Posts Tagged church
Expressions on Mothers Day
Posted by Keith Moore in Orphan Care, The child and the church on May 7, 2010
This Sunday is Mother's Day, a time to honor our parents, by focusing on our Mothers. It can also be a day of expression in many ways, expressions of honor, love, admiration, plus a host of others. The front of the card I got for my Mom this week has a black & white photo of three toddlers sitting on a couch. Each one has a different expression on their face. The caption below describes their looks, "grumpiness, confusion and pure happiness…"
The back of the card has a short caption on it about the photo and the author Liz Simpson. "Liz and her friends were trying to get a group smile out of their kiddos when a funnier photo came along . . . one that speaks perfectly to the experience of parenting. Liz says of this photo her friend Angie snapped, "Anyone who has raised children can easily agree that they've felt each of these emotions, and many times all within the same day!" I think that most would agree that a day filled with all three would be a day to remember. I hope you get to make it a day to remember with your Mom and your kids.
Yet, for close to 40
million orphans around the world it will be another day without a Mom
or a Dad. The expressions of honor, love and admiration might have been pushed out of their mind by the loss of Mom and Dad at an early age. These children are not in a hopeless condition, the Father to the fatherless is there for them. The expression of hope in the Father comes from the group of believers the Father has strategically placed around each child. The church can bring that expression of honor, love and admiration back into the life of the child, by offering them a bridge that leads them to Christ.
You can make a difference in the life of an orphan by equipping churches around the world to provide that bridge in the life of an orphan. By giving $44.00 to the World Orphans Bridge Fund you can help a local church rescue and care for orphans in their community. You can be part of the expression of hope in the Father to the fatherless.
To give to the Bridge Fund go to www.worldorphans.org
Mar 23 Pray4projects @WorldOrphans
Posted by Keith Moore in Orphan Care, Prayer, The child and the church, The church on March 23, 2010
Praise!- Four of the projects that were without western church partners at the beginning of the year are now in partnerships.
Fountain of Life – Juja is now partnered with Hill Country Bible Church – Northpoint in Austin TX
Fountain of Hope – Nairobi is now partnered with River Oaks Church in Knoxville
Lunkon Thmei – Cambodia is now partnered with Rutherford Bible Chapel in Rutherford N.J.
Jesus Savior Church – Moldova is now partnered with Restoration Church in Arlington VA.
This is a great answer to prayer!
- Christian Life Centre Chatsworth, South Africa
- Ebenezer Bible Church Temba, South Africa
- Nayla Presb. Evang. Church Darfur, Sudan
- United Community Methodist Church Jinja, Uganda
- Bethel Gospel Chruch Hyderabad, India
- F. S. Training Center China
- A total of 138 former orphans being cared for by these churches.
- Pray for the Haiti Orphan Relief Team as they roll out
the strategy to connect the
first 10 churches in the US with 10 churches in Haiti to provide care for
the orphans. To learn more go to, www.Haitiorphanrelief.org - Pray for the team deploying to South Africa on April
8th, led by Mike Krick.
Feb 23 Pray4projects in Uganda, Haiti & Nicaragua @WorldOrphans
Posted by Keith Moore in Uncategorized on February 23, 2010
United Comm.
Methodist Church Jinja,
Uganda Pastor Sam
M 20 former orphans
- Pray for the United Community Methodist Church in Jinja, Uganda. Where Pastor Sam Magumba and Lameck Mbai and the church are caring for 20 former orphans.
- Pray for the Haiti Orphan Relief Team as they worship today and continue
to contact churches. To learn
more go to, www.Haitiorphanrelief.org. - Pray for the Church-to-Church team in Nicaragua.
Feb 21 Pray4projects in China, Haiti & Nicaragua @WorldOrphans
Posted by Keith Moore in Uncategorized on February 21, 2010
- Pray for the F.S. Training Center in China where Pastor "A" and the church family is
raising 50 former Orphans. Ask the Lord for His provision expand their impact on their
community through expanding the center to care for 50 more orphans. - Pray for the Haiti Orphan Relief Team as they worship today and continue
to contact churches. To learn
more go to, www.Haitiorphanrelief.org. - Pray for the Church-to-Church team in Nicaragua.
Words From Haiti.
Posted by Keith Moore in Current Affairs, Issues, Orphan Care, The child and the church, The church on January 14, 2010
'Disaster and chaos' in Haiti after major earthquake 1/12/2010
These are the words taken from an Associated Press headline after the earthquake struck Haiti. The article went on to quote people that were on the ground and their descriptions of the events there. Unless you have been away from the media over the past few days you have seen your share of the words in headlines, and are probably close to being overwhelmed by the news. Words like disaster and chaos are catchy, I’ve even used them here. Words like providence or provision don’t seem to go with disaster and chaos. Yet, they can be found in Haiti.
If there is one thing that I am learning in my new role at World Orphans, it is that there are no coincidences in God’s plan. In his blog, Paul Myhill gives an account of a group arriving in Haiti just moments before the earthquake with supplies and provisions to help a church-base home for orphans there. I’m limited to the information that Paul has given us, and I doubt that this story will ever end up in an article by the Associated Press. But I think it is a great example of God’s providence. A group of people made plans to go and help, well in advance of the earthquake. They gathered provisions and went. Then in God’s timing, they were on the ground just as this event was unfolding. That is more than just a matter of timing.
Still, some will say this is just a coincidence. I am convinced it is more than that, it is the providence of God at work in the midst of what the world calls chaos. From this tidbit of a bigger story we can see how the church really is the best instrument for long term response and change. This church-based home is not a current World Orphans partner but it is at the center of this story. The help this group will be able to give the people of Haiti is in part possible because the church is there, and the church is responding to the community by caring for orphaned and abandoned children.
In the coming days I hope we get to hear more about the story of Jodi’s friends and the response they were able to help the church make in Haiti. I’m sure the story will be ripe with words that describe God’s grace and mercy, His providence and provision more than disaster and chaos.
Would you like to help the children of Haiti, by helping the churches that are already there to rescue them? You can contribute to the World Orphans relief efforts online at our giving page. Simply make a”miscellaneous” gift and type “Haiti” in the memo box. Or you can send a check to:
World Orphans
P.O. Box 1840
Castle Rock, CO 80104
Thank you in advance for being part of what God is doing through the church and for the orphan.
Keith
Day of “Coincidence.” Part 2
Posted by Keith Moore in The church on August 4, 2009
In Part one I asked if you have ever had one of those days where too many things happen for them just to be a coincidence? The other day I had one of those days, which
seems to happen more often than not. A quote from an author, a Bible verse and an email all converged at once to make a reoccurring point.
Here's the email
and the point:
The Bible verse, Jer. 22, was scheduled for the reading plan over 100 years ago. But it "happened" to fall on the same day that I received an email from My Space. It said "check out the new MySpace Local and see what has been reviewed in
Denver."
The title that caught my eye was "Top Night Life, Church."
I have to admit I was more than just a bit curious. Someone has figured out how
to do church and end up as one of the top venues? Maybe in Colorado Springs,
but not in Denver? So I clicked on the tab. The review included this summary:
"This
former cathedral pumps up the volume and praises the electronic gods on the
dance floor…
With several
bars, three dance areas, a couple of lounges and even a sushi bar, The Church
makes getting rowdy lots of fun. Depending on the night and the room, it
attracts crowds of goths, mods and club kids. There's obvious appeal to
ordering a drink and dancing the night away in a former church. However, it's
not a concert hall: Sound bounces off the stone walls and cavernous high-arched
ceilings creating some less-than-stellar acoustics."
The building has
remained, but the church is no more.
The building,
St. Mark's Parish Church, was built in 1889 and is listed in the National
Historical Register. The historical designation meant that it could not be torn
down after it was abandoned years ago. So, someone bought it and turned it into
a nightclub, and named it "The Church."
Buildings can end up on the National Historical Register for several reasons. They might be associated with events or people that made significant contributions to society, or they have distinctive
characteristics of construction that represent the work of a master. Some of
the buildings in Denver are registered for being the first in the Nation to
provide health care to tuberculosis patients, people that had been robbed of
their health by a terrible disease.
It turns out that St. Mark's Church was registered for it's representation of the work of master
Denver architects, Lang and Pugh. The church didn't make it into the
National Register, only the building did.
I don't know what happened to the church, but I dare say that their culture is no more, at least at that site. Did they go to sleep and wake up too late? What happened to
the vision of Kingdom work that made them contribute so much, to build such a
great building that could be described years later as a cathedral? What
happened to the lives that were changed as they heard the Word of God and
looked on as the sunlight passed through the stained glass windows? Were they
disobedient to the Word? Is Dr. Sweet right? Is this an indication of more to
come?
The point: God commands obedience from His people,
His church. Justice, righteousness, caring for the oppressed, the widow, the
fatherless, are commands. They are not just ministry options. When His people
"transition their culture" and are obedient to His Word, they will
care for the orphan. And through the care for the orphan they will have a
lasting impact on the "kings" and "servants" around them.
What would the National Historical Register look like someday if every church in America did wake-up and get it? Would it be filled with listings of theaters, school gyms and community centers? Places that couldn't be torn down because the people that rented the space and met there made a significant contribution to society and changed the world. They fought the battle against HIV/AIDS, poverty, oppression, terrorism, ignorance and they rescued every child. They changed every community with a message that turned lives around.
My hope is that the future days of coincidence are filled with quotes from authors that state that churches are waking up and people are providing a "continuum of care" for every child. That the Bible verse for that day is Matthew 25:21 "His master
said to him, Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been
faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of
your master." The email is about a place that people need to experience, where people drink in the Word of God. And the point is that God is pleased with His church because we are obedient to His Word.
