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> INSIDE ECUADOR

Under the Grip of Sin

GUATEMALA La Palabra: First Impressions

NIGERIA

Beginning and Continuing

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>foreword

By Rick Postma

The

Church

in a

Post-Christian World

Several years ago as I flew home from a business trip in Texas, I asked the gentleman sitting next to me how his trip had gone. He in turn asked me to share about my trip. When I told him that I had attended a local church on Sunday and spent the rest of the day at the home of people who had never met or heard of me before, he was transfixed.

Why would anyone, let alone Texans, renowned for their “shoot first and ask questions later” hospitality, invite total strangers into their home? I explained that we were adopted into the same family through our “elder brother,” Jesus Christ. For the remaining three hours, my fellow Canadian, a young business executive, asked many questions and I struggled to answer him in a way that he could understand for it soon became clear that his total knowledge of the Bible was the fact that such a book existed.

With the exception of some areas of the USA, there is a growing consensus that we have entered the post-Christian era in North America. How are we to evangelize to a society whose knowledge of basic Christian truths is vanishing and which is even becoming hostile to our faith? Or are we too busy to even consider such a question? An important part of the answer lies in how we carry out our daily lives. Do we do our work with integrity, patience and excellence? Do we resist the idols of our times – materialism, individualism and worldliness, to name a few? Are we looking for ways to build relationships with our neighbors to open doors for sharing the Gospel? One pastor friend of mine has joined a local cycling club, which has provided many opportunities to share God’s Word with fellow cyclists.

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While we wrestle to be heard in an increasingly secular society, Bernie Pennings, in his article on Nigeria, celebrates the success of two Christian schools in a country which is 50% Christian and 50% Muslim. From Buddhist Myanmar, a country slowly opening its doors after years of repression under a military junta, we hear from Pastor Van Bawi Uk about a home for poor children. From Ecuador, Arlene Jonkman tells us about a project which strives to bring hope into the lives of neglected and abused children along with their families and communities. Hanna Korvemaker, in her review of Toxic Charity, urges us to carefully apply biblical principles to how we bring help to others.

In many ways, the early church in the pre-Christian era invented charitable outreach in Word and deed by developing hospitals and homes for the aged, the poor and the fatherless. Regardless of this, and sometimes because of it, being a Christian in those days meant you were relegated to the bottom of society where you were mocked, ridiculed and often attacked. As Pastor Van der Woerd implies in his meditation, are we prepared to stand up and be counted like the early Christians were for the sake of the Gospel? W&D Rick Postma is Director of Public Relations for Word & Deed Ministries.

WORD&DEED

meditation

Official Publication of Word & Deed An International Reformed Relief and Development Agency Free for sponsors and friends

By PASTOR HANK van der woerd

SUMMER2013

International Educational Consultant Dr. Gerald M. Bilkes – Professor of Old & New Testament, Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary Dr. Arjan J. deVisser – Professor of Ecclesiology and Diaconology, Canadian Reformed Theological Seminary 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 – 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 Public Relations & Projects Norlan De Groot Ph 712.441.7112 uspromotions@wordanddeed.org Board of Directors President - Peter Van Kempen Vice President - Pete Vander Stel Secretary - Harry Kooistra Treasurer - Karen Vander Sloot Eric Brandt Dave Byker Mary Cogbill Anita Sikkema

Life

that

“...he who gives, (Romans 12:8, NKJV)

Reminded with

liberality…”

As a pastor of a large congregation, it falls to me on a fairly regular basis to officiate at funerals. Just in the last three months there have already been four. Not only are these occasions for family and friends to reflect on the life of their loved one, now past, but these can also be times when we might ponder the life of our confessing Christian brother or sister. “How did this person live up to the expectations of being a Christian man or woman? Did they reflect their Lord Jesus Christ in their life? It’s too late for them to make changes, but it is not too late for me.

What can I learn from those moments when I am standing at the grave, confronted by the realization that a similar hole will be dug for me some day unless the Lord returns?

Am I learning? Am I willing to work on the changes that demonstrate beyond a shadow of a doubt to whom it is that I belong?”

One of the areas of our lives which shows us our allegiance to Jesus Christ is our financial life. More frequently than not, how we think of and handle the resources that God has

Ba ro

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 Administration Director John Otten Project Director Bernie Pennings Public Relations Director Rick Postma Support Staff John Kottelenberg Hanna Korvemaker Kara Luiting Heather VanMeppelen-Scheppink Board of Directors President - John Vangameren Vice President - Corney Les Treasurer - Henry de Waal Rev. T. Bergsma Rev. C. Heiberg Jake Sinke Advisory Committee Mr. Jim Beeke –

A

TH E

Editor Rick Postma

Assistant Editor Hanna Korvemaker

Young at Heart/IMPACT Tanya Byl

Graphic Design Knor Graphic Design Solutions Copy Editors Tanya Byl, Martha Markwat 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.

<

m

er t e

THE OF

Heart

us of

Christ

given us to be stewards of is a barometer indicating the condition of our faith. Are we in fact faithful in that area of our life, or is the status of our wallet private and beyond the scrutiny of anyone?

At the grave, we are reminded of the grace and generosity that is ours in Jesus Christ if we believe in Him as our Lord and Saviour. It is grace that He chose us as heirs of the kingdom of God and has given us an inheritance we did not deserve. His generosity is displayed by Him having “made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross (Phil. 2:7-8, NKJV).”

This kind of generosity is over the top for us. It is beyond our comprehension and without equal. Christians are the objects of His generosity which they can see with eyes of faith every day. But His heart of generosity must also rub off if they are to be true to Him as His followers. God loves a cheerful giver (2 Cor. 9:7), and is honored by those who are generous to the needy (Prov. 14:31).

Will this be our testimony, something to be remembered by all those people who will be standing beside my grave and yours? When our physical life comes to an end, and our financial life by necessity too, please let them be saying, “He followed his Lord. We saw a generous life on display, a life that glorified God in time, talent and treasure. A life that reminded us of Christ.”

W&D

Pastor Hank Van der Woerd is co-pastor at Trinity Reformed Church in Lethbridge, Alberta.

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>ECuaDOR

By Arlene jonkman

Under the Grip of Sin

It is 6:30 am, and the streets in MalecĂłn are dotted with small children trudging through the dust with their worn shoes and faded uniforms. Their little faces display anxiety and hunger, a painful reminder that they did not eat breakfast and they did not sleep peacefully through the night. The constant fear of being struck or cruelly raped by a drunk, or witnessing their mothers being beaten up with machetes and guns have robbed them of any sense of security. This is an Afro-Ecuadorian community where 80% of the girls are sexually abused before they reach the age of 12, and many of them are mothers before they reach 14.

Alcoholism, drug addiction, prostitution and crime eagerly wait to claim these children, ensnaring them in the same powerful grip of sin that holds many of their parents captive â&#x20AC;&#x201C; a fatal grip that only God can break.

Arriving in school, the little ones take their places on crowded benches. Sleep, hunger and anxiety make it hard to concentrate. They do not have their homework completed, since many of their mothers are illiterate. Many mothers work in the sex trade during the dark hours, and most of the fathers are in prison or have abandoned the family. As the bell rings at noon, the children are dismissed from classes

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and they saunter out into the streets to face the ongoing battles at home. As they arrive home the adults begin to emerge from their dark, dilapidated houses; they stumble outside and find the nearest group of card players where they gamble away the previous nightâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s earnings. There is no time for children; there is no love for these little ones,

Two girls from the Malecon project.

who are seen as obstacles in the path of sin. From now until midnight, the children will roam the streets looking for a morsel of food. The art of sin is practiced and refined at a very young age, and many of these children will soon join neighborhood gangs where the aggressor is the hero; and so the vicious cycle of destruction and sin continues.

Freed from sin’s grip to grow with hope With God’s grace and the generous support of Word & Deed, we were able to begin sponsorship projects named “Growing with Hope” in two of these communities. Now when the school bell rings at noon, the children pick up their books and quickly make their way to the projects. There they are warmly greeted by our staff, and after prayer they dig their teeth into a delicious meal. After lunch and a Bible story, the children memorize scripture verses and sing Christian songs. Emphasis is placed on the gospel, which is the only foundation of true hope and change. The teachers help the children to complete their homework, teach them relationship skills and nurture positive character traits through the educational games and exercises. Dr. Yeny does medical check-ups on the children and those requiring further medical attention receive it. Weekly parenting workshops and Bible studies are offered to the parents and caregivers. It is our hope and prayer that God will use His Word to eternally change the lives of these adults and children, releasing them from the tenacious grip of sin.

The foundation of hope Six years ago, we began a Reformed Bible Study Center in Ecuador, connected with Miami International Seminary (MINTS), which offers the degrees. The purpose of this seminary is to prepare persons theologically for the work of ministry. At present, we have four centers opened: Quito, Guayaquil, Quininde and Ibarra. All the personnel that work in our projects take courses in the Quininde Study Center so that they are constantly learning and being better equipped for the work of the Lord. At present there are around 50 students studying throughout Ecuador, a slight ECUADOR

Children of the Cesar Proano project. decrease due to the recent graduation of 20 graduates from the program. In the other study centers we have pastors, church leaders and lay people preparing to better serve in their respective churches and ministries.

Christian workers without a biblical basis of solid doctrine end up being good social workers, but this is not God’s goal. Workers connected with our projects need to know that the purpose of reaching these children is not to rescue them and give them safety and a “better life”; our goal is that they would know Jesus as their Savior, and live lives transformed in His image. W&D Fred and Arlene Jonkman have been working in Ecuador since 1998, sent out by the Free Reformed Church of Brantford, Ontario. Their ministry includes Sunday School training and curriculum for Spanish-speaking churches in Latin America.

In 2007, they started a seminary called CRETE (Centro Reformado del Estudios Teológicos del Ecuador). They also support and help out with the Sponsorship projects and other work of Dr. Yeny Agila, a member of their local church in Quito. They feel very strongly that the calling of mission workers is to equip and empower the nationals to do the work of the Lord.

Growing With Hope Sponsorship Program / MINTS Resource Centre The “Growing with Hope” Sponsorship Program serves the communities of Cesar Proano and Bajo Malecon in Quininde, Ecuador by providing food, clothing, medical care, after school tutoring and biblical instruction to 100 children in each community.

In addition, Word & Deed maintains the Reformed Bible Study Center in Ecuador, which also operates as a center for biblical material and a Christian bookstore.

Luis Carlos is supported through the same project.

He is a local Ecuadorian who develops workshops for Christian leaders in Ecuador and oversees the four centres in Quito, Guayaquil, Quininde and Ibarra.

Amount still needed for 2013 is $50,000.

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>GUaTEMaLa By arnold devries

La Palabra:

First Impressions In February of this year, Arnold DeVries accompanied Rick Postma to Guatemala. During that time he joined Rick on a visit to the new La Palabra school building in Monjas. Below, we have his impressions.

What a privilege it was to visit this Word & Deed sponsored project in Guatemala! The appreciation for the school was immediately apparent from the outside, shown in the care taken of the school building. We were warmly welcomed and received into the beautiful facility and introduced to the various members of the school committee. They expressed gratitude to the Lord for the support and work of Word & Deed, which enables them to provide a Christian education for their children.

What was very evident during the visit was their commitment to this cause. In their address to us, they demonstrated an understanding of their responsibility and ownership of the project while appreciating the help of Word & Deed. This was clearly demonstrated in the careful way in which they approached adding new programs. As funds become available, they plan to implement new programs in stages, which reflects their desire to be wise stewards of their own resource before asking for assistance. Their desire to be self-sustaining under the blessing of the Lord was impressive.

The overall picture is of a school board and church community that have a vested interest in their children learning in a biblical way to serve the Lord.

They themselves are providing an example to their children, as well as reaching out to the needy in their community. What a blessing that we may partner with them. W&D Guatemala

La Palabra Christian School In 2002, the church in Monjas (Jesús la luz del Mundo or “Jesus the Light of the World”) recognized that there was no Christian school in the area and felt led to begin such a work. The process to establish a school began in faith, and now the Colegio Evangelico La Palabra has 370 students (140 sponsor children) spread from pre-primary to grade 9. Grades 10-12 will be added in the coming years, D.V. Praise God for His faithfulness in blessing La Palabra with growth! Please pray that this school will be a light to the impoverished community of Monjas.

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>NiGERia By bernie pennings

Beginning

and

Continuing…

In the summer of 1998 I first met with Pastor Daniel Pever and his wife as they did a presentation on the life and culture of Nigeria at the Cornerstone URC in London. After the meeting, I approached Daniel and we quickly decided we needed more time to discuss some common interests.

At a picnic table a few days later, we listened to each other.

Daniel thoroughly explained the need for education in Nigeria, as well as past attempts to start a school and the failures Daniel and his brother experienced trying to bring education to their remote home village. Their previous failures stemmed from a combination of reasons, mainly a lack of community interest in education and a lack of resources. From the other side, I explained to Daniel the vision of Word & Deed and the partner application process.

During the next year Daniel and I stayed in constant contact while a plan was worked out to put before the board of directors at Word & Deed.

The board approved the first two booths (literally a grass roof on poles): shelters in which to teach 60 children during 2000/2001 in the rural village called Koti-Yough, the home

of Pastor Daniel. By the time I made my first visit in June of 2001, there were four booths with 189 children registered for classes. The initial success seemed so good that a plot of land was obtained and a building with four classrooms was erected. In 2002/2003, the school became recognized by the government, thus obtaining the first phase of education approval.

During the next few years, the success continued and the number of students continued to grow. The motto for education was Proverbs 22:6: “Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.” Parents were becoming involved in the Parent-Teacher Association that was formed.

Success does not come without its bumps and bruises. As the school grew, cultural differences needed to be grappled with.

One of the lessons we needed to learn was that sustainability from an African perspective is quite different from the North American point of view. As school fees were introduced, even at a greatly subsidized level, the commitment to education quickly waned. Fees acted as a disincentive for parents who were already struggling with the decision

Typical classroom at Koti-Yough in June 2012.

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Nigeria

Koti-Yough and Makurdi

Christian Schools

ABOVE: Makurdi Campus.

RIGHT: Getting ready to begin roofing the first classroom block. to send their children to school rather than to keep them at home to help with field work in this agricultural community. With time and the Lordâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s blessing, when some of the first students graduated and moved on to better jobs, many parents began to acknowledge education as an important stepping stone to success. With this change in opinion, the academic standard also started to increase. The higher standard again increased the enrollment.

These two schools operate in a country that has close to 170 million citizens and faces a very militant form of Islam. Please pray that God will use these schools to turn the tide of Islam and that they will be effective in training Christian leaders for their respective communities. The Makurdi campus is currently accredited by the government on the condition that they complete an auditorium where exams can be written and where meetings can be held. Construction began on the auditorium in 2012. Amount still needed to fund this building is $78,000.

Based on this growth, planning for a second campus on the outskirts of the Benue state capital Makurdi started in 2003, with a target of implementing the first grades in 2004/2005. From the lessons learned at Koti-Yough, the second campus in Makurdi started with school fees. (Scholarships are granted to those that are in extreme situations at both campuses, by way of application and an interview by a team.)

Both campuses have continued to grow and become academically desirable to attend. This has made it possible to consider our exit strategy, something Word & Deed strives for in every project where possible. Beginning in 2014, we hope that the two school projects will be able to continue on their own with some mentoring from us, but no financial commitment.

Between the two campuses, there are now more than 2000 students that attend classes every year, students supported by family and friends and the local community. On my visits, the local people ensure that appreciation is shown to Word & Deed for all the work done over the years to produce campuses that they own and are thankful for.

As I look back on the first years and see the students hard at work today, I can only thank God for making this all possible. He has promised to provide, and in what may seem a conventional way to man, we see that God has directed donors to support the projects God has put in the path of Word & Deed, to provide for brothers and sisters far away. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faithâ&#x20AC;? (Gal. 6:10). W&D Bernie Pennings is Project Director for Word & Deed Canada.

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Education hanna korvemaker

Toxic Charity “Giving to those in need what they could be gaining from their own initiative may well be the kindest way to destroy people.” - from Toxic Charity by Robert Lupton In recent years a growing chorus of voices have been repeating variations of that wisdom in different contexts: Dambisa Moyo, Steve Corbett, Brian Fikkert, Jonathan Katz. In 2012, Robert Lupton joined the throng with his book Toxic Charity. As the founder and president of an urban ministry (Focused Community Strategies Urban Ministries) in Atlanta, Georgia, and a community developer on the “front lines” of neglected urban neighborhoods, he has had four decades to observe the administration of charity.

administrative purposes of the food co-op (gas for the food truck, lights for the meeting place, etc.). Their fee buys them $30 worth of groceries, collected from a local food bank.

The members collect the food themselves, organize it into boxes and distribute boxes to members who have paid. Others help setup or cleanup and they all collaborate to make joint decisions (“Should an inactive member be replaced? Who can deliver a box to a shutin member?). A devotional time is had at each meeting.

In the book, he recounts how he first began to suspect that some charity could be toxic after witnessing the embarrassment of a father whose family received free Christmas gifts from wellmeaning givers. After that jarring experience, he began examining the recipients of other charitable efforts in which he was involved. At the church clothes closet and food pantry, he noticed a lack of “direct eye contact…head and shoulders bent slightly forward, selfeffacing smiles, meek ‘thank-yous’.” He observed “how quickly recipients’ response to charity devolved from gratitude to expectation to entitlement” and how he “enjoyed occupying the superior position of giver (though [he] covered it carefully with a façade of humility).”

Like many well-examined and thoughtfully executed charitable initiatives, the Georgia Avenue Food Co-op is not the most efficient way to get food into the bellies of the most people in the least time. It takes coordination, sustained effort, and patience for this to work in the lives of 50 families. But in the end, more than just food distribution is accomplished. Friendships are fostered, communities are built, agency is given, God-given abilities are used, dignity is affirmed and the hope of the Gospel is presented.

In other words, Lupton saw how unexamined charitable efforts can lead to a loss of dignity for the receivers, dependence, entitlement and prideful feelings of superiority. He saw how charity could be toxic.

Lupton’s response is not to put a halt to all charitable efforts or to discourage the compassionate hearts of thousands of cheerful givers of resources, time and talent. His response is to pursue ways of helping that are not toxic. Take Lupton’s example of a “food co-op” in Georgia. The 50 households of this co-op pay a $3 semi-weekly due, which is used for the

Points for Charity

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The conclusions of this book may be focused on urban development in North America, but they can also be applied to Word & Deed’s work in the developing world. Lupton’s observations reflect many of the motives behind our three areas of emphasis: the development of indigenous partners/ leaders, the goal of self-sufficiency, the importance of biblical methodology and the presentation of the Gospel in all projects. In light of these complexities, please pray that God will bless Word & Deed’s efforts to intelligently and compassionately bring relief and development in Christ’s name. W&D Hanna Korvemaker is the Assistant Editor of Word & Deed magazine.

Each year, dozens of flights are booked and paid for at Word & Deed Ministries: flights are necessary to conduct yearly project evaluation and mentorship trips, as well as the more occasional investigative and promotion related trips. If you’re a points collector (whether on credit cards or flight related point systems), you can make a big difference! By purchasing the necessary flights for Word & Deed project managers with your points you will be contributing significantly to our ability to manage and support projects in the developing world. If you are interested in contributing to Word & Deed Ministries in this way, please contact us at:

877.375.9673 (Canada) or 866.391.5728 (USA).

come & visit our

website

Tax Receipts

A Note About

According to CRA stipulations tax receipts must be made out to the entity listed on the check received. This means that business owners who would like a receipt in their personal and see all the latest updates on: • How you can get involved • Projects • Events • Ways to give • Sponsorship Programs etc.

Like our page on FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com/Word.DeedNA

name must make the donation with a personal check.

Thank you for your understanding and for your generous support.

wordanddeed.org Ecuador Keynote Speaker:

Dr. Yeny Agila with Arlene Jonkman Oxford, ON – October 24 Strathroy, ON* – October 25

Mark Your Calendars for the

Fall Dinners

Hamilton, ON – October 26 Chilliwack, BC – November 1 Surrey, BC – November 2

2nd Tour Keynote Speaker:

To Be Announced Jordan, ON – October 19 Edmonton, AB* – October 24 Additional dates and locations will be announced on our website. Please stay tuned! * Tentative SUMMER 2013 I Word&Deed

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sponsorship Make a World of Difference by Sponsoring a Child in

guatemala & haiti

Thank you!

Last year we took on 100 additional sponsor children through COUNT Ministries in India – they are now all sponsored but one! Thanks to all who have committed to financially and prayerfully support a needy child through this program. There are still children available to sponsor in both Haiti and Guatemala.

Read about these children below and see more at wordanddeed.org

Guatemala

Haiti

< Henry’s father is

Beberlin Age: 8 BD: Nov. 18, 2004

henry Age: 7 BD: Jan. 26, 2006

unemployed but he is looking for a job. His mother works very hard in order to support their family.

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byron

Age: 10 Age: 8 BD: Jan. 6, 2003 BD: Jul. 13, 2004 Oscar and Byron’s father works very hard in order to support his family. Their mother stays at home doing the housework. They live in their grandmother’s house.

<

<

Beberlin’s parents separated some time ago. After the separation, she and her siblings moved in with their grandmother who works very hard in order to support the family. Beberlin and her brothers are studying at La Palabra Christian School.

OSCAR

ydmond Age: 12 BD: Jul. 26, 2000

daphnée Age: 13 BD: Jul. 28, 1999

Sponsorship Monthly Rate Increase REMINDER Thanks to all the sponsors who have already confirmed their willingness to increase their monthly sponsorship rate to $35 USD / $38 CAD! If you haven’t done so yet, please visit our website (http:// www.wordanddeed.org/sponsorship-articles/sponsorship-ratechanges-in-2013) to download your confirmation form.

C

*Please note that sponsors who are currently supporting students through Adoration Christian Centre in Haiti are not being requested to increase their monthly sponsorship amount at this time, due to the fact that a rate increase was recently undergone. Those who would like to volunteer as participants in the rate increase are more than welcome to. New sponsorships through Adoration Christian Centre will begin at the new rate of $38 CAD / $35 USD for Adoration.

q Yes! I will increase my monthly commitment to

$38 CAD / $35 USD per child as of

DD / MM / YYYY Name:

Address:

City: Prov/State: Postal /Zip Code:

Email:

C

Phone:

Church affiliation:

Return to: Canadian Office: PO Box 20100, St. Thomas, ON N5P 4H4 Canada e: office@wordanddeed.org • f: 519.633.7181

US Office: PO Box 157, Hudsonville, MI 49426 USA e: usoffice@wordanddeed.org • f: 616-896-921 To obtain more information about your recourse rights please contact your financial institution.

payment method

C

q Check / Credit Card / Other (Please sign in to your Canadahelps, JustGive or Paypal acount to make adjustments to your recurring payments.)

q I would like to continue making contributions by Pre Authorized Payment (Canada) / Electronic Funds Transfer (US). Please sign below to indicate the following: I hereby authorize Word & Deed to continue making automatic withdrawals from my bank account at the new rate according to the specifications I have given in the past. I understand that I may cancel the authorization at any time by notifying Word & Deed in writing.

q

I would like to begin making contributions by Pre Authorized Payment (Canada) / Electronic Funds Transfer (US). Please sign below to indicate the following: I hereby authorize Word & Deed to make automatic withdrawals from my bank account on the first of each month in the amount of $38 CAD / $35 USD per child. I understand that I may cancel the authorization at any time by notifying Word & Deed in writing. (Please provide Word & Deed with a void check.)

Account Type: Signature:

q

Business

q

Personal

Date:

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>GETTING INVOLVED

Business Group

Meetings

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 â&#x20AC;&#x153;Charityâ&#x20AC;? 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: Word & Deed Ministries Canada Inc. 39993 Talbot Line, Talbotville, Ontario, charitable registration number 891200941RR0001 [a specific percent] of the residue OR 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.

Abbotsford/Langley (BC) June 11 Chilliwack (BC) June 13 Ripon (CA) June 8 Meetings for the fall include: Hamilton, ON Hurontario, ON Niagara, ON Norwich, ON Grand Rapids, MI

Upcoming Events Lethbridge Softball Tournament (Lethbridge, AB)

July 6

Grand Rapids Softball Tournament (Grand Rapids, MI) Contact Karen VanderSloot with questions (karenjvs@hotmail.com or 616.895.4816)

July 27

Chilliwack Softball Tournament (Chilliwack, BC)

September 7

Auction (Zion Christian Shool in Byron Center, MI)

September 21

Donations welcome!

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>VoLunteeR profile

By TANYA BYL

Visual Impact

changes to the

One of our purposes here at Word & Deed is to help our readers understand what life is like for the people our projects benefit. Only a handful of our supporters will actually travel to those far-flung countries; for the rest there are words and pictures. And, thanks to the talents of Dirk Naves and Colin Postma, there is that wonderful invention of the last century: moving pictures. For really getting into a life, there is nothing quite like a “movie” or video.

Dirk and Colin have created several short videos that Rick Postma uses to introduce our projects to his audiences.

The process starts with raw footage, taken with an eye to the final product.

While anyone can whip out a camcorder and film, the end product is always better when thought is put into the first step.

As Dirk puts it, “Footage is to a film what wood is to a cabinet—the raw material.

And it’s not even that raw. There are an infinite number of ways to film any Back row from left to right: Rick Postma, Colin event, and each of those ways imposes Postma, Dirk Naves and John Otten. In front an interpretive grid on the events.” Dirk row, a family who used a microloan to develop a is a freelance filmmaker currently based fish farm. in Burlington who works mostly for clients in Christian Ministry, “creating short promotional pieces as well as long-form curricula and documentary films.” His journey to this profession has been rather circuitous, and is the result of several combined passions: theology, photography, writing, and technology.

One of the projects Dirk and Colin worked on together was a promotional video for Colombia.

Travelling to one of the world’s most dangerous countries with thousands of dollars of owned and rented equipment was interesting. Colin remembers that as they drove into Bogotá, they were instructed to “to keep our cameras down when we came to a stop light, as people have been known to smash a car window and grab a cell phone or point-and-shoot camera out of the hands of unaware tourists.” However, with the help of security guards, “by dusk, Dirk and I were marching through the downtown core with four or five employees of CDA.” Our intrepid cameraman Colin, a recent university grad, works as a Licensed Insurance Representative during the day. He may not be heading out to any risky locations for the time being – he and his lovely wife Corine are expecting their first child this year in Hamilton, Ontario.

The second part of the filmmaking process is digital editing, when the footage is arranged into an effective video clip, or short movie. This can be a very involved process, as a few short minutes of final product take many hours in front of a computer. Both Dirk and Colin claim to be on the beginning of their filmmaking journeys, stating that filmmaking is a craft that takes decades to master.

Word&deed canada board After many years of service, Dave Wielinga and Klaas Jan Buist have retired from the Word & Deed Board. Dave was a founding member of the board and has served for 19 years.

He has been a member of the Human Resources Committee and the Public Relations Committee and also served as Secretary.

Dave Wielinga Klaas Jan has been a member of the board for 15 years. He was a member of the Human Resources Committee. We look forward to their continued involvement at the committee level. Their participation in the faithful leadership of Word & Deed has been deeply appreciated. We thank them and wish them God’s blessings.

These men found their first-hand experience of Word & Deed’s Colombia projects “awesome” and “exciting.” As Colin says, “You hear and read of places, names and projects like John Calvin School, Barranquilla, the Tenjo Girls Home…but to actually see them in person, to put faces to the names and see the spread of the gospel in that foreign land was wonderful.”

It is that sense of excitement and wonder that they seek to weave into their films, enticing those of us left here in North America, and eliciting from us a better understanding of Word & Deed’s purpose. W&D Tanya Byl is a copy editor at Word & Deed magazine and a proud former teacher of both these volunteers.

Klaas Jan Buist & family

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Prayer Requests “Growing With Hope” Sponsorship Program in Ecuador • Pray that our partners at these projects will be encouraged and upheld in their ministry to the children, families and ultimately the communities of Cesar Proano and Bajo Malecon.

La Palabra Christian School in Guatemala • Praise God for His faithfulness in blessing La Palabra with growth.

• Pray that this school will be a light to the impoverished community of Monjas.

Blantyre Girls’ Home and Manja Safe House in Malawi • Please pray that God would provide wise and permanent management for these two homes in the wake of Frank Phiri’s (the former Director) recent death.

Koti-Yough and Makurdi Christian Schools in Nigeria • Praise God for advancing these schools to almost full selfsufficiency.

• Pray that God would use these schools to develop strong Christian leaders in Nigeria.

Good Shepherd Children’s Home in Myanmar • Praise God for the good fruit that this center has already borne.

• Pray that God will continue to use it as a means of presenting His saving grace to impoverished children in Myanmar.

Word & Deed North America • Praise God for His continued provision of support for this ministry.

• Pray that God will bless Word & Deed’s efforts to intelligently and compassionately bring relief and development in Christ’s name.

Feedback Requested

We are currently evaluating the usefulness of both YAH and IMPACT to the readers of our magazine. They are meant to help elementary and high school students, respectively, relate to their peers in the developing world. If you have found them helpful and want to see them stay, let us know at publicrelations@wordanddeed. org.

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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