Pastors Dave & Beth Wenrich
Worship Style - Assembly of God Contemporary
Because it was Father's Day, David wanted his family to be together and to worship together. So, we chose to drive into the North End of Boston to worship. As a result, we selected Boston Harbor Community Church, which is just off of Hanover Street where our son lives. We discovered a unique church located in a private home within this tight, historic neighborhood. When we arrived, we were encouraged to help ourselves to coffee in their fellowship room (see picture below), and then we went to the basement where the worship service is held. The pastors of this church were on vacation, so worship was led by a delightful, spirit-filled woman. We were greeted and had some engaging conversations with several individuals prior to the service.
Worship began with prayer and music, and then we shared an intimate communion with a congregation of approx. 40 persons. There were guest speakers that morning - Jason and Enghee Fuentes. They introduced their family of four children, described who they are and spoke about their mission calling to Indonesia. We learned that Indonesia is a massive nation of islands - more than 17,000 of them - lying between the Indian and Pacific Oceans. With 250 million people, Indonesia ranks as the world's fourth most populated nation. More than 85 percent of this number is Muslim, making Indonesia the largest Muslim nation on earth. We also learned that the level of tolerance for openly practicing other religions varies from island to island. On some islands, you can be arrested for openly practicing Christianity, while on others they have no problem with it. Within this environment, Jason shared some of the amazing experiences and moving testimonies of conversions that he and other Christian missionaries have encountered, showing God's hand at work in ways that we rarely seem to be aware of in our daily lives in America.
Jason, who is currently an investment professional in Providence, RI, told of his passion for wanting to share his faith with others. He will be leaving his home and relocating his family to Indonesia for several years. He described how Jesus changed his life, and he used the analogy of wanting to share the same winning lottery ticket with the people of Indonesia. He told of a conversion in Bali, where a former Muslim was overcome with emotion at his conversion and asked the question, "Why didn't anyone tell me about this?" Jason said that the reason that people are leaving Islam is the JOY of JESUS! He told of how the missionaries begin by developing relationships with the Indonesian people, and he stressed the need as Christians to build relationships with others so that they will be in a position to hear the good news when we share it. He also said that all of us encounter opportunities in our daily lives to preach the good news in our neighborhoods, our workplace, etc. He made this statement and challenge, "You don't go to church; you are the church." (Luke 10:30) Finally, Jason asked us to pray for the people of Indonesia.
Worship Style - Assembly of God Contemporary
Because it was Father's Day, David wanted his family to be together and to worship together. So, we chose to drive into the North End of Boston to worship. As a result, we selected Boston Harbor Community Church, which is just off of Hanover Street where our son lives. We discovered a unique church located in a private home within this tight, historic neighborhood. When we arrived, we were encouraged to help ourselves to coffee in their fellowship room (see picture below), and then we went to the basement where the worship service is held. The pastors of this church were on vacation, so worship was led by a delightful, spirit-filled woman. We were greeted and had some engaging conversations with several individuals prior to the service.
Worship began with prayer and music, and then we shared an intimate communion with a congregation of approx. 40 persons. There were guest speakers that morning - Jason and Enghee Fuentes. They introduced their family of four children, described who they are and spoke about their mission calling to Indonesia. We learned that Indonesia is a massive nation of islands - more than 17,000 of them - lying between the Indian and Pacific Oceans. With 250 million people, Indonesia ranks as the world's fourth most populated nation. More than 85 percent of this number is Muslim, making Indonesia the largest Muslim nation on earth. We also learned that the level of tolerance for openly practicing other religions varies from island to island. On some islands, you can be arrested for openly practicing Christianity, while on others they have no problem with it. Within this environment, Jason shared some of the amazing experiences and moving testimonies of conversions that he and other Christian missionaries have encountered, showing God's hand at work in ways that we rarely seem to be aware of in our daily lives in America.
Jason, who is currently an investment professional in Providence, RI, told of his passion for wanting to share his faith with others. He will be leaving his home and relocating his family to Indonesia for several years. He described how Jesus changed his life, and he used the analogy of wanting to share the same winning lottery ticket with the people of Indonesia. He told of a conversion in Bali, where a former Muslim was overcome with emotion at his conversion and asked the question, "Why didn't anyone tell me about this?" Jason said that the reason that people are leaving Islam is the JOY of JESUS! He told of how the missionaries begin by developing relationships with the Indonesian people, and he stressed the need as Christians to build relationships with others so that they will be in a position to hear the good news when we share it. He also said that all of us encounter opportunities in our daily lives to preach the good news in our neighborhoods, our workplace, etc. He made this statement and challenge, "You don't go to church; you are the church." (Luke 10:30) Finally, Jason asked us to pray for the people of Indonesia.