Fall is Here

       Just as the people of Antalya transition into Antalya’s beautiful fall, so too is Antalya Protestant Church transitioning into a new season of life. APK leadership has had a desire to see a number of changes come about to serve the church body well, but also to serve the community of Antalya well. Some of these changes are more practical, such as: Who makes the coffee and tea? Who is at the church building on weekdays? Who cleans the church building? The goal for this initiative is to clarify responsibilities so that one person or few persons are not burdened with the majority of the work load. Other changes are for worship during Sunday gatherings. These include: administering the Lord’s supper on a weekly bases, the use of a new projector, and a twenty minute explanation of the sermon in English for visitors or members who don’t have a good acquisition of Turkish.
       APK leadership also has a desire to see more outreach into the Antalya’s communities. To accomplish this, APK hopes to implement an English conversation club and a university outreach ministry in the near future.
       Teaching English is a great way to build relationships and serve the community since many people (especially younger people) want to learn English in order to find a better job or advance their career.
       Antalya’s university has over fifty-thousand students. APK has always been aware of the opportunity for university outreach, but now that there are more people at APK who are interested in engaging the student population, university outreach can begin to take form. As of now the goal is for individuals from APK to have a presence on campus in order to build relationships that lead into gospel conversations.
       Please be praying for these recent changes and ministry startups. Pray that the Lord will use these efforts to bring people to Himself and to conform his people more into the image of Christ.
​
       During the past couple months Pastor Kerem had the opportunity to travel for ministry purposes. In October he visited France with other Acts 29 leaders and church planters to discuss church planting in Europe. On his way back from France Kerem stopped by Istanbul to encourage local pastors. Also in Istanbul, Kerem had the opportunity to co-teach with Pastor Scott Zeller at a seminar for pastors and church planters called Gospel Renewal. Kerem and Scott encouraged forty to fifty pastors and foreign workers from Turkey, Bulgaria, Finland, Azerbaijan, Cyprus, Switzerland and the United States to press on in the good work of the gospel in their cities. Please continue to pray that the Lord would bring much fruit from the efforts of Pastor Kerem’s travels to encourage pastors around Turkey and to see churches planted in Europe and Central Asia.

       This November, pastors from around Turkey will attend the Via Christus Academy. The Academy begins Nov. 12 and will finish Nov. 16. This year, Via Christus Academy is welcoming Mike Tindall, pastor of Grace Church Manchester, to teach from the pastoral epistle of Titus. Along with Mike Tindall’s teaching there will be daily outings to historical sites in the greater Antalya region, and of course, much food and fellowship.