Pioneer Welcomes New Lead Pastor  —  

On March 22, 2023, Shane Anderson was confirmed as lead pastor of Pioneer Memorial Church, becoming the fifth lead pastor to shepherd the campus church of Andrews University.

  Learn More
Wednesday, March 22, 2023 - 21:00

Speaker

Dwight K. Nelson

Since 1983, Dwight Nelson has served as lead pastor of the Pioneer Memorial Church on the campus of Andrews University. He preaches on the “New Perceptions” telecast, teaches at the theological seminary and has written some books, including The Chosen. He and his wife, Karen, are blessed with two married children and 2 granddaughters.

Offering

Martyrdom. Not a word you hear often in the comfort of our own pulpits. Yet it's a reality that literally millions of Christians around the world face everyday. Should you care? Should we care? Let's see what Christ had to say on the matter.
Saturday, March 08, 2014

More In This Series

02/22/2014
In love with Jesus but not a fan of the church? Maybe it's time to take a second look at the "body of Christ" and see just what it means to be "Sold Out" on Jesus.
03/01/2014
For those truly SOLD OUT on Christ's mission for the world there is a clear plan of action. Discover the 4 keys to God's plan, each of which begin with the letter "G".

“SOLD OUT!”—3

www.pmchurch.tv

Martyrs

  • The Center for the Study of Global Christianity has adopted a broad definition of

    “martyr”: “Believers in Christ who have lost their lives prematurely, in situations of witness, as a result of human hostility.” (www.worldwatchmonitor.org/2013/10/2815601/)

  • Frans Veerman, director of Open Doors’ World Watch List: “There is a huge gray area around the question of ‘martyrs.’ When Christians are isolated and denied clean drinking water and medical care because they are Christians and refuse to become Muslims—[and thus] they perish quicker than others—are they martyrs? In a strict sense, they aren’t. But when the whole mechanism behind [their deaths] is studied, we can say they are.” (www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2013/september/counting-cost-accurately.html)
  • John Allen, The Global War on Christians: “The truth is two thirds of the 2.3 billion Christians in the world today live . . . in dangerous neighbourhoods. They are often poor. They often belong to ethnic, linguistic and cultural minorities. And they are often at risk. And ultimately I think making that point is more important than being precise about the death toll.” (www.worldwatchmonitor.org)

□  The Lord of Martyrs

  • • John 16:1-3
  • • Matthew 24:9
    •  John the Baptist
    • Desire of Ages: “[Satan] had been unwearied in his efforts to draw away the
  • Baptist from a life of unreserved surrender to God; but he had failed. And he had failed to overcome Jesus. In the temptation in the wilderness, Satan had been defeated, and his rage was great. Now he determined to bring sorrow upon Christ by striking John. The One whom he could not entice to sin he would cause to suffer. Jesus did not interpose to deliver His servant. He knew that John would bear the test. . . . But for the sake of thousands who in after years must pass from prison to death, John was to drink the cup of martyrdom. As the followers of Jesus should languish in lonely cells, or perish by the sword, the rack, or the fagot, apparently forsaken by God and man, what a stay to their hearts would be the thought that John the Baptist, to whose faithfulness Christ Himself had borne witness, had passed through a similar experience!” (224)
  • • Revelation 2:10
    • stephanos—Stephen

□  How then shall we live?

  • Lord Jonathan Sacks in an address to Parliament, December 2011: “‘I have
  • followed the fate of Christians in the Middle East for years, appalled at what is happening, surprised and distressed . . . that it is not more widely known. It was Martin Luther King who said, “In the end, we will remember not the words of our
  • enemies, but the silence of our friends.” That is why I felt I could not be silent
  • today.’” (Liberty January/February 2014)
  • If you want to be involved politically:

     S. 653: Near East and South Central Asia Religious Freedom Act

    https://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/113/s653

     Write your senators and petition the bill to be brought to the floor for a vote.

  • If you want to be involved spiritually:

     Pray for Seventh-day Adventist prisoner Bruno Amah in Togo  Pray for those incarcerated or suffering for their faith

  • If you want to be involved personally:

     Jim Elliot: “He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he

    cannot lose.”

    •   Desire of Ages: “Of all the gifts that heaven can bestow upon men [and

      women], fellowship with Christ in His sufferings is the most weighty trust and

      the highest honor.” (225)

    •   Will you follow the Lord of martyrs to where you will find both them and Him

      today?

“R U willing 2 B SOLD OUT 4 Jesus?” 

Offering for March 25, 2023

Michigan Advance Partners

I was appointed to the Conference Lay Advisory Committee as Vice Chair of Area D and last year moved to Chair of Area D. Back when the MAP concept was presented by Jerry Snowden at Cedar Lake, I was there.

It seemed like a genius idea, and I have supported MAP with my 1% offering ever since. During my time on the committee, I have personally been blessed to deliver 9 of the 10 grants for Area D. It has been a joy and pleasure visiting the churches and seeing how they are dedicated to maintaining and building up their churches to the glory of God! On these trips to deliver grants, we make an appeal to all members to focus on the MAP giving which is recommended at 1%.

Historically, there has been about .25% donated for capital improvements and unique evangelism projects through MAP giving. Funding is approved for distribution in the meetings the committee has each year, generally scheduled in March, August, and December. Your church application for funding needs to be funneled through your Area Chairperson and is due a minimum of 14 days before these meetings. You may find more information on the Lay Advisory page at www.misda.org. Thank you for your support of MAP every 4th Sabbath.

By Patricia Lykins, Chair of MAP, Area D.

—North American Division Stewardship Ministries

Our Service People

Our SDA World Service Organization (WSO) at the General Conference ministers to SDA Military Active Duty, Reserves, and National Guard. Also under its umbrella are all levels of Law Enforcement, Firefighters, EMTs, Corrections Personnel, Government Workers at all levels, and Military Veterans. All have access to WSO support resources by creating a personal profile at portal.worldserviceorganization.org. Pass the word! Questions-contact James North, Jr., at jamesn@andrews.edu or cell 269-876-2232, your PMC Servicepersons Coordinator.

Paper Crafting Together

Bring your paper crafting (card making, scrapbooking, mixed media) supplies to the Lake Union Conference Board Room on Sunday, March 26, from 1 to 5 PM. Enjoy spending time with friends or make some new ones. We will have chocolate to share. Questions, call Sherrie Davis, 269-473-8274. Email sherrie.davis@lakeunion.com to register. $5 Donation requested to help defray the cost of the rental.

“Who Is This King Of Glory?” Psalm 24:8-10

Easter Reflections 2023
April 1-9 “Who Is This King Of Glory?” Psalm 24:8-10 This is our third year of Easter Reflections.  You will receive a daily email and/or a text meditation for nine days on events that happened during the Passion week. Let us reflect on what Jesus did for us.  How does it relate to me today? To receive this daily short blessing, text "GLORY" to 269-281-2345 Sponsoring Organization or Ministry Name: Pioneer Women's Ministries

"Fellowship Leads To Friendship"

What a blessing!  45 Women attended the “Fellowship Leads To Friendship” event.

Our speaker, Paulette Johnson, Andrews University Dean of Libraries, encouraged us with the many benefits of friendship. Marlene Burt guided us through rounds of “Speed Friendship,”  where we became acquainted with one another. And everyone enjoyed the simple lunch we prepared for them. The ladies are looking forward to the next time we can be together again.

Pioneer’s Main Office Entrance Closed Mondays to Fridays until Further Notice

Thanks to great progress on Renovate 2.0—The Elevator Project—Pioneer’s main office entrance at the canopy is now closed Mondays to Fridays until further notice.  To access Reception or the Church offices, please use the entrance at the Lower Level Welcome Center. Thank you for your patience and continued support of this critical project.
 —Jenifer Daley, Pastor for Administration

RMES Book Swap

Ruth Murdoch Elementary School is collecting books during the month of March for their upcoming student book swap . If you have any books appropriate for grades K-8 and consistent with Christian values that you are willing to donate, please bring them to RMES during business hours between now and March 31. RMES students will have an opportunity to select a book during the week of April 3 to 7. This is a wonderful way for our church family to support our students and promote a love for reading. Please email RMESHomeAndSchool@gmail.com or speak to Kimberly Westfall if you have any questions. Thank you for your support!

Kindergarten Parent Night and Kindergarten Visitor's Day

Our Kindergarten program helps children grow in spiritual, academic, physical and social ways! Parents of children who will be 5 years old by September 1, 2023 are invited to our Kindergarten Parent Information Night April 4, 6:30-7:30 PM. Children are invited to Kindergarten Visitor's Day April 5. Please let us know you are coming by calling 269-471-3220.

Farewell Tributes for Pastor Dwight and Karen

You’re invited to send a personal message of thanks to Pastor Dwight and Karen. Selected messages will be included in a Tribute presentation to Pastor Dwight and available on this site at a later date.
-Farewell Planning Committee

Share your tribute at pmchurch.org/farewell/tributes

Beds for Berrien

On April 16, Pioneer is planning to provide beds for children in our community who don’t have any. This project, Beds for Berrien, needs your help! There are 3 main ways to assist:

First, you can donate. Our goal is to raise $15,000 to provide 40 beds to children who need a better sleeping situation in their homes. Your donations to the Pioneer Outreach fund will help us reach that goal!

Second, we need volunteers who can help us get organized on our bed distribution day, April 16. We’ll be unloading bed frames, mattresses, and bedding, sorting them into piles, and loading them into delivery vehicles.

Third, we need 40 delivery teams to transport the beds and bedding to homes, and assemble the bed frames for the families.

If you’d like to donate to the Pioneer Outreach fund, volunteer, and/or find more information, text BEDS to 269-281-2345 or visit pmchurch.org/beds. Donations to the Pioneer Outreach fund in excess of what we need for this project will be used for other service/outreach initiatives in and by our community.

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