INSIDE
Haiti
Five Years After the Earthquake
Nicaragua Developing Agriculture in the Face of Poverty
South Africa Farming for Orphans
Myanmar
Ministering to Children in Myanmar
India
Journeying to Meet My Sponsor Sisters
>foreword By Hanna Korvemaker
Good News As Dr. Bradley Wright explains in his book “Upside”: “The media is a business, and it succeeds by attracting viewers and readers. With hundreds of television channels and even more online news sources, how can they do this? One way is to offer something that is truly frightening. If watching a story can save us from some imminent danger, then maybe we’ll stop channel surfing long enough to watch it.” (Hat Tip: Dr. David Murray via his blog HeadHeartHand)
find encouragement through a number of good news stories. Fittingly, in the Meditation we are reminded of our unshakeable comfort in life and death. In Haiti, our partners relate how God has used the infamous earthquake of 2010 to show Himself as The Great Healer, and how He continues to use this tragedy for good. Read about how farming is making a big difference for Nicaraguan farmers and how it is creating opportunities for Malawian orphans.
In other words, bad news sells, which explains why it also proliferates. But more than that, and more to the point, a bad news story can stop us in our tracks, linger on our minds, and sow seeds of worry which, if left to blossom into full-grown weeds, have the potential to impact everything we do and to alter our entire “mindscape.1”
Finding a healthier balance between the bad news and the good news that we ingest is really only one weapon in the battle against worry. But if we view life through the lens of Scripture, we will see that God is always sovereign and faithful in a world that is hostile to His people. If we look for Him, we will see Him moving in the shadows. He is always present, using evil for good, weaving a beautiful tapestry of His own design, fulfilling His promises to His children. We pray that you see God at work through Word & Deed. W&D
With so many bad news stories on our minds—from the Canadian Supreme Court’s February decision to strike down the prohibition on physician-assisted suicide, to the horrifying machinations of ISIS abroad, and countless other serious situations facing Christians near and far it seems that despair, anxiety, and worry have a feast set before them daily. How can we fight it? In this issue, we hope that you will
This observation and the word “mindscape” are borrowed from Timothy Z. Witmer’s book “Mindscape: What to Think About Instead of Worrying.” 1
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Hanna Korvemaker works part-time in Public Relations for Word & Deed.
WORD&DEED
meditation
Official Publication of Word & Deed An International Reformed Relief and Development Agency Free for sponsors and friends
By Pastor Kevin Efflandt
SPRING 2015 Editor Rick Postma Assistant Editor Brianna Vlaar Graphic Design Knor Graphic Design Solutions Copy Editors Shelly Crites Hanna Korvemaker Susan Trentacosti In response to Jesus’ command to love others, Word & Deed is an international, evangelical relief and development ministry that provides funding to meet spiritual and physical needs among people in developing countries. With cooperating offices in St. Thomas, Ontario, and Hudsonville, Michigan, Word & Deed partners with Christian agencies in Colombia, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Guatemala, Myanmar, Haiti, India, Indonesia, Nicaragua, Malawi, South Africa, and Nigeria. Canada Office PO Box 20100 St. Thomas, ON N5P 4H4 Ph 519.633.2333 Fax 519.633.7181 Toll free 877.375.9673 office@wordanddeed.org Director of Projects John Otten Director of Promotion Rick Postma Projects Consultant Bernie Pennings Support Staff Hanna Korvemaker John Kottelenberg Kara Luiting Heather VanMeppelen-Scheppink Brianna Vlaar Board of Directors President - Jake Sinke Vice President - Corney Les Secretary - Rev. Tim Bergsma Treasurer - Henry de Waal Bert Mulder Dr. Arjan de Visser Dick Naves Dave Wielinga Harold Leyenhorst Lyle Ypma Advisory Committee Mr. Jim Beeke – International Educational Consultant
Dr. Gerald M. Bilkes – Professor of
Old & New Testament, Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary Rev. Christo Heiberg – Pastor, Zion United Reformed Church Rev. Danny Hyde – Pastor, Oceanside United Reformed Church
Dr. Nelson D. Kloosterman –
Executive Director and Ethics Consultant for Worldview Resources International. Rev. Frank Van Dalen – Former Executive Director of the Foreign Missions Board of the Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church
United States Office PO Box 157 Hudsonville, MI 49426 Ph 616.896.3160 Toll free 866.391.5728 Fax 616.896.9219 usoffice@wordanddeed.org Office Administrator Heidi Pronk Board of Directors President - Pete Vander Stel Vice President - Paul Laman Secretary - Harry Kooistra Treasurer - Karen Vander Sloot Eric Brandt Dave Byker Mary Cogbill Anita Sikkema Peter Van Kempen
<
True Comfort When you hear the word “comfort,” what comes to mind? A familiar recliner, a favorite food, or a week-long vacation to unwind and recharge your batteries? Actually, true comfort is something far different, and it’s laid out in the very first question and answer of the Heidelberg Catechism. The question is, “What is your only comfort in life and in death?” Notice the beauty of the answer: “That I am not my own, but belong—body and soul, in life and in death—to my faithful Savior, Jesus Christ. He has fully paid for all my sins with his precious blood, and has set me free from the tyranny of the devil. He also watches over me in such a way that not a hair can fall from my head without the will of my Father in heaven; in fact, all things must work together for my salvation. Because I belong to him, Christ, by his Holy Spirit, assures me of eternal life and makes me wholeheartedly willing and ready from now on to live for him.” Could there possibly be a more profound answer than that? Here, we come face to face with the comfort of the Gospel, the comfort of what Jesus Christ has done for His people. And notice that the catechism mentions five things: 1. Jesus has fully paid for all my sins (Psalm 103:12): Because Jesus is the perfect, sinless Son of God, He fully paid for all of my sins on the cross, no matter how many sins I have committed and no matter how bad those sins are. 2. Jesus has set me free from the tyranny of the devil (John 8:36): No longer am I a slave to that harsh taskmaster, Satan. I’ve been liberated and set free. Jesus has transferred me from the kingdom of Satan into His kingdom of light. 3. Jesus watches over me (Romans 8:28): Because He is the Lord of all, nothing is outside of His control. He will only allow those things to happen to me that will be for my good and His glory. 4. Jesus assures me of eternal life (Romans 8:38–39): I have the promise of Jesus that one day I will be with Him forever (John 14:1–3) and that nothing and no one can snatch me from His hand (John 10:28–30). 5. Jesus gives me the desire to live for Him (2 Corinthians 5:17): God has given me the Holy Spirit, and now, although I won’t do it perfectly in this life, the Holy Spirit will make me able to live a new life of obedience, for the glory of God. In all of this, we give thanks to God for all that our Savior has done for us. And it is because He has done these things for us, and because our salvation is entirely a work of His grace, that we have true comfort. Comfort in this life, and also in the life to come. W&D Pastor Kevin Efflandt is the pastor at Zion United Reformed Church in Ripon, CA.
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>HAiTi By Randy Lodder
Five Years After the Earthquake
< An Adult Literacy and Evangelism class.
It’s been over five years since “the earthquake” shook our country, our school, our homes, and our lives. There were physical effects—there still are—but the earthquake also affected our outlook as servants in Haiti and the Adoration Christian Centre mission overall. Since that time, I have learned so much about cross-cultural servanthood and community development. I have seen a big truck full of money go by this country and not do a whole lot of anything. I have seen the joys of families who were able to send their children to school, receive a home, and get help with daily food. I have seen the brokenness of communities in much violent, selfish, destructive, hateful behavior. I have witnessed the care of a community in helping neighbors survive. I have witnessed good development and aid practices, and horrible ones. I have personally practiced some good principles and also some horrible ones. All these observations and lessons have been shaping Adoration, and they seemed to culminate this year. We had the leaders of the school sit down and analyze what success would look like, or what the ideal graduate of this school should look like. After two lengthy sessions, they decided that success is the development of students who serve their community in their local churches and jobs, with their God-given talents to the glory of Jesus Christ. Our task, then, is to equip students to serve. This was a real reminder to our staff that the Gospel message needs to be preached,
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HAITI
Adoration Christian Centre
Adoration Christian Centre is a holistic, Christian, social mission seeking to serve and disciple Haitians who are among the poorest of the poor in Port-au-Prince through their school, partnerships with the local church, and medical aid for the community. They train teachers and educate students through the glasses of the Gospel and they partner with and support the local church, discipling future leaders who will one day stand on their own and take up the same task. Please pray that God would bless and guide the work of Adoration and that lives would be transformed through the presentation of the Gospel. Still needed in 2015: $400,000
shared, and lived out, as this is the only hope for the school to have an impact. Unless students are transformed by the Holy Spirit, they will not be empowered to impact their communities. After this analysis, the school leaders came up with the following slogan to send the message loud and clear: Learning for Serving. “Learning for Serving” is actively being incorporated into the Adoration program. For example, all students in Grade 7 and higher are in the Impact Program, comprised of about 140 students. The Impact Program seeks to equip, train, and encourage our students to use their gifts to serve and build up their communities. These students are required to serve three hours per week at Adoration taking part in “Service Opportunities” such as janitorial work, teaching the Adult Literacy class, tutoring, leading a club, etc. Our hope is to continue to equip and train these students, to foster an attitude of service, and to provide opportunities for them to serve the community through our community center. This is an asset-based approach to service: What gifts and talents has the Lord given you and how can you use them to help build up your community, serve the church, and so glorify the Lord? We are already seeing how equipping students to serve is making a difference. Some Impact youth have been trained to teach and lead our Adult Literacy and Evangelism Course alongside some adult teachers—a fact that was met with some apprehension by the adult students who were not comfortable being taught by students much younger than they were. In December I asked the group what they thought of their teachers; their initial apprehension was replaced by an appreciation for how
Adoration students working hard on their assignments.
they were able to teach so effectively. This demonstrated to these adult students and the Impact students themselves that they have talents and gifts that can be used to help fight against the poverty that is so prevalent in their country. Adoration has evolved and grown in so many ways over the past five years, and in the seven years that it has existed. On January 12, 2010, our school building crumbled but our program did not. It wouldn’t be true to say that it wasn’t a setback to lose the building, but God is using it for good; He is using it to show Himself to be “the Greater One.” I am always reminded of the words of John the Baptist, who heralded the awesome news of the coming of the King, the Redeemer, the Restorer, God with us, when he said, “He must increase, I must decrease” (John 3:30). Our hope for all things—the success of our programs, the salvation of our students, the healing of Haiti— is in the God who is the Redeemer, the Restorer, and the Great Healer. W&D Randy Lodder is the Director of Adoration Christian Centre in Haiti. He serves alongside his wife Karen and their four covenant children: Maia, Levi, Judah, and Luca. SPRING 2015 I Word&Deed
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>NiCARAGUA By Carlos Coffin
Developing Agriculture in the Face of Poverty
Men attending a pastorsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; conference. Poverty is the biggest challenge faced by indigenous Miskito communities of Nicaraguaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Caribbean coast. In a country where the economic situation is becoming increasingly difficult, families struggle to provide daily sustenance from home. While most communities have resources of land and forests, they are not adequately utilized by the community for a number of reasonsâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;the lack of a program for agricultural production and promotion of agro export, the deficient infrastructure of roads and system utilities, the little local production capacity, and the difficulty of access to markets. Because of this, many Miskito people lead lives of scarcity and dependency. In this context, Word & Deed Nicaragua is executing a project of socioeconomic development for eight communities in the area by applying the following four basic components: 1. Development of sustainable agricultural production and friendly environment, with a focus on marketing.
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2. Access to microcredits and management of family businesses. 3. Promotion of economic alternatives for income generation. 4. Training of leaders with Christian principles to serve their communities. The key objectives of the project are to: 1.
Improve the living conditions of families socially, economically, and spiritually by integrating various activities for sustainable development.
2.
Transform the mentality and culture of families from a situation of dependency to self-sufficiency.
3.
Strengthen local productive capacities for the improvement and diversification of agricultural production and alternative business management.
4.
Market management processes to facilitate marketing of local production.
During the first two years of work (2013 and 2014), the project has focused efforts on addressing the processes of agricultural production, serving traditional crops for food security, and experiencing the introduction of nontraditional crops for commercial purposes. The methodology applied consists of three steps: 1. Training of producers. 2. Delivery of seed or vegetative material. 3. Systematic monitoring and technical assistance. This whole process is staffed by experienced agronomists. In this period we also established partnerships with other non-government organizations (NGOs) and cooperatives at national and international levels to facilitate exchanges of knowledge about working and managing marketing channels of products. We succeeded in preparing community leaders to promote the vision, principles, and project work in their communities. We are preparing a group of pastors and church leaders from communities with courses of reformed biblical theology so that they can become better teachers of the Word of God in their communities. Finally, we are supporting a group of young people with scholarships for university courses so that they become Christian professionals that promote community development in the future. Although the challenge is great to change the mentality of
people who are accustomed to a culture of life and work and transform to another work culture, and while it will be a long process, we are beginning to see the first fruits. Many local producers are starting to change their ways of work: from subsistence agriculture to agriculture for the market; from short-term work plans to plans of medium and long term; and from planting just traditional crops to diversifying with nontraditional crops such as cocoa, taro (similar to sweet potato), and ginger. For this new season, 2015, we are introducing the cultivation of coffee and pineapple, and the development of poultry and pigs to diversify incomes. One incentive to help producers is by opening a microcredit program that allows them to fund production costs and thus expand their areas of work. Currently, at the end of 2014, producers have planted approximately 12 acres of bananas, 12 acres of malanga (a tropical vegetable), 12 acres of taro, 30 acres of cocoa, an acre of ginger, and a lot of rice, beans, and vegetables to be harvested. Also, many disadvantaged youths who did not have previous opportunities to enter university are studying for a university degree. W&D Carlos is the director of Word & Deed Nicaragua. He has a degree in business administration, a masterâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s of public administration and local development, and currently is a student of theology with MINTS. He is married to Ligia (doctor of medicine) and they have a beautiful two-yearold daughter named Alitza. They are a part of the New Life church in Bilwi, Puerto Cabezas.
Nicaragua
Agricultural Commercialization The Agricultural Commercialization project trains locals in eight communities in sustainable production of rice, bananas, and beans. Over the span of ten years, the project will involve microcredits, training in family business development, pork production,
poultry production, and the development of Christian leaders. The first few years of the program will be small-scale; when the basics are established, they will move to commercialization of the produce. All the Lord willing. Still needed in 2015: $97,000
Group of ginger producers working together.
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>Malawi By Everton C. Kamangiri
Farming
for
Orphans in food production in the project gardens and suggested there was no need to involve hired labor anymore, as they would be doing it themselves.
After consultations, it was agreed that it was good to give the children a chance to participate in food production. Several advantages could be seen: the children would help reduce costs while increasing production, acquire farming skills to use as adults, project and develop skills to support themselves. Today, the LOCP staff, caregivers, and Lizulu Orphan Care Project (LOCP) is a Christian children communityâ&#x20AC;&#x201C;based organization situated in have an Ntcheu, one of the central region districts established Lizulu Orphan Care Project (LOCP) supports 550 orphans across of Malawi. With help from Word & Deed, the farming 18 villages near Lizulu, Malawi. They are provided with meals, organization supports orphaned children in the Bible teaching, primary medical care, school supplies, and program in secondary education assistance for students who demonstrate community of Lizulu and the surrounding areas. which they ability and aptitude. LOCP partners closely with local Since 1997, Lizulu Orphan Care has been providing join hands churches of the Church of Central Africa Presbyterian spiritual guidance, education, health, clothing, and year by year to (CCAP). They aim to have the children grow food to orphans registered with the project. into spiritually strong, responsible, and produce maize in the independent adults. Fully funded. project gardens. Initially, most of the food that had been fed to the children
Lizulu
Orphan Care
was purchased. After a few years, the project committee came up with a plan to start producing maize (corn) in the village gardens. Community members related to the orphaned children got involved in maize production to supplement that which was bought to feed the orphans. Occasionally hired labor was also needed to ensure that all the work was done. As the project matured, so did the orphans who grew physically, mentally, and spiritually. One day the project leaders were very surprised when the older children came to the office and said they were ready to start participating
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When the staff, caregivers, and children come together to work in the gardens, the children enjoy it as a special day when they meet with their peers from all the other centers of the project. Apart from working, they have fun as they ride together in the project vehicle to and from the gardens, share jokes, and eat meals together. W&D Everton C. Kamangiri volunteers as the director of the Lizulu Orphan Care Project. He is employed as a public school teacher in the same community in which many of the orphans live.
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sponsorship
Make a World of Difference by Sponsoring a Child
Darel:
Darel is eight years old and is in Grade Three at Children of Light in Indonesia. He lives with his parents, two brothers, and a sister a few kilometers away from the school. His father works as a farmer, selling various fruits and vegetables to make a small income, and his mother is a homemaker. Darel is a clever boy and takes pride in doing things efficiently.
Rocky:
Nineyear-old Rocky excels at math in his Grade Three classroom at Children of Light. He lives with his parents, two brothers, and three sisters a short walk from school. His mother is a homemaker and his father farms the land to make a small income. Rocky is strong and likes sports—especially soccer.
Don’t underestimate
impact that a picture and a short letter
the
can have on your
sponsor child!
Indah: Indah is a bright young girl of nine years. She is in
Grade Three at Children of Light in Indonesia. Her father farms fruits and vegetables to generate a meager income and her mother is a homemaker. She lives with her parents, three brothers, and two sisters. They live only 45 meters away from the school so she has a short walk every day!
Please write today!
Contact Kara at office@wordanddeed.org if you’re not sure how to get started.
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Many sponsor children come from broken and dysfunctional homes, and do not receive the attention or affection that children thrive on. A short note from you is one more example of healthy, Christian love in their lives.
Education by hanna korvemaker
19th-Century
Wisdom for 21st-Century Poverty
Throughout history, Christians have grappled with how to appropriately carry out the Lord’s command to care for the poor. Different times, cultures, countries, and stages of societal development have resulted in different approaches. However, the biblical approach developed by the theologian Thomas Chalmers in Scotland during the 19th century has remained relevant through the years and across the globe, and continues to influence Word & Deed Ministries even today. In 19th-century Glasgow, Scotland, a form of caring for the poor termed “outdoor relief” was gaining acceptance. This was the “largely indiscriminate” practice of providing money, food, clothing, or goods to alleviate poverty without the expectation that the beneficiaries enter a poorhouse or a workhouse. Chalmers observed that this new development in caring for the poor was deficient in a number of areas, especially because it did not require the beneficiaries to help themselves in any way. Chalmers’ poverty relief efforts were characterized by four beliefs: that a distinction between pauperism (a state of unnecessary dependence) and true poverty must be made, that statutory relief would encourage pauperism, that those who were better off were biblically obligated to become personally involved with the poor, and, finally, that any who were poor due to their own failings must indicate a willingness to change the beliefs and actions that were leading them into poverty before receiving help. Although Chalmers did not succeed in stopping the adoption of these new plans for providing relief in Glasgow, he was given a “specially created ten thousand person district” named the Parish of St.
John in which to test his own theories. His plan began with the division of his parish into 25 districts, and placed a deacon in charge of each one. The deacons were responsible for being in tune with the economic conditions of their parish; they were to help the unemployed find work and the uneducated children to get schooling. When approached for aid, they would follow up with the appropriate investigations to determine the level of need; where true poverty was found to exist, resources were sought out within the neighborhood. Only as a last resort were families admitted to the poor roll. The needs of all parishioners in the district were to be met only by what was donated by the parishioners. As a result, Chalmers found that church collections held for diaconal purposes increased and the actual cost of relief decreased as parishioners who were
in a position to provide help did so— financially, but also in terms of personal counsel, and fostering good habits such as work, frugality, and saving— among their neighbors who were less well-todo. One year it was reported that only 97 families from an approximate total of 3,500 was listed on the poor roll. Chalmers’ experiment with the Parish of St. John is a wonderful example of the blessing that comes from applying biblical principles to poverty relief, and it continues to inspire Christian poverty relief efforts in the 21st century. He had a vision that those outside of the church cannot have. He saw that “the church could do what the government could not . . . it could deal with the moral and spiritual roots of poverty.” W&D Hanna Korvemaker works part-time in Public Relations for Word & Deed.
A Living Legacy As generation gives way to generation in North America, billions of dollars change hands. Who will benefit? Consider adding a child named “Charity” to your will and leave a legacy that lives on through the work of the Lord on this earth. Please contact the Word & Deed office or visit our website for more information on planned giving. I hereby give to the Word & Deed Ministries Canada Inc. 39993 Talbot Line, Talbotville, Ontario, charitable registration number 891200941RR0001 [a specific percent] of the residue OR [a specific amount] of my estate, to be used in fulfillment of its proper purpose. I hereby give to Word and Deed USA, Hudsonville, Michigan, EIN non-profit number 37-1429283, [a specific percent] of the residue OR [a specific amount] of my estate, to be used in fulfillment of its proper purpose.
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Saturday, June 6, 2015 Niagara Parkway Join us for the Word & Deed Bike-a-thon along the beautiful Niagara River! Challenge yourself with family and friends and bike the entire 52 KM length of the Niagara Parkway, or enjoy the shorter 22 KM route. Waiting at the finish line is a delicious BBQ!
Help us exceed our goal of $70,000! There will be fantastic prizes for the top ten fundraisers! 9 AM-11AM 10 AM 10 AM - 11:30 AM
Registration at Mather Arch in Fort Erie Send-off at Mather Arch in Fort Erie Registration at King’s Bridge Park in Chippawa
Register or Sponsor a friend at www.wordanddeed.org (find “Niagara Bike-a-thon 2015” under Events)
prayer requests
Five Years After the Earthquake • Praise God for allowing the work at Adoration to continue through and beyond the earthquake. • Please pray for the leaders and students at Adoration as they seek to build up their community, serve the church, and so glorify God.
Musica Sacra Chorus April 18 at 7:30 p.m.
Developing Agriculture in the Face of Poverty • Praise God for enabling the agricultural program to flourish, increasing the knowledge and thereby the output of farmers. • Please pray that the participants’ faith may continue to develop and that they may be good stewards of the resources the Lord gives them. Farming for Orphans • Praise God for leading and enabling the older orphans to assist with growing maize to supplement the programs’ food allowance. • Please pray that the Lord may continue to care for these orphans, strengthen their faith and guide them into adulthood. Word & Deed North America • Praise God for the sharing of gifts and talents by so many! • Please pray that the Lord may grant Word & Deed staff in North America and local partners across the world good health and wisdom.
get involved Upcoming Events 2015 Softball Tournaments Lethbridge, AB · July Grand Rapids, MI · august 1 Chilliwack, BC · September 12 Paris, ON · September 12
Business Group
Meetings please stay tuned for confirmed dates and locations BURLINGTON, ON · APRIL 1 HURONTARIO · TBA SOUTHERN ALBERTA · APRIL 27 CALGARY, AB · APRIL 28 edmonton, ab · APRIL 29
Maranatha Free Reformed Church 1114 Old Mohawk Rd., Ancaster, ON
CENTRAL ALBERTA · APRIL 30
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NON-PROFIT ORG US POSTAGE PAID HUDSONVILLE, MI PERMIT #204
Publications Agreement # 40595030
True Comfort 1. When you hear the word “comfort” what comes to mind? 2. What does the first question in the Heidelberg Catechism tell us about true comfort? Use your own words to explain what this means in your own life. Join or Die? 1.Five “Corporate worship is . . . the centerpiece of the Christian Years After life.” Explain how this is true using scripture. Here is one the Earthquake passageistothe get you started: Hebrews 10:24-25 1. What 2. Explain what Pastor Boekestein means when he compares program “Learning church membership for Serving” at to parents making their children eat their dessert. Adoration? 2. Consider CDA: A Transformational Approach to Poverty Adoration’s 1. The mission of CDA is carried out through projects in five main “programmatic areas.” List those areas and approach; what do some gifts andresearch talents to understand what they entail if you’re not sure. has the Lord given 2. Re-read the stories you and how can of Andrea, Shirley, Juan David, Genaro and Briceida. List which of the five CDA you use them to
programmatic areas would be of benefit for each case (there may be more than one). help build up your Transforming Lives Now and for Eternity community, serve 1. Consider the hardships that Sender has faced growing up the church, and so in Guatemala. In what ways has enrollment at La Palabra glorify the Lord? Christian School in Guatemala transformed his life? 3. What does John 2. “Empty stomachs don’t have ears.” Explain this 3:30 mean when it says statement in your own words. “He must increase, I New Beginnings at Nakekela must decrease”? 1. Visit the Nakekela website (www.nakekela.co.za) to read about the history of the organization on theAgriculture main page. Developing Face in of 2004? Poverty How has Nakekela grown since in its the inception 1. What does it Mercy and Glory at the Nakekela Step Down Facility mean to live a life of 1. Put yourself in the shoes of somebody living in the dependency? How KwaMhlanga community. How would you feel about is the agricultural the opening of the HIV/AIDS Clinic and why? program Nicaragua 2. How has the community perception of theinNakekela trying to change the Clinic changed since its inception? Why has it changed? lives of those who are Introducing: Children of Light living in dependency? 1. “Families who did send their children to school were Farming forfrom Orphans often sacrificing heavily to do so, suffering a 1.provide Why is their it good that lack of food, and an inability to children the orphans came with proper clothing and school supplies.” List five forward to help with reasons that Christian education is so valuable, in food production? the developing world and in North America. 2. Aren Bulan is motivated to become a doctor Wisdom because 19th-Century of the lack of medical care on his home island of for 21st-Century Rote. Make a list of the needs you see around you Poverty (at home, at school, among friends otherwise). 1. Howorwas Chalmers’ What can you do now to make a difference? Parish of St. John Serving Through the Written Word different from the 1. Discuss the following statement: “The writtenothers? word 2. In the face of is powerful and should be handled carefully.” poverty can the 2. Martha mentions the different talents andwhat privileges church that that each of us are given by God. Compared to do students in the developing world, what unique privileges have the government you been given? How can you use them for God’s glory? cannot?
Integration: Integrate Bible, history, geography, critical thinking, current events, and reading comprehension (etc.). Missions: Challenge students to consider short-term mission trips and the use of their time, talents, and money to the glory of God while also having them ponder their relationship with the Lord. Problem Solving: Develop problem solving skills in response to problems presented in the articles. Awareness: Dramatically raise students’ awareness of what people in the developing world face on a daily basis. It will shape them for life. Compassion: Elicit compassion when students come face to face with the very difficult lives of their peers in the developing world. Thankfulness: Encourage thankfulness for God’s blessings in their lives.
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