August 2007

Eastern Region

Friends hear New Testament before Easter—Pastor Bill Powell challenged Bethany Friends Church (OH) in January. Would the church commit to listening to the entire New Testament on CD before Easter Sunday? Most members responded with enthusiasm. Some questioned their ability to complete the task, but every family accepted a copy.

For the next twelve weeks, sermons kept pace with the recordings. The goal was to spend fifteen minutes per day listening to the New Testament. Many listened as they drove to and from work. Some listened as a family. Not all members completed the challenge, but most agreed that it was wonderful preparation for Easter Sunday.

Cornerstone celebrates Easter with outreach—To celebrate Easter, Cornerstone Friends (OH) held a community Easter egg hunt. The goal was to welcome people to the church, have fun, and invite community members to Easter services.

Volunteers stuffed 8,000 eggs and gave away $1000 in donated prizes. “At our Christmas outreach we had around 1200 people attend, which blew us away,” explained Pastor Mark Winner. “Imagine our surprise when over 3,000 people came to our Easter outreach!” The event was reviewed well by local newspapers. Over one hundred visitors attended services at Cornerstone the following month.

Youth join hunger famine effort—World Vision’s 30-Hour Famine is an annual tradition within some yearly meeting youth groups. This year, seven Friends youth groups participated in the event. Over 150 participants raised over $27,000. These funds will be quadrupled by the government and matching grants.