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An Infectious Spirit and a Culture of Prayer
Hannah Foster, member of New Hope OPC (Frederick, MD), was, in one sense, nervous leading up to her trip to the Boardwalk Chapel. She shared, “To be very honest, having never been to the Chapel before, first of all I thought, ‘I’ve never done cold-turkey evangelism. That’s really intimidating.’ Second, I thought, ‘I’ve heard of this place, they have this thing called the Heaven and Hell machine that they set out for people. What is that about? What kind of methodology is this? What is their theology like?’”
Update from Missionary Associate Jed Homan
As the new year begins, I find it fitting to provide you with an update on my endeavors here in Uganda. Having returned at the beginning of November, I commenced a 1-year term as a missionary associate with the Orthodox Presbyterian Church. My focus remains on continuing the maintenance projects initiated during my previous visit.
“I’ll Be Taking It Back Home”: A Boardwalk Chapel Testimonial
“I’ll be taking this training back home to unbelieving family members, friends, or coworkers. It’s not just applicable here on the boardwalk.” Landri Shope of Shiloh OPC in Raleigh, NC, left the Boardwalk Chapel not only feeling more equipped to share the gospel with strangers, but with all unbelievers in her life. She continues, “Where I live, most of the people know the Gospel. They’ve heard it before, they’re just more apathetic towards it. It is really important that they genuinely believe it. The self-examination questions we learned here are exactly what I need to get a conversation started.”
Never Alone
Seth Van Noord, member at New Hope OPC, Green Bay, WI, was greatly encouraged by his time at the Boardwalk Chapel. Though he was challenged by the proposition of evangelizing in a public space, he was comforted by and thankful for the community of believers by his side all along the way. Read his testimony below.
Nowhere Quite Like It
What can I say about the Boardwalk Chapel, except that we love it? Even though our church has to travel quite a long distance to get to Wildwood from Matthews, NC, we keep making the trip happily because there’s nowhere quite like the Boardwalk Chapel. Sure, we can practice evangelizing anywhere, but evangelism is best “caught” in addition to being “taught,” and the Chapel is a veritable beehive of spiritual zeal and equipping. Every two years I bring a fresh batch of new faces to discover the warmth of the Chapel’s missional Christian fellowship, and to begin their first forays out into the intimidating world of cold call evangelism. In all of this, God has never left us disappointed, as each year we return with stories of God’s power and a desire to apply what we’ve learned back home.
A Local Mission Trip
As the Youth Group coordinator at Grace Presbyterian Church outside of Washington DC, I greatly desired our youth group to go on a mission trip. But I wanted it to take place somewhere different than our homes and home church. I wanted to see the group serving or evangelizing—focused outwards on others and their needs. I was also excited to see relationships flourish as we spent time together through service, as a mission trip uniquely encourages. However, it was already late spring 2023, folks had their summer calendars decisively parsed, and honestly, I didn’t really feel like I had the bandwidth to lead a group of youth for an entire week as we were all out of our comfort zones. Mission trips are not something I myself have been a part of very much and I was intimidated by the planning required and the energy necessary for a far-away week-long trip.
STM 2023 Wrap-Up: Short-Term Missions, Long-Term Blessings
Summer 2023 is gone just as quickly as it came. However, for the first time in multiple years, OPC Short-Term Missions is thankful to be able to look back on a summer full of teams traveling around the globe to assist missionaries, engage in evangelism, and to reach the lost with the gospel. This year, over 200 short-term missionaries went out to six locations: Quebec, Canada; two Czech Republic locations; Western Ukraine; Lanham, MD; and Wildwood, NJ.
A Glimpse of Real-Life Mission Work
“I really appreciated the opportunity to catch a glimpse of real-life mission work. I learned the importance of developing and investing in relationships and saw it carried out by the Farniks. It was through relationships and connections that they were able to invite people to the activities they hosted and connect with them on a personal level.”
Pastors Serve Too!
Jim Hoekstra, pastor of Immanuel OPC in Anoka, MN, joined a team headed to the Czech Republic this past summer. While there, he helped host and teach English Camp for local children. In addition to standard vocabulary themes which are taught throughout the week, reading and conversation lessons are drawn from Bible stories. Pastor Jim speaks of the trip in this way:
English for Kids 2023: My View from the Kitchen
6:00AM. “Time to make the donuts!” Mornings started early at English for Kids Bible Camp at the Eglise Reformee de Beauce (Reformed Church of Beauce).
This was my family’s second year serving with the OPC’s short-term mission to Quebec. Whereas I was a teacher last year, this year I had the unique perspective of working in the kitchen, providing meals for the U.S. team. Three things stood out to me.
2023 Short-Term Missions Mid-Summer Update
So far this summer, one Short-Term Missions team has traveled to St. Georges, Quebec to serve the local children at the St. Georges English for Kids Camp and six teams have served at the Boardwalk Chapel in Wildwood, NJ. Here's what they have to say about serving the Lord, reaching out to the lost, and spending a part of their summer on mission!
A Time of Spiritual Growth in the Ugandan Wilderness: Missionary Associate Jed Homan
Some have likened Karamoja to the “Wild West” or referred to it as the “Ugandan Wilderness.” In this region there is a great need for the light of the Gospel to shine forth in the area’s culture and in the hearts of its people. Situated in the middle of it all is the OPC Karamoja Mission Station. The OPC Mission Station in Karamoja, Uganda has been in operation, ministering to the locals since 2000. As would be expected, living in a wilderness is not easy—not on missionaries and certainly not on the equipment and systems they depend on every day.
Short-Term Missions for All!
Whether you’re intrigued by the adventure of exploring and evangelizing in Prague, getting a taste of the Ugandan “outback” in Karamoja, or honing your evangelism skills at the sunny Boardwalk Chapel in Wildwood, OPC Short-Term Missions really does have an opportunity for all!
Update on Missionary Associate Jed Homan
“There is no way to even start to understand life here without being here. Living here, seeing how the mission operates—it’s been enjoyable and eye-opening,” says Jed Homan, Missionary Associate at the OP Uganda Mission. Jed is beginning his third month of work in Nakaale, Karamoja, Uganda and reports that it has been satisfying to be able to make progress on the various maintenance projects he’s been working on and knowing that what he’s doing is serving the mission.
The Boardwalk Chapel: A Unique Experience
“The teaching at the Chapel is definitely Gospel-centered. It’s speaking the truth to others, and the need to speak it in love. Not argumentative, not from a place above them because we’re sinners just like they are. The boardwalk is another awesome experience for the rest of the teens.”
OPC Short-Term Missions is Making A Comeback in 2022
No doubt you’ve noticed the near-depleted list of short-term mission opportunities the past two years due to COVID restrictions. But praise the Lord, things seem to be changing and we’re encouraged! According to the travel site, Kayak, as of November 24, 2021, the borders of five countries are now open, with no restrictions. 166 countries’ borders are open, with limited restrictions, and only 53 countries’ borders remain closed.Maybe you have been waiting in the wings for restrictions to lift in order to serve in an international short-term missions’ capacity. This may be just the time for you to jump into—or back into—short-term missions service. Missionaries, serving near and far, have spent much of these past two years without the encouragement and blessing of regular visitors—vital for their health and the success of the mission.
