Portland LINK

1 Counting Our Blessings

2 World Report

3 A Few Words of Thanks

4 The Life & Teachings of Paul: Parts 6-8

5 Gallery PICS

6 Youth Focus Q & A

6 On the Spot

A Thanksgiving service was held Sunday morning, November 19, and the orchestra began in a spirit of gratitude as they played “Amazing Grace (My Chains Are Gone).” The choir then joined them for a grand version of the song “How Great Is Our God,” which included a Scripture reading by Butch Carey from Philippians 4:6-7 and Psalm 145:1-13. Verses 9-10 of the second reading said, “The Lord is good to all: and his tender mercies are over all his works. All thy works shall praise thee, O Lord; and thy saints shall bless thee.”

Indeed, the saints have many reasons to bless the Lord, and their purpose on Sunday morning was to do just that.

After prayer, a trio of sisters Victoria, Mikayla, and Emmaline Worthington harmonized beautifully in “Blessed Be the Name.” Tom Pricskett then read Psalm 139:14-18 for the Scripture

i n t h i s i s s u e

Fonts:Voluta ScriptTrajan Pro

Counting Our Blessingsreading, declaring, “How precious also are thy thoughts unto me, O God! how great is the sum of them! If I should count them, they are more in number than the sand” (verses 17-18).

For last special, a ladies’ choir accompanied Peter Moberg in singing “Thank You.” Following this, Darrel Lee gave the morning message on the topic of counting your blessings. He pointed out that God is eternal and infinite, yet

the Bible encourages people to at least attempt to measure things that are truly measureless. For example, the Scripture reading stated that God’s thoughts about each person are innumerable, yet the Psalmist still made the comparison of stating that they are more than the sand. Likewise, God’s blessings in our lives are without number, yet it is good

A P O S T O L I C F A I T H . O R G

Selections from our website and more

Sisters sing “Blessed Be the Name.” “God’s blessings in our lives are without number,

yet it is good for us to try to enumerate them.”

November 2017

for us to try to enumerate them. During the message Brother Darrel counted a few of them: God’s love that reaches the soul that is lost in sin; redemption available to the repentant sinner; power to live with victory over sin; the hope of Heaven someday—the list could go on and on! Brother Darrel closed by encouraging all to spend some time counting their blessings.

Excerpts from Tuesday, November 7 As we arrived in Ghana Saturday morning, two rows of joyful children from the Apostolic Faith school greeted us while waving flags, singing, and holding a sign that read, “Akwaaba,” which is “Welcome” in the Akan language. A formal welcome was given by John Bekoe, who in June succeeded Akwasi Badu-Debrah as both the Ghana District Superintendent and Accra pastor. Brother Debrah died unexpectedly while in Nigeria on church business, and after a workers’ meeting I had opportunity to meet with his family and express our condolences.

At the Sunday morning service, the choir songs were quite fabulous, including one titled “Cry Out and Shout.” Though it was sung in a native tongue which I did not understand, it was very inspiring. After the service, the prayer meeting went so long that the previously arranged group photo had to be delayed.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Excerpts from Monday, November 13 On Monday we attended two church dedications, the first in Akinfenwa. We were met out front by a very large crowd of joyful saints lining the roadway. Then Sunday school children came forward in rows, and three young girls presented flowers (pictured left). So many were present—over one thousand—that the church could not contain the crowd.

Bayo Adeniran gave the dedicatory prayer, and during the service a brief history of the church was read. The work began in 1995 with a small group meeting for Bible studies. In 2000, a parcel of land was donated, and a second was purchased adjacent to it. The foundation of the church was laid that same year. More land was purchased in 2011, and the foundation of a children’s hall was laid there in 2016. Today’s dedication marked the completion of both buildings The service closed with the song “Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory.” The altars filled until there was not a place left open, and everyone prayed earnestly.

The second dedication was in Olorunsogo. Many were gathered outside the church for the ribbon cutting and prayer. Again, the crowd was too large to be contained, as there were about six hundred present. Once we were seated, the children came in singing joyfully, “Hurrah! Hurray! You are all welcome here.”

Before the dedicatory prayer, the history of the church was recounted. The work here began in 1986 with a Bible study held in a home. In 1990, outreach efforts by the youth led to an increase in Sunday school attendance, and a weekly evangelistic service was added. Later, land was donated, and in 1996 the foundation of the church was laid. The dedication closed with the choir singing the “Hallelujah Chorus,” and at the altar call the benches were filled.

P o s t s F r o m

B r o t h e r

D a r r e l L e e ’ s

J o u r n a l

Read more at apostolicfaith.org/world-reportWorld Report

2

From the

Superintendent ’s

Desk

I was born in a place that was called God forsaken; it was cold and miserable. But you know what? The love of God was burning in our hearts. When I was barely over one year old, I was poisoned by some medicine that my dad had given me, not knowing that it was not good. I ended up in the hospital and the doctors said, “She is not going to survive.” Then my dad went to a young people’s service at church and said, “Can we please just go to our knees and pray?” And at that service the Lord let them know that He had healed me. Right after the service, my dad went to the hospital and he told my mom, “We’re taking her home. She will be fine.” The Lord took care of it. The Lord has been faithful in the little and big situations and I love Him.

– Irina Fedosov

I’m thankful God undertakes in situations at work. I went to school for accounting, and normally when you’re hired at a CPA firm you are hired out as a class. You need to be looking for employment months in advance, but I didn’t get to do that. So when it came time for graduation, I was just applying for jobs on Craigslist. I had only two or three interviews, and nothing came of them. I had to learn to trust God. And after two or three weeks, I got another interview at a temp agency and was hired that week. Now I’ve been there four years!

This summer, my job turned into something that I really did not go to school for; my job function completely changed. In those situations, you just have to rely on God every day. Today I felt like, “I don’t know what I’m doing!” But God is there, even when you don’t know exactly what the path ahead is going to be. I’m just thankful that I can rely on Him.

– Sam Cantrell

The other day in my American Studies class we did “philosophical chairs,” which is where the teacher puts a statement on the board and there is a “yes” side of the room and a “no” side of the room. Depending on how you feel about the statement, you go to either side. For one of the statements, I was the only person on the no side, and everybody else was on the yes side. The people on each side have to defend why they are standing there, and I was really nervous to do that, but I quickly prayed, “Please help me to get through this and help me to know what to say.” I ended up doing really well and was able to get my point across, and I actually got a lot of people to come over to my side, which was really cool. I’m thankful that God watches out for me.

– Julianne Luka

During camp meeting I was talking to a friend about how it was really hard to get sanctified. I knew what God wanted me to do to receive it, but I was holding back because I was afraid. The very next morning, God came down and sanctified me, and I’m so thankful. I’m also thankful that when you’re going about your day, even in a really dark environment, God is there with you, holding your hand all the time.

– Josh Friesen

I’m so thankful that God cares about the things that we care about. My car’s “check engine” light came on recently and I was really worried about it. Thankfully, my brother-in-law has a computer that could read the error code, and he looked it up and said, “Uh oh, this isn’t good; your transmission is going out. We’ll change a part and see if that fixes the problem.” I was praying, “God, help me to still have reliable transportation until we get the part.” God sustained my car, which was amazing, and yesterday I got it fixed at my brother-in-law’s house. I’m so thankful God provided.

Then last night when I was driving home I had to go through the Vista Ridge tunnel, which is kind of a scary tunnel because you can’t see very well and you don’t know what’s going on. It was rainy and dark and I was going a little fast when I saw everyone else stopping ahead. I prayed, “Dear Jesus, please help me to slow down in time and please help the people behind me to slow down in time,” and He did. When I got to the tunnel, I saw that two cars had crashed inside, and a bit further into the tunnel there was a five-car pileup. I’m so thankful that God watches out for us, and I pray for the people involved in the accident that they are all safe.

– April Rudolph

A Few Words of Thanks

3

April Rudolph Josh Friesen

4

The Life & Teachings of Paul: Parts 6-8This fall, many were able to enjoy an

eight-part study on the life of Paul the Apostle. Following is a summary of the last three sessions, which were held October 25, November 1, and November 8.

Session 6. Samuel Asaya (pictured below) taught the session on Paul’s “Arrest and Journey to Rome,” with the source text from Acts 23:3 through 28:16. Brother Samuel began by speaking about how Paul had a unique opportunity to share the Gospel with Roman leaders because he was a Roman citizen, and therefore had the right to present his case in a trial. Rather than just use that opportunity to plead for his freedom, Paul always shared his testimony during his hearings, clearly recognizing that God brought him before rulers not just to be a witness of temporal events, but also of spiritual truths. Brother Samuel pointed out that when Paul spoke to King Agrippa, he did not seem to be in fear for his future. Rather, Paul spoke boldly, urging Agrippa to believe the Gospel. No matter what hardship he was under, Paul knew God was in total control, and this enabled him to focus on his God-given commission of spreading the Gospel rather than his own welfare.

Brother Samuel ended with a comparison between Paul and Florence Crawford, the founder of our

avoiding profitless religious debates, focusing instead on activities that will save souls; how to select elders and ministers in the church; the need to adhere closely to Scripture; and to pray always for all men, including oppressive rulers. Brother Earl said that if Paul were to write to a young pastor today, he would not have to change anything. The

precious teachings he gave to Timothy and Titus are still a treasure for us today.

Session 8. The topic of the final session was Paul’s “Imprisonments and Final Testimony,” with the source texts taken from the Books of Philemon, Colossians, Ephesians, Philippians, and 2 Timothy. The teacher was Dayle Lee. He said that one of the key themes of this group of texts was unity, and he pointed out that a big part of achieving unity is simply keeping ourselves from interfering with God’s plans. He said when we are doing what God has called us to do, and we get to do it in unity with others, it is very enjoyable.

Another theme of the letters Paul wrote while in prison was prayer—Paul asked for it, related that he was praying, and shared answers to prayer. He encouraged prayer for specific people, as well as for “all saints,” with “all perseverance and supplication” (Ephesians 6:18). The audience was encouraged by the statement that “no prayer from a sanctified heart will be unanswered or lost. We may not know the answer, but it will be answered.”

Brother Dayle ended with the thought that Paul likely accumulated very few earthly goods in his life, yet he left something priceless at his passing—the inspired words in his letters.

church. He said both experienced dramatic conversions and then became sold-out Christians who preached the Gospel boldly. Brother Samuel encouraged his listeners to devote their lives to the Gospel in the same way Paul and Sister Crawford did, and to give their full support to the church leaders God has called.

Session 7. Earl Phillips taught about Paul “Mentoring Christians,” using 1 and 2 Timothy and Titus as the primary texts. Brother Earl began by pointing out that these epistles are special because they were written to individuals rather than to churches. In his opening greetings, Paul called the recipients “sons,” revealing how close their relationship was. He felt like a father to these men and wanted to see them succeed, and his letters contained advice and instructions to help them.

Speaking of the importance of spiritual mentors, Brother Earl recounted how much he appreciated being mentored by Loyce Carver. When he was a new preacher, Brother Carver took him aside and gently warned him not to say “Oh” so often in his sermons, or else he might be nick-named the

“O-preacher”! Brother Carver also instructed him to listen to his wife’s suggestions, because she would be the best critic of his preaching and anything else. Like Paul’s letters to Timothy and Titus, those pieces of advice were given in love by an experienced elder, and they proved invaluable.

Some of the priceless instruction Paul gave to his spiritual sons included:

“Paul knew God was in total control, and this enabled him to focus on his God-given commission of spreading the Gospel.”

5

Gallery PICSselections from our online albums

5

(Clockwise from top left) Myrna Rudolph teaches Beginners about thank-fulness; Sweet baby Nora Cook; Visiting minister David Lambert preaches; Friends Matei Enache and Eli Moberg; Rob Parker helps Primary students fish for songs; Marcus and Anika Ewers play their violins; Brenner sisters and cousins sing together; Focused Beginner students; A McCarville family trio.

On the Spot

Emily Stewart: Spending time with friends

and family.

Hunter McCarville: Listening to Christmas music.

Irina Fedosov: Enjoying the season with family and friends, and celebrating Jesus’ birth.

Cheyenna Hall: My favorite part of Christmas is making people happy by giving them presents. But I’m so happy that God gave us the best Present of all in Jesus.

Tyler Green: Going to all of the fun get-togethers with family.

Betty Davis: That we still have a living Jesus, that is what the Christmas season is to me.

Selah Wolfe: Giving and getting presents.

Kailyn McKay: Spending time with family and playing in the snow.

Erik Calhoun: Celebrating Jesus’ birth and spending time with family and friends.

Question: What is your favorite thing

about the Christmas season?

6

By Sabrina Stewart

Youth Focus Q & AA youth focus session was held on

November 10, beginning with a meal of hot ham and cheese sandwiches and concluding with molten lava chocolate cake. Following this, the young people participated in a Bible trivia game. The left side of the room was pitted against the right side in answering questions such as “Who preached and 3,000 were saved?” The point system for answering correctly was creative, and in the end, the teams settled with a tie.

After singing a few worship songs, Erik Calhoun asked for special prayer for our Roseburg church family who tragically lost three members a few days prior. Brother Erik reminded everyone that although we cannot make sense of what happened, we can trust God and look to Him for help in every situation.

address these questions, and ultimately there is no formula that will bring revival, or forgiveness, or the baptism of the Holy Ghost. Each of these situations requires divine intervention, and we must seek God until He shows us how to do it. He reminded everyone that God does not require anything of us without also helping us to do it, and the evening closed with a time of prayer.

Rather than focusing on a single topic during the study portion of the evening, Brother Erik lead a discussion of questions that had been submitted by some of the young people. The first question was “What are the steps to revival?” and Brother Erik explained that revival comes from God, not from us. He also said that revival cannot happen on a mass scale unless it is also taking place on an individual level. Our part is to seek God in fervent prayer, removing obstacles such as pride and busyness. He said it takes brutal honesty with God and setting priorities in order.

Another question asked “How come it is so hard to forgive sometimes?” and another was, “How do you receive the Holy Spirit?” With time running short, Brother Erik said there is no way to fully Erik Calhoun leads the Q & A session.