Sharing God's Word from My Heart

Londa Richardson is the chief financial officer and corporate board secretary for the Tennessee Church of God of Prophecy. She is also manager and rental liaison for Hickory Hills Retreat and Conference Center in Dickson, Tennessee. Londa began preaching at 17 years of age and is a licensed COGOP minister. She runs highly successful retreats for the adults of Tennessee as state director of Thrive. She has pastored five churches and held state leadership positions in four states. She has been a city clerk as well as the president of both a local ministerial association and a chaplain’s association. Londa and her husband, Dwight, have been married 51 years and have two sons, Jeremi and Tyler, and three granddaughters, Laken, Eden, and Noa.

Jesus, Center of the Sermon A David and Goliath Case Study

Simon Rock ministers in the COGOP in Erlangen, Germany and is academic dean of THS, a theological school that is passionate about equipping the next generation of leaders. He holds a MA in Biblical Studies from Lee University in Cleveland, Tennessee. He is married to Mutave Rock and has two daughters, Cara and Talitha. He is passionate about leading people deeper into the things of God.

Thus Says the Lord

Dr. Elias Rodriguez is a member of the faculty and instructor for the Center for Biblical Leadership. He has served as pastor and traveled and taught extensively throughout Latin America, Western Europe, Asia, the Caribbean, North America, and Africa. He has been a member of the Church’s Assembly Committee for Biblical Doctrine and Polity since 2006 and serves as its secretary. Dr. Rodriguez earned a Master of Divinity degree from Church of God Theological Seminary (now Pentecostal Theological Seminary) in 2007 and a Doctor of Ministry degree from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary in 2014.

The Tower of Babel

Genesis 11:1–9 MSG

Treasures in Jars of Clay

But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us” (2 Corinthians 4:7 NIV). What a privilege it is to preach and teach from God’s Word!

the BEAUTIFUL story

Obed Natán Chic Itzep was born in the city of Santa Lucía Cotzumalguapa, Escuintla, Guatemala. He has served the church as a children’s and youth pastor, a clerk in his local church, and district Youth Ministries director. In 2019, he was appointed senior pastor of the Tierra Verde Church of God of Prophecy in Siquinalá, Escuintla, Guatemala.

SPIRITUAL LEADERSHIP - PRAYERFUL LEADERSHIP

Look at the first two words in this article’s title, “Spiritual Leadership.” Now replace the word “spiritual” with any word that denotes effective Christian leadership—authentic leadership, compassionate leadership, visionary leadership, anointed leadership, fruitful leadership, compelling leadership, servant leadership, etc. This simple exercise reminds us that consistent, fervent prayer is essential to effective spiritual leadership.

Prayers Heard, Prayers Hindered

Caleb Madara Dondo serves as COGOP Kenya Task Force vice chairman. Brother Dondo is a teacher with a passion for teaching on the Holy Spirit, giving, and prayer.

Local Church Outreach 2020

As the coronavirus made headlines near the beginning of 2020, I heard an amazing message of compassion and care concerning early Christians running into the plague to minister with kindness to make a difference in the lives of those who were sick and dying. They were willing to move to ministry, even when it threatened their own lives. The message contained a powerful illustration of how those of us who follow the teachings of Christ respond in counter-culture ways to minister to those who are suffering and in need.

Prayer People

The Bible tells us to pray with all kinds of prayer (Ephesians 6:18). But not every kind of prayer is effective prayer. Sometimes, our prayers resemble a flea-market auction. We barter. We negotiate. We up the bid. We say, “I’ll become a missionary if you’ll heal me, God!” Or, “I need more money, more money, more money—I’ll tithe 15 percent!”

Consider Your Ways

When my wife and I first got married, we knew very little about managing money. We certainly did not pay attention to the verse found in Proverbs 22:7 that says, “The rich rules over the poor, And the borrower is servant to the lender” (NKJV).

CONNECTIONS

Church Feeds 25, 000

Children and the Holy Spirit

Part Two: Explaining Holy Spirit Baptism to Chil-

A PEOPLE OF Prayer

Bishop Tim McCaleb, general presbyter for Asia, Australia, and Oceania, became a licensed minister in the COGOP in 1980. He held pastoral positions throughout Tennessee and Illinois before his appointment as state overseer of Oregon, Idaho, Utah, and Texas. During that time, he also participated in Assembly committees such as the Bible Doctrine and Polity committee and was Servant Partners Director for the International Offices. He holds a Master of Theological Studies from Vanderbilt University and a Doctor of Ministry degree from Houston Graduate School of Theology. He is married to Sheena and they have four children and many grandchildren.

We are Stewards of Our Bodies

STEWARDSHIP MINISTRIES Paul Holt Director of Finance and Administration

THE PRINCESS AND THE BABY

A long time ago in Egypt, there was a young Hebrew girl named Miriam. Her family had just had a beautiful baby boy. There was a big problem, though. The Pharaoh of Egypt had issued a decree that all Hebrew baby boys be killed to decrease the population of the Hebrew people, who were enslaved by the Egyptians.

SOUTH AMERICA

Bishop Gabriel Vidal was saved at the age of five and has been involved in church work his entire life. In 1984, he moved to New York after finishing three intensive years in a school of business in Santo Domingo and then lived in Rhode Island from 1985 to 2000. He co-planted a church in Providence and later became regional youth leader for both Southern New England and the Northeast Hispanic regions. He has also served as administrative assistant for the Spanish Voice of Salvation ministry and director of the World Language Department before his appointment as general presbyter of South America. He and his wife, Hanny, have two children.

How Living in the COGOP Orphanage Changed My Life

I recently contacted a few of our children’s home directors and asked if they could get in touch with a former student who would be willing to share how living in the Church of God of Prophecy children’s home affected them and influenced their lives. The following testimonies are examples of how your donations and prayer support are helping to raise men and women of God in a loving home–not only in providing physical care, but spiritually impacting their lives and their eternity.

CARIBBEAN

Dr. Clayton Martin entered full-time ministry in 1987 as a pastor and district overseer in the Cayman Islands. He later served on the Biblical Doctrine and Polity committee for the COGOP and national overseer for Jamaica and the Cayman Islands prior to being selected as general presbyter for the Caribbean and Atlantic Ocean Islands. He received a Bachelor of Religious Education from Christian Bible College and a Master of Arts in Religion with Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary. He and his wife, Sonia, have one daughter.

AFRICA

Bishop Stephen Masilela is the general presbyter for the COGOP in Africa. He is also a counselor and registered marriage officer and currently serves as president for Evangelical and Pentecostal churches in Africa. He holds a diploma in Personnel Management and Training (IPM) from Bible Training Institute and is enrolled with the Gordon Conwell/COGOP Leader of Leaders Master’s Degree program and the Extension School of Ministry of Swaziland College of Theology for a theology degree. He is married to Sibongile and they are blessed with three children.

TIME TO LAMENT

Reconciliation through Mourning

The Fruit of the Spirit Brings Reconciliation

To reconcile means “to cause to coexist in harmony; make or show to be compatible.” If we are to coexist in harmony with each other, we must walk in the Spirit so that we do not fulfill the lusts of the flesh. The flesh wants to be in control. This leads to many people being incompatible. But there is a solution: the fruit of the Spirit.

The Ministry of RECONCILIATION

As I was doing research for this article, the following words written by Rev. Brian A. Tillman, chair of the Commission on Religion and Race in the North Georgia Conference of the United Methodist Church, leaped off the page as I was reading. “Reconciliation is not something we hold hands and pray for God to do — no Kumbaya. It is work that God has given to us to do.”1 This quote is instructive as we seek to understand what it means to engage in the ministry of reconciliation, particularly against the backdrop of the current global protests against racial injustice. Reconciliation is the work of the church.

PENTECOST Reconciles

I know a man whose family moved to the United States from South Korea when he was elementary school age. He has vivid memories of feeling as if something had been torn away; an abrupt disconnection from the culture he loved and the life that made sense to him. He was replanted in a country, neighborhood, and school where everyone spoke a language he had not mastered. He was harassed and mistreated by the other children because he didn’t look like them.

One Child Fund

Indonesia Children’s Home

Kids can serve their world

Shaun McKinley International Children’s Ministries Director CHILDREN’S MINISTRIES

I JUST WANT TO BE SEEN

Thomas said to Him, “Lord, we do not know where You are going, and how can we know the way?” Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; and from now on you know Him and have seen Him.” Philip said to Him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is sufficient for us.” Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; so how can you say, ‘Show us the Father?’” (John 14:5–9 NJKV).

Hope For Tomorrow

Paul Holt Director of Finance and Administration STEWARDSHIP MINISTRIES

Genereal Overseer's Global Address

Bishop Sam N.Clements July 11, 2020

Ways Your Church Can Use TECHNOLOGY in Children's Miinistry

I remember using cutting-edge technology in children’s ministry twenty years ago. Our church had splurged and bought an expensive “Kid’s Church” curriculum. It came with full-color transparencies for an overhead projector to go with each week’s story. It was amazing! And we used video clips, too—I would cue up the VHS tape, remote in hand, ready to start and stop the clip at just the right moment.