Churching Planting Update
Jason continues to invest in the building and strengthening of our new denomination— Grace of the Messiah Presbyterian Church— with its one developing presbytery, eight church plants, and cohort of ten church planting apprentices. Below is Tadele preaching to our congregation in Furi in front of a wall poster of the Apostles’ Creed. Our apprentices continue to grow in ministry skill and theological understanding as they labor in preaching the gospel and building the Church. We are particularly thankful for two of our church planters who officially passed their written and oral exams for licensure in August. Congratulations to Anteneh and Ammanuel for reaching this milestone after all their hard work.
In July we enjoyed hosting St. Louis pastors Roy Hubbard and Josiah Green for trainings on Pastoral Theology and Care, Music in Worship, and Diaconal Ministry with our church planters and a second group of rural pastors. Roy and Josiah were a great encouragement to our ministry team and lots of fun for our family. We also hosted (and Jason vice-chairs) the first ever meeting of PREACH (Presbyterian Reformed East Africa Council with the Horn)— a new board of national pastors, MTW missionaries, and U.S. partner churches committed to planting healthy Presbyterian, Reformed churches in this region of Africa. Our time together was encouraging as we worked to lay a solid foundation for church planting works in Ethiopia, Uganda, and Rwanda. Another ongoing ministry project is our translation and redubbing of the Al Massira materials into the Amharic and Oromiffa languages. Al Massira is a hospitality-based video curriculum which presents the grand story of Scripture to Muslim friends and neighbors in a clear, direct, and winsome way. Our ministry team is hard at work in the recording studio and hopes to have the Amharic version done by the end of the year.
We have been blessed to receive a number of church-based grants this year to help with start-up costs for our new denomination and church plants. In total we are praying for $160,000 in giving for church planting over the next fiscal year to help with partial support for our 10 church planting apprentices, 2 presbytery staff (accountant and church planting coordinator), and 8 church plants. We are encouraged by the growth and progress of the last two years, and desire to give our church planters a sufficient “runway” for establishing ministry and local congregational giving in challenging financial and community contexts.
If you are interested to support the church planting fund, you can give directly to it by clicking HERE.
Caring for the 'Least of These' Update
In addition to church planting, Jason is the Spiritual Ministry Coordinator for Ethiopia ACT.
Ethiopia ACT began as a ministry to reduce the impact of HIV/AIDS on extremely poor families but has grown to include other public health strategies that serve the wider community, as well as educational and psychological support for vulnerable children.
What makes Ethiopia ACT unique?
1. The Least of these.
2. Real, Measurable Impact,
3. Made in God's image, Personal, not a one size fits all.
The Least of These: ACT is committed to caring for the very sickest and poorest people in the communities we serve.
Real, Measurable Impact: They don't assume that our strategies are making a difference. They collect data so that they are able to measure and track and adjust.
Made in God's image, Personal, not a one size fits all: The support and care they provide is determined by the individual's needs and is never a one-size-fits-all approach. The close relationship they build with each person makes it possible for them to tailor their activities to their needs and ensure there is real impact and change.
This past summer Ethiopia ACT raised $8,850 for their menstrual hygiene fundraiser, which will be used to purchase supplies throughout the upcoming school year. It costs $12 per girl for the school year, and they were able to cover the costs of supplies for 737 girls! Here is a great BBC article on period poverty that highlights many of the reasons we feel this program is important.
Click HERE to read Ethiopia ACT's 2022 Annual Report to learn more about how they are making a difference to the 'Least of these' in Ethiopia.
Prayer Updates from Jason
1) Pray for our family during Jason’ s upcoming travel schedule— for helpful medical appointments, church visits, and fundraising connections. Pray for Liz as she parents kids on her own in Addis Ababa.
2) Pray for Anteneh and Ammanuel as they begin work towards ordination, and for several others who are beginning their work toward licensure in Grace of the Messiah Presbyterian Church.
3) Pray for successful completion of the Amharic translation and redubbing of the Al Massira videos, and for our efforts to train people in the curriculum and begin using it in our own outreach ministry.
4) Pray for ongoing growth and maturity for our church plants and church planters, especially for those coming to faith through their ministries.
Email Newsletters from Jason
If you would like to receive the latest emails from Jason, you can email him directly at jasonandlizpolk@gmail.com and ask to be put on their email list.