Year-End News: God’s Kingdom Breaking Through
Scroll all the way through for conference photos!
Advent 2019
Dear Friends,
Greetings in the precious name of our coming Savior Jesus Christ! What a glorious year 2019 has been! Our 45th year of mission-mobilizing ministry may well have been our most significant year yet, and it would not have been possible without your prayers, involvement, and support. This picture here shows a simple loom that invited conference attendees to write their prayers for the nations on strips of cloth and weave them into a beautiful tapestry. It was a profound representation of our theme Better Together and of what God did in our midst at the 2019 New Wineskins Conference.
Commissioning the youth at the New Wineskins 2019: Better Together Conference
This season, we celebrate the Advent of our Savior, a moment in time when God’s Kingdom broke into this world as the Christ Child was born. The event was marked by signs and wonders. As the Church continues to wait for Christ’s return, we celebrate moments of His coming and look for signs of His Kingdom breaking through. Wherever this happens, God’s glory is on display as it was that night in Bethlehem and, like the shepherds, we want to share the news of what we have seen! “The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen” (Luke 2:20).
Kingdom building through connections and friendships
Over 1,200 of us from 60 nations together experienced the Kingdom of God breaking through at the New Wineskins Conference - inner healing, Spirit-led worship, challenging speakers, anointing of children and adults, calls to mission, hearts broken for the persecuted, and “new zeal and refreshed passion for sharing the Gospel.” And all the glory goes to God! There are so many stories we could share, but as one attendee said, “The connections and divine appointments are too numerous to get into.” We are so encouraged by the impact on mission engagement and the new missionary inquirers. One ministry director told us that “there was a steady stream of individuals interested in serving cross-culturally flowing to me, so much that I had to miss one plenary. I feel like a switch has been turned on...it was as if New Wineskins 2019 was a shot-in-the-arm among Anglicans for mission to unreached peoples.”
“I feel like a switch has been turned on among Anglicans!”
Faith McDonnell, IRDF, shares her passion for the persecuted
The evening plenary dedicated to the Persecuted Church was especially impactful for many attendees. The Anglican Persecuted Church Network, which launched at the conference, is already busy coordinating local events and creating resources to continue raising awareness, prayer, advocacy and financial support for our persecuted brothers and sisters. An attendee shared with us, “I was amazed and touched by so many different stories of suffering, and I felt the urgency of needing to pray for our brothers and sisters around the world.”
MAP Talk speakers Rev. John Chol Dauu & Lilly Ubbens. Listen to their MAP Talk here!
The addition of more than 20 pre-conferences enabled over 80 ministries to collaborate on a wide variety of mission-specific topics, including outreach to specific people groups and Arts in Mission. We have been encouraged by the feedback from our 60+ exhibitors and 120 MAP (Mission Awareness Presentation) Talk presenters that indicated attendees were acting on what they were hearing by going deeper in conversation and making plans for next steps in mission. One attendee shared, “We are meeting to share what the Lord has placed on our hearts...and discern how/where God is leading our congregation in missions.”
Sunday Eucharist
Throughout the conference, our theme of Better Together was brought to life by the presence of ministry leaders from around the world, both speakers and exhibitors, missionaries and clergy. A highlight was the Sunday Eucharistic service, led by 44 international bishops and archbishops.
The excitement and partnerships we saw surrounding the conference are evidence of a new season of expanding opportunities for New Wineskins. First, the Anglican Global Mission Partners (AGMP) voted last Spring to have New Wineskins Missionary Network serve as the coordinator of this 16-year-old network made up of 30+ mission-sending agencies, ministries, theological institutions, dioceses and jurisdictions. Second, the Anglican Church in North America (ACNA) asked me to be the leader of the Anglican Global Mission Partner Initiative, one of their five marquee ministry initiatives which include Matthew 25, Always Forward, Next Generation Leadership, and Every Tribe & Nation Network. With the launch of mission networks, including the Anglican International Student Ministry Network and the Anglican Persecuted Church Network, and new opportunities with AGMP and ACNA, we sense God expanding the reach and impact of New Wineskins in exciting ways.
The 2019 New Wineskins Conference truly was a moment where we felt the closeness of God’s coming kingdom. There has been much fruit already and we believe much more to come. In order for us to continue in this work, we need your prayers and financial support. Will you support the mission-equipping work of New Wineskins Missionary Network with your financial gift today? To give please click on the "Support Our Ministry" button below. May you also experience in this Advent season the revealing of the Kingdom of God in your midst!
On mission together for the cause of Christ,
Jenny Noyes
Executive Director, New Wineskins Missionary Network
Jenny Noyes is the Executive Director of New Wineskins Missionary Network. She is a passionate speaker, networker, and evangelist. You can contact Jenny here.