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C A M University of Mo-St. Louis & Southern Il University-Edwardsville

The document summarizes the missions work of Chi Alpha missionaries Cecile and Bryan Ames at universities in Missouri. They started a Chi Alpha ministry at the University of Missouri-St. Louis and served bi-vocationally for five years before becoming full-time missionaries. Their vision is to reach students with the love of Jesus through activities and Bible studies. They have three children and could not do their work without support from donors.

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Abby Swearingen
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34 views

C A M University of Mo-St. Louis & Southern Il University-Edwardsville

The document summarizes the missions work of Chi Alpha missionaries Cecile and Bryan Ames at universities in Missouri. They started a Chi Alpha ministry at the University of Missouri-St. Louis and served bi-vocationally for five years before becoming full-time missionaries. Their vision is to reach students with the love of Jesus through activities and Bible studies. They have three children and could not do their work without support from donors.

Uploaded by

Abby Swearingen
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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CHI ALPHA MISSIONARIES

UNIVERSITY OF MO-ST. LOUIS & SOUTHERN IL UNIVERSITY-EDWARDSVILLE


Cecile Donque came to the United
States from the Philippines in 1993 on a work
visa. Her job moved her
around and she ended
up in Rolla in the late
90s.
She attended
First Assembly of God
Rolla and said Pastor
Chuck was a big inspiration and encouraged
her to step out in ministry to reach the international students.
She
volunteered with Chi Alpha initially while working as a physical therapist.
She later served as a leader of Chi Alpha at Cameron University in OK, MS&T, and Missouri State.
Cecile and Bryan met while at Missouri
State and were married in 2002 by Pastor Chuck.
We started a Chi Alpha Ministry at the University of MissouriSt Louis (UMSL). For five
years we were bi-vocational. Bryan worked at a
full-time job in addition to serving in Chi Alpha.
God led them to become full-time Chi Alpha missionaries.
Our vision by Gods grace is to reach students with the love of Jesus. People are a whole
lot more likely to believe we are concerned about
the eternal fate of their soul if we show concern
for their material needs. We provide activities

(like nature hikes, Taste of Asia Culture Night) as


a way to meet and build relationship with students that have little or
no interest in the Bible or
Christianity.
Through
this we can invite these
students to attend our
Investigative Bible Study,
Chi Alpha Worship Night,
and Connect Groups and
Discipleship; so we can
equip them to be spiritual leaders here in the
USA and around the
world. We could not do this without your prayers,
support, and encouragement.
Although we are in the USA, we get to reach
people from all over the world by reaching international students. Then they go back to their nations and make an impact for Christ! We also get
to reach Americans, who will probably have the
greatest challenge to their faith of their lives
while in college.
We have two sons and one daughter. Their
12-year-old son, Jeremy, has autism and is nonverbal. Abigail is 10 years old and loves to read
and is great at writing. Jonathan is 9 and loves
airplanes and trains, and playing with his sister.
Abigail and Jonathan love Bible story time.
Cecile Ames

As I sit at my computer and think of our first missions trip to Mexico in the early 90s, I have to conclude
that one of the biggest experiences that affected my life and our church has been missions. I can remember in
1979, on the night I was saved, I sensed a calling to reach out to others that had not been as fortunate as I had
been. Little did I know what that would look like now some 37 years later. Missions experiences have been life
changing for me, and for many others as well. I think of all the adults and teenagers that have been blessed to
spend a week together in construction and outreach projects. Many of us became lifelong friends, and we talk
often about the good old days. Folks worked hard all day in the Mexican heat, and then sang and shared devotions and services at night. They were an amazing group of people who loved to serve God wherever He took
them.
Being a part of the missions experience is certainly not all about going to another country or state. But I
think it does help us in our own walk with God when we go for a week and allow God to use us and work on us
in a special setting away from our normal lives. I think back on the many missions trips I have taken. Many times
I felt that God did more in my own life than He did in the lives of those we served. Im not sure what God has for
all of us, but its a real privilege to be a part of Gods plan to reach this world. The missions trips I have taken
certainly hold a special place in my own memory.
Missions for me now has changed some. Its been less about going and more about praying and helping
plan for others to be a part. Its about asking the Lord for future direction and allowing Him to continue to lead
our lives and church. It's about training and raising up a church full of people hungry to serve God and to reach
the lost.
If you havent been on any of our recent trips, I would ask you to consider how you can be a part of missions.
If not a full missions trip, maybe its helping in benevolence here at the church, or the food distribution that we
participate in periodically. It could possibly be praying about full-time service after retirement, or just raking
your neighbors leaves. But whatever, or wherever, lets all ask the Lord where we can serve others. I can promise
you, your life will never be the same.

The Evidence Bible reports that Hinduism is the worlds third largest religion behind Christianity and Islam [Comfort, 1263], so it is important that we know something about it. Hinduisms influence is also found
in other religious belief systems, including Buddhism, Transcendental Meditation and the New Age Movement
[Comfort, 1263]. The Kingdom of the Cults declares, It is important to remember that there is a common denominator to . . . all Eastern religious or philosophical backgrounds none of them believes in the existence of
a personal God [Martin, 303]. Hinduism is contrary to Christian doctrine in several ways:

Hinduism

Christianity

Brahman, Hindus supreme deity, is impersonal and


unknowable

God is personal and knowable.

There are 330 million gods and deities, all of whom


can be worshipped. Jesus is just one of many gods.

There is one God, expressed in the Trinity: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
You shall have no other gods before Me. Exodus 20:3 I am the Lord;

Brahman is part of his creation; all is one. Hinduism is


pantheistic meaning that God is everything and everything is God. [Comfort, 1264]. The goal of man is to
be absorbed into an eternal nothingness with Brahman.
The belief in reincarnation is a cornerstone of Hindu
philosophy. Reincarnation means coming back in a
future life in a better (higher caste) or worse form
(lower caste or an animal) than your current life, based
on the decisions made in this life, until you have suffered enough, are perfected, and can join Brahman.
Essentially it is paying for your own sins.
Karma is linked to reincarnation. . . a persons actions
in this rebirth will affect directly both this current life
and the circumstances of the next rebirth. [Turner,
carm.org]
Because people are thought to be responsible for their
own suffering, there is little charity.

We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may
have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with
his Son, Jesus Christ. I John 1:3

that is my name! I will not give my glory to another or my praise to idols.


Isaiah 42:8 See also Isaiah 43:10b, 11
God is separate from His creation, although He desires to have fellowship with us. This is what the Lord saysyour Redeemer, who formed

you in the womb: I am the Lord, who has made all things, who alone
stretched out the heavens, who spread out the earth by myself. Isaiah
44:24 See also Isaiah 45:12, 18; 64:8
We have only one lifetime in which to make a decision which affects our
eternity. Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face
judgment, Hebrews 9:27.
Salvation is not by works, but by grace. But because of his great love for

us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we
were dead in transgressions it is by grace you have been saved. Ephe-

sians 2:4,5
Belief in karma and reincarnation dismiss the Biblical teaching of hell
as a place of eternal punishment for those who do not receive Christ in
this life and takes away the urgency of coming to Christ now. Conversely, it also gives no assurance of a joyful eternal future with a personal
God.
Because people are created in the image of God, they are to be valued,
cared for and loved. For I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was
thirsty and you gave Me drink, I was a stranger and you took Me in. Matthew 25:35

For more information, please go to carm.org (Christian Apologetics and Research Ministry), and read the excellent articles explaining Hinduism and how to reach Hindus by Ryan Turner.
Other references:
Ray Comfort, The Evidence Bible; articles on Hinduism, pp.603, 604, 1263, 1264
Walter Martin and general editor Ravi Zacharias, The Kingdom of the Cults, (2003 edition), p. 303
Beverly Flori

MISSIONS AT FIRST ASSEMBLY INCLUDES


Our vision at Rolla First Assembly is "To Make Every Christian a Missionary". We
do this by helping the people of our church be supporters, prayer warriors, and
goers in the Mission of God. We support over 100 full time missionaries
through Assemblies of God World Missions, U.S. Missions and other groups, have
monthly missions prayer focuses, and we organize both home and foreign missions trips each year. If you have a passion for missions, evangelism, or servanthood, please consider being a part of our missions ministry. If you need more info,
email our Missions Coordinator Kathi Garner at [email protected].

We have a universal obligation


to send or be sent.
Pastor Chuck

Annual Construction Mission Trips


First Assembly has been involved in week-long annual
construction mission trips since 1985. We have sent teams
from 60 to 1500 miles away, doing everything from renovations to building structures. Local missions have also included
construction in both small and large projects. The trips have
been life-changing for participants and recipients alike. At the
end of this month, we send another team to the Yucatan Peninsula. This trip is currently full but could use your prayer support as the team members prepare for a grueling week of travel and work.
Specific prayer requests include:
Wisdom for those in leadership
Prepare the hearts of those giving devotions
For God to do a deep work in the hearts of all those involved
Financial needs of the project, and of those giving up work
time to participate
Safety in travel and work
The health of all involved

Missionary Support
First Assembly contributes monthly support to over 100 missionaries both stateside
and abroad. Each of these missionaries is
employed in the Great Commission; some at
the risk of their lives.
A complete listing of missionaries we
support is available in the office; official missionary certificates are hung in the overflow
around the world map.
To further show support, we ask the
congregation to write letters to one of four
missionaries each month. Addressed envelopes are in the bulletin at the beginning of
each month.

LOCAL AND ABROAD, GIVING AND DOING


BenevolenceMissions to Our Local Churchgoers
This home mission began in 2000
with the following statement: The Benevolence Committee of First Assembly of
God will assist people in need as we are
commissioned to do in the book of Proverbs and through Christs example of serving one another. We reach out to our seniors living on limited incomes, single-parent families, church families in crisis, and those referred to
us by our pastors,
Missions means being the church families, Red
hands and feet of God. It Cross, and G.R.A.C.E.
Funds and supplies
means being the salt and
come from our caring
light of the world. It and generous church
means others seeing Christ family.
instead of me.
The services we
Sam Parker provide are multifaceted. We offer:
1) Food supplies to church families as needed,
eight or more families referred by G.R.A.C.E.
every second Thursday of each month, and
Christmas and Thanksgiving dinner baskets that
include 8 Hospice families. Valerie Fuller and
Barbara Sexton command this post with enthusiasm and genuine concern for people in need.
2) Fuel assistance.
3) Medical assistance, such as co-pay in extreme
situations, gasoline for out-of-town appointments, non-narcotic meds, and walkers, crutches, and wheelchairs from our supply room. Our
research verifies these needs and we act accordingly.
4) Our Benevolence House to families who have
lost their homes due to weather related events
and other extenuating circumstances.

5) Supplies for Success


(school supplies for K-12 children) go to our single-parent
homes, grandchildren being
raised by grandparents, foster
families and families whose
budgets are stressed. Lyndon
and April Bartle organize this activity every year
and clearly enjoy blessing our children.
6) Amazing Moms supplies needs that their budgets cannot cover. Thanks to some caring, concerned donors, the moms are blessed with toilet paper, paper towels, personal-care items,
first-aid needs, and laundry supplies.
This is an exciting ministry to be a part of.
The generosity and sincere concern that our
church family exhibits for families in crisis is amazing. Likewise, the sincere smiles of gratitude and
the light of hope on the faces of people that God
sends our way to bless are priceless. I thought
that God was way off base when He led me to this
ministry, but it has been sixteen years of blessings
that I wouldnt trade for anything.
Rose Skyles

JUNIOR BIBLE QUIZ COMPETITIONS DRAW TO A CLOSE

NEEDED

VOLUNTEERS

This years Junior Bible Quiz competitions are at an end for nowbut now the kids are
ready to challenge YOU. Join us March 6 at 6pm for an evening service that
will include challenges by the JBQ teams against pastors and the congregation.
A dinner and awards banquet will follow the service for families of the
JBQ team members.

We are in need of additional people to drive our church vans to pick people up
for church on Wednesday evenings. If you are between the ages of 25 and 70 and
have a clean driving record, would you please consider helping in this important area
of ministry one Wednesday night per month?
We also need additional projector operators for one Wednesday evening per
month. If you are comfortable using a computer, please consider helping in this area. Training will be provided.

Jason Gibson
Youth Pastor

[email protected]

Sam Parker

After School &


Missions Director

OUR PASTORS

[email protected]

Brian Feller

Childrens Pastor
[email protected]

Ray Cook

Associate Pastor
[email protected]

Chuck Whitmire
Lead Pastor

[email protected]

ADDITIONAL STAFF MEMBERS


Karen Turner, Administrative Assistant [email protected]
Mark Berry, Facility Manager [email protected]
Pansy Bingham, Business Administrator [email protected]
Abby Swearingen, Media Assistant [email protected]

NON-PROFIT
ORGANIZATION
U.S. POSTAGE PAID
PERMIT #116
ROLLA, MO

1608 N Oak St
Rolla MO 65401-2342

CHUCK WHITMIRE
Pastors Corner

CHRISTIANITY AND HINDUISM


Worldview FAQs

MISSIONS ISSUE
Local and Abroad

BRYAN AND CECILE AMES


Spotlight on One of Our Missionaries

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