Article from EMF's Vision for Europe. Italy-UK: Building a mutual partnership for the cause of the Gospel!

This article is taken from EMF's Magazine: Vision for Europe January to April 2013 articles 

 

We have now been back working in Italy for the past four and a half years and are at a point of reflecting on the past years and looking also to the future and how the work of the gospel can be extended in Italy, a nation where 32,000 out of 33,500 communities still have no established evangelical witness.

"Master, we toiled all night and took nothing! But at your word I will let down the nets." Luke 5:5

At times, like Simon Peter, we have felt that we have worked hard all night with no visible result, feeling tired and with no more to give. Yet, like Simon Peter, we have had to learn to keep trusting in the Lord of the harvest, saying: “At your word we will go”. So, one thing that has been of immense support and encouragement to us during these years has been the knowledge that there have been Christians back in the UK faithfully praying for us and caring for us. In the initial stages of our ministry where everything was new, still fragile and in many ways a whirlwind as things were still coming together, we often felt that we didn’t have enough time for the people who were faithfully sustaining us from the UK. They knew a lot about us through prayer letters, but we didn’t always know much about them and how their churches were really doing.

Four and a half years on we feel that in the grace of God we are passing through a more established period. In the beginning we often felt isolated and alone in the fragmented Italian evangelical community. Now, through the work of good men who are trying to overcome this problem in Italy, things are getting better. Italian Ministries was established in 2006 to network together missionaries and missions working in Italy. We now feel part of a wider network of Christian workers passionate about the cause of the Gospel in Italy.

“They signalled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both the boats.” Luke 5:7

Having a more settled, consolidated ministry here has led us in recent months to desire also to consolidate things more with friends and churches back in the UK. We therefore asked EMF if we could have time to visit some of the churches that support us, spending a slightly longer time than usual in them, so as to be able to visit people from the church and speak with the church leaders to update them on our work here in a much more personal way. So in October we had three weeks in the UK, renting a car and doing lots of travelling!

We returned to Italy at the end of October much encouraged, having had opportunity to spend time with many old friends and make new friends too. We had been able to update people and also be updated ourselves on how our friends and churches are that support us. We were able to consolidate relationships and establish new ones. At the end of that unusual deputation we felt that both the boats have been blessed and filled. We thank God for the people in the UK who are partnering with us for the ministry here and without whose help it might not be possible. Thank you for your partnership in the cause of the Gospel in Italy and we would like to mutually partner in prayers and in practice with you in what the Lord is doing through you in the UK.

Stefano & Jennifer Mariotti

Pastor's Fraternal in Sasso Marconi

Tonight we'll have in Sasso Marconi Church the pastor's fraternal of the like-minded churches we cooperate in Bologna.

We'll have a time to plan two joint services in June and July.
The first will be a closing service for the Porterbrook Bologna Campus year and the second the service for the Exch@nge summer camp.
We'll also talk about the church-plant project in Budrio.

We'll dedicate time to pray for each of the 5 churches represented and for one another.

Sunday afternoon meeting in Budrio - Interactive Bible Study

Tomorrow afternoon we'll be with our friends from our village at the Budrio Sunday afternoon meeting & Bible Study.
 
This meeting is held in cooperation with a local group of Christians  from Nuova Vita Church in Bologna who are all living in or near Budrio.
We expect to be about 20 adults plus kids!!!

In this group we study the "Gospel Living" module of Porterbrook,
and tomorrow we'll interact with the 7th unit: "Living now: friendships"!

"Starting from the position that all life is for the Glory of God, this module looks at what it means to live a life for that glory. It will mean loving God and loving others, shaped by the cross and looking to the future glory that we will share with Jesus. Having laid this foundation the module then examines how this impacts daily issues such as decisions, friendship and possessions."

Porterbrook - Bologna Campus plenary session

Today from 3.30 to 7.00 pm we'll have the plenary session of the Porterbrook - Bologna Campus.
The meeting will be held in San Lazzaro Church and we expect about 25 students
from 5 different churches in Bologna.

We'll continue the third module and students will discuss their assignment for the first module of the 3rd volume foundation course.

The third module is A Global Commitment, taught by Gianluca Derudas, co-pastor of Nuova Vita Church.

In this session, students will interact with these units:
1. The love of God for the whole world
2. The local church brings the Gospel of God to the whole world
3. Foundations and partnerships in the New Testament

The goal of this module is to illustrate the relationship between global mission and local church,
to understand the challenges local churches are facing when approaching global mission,
to help local churches to be part of global mission.


The first module is Gospel Change, taught by Mark Brucato, co-pastor of Nuova Vita Church.

"Bridging the gap between what we are and what we ought to be is one of God‘s great interests, and it ought to be ours as well. We need to change. A shepherd‘s role is to help others change. Therefore it is critical that we understand how change takes place in our own lives and in the lives of those around us. This module looks at how the Gospel helps us to change. You will look at issues around repentance, faith, the head and heart and how the Bible, prayer and community relate to Gospel change. You will also take an in depth look at the issue of holiness – what it is and how it expresses itself in relationships, conversation and thankfulness."

Literature Stand @ San Lazzaro weekly market

Tomorrow morning from 9.30 to 11.30 am we'll be at the weekly market in San Lazzaro with the church's Literature Stand.

We'll offer free Bibles in many 

languages and Christian literature.

 

Pray that the Lord will bring people interested to know more about Him and His Word!

 

Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.

Psalm 119:105 (ESV)

Prayer Meeting - Transformed Lives

Tonight we'll have our monthly prayer meeting in church.       This month we'll have a special meeting dedicated to the           "Vite Trasformate" ("Transformed Lives") ministry in Bologna. Ruth & Priscilla will present their work in Bologna with ladies from the streets and how Jesus has the power to freeing them and transform their lives.

My Space Trip @ Bologna's hills

Today we'll leave with the My Space group of teens for a trip on the hills around Bologna.

We'll stay in a country house and we'll have time for games, fun and a
Rock Solid Bible Study.

The theme for these two days will be:
Give in a Christ-like way!

Because we can trust God to stick with us and give us what we really need, then we should also
follow His example and give to help people around us!


To explore more this theme, tonight we'll watch the movie: "Slumdog Millionaire"

Thinking about the story of Jamal and Latika, we'll reflect on: “What does it take to find a lost love?"

This we'll help us to think about God's love that found us when we were lost!

 

Apologies

We are really sorry, but it seems that all the pictures and our videos from YouTube have gone!
We'll try to sort out and see what it's possible to fix!

YfC Conference & Sunday Service in Trento

Tomorrow Ester, Stefano & Jenny will be in Trento for a training weekend.

In the morning Ester & Stefano will speak to a group of
youth leaders and parents of teenagers coming from different churches in the Trento area.

In the afternoon Stefano will give an interactive talk to a group of youth leaders and high-school teachers about how to prepare school projects aiming to reach-out Italian teens.

Later we'll all train youth leaders to prepare a Rock Solid programme for a My Space club for Christian & non-Christian teens.

In the evening we'll all help the local youth leaders
to run a Rock Solid Bible Study where Christian teens
will invite their friends.

The theme will be "Skool Daze" and the aim will be
to bring hope to those kids for whom school life is difficult
and challenge to those for whom school is enjoyable.
For both groups the invitation is the same:
Jesus calls us to build our life in His Solid Rock,
so to live our school years for His Glory and to testify His Name!

On Sunday Stefano will preach to the main church Chiesa Evangelica di Trento.

The sermon will be on:
"The story of two rebel teens and their unusual dad" from Luke 15:1-2, 11-32

A meal with the Gideons

Tonight we'll join other pastors and church leaders to the annual meal organized by the Gideons.

It will be an opportunity to be informed about the activities realized by the local Gideons in the schools, hotels, hospitals, prisons and army barracks of Bologna.

Internationally Bibles and New Testaments are personally distributed by members of The Gideons International to these groups:

• Students in the 5th grade and above
• Prisoners and police, fire, medical and military personnel
• Anyone else Gideons witness to individually

God's Word is placed in key locations, including:

• Hotels and motels
• Hospitals, convalescent homes, medical offices and domestic violence shelters
• Prisons and jails

Sunday afternoon meeting in Budrio - Interactive Bible Study

Tomorrow afternoon we'll be with our friends from our village at the Budrio Sunday afternoon meeting & Bible Study, which this week will be in our home.

This meeting is held in cooperation with a local group of Christians  from Nuova Vita Church in Bologna who are all living in or near Budrio.
We expect to be about 20 adults plus kids!!!

In this group we study the "Gospel Living" module of Porterbrook, 
and tomorrow we'll interact with the 7th unit: "Living now: friendships"!

"Starting from the position that all life is for the Glory of God, 
this module looks at what it means to live a life for that glory. 
It will mean loving God and loving others, shaped by the cross 
and looking to the future glory that we will share with Jesus. 
Having laid this foundation the module then examines how this impacts daily issues such as decisions, friendship and possessions."

Series: the 7 "I am" sayings of Jesus Christ - 2 "I am the light of the world"

Tomorrow Stefano will continue the series
on the 7 "I am" sayings of Jesus in the
Gospel of John engaging with John 8:12:
"I am the light of the world"

To introduce this sermon we'll interact with 

the question: "Do you fear the dark?"



 These will then be the two main points of the sermon:

1. Do you fear the dark or the light?

2. Do you walk in darkness or to follow the light?

Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, 

"I am the light of the world. 

Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, 

but will have the light of life."

John 8:12 (ESV)

Home-groups Prayer Meeting

Tomorrow night we'll have our monthly

Home-groups Prayer Meeting.

During this meetings we pray for World Evangelism, and
for the missionary work in Senegal in which we are involved.
We pray for Italy and our region Emilia-Romagna and
for the cooperation we have with different churches in
the Bologna Area and for the outreach activities we have.

This month we'll pray specifically for the Food-Bank project we are setting up with other evangelical churches in the Bologna Area in cooperation with the national agency OCEPAD (Italian acronym of "For all things are possible with God" Mark 10:27).
As Christians we want to show God's love in serving the needy in Bologna.

This month we'll also pray specifically for the Persecuted Church in Uzbekistan.

From Operation World:
Expatriate Christians serving the Lord in Uzbekistan have almost all been expelled 
and foreign agencies shut down – a mixed blessing as it forces the indigenous Church 
to unite, mature and stand firm. 
Pray that those whom the Lord has called 
to minister to Uzbeks might find ways and places to serve them and win them to Christ. 
Only a small fraction of the Muslim majority have ever had the opportunity to hear the gospel.

 

My Space Bologna - planning meeting!

Tomorrow evening we'll have a meeting of the YfC volunteers staff to have a feedback of the last months of the My Space Club and to plan the next activities.

We'll plan especially the next My Space trip on the hills surrounding Bologna with a sleepover in a country farm house.

In the evening we are planning to watch the movie
Slamdog Millionaire and to discuss with kids about
"being lost" and who can redeem us from our "lost-ness".

 

YfC - Schools Work - Tomorrow High School Aldini

Tomorrow from 12 pm to 14pm, Stefano, Jennifer and Marco will be at the Aldini High School for a School Project.

This time we'll interact with two classes on the topic of addiction.

We'll engage teens to think about : 

Food addiction, Substances addiction (including alcohol and smoking),  
Sex addiction (including Porn addiction), 
Media addiction (including TV, mobiles, computer games, social networks), 
Gambling and Shopping addiction.

Then we'll challenge them to see that behind every addiction there's always a form of egoistic self-idolatry.

This will be an amazing opportunity for Marco to share with kids about his past addition to drugs and to a wild life style.
Marco will also share with them how Christ renewed his life giving him a "New Start"

We'll then challenge kids to think about 
what they wanna do with their lives:
To "Stand by" their addictions and self-idolatry,
To "Turn Off" their consciences and lives,
or to "ReStart" with Jesus!

My Space - Sharing the Gospel with teens

Tomorrow afternoon Stefano, Jenny, Markino & Letizia
will run the weekly My Space Club for teens.

This week the Rock Solid Bible Study will be: "New Beginnings".

Even when you're a teen you can find yourself blocked
in an unchanging situation often caused by your own
bad attitude or habits (that the Bible calls sin).
In this session we will look at the joy and hope of new starts and second chances and how in Christ we can live a totally new life!

Wouldn’t it be great if we could just start again every time we get something
wrong? If we could go back to all the times we have said hurtful things to other
people and not say them.

The Good  News is that Jesus gives us a
"Second Chance" because in Him the old
has passed away and the new has come.

"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ,
he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation."

2 Corinthians 5:1-18 (ESV)

To develop this theme we'll interact with the Disney's movie:  The Emperor's New Groove

 

Soli Deo Gloria - Interdenominational prayer meeting for Bologna

Tomorrow evening we'll host in San Lazzaro Church the Soli Deo Gloria - Interdenominational prayer meeting.

This monthly prayer meeting is organised in various Italian cities
by Kurt Jost, a Swiss-German missionary that operates in Italy working specifically with
literature and evangelism.

This is a really good opportunity for local churches to meet together to pray specifically for the Bologna Area.

Series: the 7 "I am" sayings of Jesus Christ - 2 "I am the resurrection and the life" (Audio Sermon in Italian)

Audio of the sermon in Italian that Stefano preached in the series on the 7 "I am" sayings of Jesus in the Gospel of John
engaging with John 11:1-46

Jesus said: "I am the resurrection and the life.
Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live,
and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die.
Do you believe this?"

John 11:25-26 (ESV) 

 

 

Sunday afternoon meeting in Budrio - Interactive Bible Study

Tomorrow afternoon we'll be with our friends from our village at the Sunday afternoon meeting & Bible Study in Budrio.

This meeting is held in cooperation with a local group of Christians  from Nuova Vita Church in Bologna who are all living in or near Budrio.
We expect to be about 20 adults plus kids!!!

In this group we study the "Gospel Living" module of Porterbrook, 
and tomorrow we'll interact with the 6th unit: "Living now: decisions"!

"Starting from the position that all life is for the Glory of God, 
this module looks at what it means to live a life for that glory. 
It will mean loving God and loving others, shaped by the cross 
and looking to the future glory that we will share with Jesus. 
Having laid this foundation the module then examines how this impacts daily issues such as decisions, friendship and possessions."

Porterbrook - Bologna Campus

Tomorrow from 3.30 to 7.00 pm we'll have the plenary session of the Porterbrook - Bologna Campus.

The meeting will be held in Forte Torre Church and we expect about 25 students
from 5 different churches in Bologna.

We'll continue the third and fourth modules of the 3rd volume foundation course.

The third module is Church History in Missional Perspective, taught by Gianpaolo Aranzulla, pastor of Forte Torre Church.

In this session, students will interact with these units:
3. The Reformation
4. The Anabaptists
5. The Puritans
6. The Great Awakening
7. The modern mission movement

"This module looks at the history of the church over the past 2000 years. Henry Ford once famously asserted that, 'History is bunk'. While such negativity reveals much about the ambitions of the great industrialist, it offers little insight into the nature and purpose of historical study.
The gospel teaches us that God has revealed not only his character, but also his will and purpose for his creation. History must be understood as his-story."


The fourth module is Culture, taught by Stefano.
In this session, students will interact with these units:

7. Music: Lady Gaga - Born This Way (2011)
8. TV: Romanzo Criminale (Italian TV fiction on Rome's in the '70s)
9. Book: The Hunger Games

"The goal of this module is to help students to 'engage with culture' in:
1. Understanding what culture is;
2. Looking at the typical Christian approaches to culture;
3. Exploring how the Gospel interact with culture.

The intention of this module is to help students to analyse their culture in the light of the Gospel. Particular attention will be given to analyse more 'products' (films, novels, etc.) than 'structures' (business, politics, etc.). We want to learn at how to share the Gospel in a more meaningful way
to our own culture. So we'll look at tools that will help us to relate the Gospel in normal conversations at pubs, children's clubs, offices, etc.!"

For these units we'll interact with the following clips: