Push Back The Darkness

This month at Living Word Community Church, we are presenting our Global Missions Focus. As I sat and listened to the guest speaker yesterday morning, one thing that he said kept ringing in my head. This morning and throughout the day it continued to echo in my head over and over. What he said was: "Push back the darkness!" The way that he pronounced it, it was almost a rally cry or a command. Maybe that it why in embedded itself so deeply in my mind.

One scripture that the speaker focused on was Romans 10: 13-17.
  
¹³For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.
 ¹⁴How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?
 ¹⁵And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!

I love these verses. Contained in them are a promise, a logical progression of thought, a conclusion, and a statement of the reward that comes to those who reach out to others with the gospel.

Of course, other that the promise of Salvation, the most important message in this passage is the question of how shall people hear the Word without a Preacher. A Preacher can be anyone. You do not need to be ordained and licensed to tell others the Good News. This is why Missions is so important. By supporting missions, you are indirectly reaching people that you would never have the opportunity to speak to.

I encourage each of you to give to your local Missions programs through your Church. Please also consider supporting Ethiopia.

Ethiopia Yearning...

I was just sitting here, minding my own business, when it hit me... hard. I miss Ethiopia so badly. The sounds, the sites, the smells, the foods, the scenery, but most of all, the people... especially the kids.

It could be any number of things that make me miss it so much. The slower pace lifestyle, the way people treat each other with respect and courtesy, the way the kids smile even though they have almost nothing, the way you are treated almost as a celebrity...

I guess now would be as good a time as ever to tell all of you that: WE ARE GOING BACK NEXT YEAR!!! I can't wait! I am willing to bet that our next trip is going to be even more amazing than the first. As far as I am concerned, the time can not pass fast enough.

It is not too soon to begin praying for our trip. We want God to use us in an even bigger way this year. I would also like you to consider supporting our trip. In a few months I will be putting up a donate button for contribution.



Thanks for reading, and don't forget to pray for Ethiopia!

Video from Dr. Frew

This is a video from Dr. Frew, the man who is charge of our project in Sendafa, Ethiopia. This video was recorded last year to tell us more about the ministry there.

New Slideshow

I hope you enjoy the pictures in the slideshow below. The song is "My Own Little World" by Matthew West.

God bless you and God bless Ethiopia.

Life Without Grandparents

Imagine your life without your grandparents. They may have passed on by now, but chances are you were able to spend time with them at some point. They held you on their laps, hugged you, and spoiled you.

Many kids in Ethiopia never even get to meet their grandparents. Why? Because the average life expectancy for a man in Ethiopia is only 52 years and for a woman it is 55 years. The main reason for this is sickness and HIV AIDS.

This is why the Adopt a Village program is so important. Our church is helping raise the standard of living in Sendafa, Ethiopia one person at a time. The clinic that is made possible through this funding helps dozens of people every day with a wide range of illnesses. We now have 500 women on our drug program who are receiving Anti-retroviral at no cost. In many cases, not only do these drugs extend their lives, but it allows them to become productive members of the town again.

 My hope and prayer is that through our support and love for the people of Sendafa, we will begin to see children with grandparents in the years to come.

God bless Ethiopia, and God bless Sendafa!