being used by churches in the US and around the world, as well as by faith-based organizations like the
Bible Society, the Outreach Foundation and World Renew, to bring Christ's healing to trauma victims. Some of those who have been trained are taking their local experience overseas to minister in cross-cultural contexts.
Trainings are available to equip churches to participate in this ministry. If your outreach and caring ministries are reaching out to refugees, victims of natural disasters, domestic abuse, and trafficking, we would like to connect you to this resource. These equipping sessions are given in Dallas a few times a year at the International Linguistics Center, and in Philadelphia at the American Bible Society. Trainers are also available to bring this training to you.
For more information contact:
Lori Kenfield, Trauma Healing Facilitator, SIL, (972) 213-3111,
[email protected] , or
KJ Kenfield, Mission Advocate, Presbytery of Texas, (972) 213-3090,
[email protected]
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Hurricane Harvey Relief Efforts at the National Gathering
:
In addition to helping distribute Hurricane Relief donations that have been received through the ECO national office, I am helping the Texas Presbytery coordinate volunteer opportunities for Hurricane Harvey relief efforts for the National Gathering January 22-25 and at other times. Several churches are already coordinating their own groups and individual volunteers to help through churches and ministries in the affected areas. Part of the 2018 National Gathering offering will continue to fund these efforts.
If you want to volunteer to help before or after January 22-25, or if you are looking for other ways to send volunteers or donations and don't know where to start you can contact me at
[email protected] or
[email protected], or you can call me at 972 213-3090.
I'm available to help you find ways to assist with the ongoing recovery efforts in the wake of Harvey. Thank you!
- KJ Kenfield
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- From World Renew on Hurricane Relief
:
Thank you to the ECO churches who have extended the compassion of Christ by donating over $115,000 to hurricane recovery and are planning to volunteer in 2018.
The hurricanes have left an incredible amount of damage, but your support repairs homes, and brings hope and love to those who have lost so much. Through World Renew, you are helping disaster survivors in Texas, Florida, and Puerto Rico for years to come. Thank you.
World Renew has created a "Ruby Slipper" campaign to help get hurricane victims back home.
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Free Tickets Available for Exponential East Conference!
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Exponential East is a conference for church planters, but many pastors and leaders who are seeking missional, congregational revitalization have found it extremely helpful.
The conference will take place at First Baptist Church in Orlando, Florida,Tuesday, February 27th at 12:30 pm through Thursday March 1st at
noon. ECO will be hosting a pre-conference with Alex Absalom on Tuesday
morning from 9 am to noon. Alex is one of the most successful practitioners helping new and established churches develop missional communities. To learn more about Alex go to:
http://dandelionresourcing.com/
ECO has purchased a large of block of tickets and have approximately
50 tickets remaining. Once the number of tickets fill up, we place all additional RSVPs on a waitlist.
Learn more about this Exponential event (agenda, speakers, etc):
Many ECO attendees will be staying at the Lake Buena Vista Resort Village and Spa.
Book your own rooms at:
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ECO PASTORS: For your eyes only!
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We are launching a Facebook group for ECO pastors and want YOU to be a part of it!
This is a closed group just for ECO pastors to connect, communicate with each other and ECO leadership, share ideas, prayer requests, frustrations, joys, and questions. It will also be used for ECO leaders to communicate pertinent information to our local church pastors and to remind you that we are here for you, we care about you, and we are listening to you. Join us!
Log onto Facebook and search for ECO Pastors under "Groups" or click
here.
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Garden City Church, Boston, MA
Brice Williams
and Ken Liu
are co-planters of Garden City Church, which exists to make followers of Jesus in Boston, MA.
Garden City Church seeks to be an agent of grace and advocate for the city by being a gospel-centered, culturally diverse, and faithfully-present community as it cultivates deep relationships with God and one another.
It's vision is to join God in the renewal of Boston where there has been an exponential growth of believers through the planting of new church communities in recent decades.
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Welcome New ECO Churches!
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Binnerri Presbyterian Church
Richardson, TX
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Dawson Presbyterian Church
Dawson, GA
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Congregational Resource to Read through the Bible in 2018
Thru the Bible Reading Guide is a list of daily Scripture readings to cover the entire Bible in one year. For over a decade, churches across the nation have used this guide to help their members make God's Word part of their everyday life.
The National Association of Evangelicals unique guide offers:
- Daily readings in general chronological order with Psalms on Sundays
- Compact design to fit inside even the smallest Bibles
- Packages of 50, 250, or 500 copies, discounted accordingly
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5638 Hollister Ave. Suite 200, Goleta, CA ยท 855.326.3268
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