Ephesians 4:16 From Him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.

Spring 2015

Anchorage First Hosts Detox Issue Town Hall Meeting: Research, Testimonies, Pleas to Assembly Leaders After months of interviews with individuals and agencies around detox services in Anchor-age, the Community Outreach Ministry Team of Anchorage First Covenant Church, in part-nership with Anchorage Faith in Action To-gether (AFACT), hosted a town hall meeting

available in Anchorage. in February to address the lack of detox beds

Anchorage Assembly members Dick Traini and Bill Evans were in attendance. Traini and Evans, who chairs the Ad Hoc Committee for Alcohol and Drug Abuse & Homelessness, heard research presented by the ministry team’s representatives, testimonies of more than 15 individuals and a well-constructed plea for pri-oritizing municipal funding for detox services. Since 2000 the municipality has cut all funding for detox in Anchorage meaning that all the funding comes from the state and federal level. More than 150 people attended the meeting along with the two Anchorage mayoral candi-dates, several local denominational leaders and leaders of nonprofit organizations. "The meeting was an opportunity for people who have experienced the pain and frustration to speak out and tell their stories and be heard by public officials, “ explained Jane Atuk, a First Covenant team member who spent eight months surveying detox facilities in Anchorage.

The team reported that there are currently only 14 beds in Anchorage available for individ-uals desiring detox. Anchorage offers the same number of detox beds as Fairbanks or Juneau despite having 10 times the population.

According to the presentation, detox is a set of medical interventions aimed at managing acute intoxication and takes an individual safely through the process of acute withdrawal. The waiting list is chronically 4-6 weeks to be admitted, and the window of receptiveness for detox often closes in that time for many. One ER nurse expressed the difficulty of having to tell people over and over again that there is not detox services readily available. AFACT is an organization that was created in 2003 to organize, empower and mobilize faith communities to address quality of life issues affecting their community. AFACT members include 15 congregations from eight denomina-tions representing Anchorage’s broad socioeco-nomic and ethnic population. AFACT person-nel worked closely with the congregation to strategize and plan for the meeting. “I’m encouraged to see how the partnership with AFACT and First Covenant has been at work to identify a need in the community and then to take action in the name of Christ,” Field Director Curtis Ivanoff said. “I recognize

that this is the first step in an ongoing effort, but hopefully people will be spurred on to con-tinue in this work of providing compassion and care for people suffering in addictions.” "When people are in that situation, living on the street, with substance abuse, you really don't want them to wait any period of time after they make the determination that they want to get help," Evans admitted. He added, however, that when it comes to funding, there are many other interests within the municipality that compete for funding. The assemblymen were asked if they will be willing to talk with the team in April about pro-gress toward finding solutions. They both agreed. "I was very moved by the faithful work of the church members of this team who took seriously the repeated call of the Scriptures to do justice, and to seek the welfare of the city,” said Pastor Max Lopez-Cepero of Anchorage First Covenant. “So often we are faithful in matters of compassion, but the hard work of justice ministry is often left to the secular world. With this meeting people saw commit-ted followers of Christ take a stand for justice. They did this with prayer, scripture, hard work, and boldness.”

As we approach the annual meeting and vote on ECCAK becoming a conference, I have thought more than once, “This will be a historic meeting.” After all, we will be participants in the realization of the dream of many to see our church be consid-ered on “equal footing” with the other regional conferences of the lower 48 and Canada. We are the participants in a “rite of passage” of

sorts in the maturity of our work together here in Alaska. Indeed, we are co-laborers; we are “companions of all who fear thee”; we are “in it together.” So as we approach the gathering in Elim, my heart is filled with anticipation. For the last column in this series on “new sails”, before the dele-gates gather in Elim, I want to share about one other sail I believe God is calling us to raise anew in order to experience the life and mission he is leading us to: a conscious reliance on God’s Holy Spir-it. In the end, what will matter most is not our “status” within the ECC, but whether or not we are collectively—as congregations and ministries—and individually, as followers of Jesus, calling out to God in complete trust and dependence on the Holy Spirit. In the Gospel of Luke, Jesus is himself portrayed this way. In Luke 4, we read, “Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit…,” and later, “Jesus re-turned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit....” Those are two of several verses in Luke that make it clear that the Holy Spirit empow-ered Jesus in his life and ministry. Moreover, God promised the same power to us. Right before he left the earth, he gave instruction to his followers, “I am going to send you what my Father has prom-ised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.” The formation of the church was not accomplished by grand plans or enthusiasm; rather it was birthed through the em-powerment of the Holy Spirit. The founders of our denomination were called “Mission Friends”. They were children of a revival that swept through Sweden in the mid- to late-1800’s. One writer says that they “were born at a time when the Church of Christ was shaken, and to some extent, disor-dered by a visitation of the Spirit.” As a result, many people experienced conversion to Christ. Our Alaskan Covenant forbearers can be counted among those convert-ed in the wake of that visitation. It was Swedish missionaries, filled with and responding to God’s Holy Spirit, who came to Alaska to share the good news of Jesus. May it be said of us—of our time in the history of the church here—that we were dependent on, and filled with, the Holy Spirit. What might this look like? What would the evidence be of such a season? I am not speaking of fantastical expressions of God’s myste-rious presence, though there may be such manifestations. Nor am I specifically referring to speaking in tongues, though the Spirit gifts some in that manner. What I am talking about, however, is a people who exhibit fruit that displays the character of Christ--things like joy, peace, patience, and kindness. I am talking about a people who, when filled with the Holy Spirit, as Paul instructed in Ephesians, “submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.” I am talking about a people, who in the face of violence toward women in our state, or in walking with those who struggle with addictions; or when marriages and family life suffers in brokenness, we will respond with courage, confidence, ability, insight, and authority to share hope and life. I am talking about a people who ask God to fill them with the Holy Spirit. Raise the sail each day, friends. It is the only way we will realize our intended place in God’s story here in Alaska—by His Spirit.

Campers Serve, Share, Grow As Junior Staff at Bible Camp

“For the past two years I have served as a junior cook. I really en-joyed working with the other kitchen workers, hanging out with other junior staff, and just being in a God-centered place. I felt I grew closer to God while around others that follow Christ. While working the kitchen can be taxing, we have our fun times and are able to recharge after a ser-mon. It was extremely fun, and I feel that both my confidence and my faith have grown .”

Early Bird Registration Deadline April 17 Jr. Staff Application due May 1 Regular Registration Deadline May 22 Call to Worship/Staff Training May 25-31 Leadership Camp June 1-8 High School Camp June 8-15 Junior High (Grades 7/8 completed) June 15-22 Trailblazers (Grades 5/6 completed) June 22-27 Pathfinders (Grades 3/4 completed) June 27-July 2

www.covenantbiblecamp.org

“Last summer was the best as jun-ior counselor. My cabin laughed together, cried together, sang to-gether and even prayed together. I could tell my level of maturity had grown from the year before, as well as my leadership skills, my ability to pray for others, and my knowledge of the Word. All of this helped me to fulfill my role out at camp, be a friend to my campers, along with being a leader.”

Jr. Staff are campers from western Alaska, ages 13-18, who volunteer to serve during Trailblazer and Pathfinder sessions. Jr. Staff must be willing and able to work with younger youth and to be a role model. They must attend Bible Camp in the current year, demonstrate maturity and leadership potential and be involved in a local church congregation. Jr. Staff should attend Leadership Camp or a similar training, such as CYIA (Christian Youth in Action). An exception may be made in some circumstances. Jr. Staff may serve as Jr. Counselors, Jr. Handymen, or as Jr. Cooks. The dead-line to apply for Jr. Staff is May 1. Information and application can be found online at covenantbiblecamp.org/jr-staff

Samuel Cross Nome Covenant Church Jr. Counselor

Charis Ivanoff Anchorage First Covenant

Jr. Cook

Important Bible Camp Dates

Set Sail in the Wind of the Holy Spirit

by Curtis Ivanoff, Field Director

Spring 2015// 2

Spring 2015// 3

Koyuk Praying to Have Fire Damage Repairs Completed by Easter Sunday Members of Koyuk Covenant Church are encouraged by the generosity of others who have helped in restoring the congre-gation’s building after it sus-tained damage from a fire on December 21. Eight churches and various individuals have been involved in the generous response. “No one was at the church when the fire broke out, that apparently started in the pipe of the woodstove that had been installed as a supplementary heat source. Volunteer firefighters arrived quickly and limited the damage,” said Field Director Curtis Ivanoff, who traveled to the village shortly after the fire. The building was not de-stroyed, but a hole was burned in the floor and the sanctuary sustained extensive smoke dam-age. The fire forced the church to relocate Christmas services and regular weekly services to the tribal community hall. Shortly after the fire, n alumni group from Covenant High, agreed to make a contribution with funds that had been raised at their reunion from this past summer. As of this printing, the flooring has been replaced with assis-tance from the Unalakleet Cove-

nant Church. The walls and ceiling of the sanctuary need to be cleaned and repainted as well. “I call them the ‘navy seals’ of Unalakleet Covenant Church,” Pastor Chip Swanson explained. “They snuck in under the cov-er of darkness on a Saturday night . They were here un-til midnight in 0 degrees and left before sunrise.” He adds that “spies of his sheep” detected Tim Daniels, Reid Tulloch and Allen Sagoonick from the long shadows they cast from their snow-gos. Pastor Chip sent a letter with signatures of 35 others from the congregation, expressing grati-tude for those individuals and churches who have helped. One portion of the letter read, “We have found, over and over, that God is at work for good to them who love Him, as He promised. This time it was through you. We are praying for our church building to be fully functional before Easter as we celebrate God’s great work of salvation through Jesus’s death and resurrection.” Please pray for Pastor Chip, Chair Grace Morris, church leadership and the congregation as they wait for the completion of the sanctuary repairs.

Mt. Village Church Hosts Young Adult Gatherings to Encourage and Support

by Pastor Don Cross, Mountain Village Covenant Church

Our church in Mtn. Village has been praying for our young people. We are greatly blessed by the Cov-enant Youth ministries in place, but see a need to minister on a local, consistent level. One of our church members, Eugene Stevens, an ACC graduate, and currently attending the LEAD Alaska disci-pleship ministry, came home for the Christmas season. We saw an opportunity to have Eugene “step-up” and lead a young adult Christmas party. He was ea-ger and willing to lead this gather-ing. A total of 28 young adults came to the gathering. They played a number of games, watched a video on commitment to Christ, and afterwards ate plenty of Papa Murphy’s pizza.

The message shared with the group was a simple one: the church is praying for the young adults. We have a heart for them, but some-times feel inadequate at expressing it. If they understand that God is for them, they have such tremen-dous potential in living a full and meaningful life. On New Years Eve, many of these same young adults attended the “Watch Night” service, where-in we acknowledged and thanked God for our young adults. We have set aside the last Friday of every month for a pizza party for the young adults. We thank God for His faithfulness in raising up young adults to help share the message of His grace.

Arnie Nassuk took this photo as volunteer firefighters arrived.

As Chugach Covenant was being planted a few short years ago, Pastor Dan and the leadership team made a conscious decision (through a lot of prayer) that the military community here in Alaska would be a mission field for us. As a military guy myself, I’ve always had a heart for ministering to my brothers and sisters in uniform. I quickly found out that while the military is ripe for the harvest, there are quite a few roadblocks to doing ministry in a meaningful way with military members. At Chugach, we have been incredibly blessed with some great people with hearts for military ministry (most of them were/are military members them-selves.) We realized quickly that the first roadblock to meaningful discipleship is TIME. It isn’t unusual for a military family to get engaged with ministry, begin to serve in the church, start to enter into God-centered relationships… and then move to their next duty station two months later. Initially, there were a few of us that really felt defeated and just plain worn out. I mean, here we were investing our time, our energy, and our love into these people only to have them LEAVE!! It took only a short time for us to realize that we were actually doing EXACTLY what we said we would do when Pastor Dan cast our vision years ago… to “reach, raise, and release.” Our goal has always been to reach people in the name of Christ, to raise them up as leaders, and then to release them into the harvest. We realized quickly that these military members weren’t “leaving,” but ra-ther being “sent” into the field by God to serve at another base somewhere on the globe. Since our church’s birth a few short years ago, we have al-ready had amazing stories pour in from previous members/military families that have been touched by the work at Chugach. Even better are those lives that were transformed through the work of the men and women who were equipped through the ministry. At Chugach, we continue to look forward to the amazing things that God will continue to do through His church! Years ago, I heard God telling me “Hurry up and wait.” If you’re a military guy/gal, you know the joke. You’ve been told many times to “hurry up!!” only to get there and wait around for hours. What I heard from God, and continue to hear, is “HURRY UP!!!...AND WAIT!”…as in “Hurry up and do the things I’ve already told you to do” (love people, make disciples), and “WAIT”…as in “Don’t worry about the timing, I have that covered.” We continue to trust that God will use these peo-ple wherever he sends them, that it’s our job as the church to continue his work here the best we can, to BE the Church, to DO his work, to be FAITH-FUL to God’s plan…and leave the timing up to him.

Reach, Raise, Release at Heart of Chugach’s

Ministry to Military by Kyle Brown, Associate Pastor,

Chugach Covenant Church

SERVING THOSE

WHO SERVE

This issue, highlights Covenant pastors in ministries that serve and care for the men, women

and families of Alaska’s Air Force and Army bases.

A Chaplain’s Reflection: Relationships in Spiritual Leadership by Chaplain, Major Darrick M. Gutting, Garrison Family Life Chaplain, Ft. Wainwright

When Mark Hill came to Alaska in the midwork with Bible Camp and youth while completing his undergraduate degree at Alaska Pacific University, he never imagined that he would enter military chaplaincy twenty-or-so years later. However, he now adds this unique and important service to his ministry experi-ence that also includes CYAK youth ministry in Nor-ton Sound and the YK Delta, KICY radio ministry in Nome, Alaska Christian College Admissions Director, and Amundsen Educational Center Executive Direc-tor, both in Soldotna. Chaplain (Captain) Mark Hill was sworn in and com-missioned at Anchorage First Covenant Church in early January. The ceremony took place at the end of the Sunday morning service. Field Director Curtis Ivanoff represented the Covenant Church as he prayed over Mark and his family and Chaplain (Captain) Gary Lewis presided over the commissioning. A few weeks later, Mark left for 4well Air Force Base According to the Air Force Chaplain Corps website, “Chaplains provide spiritual care and the opportunity for Airmen, their families, and other authorized per-sonnel to exercise their constitutional right to the free exercise of religion. This is accomplished through reli-gious observances, providing pastoral care, and advis-ing leadership on spiritual, ethical, moral, morale, core values, and religious accommodation issues. “I understand the role of a chaplain as someone who will provide spiritual care, confidential counseling, and as needs arise, will advise the command leadership in matters of faith, ethics, and spiritual morale,” Mark explained. “A chaplain’s task is to help provide a net-work of support that provides spiritual resiliency for service members. The phrase that really sharpened my focus on what it means to be an evangelical Christian

Covenant Minister Accepts New Call as Military Chaplain

At times it is hard to believe that I have been serving as an Army Chaplain for the last fifteen years! It is also an incredi-ble gift to be stationed back home here in Alaska after twelve years of being either on a deployment in Iraq or Afghani-stan or stationed at one of our Army installations in the lower 48. One of the lessons I have learned over time is that ef-fective spiritual leadership demands the ability to relate to soldiers, family members and our civilian employees. It is so crucial for chaplains to be able identify with, address and speak to the needs, concerns, issues and events that areso often times common place in military life. This can be challenging at times considering the extremely diverse makeup of our military service members. Like in civilian ministry, the failure to develop personal relationships limits the effectivness of spiritual leadership; it can hinder our ability to speak spiritual truths to a hurting hearts in a challenging world. Healthy relationships must be established and cultivated with believers and non-believers alike. With fellow believers, mature Christ-centered relationships are essential in order for our own growth, to foster unity, to be encouraged and keep each other accountable in our daily walk and service in the Kingdom. It is also essential that we establish relationships with non-believers in order to bring them to Christ as we affirm together the Great Commission we have received from Christ. Spiritual leadership that fosters healthy relationships affords us the opportunity in helping others to grow spiritually. Every human being struggles to some degree questioning our purpose or significance in life. We all want assurance that our lives matter, desiring to belong to something bigger than ourselves. I believe that our ultimate purpose in life is to glorify God and to serve man as we hopefully have forward progression in our relationships as we lay a firm foundation in our efforts to help others grow in Christ. Our Army culture places a high value on the role of chaplains to provide spiritual leadership and support to soldiers and family members. We do this through three core competencies: “to nurture the living, care for the wounded, and honor the

s Reflection: Relationships in Spiritual Leadership by Chaplain, Major Darrick M. Gutting, Garrison Family Life Chaplain, Ft. Wainwright

When Mark Hill came to Alaska in the mid-1990s to work with Bible Camp and youth while completing his undergraduate degree at Alaska Pacific University, he never imagined that he would enter military chaplaincy

so years later. However, he now adds this unique and important service to his ministry experi-ence that also includes CYAK youth ministry in Nor-ton Sound and the YK Delta, KICY radio ministry in Nome, Alaska Christian College Admissions Director, and Amundsen Educational Center Executive Direc-tor, both in Soldotna. Chaplain (Captain) Mark Hill was sworn in and com-

missioned at Anchorage First Covenant Church in early January. The ceremony took place at the end of the Sunday morning service. Field Director Curtis Ivanoff represented the Covenant Church as he prayed over Mark and his family and Chaplain (Captain) Gary Lewis presided over the commissioning. A few weeks later, Mark left for 4-weeks of officer training at Max-well Air Force Base in Montgomery, Alabama.

According to the Air Force Chaplain Corps website, “Chaplains provide spiritual care and the opportunity for Airmen, their families, and other authorized per-sonnel to exercise their constitutional right to the free exercise of religion. This is accomplished through reli-gious observances, providing pastoral care, and advis-ing leadership on spiritual, ethical, moral, morale, core values, and religious accommodation issues.

“I understand the role of a chaplain as someone who will provide spiritual care, confidential counseling, and as needs arise, will advise the command leadership in matters of faith, ethics, and spiritual morale,” Mark

“A chaplain’s task is to help provide a net-work of support that provides spiritual resiliency for service members. The phrase that really sharpened my focus on what it means to be an evangelical Christian

serving in a pluralistic environment is that I can be a ‘chaplain to all, pastor to some.’ ” Mark explained that military chaplaincy was never on his radar of potential ministry opportunities until he met someone who talked about how much his son was loving the challenges of serving in the military. “As I began to explore the breadth of service opportu-nities, a desire to ‘serve those who serve’ began to grow within me,” Mark said. As he researched the possibilities of military service, he came to see how his experience, education and min-istry interests could be used in dynamic ways to sup-port the men and women who are faithfully sacrificing so much to serve in the armed forces. In order to apply, Mark began a regimen of his own to prepare for the requirements and demands of the call, which meant for him—losing 40+ lbs. Prior to leaving for officer training, Mark said goodbye to his Alaska-worthy beard, and the man once known for his “mullet,” became re-acquainted with hair clippers. Mark earned his Master of Divinity from North Park Seminary, has been licensed in the Covenant Church for several years and was ordained in 2008. Most re-cently he served as pastor of Minnedosa Covenant Church in Manitoba, Canada. Mark and his wife JoAn-na and four children (Abby, 13; Kjersti, 10; Gabe, 7; Mattias, 3) moved back to Anchorage last summer in hopes of being stationed with the Air Force here. Af-ter several months of waiting, it was confirmed that he will serve at JBER and reside in their Anchorage home. Mark joins the ranks of two other licensed Covenant pastors who serve in the military including Kyle Brown of Chugach Covenant Church (JBER) and Chaplain, Major Darrick Gutting (Family Life Chaplain, Ft. Wainwright) of C3 in Fairbanks.

Covenant Minister Accepts New Call as Military Chaplain

At times it is hard to believe that I have been serving as an Army Chaplain for the last fifteen years! It is also an incredi-ble gift to be stationed back home here in Alaska after twelve years of being either on a deployment in Iraq or Afghani-stan or stationed at one of our Army installations in the lower 48. One of the lessons I have learned over time is that ef-fective spiritual leadership demands the ability to relate to soldiers, family members and our civilian employees.

It is so crucial for chaplains to be able identify with, address and speak to the needs, concerns, issues and events that are so often times common place in military life. This can be challenging at times considering the extremely diverse makeup of our military service members. Like in civilian ministry, the failure to develop personal relationships limits the effective-ness of spiritual leadership; it can hinder our ability to speak spiritual truths to a hurting hearts in a challenging world.

believers alike. With fellow believers, centered relationships are essential in order for our own growth, to foster unity, to be encouraged and keep

each other accountable in our daily walk and service in the Kingdom. It is also essential that we establish relationships believers in order to bring them to Christ as we affirm together the Great Commission we have received from

Spiritual leadership that fosters healthy relationships affords us the opportunity in helping others to grow spiritually. Every human being struggles to some degree questioning our purpose or significance in life. We all want assurance that our lives matter, desiring to belong to something bigger than ourselves. I believe that our ultimate purpose in life is to glorify God and to serve man as we hopefully have forward progression in our relationships as we lay a firm foundation in

Our Army culture places a high value on the role of chaplains to provide spiritual leadership and support to soldiers and family members. We do this through three core competencies: “to nurture the living, care for the wounded, and honor the

dead.” All of these involve a great investment of our time and relationships in our communities both on and off Army installations. Relationships are the vital sinew that ties communities together. Or as I like to say, “Not one of us is as good or as strong as all of us!” This only holds true only as long as we as lead-ers understand and appreciate the importance of our lives lived together – rela-tionships! One of the greatest mysteries and blessings I have encountered in ministry is the fact that the good Lord has no need or dependence on us to make his plans come to fruition. Yet, he desires us and chooses us to be used for his glory in and through our relationships with one another and with him! Life and minis-try can be difficult and there are times when we may feel weak and inadequate. Do not to lose heart, for I believe that God is always more interested in our availability than he is in our ability. Be that spiritual leader in your community who is available in the fostering, building and strengthening of our relation-ships with God and with your fellow man. Chaplain Gutting was ordained in the Covenant Church in 2005 and previously served as interim pastor for Community Covenant Church , Fairbanks in 2001. He is married to Tonia. They have three children: Benjamin (14), Blake (14) and Auana (12).

6 // ECCAK Sinew

Around ECCAK CYAK interns: Er ica Stone is serving at the Checkpoint Youth Center in Nome, alongside James Ventress of Nome Covenant Church. Willow Hanson is serving Arigaa Anchorage young adults alongside Director Jamie Rose.

Jamie (Erika) Rose, Arigaa Anchorage Director /CYAK, welcomed Hanna Violet Rose into their family on January 22.

Chip (Joanne) Swanson is serving Koyuk Covenant Church as interim pastor until Easter.

Byron (Sue) Bruckner, CYAK director , relocated to the Mat-Su Valley. The CYAK mailing address is now P.O. Box 203356, Anchorage, AK, 99520.

Pastor Joel (Olga) Oyoumick, Unalakleet Covenant Church, has announced that he will retire effective July 15, 2015. He has served as pastor for 13 years.

Lindsey Clise, from Hersey, MI, is joining CYAK staff and will be arriving this summer once she has completed fundraising.

More than forty people gathered at round tables in the worship center of Community Covenant Church, Fairbanks on a cold Wednesday even-ing to attend the Veritas workshop, our first of many stops on the jour-ney to Vitality. Some attendees came with the question: “Can we really change unhealthy patterns?” Others came out of curiosity or a sense of hope. But we all left knowing that God was about to take us on an ex-citing and challenging journey of listening to and following Him. John Wenrich, ECC director of congregational vitality, taught us the markers of healthy missional churches and how we could become a healthy missional church ourselves. To be a healthy church is to be a church that pursues Christ, and to be missional is to be pursuing Christ’s priorities in the world. What struck so many of us as we listened to John and the Veritas mate-rial for the first time was that God’s Word and an attitude of listening to the Holy Spirit are at the center of congregational vitality. When our congregation looks at the enormity of the task before us, it is easy to see how we could be overwhelmed if God does not go before us and if we aren’t keeping in step with Him. Change, while simple in concept, is difficult in practice. Without God working in our hearts to make us receptive to the truth of who C3 really is and what we are doing as a congregation, we would flounder and end up hurting each other in the process. Taking the “balcony view” is al-lowing us to see ourselves as God sees us. When John asked us to come up front one at a time and evaluate our church by marking it as one of the four kinds of churches – healthy

missional, stable, critical moment, or at-risk – I think we all held our breath. We wondered if we could be honest without destroying our-selves. But as people lined up and made their marks, we experienced the freedom that comes with sharing the truth in love. For the first time, we realized that we could evaluate C3 with a biblical framework and trust that He will work in us to change the ways we struggle and fall short. Our first step since John has left has been to create a Vitality Team and begin the challenging process of “preparing the soil” of people’s hearts to receive what God says about us and to have the courage to bring ourselves into alignment with Him. We are looking forward to April when John will come back and present Epic, the second of three workshops on the Vitality pathway. Until then, we are planning, work-ing, and listening to God, knowing that this is true: “The Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”

C3 Fairbanks Seeks “Balcony View” While Embarking on Vitality Pathway by Anthea Shirk, C3 Vitality Team Leader

New Outreach for Prisoners, AFN Conference Visitors

by Laura Eben, Anchorage First Covenant Church

The Keith C. Fullerton Prison Ministry of Anchorage First Covenant Church began their outreach to the seven correctional centers on the road system in November of 2014. Associate Pastor Vince Eben and his wife, Laura, focused on visiting Covenant-related inmates. A Christmas card with an informational letter was sent to inmates with the return address of First Covenant for them to write back to the ministry. One return letter has already been received and it is comfort-ing to the men and women to know that someone cares and will show them the love of our Lord through visits, prayer, cards and letters. KCF welcomes more referrals from families in the villages so that we can visit and pray with them. Please join with us in prayer for these visits that our Lord’s work will be done in these precious lives. During the week of Alaska Federation of Natives (AFN) meetings, there was a gathering at First Covenant Church called Outreach AFN (All For the Nazarene). Services were held Monday through Saturday each evening. Associate Pastor Vince Eben handed out 200 fliers for two days in the area downtown around the Denaina Center where AFN meetings were held. The services were organized with participants giving their testimonies and special songs. There were several volunteer group songs sung from the heart, praising Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Many translated songs were shared including one from a Point Barrow pastor. The guitar players were Pastor Vince, Joshua Mathlaw, Peter Buck (White Mtn.) and Johnnie Ulak (Scammon Bay). On Friday and Saturday, Hil-ma Shavings played her accordion as accompaniment. At each service, Pastor Vince gave a short message in between special songs which really encouraged everyone attending. A potluck was held on Saturday which was attended by people from the Brother Francis Shelter as well as those who attend other churches.

A Veritas participant at C3 joins in the exercise of giving input in evalu-ating the current state of his church. Participants learned about what being a healthy, missional church entails and how to communicate with each other to achieve God’s purposes for their fellowship. Veritas is the first seminar in the Congregational Vitality Pathway.

Spring 2015// 7

March April May

Monday Covenant Bible Camp Approval of Murdock Grant Request Volunteers to serve God would prompt more donors to

support financial needs

Nick (Nikki) Bruckner Bible Camp Director & CYAK

Young adult ministry with men in Unalakleet: Upcoming transition for family during

camp season

Covenant Bible Camp Staffing needs would be met God’s Spirit to empower all involved Planning details to come together Many youth to grow in their relation-

ship with Christ this summer

Tuesday Unalakleet Covenant Church

New monthly, Sunday night worship service to encourage many Praise for new and “rebooted” pro-

grams like men’s prayer breakfast and family Bible Study

Emotional and spiritual restoration for youth in Nome’s juvenile facility. Several Covenant Church members

work or volunteer there including Dr. Nora Nagaruk, Lloyd Perrigo, James

Ventress, Ian Coglan, and others.

Unalakleet Covenant Church Youth Oaxaca, Mexico outreach in July Guidance for youth interns Leiscia and

Kaylin in planning for next year God would prepare & call new interns

Wednesday KICY Radio, Nome Luda Kinok’s asylum request Other staff members: George Bard, Ian

Coglan, Josie Stiles, Lon Swanson, Rol-land Trowbridge, Dennis &Candace Weidler, Francis Whitmore

Shaktoolik Covenant Church God would provide pastor Fill pulpit with encouragers for church Wisdom and guidance for newly as-

signed church board

White Mountain Covenant Church

God would provide pastor Fill pulpit with encouragers for church Youth attending Bible Camp would

come to faith and grow in faith

Thursday Elim Covenant Church Preparation for Annual Meeting Unity among church body Strength for Bob Curtis and team Many conversions at conference

Elim Covenant Church For the fundraising effort to build the new parsonage. God would provide funds, work teams and for Pastor Bob during the waiting period.

Koyuk Covenant Church Board members Grace Morris, Bucky Prentice, Bim Prentice, Leo Charles,

Georgianne Anasogak, Jessie Anasogak, and Molly Kimoktoak as the serve . Also

pray for God to call a pastor.

Friday Brad & Julie Olson Golovin Covenant Church

Praise & prayer for Julie’s improving health

Spring youth ministries to prosper and grow

Joel and Olga Oyoumick Unalakleet Covenant Church

God would lead and guide the ministry of the church

Health, rest and strength for demands of ministry

Transition for Joel’s retirement in July

Field Director, Curtis Ivanoff and Assoc. Field Director James Barefoot That God would grant wisdom, stami-

na, joy and patience when needed. God to lead to pastoral candidates. That God would speak through Curtis

at Bible Camp

Spring Prayer Calendar

Important Dates ECCAK Annual Meeting, Elim March 24-28 Lower Yukon Conference, Hooper Bay April 2-5 WAMT Course: New Testament Survey, Nome April 27-May 1 ECC Annual Meeting, Kansas City, MO June 25-27 CHIC, Knoxville, TN July 12-17 CYAK Team Development, Bible Camp July 27-31

*See important Bible Camp dates on page 2

Focusing on Norton Sound Churches and Ministries

How Can You Help ?

$390,000 is the project goal ($195,000 x 2) to fund the

building of parsonages in two rural Alaskan villages. Both

Elim and Scammon Bay churches are in dire need of

new housing for their resident pastors. Would you

consider how you, your church, your business or

ministry group might contribute?

Budget Breakdown Materials—$120/sq. ft.

$330,000

Dirt Work & Gravel $40,000

Appliances/Fixtures

$20,000

$60,580 amount raised as of Feb. 26

Thanks to Kawerak, NSEDC, Mat-Su Covenant Church, ECC Central Conference, Bethel

Evangelical Covenant Church, Rosseau Evangelical Covenant Church, and various individuals for your

generous gifts toward the parsonage project.

Pizza for Parsonages

WHAT: Host a Papa Murphy’s pizza sale to raise money for the Elim/Scammon Bay parsonages WHO: Alaskan villages, churches, groups and individuals host; ECCAK assists with planning and ordering WHEN: You pick the date, time and location of your sale HOW: ECCAK will send flyers that you can use to advertise your sale. ECCAK will work with you to get pizzas ordered and delivered. Money is sent back to ECCAK and added to parsonage fund. WHAT We will feature your sale in the Sinew ELSE: and on the ECCAK Facebook page

Contact Jenn at ECCAK for more information.

NONPROFIT ORG U.S. POSTAGE

PAID ANCHORAGE, AK PERMIT NO. 537

Evangelical Covenant Church of Alaska P.O. Box 770749 Eagle River, AK

99577

Phone: 907-694-6348 Fax: 907- 694-6378

E-mail: info@eccak.org website:

www.eccak.org

ECCAK is a non-

conference “field” of the Covenant Church of America, dependent on the gifts from churches and people to carry out our mission for Christ’s

sake in Alaska.

Ministry Priorities Pastoral Care

Youth Ministry Leadership Pathways

Congregational Vitality Church Planting &

Evangelism

Field Director: Curtis Ivanoff

curtis@eccak.org

Assoc. Field Director: James Barefoot

james@eccak.org

Office Manager: Jenn Steinbrecher info@eccak.org

Sinew Editor: Kristi Ivanoff

kristi@eccak.org

Snowmachiners “Scratch”; Two-Thousand-Mile Club Born On Feb. 20, James Barefoot, associate field director, embarked on a 1000-mile trip to Nome via snowmachine along the Iditarod trail with two riding companions, expecting to arrive in Nome four days later. The pur-pose: transport his snowmachine to Nome for another 1000-miles of min-istry travel through Norton Sound and the YK Delta in March and April. He also started a Facebook page called “2 Thousand Miles of Snow for 2 Parsonages” as a way to highlight the on-going fundraising effort for two village parsonages. However, large sections of the trail proved to be

snowless for miles making the trek arduous, dangerous and ultimately “un-doable”. Once in McGrath, James and his trail companions, Peter Hansen of Nome and Barry Munsell of Wasilla, heard from Iron Dog reports that the trail was worse ahead. They decided to

“scratch” and catch a flight home. Although their efforts were thwarted, the fundraising campaign marches on. The need for funds for the Scammon Bay and Elim parsonages is still ongoing and you can still make a donation to the fund. ECCAK is setting a goal to raise $2,000+ in the month of March and April for each mile of his original tour that will now be traveled via plane. Why not organize a bake sale or loose-change drive fundraiser at your church to assist the cause? Groups and individuals who donate will be recognized as the “Two Thousand Mile Club” for “going that extra mile” to give a boost toward the goal. For more pictures and commentary about the four harrowing days on the trail, check out the Facebook page. Donations can be made mailed to the ECCAK office or online at www.eccak.org. Designate funds for “parsonages project”.

$38,000 as of November 15, 2014