 |
 Winter 2016-2017 |
| |
Winter 2016-2017 |
 From CHM Director David Byrne -
On Sunday, Pastor Emilio Sánchez of the San Antonio Hispanic Friends Church spoke out of the first couple of verses from 1 Peter and in my bilingual Bible I was struck by how different the verses were between the Spanish (RV1960) and the English (NIV). The English has a hint of entitlement for God’s “scattered elect” “who have been chosen” including a blessing that “grace and peace” would be “yours” - almost giving a sense of ownership. It is a secure sense of belonging and possessing. In the Spanish, the emphasis from the beginning is of a tenuous situation as “expatriates” (refugees) who are physically scattered in a historical dispersion and yet chosen by God for redemption and sanctification with a blessing that grace and peace would be multiplied to them. The differences are subtle and tangentially significant in understanding the mindset of the interpreter. Those who are part of a stable and secure environment can barely imagine what it is to be vulnerable and rootless. Those who do not experience that stability but live on the margin of society or amid social breakdown cannot imagine possessing that grace and peace except as an act of a gracious God intervening on their behalf.
These are the kinds of differences that set the cultural perceptions of each one of us and that make it difficult to understand and be patient with one another. Thanks be to God for our Savior who knows and loves each one of us and for His Spirit who directs and connects us. We don’t need to understand everyone – just love them. We don’t need to resolve all the world’s issues – just love the Lord our God and serve Him. Hispanic ministry is not an end in itself, just an extension of the work God began to extend His grace and salvation to all people everywhere. Thanks for your involvement. Sincerely, Dr. David C. Byrne Director: CHM (--See the previous newsletter and some inspirational stories about new Hispanic Pastors--) (For an easier to print & share "Acrobat Reader" Version of this Newsletter click HERE) |
CHM Board: Dr. Karl Newman (Chairman) Drew Davenport Kay Griffin Dora Gutierrez Kerr David Jaimes Christopher Johnston Eric Royle Dr. Richard Tomm |
 Having Fun!Functioning as the multi-cultural body of Christ is not just about getting out to do the hard work that needs to be done to accomplish God’s purposes. That is an important part of it, but simply having fun together is also important. In the EFC-ER fall Hispanic Pastor’s Retreat there were good lessons, shared vision, and challenging strategy sessions, but there was also Friday night bowling which for some was a first-time experience. With some strikes and lots of gutter balls, laughter and fun became the unifying motif of the evening as the family of God simply enjoyed being together. EFC-ER superintendent Wayne Evans programmed the time as part of the Yearly Meeting’s way of expressing its appreciation for God’s work going on among its Spanish-speaking churches. What is the best way to learn a language? Make a friend from another culture and language. What is the best way to make a friend from another culture and language? Go out and join your life to that of others to enjoy and to share life’s experiences with them. After all, isn’t that what Jesus did with us? God with us! Incarnation is not just about suffering. CHM
The Coalition for Hispanic Ministries is a missionary organization that seeks to develop and promote ministries to the Hispanic community and to educate Christians for Hispanic ministry involvement. We are your partner in this particularly vital area of outreach in order to maximize the strengths of churches and individuals – Anglo and Hispanic. This Coalition for Hispanic Ministries includes people like you and your church who care about Christ’s expanding church. We rely on your generosity and encourage you to pray with us for North American Hispanic ministries and to give as you feel led. We plan to develop a format for Hispanic Ministry vision gatherings in the coming year that can be used with your friends and neighbors or in your congregation to raise awareness of the circumstances for possible involvement in ministry development in your area. Contact us if you are interested. We appreciate your prayers and support. |
AlianzaMinisterialAmigosNorteAmerica 2016
The North American Hispanic Friends Conference in Philadelphia was a time of great blessing for the many attenders that came from Central America, Mexico, Canada, and across the 
U.S. The host church worked extra hard to accommodate
so many guests but they did so with grace. We look forward to joining
Pastor Jorge Valdez (pictured with AMANA president Amilcar Sosa) in Phoenix
next October. Hope you can join us! . 
Leadership TrainingHispanic leadership training is taking place across the continent and we thank God for the advances. When the Instituto ALMA first started, it was one of the first such leadership training programs available in Spanish. Now, there are many opportunities for leaders who are preparing to serve the Lord in ministry. When EFC-ER pastors were gathered at Yearly Meeting to talk about the restructuring that is being done and setting the priority for preparing pastors, it was Pastor José Urrutia from Kingston, NY who stood up and through an interpreter described to the group the kind of intensive hands-on training their church offers to raise up leaders. He offered to share their insights and experience with others in the Yearly Meeting. The Instituto ALMA continues to have an online role in preparing leaders with full courses available free of charge along with video and study guides for leadership groups. But we also thank God for the many other programs and materials that are available as well as for the capable leaders who are leading those programs. The Lord of the Harvest is raising up workers. |
|
Here are a few simple and painless ways to help: You can do your Amazon shopping year around at smile.amazon.com/ch/76-0433634 where Amazon donates to CHM - Hispanic Ministries Leadership and Research International with every purchase. Also, “Goodsearch.com” and “Goodshop.com” have multiple ways you can give at no cost to you to CHM - Coalition for Hispanic Ministries. They have a new add-on for Safari, Chrome, and Firefox called Goodshop Fetch that saves you money while supporting CHM. Get it here. Once you add it, every time you shop online: 1. Goodshop Fetch will search through more than 500,000 coupons/deals to automatically bring you the best discounts wherever you shop online. 2. A portion of each participating sale will be automatically donated to CHM - Coalition for Hispanic Ministries THANKS! |
 |
 We
are praying urgently for Jaime Herrera for ongoing chemotherapy treatments
but also giving thanks for God’s hand in Jaime’s recovery since his extended
coma in October. |
|
We continue in prayer for 2 vehicles to help church-planting pastors in their ministry. |
|
As always, the Byrne Family seeks your prayer as your
missionaries to the Hispanic communities of North America. Our family
newsletter is available here. Thank you for your interest and your
prayers. |