november 2015-idc mckinney

NOVEMBER 2015 | IDCMCKINNEY.COM | PASTOR: JORDAN STONE

IMAGO DEIGospel Partner Spotlight: The Carlsons

And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations,

baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And

behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”Genesis 12:1-4

As we continue in our series of taking an in-depth look at each of our Gospel Partners, we are excited to share

about our Gospel Partners Darren & Amy Carlson with Training Leaders International (TLI). Darren founded TLI, a Minnesota-based ministry that sends pastors, seminary professors, and graduate students to bring theological education around the world through

short-term trips, long-term sending, and school planting. TLI equips and mentors pastors and church leaders in

countries including India, Philippines, Serbia, Uganda, Togo, Ethiopia, Ghana, Brazil and more. Amazingly, TLI has about

34 trips planned between now and August 2016!

There is great need for Biblical training around the world. Consider these facts:• There is 1 formally trained leader for every 450,000

outside the United States.

• In the 10-40 window, there are over 5 million pastors with no access to any kind of formal biblical training.

TLI’s focus is to provide Biblical training in areas that have little access to theological resources, and they are making great strides in this mission. We hope these questions and answers with Darren Carlson will draw you closer to the work that God is doing through them and into faithfully praying for them!

Above photo: The Carlson family members

trainingleadersinternational.org



At what point in your life did God prompt you to start TLI?

In 2003, I learned the massive need for theo-logical education around the world. Five years later I had a plan to help meet that need. The rest is history.

Can you share about your vision for this ministry? Can you elaborate about your next ministry effort?

We are trying to meet the need for the training of leaders around the world. One new location is in the Philippines, in an area of intense persecution. The church has been meeting together for years and seen their numbers fluctuate due to martyrdom. We are now providing them with systematic Bible training.

What is your favorite Bible passage and why?

Psalm 15:4 — “A righteous man swears to his own hurt and does not change.” I want to be known as someone who will always follow through with what I will say I will do, no matter what.

Can you share a little about each of your children and their personalities?

Having 5 children, there is so much to say. Our three-year-old provides the most to talk about. Like climbing up a 8 foot book shelf at 3:30am to get our Wii (that we hid), plugging it in and playing MarioKart. We found him downstairs. I also once shut down a Cabela’s because I couldn’t find him. He was hiding in a gun safe.

TLI in Myanmar


TLI in India


What are ways that your family enjoys spending time together?

We have five kids under eight, including an infant. We just moved. I think it’s safe to say we are just happy to be treading water.

What are some specific ways for IDC to pray for you?

Personal – I have been experiencing some severe headaches for the past month. It seems to be related to changes that I need to make in my diet, so I learned that I need to start restricting gluten, wheat, sugar, dairy, etc. It is not the most exciting news I have ever received, but I am thankful to the Lord that healing seems to be taking place. I’m still not 100%, but I am feeling much better!

Family – we can recover from a year of having a baby, selling our home (47 showings), and moving. It feels we have had no routine for a year.

Ministry – End of year giving is a big thing for our ministry. Last year, 40% of gifts came in the last 30 days.

Is there anything else you would like to share with IDC?

Thanks for your prayers and support. We are honored that you have partnered with us.


IMAGO DEIGospel Partner Prayer Requests

John & Jessie ChengCru — Dallas, TX

John and Jessie continue to seek God’s direction as they invest in several

communities here in the Dallas area, including UTD international students, refugees, and the Children’s Hospital. Please PRAY:

• For God to help orchestrate the logistics of a large Christmas outreach that Jessie is leading at Children’s Hospital called “Little Gifts of Hope.” Also, for God to use this event to deepen Jessie’s relationships and influence among the administrative and medical staff there.

• For John’s aquaponics ministry that is helping alleviate child hunger in Dallas. Please pray as he continues raising awareness and funding for this effort among churches and the greater Dallas community.

We are thankful for how the Lord has allowed IDC to partner with many

incredible individuals, couples and families who faithfully work to share Christ,

help plant churches in unreached areas and care for orphans. Here are ways

we can intercede on behalf of our Gospel Partners. To learn more about IDC’s

Gospel Partners, please visit idcmckinney.com/go.

Bruce & Denise KendrickEmbrace — Dallas, TXBruce and Denise Kendrick lead Embrace, a ministry serving at-risk, foster and adopted children and their families. The Kendricks are currently traveling on their year-long Hometown Tour to equip churches across the U.S. who desire to begin their own orphan care ministries. Please PRAY:

• For God to continue deepening their family relationships and dependency upon Him as they travel together throughout the country. Pray for strength and wisdom as they homeschool together while juggling ministry commitments.

• For God to continue to establish connections with churches in North Carolina, Orlando, and New Orleans. God is truly igniting the hearts of many churches around the country, who are rising up to care for and impact the lives of orphans!

http://www.idcmckinney.com/go



Kyle & Carrie WileyLifeVesting International — Mobile, AlabamaKyle and Carrie are launching LifeVesting, which is a sending agency that will connect North American churches with churches in Southeast Asia, specifically Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia, where there is little access to the Gospel. Please PRAY:

• For continued wisdom as they see more groups interested in working in Thailand; they’re already looking at the possibility of four trips getting off the ground!

• For their family to continue connecting with more of their neighbors so that they might best know how to serve and invite them into who they are as a family.

• They want to share a major praise for their family: the Wileys have become covenant members at South City Church in Mobile! They want to express their gratitude for praying with them about finding a church home.

Trace & Christa HaglerTo Every Tribe — Oaxaca, MexicoTrace and Christa focus on sharing the Gospel with an unreached Zapotec people group outside of Oaxaca. Please PRAY:

• That they would readjust and begin new schedules. Aidan is attending half day of a private Mexican school. Annalise has begun Mexican Kinder or preschool. Rebecca and Andrew are at home full time, and Andrew is starting all new curriculum. Andrew is dyslexic, so there is a big learning curve this year.

• For their team in Oaxaca as they continue making specific plans and goals for the reaching village with the Gospel.

• For their marriage to continue to be strengthened and they can grow together and support one another well during adjustments and as they walk through family struggles.



Training Leaders InternationalTLI mentors and sends pastors, seminary professors, and graduate students to bring theological education around the world through short-term trips, long-term sending, and school planting. Please PRAY:

• For spiritual protection over Darren & Amy Carlson as they lead TLI initiatives to train and disciple global pastors. Specifically, pray for Darren as he has experienced some unusual medical concerns recently and for his body to heal and recover as he makes dietary changes.

• For more churches to partner with TLI as they prepare for the 30+ trips they have planned within the next year in order to educate pastors and church leaders around the world.

Gospel Partners In Asianames/location withheldThis team is based in a remote area of Asia in order to reach an unengaged people group with the Gospel. Please PRAY:

• For the hearts of the “Cat” people, whom this team will serve in a remote part of the country, Lord willing, after they finish language training.

• For God to open the hearts and minds of four women with whom this team has built good relationships so they will receive the message of the Gospel and put their faith in Christ. Further, they want to share a huge praise for a man (known as ‘fruit vendor man’) who recently committed his life to Christ!

Gospel Partners in Western Asianames/location withheldThis team has just moved overseas to the host country in Western Asia, where God has called them to go and proclaim the Gospel among a large refugee community. Please PRAY:

• For the relationships with the families that the Lord has brought into their path. Pray that these families would become more open and ask more questions as time goes on. Also, pray for a particular family for whom the missionaries had the joy of providing the Word in their language so that they would read and embrace it.

• Protection over their devotional times. Instead of having more time, they feel like they have less time. Pray they would have discernment to set the boundaries they need to set for everything else so that they have time to spend with Him in the Word, in prayer, and downtime for their family. Pray against distractions and for the kids to not be disturbed too early in the morning!

• Language, language and language. This will be a standing prayer request for the next few years!! Pray they would find the time needed to devote to learning the language, which is a continual challenge in this season of life with young kids!



John & Kristen MurphyVeritas Church — Fayetteville, NC

John and Kristen lead Veritas Church, which was planted in 2013 in order to serve military families near Ft. Bragg. Please PRAY:

• For the Lord to continue using the recent sermon series on Jonah to reveal hidden sin and unrepentance. May He continue drawing people to repentance and a willingness to bring their sin into the light. They would love your prayers as their elders and community leaders are counseling many folks through some pretty dark areas. Pray for the Veritas body to see that their identity is firmly rooted in the atoning work of Christ on their behalf and pray for a Spirit-wrought fervor to fight sin and pursue holiness and joy.

• For their “theme” for the next year, which will be Ephesians 4:12. Their elders are looking at everything they do (development of future elders, community groups, discipleship, etc.) to assess how they are equipping the saints for the work of ministry and will be making necessary adjustments. They would certainly love our prayers as they labor to ensure they have good processes for their people to be bold and to make disciples.

• For Kristen and John’s children as they continue homeschooling. Pray for eager hearts to learn and for Kristen to be filled with wisdom and joy as she learns how to nurture their hearts, both spiritually and academically.

NOVEMBER 2015 | IDCMCKINNEY.COM | PASTOR: JORDAN STONE NOVEMBER 2015 | IDCMCKINNEY.COM | PASTOR: JORDAN STONE

IMAGO DEINews and Events

We would love to highlight some missions efforts of some IDC members! It is beautiful to see how God is inspiring our

church body to take an active role in missions in various ways. If you have events you would like to share, please contact

the Missions team at [email protected].

Adoption Ministry:The Second Story

Imago Dei has recently launched an adoption ministry, and we have started this ministry by focusing on a specific adoption effort called The Second Story.

Initiated by Embrace Texas, the Second Story campaign is an effort to build a community of churches in this area to find a family for every waiting child in Collin County. Imago Dei has committed to join in this partnership along with six other churches in Collin County. In the spirit of Psalm 68:5-6, the Second Story is working to reverse the trend of waiting children.

Churches who participate in the Second Story will be assigned a child who is currently waiting to be adopted. Each church will serve this child in several ways:

• Pray for their child

• Help meet tangible needs (education, medical, transportation, clothing, other)

• Advocate for their child by helping to tell their story in a way that respects the child

• Ultimately, help find an adoptive, forever home for this child.

Currently, Imago Dei is waiting to receive confirmation of the child that we are being assigned. To learn about ways you can get involved with the IDC’s Second Story volunteer opportunities, please contact Beth Godi ([email protected]) or Rusty & Leah Combs ([email protected]).

There are 60 children in the Collin County area waiting to be adopted.

mailto:[email protected]

thesecondstory.org




November is National Adoption Awareness Month

We encourage you to make a special effort to reach out to foster and adoptive families this month. Perhaps send them a note of encouragement, let them know you are praying extra for them this month, or even offer to babysit so the parents can have a date night! There are many families within the IDC body who are fostering and/or adopting, let’s

celebrate how God is using them to care for children!

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before Him. In love He predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will…” –Ephesians 1:3-5

“Father of the fatherless and protector of widows is God in His holy habitation. God settles the solitary in a home…” –Psalm 68:5-6a

Foster & Adoption Informational ExpoSaturday 11/14 (8:45am-Noon)

Have you ever considered becoming a foster parent or adoption a child? Hosted by Embrace Texas and seven local churches, this expo will provide answers to the key questions related to fostering and adopting. Come and learn about the needs of foster children in the Collin County area, hear about the steps to becoming a foster parent, learn about adopting a child or sibling group from foster care, and consider volunteering with foster and adoption children. This event will be held at Prestonwood Baptist Church (Plano), and you can register here: embracetexas.org.

GET INVOLVED

embracetexas.org


IMAGO DEINews and Events

Christmas Outreach:Little Gifts of Hope

Yes, it is already time to begin thinking about Christmas! We are excited to share that IDC has chosen to partner with one of our Gospel Partners, John & Jessie Cheng, this holiday season. The Chengs have many relationships at Children’s Hospital Dallas, on both a personal and profession level, and God has led Jessie to launch a holiday outreach called “Little Gifts of Hope” that will bless the families of patients who are admitted there in December. Jessie’s heart for this outreach is to meet immediate needs of the patient families, as well as strengthen her relationship with the Children’s Hospital staff in order to open doors for future ministry. The Little Gifts of Hope outreach is a combined gift card drive and holiday event to benefit the families at Children’s Hospital (Dallas):

Holiday Event: A holiday meal sponsored by La Madeleine on 12/30 for

about 300 patient families who are admitted to the hospital.

Gift Card Drive: This is to raise financial support to be used for

purchasing gift cards from a local restaurant delivery service. The gift cards will be gifted to the patient families ($60 each family) to be used during their hospital stay.

Approximately 70% of admitted families are low-income families, so

this gift will be a true blessing for them.

http://www.littlegiftsofhope.com


Imago Dei is participating in Little Gifts of Hope in several ways (see Get Involved). Also, Jessie is also looking for volunteers to help in other ways, and you contact Jessie directly at [email protected] if you’re interested in learning more. Also, check out littlegiftsofhope.com for more info.

Please keep Little Gifts of Hope in your PRAYERS! Please ask God to give Jessie wisdom as she plans the logistics of this large outreach. Also, please PRAY for the Lord to use the gift cards and holiday meal to be a true blessing for the patient families and for their hearts to be encouraged by the love of Christ. Lastly, please ask for God to give Jessie discernment about possible ministry opportunities with the administrative and medical staff in the weeks and months following this outreach.

Donation drive kick-off is Monday, 11/16

• Give A Donation – One of the easiest (and most needed!) ways to participate in Little Gifts of Hope is by donating towards the gift card drive via the online donation page. Gifts are needed by 12/19.

• Community Champions – Help raise awareness so others can get involved in donating towards gift cards by being a Community Champion. Register for this online.

• IDC’s Matching Donation – IDC will MATCH the total amount of IDC donations that are contributed through 12/19!

• Children’s Ministry Cards & Letters – The IDC Children’s ministry classes (3-4s class and elementary class) will create cards in early December that will be given to the families when they receive their gift cards.

GET INVOLVED


http://littlegiftsofhope.com

https://give.cru.org/0795787

november 2015-idc mckinney

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