July / August 2025 — The Gfeller Family

Working in an international culture over the past eight years has taught me a lot about how people from different cultures see the world and interact with one another. Those of us from the west tend to be internally driven and the consequences of failure have more to do with us then the community as a whole.

On the other hand, I’ve noticed that people from eastern cultures tend to think differently. They are more externally driven and worry more about how their actions will affect the whole community. The difference in how we interact with others in many ways stems from whether we perceive our contribution as bringing either guilt or shame.

Guilt is what we feel when we feel individually responsible for outcomes, while shame is what we feel when we feel collectively responsible for outcomes.

Regardless of the cultures we come from it is what we do with our guilt and shame that makes all the difference in creating healthy community. This is why I am so thankful that our churches are currently studying Hebrews together. In the book of Hebrews, we see that in the New Covenant, Jesus has taken our guilt and shame on Himself and once for all brought eternal redemption for those in Christ.

Hebrews 9:12 he entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption.

Regardless of culture, guilt and shame are the results of looking to our contributions, instead of His contribution on our behalf. But by His blood, we have received redemption to live in a way that acts not out of a sense of guilt or shame, but gratefulness and awe.

May we learn to embrace our differences, because even while we were sinners, He embraced us.

Ministry Update

We had a baptism service in June. It was encouraging to see each of these individuals take this step. Some of them started in our Intro to Christianity class last fall and it has been encouraging to see their growth over the past year.

We also held our men’s retreat in June and it was encouraging to see our men stepping in to teach and lead in service in so many different ways during this time.

This same weekend I was able to help referee a soccer tournament designed to proclaim the gospel. It was a joy to be back on the field again supporting Pro 11 Ministries with their Berlin Cup to reach our city for Christ.

With much of our church leadership away over the summer, Cherry and I stayed in Berlin to help oversee ministry in our church through July and August. We are thankful for the culture of serving that has developed in our church that made this work light and for the opportunities for preaching, teaching, and supporting the worship ministry in both churches that this afforded.

We are in preparations for beginning a new season of ministry with studies, classes, and outreach at the church we help lead in Berlin. We are encouraged to see our attendance rising in both our churches over the summer, historically months of lower attendance. Many of those attending were first time visitors, and we are thankful to see many of these visitors returning.

This is also encouraging as we plant a new church on September 7th on the east side of Berlin. We are thankful to have seen a strong leadership team form over the past month and we will commission this group in our service next week. Please pray for them as they go and establish another foot hold for the gospel in an area with no gospel church in the English language.

With the addition of many new families in our churches that God has brought to do gospel work in our city (four families that will work with Turks and one family that will work with Arabs), we can’t help but sense a new wind is blowing in our city for gospel advance. As we enter this season, much of my work (Chad) will be in working to align the churches and workers we help oversee in a way that stewards well the resources we have been given.

Our hope is that with the addition of these workers and more that are coming, we will see more opportunities to see believers built up, and the multiplication of outreach efforts and church plants into different people groups.

Please also pray for Cherry as she will be teaching the women’s Bible study again this fall. Jeannie continues to be a tremendous blessing in this ministry alongside Cherry. Cherry and the girls also continue to work with the children in Potsdam on Sundays, teaching and discipling these kids weekly.

Family Update

We are thankful that we were able to take some time out for a couple weeks in August. The girls had a great visit to South Carolina to see their Gigi and Papa, and Cherry and I were able to get away for a 20th anniversary trip for six days during this time. Cherry and I hosted some close friends and got to meet their little one for the first time:) Gracie had a great time celebrating her birthday with our family in South Carolina and her friends back in Berlin last week. Both girls started school this week, Quinn in 9th grade and Gracie in 8th. They are expecting a challenging year academically. Please pray for them as they start the new school year and that they will grow physically, mentally, and spiritually this year. Our desire is that they would be a light in a dark place to their classmates, teachers, and all those they encounter.

Prayer Update

Please pray for:

Strength and wisdom as a busy season of ministry begins in September.
Healthy churches and workers to continue to be established and fruitful for the expansion of God’s kingdom.
Steadfastness as we move into the second half of this year with school, ministry, and life and that we would continue to grow through the hard things we encounter.