Happy Birthday to My Wife

I wanted to say, “Happy Birthday”, to my wonderful wife!  Words cannot describe how much I appreciate you, Teri.  Thank you for being such a great wife to me and mother to our children!  Have a wonderful day, and I look forward to going out to eat with you on Saturday night!

Continue to Pray for Irish Missionaries

I just got another notice that another missionary, Stephen Finley, in Athlone, who is unsure that he will be able to stay more than three years in the Republic of Ireland.  They have a young church, so pray that they can extend their visa for at least one more year.

Starting to Clean and Paint

The joiners are just about done with the walls and the plasterboard, so we are going to be working on the building cleaning, painting tonight, all day tomorrow, and Thursday during the morning and afternoon, so if you are interested in helping us with the work, please just let me know at 077 7220 6876 or just meet us over there.

Update on Visa Situation for Missionaries Down South

I just got an email from Bro. Gene McKinley, a missionary pastor in Mullingar, Republic of Ireland, who said that the high court has given him another year to seek to get an extension for his visa.  It is great that he has been given another year, but the issue is still not resolved.  The difficulties that many missionaries in the South of Ireland to renew their visas does not affect our visa situation, but it does concern us because of the need for them to be able to keep planting churches and preaching the gospel.  Please continue to pray about this situation.

Read previous posts about this issue.

July 11 Post
May 6 Post
April 10 Post
April 9 Post
April 5 Post

Building Pictures

You can view a picture of our first youth meeting in the new building here, as well as pictures of the progress on the building here.

Thanks to everyone who has said they are praying and for those who have been willing to help.  We will begin work painting and cleaning on Monday night, God willing.

New Church Building

God has been doing some amazing things in regards to a more permanent church building for Northwest Baptist Church.  We were pretty content meeting in our hotel room, but we began to grow out of office space, so we needed to look for more space.  As we looked at prices, it became evident that it would be cheaper if we could find not only more office space but also a building in which the church and youth clubs could meet as well.

A few weeks ago, I got a text from someone who told me that the old Baptist church in town was for rent.  There is a Baptist Association church in our city located in Richill Park that used to meet in the city centre until 1993.  After they sold their building on 10 Fountain Street, it changed hands a few times until the present owner bought it.

After making inquiries, we found out that we could rent the building for about $400 cheaper/month than we are paying for all of our rent right now.  The building is about 1800 square feet.  On Monday, we signed the lease to move to the building, so it will give us a 22 x 30 foot meeting room, two offices/classrooms, a creche, and children’s SS room, as well as a kitchen, storage room, two toilets (1 of which is handicap accessible), and a foyer. 

The building is right in city centre, so it is very accessible to everyone within the city, whether they drive or take a bus to church.  It is also on the cityside of Derry/Londonderry where there are no Baptist churches right now.  We have directions and a map on our webpage that tells you where we will be located.

Depending on the progress of a few modifications that we are making to the building, we should be able to have our first midweek service there on Thursday, 31 July and our first Sunday services on Sunday, 3 August.

Please be in prayer as there are quite a few expenses involved in this move that include: putting in new partition walls and ceilings, carpet for all the rooms, chairs, and signage.

Below is a gallery of pictures that includes some of the current construction being done inside the building.  Thank you for your prayers.  We are asking God to use this building a place where many souls can be saved, lives changed, and men and women trained to go out and reach the world with the gospel.

Update on Visas for Missionaries in Republic of Ireland

Below is an update from Gene McKinley, who is a missionary church planter in Mullingar.  The issues discussed to not directly affect those of us who are missionaries in Northern Ireland.  The situation with their visas is quite serious, so we really need to be in prayer for them.

 

 

 

Dear Pastors and Praying Friends,

Please continue to pray about the immigration situation in Ireland. Many missionaries are going to be effected by the outcome of this.

Below are 2 articles (and the web link) recently put out by a News group here in Ireland discussing the Immigration issue of missionaries, pastors, and charity workers. The Department of Justice and Immigration claim that this issue of a 3 year maximum stay for “religious workers” is a long standing policy, but of all the religious workers that I know (not just Baptist), only one missionary was every told of such a policy. Neither has anyone ever been able to show such policy or legal statute. Personally, I would expect that such a policy would be made known to these “religious workers” upon entering the country and receiving their first stamp of “permission to remain in the country”. But, on the contrary, we are finding out now at the end of three years (some in their 4th year, some in their 9th year, etc.) that we are required to leave.

We also still do not know: If a person is here for 3 years then leaves the country for a period of time (how long is a major question), would they allow that person to come back for another period of 3 years?

Please keep Ireland, the missionaries, and the mission churches here in prayer as we continue to seek permission to remain in the country. Several “infant” churches will be left without leadership in the next year or two should this issue not be resolved.

Your servant in Christ,

Gene McKinley

P.S. None of the religious groups that I know of are claiming that the issue is discriminatory, but as mentioned here in the below article, it is some of the solicitors (lawyers) making that statement.

 

http://www.metroeireann.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1173&Itemid=50

– which was introduced only recently by the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform –

 

 

have not been able to renew their permission to live and attend to their congregations forthe past several months.In one refusal letter sent last April, which has been seen by Metro Éireann, the Garda National Immigration Bureau (GNIB) told the pastor in question: “Missionaries and their families are allowed into the State for a maximum of up to three years on the basis that the religious body takes full financial responsibility for them while they are in the State.”

However, some new generation ministers who are aware of the ongoing difficulties faced by some of their colleagues in obtaining renewal of their status, said they believe that the Department of Justice is being discriminatory in the implementation of a three-year maximum stay policy.

According to them, there is no evidence that any immigrant minister representing the wellestablished Roman Catholic Church or Church of Ireland, and who has lived in the State for more than three years, has been affected by what they term a “secret policy”.

Immigration experts who spoke to Metro Éireann believe there is no logic or reason behind the introduction of the policy, aside from an alleged attempt by the Department of Justice to discourage immigrant ministers from certain countries coming to live in Ireland.

Many of the experts believe that limiting the missionary activity of such pastors to just three years’ duration would be discriminatory to missionaries who do not practice celibacy.

Derek Stewart of Stewart & Co Solicitors told Metro Éireann: “From a practitioner’s point of view, it seems difficult to understand why they have a policy that appears to discriminate against one faith of denomination as opposed to another.”

He added: “For those pastors who are married with children, it is having an injurious effect on their normal family.”

At press time, the Department of Justice had not responded to our request for comment on the issue.

 

 

Permit rules for migrant pastors ‘under review’

Written by Chinedu Onyejelem

Thursday, 19 June 2008

PERMISSION is being granted to some immigrant church pastors on missionary permits to remain in Ireland for a further period of one year, pending a review of the policy that allows them and their families a threeyear maximum stay, the Department of Justice has told Metro Éireann.

In a statement, following an exclusive report in last week’s Metro Éireann on the plight of the pastors, the Department of Justice said: “There is no formal scheme in place admitting religious, missionary or volunteer workers to the State.

However, it is a long-standing immigration policy that, on a case-by-case basis, religious and volunteer workers providing their services to certain charities or churches in Ireland could be allowed enter the State and remain here for one year at a time up to a maximum of three years.” It continued: “In recent months a number of such workers were refused further registration as they had been in the State for several years. In some of those cases it was decided to permit the persons to remain in the State for a further period of one year pending a review of the area. The review will be undertaken in light of the Immigration, Residence and Protection Bill.”

On the allegation of discrimination against those pastors whose permits have so far been refused, the department stated it cannot confirm who has been affected. “It is not clear what cases are involved here. Cases are reviewed on their merits and… some persons have obtained further permission to remain on a case by case basis,” the statement said. At present, missionaries receive a Stamp 3 permit, which does not allow them to work in the State. However, they are officially in Ireland to work for their religious organisations. In most cases, they are paid salaries by their churches and they contribute part of this as tax to the Government. The Department of Justice stated it does not see any contradiction in this. “Immigration Stamp 3 reflects the fact that these volunteers are not regarded as having access to the general labour market,” the statement said. “They were granted permission to be in the State on the basis that their church or charity would take full financial responsibility for their upkeep. “Some of these volunteers may be paid by their churches or charities and this may give rise to tax liabilities. Stamp 3 is the appropriate stamp for persons providing their services to churches or charities.

However, the area will be reviewed, as stated above.” While holders of Stamp 3 permits who are dependants of those with employment authorisation, such as a working visa, are entitled to apply for longterm residence after 60 months of legal residence in the State, religious workers with a Stamp 3 may not apply for such status.

However, they can still apply to become Irish citizens after five years of residency. “A person (including immigrant church pastors) holding a Stamp 3 for periods totalling five years out of the nine prior to application, where the residence for the year immediately preceding that date of application is continuous, may apply for the grant of a certificate of naturalisation.” Such a decision is at the discretion of the minister, the statement concluded.

 

6 Years of Marriage on July 6

I did not get a chance to write a post about our 6th wedding anniversary, which was on this past Sunday, July 6.  It is hard to believe that we have already been married six years.  Teri and I met about nine years ago at Crown College.  We were married on July 6, 2002 in Stone Mountain, GA.  Here is a picture from our wedding day.

I want to thank our parents, our pastors over the years, and all those who have made such an investment in our lives over the years.  Teri, I love you very much.  Thank you for being such a huge encouragement and blessing to me.  You are even more beautiful now than the day we go married.  I am so glad that I am privileged to be married to you, and I look forward to spending the rest of my life with you.  You are a gift from the Lord to me.  You are the women of my dreams.  Being married to you has been better than I could have ever dreamed or imagined.  I love you very much.

Quote of the Day

My pastor, Austin Gardner is sending out a World Evangelism Quote of the Day.  If you do not get you, you should. In it he puts the name of a missionary, special requests for prayer, a country of the day, and a blog that you should read. It will be coming to your house Monday through Friday before you get up.

I really think that you will enjoy it. If you do not get it and would like to, then send him an email at gardner@bcwe.org, and he will enroll you or subscribe you for free of course. It will be a blessing to you and the missionaries and countries you pray for.

Pray for Mark Stewart

I want to ask you all to be in special prayer for Mark Stewart and his family.  I just go the following from Austin Gardner’s blog.

Mrs. Sandra Stewart just went to glory. She was a very young lady with two small children. She was a very dedicated lady of God. Her husband, Mark Stewart, is the Middle East Field Director for Macedonia World Baptist Missions.

She has been suffering with cancer for a long time and is now in glory but you can only imagine the pain her family must be in right now. Please pray for them.

Thank you to Dr Dean Hamby for calling me to let us know and to ask you to be in prayer for this great family.