Oakland

One of my new roles is to lead a team of pastors and leaders on the West Coast. We are working at deepening our reach in each of the cities we are currently located, while expanding to new areas and developing a network. So much of our ministry is about finding, equipping, empowering, and supporting leaders so that they can reach their communities for Christ more effectively.

I organized a short trip with one of my teammates from Los Angeles to scout out and support what another teammate, Pastor Damon, is doing in the Oakland area.

We were able to have some good team time and help Damon and his church with a Car Show outreach (1^st annual creative way to draw different people to the church),

Food distribution (over 200 served, the line of cars extended 2 city blocks around the street) 

and a Men’s Conference (where the focus was on reversing the “absent father” from the Black community). 

We also met several key partners who are interested in some of our programs (prison ministry, church-based seminary, trauma healing and church planting).

Please be in prayer for Pastor JC as he leads one of our Prison ReEntry workshops next week with the hope to empower other churches and launch a network of ministries and resources for the formerly incarcerated (returning citizens). 

San Francisco

Pastor Damon also held our first Evangel School of Church Planting in San Francisco for a church team that is relaunching its ministry. The report was that this was a “Groundbreaking” event. There was a lot of healing amongst the team and a great strategy was put in place to march the church forward to re-emerge as a light for their community. 

Also, the church leadership is well connected with a network of 700 churches that we hope will provide a pipeline of new opportunities to help empower with affordable and accessible resources. 

Dallas

I spent a few days in Dallas visiting some existing ministries and getting to know other church and ministry leaders. The first night I shared my passion for church planting and emotional/spiritual/ relational health with one of our church-based seminary (TUMI) satellite classes. 

The following day I lead a training focusing on domestic abuse and child abuse, so along with pastors and church leaders we had some teachers and a lady who is a survivor who is starting a ministry for women who have survived or are living in domestic abusive relationships. 

I partnered with a great pastoral couple there in Dallas, Pastor Beto and Antonia, and was able to meet a whole new network of pastors and introduce one of my teammates, Pastor Lorenzo, to this group as well.

There were 39 people in the workshops, which represent 8 churches and several other ministries. Through our training-the-trainer model we hope these individuals will train many others and impact their city in a significant way. 

Los Angeles

Los Angeles Christian School – I continue to mentor a great group of Trauma Healing Trainers and did further training with some of them as we trained up a new group of parents from our youngest son’s school.

Fuente Church – We have been experiencing an uptick in attendance and participation following our outreach events during Easter week and Mother’s Day weekend.

*Please be in prayer for about 50 of us headed to the mountains this weekend for our Family Camp. Also be in prayer for our team of 10 preparing for our mission’s trip to the Dominican Republic in January. 

Rebecca

Our oldest child, Rebecca, has been on the mission field in Los Angeles since she was 3 years old. She has been part of many highs and lows, successes and failures in our church planting and outreach and support of those who empower the poor. Since she has been such a huge part of our life and ministry, we thought you would appreciate hearing her heart and see how you might pray for her as she heads off to college in the following month.

 

Dear Friends, 

As many of you know, I have completed my time at Maranatha High School, and with that, I would like to reflect on my time there as well as update you on my plans for the future. I am overwhelmed with thankfulness as I have been blessed to attend a school that has helped me grow as a student and as a follower of Christ. My fondest memories were participating as a counselor for multiple freshman retreats, playing softball, being one of the football managers, and painting in my art class. While all these activities were enjoyable to do, they helped me figure out who I am and what my greatest passions are in life. Leaving the comfort of Maranatha’s community has been difficult to navigate, yet I have faith that the Lord will guide me through this next step of life. 

This fall I will be attending Texas Christian University, where I will be able to immerse myself in a lively student life and have all the academic resources I need to succeed after graduating. I am beyond grateful for the prayers and support from all of you as I have grown older and as my parents have grown their ministry. I would like to ask for prayer as I enter a new chapter in my life, where many grow away from God and are faced with temptation. I will be moving on my own to Texas, and the transition is often difficult for the first semester or year, and I would appreciate prayer for that as well. Lastly, prayer for me as I make new acquaintances and friends and for strength as I continue living our God’s command to reflect His character wherever I am. “In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.” Matthew 5:16. Thank you all again for your kindness and love and I hope to update you all soon! 

Sending Love, 

Rebecca Wolyn

 

If you would like to send her a note or care package while she is at college her mailing address is:

Rebecca Wolyn

2901 Stadium Drive

TCU Box 295357

Fort Worth, TX 76129

 

One of her practical needs is a laptop computer (and some dorm room items too). If you would like to give towards helping Rebecca with these needs, please let us know or send a check to (before August 4). For dorm items a gift card to Amazon or Target would also be helpful. [These gifts would not be tax-deductible]

Rebecca Wolyn

2422 Juliet St.

Los Angeles, CA 90007 

Rebecca (left) and friends at graduation.

Rebecca's graduation cap

Texas Christian University (mascot: Horned Frog; color: purple)

Rebecca (front row, 5th from left) at her college orientation.

We are blessed to be partnering together to bring the hope and light of Jesus to some of the darkest communities in the US and beyond!

Thank you for all of the love and support – prayers and financial gifts!

Chad, for the Wolyn Family

 

Reaching the Nations & Our Move

Happy Valentine's Day...we know we are a day late but being Heart 4 the City we thought it would be great to share the love we have for you, our friends, and the love God has given us for the city and nations of the world with an update. 

2023 has been a very full year already and we aren’t even 50 days in!

We wanted to give a couple updates and ask for prayer.

We Are Moving!

We are only moving a few blocks from where we live and will continue in all the same ministries, schools, etc. as before.

Backstory: In March of 2021 we were told we needed to move from our current home. We were told it would be June 2021, so over the next months we began packing and preparing for the move. Unfortunately, that date didn’t work out (long story), but fortunately we were allowed to stay at the home we had been living at. This happened several more times, and while being stressed and stretched, we have been on an ‘adventure’ that after nearly 2 years is about to culminate. We know God has His purposes even through uncomfortable situations.

Our moving day is Friday, February 17 so please pray for a smooth transition. 

Before: This back wall was falling off of the house.

Before: Many other parts of the house were falling apart and rotting.

Before: The front porch was disintegrating and the ceiling was falling in.

Before: Many of the windows didn't work and this one had been vandalized.

The new house was truly falling apart and not safe, but thankfully it now looks and is functioning great. It is over 120 years old so will inevitably have its issues, but we are grateful for a new place to call home and a place where new ministry can take place. Unfortunately, we will not have any blinds or our new stove for the first couple weeks…but at least we can begin to set up our new home. We’ve already met some neighbors and are excited about being light for Christ. We are planning on a large gathering at the new house once the dust settles from our move. 

After: Justice and Beniah check out the new balcony.

Before

After (Thank you SVCC!)

After: The falling wall, broken windows, leaky roof are all fixed...With new paint it looks and feels new and wonderful.

Last weekend our family took time to pray over the whole house and property asking God to bless and protect us and to give us opportunities to share Jesus with our new neighbors and be a place of refuge and rest so we can fulfill the mission God has for us. 

If you would like to help in any practical way – gift cards for meals or for the inevitable trips to The Home Depot and Target as we make things work for our family in the new space over the next month would be greatly appreciated.  

International Dean School

In January I (Chad) got to be a part of a team from World Impact to train 14 new deans for our Evangel Church Plant School. There were 6 teams representing Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Ethiopia. Unfortunately, many other teams from other countries were unable to get a visa, so we will do another training online for them in the coming months. 

God has been doing a great work amongst the hardest to reach and even among some of the unreached groups through these men and women. Our goal was to encourage, train and empower them so that they can return and be more fruitful. Over 5 days we poured hours into prayer and strategic planning for each team to run their own Church Plant schools, where they will raise up church planters who will start new churches throughout their countries. 

We celebrated what God spoke to them and prayed and commissioned them. The combined goal for all the groups over the next three years is to plant thousands of churches.

One group wants to reach people in Nepal and Bhutan too. This team wants to start 100 churches this year, 200 the following and 300 the next…totaling 600 new churches in the next 3 years!

One Pastor shared that God had put it on his heart to help lead 50,000 people to Jesus. His goal is to train 84 people in the coming year to help move towards that amazing goal.

The stories of suffering, extreme poverty, and challenges to share their faith openly were challenging and eye opening. It is truly an honor to help teach and facilitate this school for such seasoned leaders. 

On the third day of our training, as teams were working on strategies for evangelism and discipleship, Pastor Philip received a call and then informed us that one of the pastors he oversaw had just been killed by a Muslim extremist. Things got real.

Each group shared about how death, imprisonment and other types of persecution are real, yet their commitment and urgency increased rather than diminish. 

While we were in the training the power went out in the entire nation of Pakistan. Literally dark. [https://www.cnn.com/2023/01/22/asia/pakistan-power-outage-intl-hnk/index.html] It was estimated some 220 million people had no power. While the nation was in literal darkness, representing the spiritual darkness and broken systems in that country, the couple from Pakistan, Naeem and Ruby, had a breakthrough. 

Pakistan is one of the 10 most dangerous countries to be a Christian and one of the least reached and toughest according to this couple. It is illegal or nearly impossible to do evangelism and “do church” like we do in the US, but the Holy Spirit gave them an idea.

One of Pastor N and R’s strategies is to have guest homes in strategic locations and place a couple there to run it as a covert mission where they can share their faith and disciple new believers. One of these strategic locations in on the northern border where the Taliban and many indigenous groups have strongholds. There will be several ministries focused on the capital city of Islamabad, which just as its name suggests, is majority Muslim. They will also place another strategic guest house in the southern border near India where there is more of a Hindu influence.

Twelve years ago, they had 20 house churches and now they have 150. They returned with faith stirred up and strategies and resources to see even greater multiplication in the coming years.

Another person shared, “I’m not the same person that landed here 5 days ago. God is doing a great work. I have a new confidence. I can see things differently.”

Pastor Samuel from Ethiopia just reached out and although we recommended a 60-day period of preparation before launching a church plant school he feels such an urgency for his people so he will be launching 3-4 schools in the next month to help key leaders in the northern part of Ethiopia where over 600,000 have lost their lives due to the ongoing civil war. He asks for our prayers. He is also gathering 50 pastors to take them through our trauma healing ministry. 

Our team of trainers and coaches.

Pastor Prodip is from Bangladesh but has ties to New York City. He will be launching a Church Plant School (he has already held 5 schools and one of the teams that came was a result of his labor) soon for the Rohingya people, an unreached people group of over 1,000,000. His training will be focused on reaching the 12,000 Rohingya people in the NYC area with hopes to then spread out throughout the connections worldwide.

One of my highlights was worshipping God in different languages with my brothers and sisters from around the world. Here are two videos (just 16 sec. and 9 sec.) to give you a taste of worship in Bengali. 

https://youtu.be/XfCXebVhTQk

https://youtu.be/IHWUc9lLZNs

Another group shared how the Kashi people group had become accustomed to receive foreign missionaries and leaned to expect them to do the work, but now because of increased persecution they are fewer missionaries so they are coming to realize sharing the love of Jesus and leading people to Him isn’t the “job of the missionaries”, but that the Church needs to step up and do what it has been called to do. 

Towards the end one of the groups stood up and challenged those of us leading the school. We were asked, “How are you living out your faith? And with so much freedom that you have, how are you living out your freedom?” Great question!

So many powerful things were happening in the short time. This training was book ended by more Trauma Healing Trainings and work encouraging and equipping pastors in the inner city of Los Angeles where the needs are different, but still great and real. What a privilege!

Please lift up all of these teams, their families, their countries and the burden God has placed on their hearts to help 100,000s of people come to the Lord through 1,000s of new churches!

Thank you for lifting up our family with our 1st world problems so we can live in the inner city and minister to those hurting most in the city as well as reach the nations through the contacts we make here in the city. 

God bless you!

Chad and Fabiola Wolyn

Rebecca, Angela, Justice and Beniah