History of UECF — UECF Silver Jubilee Souvenir

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History of UNITED EVANGELICAL CHRISTIAN FELLOWSHIP (UECF)

By Mr. Syam Pilli (Former President of UECF)

“The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.” - Lamentations 3:22-23

INTRODUCTION:

It is indeed a joyful and marvelous occasion to see United Evangelical Christian Fellowship (UECF) celebrating the Silver Jubilee Anniversary! A tiny seed sown prayerfully by the then elders 25 years ago has become a mighty tree, sheltering and shaping many in their spiritual journey along the way.

As a former President of United Evangelical Christian Fellowship (UECF), I consider it a great privilege to present the history of UECF on this august occasion of celebrating 25 glorious years of God’s faithfulness. Established as an inter-denominational Asian-Indian church in central New Jersey, UECF has grown into a well-known Christian organization. Over the years, God has blessed this church so much that the four letters – U E C F have become well known in all the four corners of the world in this internet age. Our hearts are filled with thanksgiving for His grace and mercy upon this church. As Fanny Crosby’s amazing hymn reminds, we give glory, honor and praise to the Lord!

To God be the glory, great things He hath done … Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord, Let the earth hear his voice! Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord! Let the people rejoice!

1. MOTIVATION:

In January 1997, a small group of people felt the need for an inter-denominational fellowship that would fulfill the spiritual needs of the lay Christians in the Central New Jersey region. The idea was to conduct the Sunday worship services without language barriers and maintain the traditions of Indian sub-continent. The intention was to serve the local community and also to bring all the people closer to help the outreach ministries serving the South Asian region.

2. INITIATION:

Initially, Mr. Alfred Bhaskar Damarapu, Mr. Reggie Rao, Mr. Vijay Pulipati, Mr. Ajit Lakra, Mr. Michael Rose, Mr. Ebenezer Mallepalle families put their burden in prayer for few months. They believed that it was God’s will to start a Fellowship and they sought the support of Rev. Dr. David Ravinder to serve as an honorary senior pastor and provide the spiritual leadership. With the help of Pastor David Ravinder, the place for Sunday worship service was obtained.

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Thus, UECF started its first Sunday service on the sixth day of the fourth month of the year nineteen hundred and ninety-seven at the sanctuary of the Community United Methodist Church, located at 301, Chestnut Street, Roselle Park, New Jersey.

3. INCORPORATION:

An application was submitted in April 1997 to the Department of Treasury, Internal Revenue Service (IRS) for Employer status. The IRS sanctioned the application in August 1997 and approved the name United Evangelical Christian Fellowship.

After getting the EIN, an application was filed in September 1997 for New Jersey state recognition and certification of Incorporation as a Nonprofit Organization under federal IRS Code Section 501 (c) (3).

4. CHURCH LOCATION:

UECF does not own a permanent Church building. However, it has been conducting the Sunday worship services at several different locations in New Jersey. Presently, UECF gathers for its Sunday services at First United Methodist Church, 1 East Broad Street, Westfield, NJ - 07090.

For the initial three years, UECF conducted the Sunday worship services at Community United Methodist Church, Roselle Park. In the fourth year, it relocated to New Beginnings Church of the Nazarene located at 80 Jefferson Blvd, Edison. By the end of the year 2002, there was a need to look out for a new location. Upon considering few churches, it was prayerfully decided that New Dover United Methodist Church (NDUMC) in Edison would be a strategic location for the growth of UECF congregation. Thus, UECF worshipped at New Dover United Methodist Church, Edison for five years. In the year 2008, UECF had to relocate to Reformed Church, Metuchen and continued till November 2014. During this time, in order to accommodate larger gatherings, UECF Christmas services were held at First Baptist Church, Metuchen.

Many a times, procuring a Church building was discussed but not seriously pursued to own a building. May God provide a wonderful Church building to UECF in His appointed time!

5. HONORARY PASTORS:

UECF does not have a regular pastor. However, it has a unique arrangement with a team of honorary pastors who brought the word of God on the scheduled Sundays. Rev. Dr. David Ravinder has been serving faithfully as the Senior Honorary Pastor ever since the inception. He takes charge of the fourth Sunday, which is designated as Communion Sunday and serves on Christmas and other special occasions. Rev. Praveen Bunyan served as the first UECF Associate Pastor preaching regularly on three Sundays a month. Rev. Sunil Balasundaram succeeded and has ministered to UECF as an honorary pastor for four and a half years.

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During the fourth year, Rev. Stephen Nash joined as one of the honorary pastors and served for almost 5 years. Rev. David Davis came on board as a guest preacher in June 2003 and later served as an Honorary Pastor through the mid-2011. For the past few years, Rev. Joseph Theophilus and Rev. Stanley Joseph have been filling in for preaching as required.

At one point of time, UECF felt the need for a dedicated regular pastor who would nurture and help in the growth of the congregation. A search Committee consisting of Mr. Alfred Bhasker, Mr. Rajanikantha Rao, Mr. Ajit Lakra, Mrs. Susan Bushi and Mr. Syam Pilli, was formed in September 2001 to examine the alternatives. Considering the prevailing financial situation of UECF, it was opined that it may not be feasible to have a regular pastor.

6. GENERAL BODY MEETINGS AND ELECTIONS:

The first General Body meeting was held on June 4, 1997, for which all the local Christians were invited. In this meeting, a draft Constitution and by-laws prepared by Mr. Alfred Bhaskar were presented and approved. The first team of leaders who were elected in this General Body meeting included - President: Mr. Alfred Bhaskar, Secretary: Mr. Rajani Kantha Rao, Treasurer: Mr. Ebenezer Mallepalle, Board of Trustees Members: Mr. Ajit Lakra, Mr. Michael Rose, Mrs. Udaya Pulipati and Mr. Joel Dadepogu. Rev. Dr. David Ravinder was nominated by the general body to be the Honorary Sr. Pastor & Spiritual Advisor.

In the second annual General Body meeting held in August 1999, the vacant positions were filled in. The third General Body meeting was held in September 2000, and new office bearers were elected.

In the General Body meeting held in September 2001, Mr. Ajay Damarapu was elected as President and Mr. Syam Pilli was elected as the Vice President. However, during the General Body meeting held on 23rd June 2002, Mr. Ajay Damarapu announced his resignation. Consequently, Mr. Syam Pilli resumed the responsibilities of the President.

In the year 2003, the Constitution By-Laws were amended and approved to include Pastorate Committee in addition to the Board of Trustees. At the end of the tenure of previous leadership, new leaders were elected for a 3-year term in the General Body meeting held on 22nd February 2004. Later, in 2007 a new body was elected with Joshua(Phani) Pilli as the President. For the last fifteen years, Joshua Pilli has been serving as the President of UECF with utmost dedication.

Apr 1997 – Sep 2000

Mr. Alfred Bhaskar

Sep 2000 – Sep 2001

Mr. Ebenezer Mallepalle

Sep 2001 – Oct 2002

Mr. Ajay Damarapu

Oct 2002 – Feb 2004

Mr. Syam Pilli (Acting President)

Feb 2004 – Feb 2007

Mr. Syam Pilli

Feb 2007 – Present

Mr. Joshua(Phani) Pilli

PRESIDENTS AND TENURES

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7. GUEST PREACHERS:

In addition to the honorary pastors, many servants of God have graced UECF with the powerful messages. Itinerant Preachers like Acharya R. R. K. Murthy, Dr. Ramesh Richard, Heads of Christian organizations such as Mr. Joshua Daniel, Dr. Sunil Bhanu Busi, Rev. Samuel Schmitthenner; and Theological College Professors including Dr. B. C. Paul, Dr.Augustine Pagolu, Rev. Dr. Daniel Jeyaraj, Dr. Victor Luther Paul Nakka and Dr. Vasantharao Chilkuri have spiritually enriched the UECF congregation.

Renowned TV evangelists from India such as Dr. M. S. Santhavardhan, Dr. Paul Dhinakaran, Dr. A. B. Joseph Kishore, Dr. P. Joshi, Dr. John Wesly, Dr. P. J. Stephen Paul, Dr. T. D. Prasanna Kumar, Bro. Abraham, Bro. Paul Emmanuel, Dr. Devasahayam Dandala, Rev. K. Kurian, Pastor Moses Choudary, Rev. Solomon Raju Kunchanapalli, Bro.Vincent Gurrala, Rev. Dr. Timothy Kollabathula, Dr. Ranga Raju, Bro. Daniel Mylabathula and Bro. Harry Gomes have inspired with the powerful messages time and again. God’s servants like Dr. Akbar Haqq, Bro. Anil Kumar and Rev. Naveen Balakrishnan have encouraged and challenged the attendees with the word of God through Revival meetings.

The bishops who have shared the word of God included Bishop Stanley Downs, Bishop Sudarshana Devadhar, Bishop Spurgeon Raju Pachigalla, Bishop Kishore Daroga and Bishop Daniel Kalyanapu. The guest preachers list also contains the well- known servants of God such as Rev. Azariah Korabandi, Dr. Livingson Gadde, Dr. Joe Madhu Payarda & Dr. Jessie Veena Payarda, Dr. Yesupadam Bandela, Bro. Edward William Kuntam, Dr. Samuel Mohanraj and Bro. Herford Urlica. Many God’s servants such as Bro. Santha Rao Bhogi, Bro. Michael Vijaya Kumar, Pastor Barnabas Sajja, Bro. Deevanaiah and Bro. Samuel Peter Gollapalli have visited and inspired by sharing their strong testimonies.

Other servants of God who visited and shared the Word includes Rev. Varakumar Lam, Bro. Devaraju Jakki, Rev. John Sunder Earla, Rev. DJM Vinod, Rev. D. C. Daniel Babu, Pastor Israel Chokka, Pastor Sharath Bhushan, Bro. Sunny Joseph Mylabathula, Pastor Philip Nethagani, Pastor Rajendra Dutt, Pastor K. Dinesh, Rev. Devadanam Gummadi, Bro. Kamal Manik, Rev. Victor Raj, Rev.Jospeh Moses, Pastor Geomon George, Rev. Sean Callihan, Sis. Jacky Ford, Bro. Charles Kalyana Rao, Bro.Venkat Potana, Rev. Bhakthavathsaladas Ravoori, Sis. Elizabeth Vallabhaneni, Sis. Esther Rani, Bro. Christopher Rokkala, Bro. J S A Julius, Bro. Mitra Satuluri, Pastor Kiran Kadapaka, Pastor Ebenezer Mallepalle, Dr. Samson Gandhi, Bro. Praveen Pagadala, Bro. Krish Dhanam, Bro. Kumardas Villuri, Pastor Chaitanya Gera, Pastor Ratna Raju Ganta, Pastor Joseph Manoj Kumar, Rev. Joseph Benny Govada, Rev. Philip Nethagani, Pastor Jayaraju Madey, Dr. Pramod Joshua Burns, Bro. Madhav Bellamkonda and Pastor Ravi Bhaskar.

Host church Pastors that include Rev.Tom Sanders, Rev. Bob Costello Rev. Darryl Duer, Rev. Dr. Richard Ruch and Rev. Peter Sanfilippo, Rev. Dr. David Mertz also ministered to UECF occasionally. For a specific period, Rev. Anna Bhujbal ministered to UECF mainly on fifth Sundays and also on all possible occasions.

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Rev. Richard Bailey, a Missionary from Pakistan; Rev. Rafael Flores & Pastor John Carricks, Missionaries from Paraguay; Mr. Billy & Mrs. Joanna Coppedge, Missionaries to Uganda have shared the Word.

Popular Gospel Singers and Evangelists have visited several times and presented special music and also shared the word. The noted Gospel singers include Dr. John Bilmoria Rapaka, Dr. Bhanu Murthy Nainala, Bro. William Carey, Bro. Benni Prasad, Bro. Lazarus, Mrs. Mahitha Charles Pilli, Dr. Jacob Prabhu, Bro. Daniel Akumarthi, Bro. Dayanidhi Rao, Bro. Raj Prakash Paul, Bro. John Moses Dusi, Bro. K Y Ratnam and Vijay Benedict.

In the recent years on certain Sunday services word was shared by some of the UECF church members including Bro. Josaiah Srigiri, Bro. Sunil Robert Vuppula and Bro. Praveen Charles Dhara. Several other servants of God that visited, preached and encouraged UECF during the past twenty-five years could not be listed here due to space constraints.

8. SUNDAY WORSHIP SERVICES:

UECF worship services generally started at 5:30 PM Sunday, for many years. Recently, the start time has changed to 4:30 PM. The order of Service is in English. The typical Sunday service includes Praise & Worship, sharing the joys and concerns, testimonies, intercessory prayers, special music and a Message. Even though UECF does not strictly follow any lectionary specifically, the services follow the traditions of Covenant Sunday and service of Carols & Lessons.

Singing in regional languages:

Praising the Lord with songs and hymns has always been the important part of UECF Sunday Worship Service. Praise songs have been sung in English and also in different regional languages such as Telugu and Hindi. In addition to the standard instruments like Organ, Piano and guitar, many Indian musical instruments such as Harmonium, Tabla, Tambourine and Congo drums have been used to bring out special music.

Many musicians have offered their talents and supported the music ministry. The list of musicians includes Mr. Sushil Bhujbal, Mr. Samuel Sudhakar Chilaka, Mr. Josiah Srigiri, Mr. Nishanth Dwaram, Mrs. Suneela Ponnapalli, Mr. Simon Bushi, Dr. Gurunadham Moodey, Mr. Carol Daniel Jokmels, Mr. Junia Moses, Mr. Sunil Robert, Mr. Spurgeon Perikala, James & Jacob brothers, Mr. Peter Kollory, Mr. Arun Kolluri, Mr. Steven Perumalla, Mr. Thomas Kalyanapu, Mrs. Sinai Dadepogu, Mrs. Emily Sensen Gopal and Ms. Yuko Unehara.

9. INTERCESSORY PRAYERS:

Apostle Paul’s letter to the church at Philippi reminds - in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. The intercessory prayer time has been a great opportunity for the congregation to instantaneously share their joys, concerns and other needs of the family and friends and to offer prayers.

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COMMUNION SUNDAY: Holy Communion is administered on the fourth Sunday of every month and is celebrated as an open communion.

10. SUNDAY SCHOOL & YOUTH MINISTRY:

Sunday school has played a vital role in the growth of UECF. Families have firmly believed in Proverbs 22:6 which states “Train up the child in the way he should go, when he is old he will not depart from it”, while inculcating children with the word of God from the very beginning.

Sunday School has been conducted regularly during the Service to both beginners and other age groups(up to 12 years). Sunday School teachers have been following a yearly curriculum in nurturing children with the Word of God. Later, VBS courses also started, and children have enthusiastically participated. Kids of different age groups exhibited their talents on all possible special occasions.

Children were always excited to take part in the activities such as Sunday school retreats, Junior Bible Quiz (JBQ) tournaments, dramas, skits and group dances. Sunday School children also had the opportunity to visit the orphanages and share their love. Over a period of time, as the children have grown along with UECF, youth ministry has emerged prominently to help equip the youth with the necessary tools from God’s Word and to lay the right foundation for the rest of life.

11. BIBLE STUDY:

Group Bible study has been conducted on the second Friday of every month from 8:00 to 9:30 PM. Initially, members used to gather at their homes for group Bible Studies. Later, they started gathering at Church premises, as the location is more convenient. Lay persons had a wonderful opportunity to lead the study on all the Books of Old Testament and New Testament. The Bible studies were also based on the pre-selected topics.

During the COVID19 pandemic, the Bible Studies were conducted online via Zoom on Fridays. Sis. Santha Mondithoka & Bro. Sudhakar Mondithoka, Bro. Ranganadh Bomidi and Dr. Ratna Bomidi, Bro. Madhav Bellamkonda and Bro. Sai Krishna Gomatam led the Bible studies virtually, and these helped people remotely login, enrich and enjoy the discussions on various topics.

12. HOME PRAYER MEETINGS:

Lenten Cottage Prayer meetings: Lenten Cottage prayer meetings take place on Fridays for six weeks during the Lent season. Congregation members always volunteered to open their homes to have Lenten cottage prayer meetings. Honorary pastors, guest preachers and lay people have led the Lenten devotions.

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Some of the members fast during the lent meditation time and generally these meetings end with fellowship meal. During this season, members express their love by contributing the canned food to the community food banks.

For the last few years, Pastor David Ravinder has been using the series of Ray Vander Laan’s video series for leading Lenten meetings. People of all ages so enthusiastically participated in the quizzes via Zoom.

Praying for the sick: UECF congregation, as one body shared not only the joys and butalso sorrows of the other members. Families fast and pray whenever someone in the congregation is sick.

Prayer Fellowships: In the recent past, Women’s Prayer Fellowship has started to bring women into more intimate relationship with God. These meetings take place on the fourth Friday of every month. Similarly, Men’s Prayer Fellowship also started and meets every last Friday of the month.

13. CHRISTMAS CAROLING:

Christmas caroling has been a wonderful opportunity both for the adults and kids to actively participate and enjoy the Christmas season. UECF has been following the door-to-door Christmas caroling tradition during this season. A special initiative was under taken in 2002 by visiting 36 homes. This number has been increasing year after year. Generally, caroling starts in the first week of December. Carolers sing in different languages and share the joy through music and dance. Families show their hospitality by welcoming the carolers and offer cheerfully. God has been faithful in guiding the carolers in the snowy season and protecting them from the chilly winter winds.

14. SPECIAL FESTIVALS & CELEBRATIONS:

CHRISTMAS: UECF has been celebrating Christmas every year on 25th December with gladness and joy. The Christmas gatherings have been increasing progressively. Many families and friends not only from USA but also from Canada and India joined the UECF Worship Services. Christmas celebrations included spirit filled messages, Holy Communion, special music, children’s special programs and conclude with Christmas banquets. In the recent years, UECF Christmas celebrations have been covered by Indian TV news channels.

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WATCH NIGHT SERVICE:

UECF’s first watch night service started in the year 2002. Seventy seven people including children gathered at United Methodist Church, Union on 31st night of 2002 to welcome the New Year in God’s presence. The following year, a combined watch night service was celebrated along with the multi-ethnic congregation from International Family Church of New Jersey (IFCNJ) congregation lead by Rev. Ashish Bhatnagar.

It has been a blessing to start every New Year with prayer and Holy Communion. Watch Night service includes testimony time, candle lighting, special music and a New Year message. God’s Promise Cards, Bible reading Planners and New Year calendars were distributed during Watch Night service every year.

GOOD FRIDAY SERVICE:

In the past, UECF joined the similar congregations and participated in Good Friday Meditation services. As per the growing needs, UECF started their Good Friday meditation Service in the year 2007. Along with the pastors, lay Christians also led the meditation on each of the seven words spoken by Jesus on the cross.

EASTER SUNRISE SERVICE:

In the initial years, it was a practice for the UECF to join Pastor Ravinder’s United Methodist church congregation every year for Easter Sunrise service. This facilitated UECF to have an opportunity to participate and rejoice in the combined Easter Sunrise Services at the United Methodist Church at Berkeley Heights and also at Community United Methodist Church, Roselle. However, this practice was discontinued in 2009 and UECF started celebrating Easter sunrise services in the local church.

THANKSGIVING:

UECF celebrates Thanksgiving on the Sundays just before the fourth Thursday of November every year. In the year 2002, many local groups were invited for Thanksgiving service. Apart from UECF choir, other groups also presented special music. This trend continued as the years progressed. Families donate items for auction. The proceedings of the thanksgiving auctions are generally designated to a specific cause every year.

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CHILDREN’S CHRISTMAS: Children enjoy the special opportunity to celebrate Children Christmas in which they show their talents. Usually, children perform the Nativity play or Christmas pageants or Choreography during this time.

WOMEN’S CHRISTMAS:

During the Christmas season, women separately celebrate Women’s Christmas with sharing of word and also have some fun filled activities.

WOMEN’s RETREAT: Women’s retreat has been organized for the past few years both in-person and virtually. Sis. Ruth Jeremiah, Sis. Mercy Runjala, Sis. Santha Mondithoka shared the powerful messages and encouraged women folks.

MOTHER’S DAY: In the year 2003, Mother’s Day celebration got boosted by specially honoring the 19 mothers by their sons and daughters in a grand manner. This trend continued with much enthusiasm in the following years. Generally, the UECF men folk prepare a delicious meal in honor of the mothers.

FATHER’S DAY: Complementing Mother’s Day, Father’s Day also gets celebrated by honoring the dads on the third Sunday of June every year.

MINISTRY IN OTHER STATES

Apart from the regular activities, UECF joins the similar congregations and participates in the church anniversaries and other special events. Every year, UECF choir joins United Telugu Christian Fellowship of Virginia (UTCFVA) to lead worship at Annual Christian Family Conference in Virginia. Many a time, UECF choir sang at the churches in the neighboring states including New York, Connecticut and Delaware.

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15. SPECIAL MEETINGS:

REVIVAL MEETINGS:

A two-day Revival meeting was held in the year1998 marking the first Anniversary of UECF. Dr. Akbar Haqq, a distinguished evangelist was the guest speaker for these revival meetings. The local churches and UTCFNY participated in the meetings. During the year 2002, UECF supported and participated in the Revival meetings hosted by the Church of the Nazarene at which Rev. Dr. Joshua Daniel was the speaker.

3-Day Revival meetings were held from 28th - 30th October 2005. Rev. Naveen Balakrishnan, a faithful servant of God, delivered a series of powerful messages. This series included the inspiring topics such as Salvation, Supplication, Sanctification, Scripture and Sharing. Many of the fellow Christians from neighboring areas attended the meetings and were spiritually uplifted by the messages. The Revival meetings left such an impact on those who attended that some of them started reading the Bible regularly 4 chapters-a-day as suggested by Rev. Naveen Balakrishnan. Thereafter, revival meetings have been organized occasionally for spiritual refreshing and edification.

GOSPEL MEETINGS:

3-day special gospel meetings with Bro. Anil Kumar were conducted in the first week of June 2006. During these meetings, the sanctuary was packed with a large gathering of over 250 people. Crowds were drawn from not only New Jersey but also from the neighboring states. These meetings left enduring impressions in the minds of those who attended.

10TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION

UECF’s 10th Anniversary was celebrated in a grand manner from 26th to 28th of October 2007. Various churches and fellowships around the region have participated in these 3-day programs in which Rev. Naveen Balakrishnan and Rev. Solomon Raju Kunchanapalli delivered powerful messages. A group of singers from Maryland presented special music apart from local groups. Children performed special choreography. All the previous executive leaders and their families were honored with special recognition for their services.

To mark the 10-year milestone, a Souvenir was released by Rev. Samuel Schmitthenner, former President of Andhra Evangelical Lutheran Church (AELC). The Souvenir contains congratulatory letters from various dignitaries including the local Senators, Congressmen, Mayor and eminent Servants of God.

15TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION:

UECF’s 15th Anniversary was celebrated on 1st &2nd December 2012. Dr. Ramesh Richard, a renowned spiritual philosopher was the keynote speaker of this celebration, and a souvenir was released on this occasion.

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20TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION: UECF celebrated 20 years of God’s goodness and faithfulness on 28th & 29th October, 2017. The theme for the celebration was “Rejoice”, chosen from 1 Thessalonians 5:16. Rev. Dr. Joe Madhu & Rev. Dr. Jessy Veena served as the keynote speakers.

25 SILVER JUBILEE CELEBRATION: UECF’s 25 th Anniversary is planned to be celebrated on 29 th & 30 th of October 2022 with Dr. Christopher Perumalla as the keynote speaker. The theme for the silver jubilee celebration is chosen as “To God be the glory”.

16. MARRIED COUPLES MEETINGS:

The Married Couples meetings are usually held on the 4th Saturday of every month in various homes that are pre-decided. Couples discuss and debate on various topics that are very practical and use the Bible as a guiding tool. Rev. Dr. David Ravinder & Mrs. Sarita Ravinder have been actively leading this ministry from the beginning. A coordinator takes care of these meetings by inviting and making potluck dinner arrangements. This group enjoys the beach picnics

occasionally.

17. MISSIONS & OUTREACH:

Missions and outreach have played a noble part in UECF’s work. In keeping with the greatest commission given by our Savior Jesus Christ – Go ye into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature (Mark 16:15), UECF has started actively distributing gospel tracts and Jesus DVDs on regular basis in the recent past. As part of local community support, UECF families visit old age homes on monthly basis and express their love towards the older adults.

As an evangelical Christian fellowship, UECF is committed to evangelism. Over the years, UECF has supported the gospel work and also helped and supported the poor and needy through numerous ministries in India and other countries. Whenever natural calamities occurred, UECF rose to the situation and contributed towards the relief efforts and helped the victims through the associated ministries.

18. SOCIAL & CULTURAL EVENTS:

UECF families actively participate in the following social and cultural events: India Independence Day Parade:

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In the year 2005, India Independence Day parade was organized for the first time in New

Jersey. UECF families took part in this secular event, which was held on14th August 2005. It

was a great experience to hold the UECF banner along with Tricolor flags and marching on

Oak Tree Road. This certainly helped UECF in spreading awareness in the neighborhood.

Subsequently, UECF has been actively participating in the India Independence Day parades

and leverage the occasion in distributing gospel tracts and Jesus DVDs. Some of the UECF’s

parade pictures were selected to be exhibited in the ‘Beyond Bollywood’ section of

Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History located in Washington DC.

UECF FAMILY PICNICS:

UECF annual family picnics are filled with lots of fun

and plenty of food along with the spiritual food. Families

and friends get together and enjoy the picnics

organized in famous Parks of New Jersey such as

Colonial Park, Johnson Park, Roosevelt Park and

Cheese Quake Park.

All age groups right from children to seniors take part

in number of activities like Bible quizzes, Bibliola (a popular UECF activity), play a variety of

games such as Tug of war, Strawberry catching, Egg throwing, musical chairs, water balloons

for children, dumb charades, Guess picture drawing, Cricket, Tennis and boat riding.

19. FELLOWSHIP TIME:

The fellowship time has been very helpful in bringing

cohesion among the congregation. UECF families have

always enjoyed hosting Fellowship hour after each

Sunday service with delicious Indian style home made

food while celebrating their birthdays and anniversaries.

Congregation volunteer to sign-up Fellowship hour

roaster, generally placed on the notice board or over

internet.

All the special occasions like Baby showers, graduation celebrations, Bridal showers, wedding

receptions and Thanksgiving services were always followed by fellowship meals.

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20. WEB SITE:

In the year 2001, Joshua (Phani) Pilli took the initiative to develop a web site for UECF and registered this as www.uecf.net. God has richly blessed this web ministry and UECF is well known all over the world through the web site. Members and others get periodic updates on the fellowship activities through the regular web postings. The video messages and songs are posted on regular basis. The pictorial account of the past events was also archived and made available on the web. The website is rich with messages, audio video songs, testimonies, children’s programs and many useful resources; and serves globally as a one- stop resource center. Website has been instrumental for the growth of UECF. It is wonderful to know many visitors have attended the UECF Sunday worship services and testified that they came to know about UECF through the Website. Some such visitors started attending regularly. Joshua Pilli’s never tiring efforts are fruitful in UECF’s web ministry.

21. TV MINISTRY:

Expanding their outreach programs, UECF has started broadcasting their programs using Aradana Telugu TV channel on a regular basis with specific time slots. The half-hour time slots are generally filled with sharing of the Word and the music by both adults and kids. This is a tremendous opportunity for UECF to reach out the unreached through media.

22. CONCLUSION:

During the 25 years of service, UECF has touched many lives. Some families have grown up along with UECF. Many have been blessed by this church in their walk of faith. Children were born, dedicated, baptized, confirmed, attended Sunday Schools, took part in youth programs, Bible studies and actively participated in all the events. There were many joyful celebrations like weddings and some solemn celebrations of the lives of those gone home ahead of us.

During the pandemic, many churches were impacted. But God’s hand is upon UECF and has blessed it further more. Like a church built on the solid rock, UECF continued steadfastly in carrying out its vision and mission both locally and globally for His glory!

As the theme for this silver jubilee year of celebration aptly chosen, ‘To God be the glory’!