By William Isaacs, administrative bishop, Louisiana Church of God

In October 2005, the Louisiana State Council in emergency session authorized State Overseer Bill Isaacs and State Youth Director Kelly Shope to mobilize funds and personnel to respond to the urgent physical needs of residents in New Orleans, Louisiana as the result of Hurricane Katrina. What developed was NOMACC (New Orleans Ministry and Command Center) located in St. Bernard Parish and the town of Chalmette, a suburb of New Orleans.

Sonfest Winterfest 2008 is being conducted Friday April 4 through Sunday April 6, 2008 in Orlando, Florida at the Rosen Centre Hotel.

ChristianVolunteering.org has launched a campaign and website www.christianvolunteering.org to equip churches for national volunteer month this April and volunteer week on April 27-May 3. The campaign site provides a searchable directory of nearly 3,000 volunteer opportunities in 1,800 organizations to equip churches to volunteer in their communities.

David Cannistraci pastor of GateWay City Church in San Jose, California, believes that the church must confront the glaring issues that are rotting the charismatic family tree.

The Foundation for Pentecostal Scholarship (TFFPS) has conferred its “Award of Excellence” for the best article of 2008. TFFPS co-founder and president, Robert W. Graves, announced the award during the 2008 Conference of the Society for Pentecostal Studies convening at Duke University, Durham, North Carolina.

By Jerry McNabb, Assistant Director, Chaplains Commission

Inmates, staff and Chaplain Yancey (right front.)

Being a chaplain in a pluralistic society is tough enough, but how do you minister in this setting when the individuals you are ministering too are convinced that even if they have a second chance, they cannot succeed?

By Grant McClung

Followers of Jesus Christ have to live out our faith without compromise and do it in a way that seeks peace and harmony. That’s a tough assignment but three Biblical reminders are helpful:

The United Church of Christ (UCC) is attempting to turn the controversy over the Rev. Jeremiah Wright into a public relations bonus for the denomination. According to the UCC website, it has purchased a full-page advertisement in the April 2 New York Times proclaiming, “[W]e are eager to share the broad and diverse story of the United Church of Christ, which we celebrate.”

A Ministerial Training Seminar in Myebi, Tanzania that occurred on March 24-28, 2008, was led by Charles Karangwa, regional Christian Education coordinator of East Africa for the Church of God. Registered attendance was 241 ministers and church leaders.