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Phone: 716-775-0442
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Declare His Glory!
S EPTEMBER 2006, #211
News to Know Team Timothy Bolivia Tackles Varied Ministry
Brazil announced as the There is a special thrill in min-
destination for Team istry when one returns to a
Timothy 2007. place of labor for the Lord after
It may seem early to be some time to find that God’s
planning for a ministry people have continued to grow
that will take place in July and prosper in their faith, and
2007; however, former that the testimony of Christ has
team members will testify continued with vigor to much
to the fact that there never
good effect in the lives of peo-
seems to be enough time to
prepare! One reason for ple. Such was the thrill that
the early announcement is Team Timothy experienced in
to enable potential team Bolivia this past July, espe-
members to send in their cially those that had traveled
applications well before there two years ago. The reun-
the deadline of November ion with old friends was pre-
15. The team will fill up cious to us, as was seeing many
fast, even with a maximum new faces the Lord had brought
of 16 members, and we to himself in the meantime. the upstairs office and readied ourselves for
like to notify applicants Pastor David Quisbert and Deacon the day's work. At 10:30, our team taught
that have been accepted as Martin Irusta took very good care of us music lessons in piano (taught by Susan
soon as possible so they while we were there, making it possible Blizzard), violin (taught by Emily Blizzard),
can get to work on raising for us to get “in gear” quickly so that our and guitar (taught by Eric Pastorek). These
funds, preparing for boot full ministry schedule could take place. lessons were well-attended, and the students
camp and working on field After a day of rest when we arrived on really seemed to appreciate the teaching,
assignments. P o s t e r s , Saturday, we spent Sunday joyfully em- which also incorporated Bible principles of
information and applica- ployed in worship morning and evening. worship. There were others who came as
tions will be mailed to all The Lord blessed the ministry of the well, and our games leader, Jason Huttinga,
BP churches. If you are Word by bringing a visitor to a saving kept them occupied outside in the bright sun-
interested or know anyone
knowledge of Christ that day! It gave us shine that is a constant here this time of year.
who might be, please alert
them. You may also phone great joy in anticipating all that the Lord Dr. George Gatis filled in wherever neces-
or write to PMU headquar- would do in the weeks to come. sary during the day – his primary duties were
ters or access our website: preaching in the special evening evangelistic
[Link]. services which began later in the week, five
in all during the course of our ministry. After
70th Synod of the Bible lunch, and a rest, the team held a Vacation
Presbyterian Church Bible School for children. The primary
The 70th Synod came to teachers were Susan and Emily Blizzard,
a close on August 8th. assisted by Rita Gatis. The lessons were
Resolutions passed by this about the life of
Synod can be found on the David, and we
BPC website: [Link]. built in English
Next year the 71st Synod training as well.
will be held at Grace Bible For older young
Presbyterian Church in The first week, our schedule was people and
Cape Canaveral, Florida. more or less like this: start the day off at adults, we had
7:30 with morning Bible study with the separate classes
PMU Council Meeting church – it was very cold, but hearts
Read about PMU’s An- in art and Eng-
nual Council Meeting on were warm. Dr. Pine taught through lish. Eric Pas-
the next page. Isaiah 40 in the morning sessions. After torek was our
Bible study, we gathered for breakfast in art teacher, and
Presbyterian Missionary Union is a non-profit missions agency associated with the Bible Presbyterian Church. Our purpose is
to advance the cause of missions that are biblically based and practiced and to stand against any compromise of the saving gos-
pel of Jesus Christ. PMU is directed by a Missions Council of Christian leaders who volunteer their time to guide the ministry.
To learn more about missions opportunities through PMU, or to learn more about the BPC please contact us. The Missions
Banner is published ten times a year and is mailed to interested individuals and churches. It seeks to promote the clear stand of
the BPC by providing a biblical perspective on issues, fads, and theories in missions and church development. Editor: Len Pine
also taught biblical principles for the use of art in the life of the believer. The art students worked on projects in still
life and perspective. Our adult English teacher was Mark Baldwin, who used his experiences in Cambodia to good
advantage. He was able to use studies in the gospel of John to
teach English and good doc-
trine at the same time.
In the evenings, we typi-
cally gathered for dinner at the
home of one of the church
families, and then remained
for worship together with the
family and the church mem-
bers who packed out every
home. Mark was the main
teacher for these family wor-
ship times, working
through various sec-
tions of the book of Colossians. After the message, chairs were spread
out and we all enjoyed a time of games with our Bolivian brethren.
These less formal times of fellowship are perhaps the most precious
times of all in the
ministry here. We
made our way
home rejoicing
about 10:30, look-
ing forward to the
next day of labor
and fellowship.
We praise the Lord for souls that were saved during the
week, and for his strengthening as team members adjusted to
the altitude and rigorous schedule. He kept us safe in our trav-
els around the city
and area (traffic is
intense, and some of
the roads seem
nearly vertical!), and encouraged his people through the various ministries.
We were able to join the church family in handing out over 8000 gospel
tracts in just a short time on market day near the church. Drs. Pine and Ga-
tis were able to visit with Bolivia’s Minister of Justice (the counterpart to
our Attorney General) to encourage her to stand firm for Christ in her posi-
tion.
She is
a new
convert to Christ, and faces a very difficult po-
litical battle in the coming year as Bolivia re-
writes its constitution. Dr. Pine conducted a
choir seminar during the week, and the team
held the first of three concerts during the minis-
try. The team sang in Spanish and Aymara,
which truly blessed the believers there. There
were ministry times in a deaf congregation, on
the radio (twice), and seminars on church plant-
ing. The second week saw the team in similar
ministries, working in different churches, hold-
ing seminars for men (Dr. Gatis) and women
(Mrs. Gatis) on home issues, and participating
in days of prayer, concerts, and radio ministry. The team was also able to do a little sight-seeing visiting the town of
Coroico in the Jungas region (the mountains between the Andes and the jungle), and Lake Titikaka.
We thank all who supported each team member, and the whole ministry, with prayer and finances. The Lord
willing, we will be returning with Team Timothy again to Bolivia!
PMU Council Plans Future Ministries
The PMU Missions Council held its annual meeting at the Family Life Center of the BPC of Grand Island, NY, on
August 1. Council members from every BP presbytery gathered to discuss a very full agenda that addressed policies
and personnel needs, the annual budget, field decisions, and vision for the coming year. Also present were foreign mis-
sionaries Mark Baldwin and Miriam F, and home missionaries Keith Fagerheim (Springville, NY), and Steve Brinegar
(Zephyrhills, FL). Reports from all our fields were read and discussed; new fields were considered; travel plans ap-
proved; and new policies implemented. PMU’s current active foreign fields are Ch-na, Australia, Myanmar, Cambodia
(pending Mark’s reappointment upon completion of his ordination), and our newest field, Bolivia. The island of Guam
is being explored as a possible new field in the coming year.
New policies approved included a provision for non-Bible Presbyterian believers of like faith and practice to partici-
pate on our PMU missions teams, and evaluation criteria for established and potential mission fields.
We are grateful to the Lord for His blessings in the past year, and look forward to the continued growth of the min-
istry of PMU as He enables, and as God’s people support the work
