This Week in the BRN Family shares quick highlights of BRN churches and ministries throughout Pennsylvania and South Jersey loving their neighbors. Check out the latest happenings, baptisms, and accelerating Kingdom movement stories below:
It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas at many of our BRN churches! Here are just a few ways our churches are blessing their neighbors and spreading the joy of Christ this holiday season:
BRN churches in Lehigh Valley region collaborate to distribute NC Christmas backpacks
Baptists On Mission has recently blessed several of our churches through their Appalachian Christmas Outreach. These North Carolina partners have graciously delivered hundreds of backpacks filled with winter clothes, food, toys, school supplies, and Bibles to bless our churches and their communities.
In the Lehigh Valley region, the following BRN churches and ministry leaders collaborated with Bethlehem Life Mission Church (a new church in the Lehigh Valley region) to bless their community with backpacks: Misión Vida in Easton, Pa.; Riverbend Community Church in Allentown, Pa.; Pastor Josias Lima from Iglesia Getsamaní in Phillipsburg, New Jersey; and Pastor Salvador Ramirez from Iglesia Bautista Libertad in Allentown, Pa. Kids ages 4-17 benefitted from this distribution!
Friends old and new enjoy Christmas party at First Baptist Church of Seward
First Baptist Church of Seward in Seward, Pa., invited longtime members and those new to the area to a churchwide Christmas party on Dec. 7. Those in attendance came in their most festive outfits and enjoyed a night filled with joy, fellowship, food, and memories!
Restored Church blesses community with Christmas backpacks
Earlier this week, Restored Church in Wilkes-Barre, Pa., had the privilege of giving away hundreds of Christmas backpacks to children and teenagers in their community. These backpacks were filled with basic need items, Christmas gifts, and Bibles. Please join us in praying for all those who received a backpack!
Rolling Hills Church invites community to visit with Santa
On Dec. 7, Rolling Hills Church in Verona, Pa., partnered with Penn Hills Parks and Recreation to host a Christmas event. The church welcomed close to 150 people from their community to spend time together as a family and visit Santa and Mrs. Claus!
Hope for the Holidays event at Edgewood Church provides Christmas essentials for 62 local families
Edgewood Church in Beaver Falls, Pa., worked hard to spread some Christmas joy to their neighbors this past week! On Dec. 7, 130 volunteers from Edgewood spent the afternoon wrapping gifts and packing holiday essentials for 62 families in their community. The church reported that through the Hope for the Holidays event they were able to provide 240 children with over 1,000 gifts! All of the gifts were generously donated by church members and those a part of the Edgewood Church community.
Fellowship CrossPoint Church packs over 100k meals for Hunger Stops With Us
On Dec. 7, Fellowship CrossPoint Church in Chesterfield, New Jersey, packed over 100,000 meals as part of their annual Hunger Stops With Us event. These meals will now make their way to a church in Ecuador, which will distribute the meals to children and families there and connect them to the love of Christ. What a beautiful way to serve globally as the local church!
Ywam Philadelphia sees over 200 come to Christ from Prayer Station training
From Oct. 30 – Nov. 26, Youth with a Mission (Ywam) Philadelphia has trained 175 people from over 20 churches in Prayer Stations evangelism in Philadelphia, which has resulted in 207 people receiving Jesus for the first time! Praise the Lord for these souls and for all He is doing through Ywam Philadelphia!
BRN Exec. encourages Breathe Community Church
BRN Executive Director Barry Whitworth visited Pastor Dan O’Deens and Breathe Community Church in Coatesville, Pa., this past weekend (Dec. 8). Whitworth spoke to the congregation about building a faithful legacy, focusing on Psalm 78:1-8. He also had the opportunity to pray with the church and pray over the ministry they are doing in the Coatesville area.
Interested in having Dr. Whitworth speak at your church? Submit a request with some suggested dates to Elizabeth Benge by emailing ElizabethB@brnunited.org.
Baptisms:
One is washed by the water at Pittsburgh International Japanese Church in Monroeville, Pa.
On Sunday, Dec. 8, Pittsburgh International Japanese Church in Monroeville, Pa., celebrated the baptism of Tomoe! Tomoe was baptized by Senior Pastor Toshifumi (Tommi) Tsuchihashi. Please join us in rejoicing with this sister in Christ and the entire Pittsburgh International Japanese Church family!
Reclamation Church Monroeville rejoices over two publicly proclaiming their faith in Jesus
Reclamation Church in Monroeville, Pa., recently celebrated two individuals, Mike and Grace, going public with their faith in Jesus by being baptized. CongratulationsMike and Grace! Please join us in rejoicing with this brother and sister in Christ and with the entire Reclamation Church family!
Keystone Montgomeryville in Montgomeryville, Pa., praises God for 100th baptism in 2024
On Dec. 1, Keystone Montgomeryville in Montgomeryville, Pa., joyfully celebrated its 100th baptism of 2024! Before being baptized, Nicole N. shared that she was being baptized to display publicly what God was doing in her life so that she can help others grow in Him too. Please join us in rejoicing alongside Nicole and the 99 others who have made this powerful decision to follow Christ this year. Praise God for all He is doing at Keystone Montgomeryville! Read More
Ministry Milestones:
First Ukrainian Evangelical Baptist Church celebrates 70 years
First Ukrainian Evangelical Baptist Church in Philadelphia recently celebrated 70 years of God’s grace! The church celebrated God’s faithfulness with a special anniversary worship service, which included many of the vibrant voices of those who call First Ukrainian Evangelical Baptist Church home. Congratulations on this ministry milestone, First Ukrainian Evangelical Baptist! We are so grateful for you and your faithful years of proclaiming the gospel!
Collegiate Corner:
PA college students and churches team up in North Carolina for Hurricane Helene relief
During their Fall break and just before Thanksgiving, Eric Reiber, BRN Associate Next Gen Director, led a group of college students to Swannanoa, North Carolina, to join PA/SJ Disaster Relief Director Kenton Hunt, BRN Executive Director Barry Whitworth and his wife, Beth, and other teams from Pennsylvania (including volunteers from Wrightsdale Baptist Church and Big Woods Bible Church) in Hurricane Helene relief efforts.
The students, representing Penn State University and PennWest California, and PA teams spent the week participating in mud outs, removing insulation from homes, and preparing for Essential Rapid Repair (ERR) teams to move into the area. This crew of PA volunteers also helped clear land at Dewey and Kathie Aiken’s home, two of our most faithful partners from Baptists on Mission.
Stay tuned to brnunited.org/news for a forthcoming full-length story on the work this PA team did in North Carolina!
BRN EVANGELISM GRANT: PennWest California campus ministry serves up the love of Christ at Pancakesgiving
With a flip of a spatula, students a part of the New Life Campus Ministry at PennWest California University creatively engaged with their peers at Pancakesgiving Fest. This event helped deepen on-campus relationships and gave opportunity for gospel conversations. Read More
Big Woods volunteers and students work side-by-side for Midnight Pancakes event at LHU
Dec. 10 was a late night for Big Woods Bible Church volunteers and students a part of NewLife Campus Ministry and Athletes Bible Study at Lock Haven University (LHU) in Lock Haven, Pa. Volunteers from the church and the two on-campus ministries stayed up well past their bedtimes to serve pancakes to students studying for finals. This semester, volunteers served more than 250 students through the Midnight Pancakes event!
Be a part of This Week in the BRN Family
Have exciting things happening in your church!? Let us know so we can celebrate with you and share the good news with our BRN Family. Submit stories of your church accelerating Kingdom movement, loving their neighbors or celebrating baptisms on our News Tips page. We can’t wait to hear from you!
