tarafından Noliani Clemente | Liderlerimiz
TOM: We are grateful for the opportunity to share how faithful God has been to us. We are also thankful to be part of what God is doing here at One Voice. Some of you know that before coming to OVF in April 2023, we lived 10 years in North Africa. Before that we were in southern Spain for 15 years. We had the privilege of sharing the Good News of Jesus and serving the growing church in those places. We had to learn languages and adapt to new cultures, like many of you do. But we saw God provide people in every place — brothers and sisters in Christ — who welcomed us and helped us integrate into our new lives.
JANE: One of the hardest things was watching our children suffer, especially in our first year in Spain. Our son, John, said: “I don’t fit in here! I can’t speak Spanish. I’m too tall and too blond. They’re Catholic and we’re Evangelicals. I just want to be a normal American kid!” Our children often felt like outsiders and they missed our family back home. But God was faithful in providing good teachers and friends. Now our sons say about themselves: “parts made in the USA, assembled in Spain.”
All of our children are adults now, and the experience of living overseas greatly influenced them. Julia is a bi-lingual lawyer who lives in Arlington. She is married to a Bolivian man and they have 3 children. John works for a multinational energy company in Santiago, Chile and is married to a Chilean woman. They will be moving to this area next month. Our youngest, Tim, is a medical doctor with a heart to serve God in needy areas of the world. He just moved to DC this summer for further training at the National Children’s Hospital. In the past 25 years we have never lived in the same place.
So it will be a HUGE blessing to have all 3 of our children close by so that we can do life together in-person! This November, they will help us celebrate our 50th wedding anniversary!
A few years ago, while in North Africa, we started thinking about moving back to the US. We wanted to integrate into a new church community and get involved in ministry while we were still young enough. Then my mother had a stroke and needed fulltime care. So we moved back to my family’s home in McLean to help take care of her. One Voice was just the kind of church and ministry we had prayed for! Being part of the life of this community has made our adjustment to life back in the United States much easier than we had feared. We had wondered how we would fit into a homogeneous American church after starting and supporting multicultural churches overseas for 25 years? God again showed his faithfulness to us by bringing us here to One Voice Fellowship and made you our church family.
TOM: So that accounts for the past 25 years. But like we said, we are about to complete 50 years of marriage! Our journey has not been ordinary. It has taken some very unusual twists and turns. But Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, has been at work in us.
I grew up on a farm in the far northern part of Michigan, the 7th of 10 children. My father died when I was 11 and I remember the shock and crying out to God: “God, you’ve taken my daddy. Would you please be my Daddy?” Someone who knew my father showed me the love of God by taking me to a weekly Christian club for young boys, where I memorized many Bible verses. At Summer Bible camp my cabin counselor led me in saying the Sinner’s prayer to receive Jesus into my heart. I said the words, but I didn’t really understand what it meant to follow Jesus.
10 years later, I was in the Navy and very confused about life. One day a young evangelist on a beach in France challenged me to serve Jesus with my life. After I had proudly quoted many Bible verses to her, she said, “You know so much about Jesus. Why aren’t you living for him?!”
Her challenge rocked my world. I could quote the Bible verses, but did I believe them? I realized I wanted to believe, but I didn’t know how. I cried out to God for help. I asked Him to give me the faith to believe. He was my only hope. He answered my prayer and changed my life that night. I began reading the Bible every free moment I had. I got involved with a Christian ministry called the Navigators. I learned how to memorize Scripture, share the gospel, and lead Bible studies with the men on my ship. I believed God wanted to use me to preach the gospel, so I made plans to go to Bible college after the Navy.
JANE: I grew up right here in northern Virginia. My father was Catholic, but my mother didn’t believe in God. When I was 5, I developed juvenile arthritis. It is a painful condition that flared up every spring and put me in a wheelchair. One time, when I was in pain, I asked my father why God let me suffer. He wisely told me that it was so that I would be able to understand and help others who suffered. That gave me hope.
When I was 8, I understood that Jesus died for my sins, and I promised to serve him with my life. Singing became a way for me to express my faith and my ideas. I taught myself to play the guitar and joined a music group at church. I wanted to serve God with my talents and energy, but I didn’t really know the gospel. The gospel isn’t about what you and I can do for God, but what He has done for us!
When I was 17, God showed me that I needed to surrender all my plans and let Him direct my life. After months of spiritual struggle, I finally let go of the things I was holding on to for my identity and sense of worth. I asked him to fill me with his Holy Spirit. I began to read the Bible and God’s Word came alive to me!
As young adults, Tom and I were both looking for a way to serve God. We had been brought up with the “American Dream.” That Dream tells you that you can be anything you want to be. But that wasn’t our dream. We wanted our lives to be significant, to matter for God.
Now imagine the United States in the early 1970’s. There was a lot of social unrest over the Vietnam War and the Civil Rights Movement. Young people were looking for alternatives in drugs, sex, and religion. There was a revival among young people in America called the “Jesus Movement.”
In 1973, Tom and I both happened to be in Barcelona, Spain. Tom’s Navy ship stopped in the port, and I was studying at the University of Barcelona. We had not met one another yet. We were both recruited by a group from the Jesus Movement called “The Children of God.” We met each other only after we had joined the group. A year and a half later, we got married in Madrid. While in The Children of God, we lived in Spain, India, Pakistan, and Afghanistan.
TOM: While in this group we saw God provide for us in miraculous ways and people came to faith in Jesus through our evangelistic efforts. But there were also false teachings and harmful practices that got progressively worse. After 5 years, we left the group. We felt abused and broken both spiritually and emotionally.
We felt a strong feeling of failure after we realized how much The Children of God deceived us. We sometimes thought, “Jesus, can you still love me, even though I’ve been such a failure?” It took time for us to understand those experiences. But once again, God provided wonderful friends, counselors, and pastors to help us find our way.
We really wanted to go back overseas, but God was not in a hurry. He had so much to teach us. For the next 20 years, while we furthered our formal education, had our children and participated in healthy churches, God was teaching us about His grace. Isaiah 40 describes God as a shepherd who “gently leads those with young.” He gently led us and showed us his steadfast love through solid biblical teaching and in the ordinary rhythms of life and work.
We started seeing the Gospel in a new light. We saw that that the Gospel is not just the entryway into the Christian life. The Gospel is our daily food. We started seeing our sins of pride, judging others, complaining, speaking bad about others, and far worse things. We realized that even when we did good deeds, our motives were often mixed. We found the only remedy was preaching the Gospel to ourselves. We must remind ourselves of our sinful motives, words, and deeds; AND, we must also remember God’s never-failing grace and love for us. We learned what genuine, honest repentance looked like. In these ways, we experienced the joy and freedom that flows into our lives when we confess our sins and run to the arms of Jesus.
JANE: We still wanted to live cross-culturally and share the Good News with people who had never heard it before. But we weren’t trying to save the world anymore. We knew that only God could do that! But, we were so wrong before, so very deceived in the Children of God. Could we trust our ability to make wise decisions? We desperately needed God to direct our steps. Our church supported an organization that specialized in helping people see their brokenness and need for Christ. This organization valued people over programs and understood that God works through weak people just as much, if not more, than through strong people. We have happily served with that organization and grown in our faith for the past 27 years.
Jesus is our Shepherd and he leads us beside still waters; He restores our souls. He leads us in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. He is faithful and good all the time!
And until we see him face to face, we will still need to repent of our fears and sins. Our hearts are sometimes tempted by fear or failure. We can be tempted to find our worth in what we do, rather than in what He has done for us.
In Revelation 3 Jesus said, 19 ”I warn and correct those I love. So be sincere, and turn away from your sins. 20 Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in. I will eat with that person, and they will eat with me.”
It is a joyous thing to turn away from sin and welcome Jesus into our lives.
TOM: God reminds us in Ephesians 2:8-10: “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”
What about you? How has God been working in your life? Do you need him to give you faith to believe? Do you need him to deliver you from the bondage of false teaching? Do you need to repent of finding your worth in what you do for God, instead of thanking him for Christ’s perfect righteousness given freely to those who trust in Him? Can you trust Him to work through you as you put your trust in Him?
When some religious people asked Jesus what was the work of God, Jesus answered: “The work of God is to believe in the one he sent.” That starts with believing he is who he said is: the Son of God who came to save sinners! And that believing continues to grow and deepen as we repent of our sins and trust him with every aspect of our lives. He is worthy!
tarafından Chris Sicks | One Voice Hakkında
The Lord created us to be in real, deep relationships with one another. We all need to know who we can talk to about our sin and our struggles. We need to weep and rejoice with our brothers and sisters, and help one another when life gets hard.
These kinds of deep relationships can be formed in many ways at OVF: On Sunday nights in the classroom, during dinner, and in worship. Life Groups are one of the best places to build deep friendships with a small number of people. We also connect with one another in women’s and men’s prayer meetings, and during annual retreats and picnics.
However, even with all these good activities, people can feel unknown, overlooked, forgotten, or alone. Our Care Ministry is based on biblical principles, with the goal of actively praying for the congregation, seeking the help and power of the Good Shepherd as He works among us.
The vision of the OVF Care Ministry is “to strengthen and encourage each other in the faith, through prayer and personal Christian relationships.” We want everyone in the church to be known, and also to know where they can turn when they need help.
Every member of One Voice is assigned to a care group. We also include anyone who has been regularly attending our church for three months or longer. Each group of 25-30 people is assigned to a Care Team. Each Care Team is led by an elder with other godly men and women who are OVF members. These leaders cannot meet all your needs, and they are not professional counselors or therapists. Prayer is the focus of their ministry.
Goals for the OVF Care Ministry:
- Cover church members in prayer.
- Help members feel seen, known, and connected to the leadership and others at OVF.
- Monitor the congregation, to see who is disconnected, wandering from God, or hurting.
- Provide you with someone you can call for help or prayer.
- Direct you to other sources of help when necessary.
The Care Ministry does not replace Life Groups. If you are not in a Life Group now, please talk to us about that. Life Groups are the best place to give and receive help and encouragement.
Caring for the entire church is the work of the entire church. We all need a network of relationships as we face the challenges of life. Your Care Team leaders are one part of that network. We are here to pray for you, and who you can contact when you need help.
You can learn about the biblical basis for our Care Ministry by watching or reading this sermon.
If you have any questions, please ask one of the men or women on your Care Team! If you don’t know who your Care Team leaders are, contact our church administrator:
sooyeons.hanovfchurchonevoicefellowshiporgcom
tarafından Naomi Sicks | Çeşitlilik
Chris, Doksoloji ’yi farklı dillerde söyleme fikrini ilk paylaştığında, şüpheliydim.
Uluslararası cemaatimizin aynı anda tüm dillerinde şarkı söylemesi düşüncesi kulağa cennet gibi geliyordu.
Ama bunu neden eski moda Doksolojiile yapıyorsunuz?
Bu fikir, hippi-Hıristiyan derimin sürünmesine neden oldu.
Ben bir çocukken, büyükanne ve büyükbabamın ayinle ilgili kiliselerini ziyaret ederken, ayağa kalkmak ve oturmak gibi şeyleri hiç anlamadım.
Duyarlı okumalar, okudukları kelimeler konusunda samimiyetsiz görünen bir monoton ses denizi gibiydi.
Öyleyse neden One Voice gibi bir kilisede Doksoloji ’yi söyleyelim?
İbadet takımı antrenmanında ilk kez bu şarkıyı söylemeye başladığımda yanaklarımdan süzülen yaşlara ne kadar şaşırdığımı tahmin edebilirsiniz.
Andrew’un aranjmanı hareketli ve güzel.
Dörtlüğü kendi dillerimizde iki kez tekrarlamadan önce Doksoloji ’yi bir kez İngilizce söyledik: İspanyolca, Fransızca, Çince, Korece, Urduca, Dari dili, Amharca ve İngilizce.
Birden şarkı bile söyleyemedim!
Yüzümden sevinç gözyaşları akarken boğazım düğümlendi.
Hiçbir şey beni tek bir sesle Allah’ı öven birçok dilin muhteşem sesine hazırlamadı.
Ertesi hafta ibadette onu söylerken, dünyanın her yerinden sevgili arkadaşlarımın yüzlerine baktım.
İngilizce söylerken ifadeleri konsantrasyondan, büyüdükleri dillere (kalp dilleri dediğimiz) geçtiklerinde sevince dönüştü.
O an gerçekten cennetten bir görüntüydü.
Birçok kabileden ve dilden insanlar tek bir sesle, yürekten şarkı söyleyerek göklerdeki tek Babamıza tapıyorlar.
Sevgili kocamın yanına dönüp “Haklısın!” sözlerini söylemekten onur ve gurur duydum.
tarafından Chris Sicks | Liderlerimiz
Clément Tendo
Bana göre, Tek Ses Bursu “du-jamais-vu” - daha önce görmediğim bir şey. Yine de farklı dillere ve türlere ait şarkılara olan ilgim ve bunların ibadette nasıl kullanılabileceği konusunda son derece heyecanlıyım. Ruhla dolu bir kilisenin, Rabbimiz İsa Mesih’in tavizsiz sevindirici haberiyle kendi bağlamlarında tüm uluslara ulaşmak olduğuna inanıyorum. Tek Ses, her kabileden ve dilden insanların birlikte büyük Tanrımıza tapınacağı Kuzu’nun evlilik yemeğine hazırlanırken Mesih’in kilisesinin çağrıldığı şeyi temsil eder (Vahiy 19:6-10; 5:9-10). .
İncil’e inanan bir evde büyüdüm, bu sadece Tanrı‘nın lütfuna atfettiğim bir şey. Yine de hayatıma baktığımda, bu nimetin beni iğvadan ve günahtan koruduğunu söyleyemem. İmanda devam ettikçe, günahlarımın ne kadar çok olduğunu anlıyorum - ama aynı zamanda Kurtarıcım İsa Mesih’in ne kadar büyük ve güçlü olduğunu. Sahip olduğum her başarı, endişe, endişe, şüphe ve belirsizlik anı için Tanrı‘ya şükrediyorum. Bana Tanrı‘nın tüm ışıkları gördüğüm ışık olarak kalması gerektiğini hatırlatıyorlar (Mezmur 36:9). Mücadele ettiğimde, teselli ve sığınağım kaynaklarım dua yoluyla Tanrı‘yı aramak, O’nun yanıtladığı duaları hatırlamak, şarkı söylemek ve müjde müziği yapmak ve Tanrı‘nın sözünü incelemektir. Derin bir karanlıkta, benim için her gün sabırla Tanrı‘ya güvenmekten ve kendi anlayışıma dayanmamaktan başka bir umut olmadığını anladım (Süleymanın Meselleri 3:5-6).
Uganda’daki Afrika İncil Üniversitesi’ndeki çalışmalarım sırasında, Afrika’daki kilisenin durumuna baktım ve çoğu papazın sevindirici haber için tutkulu ve gayretli olduğunu, ancak hakikat Sözü‘nü doğru bir şekilde nasıl ele alacakları konusunda çok az eğitime sahip olduklarını fark ettim (2 Timoteos 2 :15). Bilgi ve tutkunun sevindirici haberin ilerlemesi için birlikte çalışabilmesi için, okuduklarımı sevindirici haberin bu hizmetkarlarıyla paylaşma ihtiyacı hissettim. Tanrı‘nın beni günden güne şekillendirdiğinin farkında olan biri olarak, duam, Tanrı‘nın beni elinde bir araç ve diğer dilencilere yaşam ekmeğini nerede bulabileceklerini öğretmek, vaaz etmek, ve Rab’bin önderlik ettiği gibi şarkı söylemek. Westminster Theological Seminary’deki mevcut çalışmalarım zorlu ama beni birçok yönden şekillendiriyor ve kutsallaştırıyor. Tanrı‘nın bende her gün yaptığı işten dolayı korku ve titreyerek kurtuluşumu gerçekleştirmek üzere Kutsal Ruh’un gücüyle donatıldım (Filipililer 2:12-13).
İlahiyat Yüksek Lisans derecem için yerel bir kilise stajı gerekiyor, bu yüzden Tanrı‘nın Westminster’de öğrendiklerimi uygulayarak büyümeme yardımcı olacak bir kilise bulmama yardım etmesi için dua ettim. Tanrı‘ya şükürler olsun ki, beni bir pastoral ve ibadet stajyeri olarak Tek Ses Bursunun bir parçası olmaya çağıran Papaz Chris’in sevgi dolu ve alçakgönüllü insanı, ki bu da cevaplanmış bir dua olarak kabul ediyorum. Umuyorum ve dua ediyorum ki, birbirimize hizmet ederken ve Tanrımıza tapınmak için tek bir sesle bir araya gelirken (Romalılar 15:5-7), Rabbimiz İsa Mesih’in bilgisini ve lütfunu geliştirmeye devam edeceğiz (2 Petrus 3:18). ) birbirimizi geliştirmek için, sevincimiz için ve her şeyden önce Tanrı’nın yüceliği için (Romalılar 11:36; 1 Korintliler 10:31).
tarafından Chris Sicks | Liderlerimiz
Kashif, karısı Sana ve kızı
İkimiz de Pakistanlıyız.
Hristiyan ailelerde doğduk, kilisemizin gençlik bakanlığına ve korosuna çok katıldık.
Pakistan’da her kilise faaliyetine katılmak bizim rutinimizdi, çünkü Tanrı‘sız yaşamanın bizim için ne kadar zor olduğunu biliyoruz.
Aralık 2019’da ABD’ye taşındığımızda Hristiyan hayatımız için endişeliydik.
Kimseyi tanımadığınız bir yere taşındığınızda bu korkutucu olur.
Ama kendimiz ve özellikle kızımız Joy için çok dua ettik.
Pakistan’da Amerika’daki insanların Tanrı‘dan uzak olduğu ve kiliseye giderseniz sadece yaşlıları göreceğiniz fikri vardı, çünkü genç nesil kiliseye gelmiyor.
Ama buraya gelip Papaz Chris ile tanıştığımızda birbirimizi yıllardır tanıdığımızı hissettik.
O bizim manevi babamızdır, her zaman yardımcı olur ve bizi Mesih’in bizi sevdiği gibi sever.
Bu yüzden papaz Chris bize OVF’den bahsettiğinde çok heyecanlandık.
“Vay canına!
Başkalarının da bizim dilimizde dua edip şarkı söyleyeceği bir yerde kendi dilimizde dua etmek ne kadar harika olacak.”
OVF’nin bir parçası olduğumuz için Tanrı‘ya gerçekten gurur ve şükrediyoruz.
Nereden geldiğine göre bir ayrım yok.
İnsanlar Pakistan’da Hristiyan olmanın ne kadar zor olduğuna dair tanıklığımızı dinliyorlar.
Yani burada hepimiz aynıyız gibi geliyor.
İncil’in dediği gibi, birbirimizi Tanrı’nın bizi sevdiği gibi sevmeliyiz!
tarafından Chris Sicks | One Voice Hakkında, Kategorilenmemiş
Herhangi bir iyi logo, temsil ettiği organizasyon hakkında size bir şeyler söyleyecektir.
İşte One Voice logosunun arkasındaki üç fikir:
1) Küresel — Şekil bize dünyayı ve Tanrı’nın halkının, nerede bulunurlarsa bulunsunlar tüm insan gruplarıyla İyi Haberi paylaşmaya çağrıldıklarını hatırlatıyor.
“Yeruşalim’de, bütün Yahudiye’de, Samiriye’de ve dünyanın sonuna, kadar benim tanıklarım olacaksınız.” (Elçilerin İşleri 1:8)
“İsa gelip onlara dedi: Gökte ve yerde bütün yetki bana verildi.
Bu nedenle gidin ve tüm etneleriöğrencilerim olarak yetiştirin, onları Baba, Oğul ve Kutsal Ruh adına vaftiz edin, size emrettiğim her şeye uymayı onlara öğretin.
Ve işte, her zaman seninleyim, çağın sonuna kadar.”
(Matta 28:18-20)
2) Mesih Merkezli — Bir prizma beyaz ışığı kırmızı, turuncu, sarı, yeşil, mavi ve mora böler.
Bir prizma gibi, dil ve kültür genellikle Mesih’in Bedenini böler.
Ancak logomuzdaki haç beyazdır çünkü Mesih’in Bedeni zaten her kabileden ve dilden insanları içermektedirFarklı bir topluluğa katıldığımızda, Mesih’in Bedeninin dolgunluğunu daha fazla deneyimleyebiliriz.
“Bu ağıldan olmayan başka koyunlarım var.
Onları da getirmeliyim, sesimi dinleyecekler.
Böylece tek sürü, tek çoban olacak.”
(Yuhanna 10:16)
3) Kültürlerarası — Pek çok kilise, olması gerektiği gibi çok kültürlüolmaya çalışır. Kültürlerarası bir adım daha ileridir ve One Voice’taki hedefimizdir.
Birbirleriyle etkileşime girdiklerinde renklerin nasıl değiştiğini görüyor musunuz?
Evlilikte olduğu gibi, amacımız birbirimizle o kadar yakın bir topluluk içinde olmak ki, ikimiz de deneyimle daha iyisi için değiştik.
“Kültürel oluşumu bizimkinden farklı olan biriyle, dünyanın bir ucunda, bir sonraki vadide veya kendi sokağımızda olsun, etkileşime girmeye başladığımızda ve birbirimizi iyi anlamaya çalıştığımızda, “kültürlerarası” etkileşim. Kültürlerarası , kültürler arasında neler olduğunu açıklar.
Kültürler arası
öğrenme, hayatlarımız kesişirken birbirimizden öğrendiğimizde gerçekleşir.”
(Hıristiyanlar ve Kültürel Farklılık, Smith ve Dykstra-Pruim, 15.)