news from emmanuel baptist church, san...
TRANSCRIPT
Birthdays are important as
they are a time to recognize
the value of the individual as
well as to give thanks to God
for his or her life.
Here in El Salvador, we
celebrate the “birthdays” of
churches by celebrating the
anniversary of the founding
of the church.
This is an important event as
it is a way to affirm our faith
and vision, and to give thanks
to God for His care and
p r o v i s i o n f o r t h e
congregation.
At Emmanuel,
we celebrated our
49th anniversary
throughout the
month of June,
with a special
dinner being held
on June 6, the
anniversary date
of the founding
of the church.
The church was decorated
festively with colorful
balloons and
whi t e paper
doves.
C o n g r e g a t i o n
m e m b e r s
brought in the
piggy banks that
h a d b e e n
distributed in
early May for the
collection of
coins for a
special offering. Special
letters of congratulation
were received from
members living outside of
the country in the United
States and Europe.
We honored the founders
of the church, Zoilita y
Víctor Flores, and
Margarita y Virgilio
Méndez. Guest speakers,
Ismael Mendoza and Ana
Silvia Gómez preached on
Emmanuel Celebrates 49th Anniversary
" When he saw the crowds,
he had compassion on
them, because they were
harassed and helpless, like
sheep without a shepherd."
Matthew 9:36
The families in our mission
communities are part of the
large majority of poor
people in this country.
They are challenged by poor
health and nutrition,
unemployment and low
levels of education, and an
inability to meet basic
needs.
While the poorest 20% of
the population own just
3.8% of the nation’s wealth,
(continued on page 3)
49th Anniversary Pastoral Statement Summary Sunday, June 16, 2013
Giving the Gift of Education
2
Short Term Missions Teams Visit Emmanuel
2
Inside this issue:
Did you know?
El Salvador is home
to 22 volcanos, 6 of which are active.
The San Miguel
volcano last erupted in 1976. It has a crater more than 1,000 ft. deep.
In the book "The
Little Prince", the rose of the history is Salvadoran Consuelo Suncín, wife of Antoine de Saint-Exupery.
El Salvador is the
world's largest exporter of live iguanas.
La Cosecha † The Harvest News from Emmanuel Baptist Church,
San Salvador, El Salvador
August 2013
Elder Maria García Gives Words of Wisdom
regular reports on the
progress of their child.
In El Salvador, the gift of
an education changes the
lives of poor children,
bringing opportunities for
employment that they
would not otherwise have.
You may want to
consider sponsoring a
child. Your support will
have a lasting effect on a
child´s future and that
of his or her family.
Giving the Gift of Education
Members of Swiss United
Church in New Glarus,
Wisconsin and other
churches and individuals
have been giving the gift of
education to poor children
for many years through the
IBE Scholarship Program.
The program supports 145
poor children in urban and
rural settings by providing
school supplies and fees,
so that they can receive an
education. Sponsors who
support a child receive
P a g e 2 L a C o s e c h a † T h e H a r v e s t A u g u s t , 2 0 1 3
If you are interested in giving the gift of
education, please contact Lidia Mendez :
Photos courtesy of Jake Oelke
Short-Term Mission Teams Visit Emmanuel Emmanuel was blessed with
the presence of two
delegations in July and
August. A team of 16 people
from Central Presbyterian
Church in Baltimore came to
assist with building a youth
center for one of the IBE
mission churches.
We also received a **
member team from Watt’s
Street Baptist Church in
Durham, North Carolina
who worked to restore the
school facilities, and Cal
Pipil. These teams put in a
great deal of hard labor
during their time in El
Salvador!
Yet we know that the
greatest value in receiving
delegations is found in the
building of relationships
between Christian brothers
and sisters from around the
world.
Mike Pettengill lists the
positives aspects of these
visits in a blog article on The
Gospel Coalition website:
Christianity is a
global fellowship.
Christ calls us regardless
of age, race, gender,
ethnicity. or socio-
economic status. Short-
term missions allows
those serving and those
being served to see they
have brothers and sisters
throughout the globe.
Believers can give
and receive love.
Emmanuel’s Anniversary (continued)
49th Anniversary Pastoral Statement (continued)
the theme, “Called to be a
community which witnesses
to the Kingdom of God.”
Ana Silvia urged the
congregation to witness in
every situation, quoting St.
Francis of Assisi’s well-
known statement, “Preach
the Gospel at all times, and
when necessary, use words.”
She reminded us that we are
not alone when we preach
the Gospel – the Holy Spirit
is always with us, doing the
work of the Gospel through
us.
On June 16, we were
privileged to witness the
baptism of 6 new believers.
Each was presented with a
Bible , purchased by
different study groups
within the congregation.
broader society they
experience marginalization
and exclusion, the good
news is that every man,
woman, young person, and
family, each one has been
called to receive the
salvation and freedom that
God offers in Christ the
Lord. Jesus’ vision is "that all
may have life and have it
abundantly" John 10:10.
The Gospel calls all people
to a new and free life in
Christ Jesus.
What does it mean to heal
the brokenhearted?
It means restoration, the
redeeming plan of God who
i s e s s e n t i a l l y t h e
RESTORER. It means the
healing of mind, body, and
spirit; the elimination of
inequality and injustice that
cause physical, emotional,
mental and spiritual pain.
It means reconciliation. We
believe that God offers full
restoration of our lives in
Jesus Christ, to participate
in the reconcil iation
between all people, and the
reconciliation of our society
with God. We proclaim
God's restorative love in
Jesus Christ, by whose grace
our pains and sorrows have
been cured in the wounds of
the Redeemer.
What does it mean to give
sight to the blind in our
time?
the richest 20% own nearly
53%. This situation of
injustice and sin is an
abomination God’s eyes.
In Luke 4:16-21, Jesus says:
"The Spirit of the Lord is on me,
because he has anointed me to
proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim
freedom for the prisoners and
recovery of sight for the blind, to
set the oppressed free, to proclaim
the year of the Lord’s favor".
What does it mean today
to announce the good
news to the poor?
First and foremost it means
to claim the value of human
dignity of each sister and
brother in these mission
communities. While in the
What does it mean
today to announce
the good news to
the poor?
P a g e 3 L a C o s e c h a † T h e H a r v e s t A u g u s t , 2 0 1 3
IBE Anniversary Cake
IBE Youth at the Anniversary
Dinner
A New Believer is Baptized
Next year we will be
celebrating the 50 th
anniversary of Emmanuel
Baptist Church. We would
love to have you visit and
share in this important time
in the life of our church!
The members of our
Christian communities have
e x p e r i e n c e d t h e
transforming power of Jesus
in their lives, therefore we
can say that the blind see!
People today experience
alienation and confusion,
under a constant siege of
the media which promotes
m a t e r i a l i s m a n d
consumerism. The media
alters priorities, encouraging
us to buy cell phones and
cell phone minutes rather
than beans, tortillas and
(continued on page 4)
826 Calle Mexico y Av. Cuba
San Jacinto, San Salvador
EL SALVADOR
How do we understand
the need to give freedom
to captives and the
oppressed?
This question takes us to a
theological dilemma: can we
be free in Christ and live
under oppression? We can,
but we must declare the
whole truth of the Gospel.
Freedom in its fullness is
when nothing and no one
prevents the individual from
being fully free with dignity;
free of economic, political,
milk. They promote the
need for a TV and cable
t e l ev i s ion over our
children’s need for health
and a pair of shoes.
We want to share the light
of the Risen Christ with
these people. We want
them to know the truth of
the Gospel which frees
them of the blindness in
their hearts, minds and
consciences, so that they
can see and recognize Jesus
as Lord and Liberator.
religious, cultural and
spiritual oppression.
We believe it is important to
work to educate others,
implementing programs that
dignify life, family and
community. These are the
signs which would show
that the God’s redeeming
action is taking place in
these places where we
witness to the Gospel.
On the 49th anniversary of
our Church, we commit to
49th Anniversary Pastoral Statement (continued)
Phone: 555-555-5555
Fax: 555-555-5555
E-mail: [email protected]
Emmanuel Baptist Church
L a C o s e c h a † T h e H a r v e s t A u g u s t , 2 0 1 3 P a g e 4
making ourselves available
to the Holy Spirit, so that
under His authority, in the
proclamation of the Gospel,
in the teaching of Christian
values, in affirming the
Biblical foundations for
Christian discipleship, in the
building of the Culture of
Peace, that our God be
glorified in our lives, in our
personal and fami ly
testimonies, and in the life
of our missions and
communities.
Short-term Mission Teams (continued)
Missions can be expanded
in home churches.
Short-term missions can
increase the importance of
missions in the sending church.
If your church sends a short-
term team it is reasonable to
think your congregants are
thinking and praying more
about their role in the Great
Commission.
Increased prayer and
giving in Christ's name.
Increased participation in
long-term missions.
The full article is found at:
http://thegospelcoalition.org/