A Place of Transformation

In March, we shared with you that our rally cry for EM Carolinas has been, “Ready to Receive!” We have been preparing a space to be used for God’s kingdom work. This was started in faith since we had no way of knowing who would call or what needs might arise.

For me, this approach has be difficult. We are conditioned to value a life/work strategy that is planned to maximize strategic potential. I like to have a full picture of what we are doing and why it is important before I take action. I want to make sure that every step has a clear purpose. However, this isn’t necessarily how God works. He invites us into a relationship of trust where we might not see the full picture or even what the next step will be. He asks us to become followers and, for me, this is where faith grows.

If I was an original disciple of Jesus, I would have been frustrated a lot. Like them, Jesus might have been frustrated with me. Oftentimes, when Jesus was frustrated with his disciples, it was because they were trying to understand Him instead of follow Him. Part of our transformation happens when we move from the head (understanding) to the heart (trusting and following).

While getting the East Mountain Carolinas property “ready to receive,” there were times when I would get frustrated. I would look at all the work we were doing and wonder if anyone would show up to enjoy it. Like Jesus’s original disciples, there was transformation in my heart that needed to happen before the space could be transformation for others. I needed to stop trying to understand the full picture of what God would do with the property and simply trust Him.

I am thankful that God doesn’t skip steps with us. That place of frustration was a gracious gift that became an invitation for greater faith. God continues to be gracious. He has already allowed us to see a glimpse of how He wants to use the property for His kingdom purposes.

Two weeks ago, we got a call on a Monday morning from a ministry leader in Charlotte.

He said, “I need to get away for a few days to reset and connect with God.”

Our response, “The house is yours.”

This is the posture we want to have at East Mountain. God has given us this property. We want it to be a space we can generously share with others.

The next day, this leader was settling in for two days of rest and refueling. This was his message to me, “I LOVE this place! Thank you for making this available!

What a gift that we have to offer.

That same week on Thursday, six pastors and leaders from our Iron Collective discipleship cohort came to the property for 36 hours. After months of Zoom calls together, this face to face time was so rich. While the time was short, God used that space to allow leaders to detach from the demands of their work and connect with God and each other. As each leader returned home, they were already thinking about when they could return.

We ended the week by hosting two families who had served with East Mountain in South Africa.

It was a busy week. The best kind of busy. God was giving us a glimpse for what He is up to.

Why is all of this significant? A recent survey of Protestant pastors by the research firm Barna Group found that 29% said they had given "real, serious consideration to quitting full-time ministry within the last year."

Another article suggested that one of the big missing pieces for many ministry leaders is a lack of friendships where they can truly be themselves. They need what every human needs. They need money to live. They need fun. They need to cry sometimes. They need friends they can trust with their deepest thoughts.

This is why we have started the Iron Collective initiative. It is a space for pastors and leaders to find friendship and encounter Jesus together. This is why we are doing whatever we can with the resources we have to offer transformational spaces for people to gather and experience God’s great love for them. It might be a physical space like the property in Greenville or a prayer garden in Scotland. It might be a relational space like our Iron Collective group or monthly work days. It could be your kitchen table with neighbors. God is not limited by our understanding of His ways. He is inviting us to follow Him with hearts that are awakened by His love.

I can’t wait to see what He does next amongst the people through East Mountain.

Onward!

~~ Billy Dempsey with Kate, Rush, Finn & Locke (above)

Men’s Iron Collective - cohort #1 South Africa staff Reunion at EM Carolinas

A Plan for Beauty

When I was asked to share my East Mountain story at a women’s gathering in May, I said “Yes!” to Sherri without a moment’s hesitation. For me, it began 20+ years ago, way before East Mountain was ever launched. So, as I begin to write this, it occurs to me that God really works intimately in our lives. Over time He gives us the desire of our hearts or maybe ….He doesn’t. Regardless, I am an example that His plan is the best plan. Here’s a bit of my story.

In 1999 and 2000 a huge and very enjoyable stage of my life came to an end, by my choice. My business was suffering an inevitable slow death. I had time to accept it and to even consider, “What next.” I believed God had given me a vision to own and operate a beautiful place where I, and others, could facilitate small group retreats. I had attended countless weekend getaways organized by my church or hosted by nationally recognized speakers. Always I went home inspired. But…

What I really craved, was not just an inspirational message, but an environment that allowed time to connect with other women – to begin building relationships that would grow way beyond a wonderful weekend. I also visioned a place intentionally established to show off His beautiful creation. Three times we found an awesome property. Three times the seller accepted our offer. Three times each fell through. “God must not want me to do this after all.”  That was hard and it hurt, and over the next many years there were more spiritual disappointments, but more growth also.

Then, right before COVID hit, I had more reason and hope to renew my dream to find that beautiful place to share with others. There were some promising possibilities; one in particular I had my heart set on. I took Sherri to see it. Meeting my real estate agent there, she tells us the property went under contract the night before. This place had been on the market for months and months. My heart sank. Sherri and I left for coffee, we sat down at a table and I just burst into tears. My desire to use my retirement years to serve God with the vision I was sure He had given me, just wasn’t going to happen.

I don’t remember if it was just a few weeks or months before East Mountain Carolinas bought their property in Greenville. About 20 acres. Beautiful. A six bedroom home with an amazing kitchen. Laid out wonderfully for small group retreats!

These 20 years, God had been preparing me all along. Through all my disappointments, I never lost faith in Him. I just kept looking forward, wondering what would He have me do?

As I write this, I am reminded that doing is not being … doing for Him is not being with Him and in Him. That my friends, I think is the purpose of a place to retreat. As I serve God at East Mountain helping to plan and plant the gardens, I can see His great beauty and His creation bringing joy to others. East Mountain is a gathering place where others can see Him and be with Him. God has given me the desire of my heart.

~~ Judy & her husband Marshall are world travelers whether by power boat, plane, train or RV. They lead our EMC community gardens ministry and are working to bring God’s beauty to all that grows on the property.

Port Elizabeth - South Africa Update: Reaching the Fatherless Generation

As a full-time clergyman (now retired from pastoral responsibilities) I have had the opportunity to minister in several cultures both in my native South Africa and in other parts of the world. One of my greatest concerns has been the breakdown of marriage and family life and its resulting impact in the lives of young people,

In South Africa we are seeing, together with the COVID virus, a veritable pandemic of domestic violence (here it is called gender-based violence). Most often it occurs between intimate partners, and mostly is male on female. The government together with civil society and most churches have been rightly condemning of this kind of social breakdown and terrible treatment of women. Their solution has been to hold marches and rallies and to speak against it – which is all very well, but these actions in in themselves do not address the root of the problem. More radical activists promote the meme of ‘toxic masculinity’ - in effect an attack on creation itself, as if men could be ‘feminised’ or expunged completely.

I began to try and fathom the problem of youth violence when I was involved in prison visiting around 20 years ago. The prison in question had been newly built to accommodate juvenile offenders – mostly guilty of rape, murder, or theft. This was a massive facility holding several thousands of young men all between the ages of 18 and 24. I discovered there were commonalities in their backgrounds and on doing more research found social studies going back decades which confirmed what we as Christians should already know.

So then, what should we know? Here I would like to quote some statistics which pertain to the USA but could equally be relevant in any context. This pertains to the African-American sector of the population.

According to USA government statistics, 72 percent of African-American children are born to unmarried mothers. As reported in The Root, an African-American Web site that is a division of the Washington Post, these are the consequences of fatherless homes:

• 63% of youth suicides

• 90% of all homeless and runaway children

• 85% of all children who show behavior disorders

• 80% of rapists with anger problems

• 71% of all high school dropouts

• 75% of all adolescent patients in chemical-abuse centers

• 85% of all youths in prison

I believe the implications are clear – when young boys grow up without a father it increases dramatically the chances they will become involved in anti-social behaviour including violence towards women.

In my ministry I have been involved in trying to bring healing to many fatherless young men and experiencing how a genuine and Biblical relationship with a father figure can transform a young person’s life. The scriptures teach clearly the plan of God: He created us to be raised by a father and mother in a loving home. One of the biggest curses according to the teaching of the Bible is to be fatherless, and God is so concerned about this problem that he counts these as worthy of his special concern – he is called the ‘father of the fatherless’ (Psalm 68:5).

As part of the ministry of East Mountain, I have continued with the discipleship groups I had started with young men around 6 years ago – teaching the faith and developing relationships. The Lord has blessed this ministry and I ask for your prayers for us as I believe this a vital healing and equipping ministry for future generations.

Dave Doveton – East Mountain, Port Elizabeth, South Africa.

(Dave is pictured with his wife & three grown children in the top photo. Photos below are from the Port Elizabeth community.)

Hilton Head Presbyterian > Partner Interview: Q&A with Lead Pastor - Rev. Bill McCutchen

1. How did your personal connection with East Mountain start?

Gabe Smith and I were reconnected through a mutual ministry friend in 2015. Gabe was a student in the student ministry I helped lead back in Charlotte in 1991-92. We lost touch over the years, so it was good to renew our friendship and find that we shared many passions for Kingdom work and desire to reach the lost with the gospel as well as building up and encouraging/training Christians and Christian ministry leaders.

Gabe invited me to join him and a team in South Africa in 2016. It was a powerful time of working with the East Mountain Community staff, partners and residents as we applied the beauty of the gospel to our hearts. We experienced God move in our lives and the echoes of those movements are still heard today in my life and others who participated. While on that trip Gabe and I along with Dale Phillips spent a couple of days away praying and developing a new mission and vision for my own church, Hilton Head Presbyterian. I left South Africa with a deeper appreciation for the work of Christ around the world along with a fresh new vision, mission and values statement for our church. It was more than I could have asked for going into the visit.

I returned in the summer of 2017 with my son, Zach, to work with the staff, ministry partners and residents. I had the opportunity to teach and train others, but the most powerful result of that trip was in Zach’s life. The EM staff invited Zach to spend the summer as a resident. Zach, whose walk with Christ was very weak at the time, believed it was the right thing to do and stayed. The Lord provided the funds needed for him to remain. It was easily the most formative few months in his life to date. He recommitted his life to the Lord; entered his story in a profound way; and ministered in the Mitchell’s Plain township. The time with EM continues to have an impact in his life. I give thanks to the Lord for working through EM and Gabe in particular in my son’s life. Zach joined the staff of EM for a season and remains engaged with many of the people worked with all around the world. 

2. What makes the partnership between EM and HHPC a good one for the church and the Kingdom?

Unique is the word that comes to mind for the partnership between EM and HHPC. Gabe and I approach ministry with similarly ground lenses. We believe the Church has to be greater than it is and that the old models of international and local partnerships must be deconstructed and rebuilt on new foundations and forms. I invited Gabe to join the staff at HHPC as our Executive Pastor, but he believed the Lord had more work for him to do in and through EM. We created a unique partnership where HHPC essentially hired Gabe as our adjunct Executive Pastor. Gabe meets with me and other senior level ministry staff members weekly via phone call or video conference and monthly in person. The partnership’s value cannot be overstated. He has led our staff retreat and worked with me and our executive team on planning, strategy, and crisis management. Gabe has been invaluable during the last year with COVID. 

Gabe and I are also dreaming and planning continuing ministry opportunities for HHPC and EM. The Lord has blessed our church with great Kingdom resources and our partnership will give us unique pathways to release those resources, both human and financial, into Kingdom work. I look forward to working with Gabe and Chris Furr to come together to develop leaders in Scotland and South Africa. I’m excited to see how we can make the EM Carolinas ministry thrive and grow within the American context (which is wildly differentiated from other places in the world). 

3. What impact do you think the EM ministry in carolinas could have on the church, the Kingdom, the world?

Having a place where Christian groups can come and gather for spiritual formation and times of retreat is essential in our area. Ministry leaders and pastors along with their families need places for solitude and rest. I am excited to see EM Carolinas develop into a place where we can host times away for teams and families to grow in their walk with Christ. Beauty cannot be overstated in the life of the Believer, and there is a beauty on the farm that settles the soul and points the eyes of the heart heavenward. I envision a place bustling with groups throughout the year coming and partnering with local ministries to serve and affect lives. I envision a place where tired pastors gather around a firepit to share their hearts in a safe and formative place. I envision a place where men’s groups, women’s groups, students, and couples come to learn and grow today as they develop spiritual practices and rhythms in their lives. 

The Lord has big dreams for EM and what He can do with a place for spiritual formation. The upstate of SC is a great place to develop an anchor site. It is much needed. From there I can envision people encouraged and sent out to have an eternal impact throughout the world for Christ. 

EM Carolinas' Rally Cry!

“Ready to Receive!” is the rally cry that our small EM Carolinas staff & community has leaned into for the last 4 months. Since EM’s mission is “offering powerful experiences for a whole and purposeful life with Jesus” - we asked what does that mean in this COVID-ridden world and specifically for our Greenville SC location?

As we sought the Lord, we believe God is asking us to create a set-aside place in the world where people - men and women, young and old, black and white, rich and poor - can go to encounter beauty, experience connection with Jesus and be encouraged to keep living boldly for the King even in these tumultuous times.

EM Carolinas has a 19 acre farm and 6 bedroom house that we are “making ready to receive” as a retreat space. Staff and volunteers have painted, cleaned (a lot!), pulled up & put down, rewired, sanded and purchased.  The result is a light, bright modern farmhouse that can accommodate up to 12 people for an overnight stay and 20+ for day use.  It is beautiful and we look forward to sharing a new web page, a property name and more photos very soon!

The outdoor space is also getting attention. A volunteer-led project is offering 20 garden plots/beds to neighbors interested in growing vegetables/flowers/herbs, enjoy the health of gathering outdoor and experience cultivating something of their own.  We want to further develop the property with outdoor communing space (trails, fire pits, meditation areas, camp sites) as funding becomes available. 

Additionally, being “ready to receive” means having engaging programming that EM hosts and opening the property to individuals and organizations that need space to host their own events. We hosted our first women’s group at the end of March and have a men’s group from Charlotte returning in May for their second retreat. We want to host more events like these, so please send individuals, church teams, and small groups our way!

We are also offering EM-led programming through our monthly gatherings. This year our theme is Vintage Saints & Sinners: Redeeming Hospitality Rhythms in these Hard (covid) Times. Each gathering focuses on the feast of a specific hero of the Christian faith (men & women), has a bit of teaching on historic context and then application discussion to redeem the holiday in today's world context. These are generally held on a Saturday or Sunday.  Consider joining us and keep check on our event calendar (here) for more details

A virtual men’s leadership and discipleship cohort, The Iron Collective, is meeting via Zoom every other week plus two in-person retreats over the next six months. Contact Gabe or Billy for more info on joining a future group.

EM Carolinas is ready to receive!….so how can you help? Visit EM for our monthly gathering and/or enjoy some retreat/rest time on the property yourself. Give financially to help EM offer and maintain this space for anyone in need of purpose and wholeness in their walk with Jesus - find specific options here.  Refer your churches, place of work, friends, small groups, etc. to us for hosting opportunities. Pray for us -for wisdom, discernment, hospitality as we open our doors so others can powerful and purposeful experiences with Jesus. 

More Partnering in Prayer

Along with a call to build a prayer garden, we also distinctly heard the call to align ourselves with like-minded communities here in the UK; communities also called to be “arks of refuge” and “outposts of prayer.” In the autumn, East Mountain UK made two significant connections: to the Sannox Christian Centre on the Scottish Isle of Arran and to the Order of the Mustard Seed.

Sannox Christian Centre (https://www.sannox.org/) is a retreat centre and local house of prayer based on Celtic Christian rhythms. Devotion to God, hospitality and service to the community and mission to the world are at the heart of the Sannox vision. Located on the beautiful Sannox Beach on the east shore of Arran, the Centre has welcomed East Mountain’s interest in joining our community to theirs as a like-minded “outpost of prayer.” We are excited about the future possibility with Sannox and with other similar communities in Scotland, England and Wales!

Another thrilling connection forged in late 2020 is with the Order of the Mustard Seed (https://www.orderofthemustardseed.com/). The Order of the Mustard Seed is an ecumenical, lay-lead, dispersed community of over 300 members, inspired by the original Moravian OMS of the 18th Century. Today’s OMS shares the wider objectives of the 24-7 Prayer movement, to revive the church and to re-wire the culture, through the mobilisation of prayer, mission and justice.

We were introduced to OMS by Jon and Emma Timms (pictured with the Furrs below), church planters in Dunbar, Scotland. Jon and Emma share East Mountain’s desire to see Scotland, the UK and Europe transformed by the power of prayer. The Timms will be leading an OMS “year of preparation” cohort in which the Furrs will participate. This may become a significant relational and missional connection for the East Mountain UK community. New doors are opening all around us!

A Season of Realignment & Pivot toward Newly Open Doors

2020 was a season of upheaval and shaking around the world. Doors closed in schools, in businesses, in life and in ministry. We found ourselves shut in, wondering what the future would hold for our community and for the work God has called us to in Scotland. And in that silent and sometimes anxious space, God began to move. He shifted and realigned our team, recalibrated our hearts and turned our eyes to how He was working in the small and organic ways in the seeming darkness.

What began to rise--like green shoots in spring--was a desire for East Mountain in Scotland to follow our global calling to be an “ark of refuge” and for our community to become an “outpost of prayer” in this twilight era. The voice of the Lord was very clear: “Turn your garden into a Garden of Prayer.” Though East Mountain UK does not yet have a permanent property, God has provided the Furr family with a beautiful rental home along the River Tyne in East Lothian. This home (named Wall End) not only has a front garden facing the river but a rear garden surrounded by an atmospheric stone wall. Wall End is an beautiful and peaceful space in which to invite individuals or small groups for self-guided or accompanied retreats. Plans are currently underway to open The Prayer Garden at Wall End in spring of 2021.

A central feature of this prayer garden is a “Shepherd’s Hut” (see photo). East Mountain is currently raising funds to build and install this Shepherd’s Hut along the River Tyne as a cozy, welcoming and Covid-19 compliant space for those who use the Prayer Garden. Out of the elements but independent of the main house, the Shepherd’s Hut will be a place weary men and women can come to meet the Good Shepherd and be encouraged for all that He has for them. Current costs to build and furnish the Hut, wire it for electricity and landscape the surrounding area are estimated at £7000 (roughly $10,000). We trust God to provide for this space!

For more information on the Prayer Garden or to give securely to the Shepherd’s Hut project, please visit: https://furrsinkilts.com/prayer-garden

Cultivate Place, Grow Disciples

The story of God and his people is inextricably linked to the places where the divine and the mortal meet. Act 1, scene 1 (Genesis 1), is set in a place, a garden. In this very ordinary place a very extraordinary thing happens; the eternal, immortal, Creator, descends to breathe life into dust, creating man and woman in his very image. The place - the dirt, the trees, the fruit, the sun, all of it shapes Adam’s experience. To be human is to be embodied. To be embodied is to dwell in a place. 

Fast forward, and the story of God with people always involves places. In one sense, all places are sacred, because they are created by God for his people. In another sense, not all spaces are equal. Some places have particularly intensive meaning in the story. Think of Mount Sinai. It’s really not much to look at  -a high place in a desert filled with scraggly underbrush. Then one day a man, Moses, wanders onto the heights, drawn by the strange sight of an oddly burning bush. As he approaches the flame, God speaks, “Take off your shoes for the place you are standing is holy ground.” The presence of God in that place made it set apart. It was an ordinary mound of rock set apart for an extraordinary purpose.

We know that eventually all places will become once again “holy ground”. Every square inch of the new earth will be reclaimed as a set apart place where the every holy God dwells with his chosen people. (Revelation 21.22-27)

We live in the story space between Eden and the renewed earth. On this side of resurrection life, our mission is to make disciples. We know that this work involves reading, teaching, relationship, and prayer. What we often forget is that the work of discipleship also involves place. 

Think about your own story with God. The events that led to your life with Jesus occurred in a physical location. In my own story, two places stand out in my memory: a beach house in Ocean Isle and the basement youth room at my church. Both of these places were very ordinary in some ways. They were made with brick and mortar by human hands. They served various purposes over the course of their existence. But for me, they are holy, sacred places because those rooms were the physical place this side of eternity where my early journey with Jesus happened. 

At East Mountain, part of our work is to co-labor with God to create set-aside, special places for people to meet Jesus in South Africa, the UK and in the US.  In Greenville, we have a 19 acre farm and 6 bedroom house. Our dream is that these acres and rooms would become holy places in the stories of thousands of people in the years to come. We want East Mountain to be a place of beauty, quiet, and rest where people can leave the noise and busyness of the world to meet with one another and the Creator God whose heart is to draw people to himself.

We want East Mountain to be a special place in the stories of people.
                                                          AND
We want you to be part of East Mountain’s story.

You can be part of the East Mountain story by giving to cultivate a beautiful places for people to meet King Jesus, regardless of their ability to pay. Some of those ways are through your:

Treasure: Money for furnishings, planting, and farm equipment. You can also rent the house for your own group gathering. All proceeds help us offer the property & our program offerings to those who cannot afford to pay.  You can give to any East Mountain location through our website  or if you have other creative ideas you want to explore just email us.

Time:  Volunteer in Greenville for our monthly workdays or join our Monday morning maintenance meetups, by emailing Billy. To volunteer at one of our other locations, use this email  indicating which location you are interested and available to serve at OR contact the location director directly.

Talents: Gifted in leading retreats, raising funds, lending expertise to build and cultivate spaces or something else!!??  Email here and let us know your interests and the best way to reach you.

For the King,
Gabe Smith
Executive Director, EM Carolinas

EM Greenville > Cultivating a Sacred Space

Dear Friends,
It is my privilege to introduce you to my amazing friend and our East Mountain Greenville board chair, Nicole Unice. Nicole is a passionate Jesus follower, author, speaker, and leader. We are so grateful that she is on our team!

In this short video Nicole introduces our big goal for this year – to turn our 19 acre farm into a space of beauty and rest where people can have powerful experiences for whole and purposeful life with Jesus. Look for more information on our retreats, volunteer opportunities, and other ways to get involved over the next few months. We hope to see you in Greenville!

 For the Kingdom,
 Gabe

An Ark of Refuge > Thoughts from East Mountain UK

There is no need to convince anyone; these are troubled times.  Global COVID-19 pandemic, lockdowns, economic collapse, massive civil unrest around the world--and 2020 is only half over.  The foundations of our world have become unsteady beneath our feet.  The fair weather of normal life has become the tempest tossed “new normal.”  And in this newly-minted chaotic age we find ourselves asking, “Where is refuge?  What is solid?  Where is a firm foundation in shifting sands?”  

In Scotland and in East Mountain communities around the world, an image, a descriptive set of words has risen to the fore:  “We are to be an ark of refuge.”  This phrase first came up on an East Mountain director’s call in April during the height of the lockdown and has reverberated and grown in our thinking.  As planned ministry events are cancelled (internships, pilgrimages, East Mountain meals and celebrations, etc.) we are all wondering what our calling is to be in this moment.  

“We are to be an ark of refuge.”  This phrase first came up on an East Mountain director’s call in April during the height of the lockdown and has reverberated and grown in our thinking.

So what does being an “ark of refuge” even mean on a practical level?  That, like so many other things, is  still unsure.  But if this image is truly from God, it means, at the very least, that we, the East Mountain community, are rooted, grounded solidly in our faith in Jesus Christ and that we offer a presence of stability and refuge in a rocking world.  We provide a space for the storm-tossed where God can provide His comfort, His assurance and His divine guidance.  

In Scotland, there are ongoing talks in the government about when churches will be allowed to open again.  The latest word is that it may be some time before that will happen.  In this space of continuing upheaval, friends and partners are beginning to talk about a return to an ancient, New Testament model of Church that meets house to house.  Is God bringing His Church “full circle?”  Could we pivot our ministry plans and step fully into this potentially exciting proposal?  Could we be catalytic in this moment as our partners seek the Lord on this point?  Could this be our small part to play as we desire to see renewal, revival and movement break out in the UK, in Europe and around the world?  That is yet to be seen.

Would you join with us as we pray about this image: “an ark of refuge.”  Would you ask that East Mountain UK and all East Mountain communities would hear clearly, act boldly and be used of God in these extraordinary times?  

Chris & Kirsten Furr in Edinburgh, Scotland

God's Timing - a Cape Town update

“Many are the plans in a man’s heart, but it is the LORD’s purpose that prevails.” -Proverbs 19.21

 Real talk, you know those moments when you think to yourself, “I’ve got this”. Something lies ahead of you, and maybe you think you’ve got it figured out. You’ve planned well, strategized over every angle and outcome, and even talked it over with others. Game, set, match. And then… those well-laid plans fail. These failures and following disappointments surrounding our plans are a part of the human experience. Circumstances beyond our control intervene, and we quickly realize how loose our grip on control over our lives actually is. 

 This year, a particular passage that the residency team here in South Africa continues to go back to is John 15. This passage details how Jesus is the true vine, and we are the branches. He is the root and the source of any fruit we may bear, and God is also the one who prunes us as we abide in Him. In His sovereignty, He calls us to place in Him our full hope, complete trust, and total faith. Over the past several months, this has become a very tangible reality for the staff here.

When our residency team first started recruiting for residency, there were only two prospective residents, one of whom was battling through fundraising and visa tasks in the States. Applications trickled in, and interviews continued to be scheduled, but the residency start date was quickly drawing near. If the residency recruitment team had held too tightly to their own expectations of planning and timing, the residency may have never left the ground. But they trusted in God’s timing, and continued to hope. At a couple points, the start date of residency had to be pushed back. Bringing the residency and its yet-unknown participants to the Lord in prayer became a daily rhythm in our staff community.

Incredibly, the Lord soon brought several more residents to us bringing our final total (or so we thought) to five. Right after the application deadline closed, however, we received two more applications from fantastic individuals. When least expected we found ourselves with seven residents in total: six South Africans and one American wrapping up fundraising to head over. Yet even in this, God had plans beyond our thinking. Within the first week of residency, one of our residents decided that the program was not for him in this particular season of his life. Though an unexpected turn of events and expectations, healthy conversations were had in helping this resident step back into his community well. 

Many months and one roller-coaster of a ride later, we have our final number of six residents. In them we see answers to the many prayers lifted up when recruitment was happening. It has been a journey to arrive at this final group of residents, one fraught with challenges and moments of uncertainty as to what the future held. And yet, it was also a journey filled with moments of being humbled in awe before God’s divine will, perfect timing, and grace towards us. His grace allows us the freedom to trust and lean upon Him as opposed to holding fast to our own plans. 

 We see in the instructions of John 15 that, as the branches, we are called to abide in the Lord through faith and trust. This includes difficult seasons of pruning and growth. Though the recruitment season is over, we recognize that we must continue to trust in God’s timing and direction as we pair the residents with mentors and ministry partners, among other decisions. As the good gardener and true vine that He is, He will make a way for our residents this year to know and experience Him in ways that we could never orchestrate ourselves. We cannot wait to journey with these six incredible individuals whom God knew would be a part of our East Mountain community long before we even existed. Humbled by the invitation to journey into the vast and wild plans of God, we step forward with hope and faith for what is to come. Thank you for your partnership and prayers and we endeavor onward!

Partner Update> A Chosen Generation Rising up!

On the first full day of the 2020 residency, the residents and some staff members went to attend the Sunday service at Chosen Generation church and to hear the stories of Pastor Dumisani and his team. The residents were able to introduce themselves to the church and experience what was, for most of them, a very different style of worship then they are accustomed to in this small charismatic setting near Mandela Park in Khayelitsha township. The youth got up to sing, the preacher got up to sing, and intermittently throughout the service, the congregation burst into singing. The room was full of the Holy Spirit and smiles and hugs warmer than the summer air around us. 

Stix (far right) introducing the 2020 residents to Chosen Generation church

After the service, we gathered around and ate our vetkoeks (South African meat pies) as Pastor Dumisani shared Chosen Generation's “origin story”: How he would show up in rough parts of Khayelitsha with a soccer ball and get young men involved in gangs and other less-than-constructive past times to literally lay their weapons down to come play soccer together. He did this for weeks, building rapport and a safe atmosphere until finally bringing a Bible and sitting down with them to begin a Bible study. “Some of them ran the other way and some of them stayed. That was the beginning of the church,” Dumisani said with a smile. 

 Dumisani is passionate about creating a space where all kinds of people coming from difficult backgrounds can come and not be judged. “I told them they could take off their masks and even ask the difficult questions here,” he said. He felt called to make a place where his community members could belong before they believe and slowly get to know Jesus and what he means to them. This includes community members like Honey, who had been a drug-dealer and gangster, in and out of prison for years at a young age. Honey found sanctuary in Dumisani’s church. Now he is preaching in Chosen Generation and other churches, sharing his testimony, and even being published in books and magazines. 

Previous residents Siyabulela (Steve) and Stix (Azola) are among the young men impacted by Dumisani’s soccer club, as well as Ananda, who was present at our conversation on Sunday. Ananda shared how his life was changed the day he began playing soccer with Dumisani’s group and even more so when he decided to believe in Jesus. Ananda is now the one leading those soccer groups and Bible studies as Dumisani leads the church and disciples other leaders.  

Steve grew up at Chosen Generation and then participated in East Mountain residency in 2017 and 2018. He now mentors boys at one of our other partnerships, a high school called Calling Academy, where he is a soccer coach and teacher’s aid. 

 Stix was mentored by Dumisani for a long time before finally becoming a believer shortly before coming to residency in 2019. Stix grew astronomically throughout the year to the point that he has begun returning to Chosen Generation church to preach occasionally. At the end of the year after sitting in the congregation and watching Stix deliver an impassioned sermon on unity from Ephesians, Dumisani stood up with a look of amazement on his face and hugged Stix and asked, “Is this the same young man we sent to East Mountain at the beginning of the year?” His growth was a beautiful picture of different mentors doing sowing, watering, and pruning with a willing heart from Stix, and ultimately God doing the cultivation as part of his larger kingdom plan. Stix now works for a coffee company in the hopes of eventually starting his own coffee business/ ministry.

East Mountain South Africa sees it as a privilege to play a small part in the growth of young leaders like those that God is raising up, often out of brokenness and difficulty, at Chosen Generation. 

Partner Update >> Upstate Warriors on the Mountain

Last year Janet and I attended a fundraising dinner supporting a veteran’s charity in Charleston, South Carolina.  In between the silent auction and the formal dinner someone who looked strangely familiar stopped me and asked, “Are you Gabe Smith?” “I am.” I replied, as my mind went into overdrive trying to figure out where I knew the man standing in front of me. “I’m Charlie Hall and you were my squad leader at West Point.” he said. My jaw dropped as the memories of that summer over 20 years ago came flooding back. 

We exchanged information and discovered that we live only a few miles from each other in Greenville. Later we met to catch up. That meeting, as it would turn out, would be significant for the work of East Mountain.

Over chips and salsa I learned that Charlie, now a Lieutenant Colonel in the Marine Corps Reserve, founded and leads a non-profit called Upstate Warrior Solution (UWS). In 2012, coincidentally the same year we founded East Mountain, Charlie and other community leaders founded UWS after identifying a palpable need to connect veterans to the network of organizations and services available. Last year UWS served over 1,800 veterans in the Upstate of South Carolina.

Over the next several months, Charlie and I continued to connect and discuss possible synergies between East Mountain’s vision to offer powerful encounters for deep and purposeful life with Jesus and UWS’s mission to connect warriors and their families to services. Last month those conversations culminated in East Mountain hosting UWS staff for an off-site meeting and lunch. After the meal, I shared East Mountain’s vision to provide powerful learning environments for veterans (and others) to grow in their relationship with Jesus. The response of UWS staff was simply amazing. Several immediately volunteered to help with landscaping, furniture, activities and meals. One former Marine, a recent convert, asked if he could apply for residency. Others asked when they could come to a retreat. 

The partnership with UWS has already been incredibly life giving. I’m excited to see how the Lord will use it in the weeks and months to come for his glory! To learn more about Charlie and the UWS team you can visit their website at https://upstatewarriorsolution.org/,

Gabe Smith, EM Co-Founder & EM Greenville Executive Director

Prayer - a Delightful Struggle

I am a practical person, a project manager-type who lives and works by a to-do list, except when it comes to my prayer life. The satisfaction that comes from checking off items on a list just doesn’t work the same way when it comes to prayer.

For me, prayer is a delightful struggle.

Prayer has so many forms: personal silent meditation, blessings for food, intercession for loved ones and people you may never meet this side of heaven, prayers for healing (physical, emotional and/ or deliverance), petition for guidance and prayers of protection, etc.

Some prayers don’t have words that can be translated and others are centuries old and have been translated into every language documented by man. I find it difficult to put prayer in a box or neatly on in my schedule and I believe God is good with that.

Couple of practical things about prayer that I have found helpful:

• Practice - not that ”practice makes perfect” but practice helps us make progress. 

• Lean on His Presence & Power  - try to Listen with one ear towards God and the second, towards the other, focus on Love (God to us, Us to the other), and then Pray.

  It is in the power of Jesus that our prayers have any gravitas at all because we call out using His name which takes us to His throne room at the right hand of the Father who is ready and mighty to help (Eph 3:12). The enemy is real and prayer is a key defense and offensive weapon.

• If you tell someone you are going to pray for them, do it! Just let your words rise up. Keep it short, simple, and honest. The words don’t matter but prayer must be motivated by love from God and for the other. When a need comes up over lunch with a friend -offer to pray for them. Or text a prayer note -as you text the note, pray.  Pray immediately when God brings something to mind -this is the only way “to pray without ceasing” (1 Thessalonians 5:17)  is even possible.

• Prayer is all about relationship. You encourage others when you pray for them and you worship God -- both of which are more important in the short term than outcomes or answers. (Psalm 141:1-2, Revelation 8:3-4)

I encourage you to join in God’s call to pray and fellowship with Him.  Those of you familiar with the East Mountain’s Rule of Life, know that praying together is one of our 5 essential elements, along with table fellowship, sharing story, reading the Word and discipling others.

One way EM Greenville is encouraging prayer is by hosting a prayer space the First Friday of each month on the property.  Consider joining us as we offer a haven of silence where you can rest, based on the pattern of Jesus, who frequently withdrew to a quiet place to nourish His Spirit.  You can encounter God in community, yet alone, surrounded by the beauty of nature and the healing rhythm of a sacred quiet space while you “practice the practice of prayer”.  We don’t provide a program on this quiet day, but reading material with some guidelines are available. Our goal is to provide a gentle, refreshing day so you can rest and enter silence, pray, hear from and fellowship with the Father.  

Putting this on your calendar or to-do list could be the next best practical step to take! For more info, go to www.eastmountain.tv/gvl-events or email me directly.

With much love & prayer,

Sherri Whittington - EM Director of Global Operations

2019 YE Update

Dear Friends,

Nine years ago the Lord gave us a vision to build a special community where young Christians in their 20s could learn to follow Jesus. We imagined building a community of guides - older more experienced Christians who would mentor, teach and love the young adults who came to us. We imagined a property, a generous place, made for fellowship, for big tables, for meals, for quiet conversations around the fire, for teaching, prayer, and sitting quietly with the Lord. We imagined the lives that would be forever transformed and the impact that a young adult could have with 50+ years of life and Christian service still ahead.

Today that vision is a reality in South Africa. There is a farm and a house where young leaders from many nations, colors and backgrounds come to grow as followers of Jesus.

In the context of post-apartheid South Africa, East Mountain provides a place for young adults to move from shacks to University or meaningful work as they grow in their love for Jesus and his Kingdom. -Thank you to those who have so faithfully supported East Mountain's work here over these years!

This month that vision is becoming a reality again, in South Carolina. A generous friend’s gift made it possible for us to secure a loan for a 19 acre farm and 6 bedroom farmhouse. In this context there aren’t people living in shacks -but there are young adults who are hurting and in need of help. In March 2020, we will open an East Mountain house in Greenville.

Our initial focus will be young adults who have served this country in the military and young professionals. Through partnerships with existing organizations serving in the community, East Mountain Greenville will offer a significant opportunity for veterans and other young adults to find their identity in Christ as they navigate this key transition time in life. As we grow in capacity, we will also serve others in the area through retreats, workshops and other opportunities to grow in whole and purposeful life with Jesus.

I invite you to come visit and stay at the property. We will have a guest room that we hope is perpetually occupied by friends like you who want to experience East Mountain’s unique blend of community, hospitality and respite.

Blessings in 2020,
Gabe & EM team

A New Work in Port Elizabeth!

It’s a great honour and pleasure for me to introduce our community here in Port Elizabeth, known as ‘the friendly city’, to the friends of East Mountain. We have been in the process of formation for only about a year, but already we have experienced the hand of God moving in a most wonderful way.

Of course, it did not start with us, but East Mountain Stellenbosch (ie. Cape Town) had been sending up small teams to work here in St. Saviours parish over a period of around 5 years teaching basic Bible courses and also helping with youth leadership training. This was at the invitation of myself and a couple of other local pastors. We had a faithful group of around a dozen or so people who had been attending the Bible courses who approached me to start a more serious formal course of study. I had been in association with Fr Gabriel Smith for some time and knew the vision for East Mountain, and I did share personally in his vision of discipleship based Christian teaching and training. To cut a long story short, I realised that the Lord wanted me to be part of this mission and agreed to lead a new learning community in Port Elizabeth.  

Our core group of enthusiastic learners has now blossomed into around 30 who attend the Foundations of the Faith course we are presently running. We have partnered with Ridley Institute (USA) who have kindly allowed us to offer their excellent courses. This group comprises people from all walks of life, and they range from the youngest who is 18 years old to those in their 60’s.

We have a small board to oversee the work which has two main thrusts – the first being the Ridley Courses and the second being the training and discipleship of young leaders. 

We covet your prayers and support as we take next steps in growing this community.

blessings, Dave

• Written by the Rev. Dave Doveton, retired Rector of two parishes in the Anglican Diocese of Port Elizabeth, South Africa. Apart from being in pastoral ministry, Dave taught at the theological Seminaries of St Bedes and the College of the Transfiguration and spent some years as a missionary
  priest in the Anglican Church of the Indian Ocean.

South Africa Partner update: Her Voice-Ubomi Project

    Sequestered off to the side of the rolling vineyards and picturesque streets of Stellenbosch is the township of Kayamandi, a place that embodies the brilliant, rich vibrancy of the Xhosa culture and community. On most given days in Kayamandi, you will find a navy minivan zipping through the winding streets to the home of a new mom or soon-to-be mom. Educational papers and dreams in hand, the driver, Rachel Conley, arrives at the new momma’s homes as a representative of an initiative she helped to spearhead in Kayamandi: the Ubomi Project.

     Rachel, an American missionary, moved to South Africa with her family in 2017 with the hope of becoming involved with a ministry in a local township. In 2018 she discovered Her Voice, an organization that serves young moms in Kayamandi, and later joined the leadership team. Rachel’s favorite part of Her Voice has been seeing the ladies who are a part of the program thrive and step up to support one another. Many of them demonstrate incredible resiliency and strength despite the odds they face in society. Townships in South Africa, Kayamandi included, face many challenges from generational fatherlessness to lack of decent housing. These issues are deeply entrenched in complex, historically rooted systems of oppression.

          One area of great need in Kayamandi, specifically in regards to empowerment, is the process and general culture around giving birth. Many of the women in Kayamandi have only one choice when it comes time for them to give birth: the Stellenbosch government hospital. Reputable for being understaffed and lacking the resources to provide decent, compassionate care, many women leave the hospital feeling traumatized and fearful. Birth narratives are rarely stories of hope of joy for the women in Kayamandi. Rather, birth culture there is one of fear, powerlessness, and shame. In fact, many women are surprised to find that giving birth can be a beautiful and wonderful experience, as all they know is the fear surrounding it. 

     This is where Ubomi, a project started under Her Voice, desires to step in to change the culture. Rachel herself had two powerful birth experiences, and was inspired to become a doula. A doula is a labor companion. They support their clients by helping them make educated choices so that they can have a more compassionate and empowered birth experience. 

     In the Xhosa language, Ubomi means “life”. And it is an incredible name for this organization that seeks to support women as they bring new life into the world. This is particularly meaningful in a place where raising a child can be very challenging, and abortion rates are high. For those who make the brave choice to give birth to their children, much support is needed in the face of scary unknowns. In such a context, Her Voice and Ubomi desire to usher in a new culture surrounding the idea and experience of birth: a culture of peace where women are given humane, quality care, and where they know their rights and can advocate for themselves. Moreover, there is a desire to change the perception from birth being a medical emergency to a natural and human process

     The health care context in South Africa is a difficult one to enter into and change. The public health care system in South Africa is a human rights issue. It is a system wherein the spirit of division and apartheid are still strongly felt and experienced. The Ubomi Project is meant to serve those who do not have a voice in the system. And the impact goes beyond just a hospital visit. Empowering moms who mother their children well can affect the next generation.

     One method of tackling these injustices is education. Every few Saturdays, Ubomi hosts a workshop with the goal of educating new moms on important topics such as infant care, lactation, labor and birth, and nutrition. Education empowers women by giving them the knowledge to make their own informed choices. Knowledge disables fear, and it is ultimately where long-term change comes about. 

      Another goal for Ubomi is greater sustainability, achieved by training up local Xhosa women to be doulas. This further inspires a cultural shift as women of color step up to change birth narratives in their own communities. Sustainability is already underway with the two interns, Phathiswa and Nomhlobo, currently training under Rachel in a two month long intensive internship. This training includes learning skills, growing spiritually, and addressing personal development. Each of them has their own story of birth trauma, and they want to use their training to help other women in their communities have positive birth experiences. In many ways, they are doing what no woman from their community has done before. They are also provided with a stipend so that they are able to serve full-time through Ubomi while supporting their families. 

     Furthermore, Rachel desires to explore advocacy work in order to affect change in the health care system as a whole. Because the fact is, “you can’t just take all the women out of the system, but you can change the system.” With this goal of advocacy work comes a unique and challenging tension: that of confronting inhumane practices in the public hospitals while simultaneously building relationships and trust with medical staff—most of whom are genuinely trying their best in an understaffed, high-intensity environment. Partnering with people who are already having an influence on the birth experience of women in South Africa is incredibly important. Recently, several other local birth professionals have partnered with Ubomi. This is an exciting and unifying endeavor, as there are only a small handful of private midwives practicing in the entire Western Cape, a testament to the limited choices for childbearing in South Africa—especially for women of color. 

     In the end, amidst deeply rooted and seemingly insurmountable obstacles, the Ubomi Project alongside Her Voice is stepping in to change culture, and with that, people’s lives. When women are empowered, they realize that they are valuable and worthy as human beings, and they are given the confidence to contend for their basic human rights. The ladies that encounter Rachel, Phathiswa, and Nomhlobo come to learn that birth is not a mistake, and that life is never an accident or simply the result of a lapse of judgment. Pregnancy and the birth journey is a new start! The goal of Ubomi is to redeem this birth journey and change its connotation to be one of hope, peace, joy, and empowerment amidst a culture of fear and shame. And all of this is done while exemplifying Jesus and the love and hope of the gospel. It is only through the hope of the gospel message that lives and communities can be transformed and set free.

— written by Lindsay Shifflett, Cape Town East Mountain staff

Your ongoing support of East Mountain makes vital ministry like this happen every day!

Partner Focus: Ruam Jai (Combined Hearts) Kids Club in Khlong Toei

Hidden within Bangkok’s 50+ shopping malls and extremely successful skytrain and metropolitan rapid transit system, lies their largest slum community in the district of Khlong Toei. The community of over 100,000 that resides there is a unique body of people from all parts of Thailand; including minority groups. Many still do not own the homes in which they live, even having been there for decades. The slum is about 1.5 square kilometers in size, and the land is relatively low and swamp-like. Many of the tin-roofed homes are on stilts over stagnant, polluted water, and the area is especially prone to flooding during the monsoon season. 

The people of Khlong Toey face many problems typical of a slum area. The vicious cycle of poverty makes it hard for children and teens to break from engaging in criminal activity as well as drug and alcohol abuse. With social and financial problems, the children are often prevented from receiving a proper education, and become illiterate in their own language. Realizing this, the founders of “Kids Club”, Benjamin and Suzi Collins, had a desire to enrich the lives of children physically, emotionally, and spiritually. Their desire eventually formed the vision and establishment of Ruam Jai Kids Club, an after-school program once a week that endeavors to regularly sow the seed of the Word of God and the Good News of Jesus.

At Kids Club, because most of the children are oral learners, we take an active learning approach and involve stories, crafts, games, and activities with all our Bible teaching curriculum. We also make sure to implement S.T.E.M. lessons for the kids to build and teach creativity, problem solving, life skills, ingenuity, resourcefulness, patience, and curiosity. The hardest part, however, is the lack of affection these children receive from their parents, so they come seeking all the love and affection they can get from us. Of course, the lack of affection from home manifests itself in many different ways, so learning to navigate and handle those things with the kids has been quite a challenge for all the volunteers.

It has truly been an honor and a joy to be in the presence of these children from Khlong Toei. Amid their innocent ignorance of who their cultural hierarchy says they are ---how their life “will” be; their wit, curiosity, and zeal for life is illuminating and sobering to my soul. 

Consider Matthew 18:3-4 when Jesus says, “Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.” The humility of a child consists of childlike trust, vulnerability, and the inability to advance his/her cause apart from the help, direction, and resources of a parent and/or adult; Christ calls us all to such a posture with Him.  

--from Christina Vang, East Mountain Bangkok, Partnership Development Coordinator

Building Local Community - Bangkok style

The center of East Mountain’s work is relationships. Our intentional connections with people provide the context for the conversations and learning environments where we offer powerful experiences that we pray lead people closer to Jesus. This work begins with the simple and profoundly complex work of building friendships, often across cultures. This story highlights the blessing and difficulty involved in relationally centered work in Bangkok.

Since my feet hit the ground here (about 6 months ago), I've had an overwhelming desire to build friendships with Thais. We all show up eager to have friendships with locals - it is a huge reason as to why we are here.

I thought that the best way to find Thai friendships was to attend a local Thai church, so that’s the adventure I’ve been on! Seemed simple on paper, but the reality is it’s way harder and takes way longer to have Thais welcome you into their world than what I initially anticipated.

Most Sundays feel a lot like Thai language class - I’m continually observing, translating in my head, picking up on social cues, and trying to be engaged on a more personal level. Oh yeah – and reminding myself to smile instead of wearing my “face of focus.” A lot of times I still have no idea what’s being said. I've been learning how to navigate meeting new people, introducing myself, and being culturally sensitive in an honor/shame culture. It is quite a challenge when your language is sub-par. 

These “transitions” have resulted in me speaking with few people while waiting for others to welcome conversation. It’s a big mindset shift when you recognize that friendship formation is not something we control. My leader put it well when he said that often times we show up expecting to love on the "foreigner" and "stranger" and then we find out that we're that person. This should be an obvious thing for us, but it really isn't. We come here ready to love the stranger and welcome the foreigner, and then realize we are actually the one at the mercy of others. God is the One who has to open the right doors for relationships to form.

Last month I showed up to a church outing at a bowling alley, what ended up being a huge breakthrough for me. It was the environment I needed to connect in a new, more natural way. It allowed me to speak more Thai and show that I am learning and invested. It also allowed me to teach Thais how to bowl! Relationships take time, especially if the people in them come from different walks of life. Sometimes you just have to sit there and absorb new words. Sometimes you have to give yourself a pep talk to get the courage to introduce yourself. Sometimes you just have to smile. But I’m learning a lot about patience and trust most of all – if Father wants me to have a group of local Thai friends, the reality is that He’s already got the right ones picked out!

from Bailey Debree, East Mountain Bangkok Intern

Rooted Locally, Serving Globally

I have often struggled to answer the question, “What is East Mountain?” I found that it was easier to talk about various things East Mountain does (leadership development, residency, deep community, discipleship, etc) but words seemed to fall short of describing the heart of our mission. In a number of very catalytic conversations and gatherings over the last 6 months I believe that God has provided richer language to describe our work and I wanted to share it with you. 

“We are a people who seek to offer powerful experiences for whole and purposeful life with Jesus.”

I love this statement because it captures the essence of what we long for ourselves and others - whole and purposeful life with our King. The common thread of our work around the world, from residency & education opportunities in South Africa to a pilgrimage in Scotland, is our passion to offer people powerful experiences where they are likely to step more deeply into life with Jesus.

#EastMountainCommunity

Locally, East Mountain Greenville (EM GVL) has made some tremendous strides in the last few months, as we are now a registered South Carolina non-profit organization with 501(c)3 exemption status, have gathered our founding board of directors for a weekend of fruitful meetings, and have made a conditional offer on a property for future ministry activities!

EM GVL is under contract to purchase a 19 acre farm where we dream of offering the opportunity for many of you to have an East Mountain experience. Look out for exciting updates about this project in the next few months.  Our community here is excited for the work God is doing in the city of Greenville and are beyond grateful that He has elected us to be a part of it.

Globally East Mountain is grateful for the gift of so many friends and supporters around the world who make this unique work possible. 

--Gabe Smith, EM Co-founder & EM GVL Executive Director

Potential East Mountain Property