ORANGE North Orange Baptist Church (NOBC) has seen many changes over the years from the humble beginnings of a few citizens meeting in the home of Oliver and Pat Seruntine to discuss organizing on April 7, 1939 to celebrating 75 years this Sunday. The church officially organized on April 13, 1939 in the home of Mrs. Frank Cooper.

The church will celebrate the 75th anniversary, also known as the Diamond Anniversary, 10:45 a.m. April 6, at 4775 North 16th Street, Orange, with former staff members Bro. Lynn Ashcraft preaching the morning message and Bro. Wade Daniel leading the worship service. The service will be followed by a dinner on the grounds in the Christian Life Center where guests and members are welcome to hear and share stories from the past 75 years.

Ashcraft was the Lead Pastor at the church for 34 years prior to Lead Pastor Scott McIntosh acquiring the position.

It speaks well of the church for a pastor to serve that long at one church, McIntosh said. I was always told there was a friendly congregation here.

McIntosh also said the church tries to contact guests to say thank you for attending.

We do not try to convert them to our church, we just want to say thank you for being with us, McIntosh said. It is part of the friendliness of our church family.

McIntosh, former missionary to Scotland and Africa, has been the Lead Pastor for the past six year at NOBC.

When the church began its first building program, authorization was given to borrow a sum not to exceed $1,350 for the construction of a new building. Those dollars in todays value is the equivalent of $22,881.36.

The church has had four locations over the years with the first at 1301 North Tenth Street, Orange. The church completed construction of the present Christian Life Center (CLC) Building in 1989. The addition provided a place for Wednesday evening activities, for recreation, fellowship, and all church banquets. It also provided space for youth and adult Sunday School departments. The cost of the CLC project was just over $1 million. The building saw further expansion in 1998 with additional parking, a new preschool/childrens building, a music suite, and remodeled space for adult Sunday School departments. Cost of the expansion project was approximately $1.4 million.

NOBC reaches out in local missions and several International mission opportunities from Honduras, Uganda, and France. Each summer, the youth and other groups have traveled to New Mexico and Arizona to work with the Navajo.

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North Orange Baptist Church honors 75 years

Teresa Ingle, pastor at Wakarusa Presbyterian Church, put a sample of water in an agar-filled petri dish as part of an educational program during a Living Waters for the World mission trip last month to Pajuiles, Honduras.

Within four days, small, white worms were growing in the petri dish.

The water came from the villages water supply and was being used by residents for drinking, cooking and bathing. The effects of the dirty water could be seen in the bloated bellies, small stature, intestinal problems and malnutrition of the towns children.

Water is an integral part of life and clean water is an integral part of a healthy life, Ingle said.

Living Waters for the World partners with global communities to develop a sustainable solution for providing clean water. It provides an affordable, simple water treatment system for contaminated water and teaches local leaders about health and hygiene so they can take ownership of their own well-being. The organization doesnt drill wells or provide other water access solutions.

Living Waters for the World is affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (USA), but churches of all denominations and civic organizations can participate. Since its inception in the early 1990s, Living Waters for the World has helped install more than 500 clean-water systems in other countries and the Appalachian region of the United States.

Ingle was part of a five-member team from the Presbytery of Northern Kansas who joined five volunteers from a Presbyterian church in Collierville, Tenn., in March to install a water filtration and ozonation system in Pajuiles. Other volunteers from the Presbytery of Northern Kansas were David and Julie Parks, of Salina Sunrise Presbyterian Church, and Penny and Thad Allton, of Topekas First Presbyterian Church. Thad Allton is director of photography at The Topeka Capital-Journal.

David Parks, moderator for the Honduras Networking Coordinating Team and coordinator of the March trip, said he became involved in Living Waters for the World in 2008 and has made 19 trips to Honduras since then.

Parks said volunteers who want to take part in a Living Waters for the World mission first undergo training in leadership and administrative tasks, such as water testing; education focusing on the importance of health, hygiene and the spiritual aspects of water; and construction and maintenance of the water filtration and ozonation system.

Prior to receiving the equipment, a water issues survey and water testing were conducted in Pajuiles to make sure the filtration and ozonation system would properly clean the water.

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Church members help install water purification system in Honduras

Hundreds of people, including elderly and in some cases disabled women, have now occupied the church to prevent demolition teams moving in.

"There are bad people out there trying to damage our church so we must defend it," said Li Jingliu, a 56-year-old former factory worker who has been sleeping in one of its back offices since Wednesday.

"I've come here today to show my support. A church is a scared place and we are all brothers and sisters." said Jin Yufu, 55, from the nearby community of Wenling. "Christianity has made a big contribution to society in many ways. Thanks to Church we don't smoke, gamble or drink. Christians are good people."

Wenzhou, a wealthy coastal city around 230 miles south of Shanghai in Zhejiang province, has around seven million residents. Local Christians claim as many as 15 per cent of them are church goers, the majority Protestant.

Red crosses and spires still adorn the skyline of a city where British missionaries, including George Stott, set up churches towards the end of the 19th century.

Wenzhou's underground "house" churches those unwilling to comply with Communist Party rules have long been subjected to sporadic crackdowns, such as one in 2000 that saw hundreds of churches and temples demolished across Zhejiang province.

However, the Sanjiang church is part of the Three-Self Patriotic Movement, China's officially sanctioned and government-controlled Protestant church, making this week's stand-off highly unusual.

Parishioners believe their church was targeted after Xia Baolong, the provincial Party chief, visited the region and was unimpressed by the prominence of a church built to house thousands of worshippers.

"His behaviour is illegal. He has abused his power. The construction of the church is not against the law," said Wang Jianfeng, a 47-year-old man from a nearby congregation who was among hundreds of people gathered on the steps outside on Friday in a show of force.

Wen Xiaowu, another visitor, said he believed China's president would be "displeased" with his Communist colleagues in Zhejiang.

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Christians form human shield around church in 'China's Jerusalem' after demolition threat

Gibsons

Gibsons

Ian Jacques Photo

Archbishop Michael Miller from Vancouver, centre, was on hand last Sunday, March 30, for the dedication of the new St. Marys Catholic Church in Gibsons. See more photos and video in our online galleries at http://www.coastreporter.net

Ian Jacques/Editor

Through songs, scripture and celebration, the parishioners of St. Marys Catholic Church in Gibsons dedicated their new church building last Sunday morning.

Archbishop Michael Miller from Vancouver was on hand for the dedication mass alongside Father Vincent. The mass brought together the whole congregation, young and old and many invited guests to the new church, which held its first mass in the new building after a 14-month construction phase.

This new church is a living sign of Gods presence in our midst and it is a wonderful sign, Miller said. A place of worship is where a community gathers where the community gathers to celebrate what is most holy. Your parish community has done something extraordinary built a new church in a record time even under budget, which is frankly unbelievable!

You now have a church that will last through your children and your childrens children. It is wonderful, wonderful what you have accomplished.

Since construction started in September of last year, the parishioners have been holding mass in the hall behind the church.

Continued here:
New St. Marys Church dedicated

Oak Grove Baptist Church in Van Buren will celebrate the completion of its new sanctuary with a dedication and fellowship meal following service Sunday.

Oak Grove completed the second phase of its current building program in December with the completion of its nearly 12,000 square feet sanctuary.

Pastor Joe Walden will speak on the past and present of the church as part of a dedication service Sunday to begin at 10:30 a.m., he said.

Marty Black, a missionary for the Clear Creek Baptist Association will speak about the churchs future, Walden said, to be followed by a hamburger and hot dog fellowship dinner.

Construction of the sanctuary was completed in December 2013, and Oak Grove held its first service there - the Christmas program - Dec. 15, Walden said.

While the building process has been difficult, Walden called the end result a blessing.

The people that come to worship have been very excited to move into a new sanctuary, Walden said.

Oak Grove members have not been able to worship in an actual sanctuary since 1997, after the previous pastor moved church services into the family center with plans to build a new sanctuary, Walden said.

It was not until Walden became pastor in 2003 and led the church into a master building program that things began to happen, he said.

Oak Grove was founded at its current location at 4929 Industrial Park Road by D.W. Chambless in 1883, and was originally a frame building.

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Church to hold dedication service for new sanctuary

Photo By First Baptist Church/Facebook

First Baptist Church say the new cross and water wall will be a sign of declaration.

Photo By First Baptist Church/Facebook

An artist's rendering of the finished project.

Photo By First Baptist Church/Facebook

Construction of the cross commences at houston's First Baptist Church. The project is due to be completed in April 2014.

Photo By First Baptist Church/Facebook

Construction of the cross commences at Houston's First Baptist Church. The project is due to be completed in April 2014.

Photo By First Baptist Church/Facebook

Construction of the cross commences atHouston'sFirst BaptistChurch. The project is due to be completed in April 2014.

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6-story cross and water wall going up at major Houston highway intersection

After neighbors organized strong opposition to a plan by Fairfield Grace United Methodist Church to lease a portion of its property to AT&T to erect a wireless communications tower -- including a placard-waving protest in front of the church during last Sunday's services -- the church has decided to pull the plug on the deal.

The decision is a reversal of a vote by the church council, taken Sunday, to proceed with lease negotiations with AT&T despite the controversy.

However, in a statement posted Wednesday on the Fairfield Grace website, church leaders said they have changed their mind and suspended lease negotiations.

The church's cell tower task force, the statement reads, "has come to believe that an unfair burden that should reside with the town, the cell carrier and the Connecticut Siting Council (CSC) has been placed on the church. Further, they have come to believe that another alternative cell site would be recommended and chosen. The task force recommended that lease negotiations with the cell carrier company be suspended. The council chair accepted the task force's recommendation."

The statement also says when the church "was first approached by the cell carrier company for this proposed land lease, the church's understanding was that the cell carrier company had the support of the Town of Fairfield for placing the cell site on its property. The church felt that if a cell site was going to be placed, then maybe the lease might be a blessing to help in its mission work here in Fairfield, as well as around the globe."

The church "entered into negotiations with the cell carrier company with very good intentions," the Rev. Kun Sam Cho, the pastor, says in the statement. "The money from the lease would have helped us to do so much more. We are saddened at all the strife this has caused. We are people of peace."

He indicated some of the lease money was earmarked to hire a youth minister, something the congregation has wanted to do for many years but cannot afford.

Calls by the Fairfield Citizen to the church on Thursday for additional comment were not returned.

On Sunday morning, dozens of people turned out to protest the proposed cell phone tower proposed behind the church on its property at 1089 Fairfield Woods Road.

Nonetheless, the church's council later Sunday voted to enter into a lease with AT&T so the wireless carrier can move ahead with plans to erect the tower.

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After protests, Fairfield Grace church pulls plug on plan for cell tower

The online retailer of womens church suits is expanding with a big new shopping cart website.

Los Angeles, CA (PRWEB) -UpTo34.com is a major online ladies clothing store that specializes inwomens church suitsand bridal outfits, formal dresses and festive ensembles for all special occasions. Today UpTo34.com announced that it has contracted with TRIXMEDIA, an online marketing firm and Web developer, to build an extensive new shopping cart website to accommodate UpTo34s growing inventory.

UpTo34s catalog features womens church suits and other festive outfits and formalwear by designers like Annabelle, Nubiano, Susanna, Terramina and Donna Vinci, to name a few. According to James L, UpTo34s founder and owner, Our inventory is growing by leaps and bounds, and we need a more sophisticated shopping cart website to accommodate that. The people at TRIXMEDIA demonstrated a new shopping cart platform that they developed called Goozga, and we were very impressed.

TRIXMEDIAs proprietary shopping cart platform (touted as Goozga, the shopping cart with a brain), was developed by TRIXMEDIA founder and CEO, Hirbod Human. The advantages of Goozga over other shopping cart platforms are too numerous to list here, says Human. But he did list a few for us: Its dynamic, strong and reliable with multiple layers of functionality to manage any imaginable online shopping scenario. As a licensed service, it comes with a team of coders and Web design specialists to provide all needed maintenance and security updates, as well as training and support for administrators. It has advanced pricing that gives the client the ability to set up multiple pricing rules for different shoppers, locales and products. And, Goozgas special relationship with Google Analytics, supplies Goozga businesses more sophisticated data than an ordinary shopping cart website.

We cant wait to unveil our new Goozga website, says Mr. L, It should be up and functioning in a week or two. Well keep you posted.

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UpTo34.com Announces Construction Of New Website

EANM #39;14 - Teaser
Within this teaser you will gain impressions on EANM #39;14 and its venue GOTHENBURG. To be seen: Oscar Fredrik Church: This neo-Gothic church was drawn by Helgo...

By: officialEANM

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EANM'14 - Teaser - Video

An eight month construction project complete, parishioners of Our Lady of the Assumption Catholic Church will, through Bishop Anthony B. Taylor of Little Rock formally dedicate their new 5000-square foot sanctuary at Sixth and Cherry streets at 6 p.m. Friday night.

The new building became necessary due to structural issues created by age but also due to the size of the church. A building that comfortably seated about 80, as seeing 120 or more for a Sunday mass.

It was desperately needed, said Father Ravi Gudipalli

The new structure should alleviate that the former building would fit inside the new building, roof and all, with plenty of room to spare. Gudipalli said the new building will hold 175 to 200.

The new church replaces one dedicated on July 25, 1956, which was about three years following masses beginning in the city, according to church history. Initially, mass was held in a National Guard Armory, and later in a courtroom in the courthouse.

The church started coming down on Aug. 15, following the Feast of the Assumption mass. But not everything has been discarded.

All of the stained glass in the previous church was saved and has been reinstalled in the new church. Earlier this week a new section of stained glass was due to arrive for the front of the church, as were new pews and an alter.

During the construction of the new church by Circle M Construction, parishioners have met in a fellowship hall dedicated in February 1983 next door to the sanctuary. That has necessitated a constant state of set-up-and-tear-down to accommodate the buildings multiple purpose use.

In addition to Circle M, various parishioners have contributed expertise, financially, fundraising, and or spiritually to the project in what Gudipalli said has been a group effort.

A community of everybody of the parish did hard work, their support, their sacrifice, their cooperation. Everything, said Gudipalli.

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Parish To Dedicate Church Friday