BaptistLIFE Online

Paul Mulani

By Shannon Baker, BCM/D National Correspondent

SILVER SPRING, Md.—Paul Mulani, senior pastor of Disciples Fellowship International Church in Silver Spring, Md., has been named a language church coordinator for the Baptist Convention of Maryland/Delaware (BCM/D).

A native of Kenya, Mulani will be responsible for mentoring African, African American and Haitian churches throughout the multi-state convention.

While in high school, Mulani, on his way to work in Nairobi, Kenya, noticed a torn piece of paper on the muddy streets. On it, were only the words: “For more information, send your address to” followed by the address.

For fun, “I took the torn piece of paper and wrote on my address,” Mulani said. He put the paper into an envelope and mailed it out.

Later, he received a large parcel from the United States.

“It was a box of Christian literature from an organization in the USA,” Mulani said, noting that the information explained all about Christian salvation and discipleship.

Sitting alone, in the field, he began reading the material. He found himself kneeling.

“I realized I was a sinner in need of forgiveness and I asked the Lord Jesus to forgive my sins and to come into my heart,” he shared.

He started attending church with his mother, a devout Christian. He grew in his faith until about three years later when he felt the Lord calling him into the ministry.

Instead of heeding the Lord’s call, he fell away from his newfound faith, choosing instead to hang out with the wrong crowd, drink, do drugs and otherwise rebel during his college years.

“I didn’t want to go into the ministry,” he related, explaining that the pastors he knew about were poor, and he didn’t want to be poor like them.

But God wasn’t letting him go that easily. Years later, Mulani was approached by a Nairobi street preacher, who spoke directly into his life.

“The reason your life is the way it is now is because you are running away from God,” the man told him. “Unless you turn around, your life will become worse.”

Mulani found himself looking hard at his life. He had to agree. “It was a moral mess,” he said. “I knew God was calling me, but I was fighting it.”

Realizing he had to make a choice, he went to a pastor and asked for prayer. Soon, he was preaching on the streets of Nairobi himself.

He eventually heard God’s call to receive more training and completed a four-year degree at a Bible college in Kenya. He intended to become a missionary to the Sudan or to Somalia.

But in 1992, Mulani heard God’s call for more training, and he moved to the United States to complete a degree at Washington Bible College in Lanham, Md., followed by seminary studies at Capital Bible Seminary on the same campus.

While there, God started showing him how he could be a missionary in the United States, reaching out to the thousands of African immigrants who now lived far away from their homeland.

“At the time, there were more than 20,000 Kenyans who were registered with the Kenyan embassy,” he noted, estimating that the number is quickly increasing.

Ultimately, Mulani launched Disciples Fellowship International Church in August 2003 at Forest Oaks Middle School in Gaithersburg, Md.

However, prior to the launching, Pastor Mulani had been having a small Bible study group of about 15 people in his home in Silver Spring for about a year and half. Each Friday evening, after the Bible study, the group would have an extensive time of prayer, in Swahili, called “Kesha” (translated as “night watch” or “vigil”).

“This not only made the group grow, but also became powerful and within a year or so, the few people attending, some of them pretty new believers, grew exponentially,” Mulani noted.

Although initially Mulani wasn’t thinking about planting a church in Silver Spring, as he continued praying and reaching out in the area, the Lord started impressing on his heart the need to plant a church to minister to this wide area of Montgomery County.

The Lord confirmed that direction when one entire family was saved on the second Sunday of their meeting, Mulani shared.

The church began meeting at Colesville Church in Silver Spring with several small groups gathering throughout Silver Spring, Gaithersburg, Germantown and other locations.

“After that, within the first one year, more than 20 people had been saved or rededicated to the Lord in this region of Montgomery County in Maryland. Since then, the Lord’s hand has been evident in every way in the life of the church,” he said.

After the first year, the new church affiliated with the Baptist Convention of Maryland/Delaware and with the Montgomery Association.

Presently, with now over 180 worshippers and growing, DFI has two services. The main service is in English, but the second service is in Swahili.

“Though many Africans know English, many grew up learning Swahili,” the pastor said, noting that since incorporating the Swahili service, there has been incredible growth.

He said that people from Congo, Malawi, Tanzania, and other nations are attending the Swahili service.

Also, on April 26, 2009, DFI has also launched DFI Baltimore. Led by Steve and Catherine Magua, this church meets weekly at The Grace Place in Dundalk, Md.

Mulani and his wife Anne have four children: Joy, 12; Joshua, 6; Jael, 3; and Jubilee, 7 months old.

To learn more about DFI, visit online at www.dfichurch.com. Otherwise, contact Mulani at pmulani@bcmd.org.

With 11 different language groups and over 700 people in attendance, the Baptist Convention of Maryland/Delaware’s (BCM/D) eighth annual Language Music Celebration was held at Global Mission Church in Silver Spring, Md., on March 28. The colorful celebration featured worship performances from a variety of cultures, including a group of dancers from Bolivia, South America (pictured above).

By Shannon Baker, BCM/D National Correspondent

SILVER SPRING, Md.— With 11 different language groups and over 700 people in attendance, the Baptist Convention of Maryland/Delaware’s (BCM/D) eighth annual Language Music Celebration was held at Global Mission Church in Silver Spring, Md., on March 28.

Held on Palm Sunday each year, these celebrations feature worship performances from different language churches across the multi-state convention.  To date, there are 18 different language groups with churches in the BCM/D.

Included in this year’s celebration were the Bhutanese, Burmese, Chinese, Filipino, Haitian, Hispanic, Korean, Nepalese, Vietnamese and West African churches. This was the first year for the Burmese church as well as the West African churches.

Church planters, Lisa Mele and Lois Akehurst, representing South Asia also made an appearance. Though she did not perform, Mele indicated her earnest desire to build a church and to be included in next year’s big event.

In his welcome, Global Mission senior pastor, Dennis Kim, praised God for the “variety” of churches represented that night.

As in years past, Kim and his church have offered their facilities at no cost for the free event, shared Rolando Castro, BCM/D missionary for church planting/evangelism and language churches.

“Global Mission Church is incredible,” Castro said, expressing his gratitude that the Silver Spring church does much to prepare for the annual festivities.

Castro shared that the growing music celebrations give churches opportunities to get together and share who they are and to teach about their particular culture and forms of worship.

In his opening remarks, BCM/D Executive Director, David Lee, noted that the Palm Sunday celebration was a great way to launch the Holy Week leading up to the celebration of Christ’s resurrection. He shared a message from Romans 8, which identifies Christians as “more than conquerors,” who as co-heirs and children of God “cannot be separated from the love of God.”

After enjoying the time of worship, participants shared a special multicultural meal in Global Mission’s fellowship hall.

For more information, contact Rolando Castro at (443) 285-2012, rcastro@bcmd.org or Robert Kim at (410) 977-3816, rkim@bcmd.org.

By Shannon Baker, BCM/D National Correspondent

GLEN BURNIE, Md.—Jamie Robinson wants to know what it would take to convert a mall-sized department store into a Christian concert venue.

He has a big vision, so he wasn’t afraid to ask the big question. Dressed in his typical casual jeans and t-shirt, he approached the Glen Burnie, Md., mall manager and simply asked the question.

“What would it take to lease this space and use it as a concert venue?” he asked, excitingly adding, “It would increase mall traffic. It is a safe location with plenty of parking. It could be used during the winter months.”

He paused, expecting the Marley Station mall manager to stop him in his tracks.  But he didn’t.

Instead, he asked, “Who’s your backer?”

To which, Robinson replied, “If it is going to happen, God will make it happen!” Then he added, “It will happen, even if it is not here.”

In 2009, Robinson, an ultrasound technician at Johns Hopkins Hospital, obligatorily attended a Valentine’s Day dinner that his wife Laura helped organize at Faith Church in Glen Burnie.

A self-described “big hair” band music lover, Robinson went to the event expecting to be bored.

Instead, he met the church’s youth minister, who turned out to be a die-hard music fan, too. Robinson was flabbergasted at the energetic response he received every time he named his latest favorite band: Seventh Day Slumber, Pillar and Thousand Foot Krutch.

He had no idea that other Christians could appreciate the same music that he did.

“I can’t carry a tune, but I do know music,” he said, saying that as a teenager he remembers listening over and over to the rock music group, Poison.

Robinson, whose oldest child is 10, wants to promote music that would appeal to young people while being solidly Christian in principle.

“My ultimate goal is to introduce the youth and the unsaved to Christ through great Christian music,“ he said. “I want their first concert to stick with them like the hair bands stuck with me.”

He envisions something like a Ravens Stadium filled with worshippers and all genres of musicians on the stage. He also likens his vision to the Creation Festival, which is held annually on a local farm in Mount Union, Pa.

Though he has Madison Square Garden-sized dreams, Robinson has started out smaller than that. He booked a band to headline Unite, a worship gathering for youth groups held at Faith Church last October.

Then this past January, he led his church in hosting the nationally recognized band, Stellar Kart. The concert oversold and also featured Robin Eichelberger of the Baltimore Blast as well as radio station, Shine FM 95.1.

For Robinson, who oversaw 29 volunteers, including members of his family who had never been to a Christian concert, the event was a huge success. He learned so much in the process and even had the opportunity to lead a young man who came to the concert to the Lord.

“Jamie is one of the most humble guys I know,” shared Jeff Higgins, a worship, college, and missions pastor at Faith. “Everything went so smoothly because Jamie worked so hard to make it a great event.”

Remedy Drive, a four-piece, four-brother band from Lincoln, Neb., is the next big concert that Faith Church will host. The Christian rock band will perform their incredible, energetic live show at Faith Church on Saturday, May 8. Faith’s own “The 8:30 Band” will open.

Robinson says he wants to build a reputation for treating bands very well. He wants to be the choice venue when bands have the opportunity to perform in the region.

“Bill Gates had a great idea. He just needed the right person to make it happen,” he said.

“I believe God has a smile on his face when Eddie Van Halen plays the guitar,” Robinson added, pointing out that only God could have given the rocker his abilities.

“I hope he smiles on me as I do this too.”

Tickets for Remedy Drive are $10. Purchase tickets at the Faith Church’s office, or by calling (410) 761-5346 or (410) 428-7735. Tickets may also be purchased at itickets.com.

By Shannon Baker, BCM/D National Correspondent

LINCOLN, Neb.—Nationally recognized Christian band, Remedy Drive, from Lincoln, Neb., will perform their incredible, energetic live show at Faith Church on Saturday, May 8.

Comprised of four brothers (David, Philip, Paul and Dan Zach), Remedy Drive has been cranking out their own brand of music as a full time indie for the past six years.

Without a TV in their home while growing up, the brothers and their two sisters found a love for music—and a place to express creatively a reason for their hope in Christ.

Inspiration comes from the book of Psalms, from the Gospels, and even “the epic apocalyptic imagery of Revelation,” shared David, lead songwriter of the band.

“I find myself constantly writing down lyrics or ideas that may not even work in a lyric,” he said, noting he’s been inspired by author C.S. Lewis, pastor Tim Keller, and even pop culture’s Batman.

“That stuff ends up living inside of me and comes out in our lyrics or even in our melodies,” he said.

The theme always comes back to hope, he added.

In fact, the title track of their most recently released album, “Daylight is Coming,” produced by Ian Eskelin, of All Star United, shares the message of the hope found in God’s nature, as does their song, “Hope,” which was used for the 2009-2010 Vancouver Olympic Games commercial.

“It’s definitely not a hope in rock and roll, politicians or in the government,” David explained, “but a hope in something permanent.”

“Rock and roll – happiness – diamond rings, these are the best of the temporary things,” David wrote in the song, “Made to Last,” which points to something “more for us ‘cause it’s all turning into dust.”

The song yearns for a hope found in a Kingdom that won’t fade away.

Noting that it is natural to feel fear in the day’s headlines, filled with gloom and doom, he said that with all the abounding fear and doubt, people are asking, is there really any hope?

He believes there is.

So much so, that he feels that the Christian rock concerts that he and brothers lead are a way to come out of the dark and cold world, to “a place where we can celebrate hope at the top of our lungs.”

In addition to the loud praise, David shared that Remedy Drive’s concerts are interactive, featuring call and response; high-energy music similar to the Blue Man Group; as well as the contemplative lyrics.

Now 30, David wrote his first song when he was only 13 years old. His parents, formerly involved in the hippy movement, had sworn off rock and roll when they became Christians. But then their children began to use the music as a way to worship God, and they saw how it appealed to their teenage friends.

The boys entered “Battle of the Bands” concerts, talent shows and played in outdoor arenas, all the while giving a voice and sound to their godly values.

Soon, their music grew beyond their hometown.  They traveled and performed in churches throughout the country.

Then, in 2009, Remedy Drive received three nominations including “Best New Artist,” “Rock/Contemporary Album of the Year,” and “Short Form Video of the Year” for the for the 40th Annual GMA Dove Awards.

This past year, Remedy Drive played its first arena concerts, touring with the Rock and Worship Roadshow, with artists such as David Crowder Band and Mercy Me.

“I like the small shows even better,” David shared, noting that compared with 10,000 attendees, having only 500 people in the church or concert hall helps everyone feel a part of something—or Someone.

“We want people to grab a hold of the hope that is found in Christ,” he said.

Tickets for the Remedy Drive concert at Faith Church on May 8 are $10. Purchase tickets at the Faith Church’s office, or by calling (410) 761-5346 or (410) 428-7735. Tickets may also be purchased at itickets.com or at His Way Christian Bookstore in Glen Burnie, Md.

By Shannon Baker, BCM/D National Correspondent

ALEXANDRIA, EGYPT—Barbara Davis barely made it to bed when the blaring loudspeakers broadcasted the ritual 4:30 a.m. Muslim prayers. Soon, it would be time to wake up and prepare to lead the two groups of women who were relying on her to teach them how have a better life.

Davis, a missions director at New Song Bible Fellowship Church in Bowie, Md., has devoted her last six months in Alexandria, Egypt, where she has led vocational training, support and care for Sudanese refugees and disenfranchised Egyptian women.

Working under the leadership of El Saray Evangelical Church, a church fully sanctioned by the Egyptian government, Davis rents out space at the church’s Fairhaven School for mentally challenged children.

There, with a secure place to operate her growing ministry, she is able to house short-term mission teams who minister weeks at a time to nearly 30 Sudanese refugee women and over 30 Egyptian women who come for the free training.

Through the nonprofit Project Destiny, Davis designed a course of study that will enable these women to excel spiritually and practically in their lives.

Barbara Davis, a missions director at New Song Bible Fellowship Church in Bowie, Md., has devoted her last six months in Alexandria, Egypt, where she has led vocational training, support and care for Sudanese refugees and disenfranchised Egyptian women.

The first phase of the nine-month program focused on rebuilding the women spiritually and emotionally. Counselors joined Davis in teaching the women how to cope with the difficulties surrounding them. The women learned about conflict resolution, effective communication, and how to seek God’s will and make decisions in their lives.

“I was amazed at how afraid these women were to make decisions on their own,” shared Davis, a former systems engineer at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. She explained that most women rely on their fathers or husbands to lead them.

In contrast, Davis pointed to the strong women in the Bible, such as Esther, Abigail, Ruth, Deborah and Miriam, who were great examples of women who followed God.

Davis, herself, was also a great example of a woman who followed God, even to the point of living alone in the city that once was home to famed ancient queen, Cleopatra.

Most days, she was very comfortable in her newfound role. Nonetheless, there were days when Davis wondered if she had enough strength to keep the program going.

“It was my 21st day in Egypt, and I was sitting by the [Mediterranean] Sea, praying for God to help me,” she related. As she cried, she felt a breakthrough, much like Daniel did in Daniel 10:12-13, when an angel revealed himself 21 days after the overwhelmed Daniel had prayed.

Despite her weariness, Davis knew that God had called her to this task in the unfamiliar territory. Though she previously had traveled and ministered all over the world, she knew that God had called her to concentrate her efforts now in Egypt.

It was time to train these women, whom she believed God had special plans to use for the advancement of His Kingdom.

As a gift for finishing the first phase of the program, Davis took the class of Egyptian women to see the Pyramids of Giza. Though they lived only a few hours away from the ancient tombs, these women never had the opportunity to visit them. They were ecstatic at the historic sites before them.

But the Sudanese refugees, who had escaped the ongoing life-and-death conflict in their home country, celebrated an entirely different way.

They ate Kentucky Fried Chicken.

“These women never had the resources to go to a restaurant like that, to eat something that they didn’t have to prepare,” Davis shared, explaining that she also shared financial bonuses with the women so that the Sudanese’s gifts matched that of the Egyptians.

But for both groups, the gifts were much deeper. Something was happening in their spirits. They were seeing a renewed hope for their futures.

Project Destiny’s second phase, currently underway, focuses on redefining the women for the workplace.

Already, several teams from throughout Maryland and Delaware and even North Carolina have come to teach the women how to start and manage their own businesses, and in particular, how to do cosmetology, make jewelry, do computer work and other practical job skills.

Michele Martuszewski (pictured touring the Pyramids in Cairo, Egypt) from New Hope Community Church in Baltimore, Md., taught the Sudanese and Egyptian women how to perform beauty treatments, specifically facials and manicures, as a potential job skill.

In early February, Michele Martuszewski from New Hope Community Church in Baltimore, Md., taught the ladies how to perform beauty treatments, specifically facials and manicures.

Before even teaching the women how to care for others, she quickly noted that the women were soaking in all the beauty treatments for themselves.

“They were giddy and laughing at the idea that it was okay to take care of themselves, instead of working so hard just to nurture others,” Martuszewski said.

Agnes Elliott, a refugee from Sudan, agreed, “I am so happy today because I see everyone has made such a difference in my heart and my face.”

Many of the Sudanese refugees were in Egypt alone with their children, while their husbands were still in Sudan trying to make money to support their families. Others, like Agnes, don’t hear from their husbands again.

Jane, alone with four children, struggles to make ends meet by caring for Egyptian children and cleaning Egyptian homes. “But the salary is not enough,” she shared.

For many of the women, just finding each other and building a support system has made a world of difference.

It was obvious that after all these months of focus, the women were growing stronger and were grasping a hold of God’s promise “of a future and a hope” (Jer. 29:11) that was right before them.

The ultimate goal is to reconnect the women to the community as fully engaged Egyptian citizens and not as refugees and disenfranchised women, Davis shared. Many are developing business plans for the sale of products they make. Others are being connected with potential employers.

By April 22, the official graduation date for the Project Destiny program, the women will have developed personal training plans and goals for their future. Many women will serve as mentors to other women, sharing the insights they have learned in this process.

To learn more, visit online at www.practicallivinginstitute.org or contact Davis at (301) 794-0211, info@practicallivinginstitute.org.

Vacation Bible School (VBS) songwriter Jeff Slaughter jumped on the stage at The Church at Severn Run and taught the songs from LifeWay’s Saddle Ridge Ranch at a recent VBS training event.

By Shannon Baker, BCM/D National Correspondent

SEVERN, Md.—Dressed in a cowboy shirt and his characteristic high energy, Vacation Bible School (VBS) songwriter Jeff Slaughter jumped on the stage at The Church at Severn Run and began singing the songs from LifeWay’s Saddle Ridge Ranch.

Beginning with a vibrant “Yes to VBS” song, complete with hand motions, sounds of joy resounded through the packed auditorium on Feb. 27 as VBS directors, pastors and church volunteers all gathered to learn about the latest VBS offerings.

With the motto, “Need Answers? Ask God!” this year’s western-themed VBS was based out of a Coloradan dude ranch where kids will be “ridin’ the range and roundin’ up questions” like, “What is God’s plan for me?” and “How can I be like Jesus?”

The key verse is James 1:5, “Now if any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives to all generously and without criticizing, and it will be given to him.” (HCSB)

Throughout the day, VBS directors and others participated in breakout sessions that familiarized everyone with the Bible study, music, missions, crafts, and recreation for this year’s VBS.

The Severn, Md., church also presented the Saddle Ridge Ranch musical, complete with The Church at Severn Run’s 40-member children’s choir and Children’s Pastor Donnie Hatcher leading the drama.

It had been a great day of teaching and inspiration for over 300 volunteers and leaders from 63 churches who would soon be leading their own VBS events.

But for Jeff Slaughter, who has written the music for VBS the past 14 years and has performed in each of the music videos, it was also a day marked with sweet significance.

Because, in January, Slaughter felt he wasn’t in the place to dance and sing at the scheduled VBS rallies, like the one held at The Church at Severn Run.

Just a few weeks before, on Christmas Day, his mother passed away after a very difficult bout with pancreatic cancer. But as he pressed on, he heard God tell him, “Take off the garments of sadness and put on the garments of praise. Let Me be your strength today.”

In God’s strength, Slaughter soon figured out that the songs he was leading others to learn were songs that were actually leading him. Looking back, he now understands why this year’s songs are so meaningful to him.

Like the song, “God Cares.”

A few months earlier, providentially on the day Slaughter’s mom was having exploratory surgery, Tim Cox was editing the VBS music videos. The video editor felt moved to send Slaughter a text message with the words to the song’s chorus, which say, “I will cast my care upon the Lord, because He cares for me. I will trust in God no matter what because I know He will never stop caring for me.”

Cox shared, “You’ve got to know that the Lord gave you the words to this song. You gotta do what it says!”

Even before, Slaughter kept crying through the production of the video for “God Cares,” a ballad that reinforces that God sees, knows and cares about each person.

“I didn’t know why I was so weepy,” he related, noting that the music videos were filmed on C Lazy U Guest Ranch, a dude ranch where the Colorado River runs off the Continental Divide. The videos featured snowcapped mountains, lakes, and wide-open fields.
It was about this ethereal place that Slaughter’s mother made an unusual comment.

Two weeks before her death, in “one of the last sweet moments” that he shared with her, Slaughter and his mom watched the final Saddle Ridge Ranch music videos together.

“Who are all those beautiful girls around you worshipping and singing?” she asked, intensely watching the “God Cares” video. Slaughter was baffled, because he was alone—on a mountaintop—in the film.

And in another music video, “Like Jesus,” his mom asked where the producers got such a beautiful table of food.  Again, Slaughter was alone—in an open field—with no food.

It wasn’t until later that the Lord revealed to Slaughter that the beautiful girls that his mother saw were angels. And the beautiful table that she saw in the “Like Jesus” video?

“She was seeing My table,” the Lord told him. “The table of the Lamb. That is the place that you will finally, completely be like me.”

And then it dawned on him.

“That’s why you were crying…” Slaughter felt the Lord explain. “Your spirit was witness to what your mind didn’t yet understand.”

The song “Like Jesus” had even more significance for Slaughter. As he prayed for God to direct his writing, he felt God urging him to help children learn to be more like Him.

“For generations, My sons and daughters have offered to lay down their lives for me. Though many have to do so in other parts of this world, we’ve never had to give everything,” Slaughter related God’s words to him. “But I’ve felt the Lord say that this generation will.”

He added, “We don’t know what is coming. I’m not speaking gloom and doom, because nothing happens outside of God’s control. But I feel an urgency to impart these things to these kids—to teach them to be passionate followers of Christ.”

Early in his music career, Slaughter had followed God’s call “to train up [His] end-time warriors.” He didn’t want to write “babyish” songs for today’s kids. He wanted to write songs that would have deep meaning for them when they grew up—songs that would remind them to be “Like Jesus.”

Slaughter, who said that he writes music for a typical fifth or sixth grade boy (so that all the kids will get it), shared that “he was a different drummer growing up.”

Originally from Greenwood, Miss., Slaughter said his dad wanted him to be a “huntin’, fishin’, tobacco-spittin’ football player.” But Slaughter kept finding himself drawn to music.

His dad would have to yell at him to go outside and play.

“I would hit the piano – ‘bing’ – and then run out the door,” he laughed, sharing that as a teenager, he was overweight. He spoke with a lisp. He played the tuba in the band.

In fact, he hated going to VBS and church camps, because he got picked on all the time.

But one day, he read the words of Habakkuk 2:2-3, which encouraged him that the vision for his life was for “an appointed time,” and it would “surely come.”

He remembered thinking, “Oh Lord! That’s my life! That’s my testimony.”

And the vision indeed surely came, just like the song, “Who He Says” promises: “I am who the Great I Am says I am. I am one of His greatest creations. He says I am remarkably, wonderfully made.”

“I grew up and the Lord brought me back to VBS and camp and made it the sweetest blessing in my life,” he cheered.

For additional information about other VBS clinics being offered this spring, contact June Holland at (443) 463-3495, email jholland@bcmd.org or Donna Shiflett at (410) 290-5290 ext. 226, email dshiflett@bcmd.org, or visit online at www.bcmd.org.