Missions Weekend

   April 20-22 was Missions Weekend at Stanwich.  Friday night featured a dinner with guest speaker Raymonda Samawi,

a former fashion designer for Arab royalty

in Lebanon, who spoke about her journey to discover Jesus.  On Saturday morning the Men of the Upper Room hosted a breakfast that highlighted several missions.  The keynote speaker was

Bob Muzikowski, President of the

Chicago Hope Academy, who reaches

out to inner city kids through Little League baseball in Chicago and New York City.  The breakfast also featured   Rev. David Smith of PIVOT Ministries, Rev. Jason Pankau of Life Spring Ministries, and a piano concert by Randy Atcheson. 

   On Sunday, Rev. Chuck Davis was resplendent in his grand boubou, the African formalwear he wore to official occasions in Mali as a missionary,

as he spoke about joining God's heart

by crossing boundaries to reach out to others.  Sue Rohr and Eric Johnson also spoke how God has transformed their lives through missions.   After the services, several people involved with Stanwich missions were available during coffee hour to answer questions, and Women of Vision offered opportunities for child sponsorship.  What a wonderful celebration of all of the Kingdom-building work being done through Stanwich. 

   Listen to Chuck's sermon from Missions Sunday entitled Joining God's Mission.

Rev. Chuck Davis in Syria and Australia

      Rev. Chuck Davis thanks everyone

who prayed for him during his time away.

His report from his trip to Syria:  

     “Thank you for praying!  It was clear that a group of intercessors stood behind me.  I had the strongest clarity and anointing to teach and preach that I have ever experienced.  There are so many stories to tell, which I will try to recount over the next months. 

     “Because of the nature of the ministry

and the security issues for people

attending the conference, we could not

pass on too much information before

my travels.  I was the keynote speaker

for a conference of Arab church leaders

in a retreat center outside of Damascus.  Leaders were able to come from Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Iraq, and Saudi Arabia.   A large contingent from

Lebanon was unable to attend the conference due to current unrest in that land.  I also led a group of over 200 leaders from the above mentioned countries through a two-day prayer summit.  On the weekends, I preached three times in the Syrian church and ministered to Iraqi refugees in the city

of Damascus.  The manifest presence

of the Holy Spirit in these ministries was evident.  The last evening of the Prayer Summit, worship went on for three hours until midnight and many of those praying ended up on their faces before God. 

Prayer groups spontaneously broke out

and lingered around the meeting room

until 5:30 in the morning. 

     “The Arab leaders asked me to pass on their thanksgiving to you as a church body for releasing me to be available to them.  They have already invited me back to another setting in that part of the world

next year and would be delighted to have some of the Stanwich church body join

the ministry.”

     Prior to his trip to Syria, Chuck travelled

to Perth, Australia for 10 days with his wife Ingrid, their son Jordan, and eight students from Alliance Theological Seminar, where Chuck teaches. Chuck was the plenary speaker at four sessions of the “2 Inspire Conference” sponsored by a Baptist Convention with 100 member churches. In addition, he lectured on the Holy Spirit and healing at a local Bible College, a church whose ministry focuses on women experiencing life hardships, and another that centers on people struggling with addictions.

High School Mission Trip

   While the congregation was celebrating Missions Weekend, the high school youth group returned from a week-long mission trip to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, to work at a day-care facility for underpriviled children.  They fixed up the school, planted hundreds of flowers in a new garden, and spent time with the young children who attend the school.  After their work was done, they enjoyed some fun relaxing at the beach and the pool, playing mini-golf and laser tag, eating lots and lots of food, and just hanging out together.  Thanks to Wes and Bri Roberts for organizing this wonderful time

of Christian community and service for

our youth.  

Who is Like the LORD?

   Children in grades 1-6 presented a musical drama called 'Who Is Like the LORD?' on April 29 during the morning

and evening worship services.  The performances received standing ovations from the congregation.  Thanks to all of the cast members who rehearsed for months

to prepare for the performance, and for the many volunteers who helped with costumes, sets, lighting, and other behind-the-scenes support which made this special event possible. 

    View pictures from this event. 

Fun for All at the 

Children's Easter Celebration

    Chilly weather didn't prevent children from joyfully running around outside the church in search of Easter eggs on Saturday, April 7.  They also had fun doing arts and crafts, singing and other fun activities at this special Easter party for the children of Stanwich and the community .  Thanks to Jen Pankau, Anitta Tilly, and all the volunteers who made this event possible. 

   View photos from this event.

Lenten Small Groups

    For the past several years the Stanwich family has journeyed together during Lent, the 40-day season leading up to Easter,

with a small group study series.  This year's series was a video-based study entitled Ancient Faith, Future Expression by Rob Bell.  If you were unable to attend one or more of the sessions and would like to watch the videos, you can borrow the DVD's from the Stanwich bookstore.