Christmas Worship Service!

Merry Christmas! What a wonderful time of year this is, a time to celebrate the coming of Jesus Christ into the world.

Though Jesus is in very nature God, He gave up his heavenly glory and power and came into this world in the most humble way, as a baby in a manger. Jesus’ birth fulfilled the prophecy given to Micah: God sent Jesus to be the shepherd for his people. As a shepherd sacrifices for the well-being of sheep, so Jesus sacrificed His life to save helpless people from the power of sin and death.

Jesus came to be your shepherd, and the shepherd of peoples from every tribe and nation in the world. Let’s welcome Him into our hearts and worship Him together this Christmas, and pray for people of all nations to come to salvation in him.

For this purpose, the Chicago area UBF chapters are preparing to worship together on December 13^th at 2:00 p.m. at Regina Dominican High School. There will be a wonderful Christmas message, a meaningful drama, a joyful chorus, and exciting dancing.

Please come and join us. You will be glad you did!

Left Behind in a Mega-Church World: 

How God works through Ordinary Churches

By Ruth Tucker

After Dr. Tucker spoke at the recent UBF Staff Conference in Columbus, Shepherdess Julie read the book and Pastor Kevin currently can’t put it down.

Many Pastors experience doubt and confusion as they watch the growth of mega-church congregations and buildings, while their own churches remain small in comparison.  Much like the “WalMart-Effect”, smaller churches experience an identity crisis and give up God’s calling because they do not measure up by the standards of today’s mega-churches.  Dr. Tucker asserts that whether called to serve a large church or a small church, pastors need not compare or despair but honor God where they are from the heart, regardless of numbers or the size of their church building.

Dr. Tucker encourages Pastors of smaller churches to:

1.     Take regular inventory of all we are and all Christ summons us to be

2.     Feed the inner life and stand in the strength God provides

3.     Define success in terms of the depth of individual commitment  by church members rather than by the number of church attendants

4.     Don’t try to copy the principles and programs of mega-churches that simply will not work in their own situation

5.     Nurture the small church into the community & spiritual family that the mega-church can never be

About the Author:

Ruth Tucker earned a PhD in History at Northern Illinois University, and has held teaching positions at Moffett College of the Bible in Kenya, Calvin College, Fuller Theological Seminary and Trinity Evangelical College.  

Dr. Tucker is the author of 17 books in including: Private Lives of Pastor’s Wives, Daughters of the Church, and Guardians of the Great Commission.

May the Name of the Lord be Praised!

Job 1:21c 

Happy Thanksgiving! Thanksgiving Day is a harvest festival. Traditionally, it is a time to give thanks for the harvest and express gratitude in general.

It is a holiday celebrated primarily in the United States.

However, the US economy continues its slow decline before our eyes. Job loss in U.S. is worst since 1945 growing 6.3 million. Many US soldiers are dying in Afghanistan. Many people are asking for what purpose are our soldiers dying? Millions of Afghan people are suffering from hunger and malnutrition now, and their situation will become catastrophic as the war and the winter deepen. How would most people react to such an overwhelming national and personal disaster? What should we do even in the midst of unbearable sufferings? Can you praise and thank God in all circumstances?

Yes! Job was a righteous man who was very rich. Even after losing everything he owned and suffering from a terrible sickness, Job still confessed his love for God and kept his integrity. Yes! There are the reasons for suffering, especially the suffering of people who love God and are good. Job finally admitted that God is too great and wonderful for us to understand and gave thanks to God.

We couldn’t thank of a better way to give thank for our fruitful and plentiful bounty than to invite our most loved ones and dearest friends to our special thanksgiving worship service. We have music and food and especially words of God from the Book of Job and much more.

Please join us at the Joint DuPage, NIU & Triton Worship Service!

Pray for Europe!                          

Prayer Topics for Europe UBF

1.       God’s kingdom may advance and stem the tide of Islamization and Humanism.

2.       Leadership of Native Shepherds in Germany, UK and France

3.       Stewardship of a New Generation

4.       European UBF Directors may have unity in faith, hope, love and mission

5.       Pioneer 45 European nations and 1,700 campuses

6.       Strength and wisdom for Dr. Peter Chang, Europe UBF Director

November is National Novel Writing Month

Jenn and Hope have each signed up to write their first novels in 30 days.  Jenn’s goal is to write a 175-page novel (50,000 words), or 1,700 words a day.  Hope’s goal is to write 10,000 words, or 333 words a day.

www.nanowrimo.org

Valuing enthusiasm and perseverance over painstaking craft, NaNoWriMo is a novel-writing program for everyone who has thought fleetingly about writing a novel but has been scared away by the time and effort involved.

Because of the limited writing window, the ONLY thing that matters in NaNoWriMo is output. It's all about quantity, not quality. The kamikaze approach forces you to lower your expectations, take risks, and write on the fly.  By forcing yourself to write so intensely, you are giving yourself permission to make mistakes. To forgo the endless tweaking and editing and just create. To build without tearing down.

As you spend November writing, you can draw comfort from the fact that, all around the world, other National Novel Writing Month participants are going through the same joys and sorrows of producing the Great Frantic Novel. Wrimos meet throughout the month to offer encouragement, commiseration, and—when the thing is done—the kind of raucous celebrations that tend to frighten animals and small children.

In 2008, we had over 119,000 participants. More than 21,000 of them crossed the 50k finish line by the midnight deadline, entering into the annals of NaNoWriMo superstardom forever. They started the month as auto mechanics, out-of-work actors, and middle school English teachers. They walked away novelists.

Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA) at DHS

FCA is a national organization of Christians dedicated to providing students with the resources needed to self-lead Christian fellowships on high school and university campuses.

The FCA Chapter at DeKalb High School has just been renewed after a 3-year hiatus, and I have many plans for this club.  As a beginning, our club will meet every two weeks to pray and discuss a passage from the gospel of John.

Prayer Topics for FCA @ DHS:

1.     Good co-working between President Cara, Mr. Beverly (Advisor), Meagan and myself

2.     John’s Gospel Bible discussions

3.     God may direct us to projects and community service, and inspire many students to participate

4.     FCA members be a good influence and make the kingdom of God visible to DHS students

5.     Planning and scheduling may overcome busyness and other responsibilities & activities to honor God

6.     God may raise up 5 faithful & committed co-workers

UBF USA National Staff Conference

Columbus, OH

October 15-17, 2009

Praise God who blessed the USA Staff Conference!

THURSDAY

Dr. Ruth Tucker delivered the opening message on the history of the house church movement, accompanied by her husband John who interjected in a third person voice with empirical anecdotes.  Afterwards, 5 new UBF chapters were introduced in Springfield, IL; Pittsburgh, PA; Houston, TX; Chapel Hill, NC; and Knoxville, TN.

FRIDAY

After breakfast, we broke up into 18 small groups for bible study. Pastor Mark Vucekovich delivered a message based on Romans chapter 16, illustrating six principles of an exemplary house church based on the lives of Priscilla and Aquila.  The afternoon was spent writing and sharing testimonies in small groups, and getting to know eachother.  In the evening, five house church leaders shared one practical aspect of their mission lives followed by an open floor discussion.  Lastly, a video introduction to UBF Press was presented and a call went out for Partnership donations.

SATURDAY

After GBS, Pastor Kevin Albright delivered a message based on Romans chapter 1, outlining Apostle Paul’s Faith, Vision and Obligation.  Following lunch, 1/3 of the group went to the airport to return home, 1/3 made a quick stop to pray at OSU, and 1/3 joined a time of fellowship with Columbus UBF coworkers and prayed on the campus of OSU. 

Canadian Journey Report

by Shepherdess Julie Jesmer

This week, had the opportunity to visit with Waterloo UBF and Humber UBF coworkers in Toronto, Canada, while on an business trip to MKS Waterloo.

Waterloo UBF                                                      http://waterloo-ubf.uwaterloo.ca 

On Wednesday evening, I visited Sh. Andy & Jennifer Stumpf’s home, in which they share common life with Msn Joshua & Hanna Yoon.  We had dinner fellowship with their family and bible student Greg, who also lives there.  God provided a spacious new bible house across the street and a home big enough for 2 families and many guests.  They pray for Rick Pace to grow as a steward in the former bible house building, and 4 growing disciples who live together in the new building.  I spent just 2 hours with them, due to the fact that the Stumpf’s have a new baby (Hudson), Msn Hannah’s sister and cousin were also visiting, and they had a scheduled planning meeting.

Humber UBF                                                                http://www.humberubf.org

On Thursday evening, Humber coworkers prepared a delicious feast and we enjoyed fellowship from 7pm to midnight.  I stayed overnight with Msn Paulus & Mercy Cha’s family, and on Friday morning visited Msn Timothy Park at with Mercy and Msn Rebekah.  

Their prayer topics are as follows:

1.    Chantel Ryan and Joshua Kirkland may grow as ancestors of faith

2.    1-Day Fall Bible Academy on November 4^th

3.    45,000 Humber College students/ two campuses: 1-Toronto & 1- Guelph

4.    Young Disciples meet and share testimonies on Friday evenings

5.    1 Corinthians bible study

6.    Msn Tim Park’s Leukemia – healing & experience resurrection power

7.    Beautiful co-working of 4 families in one heart, mind and mission:

a.    Paulus & Mercy Cha (Mary-UofT, Grace-H.S. and Sarah-H.S.)

b.    Isaac & Rebekah Lee (Jacob-7thG and David-5yrs)

c.     David & Maria Lee (Sion-5thG, JuEun-2ndG, and HaEun-4yrs)

d.    Tim & Joanna Park (Susanna-9thG, Hannah-7thG, & Joan-6thG)

Staff Meeting October 15-17th

Messengers:  Dr. Ruth Tucker, Pastor Mark Vucekovich, Kevin Albright

Theme:          House Church Ministry, Romans ch 1 & ch 16

GBS Leaders:  Dr. Helen Rarick, Jenny Cook, Kathy Vucekovich, Yvonne

Timlin, Little Sarah Kim, Julie Jesmer, David Kim, Joshua Kim, Kevin Jesmer, Mark Yang, and Jose Ahn.

See You At the Pole!                                   WED, Sept 23rd

SYATP is an international Christian event designed to unite Christian students on every Middle School and High School campus.  With the school’s flagpole in the center, Christian students gather on the third Wednesday in September to pray for their campus and one another.  The event serves as a visual “call” for Christian youth to come out of the crowds and stand together in united purpose.

Jenn helped to organize DHS’s SYATP event.  Over 30 students attended, and many gave their email addresses to facilitate communication for future gatherings.  Together with the leaders of Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA), Jenn prays to take the lead and re-start a Christian club on campus in a new form.  Pray for Jenn to lead a weekly bible discussion and prayer time, and to organize many more activities with fellow high school students.

Triple Band Blowout                                       SAT, Sept 27th

After months of multi-locational practices and numerous planning conference  calls under the leadership of Shepherdess Charisma Magno, three UBF ministry praise bands played both Christian songs and history oldies:  (1) Joint NIU, DuPage and Triton, (2) IIT (Illinois Institute of Technology), and (3) West Loop.  The Concert was held on the campus of Triton College on stage in the largest concert hall at the main performing arts building, for the first time  in 20 years of Triton UBF ministry. 

Parade of Flags

By Hope Jesmer

Nearly 500 fifth graders joined NIU students in the 10 Annual Parade of Flags on Friday, September 18^th.  Students from 6 schools participated: Lincoln, Brooks, St. Mary's, Tyler, Malta, Wright and Jefferson.  

Students marched from the NIU Huskie Stadium, down Lucinda Avenue to the Martin Luther King Commons carrying 185 flags

Speakers included:  Andy Small, Principal at Brooks Elementary; Jim Briscoe, District 428 Superintendent;  Kris Paulsen, Mayor;  Emily Prieto, Director of NIU’s Latino Resource Center; and Deborah Pierce, Associate Provost for International Programs at NIU.  The 5^th Graders also heard from two students in the international program who spoke about life in their home countries, Jamaica and India.

The parade concluded with the children singing “ A Child of this World” on the steps of the Holmes Student Center, and a lunch of pizza and cookies.

The overall goal of the event was to celebrate global diversity and educate the community about international programs at NIU both in the US and abroad.  The NIU student population includes students from 78 nations of the world.

NIU Tennis Club                                            

On Thursday and Friday, September 10^th and 11^th, Andrew Norte hosted Try-outs for the NIU Tennis Club.  About 50 people of all different skill levels attended and worked on drills, with the hope of being one of 20 players to be chosen as part of the team.

Tim and Jennifer helped out with Registration and chasing tennis balls. It was a great opportunity to get to know NIU students. 

Next week is the Huskie Hit-Around Bash, which NIU UBF will serve.  If you are interested in joining, see Andrew, the President of the Tennis Club.

Central Europe II Tour Report                                     By Julie Jesmer August 2009

After the historic 2009 Summer Bible Conference at Castle Eringerfeld, 35 members of the Central European UBF journey team left by bus for the Czech Republic and Poland, accompanied by Czech UBF coworkers traveling home by car. Near midnight, we arrived at Hotel Praha, a 5-star hotel near the North and South Korean embassies where dignitaries and celebrities stay. Early the next morning an English-speaking tour guide boarded the bus with the team for a tour of historic sites in Prague and the Czech UBF Bible House.

The Czech Republic is part of the former Austro-Hungarian empire, and its written language is Slavonic in origin. Catholicism was practiced from the 11th to 14th centuries, yet 60% of the current population are atheists. The Community of the Brethren spread the word of God house to house, not in or through the church, which they opposed. Later know as Moravians, Moravian missionaries worked hard to pioneer the whole world with the gospel. The turning point in religious Czech history began with the plague of 1380, after which the Catholic church experienced a crisis over indulgences. John Huss led a protestant reformation 100 yrs before Martin Luther¡¯s German revolution. The Hussite Revolution began in 1479 and lasted 15 yrs. Many were martyred and churches burned to the ground. Through this, the country lost 14% of its population and its economy was destroyed. Five different Crusades were sent to the Czech kingdom but each time were defeated by zealous freedom fighters. The end result was two churches: Catholic and Hussite. Due to the influence of Communism and state control of church land, to this day the church of the Czech Republic has a bad relationship with The Vatican. Many monasteries are flourishing, but churches still lack membership and reconstruction funds.

Czech Technical University is the oldest of 17 universities in Prague, founded in 1348. The journey team visited the site where in 1993, Msn Isaac Shin buried his hair under a tree on the campus with the hope of planting gospel faith in the hearts of students. After Msn Isaac was called home into the bosom of Jesus Christ, Msn Hannah Shin decided to remain in the mission field and continues to hold out the gospel of life to CTU students. Msn Hannah successfully supports herself and the ministry as a Distributor of Korean foods, and plans to open a warehouse soon to expand her business into the surrounding countries. Their son David Shin is pursuing a Masters degree in Economics, and stands wholeheartedly as a spiritual leader and coworker in the ministry. Msn Joshua and Maria Kang joined the work of God in Prague, and this year Msn Samuel Park and his wife are also relocating to the Czech Republic. By the living word of God in Jn 12:24, the labor of love of ancestors of faith such as John Huss and Isaac Shin are not in vain, but are producing countless seeds of life in the Kingdom. Ales Maca is growing as a student shepherd in the Agriculture Faculty at CTU, and shared his life testimony and the Czech mission report at the conference.

The journey team visited the spacious Czech UBF Bible center and enjoyed refreshments and fellowship. Coworkers shared the prayer topics of 30 1-to-1 Bible studies and 12 growing disciples as we prayed with united hearts. In addition, we praised God to hear an encouraging story about God¡¯s work during the conference preparation period and in the heart of one person. Co-workers in Central Europe met together in central places once a month for many months to prepare "The Ballet" performance for the conference. They hired a professional to direct them, who became busy and introduced a friend to take her place. When that director again grew too busy, a third friend was recruited. The program came together spectacularly, and regional unity grew in the process. Satan attacked and broke Msn Hannah's leg in Croatia, leaving her on crutches. Yet this final director attended the conference fully, and afterward expressed the desire to study 1-to-1.

Ez 37:3 says, "Son of Man, can these bones live?" Based on the Friday morning devotional message at the conference, we could hear the cry of Almighty God offering grace to breathe the breath of life into dry bones and transform Czech youth into a mighty army of God! The fields are ripe for harvest, and God is empowering his servants to fight the 1-to-1 battle through Bible teaching, prayer, and discipleship training. Czech UBF prays for Sh. Ales to grow as an Abraham of faith at CTU, and he himself prays to grow as a good coworker.

After saying goodbye, the journey team headed eastward to Poland, where Msn Elijah Park of Warsaw UBF met us at the Hotel Galicja near Auschwitz at around 2:00 am. After another excellent Polish-style breakfast at the hotel, for several hours, the team toured 2 concentration camps, Auschwitz and Birkenou.

Auschwitz was not the largest of the extermination sites that operated in Poland between 1941-1944, but its notoriety comes from the fact that it doubled as a labor camp and housed horrific medical experiments performed on Jewish children. Humanity itself was guilty of causing and executing the Holocaust, with its godless philosophy and scientific engineering. Satan used German excellence, existing transportation infrastructure and world indifference to slaughter God's children. In order to move the Jews in such large numbers by train from several countries to the camps, the Nazis developed an elaborate deception with regard to resettlement. Thinking only that they were being involuntarily relocated to neighborhoods elsewhere, tickets to nowhere were purchased and Jews packed clothing, goods, valuables and food for the journey. The Nazi regime acted in accordance with the law and documented the genocide extensively. Lifespan after train debarkation lasted from 20 minutes to 2 years, and the rule of fear kept the able from escaping and exposing the plot against the Jews. In the material evidence hall the journey team viewed a sacred urn containing what human remains could be collected, as well as spectacles, shoes and prosthetic limbs that survived the attempt made by the Nazis to destroy the evidence of their horrific crimes by fire.

Hilter's goal was power more than it was personal racial satisfaction. He offered world leaders a solution to their "Jewish Problem", and put himself forward as king. Briefly Madascar was considered as a relocation site, but likely common hatred precluded a solution that would include a homeland for the Jews. Once the system was built, darkness reigned and over 6 million Jews met their end at the hands of the Nazis. Each journey team member prayed a repentant prayer not to turn a blind eye to the needs of others, but to welcome and work hard to help each Bible student that comes our way with the very heart of God.

In the afternoon, the team toured the historic Salt Mine in Wieliczka, a national treasure also known as the Salt of the Earth. Stretching 300 km wide by 327 m deep, it is the only mining site in the world functioning continuously since the Middle Ages, illustrating all the stages of mining technology development over time. After descending 54 flights of stairs down to the 1st chamber, the team toured the 1% of the mine open to the public. The mine contains numerous memorials to legend and dignitaries made of salt, as well as 14 chapels hundreds of feet below the surface of the ground -- the largest of which took 50 years to be completed and is a popular site for local weddings. From there the journey team traveled to Krakow, the former capital of the Polish Kingdom. It took 4 hours by bus, and when we arrived we met one Bible student named Philip who joined the team for dinner at a Polish restaurant. Philip is a PhD student in BioChemistry at University of Krakow, whose population measures 46,000 students. The three most prominent faculties of the university are Law, Medicine and Philosophy. Pope Jean-Paul II and Copernicus are the most famous graduates of Krakow University, and national treasures to the Polish people. Msn Elijah travels from Warsaw to Krakow to study with Philip and prays for him to take responsibility for the campus.

After dinner, the team drove 4 hours by bus from Krakow to Warsaw, where we checked into our final hotel for 2 nights. On Wednesday, the team visited the Marie Curie home and museum. Inside, pamphlets describing her scientific achievements are available in six languages. Madame Curie is a Nobel Laureate in Physics and her work formed the foundations for the science of radioactivity and the dawn of the nuclear era. She also discovered the two elements Polonium and Francium, naming them after hers and her husband's home countries.

From there, the team journeyed to the University of Warsaw, the mission field of our UBF missionaries. The campus population totals 60,000 students, and the spectacular roof gardens over the New Library divides the view of the city from west to east. From time to time Msn Elijah ascends the stairs he led the group on, and from there counts the stars to remember and believe God's promises. The general philosophy and way of thinking of students are extremely complicated, comparing all things from a human point of view. As such, although 97% of Poland¡¯s population is Catholic, Polish people do not consider the Bible to be the word of God. Struggles with Polish students have been so intense that the Park family named the Bible house portion of their home, ¡°the cave of Adullam¡±.

One man Tomasz has been studying the Bible 1-to-1 with Msn Elijah for over 10 years. Tomasz entered university bypassing the entrance exam because of superior academic performance in primary school years. Though he has yet to meet Jesus personally, every Saturday Tomasz helps Msn Elijah to translate the Sunday message into excellent Polish. Msn Elijah and Deborah pray for a simple gospel spirit to overcome all thick and tall cultural obstacles, and to conquer the hearts of proud intellectuals with the gospel of grace. They pray for Bible students Tomas and Zbyszek to grow as ancestors of faith for Warsaw ministry. They also pray for a new place of worship within this year. After 4-by-4 prayers on the campus, Msn Grace Hong fished one man named Mache, who professed interest in Bible study and was happy to be introduced to Msn Elijah.

The final stop on this prayer journey was the Warsaw Bible House. In early 1998, the Holy Spirit gave Msn Elijah Park a heart for an unknown land called Poland. He had no job and had no knowledge of the Polish language. His only prayer was for a wife to co-work with him, so on the same day that he finished missionary training he took Msn Deborah as his wife. Less than 2 months later, Msn Elijah left for Poland with a backpack and a 3 month visa. For one month he stayed in a hostel and then started a language course. Because he was a poet with no driver¡¯s license or experience with MS Word, no one wanted to hire him, but one Manager heard about his persistence in sending out resumes and gave him a chance. Msn Elijah now manages an international trade office and translates the daily bread material into Polish language. In order to improve his language ability, he continually listens to radio and reads newspapers. Msn Deborah joined the mission by the summer of 1998, and God gave them three lovely children, Paula, Paul and Peter. Agneshka also began Bible study and continues. In 2003, Msn Henrik & Hanna Lee joined the Poland mission in the pioneering of Wroclaw, the third largest city in Poland.

Msn Elijah is a very efficient gospel worker, and welcomes short-term missionaries to Poland as English teachers. Such fellow workers would be most beneficial to the ministry, as they would attract new students who eagerly desire to learn English. In the land of Copernicus, Jean-Paul II, Marie Curie and Chopin, we pray that God may raise up a new generation of spiritual leaders with faith that can move mountains, beginning with one man Tomasz and one woman Samantha

Praise God who blessed the European SBC in Germany and 40th Anniversary celebration with 1,200 attendants.  Almighty God abundantly blessed the ESBC with his Holy Spirit and great joy.

After 40 years of European UBF ministry, seven regions have been designated by common language and culture for co-working and joint fellowship.

1.      Germany

2.      Central Europe

3.      Francophone (French-speaking)

4.      Northern Europe

5.      Balkan

6.      Iberian Peninsula

7.      Greece

Through conference preparation, unity and new spirit was born.

PRAYER TOPICS

Europe UBF

·        Pioneer 45 European countries and 1,700 campuses

·        Send missionaries this year to: Italy, Finland, The Netherlands, Spain and Slovenia

·        Leadership of Dr. Peter Chang

Czech UBF

·        Msn Hannah Shin’s Sunday message

·        12 growing disciples at Czech Technical University

·        Ales Maca to grow as an ancestor of faith

·        Co-working among Joshua & Maria Kim, Samuel Park and David Shin

Warsaw UBF

·        Polish students may accept the bible as the word of God

·        Msn Elijah & Deborah Park may have simple gospel spirit

·        Thomas and Samantha to grow as an Abraham & Sarah of faith

·        New bible center within this year

Hope’s Testimony- What I learned at SBC 2009

Through this conference, I learned to seek first god’s kingdom and to store up treasures in heaven. When we seek first God’s kingdom and his righteousness, we live a blessed and fruitful life. Also, we must store up treasures in heaven, not on earth, like relationships, memories, and friendships. My treasures on earth used to be my dog, money when I had it, and my iPod.  But I learned to store up treasures in heaven by doing things for the needy, and preaching the gospel. In this way, God gives me eternal life and a great reward in his kingdom.

Also, the greatest treasure is Jesus. I enjoyed Jennifer’s message about the man and the field and the merchant and the pearl. Jesus is that pearl, and I need to give all I have for him.

During this conference, I enjoyed many things: swimming, singing, dancing, friends and the drama. My friend Abby Swick came to this conference. We had GBS led by Hannah Kim. Miranda, Becky and Sarah Yoon, and Sarah and I were in her group.  Abby opened up her heart and even wrote a testimony. She was eager to speak and learned many things from bible study.

My one word is:   But Seek first God’s Kingdom

TRITON’S 20^TH YEAR ANNIVERSARY

By Hope Jesmer (age 10)

On July 5^th, Triton celebrated their 20^th year anniversary. It was held on the campus of Triton College. This was a great victory. There was a message by Shp. Teddy on 1 Samuel: 7, teaching us about how much the Lord had helped Israel. He reminded us of God’s grace to all who have been part of the Triton ministry. Also, there was a power point on the history of Triton UBF. There were pictures of Kevin and Julie when they first got married. Gideon Sherwin flew in from Florida, and three cars of people drove in from Seattle, Washington. After the service, we all had a delicious Mediterranean dinner and had beautiful fellowship with people from other chapters. May God continue to bless Triton for another twenty years.

ADONIRAM JUDSON : By Augustine Jesmer

Adoniram Judson was a very smart person. When he was 9 years old, he could solve complex math problems in the local paper that were only for adults because they were hard. But Adoniram solved them and his parents were impressed.

            Adoniram’s father enrolled him to Captain Morton’s school of Navigation. Adoniram loved school a lot. Later, Adoniram’s younger sister Mary died at 6 months old. Adoniram decided he wanted nothing to do with this God that would do this.

            Mr. Judson also became sick and had to quit preaching. They then went to Braintree which is a city.

            Adoniram then went to Rhode Island College at Providence. He was so good that he could skip freshman year and became a sophomore right away. He then met Jacob Eames and John Bailey and became friends.

      Jacob was a Deist and after talking about religion with Jacob, Adoniram became a Deist without telling his dad. At his school Adoniram became the valedictorian. After college Adoniram opened the Plymouth Independent Academy to teach. He also published textbooks. But Adoniram didn’t like his father’s beliefs or teaching at his school so he left. He went to New York to be a playwright. But he didn’t find any openings so he left. He went west and stayed at an inn next to a dying man. The next day Adoniram asked who was dying and it turned out it was his friend Jacob Eames from college.

On September 22^nd, 1808, Adoniram went back home where he met 2 visitors named Dr. Stuart and Dr.Griffin. They invited Adoniram to Andover Theological Seminary as someone who wanted to study Christianity because Adoniram had a lot of questions for them.. On October 12^th, 1808, he enrolled to the seminary. While he was there he studied the bible in Hebrew and Greek.

On December 2^nd, 1808, Adoniram committed his life to God because he came to the conclusion that the bible was correct. Adoniram was at the library and checked out a pamphlet called the Star of the East. It talked about how the people of India needed to hear the gospel. Adoniram knew he was staring at his destiny. He felt God was calling him to the Buddhist people in Burma.

Adoniram went back home. His family wanted him to be a pastor at Park Street, some church by their house, but Adoniram told them about being a missionary. They didn’t take it well at all. But Adoniram was more determined than ever.

When Adoniram went back to school, he told every one of his plans. Then Samuel Mills came to him and asked him to be part of his group called the Brethren. They pledged themselves to mission and to be ready when God calls them.

On June 28^th, 1810 Adoniram asked the Congregational Church and asked them to set up a missionary organization. The next day they approved. There was lots of celebration. There, Adoniram met Ann who he fell in love with and eventually married.

 On September 24^th, 1810 Adoniram graduated from Andover and went to the London Missionary Society to ask for money to support the missionaries. While he was sailing, he was captured by a French privateer ship. They took him to Bayonne, New Jersey and he was taken prisoner. While he was in line to go to the prison, he met a stranger who broke him out of jail later. Adoniram went to the London Missionary Society and they agreed to sponsor Adoniram and the Brethren as missionaries.

Adoniram and Ann went with Samuel and Harriett Newell on one boat. Samuel and Roxanna Not, Gordon Hall, and Luther rice went in a different boat. Adoniram and Ann were in danger of being deported so they went to the Isle of France and met up with Samuel Newell who told them that Harriet and their baby died of illness. So Samuel left and Luther went back to the U.S. to recover from liver sickness. Adoniram and Ann were alone. 

            They set sail for Burma on June 22^nd, 1813 and on that trip, Ann gave birth to a dead baby. They then went to their friend Felix Carry’s house where they learned Burmese. Felix’s family died so he left and then George and Phoebe Hough cam to join Adoniram and Ann.

Ann had another baby named Roger but he died at seven months old. Adoniram and George made a pamphlet that explains the gospel and they distributed it. A bad disease broke out and tensions were high between the British and Burma so George and Phoebe left.

 The Coleman’s and the Wheelock’s came to join them but James Coleman and Edward Wheelock got tuberculosis. James recovered but Edward and his wife “escaped” and Edward died at sea.

James and Adoniram opened a zayat to invite people to bible study on the streets and one guy named Maung Nau came and became a Christian and moved into their bible house. They eventually raised 10 bible students.

The new king of Burma didn’t like Christianity so James and Mary Coleman left.

Ann became really sick and had to go back to Boston. But Jonathan and Hope Price came and joined Adoniram and unfortunately Hope died within 6 weeks there. Ann came back and the Hughes also joined them again. Jonathan, Adoniram, and Ann moved to the royal city Ava while the Hughes stayed in Rangoon where Adoniram was all along in Burma.

            There, Adoniram was taken prisoner. While he was in prison, Ann had another baby. They named her Maria Elizabeth Butterworth Judson. Britain beat Burma in the war and Adoniram was set free.

            Adoniram finished printing the whole bible in Burmese with the help of George Hughes.

Ann died of sickness and Adoniram went back to the U.S. He had a lot of press conferences, meetings, speeches, and things like that. He married a writer named Emily Chubbuck. Adoniram and Emily went back to Burma and on April 12^th, 1850, Adoniram passed away.

            Adoniram’s translation of the bible to Burmese is the only one of its kind to date.

So Adoniram was a really great man. He listened to God’s will in his life and stuck with it to death and even though people were dying all around him.

 HAPPY FATHER'S DAY PASTOR KEVIN!

14 things you may not know about Pastor Kevin….

1.        Born on October 2, 1964

2.        Birthplace:  Thompson, Manitoba – Canada

3.        Attended Red River College in Winnipeg, Manitoba and attained a Chemical Technology degree in 1986

4.        Met Jesus personally and became a UBF Shepherd 1986

5.        Moved from Winnipeg to Chicago in Feb 1991

6.        Married Julie Nugent on October 9, 1992 at Chicago UBF

7.        Earned an RN from Triton College in 1994

8.        Graduated from Elmhurst College with a BSN in 1996

9.        Moved to DeKalb, Illinois with his family in 1998

10.  Began working as a Nurse at Kish Hospital in 1999

11.  Ordained Pastor of NIU UBF in December 2001

12.    Became a Naturalized American Citizen in April 2003

13.    Joined Kish-Wau-Key’s Barbershop Singers in 2007

14.   Walking with his black Labrador Gigi is one of the greatest joys of his life.

NKU UBF

Summer Schedule for UBF at Northern Kentucky University

Pastor Andrew Martin and Rebecca Martin

Key Verse: John 15:5, To remain in the Vine

June 27^th (Saturday at 4pm) -- We will pray for the marriage of Mary Martin

and John Ramsey and serve their wedding

Mary and John both study the Bible, and both made decisions of faith to live as Missionaries at the Purdue UBF Summer Bible Conference. Their marriage is a great work of God. Pray for them based on John 15:5

July 19^th ---- We will finish John’s Gospel and my second book

(All those who want to add their life testimonies to my book must get them in

by July 19^th)

July 23 - 26 --- We will be out of town to attend the JBF Conference

(You are invited to attend--We will not have Sunday worship service on July 26)

August 2^nd --- Grace Martin will give a message on the Overview of the Bible

She has been preparing High School by reading the Bible over the last year

August 9^th --- We will study the book of Jonah to prepare for mission journey to

Germany

(You are invited to attend with us)

August 12^th -20^th --- We will travel to Frankfurt, Germany and visit Paris France

On our return--Celebrate 40 years of God’s work in Europe

And pray with God’s people in Europe.

Summer Calendar

June 9-14th

Visit to DeKalb by Chris, Debbie, Allie and Tyler Nugent

2 days in DeKalb. May we show Jesus to them.

June 15^th through July 16^th

Sarah will participate in the STARTALK Good Will Program

Summer Chinese language class, MON-THU, 8:00am – Noon

June 21^st – Father’s Day

June 23^rd through 27^th

Visiting Pastor Kevin’s family in Southern Manitoba.

May we reveal Christ to them.

June 27^th through 29^th

Mnpls Prayer Journey. Visit Minneapolis and St. Paul UBF coworkers Attend worship service * at Minneapolis UBF on Sunday, June 29^th

* NOTE: No worship service at DeKalb Bible House on June 29^th *

July 4^th – Independence Day Celebration at Jesmer Home

July 5^th- 20^th Anniversary Celebration of Triton UBF

July 24^th through 26^th

Joint Summer Bible Conference with DuPage UBF at The Hyatt Lodge on the campus of Hamburger University, with special guests Andrew Yoon and family from Nigeria UBF.

Messengers: Pastor Kevin, Tim Sagel, Jeremy Hajek, Hannah Kim, Jon Greene, and Jennifer Jesmer

August 13-16 – European Summer Conference in Germany. Julie and Tim are going.

MEMORIAL DAY 2009

The ministries of Triton and NIU UBF held a join Memorial Day Commemoration at Triton UBF. Andrew Norte, Tim Sagel, and Sh. Carl Heusel shared testimony, the Jesmer kids led Praise and Worship, and Sarah sang a special song. Pastor Kevin delivered a Memorial Day Message entitled True Enduring Freedom is Found In Jesus Alone, based on Luke 1:74-75.

Memorial Day is a federal holiday observed on the last Monday of May. Formerly known as Decoration Day, it commemorates U.S. men and women who died while in the military service. First enacted to honor Union soldiers of the American Civil War it was expanded after World War I to include American casualties of any war or military action.

The first Memorial Day was observed on May 1, 1865 by liberated slaves in Charleston, South Carolina, who disinterred the dead Union soldiers from the mass grave and buried them properly with individual graves, built a fence around the graveyard with an entry arch, declaring it a Union graveyard. Three years later, the same freed slaves returned with flowers and decorated the individual gravesites, thereby creating the first Decoration Day. Thousands of freed blacks and Union soldiers paraded from the area, followed by much patriotic singing and a picnic. That year a proclamation of "Decoration Day" was observed nationwide. The alternative name of "Memorial Day" was first used in 1882, and declared by Federal law in 1967.. A national moment of remembrance takes place at 3 p.m. local time, paying respect those who have given so much, with a resolution that their sacrifice will always be remembered by a grateful nation. Many people observe this holiday by visiting cemeteries and memorials.

It is our responsibility as Americans to preserve the memory of the fallen, who bought and maintained freedom through military campaigns all over the world. True freedom, however, is when a nation’s citizenry are set free from the power of sin and death to do what is right before the eyes of God. We must be thankful for the sacrifices of people who have laid down their lives to make our freedom possible, like Sh. Carl Heusel of Triton UBF. In our hearts, may each of us make an expression of solemn gratitude and deep respect for those who have laid down their lives so that we could enjoy the freedoms that we have in this country and in this fellowship. May we also always remember and honor the giver of true freedom, Jesus Christ.

30-HOUR FAMINE 2009

This weekend was World Vision's annual 30 Hour Famine fast. Jenn participated in this fast along with about 15 people from Triton UBF who fasted as a prayer for the children around the world who don't have adequate nourishment. Friday night's program consisted of a short film about world hunger and a bible study. On Saturday, they did service projects around the bible house, including painting, raking, washing, and cutting back foliage. To raise additional funds, a garage sale and car wash is also planned for next weekend. May God use World Vision and their fundraising efforts to provide children worldwide with both physical and spiritual nourishment.

The Bible was written in tears, and to tears it yields its best treasures."

-- A.W. Tozer

"It is clear that there must be difficulties for us in a revelation such as the Bible. If someone were to hand me a book that was as simple to me as the multiplication table, and say, 'This is the Word of God. In it He has revealed His whole will and wisdom,' I would shake my head and say, 'I cannot believe it; that is too easy to be a perfect revelation of infinite wisdom.' There must be, in any complete revelation of God's mind and will and character and being, things hard for the beginner to understand; and the wisest and best of us are but beginners." -- R.A. Torrey

"My advice to Sunday Schools no matter what their denomination is: Hold fast to the Bible as the sheet anchor of your liberties; write its precepts in your heart, and practice them in your lives. To the influence of this Book we are indebted for the progress made in true civilization and to this we must look as our guide in the future. 'Righteousness exalteth a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people (Proverbs 14:34)'."  -- Ulysses S. Grant

"At this time I both read and studied all kinds of literature: cosmography, histories, chronicles, and philosophy and other arts , to which our Lord opened my mind unmistakably to the fact that it was possible to navigate from here to the Indies, and He evoked in me the will for the execution of it; and with this fire I came to Your Highnesses. All those who heard of my plan disregarded it mockingly and with laughter. All the sciences of which I spoke were of no profit to me nor the authorities in them; only in Your Highnesses my faith, and my stay. Who would doubt that this light did not come from the Holy Spirit, anyway as far as I am concerned, which comforted with rays of marvelous clarity and with its Holy and Sacred Scriptures."  -- Christopher Columbus

"All that we hear and read should be measured for accuracy by the standard of the Bible and the 'Holy Ghost filter'."  -- Betty Miller

My Letter from Barak Obama

By Mark Jesmer                  5/10/09  Note from the President

   “Thank you for your recent note, and for sharing your thoughts with me. Your kind words echo the messages of millions of American who have welcomed me and my family to the white house with an outpouring of goodwill.

    On January 20th, Americans spoke with one voice, choosing hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord. Our nation faces serious challenges, but we will overcome them if our imaginations joined to the common purpose.

    Now is our time to work together, reaffirm our enduring spirit, and choose our better history. With your help, we will renew our nation’s promise to carry forth the great gift of freedom to future nations, as our forebears have delivered it to us.”

Jenn Jesmer – Les Miserables Production at DHS

This weekend, DeKalb High School put on a production of Les Miserables. There were four shows, spanning from Thursday to Saturday, once an evening with a matinee performance on Saturday.

After months of preparation, I can say that this has truly exceeded the expectations of everyone who was a part of it. For anyone who knows the story, they knew that this would be a very difficult show to put on because it is more of an opera than a musical.  That is, the play has no dialog; rather, every line is sung. Also, the production contains 5 disparate plot lines which can be hard for the audience to follow if they have not read the book.

I played as a part of the chorus, which were about 50 townspeople that support the principal actors.  We sang in most of the bigger musical scenes and we helped with moving sets and playing smaller characters.  Practices were held almost every weekday night since about February, working not only on stage blocking but enunciation and staying in character moment by moment. 

For me, the challenge was to use the skills I have picked up over the years performing music, song and acting in church conferences and special events, as well as Forensics training. In past productions, I often had starring roles so this production was humbling because my part was very small.

I learned through all this the importance of commitment. I had made a decision not to commit to the DHS Choral Program earlier in the semester, but only those who were got the leading roles.  The stars of the show were amazing, and it was obvious that four years of commitment made them great.  I learned a lot from them.  Because everyone was willing to practice so much our show was amazing, and was a pleasure to work on.

I also learned that even when I am busy, how important it is for me to maintain a relationship with God to keep my spirit and joy.  I pray that I can use my performance talents not just for myself, but for God’s glory – whether my part in the production is small or large. I also pray that I can love Jesus first and foremost, more than anything else, loving Jesus more than drama culture.

The Gospel of Peace

Acts 3:1-26                                                                                                    04.18.09 (post Easter testimony- Jennifer Jesmer)

Key Verse 3:6

Heavenly Father, thank you for Jesus, who died on the cross for my sin, even when it demanded my life. Thank you for blessing our Easter conference; the bible studies, messages, dramas and dancing. I pray that you stay with everyone who attended, that they can remember the gospel every day. Help me also to remember the gospel everywhere I go. I pray in Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Through all the messages, testimonies and bible studies we could really see the gospel and grace of Jesus last weekend. I personally learned the most from Acts 3, the story of the beggar who was healed by Peter and John.

Everyone is born a sinner. I am born a sinner. Sin cripples a person and holds their thoughts captive by what I am not able to do. Like the beggar in the passage, most of the time I am proud and I am always looking for something to gain in everything. From the beggar I learned that I shouldn’t only look at my outward situation. Most of the time that only leads to complaining. Peter and John saw that every problem is more than just material and can be fixed by God.

From Peter and John I learned what it really means to shepherd someone. Sh. Ian said in his message that to say a Christian has nothing to give is an insult to our All-powerful Almighty Jesus, who took our sin away and continues to dwell in us. Verse 6 reads, “Silver or gold I do not have, but what I have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk!” I have everything to give, but by not trusting in the word of God fully sometimes I feel like Jesus’ Name is not enough- or if it is, it only works once in a million. I feel like I am lacking or even that they need something more. But Jesus took the punishment that was demanded for my sin. He died and rose again to give me life. I was inadequate, and in many ways I still feel like God can’t use me, so I shouldn’t even try. But I need only gospel faith and then God can use even me.

In between these conferences is always the hardest part, because we have to apply what we learned. Pray for me to focus on Jesus everyday.

One Word:

My sin demanded my life, but because of Jesus I have something to give.

Post Easter Conference Testimony

Triton/NIU Easter Conference 2009 Testimony written by Tim Sagel (NIU electrical engineering student)

Prayer: Dear Lord Heavenly Father, thank you for sending your son to die for the sin of the world including my sins.  Thank you for being able to write my life testimony and really see what you have saved me from.  Thank you for blessing the conference and Tim Lopez's Baptism.  Be with our Triton co-workers as well as those here at NIU who came to you in repentance during the alter call and all the other attendants.  In Jesus Name Amen.

            The Easter conference was both wonderful and challenging this year.  Pastor Kevin challenged me to write my first life testimony and I accepted.  This took much work and time on my part as well as Shs. Julie.  I thank God for her guidance and cleaning up the 13 pages to 5 wonderful pages.  This was seemed to be a greater challenge than even writing a message.  It was difficult at first to reveal my many faults, but I was able to do it to glorify God in my life.  I thank God for the joy of preparing and sharing my testimony.  Preparing, practice, and performance of praise and worship was also a challenge.  We had difficulties with getting together to practice and this showed sometimes in our performances, but I had made a commitment to play for the glory of God and submit.  I thank God for helping me to stay in check and not get upset when things didn't go according to plan in order to co-work.  I also thank God for his grace in allowing me to play for his glory as well as the grace I was shown when given direction and blessing our performances.  I was also able to participate in the Indian dancing.  Thank God for giving me the chance to dance even though I didn't have everything memorized and for Hope to look to for direction when dancing.

            I was able to join Msn. Rene's GBS.  He was a great Bible teacher, and I learned where Andrew got his repentant attitude.  I also learned about how he and his family came to UBF though Shs. Grace's 1:1.  I thank God for blessing the messages of Andrew, Ian, Daniel, Pastor Kevin, and Sh. Michael.  They were all great.  It was also a real treat to hear Andrew's message.  It was clear and had just a hint of Andrew.  Through the conference and the GBS leading up to Easter I could see that God has really saved me from a life of sin.  To be a 1:1 Bible teacher and serve others as though I am serving Jesus.

One Word: God's grace has lifted me up from a lonely life of sin to serve God

Since 1972, Timber-lee Christian Center has operated a year-round Christian camp, conference and retreat center under the auspices of the Forest Lakes and Great Lakes Districts of the Evangelical Free Church of America.  Timber-lee is located near the southern part of Wisconsin’s Kettle Moraine State Forest.  It is 45 minutes southwest of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and 2 hours northwest of Chicago. The site encompasses over 600 acres of wooded, rolling scenic land, and contains 65 existing buildings.  Its mission is to create engaging communities where each young person encounters Christ through a dynamic camp experience.   

Gospel messages from the Books of Acts, John and Ephesians.

Messengers   Andrew Norte, Daniel Pitts, Ian Turner, Grace Norte, Kevin Jesmer

Jennifer Jesmer was chosen as a group Bible study leader.

There is a drama, life testimony sharers, group Bible studies, bonfires, recreational time. There is gym, lots of walking trails around a beautiful lake. There will be great music, praise and worship and bonfires for two nights. There is also horseback riding for an additional cost.

We pray for 70 attendants from Triton UBF and 25 from NIU UBF

Who is St. Patrick?

St Patrick is known as the patron saint of Ireland, but he was not a born Irish. But he has become an integral part of the Irish heritage, mostly through his service across Ireland of the 5th century. What you may not know about the Saint patronized by a major drinking holiday, was that he was kidnapped and imprisoned as a child, and after gaining his freedom he went back to the land of his captivity as a missionary.

Patrick was the son of Calpurnius, a Roman-British army officer.  Until the age of 16 he was a normal British kid.  However, one day a band of pirates landed in south Wales

 and kidnapped him along with many others.  He was then sold into slavery for 6 years in Ireland, where he worked in the fields as a shepherd.  In his loneliness, he turned to God fo solace.  In a dream, God appeared to him and enabled him to escape and return to Britain.

Later Patrick journeyed to France. There he joined a monastery and studied under St. Germain. He spent around 12 years in Catholic training. And when he became a bishop he dreamed that the Irish were calling him back to Ireland to tell them about God, as recorded in  The Confession, Patrick's spiritual autobiography. So he set out for Ireland with the Pope's blessings. There he converted the Gaelic Irish, who were then mostly Pagans, to Christianity. He was confident in the Lord, he journeyed far and wide, baptizing and confirming with untiring zeal. And, in a diplomatic fashion he brought gifts to a kings and legislators, but accepted none from any.

Indeed, Patrick was quite successful at winning converts. Through active preaching, he made important converts even among the royal families. And this fact upset the Celtic Druids. Patrick was arrested several times, but escaped each time. For 20 years he had traveled throughout Ireland, establishing monasteries across the country. He also set up schools and churches. He developed a native clergy, fostered the growth of monasticism, established dioceses, and held church councils.

By the end of the 7th century Patrick had become a legendary figure. It is said that he used the three-leafed shamrock to explain the concept of the Trinity; which refers to the combination of Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit. Hence its strong association with his day and name. Legend also has it that Saint Patrick had put the curse of God on venomous snakes in Ireland, driving all the snakes into the sea where they drowned.

These are mostly legends. But after 1500 years, these legends have been inseparably combined with the facts. And together they have helped us know much about the Saint and the spirit behind celebration of the day of his death.  The day's spirit is to celebrate the universal baptism of Ireland. Though originally a Catholic holy day, St. Patrick's Day has evolved into more of a secular holiday, celebrated in the US with everything green and lots of alcohol.

Beginnings of a UBF Press, by Shepherdess Julie

Korea UBF has been printing books for internal use for many years. Now that Chicago UBF has the design expertise and equipment necessary, we have registered UBF with the federal government and obtain license to print. UBF Leaders have announced the formation of UBF Press worldwide

Because of the constant emphasis on testimony writing, UBF has a plethora of excellent authors. The UBF community at-large is hungering and thirsting to hear and publish Bible material and life testimonies. An additional benefit worldwide will be to improve UBF’s public image and spiritual weight through the medium of print. A committee of 3 members has assembled to lead the effort: Mark Yang, Paul Hong and Teddy Hembekides, and Shs. Julie has volunteered to assist in the effort.

Dr. John Jun has announced that the first goal will be the publication of Bible material for 66 books of the bible. A revenue stream has been created by changing the pricing structure of UBF Daily Bread from $9 per quarterly issue ($36/ yr annualized) to a $100/ yr membership fee.

The next steps are to begin a diligent survey of Bible material currently in use at the various UBF chapters around the world, and to open a communication channel to discover what books have already reached the writing stage. A point of contact will be established for UBF members who want to begin writing, and an editorial process set-up for content review to reduce duplicate efforts. New works by all members will be elicited and encouraged, and many others will be recruited for proof-reading work and distribution.

Please pray for the UBF Press to glorify God and advance his kingdom work!

ROCK VALLEY COLLEGE

Campus Profile

On Saturday, the Jesmer’s went to Rock Valley College in Rockford. They prayed there and explored the campus. It is time to have vision for the area. (DeKalb, Elgin, Aurora, Rockford.)

Rock Valley College is a comprehensive two-year community college in Rockford, Illinois offering more than 100 courses for transfer, career programs and certificates.  Founded in 1965, the college is part of the 48-institution Illinois Community College System.

Service Area
All of Winnebago County, most of Boone County and portions of Ogle, Stephenson, McHenry and DeKalb counties.  The total population served is more than 340,000.

Student Profile

·                                 Enrollment of 7,352 More than 4,700 full-time

·                                 More than 25,000 non-credit students annually

·                                 Average age: 25.9 years

·                                 59 percent female, 41 percent male

·                                 Ethnic origin: White 78%, Black 10%, Hispanic 8%, Asian 3%, Native American 0.3%.

Facilities

·                                 217-acre wooded campus

·                                 Facilities

·                                  

·                                 Bengt Sjostrom Theatre, home of Starlight Theatre

·                                 Comprehensive athletic complex and walking path

·                                 Modern classroom and labs

·                                 Newly refurbished Student Center and Educational Resource Center, newly renovated       

·                                 Physical Education Center due for completion late summer 2009

Activities
A full range of more than 30 student clubs and organizations.  The college boasts award winning student newspaper (Valley Forge) and literary magazine (Voices.)  Nine men's and women's intercollegiate sports competing in the National Junior College Athletic Association (NCJAA) Division III.

Basic Attitude Toward the Bible House

Essays by Augustine & Mark Jesmer

Why to Respect the Bible House, by Augustine

Sometimes me and my brother Mark have been a disrupting the bible house by fighting and running around.  I want to repent of not making the bible house God’s dwelling place and a house of prayer for all nations.  I need to repent of not respecting bible studies and things going on at the bible house. Ss here are a few reasons why I should respect it and how I can do it. The bible house should be a house of prayer for all nations. Isaiah 56:7 says “….these I will bring to my holy mountain and give them joy in my house of prayer. Their burnt offerings and sacrifices will be accepted on my alter for my house will be called a house of prayer for all nations.” Gods own words are to act as the bible house is a house of prayer for all nations. So because he is my king, I want to follow his commands to respect his dwelling place because God is there. Jesus once made a whip for himself to get people out of the temple who where selling animals. I should have the same respect for the bible house. It should bug me if someone where to disrespect the bible house because it is Gods house. People may be having bible studies in the bible house. They pour out their hearts to their bible teachers and it would be very disrespectful if we disturbed them. People come from all over, going through a lot of trouble to get here to worship so I don’t want to annoy them or prevent them from worshiping God.  I can do this by:  1. Praying to God, 2. Listening to my Mom and Dad’s direction, 4. Being excited about worship, not just about what we’re doing after service, 5. Loving others because that is God’s command, and 6. Repenting daily of my sins.

By Mark…

This is how I can make the bible house a house or prayer for all nations.  First, I can encourage others to have bible study, to pray, and to behave.  Second, I should make a good environment because it is annoying to be in a bad place.  It helps everyone and makes God happy.  Third, I shouldn’t run around because there is fragile stuff that could break.  It is also disrespectful, disruptive and annoying.  So these are my ways that I can make the bible house a better place:  1.  Encourage others to love God, 2. Make an environment, and 3.  Not run around, especially during a bible study or when grown-ups are talking. 

Tomorrow is Martin Luther King Jr Day. How are you going to celebrate?

Millions of Americans are expected to honor Dr. King and answer President-elect Obama’s call to service by volunteering on the January 19 King Holiday. More than 11,400 service projects are taking place across the country, more than double last year. Americans will make it “a day on, not a day off” by delivering meals, refurbishing schools, reading to children, signing up mentors, and much, much more.

Fueled by President-elect Obama’s call to service, this will be the largest King Day of Service ever. In 1994, Congress charged the Corporation for National and Community Service with transforming the King Holiday into a national day of service. This year, President-elect Obama is asking all Americans to serve on King Day and make an ongoing commitment throughout the year. Its not too late to get involved -- visit USAService.org to register a project or find a volunteer opportunity, or our Impact Challenge for ideas on creating your own project

Make it a Day On... Not a Day Off!

During the 1950s and ’60s, civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr. recognized the power of service to strengthen communities and achieve common goals.

Initiated by Congress in 1994, King Day of Service builds on that that legacy by transforming the federal holiday honoring Dr. King into a national day of community service grounded in his teachings of nonviolence and social justice. The aim is to make the holiday a day ON, where people of all ages and backgrounds come together to improve lives, bridge social barriers, and move our nation closer to the “Beloved Community” that Dr. King envisioned. With thousands of projects planned across the country, the 2009 King Day of Service on January 19 promises to be the biggest and best ever!

“We must learn to live together as brothers or perish together as fools.” Martin Luther King Jr.

Gospel Hymns in our Community 1/9/09

By Jay Irwin

Last Friday, January 9^th, 2009, God blessed me to go to the DeKalb County Nursing home to sing a few hymns of praise to God.  Carrie’s mom, Becki Thompson, invited me about 1 week ago to come and sing to the elderly residents that she takes care of at work each day.  In all, there were about 25-30 people who came and sang along.  I prepared about 10 hymns, including, Be thou my vision, Nearer my God to Thee, My Savior’s Love, In the garden, The Solid Rock, Amazing Grace, What a friend we have in Jesus, and The Old Rugged Cross.  My favorite one to sing was My Savior’s Love since this song was the first hymn song I ever really liked. 

The residents sang along and they smiled as I sang.  I felt like God’s face was shining down on them, and even though they were old, they all looked like little children.  It was so joyful that a small green parakeet in the room was singing along with us.  Some came in late, and one lady said, “I missed it, I hope you’ll come back and sing again.”  I told her that I would love to and would see about when we could possibly set up another time to come back.

Through this blessed chance, God gave me the vision to see NIU UBF being used by God in the future to go around to different places to sing hymn songs to others as well.  Kevin thought about naming it “Hymn-Sing!”  This sounds like a great way to share the gospel light with our community and to preach the love of God through song.  This time I sang solo, but it would be great if we could go as a team if the door opens again for us to do so. 

Young Disciples Conference Report

Miracle Camp – Michigan

January 1-3, 2009

By Carrie Irwin

The title of the Conference was “Live Love”, which meant live a life of love for God.  Young people from different chapters shared about their shepherd lives and how they learned to love others and take care of them with God’s love. 

I was impressed by the conference because it was led by the young people from not only Chicago UBF, but many chapters such as Pennsylvania, New York, Canada, and Ohio. 

We studied the passage of the good Samaritan and learned that we can love others when we know Jesus’ love for us, as he is our good Samaritan. 

I believe this (and the other) YDC conferences are stepping stones for our UBF young people to take spiritual leadership and lead many to Christ in this and future generations.

What did you like most about this Christmas?

Mark (8): I liked wrapping Christmas present for my siblings and giving the presents to them under the Christmas tree.

Hope (9): My favorite part about Christmas this year was having fellowship at the Dallal’s house on Christmas night because it was fun spending time with them and playing games.

Sarah (11): I liked going to Christmas Worship Service because I loved spending time with our friends. I also liked going on tour at the weddings and the service.

Augustine (12): I liked opening Christmas presents because it was great, and I liked the UBF Christmas Worship Service because they had a good drama.

Jennifer (14): I liked spending time with my family and friends during break.

Julie: I liked the song ‘Your Word’ because it kept my heart focused the whole time.

Kevin: I liked the fact that we went to give food baskets to needy families. I liked that the kids sang carols and offered money to pay for a turkey dinner for a needy family.

Carrie: I liked being with family and sharing Christmas with them once again.

Jay: I learned that Jesus will be our peace through Pastor Teddy’s message and I liked that, and I liked coming to the word of God through bible study.

Kathleen: What about your favorite time?

Chicago Area Christmas Worship Service

Sunday, December 14^th at Regina Dominican High School

Program Servants

Messenger: Pastor Mark Vucekovich

Drama Director: Shepherd David Hull

Dance Director: Shepherdess Linda Hoyos

Preparation Fellowship

UIC Bible House Saturday, November 22nd

NIU UBF

(Immanuel Lutheran) Saturday, November 29th

Wright UBF Saturday, December 6th

NIU UBF visit by Chicago Area Shepherds

By Missionary Jose Ahn

The 2008 Christmas drama and dance teams and some chorus members from Chicago area wide campuses had a wonderful experience to visit the NIU UBF center last Sat, November 29, 2008..

Around 30 of us divided into 4 Bible study groups led by P. Ron Ward, Kevin Jesmer, Elijah Park and Jose Ahn. We studied 1 John 1 about Christian Koinonia. Christian Koinonia, i.e. Christian fellowship, is very distinct and unique and different from any worldly fellowships that are composed mostly of only eating, drinking and partying. Our Koinonia is based on the word of God, confession of our sins and forgiveness by the God, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Our Christmas workers found a good reason to work hard for the drama and dancing and in celebrating Christmas with all our hearts, souls and strengths. After our Bible study from 3-5 p.m., we had a delicious dinner prepared by S. Julie and Carrie. Read the mission report to see what P. Kevin shared during our dinner.

CHRISTMAS 2008

Chicago Area Christmas Worship Service

Sunday, December 14^th at Regina Dominican High School

Program Servants

Messenger:                      Pastor Mark Vucekovich

Drama Director:               Shepherd David Hull

Dance Director:               Shepherdess Linda Hoyos

 Preparation Fellowship

UIC Bible House               Saturday, November 22nd

NIU UBF

(Immanuel Lutheran) Saturday, November 29th

Wright UBF                      Saturday, December 6th

WHAT DOES THANKSGIVING MEAN TO YOU?

Kevin- Giving thanks to God for all he has done for us, thanking God with others , coming together with family and church family in the spirit of thanksgiving. It is one of my favorite holidays.

Julie- It is a tuning of our hearts. You can’t enjoy Christmas unless you stop and give thanks at Thanksgiving. It puts the giving in Christmas.

Tim- getting together with family, eating vast quantities of good food, and sharing with others what God has done

Andrew- having the opportunity to have fellowship with family, experiencing the spirit of newness as a result of reminiscing on the things you are thankful for.

Jennifer- It’s a time to celebrate the past year, a reminder of all the things God gave me in life.

Augustine- Its giving thanks for what God has done, what he had blessed us with and having dinner and fellowship with God’s people.

Sarah- Thanksgiving is recognizing what your thankful for, what God gave you, and it’s fellowship with friends and family.

Hope- It’s being thankful for what we have.

Mark- It’s a time to celebrate and share what we are thankful for, and we also have Thanksgiving celebrations at school.

Thanksgiving Preparation and Plans

Saturday, November 23^rd – Be ready to share 10 thanks topics at NIU UBF

Thursday, November 27^th – Thanksgiving Day at Triton UBF and “Thanks Topics” Sharing at DuPage UBF

Saturday, November 29^th – Chicago Area Young Pastors Fellowship at NIU

“Bring On The Light Of Jesus” Alternative Halloween Blowout- Sarah Jesmer

On Friday, we held our 1^st annual Halloween Alternative Night at the NIU bible house. We first had praise and worship. Our praise team prepared about seven joyful worship songs. We had a short message on “Jesus is the light of the World.” Our key verse was John 8:12. Pastor Kevin and Julie recited verses about the God’s light from the entire Bible with Andrew playing a guitar solo in the background. It was very graceful.

Shps. Grace, Josh Pitts, David Heusel, and Stephen Norte came from Triton. Also Abby Swick came. Hope was a blessing to her. We had a great time.

Then, we played DDR, ate pizza, and made s’mores at the bonfire. To finish it off, we watched “Indiana Jones, The Secret of the Crystal Skull”. It was so fun.

Through this, we learned that Jesus is the light of the world, and when there is darkness, Jesus shines his light in our hearts. May God bless future alternative Halloween celebrations. Bring on the light of Jesus!

Do you need a crutch? I do.

Key Verse: Proverbs 3:5a

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding”.

Several years ago, a relative of mine, bothered by my mother’s sharing about Jesus at family gatherings, approached my mom and asked her: ‘Do you need a crutch in life, is that what Jesus is for you?’ My mother was taken off guard at the moment, and she had no room to think, and so confessed immediately, saying ‘yes, I need Jesus, he’s my crutch. I’m lost without Him’.

When I heard about this later, in my mind I tried hard to come up with a better reply, something defensive, just in case I ever had to endure such an inquisition. I felt bad for my mom, and waited for the chance to, one day, defend her dignity.

However, in the years since, I’ve come to another understanding. “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.” This verse is about trusting and leaning. You see, we all lean on something in our lives. Every one of us! It’s just a matter of what. I did some thinking, and realized that most people, if you look, even many Christians (if they were honest), are themselves leaning or trusting in human hopes more than God.

Things like alcohol or drugs are an obvious crutch that people run to instead of God. But how about some others: bank accounts, human love, an easy retirement, the good opinion of our friends, or how about this for a crutch: a constant stream of entertainment for our brain. Everyone copes with the stress of life in some way. Some climb the ladder of success, others cry in their own soup.

How about you? What or whom do you lean on? The Bible seems clear that we will eventually lean on something or someone during our times of need. It tells us that, because of our sin, when we appear before the Lord, we wouldn’t have a leg to stand on – if it weren’t for Jesus. The Bible presents Jesus to us as someone we can lean on. He allows us to stand, guiltless, before God. I don’t know about you, but when times get rough, I need to lean on Jesus Christ. He’s our only hope, and only he can give us the true peace and forgiveness that we needs. As we reflect this morning, join me in saying, ‘Yes Lord, I need a crutch for my sin problem, thank you for your grace and love for me’.

NIU Tennis Club, By Andrew Norte 10-26-08

This Saturday, I had our first major NIU Club Tennis Team practice. We had a practice earlier but there were only 6 people then. After a meeting and some group marketing on Facebook, the club has blossomed. There are 45 people in the group now, including myself. I was worried that there’d be too many people at practice but it actually turned out pretty good.

Our first practice was held at the REC Center this past Saturday. We had 3 courts reserved and 16 people showed up. It was a great turnout with a variety of people showing up. A lot of the attendees had played 4 years of varsity tennis when they were in high school. These people are interested in the competitive aspect of the club and will join our competitive team. Some have little playing experience and are interested in playing recreational tennis. They’re going to join our rec team.

This club has a lot of potential. I know for a fact that it will keep growing. There is a pretty healthy tennis community here in DeKalb, but there hasn’t been much success rallying the students together. Students are busy with school, work, and other responsibilities. I want this club to be an outlet for them and for me. I want to provide some simple opportunities to socialize and get interested in a sport that agrees with their schedule. If I lay the foundation correctly, I know that this club will survive long past my time of graduation.

I have a few goals for this club and for myself. A huge goal that is on everybody’s mind is qualifying for the national tournament in Surprise, Arizona. I’ve been to national tournaments before in junior college and it was great to hang out with a bunch of other students who share common interests as well as play and watch some high quality competitive tennis. I’ve extended opportunities for everyone to be involved as an officer so they can have a hand in the club and gain some positive experience that would definitely beef up anyone’s resume. But I also have responsibilities and goals for myself. I’m blessed to be the leader and president of this club. I want to handle that with maturity, poise, and wisdom. As a Christian, I think it’s one of my duties to be a good influence to these students. I want to encourage and pray for them. Some of them may want to come to Church and study God’s Word. Maybe none of them. Maybe all of them. But in all circumstances, I pray to be a Godly influence and not abuse the position I’m in. I have a lot of hope for this club and I feel good about it.

May God be glorified and….GO HUSKIES!!!

Hannah Faithbook Bible School

October 16-19, 2008

Day 1 - Hannah’s Victory in Prayer

Messenger: Tim Sagel

Testimony: Jennifer Jesmer

Special event: Drama Part l

Day 2 - Hannah’s Prayer

Messenger: Jenn Jesmer

Testimony: Augustine Jesmer

Special event: Jenn’s reciting the passage

Papa John’s Pizza

Day 3 - Hannah’s Godly Influence

Messenger: Andrew Norte

Testimony: Sarah Jesmer

Special event: Piano solo’s by Andrew Norte and Sarah Jesmer

Bonfire and S’mores by Tom

Day 4 - What did Hannah Believe?

Messenger: Julie Jesmer

Special events: Drama

Andrew’s and Sarah’s piano solo.

Korean Barbeque ribfest

True Womanhood, by Shs. Julie Jesmer  10/12/08

    On Friday night, I attended the True Woman Conference held at the Radisson Hotel in Schaumburg with Shs. Liz Hembekides of Triton UBF and Shs. Christy Toh of West Loop UBF.  The conference began on Thursday night and ran through lunch on Saturday, but because of other commitments, I attended only the Friday evening session.

     For six months I have been looking forward to hearing Joni Earickson Tada speak, and registered for the conference very early because I knew that I would later regret it if I did not.  Having missed Billy Graham’s final outreach a few years ago, I had decided not to repeat the same mistake when great servants of God were in Chicago.  Due to severe and debilitating pain, however, Joni has been forced to cut back her speaking schedule in recent months and could not appear in person.  Instead, Joni recorded and sent a DVD just for us.  When the audio failed on the first attempt to play the DVD my heart sank, but while we were waiting for the AV to be restored, Nancy DeMoss spoke to the crowd and asked us to send birthday cards to Joni expressing thanks for how she has been a personal encouragement to each of us.  As soon as she said that, I realized that I knew nothing about Joni, but that her living faith had been a ray of light during my most helpless hours in 1994 when neither of my hands worked and I had to use a tape recorder for Bible study and testimony writing.  Joni’s message was full of hope and encouragement to submit in trust to God who gives us suffering to mold us and make us living stones in his temple here on earth. 

    The most surprising blessing of this conference was not what I expected.  I had not even noticed who else was scheduled to speak that night, but Janet Parshall’s message was a unique gift of God to me – even more so than Joni’s presentation.  Janet Parshall presented an expository message on 1 Samuel 1-2 (minus Hannah’s Song), with the themes of Womanhood and Motherhood according to Hannah.  The message was for me very personal and brought with it a flood of tearful revelation and a time of refreshing through sincere repentance.  While I only attended those 3 hours of the whole conference with a clear and single focus on hearing Joni, God noticed me among all 4,000 women there and gave me the word of God that I most needed to hear at this moment of my life. 

     Through this experience, God tenderly rebuked me for taking a backseat in the preparations for our Hannah’s Faithbook Bible School, and called me to be the bearer of next week’s Sunday message!  Please pray for me to prepare and deliver a powerful message on the Life and Faith of Hannah.

SARAH JESMER JOHNS TESTIMONY

The Word Became Flesh                    

Sarah Jesmer                                                                                                                                    

Oct. 5, 2008

John 1:14-18

KV 1:14

"The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only, who came from the father, full of grace and truth.”

In the last passage, we learned that Jesus is the word that was with God in the beginning. He was worshiped and glorified in heaven. He sat on the throne with God. He had the perfect life, He had power and happiness and all of that. But the bible says that he became human. He gave up all that glory. HE gave up his throne in heaven to save us from sin.

He was born in a manger, lived in a poor environment, he became tired, sick, he worked hard; he was rejected and finally killed by his own people. He scarifies so much for us. Let’s put it this way. Insects where in trouble and Jesus came down form his power to save those insects from death and sin. I couldn’t do that, but Jesus did. HE loves us a lot.

Jesus does not look like a savoir at first. HE looks like a dusty carpenter. How could he look glorious, or powerful? We have to seek his glory and share in it. Then we can look glorious in Jesus. We have received the fullness of his grace so much through his blessings. He has blessed us in all of our schools, and all of our struggles. He gives us a changed life direction, eternal life in heaven, and forgiveness of sins. Who in the world doesn’t want that? He is beautiful. Grace is the biggest thing. It is something that no one deserves from God. With god’s grace, then we become beautiful.

Through Moses, God gave the law. Laws keep us organized and under control so that no one gets hurt. God’s law is important. We have to follow it to the point. We have to recognize that Jesus is the lord, know we are sinners and to Jesus for forgiveness, the law is a blessing from God to us. Grace and truth cam from Jesus. WE have to live in it.

We have to hold on to his teaching. His teaching are truth. Truth has to be universal and timeless. All of Jesus’ words are like that. Only his truth full satisfies our heart.

Jesus is the one and the only God. He makes the father known. He was there at the fathers side in the beginning. He is truth and so are his words. Jesus dwelt among us and he wants us to live in his grace. He gives us a changed life and hope in him. Thank God.

Prayer Lord, your word is truth and you are the one true God. Lord, please help me to live in you holy grace and practice truth in my life. Thank you for loving and sacrificing for me. Amen.

One Word: Live in Gods grace alone.

COLLIEGATE REPORT 

William and Mary was the second college founded.  It came into being in 1693 as an Anglican school and the president, the Rev. William Smith, “gave the students all the Anglicanism (read Christianity) the traffic would bear.”[1]  

Yale was third, founded in 1701 as a Congregationalist school and founded because it was felt that Harvard was already slipping away from orthodoxy. Cotton Mather was the first president and he stated that the primary goal was “that every student shall consider the main end of his study to wit to know God in Jesus Christ and answerably lead a godly, sober life. 

Princeton came in 1746 as a Presbyterian School.  The University of Pennsylvania was founded in 1751.  And while Benjamin Franklin was the key figure – …George Whitfield, the evangelist, was very prominent. In fact, I 1914, the university unveiled a statue of Whitfield, calling him the inspirer and original trustee of the University.

In an advertisement for Columbia University, which was founded in 1754, the president, Samuel Johnson, said that the schools primary purpose was to: “…to teach and engage the children to know God in Jesus Christ and to live and serve Him in all sobriety, godliness, and righteousness of life with a perfect heart and a willing mind…”

     Brown was founded in 1764 as a Baptist School.  Rutgers was founded in 1766 as a Dutch Reformed School.  Dartmouth in 1769 as a Congregationalist school.  These were institutions where there was no campus ministers per se – at least not as we think of them today – because there was no demonstrable need for any.  The development of mature Christians was organic to the mission of the university.  And to that end the faculty were campus ministers. Virtually everyone was a Christian. The President was almost always a prominent pastor. Chapel was required. And the education you received was decidedly Christian.

    In its genesis, higher education in the United States was a Christian endeavor.  And even until the late 19^th century the church’s role in education was profound.  In fact, in 1840, 67 percent of state universities had ministers serving as presidents.  And in 1885, a University of Illinois student was expelled from the school for willfully missing compulsory chapel. 

UBF Concert at UIC Student Center in Chicago

 Four bands performed: UBF/UIC Praise, IIT Praise Band, DuPage/ NIU Band and West Loop Band. All played hits from the Newsboys, Switchfoot, Chris Tomlin and many others, and had wonderful fellowship with many Brothers and Sisters in Christ.

Tim, Andrew and Jenn gave their hearts to prepare music for this event every Monday and Thursday night for the last 6 weeks.  Praise God who sent his Holy Spirit, and enabled all to sing joyful praise during a night of dynamic worship. Julie, Sarah, Mark, Amanda Zito, Tim’s parents as well as Andrew’s family, even his grandparents were there to worship together.

I thought it would be good to consider the historically Christian origins of some of most prestigious centers of higher education so that we can pray for them to have a strong Christian presence today. Let’s think about Harvard University.

An excerpt from Mike Woodruff’s essay, “Of Mice And Ministry: An Historical Critique of Campus Ministry.”      http://www.ivyjungle.org/GenericPage/DisplayPage.aspx?guid=D9056314-79DC-42D6-BA28-0F6A63F25390

The origins of higher education of US institutions…were unabashedly Christian endeavors from their beginning, Consider Harvard. Massachusetts Bay was not the oldest colony in the New World but the “unusually well-educated and spiritually earnest Puritans waited only six years to found Harvard primarily because they feared that if they delayed much longer they would risk leaving ‘an illiterate ministry to the churches when our present ministers shall lie in the dust.’” The university was founded in 1636, it was the first college in the New World and for 60 years it was the only college in the New World.  …Harvard was founded to train ministers for the new land.  And its initial vision drips with evangelical zeal.  Its motto was “In Christi Gloriam.”  The word on its shield was “veritas” or “truth” – which to the founders was not an abstract social construct but a Person.  It was synonymous with Christ—and the mission of the school was to train clergy.  John Harvard stated in his bequest: “Let every student be plainly instructed and earnestly pressed to consider well the main ends of his life and studies: to know God and Jesus Christ, which is eternal life; and to lay Christ in the bottom as the only foundation of knowledge and learning, and to see the Lord as the giver of all wisdom.  Let everyone seriously set himself by prayer in secret to see Christ as Lord and Master.” During its early years so many of Harvard’s students went into the ministry that many referred to the college as the “school of prophets” and the students as the “sons of prophets.” 

COD/ NIU Praise Band News

By Jenny Jesmer

On September 27, 2008 there will be a praise and worship outreach concert at UIC in Chicago.  Four bands are set to play: West Loop, Chicago, IIT and our joint band, Du Page & NIU.

From our ministry, myself, Tim and Andrew have been preparing for this concert for about a month now. Tim plays the guitar, Andrew plays piano and I play bass guitar. From Du Page, Jeremy Hajek (guitar), Isaac Bahn ( guitar), Steve Slattery ( drums ) and John (singing) are joining us.

We have all been working hard at learning our parts and memorizing them for about a month now. Monday night practice is at our bible house and Thursdays we meet at the Du Page bible house to practice 4 songs. God is giving us spirit and we are all playing our parts well. 

If you would like to attend, the following are the details:

                    Praise Band Blowout

                    Sept 27 @ 7:00pm

                    The Illinois Room - Student Center East

                    750 South Halsted

                    Chicago, IL 60607

                    Live Music- Snacks- Free Admission

Update on Student Clubs

By Pastor Kevin

This semester we have been praying to establish Bible clubs on our schools. The kids’ middle school gave permission to have a Bible Club. God raised up an advisor in Mrs Cole, Sarah’s current Home Room Teacher.

This year Augustine and Sarah plan to meet on campus and read their Bibles and pray weekly for ½ of the semester. The other half is for sports. Jenn and Augustine met last year, and Augi and Sarah are continuing that tradition.

Two years of praying for the Middle school Bible Club has prepared Jenn for high school. She is ready to commit to the already established Christian club, “God’s Athletes.” She waits for the Christian club to begin and she wants to become one its most faithful and fruitful members.

We have made some headway on our NIU student group. Andrew Norte and myself got the paperwork for the club. We have three committed full time students, Andrew and Tim and Mandee. I realize that it takes faith to start a club led by volunteer students. There are fears in their hearts about the amount of commitment involved. To continue on course and just do it requires faith in God. I am thankful that our young people are exercising their faith. We plan to call our club at NIU, “Propelled By Grace” (A ministry of UBF). Pray for an advisor for our NIU club.

So many Christians are propelled by legalism or guilt. Some take grace for granted and do nothing to express their love to Jesus. We must be Christians who hold onto the grace of Jesus and are propelled to reveal Jesus’ glory to a world who desperately need to know Jesus. There are 22 faith groups on campus. What do we have to offer? I pray that we may become an official group on campus so that we may offer the life giving word of God to the students. We want to give opportunities for students to serve God. We want to offer textual, systematic Bible study. We want to offer 1:1 Bible study and shepherding (or mentoring) for those who want to. In short, we want to glorify Jesus and make disciples of all nations.

Please pray for our campus groups to take root, prosper and grow this year.

Augustine and Sarah Jesmer will be going into Clinton Rosette Middle School this school year. The following are their goals and prayer topics.

Sarah:

This school year will be a challenge for me. I am entering 6^th grade, and that’s when girls my age start to look for the things of this world, like boys. Because of pride, they aren’t really thinking about Christ at all and lose their faith . This school year , I want to keep my faith and to stick with Jesus. That means sticking with the Christian Club, doing my best with school studies and to not follow only what my friends want to do. My key verse this year is John 1:17 “ For the law was giving through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.” I want to follow that. I don’t what to hide my faith, but teach people about it, with grace and truth.

Augustine

I am going into 7^th grade tomorrow and I am very excited. In this school year I want to glorify God. Jenn and I started a bible club at school and I want to raise it up with Sarah to evangelize our school. i want to invite my friends to it. I also want to tell at least one person about Jesus. I want to get good grades and do well on my football team. My key verse for this year was 1st John 4: 20+21. “If anyone says `I love God` yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen. And he has given us this command: Whoever loves God must also love his brother” I have done better at loving my brother and other siblings. But I still have room to change. I need to be more open to their needs and account for them if I can help. God can change me if I repent.

Purdue 08 – UBF International Summer Bible Conference

Post-Conference Report by Shepherdess Julie

Praise God who blessed the conference by sending 3,111 attendants, including 1,055 international guests and 2,056 people from North America.

As we look back on two years of preparation and over 3,000 united prayers, we cannot but thank our Living Lord who inspired his people and gave us strength to put on the best international conference in UBF history.

Dr. John Jun has asked each work area manager to prepare a report detailing how we did it, and invited us to a celebration dinner next Sunday night in Chicago. During the month of September, five core UBF conference workers will also attend an all day meeting in Merrillville, Indiana, where the entire orchestration of the conference will be reviewed from beginning to end.

Even though our work for Purdue is almost finished, God’s work is still going on around the world, and the online conference registration system (UBF-CRS) will be passed on for use during all future national and intercontinental conferences.

A schedule of future intercontinental conferences was posted on www.ubf.org this week:

• 2009 CIS and European (40 years anniversary)

• 2010 Latin America and Oceania

• 2011 Korea (50 years anniversary) and Asia

• 2012 Africa and Middle East

• 2013 International (USA/ Canada)

While everyone who attended the conference used one part of the system online, much more was being used on the administrative side. In order for

the system to be used by other UBF leaders for conference management,

core workers from the Purdue conference will prepare a training manual

and powerpoint overview to pass on together with it, and then continue to provide consultant-type support to coworkers around the world.

By: Augustine Jesmer

From August 2^nd to August 7^th, I went to Washington D.C. on the JrNYLC. I made a lot of good friends and learned how to be a better leader. I learned about the leadership traits, such as, communication, teamwork, goal-setting, respect, character, and problem-solving. I was in Problem-solving 2. My Faculty Advisor was a man named Emmanuel Lamptey. He was a really cool guy. We learned how we could be voices of courage, change, leadership, struggle and freedom and how people in the past used those voices. We also learned about the 1^st Amendment. One little know fact is that over 20% of Americans know the names of the Simpsons but only 3% percent know the freedoms we have in the 1^st Amendment. They are the freedom of speech, religion, assembly, press, petition.

In my journal, we had to fill out a page of team roles. We had to put some teams or clubs we’ve been in and what roles we played in them. So I learned about the roles needed in a team like a leader, organizer, facilitator and more and why they are needed. One night in our LFGs, we had a mock trial. We had a case and we tried to find the suspects guilty. So we learned about how a trial goes.

So through all of this, I learned about the 6 traits of leadership and I want to use them to be a great leader in my community.

Places I went

1. the Capital building and we saw the back and the front.

2. Supreme Court building

3. Library of Congress.

4. the Newseum and saw the history of news and the 1^st amendment.

5. the National Portrait gallery and saw the history of art and sculptures.

6 the Lincoln Memorial and saw the typo in the Emancipation Proclamation.

7. the Vietnam War Memorial and saw the names and a person in our group found a family

members name

8. the WW2 memorial and it was beautiful and had stars for the hundreds of people that died

9. the White House to take pictures

10. the Korean War Memorial and saw all the faces and soldiers and a saying “Freedom is not

free”.

11. Harpers Ferry and saw where John Brown had his raid.

  A GOOD LEADER

By Augustine Jesmer (In preparation for his leadership conference in Washington)

          In our lives there have been many effective leaders. Through this conference I want to learn about them and know what a true leader is. To me a leader is kind, interacts with the people, and doesn’t avoid hard work and more. Here are some of those points.

          To start off a good leader is kind. He is kind to the people who are weaker than them and they also respect those who are older than them. They also should be kind because if they were not people would not follow them. When they are kind, people can approach them with questions and they feel comfortable around the leader.

          Also a good leader also knows what is best for his/her group/followers. If they are leading them somewhere, he/she knows where they are going. They are also willing to sacrifice for the group to help them out like having to go back to get something for someone. They also know the people personally. He does this so he can take care of their needs in the best way.

          Furthermore, a good leader interacts with the people. They can help people according to their interests and talks with them if they have a problem with something. They set the example so that others can follow and he shares in the sufferings they have. They meet with the people personally too so they could have a good relationship with the people.

           Moreover, a good leader is willing to accept constructive criticism.  They don’t think that they know everything and are not stuck up. They also admit that they are wrong. For me, I know that my knowledge comes from God. The leader also listens to the suggestions and applies it to their leading.

          In the same way, a good leader doesn’t avoid hard work. Like my mom says, “hard work makes people great.” Also, I know that God gives us hard work to discipline us. Hard work can also lead to great rewards like I found out. Leaders would also go the extra mile to set a good example on the need to work hard.

          Lastly, a good leader knows what to do in difficult situations. They would take suggestions from the group and listens to them. They would be confident and not discourage the group. They would also be experienced in most situations to know what they have to do. They would also use logic to find the best possible answer and not jump into things.

          So this is what I think a good leader is. A good leader is kind, doesn’t avoid hard work, and interacts with the people and more. Through this trip I want to learn from all of my nations leaders and also from the kids I’m with, who will be the next generation of leaders. I hope that I can live to be a great leader in my time.

Walker’s Farm/ First Baptist Bible Camp

Last week, four of the Jesmer kids went to Walker’s Farm, an annual bible camp for kids all over the area, run by the Walker family.  Once again, they opened up their family farm, and this year’s theme was “Journey to Jerusalem”.  Kids  learned about the old country of Jerusalem, had chapel together, swam in an in-ground pool, made crafts  and had fun.

Children learned about the temple, Jesus’ crucifixion, and life in Lebanon.

Each of the children were assigned to one of the 12 tribes of Jerusalem.

The  missionary focus of the camp was Lebanon.  and the children learned about dishonest work programs that put people who are not criminals in prison.  They gave offering and had a contest by weight of coins between the boys and girls.  In real terms, the offering will be used to purchase a total of 772 pieces of fruit or vegetables for a women’s prison.

Hope:

“I liked swimming and craft time. During craft time, we made stepping stones, memory books, bracelets, and weaving. We also had tribes at camp and I was the tribe Benjamin. I learned about Jesus’ arrest, his disciples, and we had synagogue school.”

Mark:

“My tribe was Zebulon. I liked swimming the best. I also like crafts in the Market Place. We got newspapers that described the time of Jesus. My teacher was really nice. I also had a cheer. I learned about Jesus in the tomb and also his death. I love Walker’s Farm!”

Bible Study Questions for Purdue 08 ISBC

FATHER, FORGIVE THEM                     Luke 23:26–49                       Key Verse: 23:34a

1.  Who was conscripted to carry Jesus’ cross? (26) Why might Jesus have needed help? What effect

     might this  event have had on Simon of Cyrene? (Ro16:13) Who followed Jesus? (27) What did he  

     say to the wailing women? (28–31) What did he prophesy?

2.  Read verses 32–33. Describe the crucifixion. How much did Jesus suffer? (Mk15:34; Ps22:14,15)

     Why did he suffer and die like this? (1Pe2:24b; Isa53:6b,12; Jn1:29)

3.  Read verse 34. On the cross, what did Jesus pray for those who crucified him? How could he pray

     like this? (Heb 7:26,27; Lk19:10; 1Pe4:8) Think about the power of love expressed in forgiveness.

     What does Jesus’ forgiveness mean to you?

4.  How did the people, the rulers and the soldiers mock Jesus on the cross? (35–39) How was one

     man different? (40–42) From the cross, what promise did Jesus give him? (43)

5.  What happened when Jesus died? (44–46) What does this reveal about the meaning of his death?

     (Heb10:19–20) How did Jesus show his love for God, his assurance of God’s love for him, and his

     total dependence on God? (46)

6.  What confession did the centurion make, and what is the significance of this? (47) What people

     were there when Jesus died? (48–49)

JESUS CAME TO SEEK AND SAVE THE LOST          Luke 19:1–10                         Key Verse: 19:10

1.  Where did this event take place, and where was Jesus going? (1; 18:31–33) What kind of man was

     Zacchaeus? (2–3) Imagine the kind of life he had led to become a chief tax collector.

2.  What did Zacchaeus eagerly want? (3a) Why? (5:27–32; 7:34; 18:13–14) What things hindered

     him from seeing Jesus? (3) How did he deal with this situation? (4) What can we learn from him?

     (Jer29:13)

3.  Read verse 5. What did Jesus do and say? What is the significance of Jesus calling him by name? 

     (Jn10:3b,14) Why did Jesus ask him to come down immediately? (5b) What does this reveal about

     Jesus? (Rev3:20) Think about what it means to have a personal relationship with Jesus. Do you

     have a personal relationship with Jesus?

4.  How did Zacchaeus respond? (6) What can we learn from his attitude in responding like this to

     Jesus’ invitation? How did all the people respond? (7) Why did they mutter against Jesus?

5.  What shows Zacchaeus’ genuine repentance and decision to live a new life? (8) What did it mean

     for him to call Jesus “Lord”? How could he be changed so radically? Read verse 9. How did Jesus

     bless Zacchaeus’ repentance and faith? (Ro4:16; Gal3:9)

6.  Read verse 10. What was Jesus’ purposing in coming into the world? What did he mean by the

     “lost”? (Ge3:9–10; 6:5) In light of this, what does the word “save” mean? (Lk15:24; Ro8:15) How

     do the words “seek and save” reveal Jesus’ burning shepherd’s heart to win one soul? What does

     this mean to you?

Before the Purdue conference, we will hold a book club on “The Journey” written by Billy Graham.

The book about living by faith in the world.

Please have it read by July 16^th and we can meet to discuss it together.

Andy Schumake is making a BIG decision about heading to the

University of Arizona this summer, to begin attending classes in the

Fall Semester. In the meantime God granted him a good job at

Caputo's. Please pray for Andy to have clear life direction and to make

a decision of faith.

Julie

Purdue

Solders spirit

Daily bible reading

Keep 1:1

Purdue Update

I.  Registration

v   Total of 3,050 people have registered

v   956 International Guests

v   95% US Visa Applications were approved

v   From NIU UBF, the following are fully registered:

o      Pastor Kevin & Shepherdess Julie

o      Jennifer, Augustine & Sarah Jesmer

o      Tim Sagel

o      Andy Schumake

o      Kathleen Haskin

o      Emily Ducatte

o      Janice Thiele

o      Haojie (Roger) Zhu

II.  Messengers:   Joe Schafer, Jim Rabchuk, Sergio Lemus, Kevin Albright, Vladimir Point, and Peter Scweitzer

My Trip to Toronto

by Shepherdess Julie Jesmer

My employer, MKS Software, held its annual sales meeting in Toronto from May 5^th to 9^th.   In order to make the trip more meaningful, I decided to go a few days early and visit UBF co-workers, and as well made plans for fellowship with other MKS Christians.

On Saturday, May 2^nd, I flew from Chicago to Toronto.  Msn John Lee, Director of York UBF, picked me up at the airport with his wife Lydia.  Pastor Kevin had co-worked with the Lee family in his early days as a Christian in Winnipeg, and Msn Lydia had been a member of the group bible studies I led during the last two UBF staff conferences.  John and Lydia drove me to their home, and moved me into their son's room for the night.  Msn John and Lydia have 3 children, and live in the upper flat of a two-flat.  The lower floor has a separate entrance, two fellowship rooms, an office, a kitchen and a large room used for worship. All York UBF co-workers joined us for dinner in the bible house.

York UBF members are 3 families with 9 children:  John & Lydia Lee, Msn Samuel & Grace Yoon, and Msn Stephen & Petrah Chung.  Sunday morning, York UBF holds a CBF worship service at 9:00 am and the Main service is at 11:00 am.  As soon as the service ended, three large tables were brought in.  The entire ministry writes testimony together immediately after worship service for one half hour, and over lunch a few people share what they have written.  In the afternoon, Msn John & Lydia and I visited and prayed on the campus of York University, which has a population of 50,000 students.  That evening, Msn Joshua & Sarah Lee from Main Toronto UBF picked me up from York and took me to dinner at a Korean/ Japanese restaurant.  Afterward we prayed together, and Msn John dropped me off at the Park Hyatt Toronto for my conference.

By the grace of God, the believers community at MKS has grown to four:  me, Tom La Coppola, Justin Vanhartingsvelt and Jim Winder.  Tom did not attend the conference and Justin was busy with meetings and presentations this week, but the four of us have maintained a fellowship of Christian encouragement by email and in person for some time.  Jim and I were able to meet daily during the conference week for spiritual fellowship, helping both of us to keep our identities and to be a blessing to those with whom we had to interact.  Among all the people we pray for at work, we pray for Tammy and Tracy to come to Jesus & find life.

Jim is a salesperson and a musician serving his church as a Praise Team Leader.  For the past 7 years, together with a few other men, Jim has travelled around the country about twice a month performing a dramatic, musical score based on Pilgrim's Progress.  Before the MKS conference got started on Monday, Jim and I took a walk to the park around the corner and prayed together.  Tuesday night we met together, sang 5 worship songs together, and Jim sang three of his own original songs.  Wednesday night we intended to watch a DVD based on the life of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, but instead switched to watching Michael Card and Kim Walker YouTube worship videos.  I taught Jim a new Home Again worship song, and he sang another original song written for an infant dedication.  We are praying to perform a duet at the next sales conference, and to encourage our coworkers to express their faith in Jesus through practical living.