The Here & Now By Lisa Herron

One Life’s Journey

By Bob Hoyt

Manifest Love From Pastor Alan De Vries

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Transformed is a magazine publication of First Church of the Nazarene of Pasadena (PazNaz). It is designed to highlight the Church’s stories of personal transformation. For a complete overview of PazNaz, their beliefs, and ministries, please visit the website www.paznaz.org. TRANSFORMED Issue #21—January 2013 The Magazine of PazNaz 3700 East Sierra Madre Boulevard Pasadena, California 91107 626.351.9631 Fax: 626.351.5160 www.paznaz.org

Welcome to Transformed Under the Pepper Tree. In this monthly magazine, you will read stories of how God is changing people’s lives at PazNaz, transforming them into the image of Jesus Christ by the power of his Spirit! You might be asking, “Where can I find information about a specific PazNaz event?” Some information about specific events on campus is found within these pages, but each month Transformed is focused on relating stories about what PazNaz is really all about. Rather than programs or events, there are stories about changed lives, stories about people coming in contact with the Savior, and people exploring what it means to become a follower of him. It is exciting to hear what God is doing in the lives of people!

Years ago, Pastor Earl Lee and a group of staff members gathered around a pepper tree located on the northern-most point of what was to become the site for First Church of the Nazarene of Pasadena and dreamed and prayed that God would provide a place where more people could find power for living through Jesus. What began then has been going on for over thirty years as men and women, boys and girls have come into relationship with Christ in significant ways under the shade of that old pepper tree. The mission of the church hasn’t changed. May it continue to flourish as people experience the transforming power of Christ.

Blessings,

B. Scott Anderson Executive Pastor

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The other day I went to a meeting at a local

restaurant. I was the first to arrive and waited for the rest

of the group to come, but no one showed up. Instead of

getting worried and frantic, I sat back and enjoyed the

space that I was in. This experience was something new

to me. I realized that I am learning to live in God’s

presence in the here and now.

what helped me to continue to learn to trust God. Kevin inspires me to want to learn more about the Bible and who God is.

In 1998 Kevin and I were blessed with a baby boy, Kahlil. From the beginning Kahlil seemed different than our other children. We just thought this was because we were older and it had been a long time since we had had our other children. When Kahlil was in preschool, his teacher came to us and shared her concerns that Kaklil needed to be tested because he was struggling developmentally.

We took the teacher’s advice, had Kahlil tested, and were given the diagnosis of autism. We felt so blessed that this Christian woman cared enough to help us to begin the process of getting help for him. This journey has been a difficult one. I felt like things were supposed to go well and yet, here we are. There were times when I felt like I was being punished by God. I didn’t understand what autism meant, or how it would affect Kahlil’s life. I was devastated. Then we began to learn more about services that were available for Kahlil.

One agency, Lanterman Regional Center, sent us to a training session on autism that was held here at PazNaz. This was my first introduction to the church. At this meeting I met people who were volunteering their time to help other families and kids who had autism and other disabilities. I wanted to know more about this church.

My family had been attending another church at the time. There was a Sunday School teacher who was there for Kahlil, but she was not able to be there every Sunday. The people at this church were great, but they did not know how to help us or encourage us to know Christ more.

I started to bring my son to the Special Needs Ministries here at PazNaz. In the beginning I would come and volunteer in the classroom to make sure that the volunteers could handle him. I was afraid that

I had always been a person who needed to be in control of things and fiercely independent. This is how I lived my life in response to certain situations and circumstances I have found myself. Now, I am learning how to surrender to God and live in each moment.

I did not grow up in a Christian home or one that had really any faith at all. I was the youngest daughter, number nine of ten children. My father died when I was young. My mom did all she could do to provide the basic essentials for our family, but there was little left over for my brothers and sisters and me. My mother sent us to Catechism and sought financial assistance from the Catholic Church, but that was the extent of our participation in the church.

My mother passed away when I was 15. My siblings and I were forced to grow up fast and to make it on our own. This became my lifestyle. I had to do everything on my own to survive.

I met my first husband when I was 15. We were married when I was 21. He offered me a place to live and what I thought would be security. I didn’t really want to marry him or be with him, but I felt like I owed it to him because he had given me a place to live and promised to provide for me. I looked to him to be my savior. I was not walking with God at the time and was experimenting with other religions. I was pledging allegiance to my husband and doing everything he wanted me to do. We had a daughter together, and I found myself always doing things for him because of my feelings of indebtedness. My first marriage ended when I was 27.

When my marriage ended, I started to really seek God for myself for the first time. I continued to work and found myself even more independent. Then I met my husband, Kevin. We developed a friendship, but I refused to allow the relationship to go any further.

In the middle of this friendship, I was diagnosed with breast cancer. This disease was a wake up call for me to discover what it meant to truly live. That was 16 years ago when I turned my life over to God and began to seek his plan for my life. God showed me that I could not look towards my family, friends, or a man, but needed to trust in him. Not too long after that, Kevin and I were married. His faith and trust in God is

they would call me to come and get him, and we would not be able to come anymore. I slowly started to go to church on Sundays, still expecting to see our emergency number on the screen indicating I needed to leave the service and see what was happening with Kahlil, but it never appeared.

About three years ago my son Kahlil came to me and wanted to be baptized. He met with Pastor Julie Keith and shared his desire to be baptized because he loves Jesus. He was baptized, and he still remembers that day, which is a help to him on days when he is really struggling. He knows that God is there for him and can help him with any of his struggles.

I have continued to come on Sundays and in the past couple of years have begun to seek opportunities to serve. I served in the nursery for a while and then this past fall, Pastor Julie asked if I would pray about becoming a Discussion Group Leader for Women in the Word. I was hesitant at first, but also knew that God was working and moving in my life to step into this leadership role. I didn’t feel like I was good enough to lead others, but God has shown me that I have things to offer to others. I can listen and pray for them, and this is one of the most important ministries you can have. I have the gift of being able to talk with people and make them laugh. I am learning that I can also have a voice for God. I am thankful for PazNaz and for how I am growing. I have come to a place where I am learning more and more to depend on God and not myself.

Even though PazNaz is a large church, there are many ways to get connected and to grow closer to others. There are many ministries you can become involved in and find ways to serve and grow in your relationship with God and become who God wants you to be.

- Lisa Herron

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I had always been a person who needed to be in control

of things and fiercely independent. This is how I lived

my life in response to certain situations and circumstances

I have found myself. Now, I am learning how to

surrender to God and live in each moment.

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and through the experience of sanctification. He helped me come to a place of giving my life completely to Jesus and letting the Holy Spirit direct my life.

One important issue became settled about how I would serve the Lord. I did not want to be a pastor/minister. If that was to be the case, I did not want to do so in the Church of the Nazarene. I felt comfortable in the Presbyterian Church and believed I could serve Jesus there. Guess what? I had to settle that issue very quickly. It was great to have peace with Jesus and the Church of the Nazarene.

After my discharge from the Air Force in July 1964, I headed to Pasadena College, believing that was where the Lord wanted me to go. If I was to be a minister, I needed an

y birth was an answer to the prayers of my mother and father. After the birth of my sister, who is eleven years older, my mother was told she could not have any more children. She and my father pled

with Jesus for years before they received assurances that she could bear another child. She pledged that if it were a boy, he would be dedicated to the Lord’s ministry.

I came four months after the Pearl Harbor bombing. Mom and dad had two more sons within 2 and 3 years of my arrival. Needless to say, we were all dedicated to the Lord, and mom did her best to instruct and discipline us to the best of her ability.

We were preacher’s kids, third generation Nazarene, reared in Idaho and Oregon. We experienced the generosity of people who loved the Lord and who were also in financially tough times, as was the rest of the world during the Forties and Fifties.

However, I was just a nominal Christian and rebellious in what I wanted to do. As soon as I got out of high school, I went into the military to have a job and to get away from home.

I spent four years with the Air Force as an Air Police officer. I was stationed in California and Goose Bay, Labrador. I became a Christian during the last part of my enlistment. My mother prayed with me, and I became a Christian, trusting God to do the work he promised. Some time later, Rev. Clyde Rhone, pastor of a Nazarene church in the Sacramento area and Judy Berry’s father, lead me to

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Psychology, which was finished and granted in 1991. The department gave me space to develop a Chaplain program, in which we have five active chaplains.

The department also went through a really tough time when one of our favorite officers committed suicide. We put together a Peer Counseling program with great professional training and supervision. That program is still an effective tool in the department.

We also developed HOPE, a program for Homeless Outreach and Psychological Evaluation. We teamed officers with Los Angeles County social workers to work on finding resources for fringe people.

I have become focused on knowing Jesus and loving to do what he wants. In many ways, this is a lot like golf. There are a number of swings done on purpose that count to the total score. Those who are very proficient are called “professional” and get paid to show what they do. The rest of us play a game that reflects our skill level. We get upset at many parts of our game, but every once in a while we get a great shot that encourages us to continue playing. We think, “Hey, I can do this game!” I believe that Jesus is involved in our lives daily. We may make decisions that do not produce what we think or thought the end result should be. But Jesus steps in and makes good out of a bad or tough situation, helping us to think and respond to him by thinking “I can do what he wants.”

After becoming an officer, Bob Densford invited me to become part of the tech crew at PazNaz. This was during the end of Pastor Earl Lee’s time as pastor. During Pastor Green’s tenure, I moved to the front row, helping the services move along smoothly and uninterrupted.

Our desire as a tech crew is that you never know that we are there. Our goal is that you hear and respond to the calling of the Lord. We do not want anything to distract your obedience to Jesus.

- Bob Hoyt

Leaving LA Grace took us to Fresno Grace with Carl Baker. I was the Children’s pastor there. After three years there, we were invited by Earl Lee to be the Children’s Pastor in 1980 at PazNaz. This was a time of building on the campus and the biggest, usable space was infamously named the “pit.” It was not the best location for children but, with the help of many people who were educators and administrators, the area became usable. The goal as a church was to develop the rest of the property as soon as possible so that the children could have their own space that were more age appropriate and appealing.

I resigned July 1982 knowing that the Lord was moving me in a different direction in “ministry.” For six months I worked with a neighbor, Mike Ransom, whose children were friends with ours. He was an excellent creative problem solver, and I learned how to fix things with his help. During this time I was putting in applications with law enforcement agencies in the area.

I had begun an application with the LAPD as an officer, but Lou Gallo, a good friend who had helped with the children’s ministry, had just become an officer with Pasadena PD. He gave me an application for Pasadena instead, and I was hired by Pasadena PD on January 13, 1983 and went into the academy at 40-years-old. Needless to say, I was not in the best of shape, but doing ok. I found out very quickly how to get in better shape. It was like going through basic military training again. Three weeks into the program, and after a long run through the hills at Rio Hondo CC, I realized I was in the middle of the group but still with the “young” horses. The Lord helped me to calm down and focus on what needed to be done. I graduated sixth in the class and won the shooting award.

The Police Department allowed me to complete a PhD in Clinical

education. This is from a guy that barely got out of high school. My senior year of high school, I attended summer school, night school, and day school just to graduate. Pasadena College administration was very kind and worked hard to help me learn what I should have in high school, but also helped me to compete and learn at the college level. Every year my grades improved so that I was allowed to attend and graduate from the Nazarene Theological Seminary.

The experience of attending a Christian college and seminary, with professors that loved Jesus, helped me to appreciate the kindness and gentleness with which God does his work in us and through us.

The best part of my time there was meeting and marrying Carolyn. We were in choir together at Bresee Church of the Nazarene. We were married in 1969 and have been on this journey together ever since. God gave us two sons, Rob, born in Kansas City, MO, and D.J., born in Los Angeles where we pastored Los Angeles Grace Church of the Nazarene.

I loved being at LA Grace. It was my first pastorate, coming from an associate position in Salisbury, Maryland. God helped me reach people that were poor and needy. We also were an integrated church. The church members had the challenge of putting up with a white pastor who was learning to help people become self-giving to the church as well as to the community. It was an honor to be their pastor for three and a half years. Carolyn helped start a school for K-6. We also had a preschool, which had been there for ten years. Some people thought we were crazy because this was a “poor” area, and parents could not afford a private school. The opposite was true. IF you provide an excellent education in a safe environment, parents will find a way for their children to attend. When we left, the school had 168 children.

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Noel and Aleli grew up in the Philippines and considered themselves “nominal Christians.” Aleli, while growing up Protestant, describes how their faith became truly real in 1984 when they had a family crisis.

In the Philippines we have helpers that live with us at home. One woman became demon-possessed. An aunt of mine, who was a Christian, actually prayed for our family because she found out that my mom was seeking mediums to fix this problem. My aunt was really horrified and concerned, so she asked a pastor-friend of hers that had a lot of experience in deliverance ministry to help us. That pastor fasted for our family for three weeks and then he came to the house and was able to deliver her. Because

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of this experience, my parents’ eyes were opened, and the pastor led them to the Lord.

Noel, what was your religious experience like as a child?

I grew up Catholic, but I could have been considered a nominal Catholic. My spiritual journey started early, and because I was disillusioned with my religion then, I started looking elsewhere. I delved into Eastern philosophies and mysticism. Eventually I joined a yoga cult, and I was with them for more than seven years. I witnessed my share of occult things, too. For instance, I saw someone levitate—literally! But the thing that this group did to me was that it made me feel like I was better than others because I was in possession of some secret knowledge. After a while I also felt empty and concluded it was no better than religion. I studied broadcast, mass communications in the university. I started working for an ad agency, and it was in one of those early jobs that a co-worker witnessed to me about Christ. At first I wasn’t really interested, but I went to church. I went primarily to socialize and meet girls. But soon I joined a Bible study group and then eventually went to church. This was when the Word of God was planted in me and eventually I accepted the Lord.

Noel and Aleli were married in the Philippines in 1988, and two years later their son, Josiah, was born. He is now 22 and is diagnosed with deafness and autism. Aleli describes their difficult situation and offers testimony to the Lord’s strength and faithfulness in their challenge.

Josiah was three days old when the doctors said that he might not live because he had turned black and blue. Because he was born premature, he had to have an exchange transfusion; he has sepsis in his blood. It was heart-breaking because we couldn’t bring him home after delivery. I never prayed like I prayed that day when I found out. It sparked my crying out to the Lord. I’d never experienced that before. This was a turning point for me. And for all the subsequent

years, I’ve just been crying out to the Lord for everything. This level of prayer brought me closer to him, and I still want that. There’s nothing else. Many times I’ve cried to him and gotten angry, and I would question, “Why? Why is this happening?” especially when he (Josiah) has challenging behavior. But I think it’s also the strength I get from my family. I know I have family praying for me. All my family are Christians, so whenever I have problems, I would always call them in the Philippines, and they would lift us up in prayer. Here in the States, there is no one else I could run to for support except In His Image. This ministry has been a great help by bringing us together with other families in the same situation. Over the years, there’s a grieving process that goes on. When we see our friends’ kids, the ones who are the same age as Josiah, now finished with college, we say, “Oh, he’s still Josiah.” So there’s a grieving that takes place. But then we comfort ourselves when Noel and I look at each other and say, “This is a blessing.” It reminds me of the song, ‘Blessing That We Don’t See.’ He has changed our lives in so many ways, and I don’t know if I would be as close to the Lord without Josiah. I think God has used him in that sense. I don’t have any regrets having him; I always thank God each time.

Noel, how is God helping meet

your needs, and how do you see him working currently in your life?

Our current challenges are mostly about our son, Josiah. He will be done with school this December and will transition to an adult day program in January. We are praying and trusting God that he would lead us to the right program for our son.

As for me, I am hoping to finally be able to find work when Josiah settles into his day program. It was next to impossible to hold a regular job for the last three years with all the early days and extended breaks from his school, which were brought about by state budgets cuts, and the time I had to be available for doctor visits, etc. I am also hopeful that my event photography and video coverage business will grow bigger this year. I am praying that the Lord will continue to inspire Aleli in her work teaching children. She has been doing this for many years, drawing strength and joy from the Lord. She also teaches piano to kids, and we are hoping the Lord will provide her more students. God has met these challenges as he reveals more of himself to me on a regular basis. He is indeed our Provider, Healer, and so much more. But most of all, he is our Father and his love is manifest in our lives daily. It is this love that compels me and Aleli to go through life knowing that he is not just waiting for us in heaven, but is very much with us in our journey.

I thank God for ministry partners

like Noel, Aleli, and Josiah. They are a family that has shown me by example how to “in everything give thanks…,” and “bless the Lord at all times,” and to “continually praise him in all circumstances.” Thank you, Noel, Aleli, and Josiah, for your ministry to all of us.

- Pastor Alan De Vries