PROMOTER

Pittsburgh DistrictChurch of the Nazarene

177 North Road, Butler PA 16001District Office Phone: (724) 287-5867

District Office e-mail: PghDistNaz@zoominternet.netDistrict Website: www.pghnazarene.org

David L. Marker , Editor - admarker@comcast.net December 2018

Rev. Daniel EddingsDistrict Superintendent

I love the story of how God chose to come into the world as ahelpless infant, in order that all of humanity might be brought back intorelationship with Himself! It is a story that believers cherish and wellwe should.

But, have you ever thought about this story from the mindsetand understanding of those that were living in that day? Think about it!We have the benefit of seeing and understanding this story through thelens of over 2000 years of history and tradition. But have you everwondered what your response would have been if you were presentand living in those very days?

Think about the story for just a moment. You have a young teenage girl that isengaged, but not married. Suddenly there is an announcement that she is with child. Herfiancé, wanting to spare her the embarrassment and shame, and because he says God toldhim to, marries her. The questions and rumors fly in all directions: “Who does this couplethink they are?”, “Do they really think people are dumb?”, “What kind of God do they thinkwe worship?”, “That is not how OUR God works!”, “We serve a Holy God and he wouldNEVER do something like this!”

Their tradition had created a box for God to fit into, and what was happening certainlydid not fit into that box, so there is no way it could be God! Now, 2,000 years later, weknow it WAS God working in a new way. A way that did not fit into the box that the“church” had created. But instead was something new and exciting. I love the words ofJohn, found in John Chapter 1, Verse14:

“The Word became flesh and made his dwellingamong us. We have seen his glory, the glory of theOne and Only, who came from the Father, full of

grace and truth.”As I think about that I can not help but wonder if all

these years later we are doing the very same thing? Are wecreating boxes around God and if He does not fit in them,we believe it can not really be Him? Please understand thatI am not against tradition. Tradition is a good thing andsometimes maybe we have been too quick to get rid of it.But the answer to that is not to hold so tightly to traditionthat we lose sight of the very (continued on Page 6)

Table of ContentsPage 1: DS’s MessagePage 2: Children’s Bible Quizzing and

SDMI NewsPage 3: Photo Collage on Engage

2018Page 4: NMI NewsPage 5: Mount Chestnut Nazarene

CenterPage 6: NYC 2019, DS continued,

Inez collections and DistrictAdvisory Board members

Page 7: W&W Guatemala 2019Page 8: PDLC courses, CLC

classes, District Logos andPromoter e-mail list

Page 9: District Calendar andDistrict Allocations

Find Us Faithful

Page 2 - Children’s Ministries and Promoter e-mailing list

SDMI Treasurer:Julie Beckley

153 Fitz Henry Rd.Smithton, PA 15479

Sunday SchoolDiscipleship Ministries

International

PghDistrictSDMIChair@aol.com

Home/Office: 814-437-2586

Cell: 724-388-8928Rev. David SmithSDMI Chair

CHILDREN’S BIBLEQUIZZINGThe Novemberinvitationals are

in the bag.Our next invitational isMarch 23 to be held atFaith Fellowship Alliance(North) and South Hills

(South).District Finals will be

held on April 13.This is a Regional Quiz

year so mark yourcalendars for June 14-

15 for Boston!E-mail Joanne Tutor

with any quizzing relatedmessages:

pghnazquizzers@yahoo.comCall or text anytime at

814-661-4226.

On behalf of the District SDMI Counsel, we want to thankeveryone who attended the 2018 “Engage” event held at the Warrenchurch. We hope everyone enjoyed getting together for the valuablebreakout sessions that were offered.

We would like to thank the Warren church for hosting theevent this year and for coordinating lunch for everyone along withproviding nursery care. I have added a few pictures of the breakoutsessions leaders.

Special thanks to the following people who led abreakout session: Rev. Ryan Baird, Rev. Jason Barnett, Rev.Mike Beckley, Rev. Ron Biddle, Deb Eddings, Rev. Jonathan Keefer,Rev. J. Maier, Rev. Lois Moranville, Rev. Len Powell, Rev. SamanthaVannoy, and our keynote speaker, Rev. Edward Darling from theUpstate NY District.

We appreciate your willingness to minister to everyone andto help equip others with the tools and knowledge to take back totheir local churches and implement what they have learned to increasetheir impact in their local churches and communities.

It was a great day of learning and a great day of refreshingand renewing. Our next event will be team day; SDMI will bepartnering with NMI and NYI on June 14-15, 2019. Be sure tomark it on your calendar now and plan to be in attendance. SDMIwill be offering breakout sessions at that combined event as well.You won’t want to miss it.

Pastor David M. SmithMaking the Connectionpghdistrictsdmichair@aol.comHome/Office # 814-437-2586Cell Phone # 724-388-8928

Engage 2018 - Page 3

Photo Collage from Engage 2018

Page 4 - Pittsburgh NMI

Pittsburgh Nazarene Missions InternationalBlessing and wonders more than we can imagine.

The last weekend in September, we attended the Eastern Ohio W&W Convention in ColumbusOH. Along with Dana and Connie Young, W&W coordinator; AJ and Chelsea Fry from the DominicanRepublic and other friends that were at Family Camp last year. They now are part of the CreativeAccess Team going to serve with the Africa Strategic Advance Field.

Pray for these young couples serving the Lord!We also greeted Bill and Gail Patch. They were in from Akron, Ohio. We heard Dr. Carla

Sunberg share from her heart.

In 2017 W&W figures: 647 Teams, 9,166 Participants, 314 Volunteers and 3,504Non-U.S. participants in W&W Projects. We heard from Cuba, Dominican Republic, Eurasia,Guatemala, Mesoamerica, Mexico, Panama, Philippines, Africa, South Asia, PNG, USA, Canada andmore.

If you are looking for info about a certain area for a trip, contact Dana Young or myself.

In West Africa the goal for 2020 is to have 1,000,000 Nazarenes. The Jesus Film delivered 48films just to West Africa. Their slogan: “Leaving No Community Untouched”

UPCOMING EVENTS November 16-18 Regional Meeting at the Black Rock Retreat, Quarryville PA

February 8-18, 2019, Coban, Guatemala building a parsonageRequesting prayer for this team and safety.

Remember your LINKS family during the Christmas Season. Ifyou do not know who you have, contact Sharon Bruce - NMI Vice

President.

Have a Blessed Christmas andan Awesome New YearSandy and Roy Greenlee

Please contact me if you need anything (814-756-3630).I really do not mind any phone call I get.

Growing in Grace,The Greenlees

Rob North fr om AfricaNazarene University in

Kenya

Mount Chestnut Nazarene Center - Page 5

Mt. Chestnut Nazarene Retreat Center is one of 33 campgrounds/retreat centers in the United States owned and operated by the Church ofthe Nazarene. Collectively these Nazarene camps have contributed to 7,500spiritual decisions annually and as you support us, you share in these victo-ries.

Our retreat center is growing with newbookings and many who are rebooking. Three consecutive years, Mt.Chestnut has operated in the black and we are officially debt free. We arehealthy and ready for the next stage of growth. In the next 3-5 years weneed to find ways to accommodate more guests, perhaps building a newlodge. For now, some ways we are seeking to improve our service andfacilities are listed below. If you can help with providing monetarydonations for any of the following, we would greatly appreciate it!

· Purchase of additional new linens and bedspreads· Purchase of new towels and wash cloths· Purchase of new mattresses and protective covers· Building materials for designated campfire area

* All monetary donations are tax-deductible and can be sent to Pittsburgh District Church of theNazarene at 177 North Rd. Butler, PA 16001. Please mark MCNC donation in the memo line or submitthrough our secure website at www.mtchestnutcenter.org select Donate.

Help this DREAM become REALITY…Great things

happen around acampfire! This wouldenhance our facility andbenefit those that use it.If you have carpentryskills that you are willingto share and cansacrifice your time tocontribute to thisproject, we would liketo begin building thisfirepit area in the spring2019 for use during oursummer camps.Interested individuals can contact the District office at 724.287.5867 or email center@pghnaz.org.

Page 6 - NYC 2019, DS (continued), Inez collections, District Advisory Board(continued from Page 1) reason that God came.As I stated in another article for this publication, Ithink in too many ways, we worship our “Tradition”more than we worship our Savior.

I want to challenge all of us, myself included,to approach this Advent season with open heartsand open minds asking God to expand ourthinking. To expand our seeing. To open us upto the new ways and the new things that He maywant to do both in us and even through us. It iseasy to just jump in that rut and see the Christmasstory as the “same old story”. But I want God tostretch me in such a way that this old story becomesa new story of Him at work. Lord, open my eyes,open my heart in such a way that I might be justlike the shepherds that upon hearing the good newsfrom the angels said: “Let’s go to Bethlehem andsee this thing that has happened, which the Lordhas told us about.” (Luke 2:15b)

Collecting for next yearfor Inez, Kentucky

Shoes (NO OPEN TOE SHOES), socks,notebooks, pencils, crayons, glue sticks,

shampoos and Lice treatments.

Bring to 2019 NMI Convention.We are also still collectingCLEAN PILL BOTTLES.

Please.

NYNYNYNYNYC 2019C 2019C 2019C 2019C 2019Please let your students

and their parents know thatNYC 2019 registration is nowopen!

- Students & Sponsorscan and should initiateRegistration NOW byemailing: Pittsburgh DistrictNYC Coordinator, J. Maier, at4JMaier@gmail.com

- A PARENT/LegalGuardian of the participatingstudent must be the one toguide their student(s)through the entireregistration process. Underno circumstances cananyone other than a Parent/LG register a student.

District AdvisoryBoard Members:

Rev. Daniel Eddings (DS)

Elders: Rev. Leon E. Blaise, Rev. Rodney

Johnson, Rev. Nathan Patnode

Laypersons: Laurene Timmons, David Weible,

Darcy Bell, Robert Lute

W&W Guatemala 2019 - Page 7

Pittsburgh District Learning Center Courses2019

Jan 11-12, Jan 25-26 and Feb 8-9: Systematic Theology 1

Feb 22-23, Mar 8-9 and Mar 22-23: History and Polity of the Church of the

Nazarene

Apr 5-6, Apr 19-20 and May 3-4: Pastoral Care and Counseling

May 17-18, May 31-Jun 1, Jun 7-8: The Practice of Christian Ministry

Crossbridge Learning Center Classes2019

Jan 12, 26 and Feb 9: Telling the Old Testament Story of God

Apr 27, May 11 and 25: Leading the People of God

Page 8 - PDLC and CLC Courses and District Logos , Promoter e-mail list

On the Pittsburgh Promoter e-mailing list?On the Pittsburgh Promoter e-mailing list?On the Pittsburgh Promoter e-mailing list?On the Pittsburgh Promoter e-mailing list?On the Pittsburgh Promoter e-mailing list?

If you want onto the Pittsburgh District Promoter e-mail list,please contact: David Marker at admarker@comcast.net.

If you are aware of anyone who was getting the Promoter but hasn’t recently,let me know - there were some issues with my e-mail.

The Promoter is published in the months of February, April, June, August,October and December of each year. Copies of all Promoter issues are also available

on-line on the Pittsburgh District website at www.pghnazarene.org.

District Events Schedule2018

Dec 1: District Pastors’ FamiliesChristmas Open House at DistrictParsonage

Dec 8: NYI Quiz Meet

2019Jan 12: NYI Quiz MeetJan 17-19: Assessment Weekend @

MCNCFeb 8-18: International W&W Trip:

GuatemalaFeb 9: NYI Quiz MeetFeb 11-13: M19 in Kansas CityFeb 21: District Advisory BoardFeb 22-24: NYI Winter Retreat @ MCNCMar 2: NMI Council MeetingMar 9: NYI Quiz MeetMar 27-31: NYI Festival of Life @ ENCApril 6: District Nominating CommitteeApril 11: District Advisory BoardApril 12-13: Board of MinistryMay 16-19: NYI Regional Quizzing @

ENCMay 18: NMI President Appreciation

DinnerDistrict Finance Committee

June 7-9: BRAQ (Building Relationships& Quizzing) @ MCNC

June 14-15:SDMI, NMI, NYI JointConventions

June 22-27:Teen Camp @ MCNCJune 28-29:District AssemblyJuly 10-14: NYI NYC @ Phoenix, AZJuly 20-27: District W&W Trip to

TorontoAugust 4-11: Family Camp @ MCNC

* Dates are subject to change.

DISTRICT ALLOCATIONS:

Payments can be made to the following:

District Ministry Fund:Laurene Timmons, District Treasurer

177 North Road, Butler PA 16001Make checks payable to:

Pittsburgh DistrictChurch of the Nazarene

NMI:Debra Shutak

428 Great Belt RoadButler PA 16002

Make checks payable to:Pittsburgh District NMI

SDMI:Julie Beckley

153 Fitz Henry Rd.Smithton, PA 15479

Make checks payable to:Pittsburgh District SDMI

NYI:Tom Aaron

141 Supervisor DriveWest Newton PA 15089Make checks payable to:Pittsburgh District NYI

ENC:23 East Elm AvenueQuincy MA 02170

L.T.G.:JoAnn Chase

5759 E. Lake Rd.Erie, Pa. 16511

Make checks payable to: L.T.G. Club

District Events and District Allocations - Page 9

Merry Christmas

from the staffat the Pittsburgh

District COTNoffice and

Mount ChestnutNazarene Center!