“When I retired, I wasn’t sure what the next step was,” said Ed Lewis, who recently retired after 47 years of ministry with Momentum Ministry Partners (formerly CE National) and relocated to Hawaii. “I had to think through my purpose, and I came to the same conclusion…my life purpose is to be on mission for Christ and to be a catalyst for believers to live that way.”
Ed spent time reflecting on the verse “And He died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for Him who died for them and was raised again” (2 Corinthians 5:15). “I knew that no matter what I needed to do something with my life that would help me live for Jesus,” he said.
Ed went to Hawaii with three goals: “to mentor someone in outreach and evangelism, to train believers in starting outreaches, and to develop points of light for reaching lost people.” He connected with two Charis Fellowship churches on the island of O’ahu that he was familiar with to see how he could help. He now attends and collaborates with both Grace Fellowship Hawaii in Waipahu (Ted Kirnbauer, lead pastor) and Waipio Grace Brethren Church in Mililani (Frank Figueroa, lead pastor).
Through Grace Fellowship, Ed connected with Joel Burbage who recently quit his job to pursue evangelism full-time. Ed began mentoring Joel, and together they pursue and lead outreach and ministry initiatives. They have developed a training program, called School of F.I.S.H. (friendly, initiate, story, hope), for teaching believers how to connect with non-believers. So far two groups have completed the program.
Through their initiative called Westside Alive, Ed and Joel are developing points of light where they
can reach lost people. It started in the yard of Ed’s apartment in Nanakuli as a partnership with the School of F.I.S.H. and local churches to reach that community as well as the homeless population in O’ahu. They meet weekly for various outreaches like evangelistic Bible studies, kids programs, holiday treat giveaways, and food distribution. These outreaches provide opportunities for believers to share their faith, in both word and deed.
“Christians get stuck because they don’t know where to get started in outreach,” he said, “That’s why I’m passionate about training believers about how to live on mission and offer practice fields where they can learn how to do it.”
Pray for Ed as he continues to mentor, train, and develop while living on mission in Hawaii. Send Ed an encouraging note or ask to be added to his monthly newsletters here.
This story appeared in GraceConnect eNews. To subscribe to the weekly e-newsletter that includes news and information from congregations in the Charis Fellowship, click here.