Latest Registration updates

Here are the latest figures for this August's SDB General Conference.

As of May 29: 64 on-line registrations representing 161 participants

And 27 rooms are still available where one child (age 11 and under) may sleep on the floor for free.

The 2008 SDB General Conference will be August 3-9 at Carthage College in Kenosha, Wisconsin. On-line registration is available by clicking on the "Registration link" found on the front page of the website. Paper forms are in the May Sabbath Recorder. And those paper forms are starting to come in as well! Get your registration in soon.

Fire destroys church building

Fire destroyed a Seventh Day Baptist Church building in West Palm Beach, Florida, on Tuesday, May 20. The facility was still under construction and the congregation has been holding services in a nearby building. That meeting house was undamaged.

The unfinished building looks to be a total loss and will likely be demolished. According to church secretary, Jasmine Lynch, the building was not insured while under construction. Since there was no electricity going to the building, and no inclement weather, the cause of the blaze is under investigation. The church is asking for your faithful prayer support.

An article from the Palm Beach Post may be found here.

For photos, click here.

Conference Registration update

Here are the latest figures for this August's SDB General Conference.

As of May 21: 53 on-line registrations representing 139 participants

And 28 rooms are still available where one child (age 11 and under) may sleep on the floor for free.

The 2008 SDB General Conference will be August 3-9 at Carthage College in Kenosha, Wisconsin. On-line registration is available by clicking on the "Registration link" found on the front page of the website. Paper forms are in the May Sabbath Recorder. And those paper forms are starting to come in as well! Get your registration in soon.

Happy 175th Hebron!

On May 31, the First Seventh Day Baptist Church of Hebron (near Coudersport, Pennsylvania) will be celebrating their 175th anniversary of ministry.

The church invites you to join them for this most happy occasion.

Schedule of Events--
9:45 Sabbath School
11:00 Sabbath Worship
12:30 Lunch
2:00 Hymn Sing/Praise time
3:00 Anniversary Celebration Program
5:00 Evening Meal

Your memories of the Hebron church or other comments may be sent to the address below, or by e-mail to jkandel@lycos.com. Please have your comments arrive by May 27.
Pastor Jo says, “If you are unable to be with us in person, we welcome your prayers.”

Pastor Jo Anne Kandel
Hebron SDB Church
13 E. Carley Hill Road
Coudersport, PA 16915
814-274-9492

P.S. If you are traveling to Hebron please call or e-mail for directions. Mapquest or Google will lead you astray!

Reaching out in Brazil

Last June, Edwin and Maria Lopez (from the new SDB Christian Church in Arlington, Va.) traveled to Santa Catarina, Brazil. Their intent was to minister and give aid to Maria’s home church.

While in Brazil, they met Pastor Jonas Sommer of the Brazilian SDB Conference. Pastor Jonas shared his vision and needs for his church and Conference. Edwin caught the same vision and vowed to return to help spread the Gospel of Christ in South America.

In sharing this desire back in the States, other people “got on board” and began planning a missions trip to Brazil. This trip is about to take place.

Edwin and Maria will be joined by Saul Alonzo, Bethany Chroniger, and Helmer Umana Jr. The purpose for their mission is to plant seeds to help fulfill Pastor Jonas’ vision. They plan to equip the youth of the church (as well as the adults) with solid evangelism methods and tools. They also expect to take part in the street evangelism with those they are equipping.

Please be in prayer for this missionary team from the U.S. as they visit the cities of Joinville and Curitiba in Brazil, and invite others to hear the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Some of their activities will include worship services, evangelism training, movie nights, arts and crafts, games nights and Bible studies.

Donations for the mission may be sent to the SDB Missionary Society, 19 Hillside Ave., Ashaway RI 02804.

Pre-Con Travel info

For people going to Pre-Con (starts July 30) and if you are flying into the Milwaukee or Chicago airports, you must see the important travel information posted on the Conference Registration page of our website.

Youth Pre-Con will be at Camp Wakonda in Milton, Wis. There are Coach USA/Van Galder buses that run to Janesville from Chicago O'Hare or Midway, but no service to Janesville from Milwaukee.

Young Adult Pre-Con will be on the campus of Carthage College in Kenosha, Wis. (site of this year's General Conference which begins on August 3). There is bus service to Kenosha from all the airports, but not necessarily right to the campus. PLEASE READ the Pre-Con Travel Information notice on our website so you're not stranded at an airport or bus station. Plan ahead and let the Conference transportation people help you!

Registration update for May 15

Here are the latest figures for this August's SDB General Conference.

As of May 15: 48 on-line registrations representing 124 participants

And 28 rooms are still available where one child (age 11 and under) may sleep on the floor for free.

The 2008 SDB General Conference will be August 3-9 at Carthage College in Kenosha, Wisconsin. On-line registration is available by clicking on the Registration link found on the front page of the website. Paper forms are in the May Sabbath Recorder.

Chicks win! Chicks win!

Working at the SDB Center, I am sometimes privy to breaking news items on a global scale, as well as important updates from our local churches. Often I need to confirm the sources and facts before sharing them with others.

Well, this news item has been confirmed by a phone call and an e-mail:
The "Christian Chicks" won their softball game last night.

Breaking news? Considering that this team--made up of young (and not-so-young) ladies from the Alfred Station, NY, SDB Church--had not won a game in five years, I'd say it was big news!

The "Chicks" have been a wonderful witness for the church, providing clean sportsmanship (and an easy win) to other teams. But with their 13-8 victory on May 13, they might become a softball force to reckon with. Actually, the players felt bad and almost apologized for winning. (Almost.)

Congratulations to the Chicks! May you hatch another win before the season ends.

Baptists affected in Lebanon

From the Baptist World Alliance:

Washington, D.C. (BWA)--An outbreak of fighting in the country of Lebanon has led to the temporary closure of the Beirut Baptist School (BBS).

The school, founded in 1956, and run by the Lebanese Society for Educational and Social Development (LSESD), a Baptist organization, was closed on Thursday, May 8, after fighting broke out between government forces and Hezbollah, the major Islamic movement in Lebanon.

More than 90 percent of the approximately 1,200 students at BBS are Muslims, attracted to the institution due to its reputation for delivering high quality education.

The Arab Baptist Theological Seminary (ABTS), also run by LSESD, and which began in 1960, had to postpone a public lecture on “The Missional Church,” scheduled for Monday, May 12, because of the violence. In addition to the school and seminary, LSESD also operates Dar Manhal Al Hayat, a publishing house that develops Arabic Christian and educational resources.

Nabil Costa, executive director of LSESD, who was out of the country when the fighting broke out, but who travelled safely by road back into Lebanon, requests prayer. “Please pray for wisdom for all relevant decision-makers… Pray for sincerity in their endeavors. Pray as well for the Lord’s protection on the people, and His intervention that this country may be able to move forward and thrive in its role as (a) center for Christian ministry and a gateway to the Arab world.”

Prayer for Myanmar

Please join in prayer for the situation in Myanmar (this from the American Bible Society's Circle of Prayer):

Heavenly Father, lend Your aid and comfort to those who have recently lost so much in the devastating Cyclone Nargis that has left tens of thousands of people dead or missing and countless others homeless and displaced. We pray that restoration comes swiftly.
We pray, O Lord, that You soften the hearts of Myanmar’s leaders to allow international aid to flow into the country so the process of rebuilding can begin. We ask You, mighty God, to give strength and resilience to the survivors, and to take the souls of those who have perished to Your bosom and grant them everlasting life in Your Kingdom. We pray these things in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.

Amen

Baptists waiting to enter Myanmar

This news release comes from the Baptist World Alliance. Seventh Day Baptists are members of the BWA.

Washington, D.C. (BWA) -- Baptists from Australia, Hungary and the United States are currently in Bangkok, Thailand, awaiting visa application approval to enter Myanmar.

The teams are hoping to enter the Southeast Asian country to assess the damage caused by Cyclone Nargis, a category three hurricane, on Saturday, May 3.

Reports out of Bangkok indicate that the Myanmar military government, regarded as one of the most repressive in the world, has been slow in waiving visa requirements for teams trying to bring in foreign aid.

There are efforts to make telephone and Internet contact with the Myanmar Baptist Convention (MBC), through which relief aid to the country is expected to be channeled. But in Yangon--also known as Rangoon, the largest city in Myanmar--“All the telephone and electric poles have been destroyed,” said Kabi Gangmei of the Asia Pacific Baptist Federation (APBF), who is among those awaiting a visa to enter Myanmar.

The teams from Hungary and Australia (part of BWAid Rescue24 which does search, rescue and relief work), have bought US$30,000 worth of basic food items, medication and blankets in Bangkok to take to Myanmar. The funds were donated by Hungarian Baptist Aid, which works closely with Baptist World Aid (BWAid).

Trained search-and-rescue personnel from the country of Singapore and from North Carolina in the United States are expected to join the BWAid Rescue24 team currently in Bangkok. Myanmar and Thailand share a common border.

Baptists from around the world continue to pledge support for relief aid to Myanmar. In addition to US$50,000 pledged by BWAid, the German Baptist union has made a provision of up to 40,000 Euros for Myanmar relief.

Just under the century-mark

Here are the latest on-line numbers for this August's General Conference. Paper registration forms are in the May Sabbath Recorder.

As of today: 37 on-line registrations representing 99 participants

And 29 rooms are still available where one child (age 11 and under) may sleep on the floor for free.

The 2008 SDB General Conference will be August 3-9 at Carthage College in Kenosha, Wisconsin.

Fillable Conference pdf available

A fill-in computer form for Conference registration is now "up" on the website. This serves as both a worksheet (tabulating your costs as you enter them) and a form you can print out so as not to tear up your May Sabbath Recorder. Then you can either snail-mail the form to our registrar, or bring it with you to Conference.

Please note the messages that the form cannot be saved after you fill it in. You'll need to print it out.

We thank Andrew Camenga for once again taking the time to create this fillable pdf for us.

General Conference is August 3-9 at Carthage College in Kenosha, Wisconsin. See the front page of our website, or the May Sabbath Recorder (on-line), for more Conference details.

National Day of Prayer

This first Thursday in May brings the National Day of Prayer in the United States. May we unite in prayer for the hearts and souls of our citizens.

From the American Bible Society's Circle of Prayer:

Heavenly Father, look down upon us on this National Day of prayer and hear our gratitude for all our blessings. Teach us to pray as You did Your Son, Jesus Christ, so that we might draw ever closer to Your glory. Purify our hearts, O Lord, and make them a clean dwelling for Your presence. May our prayers be acceptable to You and help us to do Your will more perfectly.

These things we ask in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.

Amen