THANKFUL
Greater Grace 2019
As we look back on 2019, we are profoundly grateful for all the Lord has done in and through the ministry of Greater Grace World Outreach as a result of your faithful service and giving.
Help expand our mission with a year-end gift.
Your tax-deductible donation – large or small – can launch us into 2020. Support a healthy, creative, Bible-centered, missions-minded organization. Your dollars will advance fresh and existing church plants, orphanages, Christian schools and colleges, homeless outreaches and much, much more.
Impacting Baltimore
Currently GGWO has over 35 Good News Club workers who bring the Gospel to 130 children in six public schools weekly.
These children pictured met us through Good News Clubs and as a result began attending church, Camp Life, and now are enrolled at GGCA!
Led by Roelof and Carla Foekens, our Food Pantry has freely given out 44,000 pounds of food to more than 6,600 people. When the van broke down, the work continued with eight volunteers stepping up.
Pastor Schaller emphasized spending time with neighbors over the summer. Here, Pastor Gary Groenewold prays with some of the neighborhood kids.
Christian Sportsclub and organized Saturday outreaches happen throughout the city and through the various community groups each week, along with Grow Deeper meetings, Griefshare, Grace Overcomers addiction ministry, women’s Bible studies, and much more.
Pastor Ray Poellot and the Midnight Express team care for the spiritual and physical needs of Baltimore’s homeless. To date, 95 new people have come to church, 53 have received Christ — of those, nine have passed away and 18 have moved out of the woods and come off drugs. The team has distributed 200 blankets, as well as food and toiletries beyond measure. Pray please as a new van is needed to keep the work going strong.
[Below] The Midnight Express team took a missions trip to Las Vegas where they ministered to the homeless living in city sewers – meeting 250 people, leading 17 to Christ and giving out 2,500 meals, as well as helping to establish a homeless ministry in Las Vegas
Champions
GGLC and GGCA continue to raise up the next generation of Christian leaders. 270 students ages 2-18 are enrolled in our preschool and K-12 schools.
[Above] parents and grandparents eagerly capture every moment of the GGLC Christmas play.
Bible College
Maryland Bible College and Seminary – currently with 173 students enrolled, including 16 international students. The satellite school serves another 30 students.
Jonathan Satinger of Romania receives his diploma.
New things at MBC&S
Two new events – the graduation banquet held in the chapel catered by Scott Dubay and his crew of 40 volunteers, as well as a Junior-Senior Retreat to Camp Pecometh on the Eastern Shore.
Below: P. Renaldo Brown addresses students at the retreat. Pastor Renaldo has relocated to Baltimore after serving over 20 years in Africa. He also is pastor for the new GGWO church plant in Owings Mills, as well as teaching and serving in the Bible College and on our church staff.
Pastor Schaller addresses MBC&S students at the steps of Lincoln Memorial.
Greater Grace churches have over 3,000 Bible school students worldwide and another 3,000 correspondence students through the radio ministry in Nepal.
[Left] Matthews Banda, an orphan introduced to GGWO through the Children of Grace ministry in Africa, now serves as the youth leader in Malawi under Pastor Chris Arman. Here, he shows off his graduation diploma from Bible school.
[Above] Matthews Banda, an orphan introduced to GGWO through the Children of Grace ministry in Africa, now serves as the youth leader in Malawi under Pastor Chris Arman. Here, he shows off his graduation diploma from Bible school.
Getting The Word Out
By God’s grace, we are getting the Word out via the internet and publications.
In 2019, our website has reached 83,000 unique users, which is over 7,000 people each month from 196 Countries.
We published 280 sermons and 100 blog posts.
“Keeping Your Heart on Fire” (in Spanish) was viewed 3,113 times in the past 12 months).
Pastor Stevens’ hallmark message “Throne Words” was the most listened to sermon.
The Grace Hour radio program airs live at 1 pm on 1230 AM in Baltimore. Many listeners now connect to the program via Facebook Live and YouTube.
Hot off the Press – Grace Publications released Pastor Hadley’s new book on his early days as a missionary in Ecuador.
Be on the lookout for a fresh Convention magazine and three other books to come in 2020.
MISSIONS - what makes us a world outreach
Greater Grace has 741 affiliated churches in 75 countries. Over $1.6 million goes out to support missions each year. Despite intense persecution, many are coming to Christ in predominantly Islamic, Communist, and Buddhist nations.
By God’s grace, the work continues to grow in Turkey, Nepal, and Azerbaijan.
Maryland native Brittany Howard, currently serving in Izmir, Turkey, wrote in a recent newsletter about her mission trip to Central Asia this past summer: “My biggest takeaway from this summer of traveling and being back in Izmir is this: Life is too short, and people too valuable, to not let our hearts grow large enough to fit entire countries inside them. I dare you.”
Happy Faces
A group from Greater Grace Fellowship of Marlboro, Massachusetts, visiting Ghana.
Steadfastness
[Left] Three generations of Armans serving in Malawi, Africa.
[Above] Three generations of Armans serving in Malawi, Africa.
Sunday school kids in Mozambique
“The Blue Church” in Haiti has 200 in attendance. Want to visit? You’ll have to bike for 1.5 hours and then trek 6 hours up in the mountains.
Pastor Victor, a graduate of GGWO’s Lusaka Bible College in Eastern Zambia teaching the Bible in a public school. Zambia has 11 Greater Grace churches all led by nationals who were trained at the Lusaka Bible college.
Welcome Home!
Our annual International Convention opens with Monday night’s homecoming celebration. We rejoice with visitors and missionaries from around the world during a week of festivities, fellowship, powerful messages, music, and, of course, food served at the booths under the tent.
Missions Night is the highlight of Convention – a time of celebration for young and old waving flags from every nation.
Pastor Arturo Costa of Peru preached a lively message that was not lost in translation. Saturday night’s ordination service recognizing God’s call on several faithful men.
Camp Life
For one week every summer, kids gather without TV, cell phones, or video games. They meet new friends, enjoy competition, worship around the campfire, and hear God’s Word preached. They leave Camp Life with tired bodies and lots of laundry, but with eternal seeds planted in their souls. 80 volunteer staff make it happen for 300 campers.
By popular demand, Camp Life traveled overseas for the third summer. This year’s location was the country of Georgia on the Black Sea. Here, 110 teenagers from 11 different nations came together. 25 teens from Baltimore were on hand and also made stops in Baku, Azerbaijan, and Istanbul, Turkey.
Special Events
Our yearly calendar is chock full of things for families, marriages, women, men and children.
In January, P. Ben Turkia from Jerusalem was our special guest for a weeklong ministry of teaching.
In February, P. Doug and Beth Wambolt of Marlboro, MA, were our guest speakers at our annual Marriage Getaway in downtown Baltimore.
In March, Eurocon returned to Warsaw, Poland for a second year. Pastor Maciek along with the other Polish churches hosted an amazing week with attendance estimated at 1,000. For many who cannot obtain visas to come to America, this is the international convention for them.
In April, this year’s Easter play “More Than A Dream” was viewed by nearly 4,000 over four nights with 90 people coming forward and scores more raising their hands to receive Christ.
The play is a real team effort through tireless work of cast and crew as well as others serving behind the scenes on makeup, costumes, lighting, sets, counseling, childcare, and a small army that distributed literature.
In addition to the direct mailing of 10,000 postcards, more than 50,000 tickets and flyers were handed out along with 250 posters, 100 yard signs, and six sandwich board signs.
In May, the Men’s Getaway is a great opportunity for men to come together and strengthen their relationships with each other. Here, Matt Roberge and his son, Ezra, work together to set up their tent.
In July, Summer Harvest trips happen around the world. This year a group from Baltimore spent a week evangelizing and building up the church in Budapest, Hungary.
[Below] A mime troupe of Americans and Hungarians hits the streets in Budapest.
In August, MBC&S students Nick Plunkett and Ryan Green traveled to India and Sri Lanka where they visited churches, spoke at schools, and shared the Word on the streets.
In September, this year’s Lamcon in Lima, Peru, was one of the best ever with a packed out conference center and over 20 Latin American pastors from 10 nations in attendance to hear from Pastor Scibelli and others.
The Latin American vision for 2020 includes plans to establish new works in Paraguay, Colombia, Uruguay, and Quito, Ecuador.
Watch for Summer Harvest plans coming soon..
[Below] In October, GGWO pastors and leaders from America and Canada gathered in Sparrow Bush, NY’s Eddy Farm for the annual Leadership Retreat..
In November, over 850 meals were served by 50 volunteers at our annual Thanksgiving potluck. Without our army of committed servants, we couldn’t do the ministry as we do. Nearly every department depends on its volunteers. Consider the 40 musicians, 60 youth ministry workers, the greeters and ushers, youth athletics coaches. Then add in the special events like Convention, banquets, fellowship dinners, women’s seminars, Camp Life… “Every joint supplies” – Ephesians 4:16.
In December, it’s our time to go tell it on the mountains, in the nursing homes, and on the streets – that Jesus Christ is born. Consider joining us for caroling and outreach opportunities throughout the Christmas season..
Looking To The Future
Pastor Scibelli passes the flag to Myles Tanksley and the children representing Faith Promise at Missions Night 2019. Those interested in missions work were invited to come forward. Students on a mission: Coming soon — Harvest 2020 in Ecuador with Pastor Stan Collins in January..
Hold On! More faith adventures to come in 2020.
What will God do next?
Help us further the vision of Greater Grace through a tax-deductible, year-end donation.
