Gina: What I'll be doing in Switzerland

This is Gina, and I wanted to share about what I'll be doing in Switzerland for the next year.

The Eurasia Regional Office, which administrates our denomination's churches throughout Western and Eastern Europe, the Mediterranean and South Asia, has a communication center a few blocks down from the college and the regional office. I'll be working in the communication center every day with a team of other Mission Corp volunteers (some of whom are still being recruited).

I will continue full-time as managing editor of Engage magazine, www.engagemagazine.com, because all I need to do this job is a computer, phone and Internet connection. Many of the people who work with me on Engage are scattered around the world, so moving to Europe actually brings me closer to many of them.

Additionally, I'll manage the region's monthly newsletter called Where Worlds Meet, a PDF you can subscribe to receive in your e-mail.

In January the region begins developing an initiative called The Power of One. I'll be helping with this by editing and perhaps laying out copy. Dennis Mohn, the new regional communication coordinator, will lead multi-media efforts for this initiative, as well as develop many other video and media projects for the region. As I learn more about the initiative, I'll tell you about it on our blog.

It's humbling and exciting for me to see how God has given me passion and training in commmunications over the past 10 years, and how He is allowing me the joy of using writing to serve Him in our church.

Essentially, my passion is for narrative and developing good stories. I love to meet real people whose lives are stories of obedience and of God's desire and power to transform and heal. I love to assist in crafting these real stories into written, audio or video narratives.

I believe that God works and speaks through stories. Just as the Bible is the story of God's love for His creation, our lives are stories giving evidence of God's ongoing work of redemption in the world. By "testifying" or "witnessing" to God's work in our lives, we tell stories through which God convicts, transforms and calls others to Him. This is why I feel driven to capture the stories of our church.

When I was six, a missionary visited my church to tell stories of what God was doing in Africa. After that service, I wanted to be a missionary. When I was older, I wanted to be a writer. I wondered if this meant that I was no longer meant to be in missions. I didn't think writers were missionaries.

Now I see that writing and storytelling are essential to expanding God's Kingdom on earth. I feel grateful that there is a place for me in helping to grow the church through capturing the stories of real people and sharing them with our global church family.

If you would like to share stories of how God is drawing you into His mission, please feel free to join Engagemagazine.com where you can submit your stories. If you have a story about how God is working in the Eurasia Region, please consider sending it to me for possible publication in Where Worlds Meet.

To subscribe to Where Worlds Meet, visit www.eurasianazarene.org.

Andrew's Developing Roles

As Gina and I make our transition from life in the United States, I would like to share a little bit more with all of you about what I will be doing at European Nazarene Bible College (EuNC).

At this point, some of my responsibilities are still being clarified. However, it is a definite that I will be joining the staff of EuNC’s library. Also, the need for a teacher arose which I am able to fill. It’s a course called Introduction to the New Testament for first-year students. I am very excited about both opportunities! There remain a couple of other possible avenues of service, which, like I say, are still being clarified. I will be happy to let you know about those as well soon.

My understanding is that I will be working in the library throughout the year that Gina and I are in Busingen. I have heard that the library is very good, and includes many resources which are helpful to students and professors alike. My training in the library will likely begin after we complete our general orientation soon after we arrive and last for approximately two weeks. I am looking forward to this, because it will potentially put me in contact with a broad number of the students.

I will be teaching the New Testament class, beginning near the end of March. The course is scheduled for 3-4 hours a day over a period of three weeks. I anticipate a small class, which will allow me to provide everyone with personal attention. I am particularly looking forward to this aspect of my responsibilities, as I have a passion for helping others learn. It is exciting to think about how I will be sharing some of what I've learned with others who are just beginning their journey to discover and realize the Lord's calling on their lives. I would appreciate your prayers for the process of preparation (study, lecture-writing, audio-visual presentations, etc.), but most especially for the students I will be teaching. Pray that the Holy Spirit will speak clearly to each one as we study His Word together, and enable them to more clearly recognize His call to serve Him

- Andrew

Introduction to the Pottengers

Thank you for visiting our blog! We have accepted the opportunity to serve in Busingen, Germany for one year beginning in February 2010.

Gina will assist the Eurasia Regional Office with the publication of its monthly newsletter, Where Worlds Meet. She will also continue to serve as managing editor of Engage, the Church of the Nazarene's online missions magazine. Andrew will be serving in various capacities at European Nazarene College.

We seek partners in our ministry, and here is how you can help.

Our most pressing need is consistent prayer. You may keep up-to-date with our activity and needs here. Pray that God's power will be released in the Eurasia region, and for the continued educational ministry of European Nazarene College.

Also, as volunteers, we must raise our own financial support of $15,000 for one year of service. We are grateful for all who are willing to participate in our ministry with your generous giving. These gifts for ministry expenses are tax-deductible. Online donations may be made HERE, or made out to Global Treasury Services, Church of the Nazarene, P.O. Box 843116, Kansas City, MO 64184-3116. Be sure to add "Andrew and Gina Pottenger ministry" on the memo line.

It is our firm belief belief that God is at work in Europe, and inviting us to partner with Him. As we leave our home and families, we invite you to participate with us in what He is doing. Whether you become a partner through prayer or financial giving, your help will continue making our ministry possible over the next year.

Thank you for taking the time to learn about us! Keep checking our blog for further updates!