Saved People Serve People--We care for the most vulnerable

Grace Church is committed to rescuing at-risk children from human trafficking in SE Asia with partner organizations like Asia's Hope, Grace Refuge Outreach Worldwide, and Team Hope International.  We also have sponsors for children in Africa with VisionTrust International. 

One of our values is Saved People Serve People.  Our sponsors faithfully support our sponsored children in residential homes in their home country.  The monthly support provides what the sponsored children need for life: food, clothing, school fees, and special events like birthday party celebrations or excursions like missions trips to their home villages or planned field trips. 

With Asia's Hope, we sponsor three orphan homes, one in Thailand and two in Cambodia.  Each home has house directors who care for the sponsored children. The house directors sacrifice to care for the children.  We praise God for their devotion and willingness to serve.  Saved People Serve People.

With VisionTrust, God has allowed us to sponsor 53 children in orphan care in the Central African Republic. Many children were orphaned from parents who died from AIDS.  Although civil war and disorder remain difficult challenges, God is helping VisionTrust locate displaced children and their families so that they can provide relief.  We praise God for faithful sponsors who give to provide help for orphans and their families. 

What is more amazing is how our Grace Place homes have adopted our values. They embody the same value, Saved People Serve People.  

Vannak Yun, house director at Grace Place Battambang, shared a picture where a young child receives help from Grace Place Battambang.  As Vannak testifies, 

"This is the poor family is informed to us by the chief of commune. She has one son, age 12 years old no chance to go to School because she is unable to provide him at all. So on behalf of Asia"s Hope we provided him School uniform two sets, bag, pens, and shoe. He"s so happy to receive that. For giving is better than receiving. God is good. (this Event is prepared at the commune office)"
--posted on Facebook on Wed June 3, 2015

Vannak facilitated a blessing on another Cambodian family who was under-resourced. The boy needed school uniform and supplies. Saved People Serve People!  May God allow us to continue developing fully devoted followers of Christ all around the world. 

To sponsor a child in one of our Orphan Residential Homes, contact Juana Hernandez (330) 264-9459 x246 or jhernandez@woostergrace.org. 

Saved People Serve People--Rescuing at risk children from human trafficking changes lives

Grace Church is committed to rescuing at-risk children from human trafficking in SE Asia with partner organizations like Asia's Hope, Grace Refuge Outreach Worldwide, and Team Hope International.  We also have sponsors for children in Africa with VisionTrust International. 

One of our values is Saved People Serve People.  Our sponsors faithfully support our sponsored children in residential homes in their home country.  The monthly support provides what the sponsored children need for life: food, clothing, school fees, and special events like birthday party celebrations or excursions like missions trips to their home villages or planned field trips. 

With Asia's Hope, we sponsor three orphan homes, one in Thailand and two in Cambodia.  Each home has house directors who care for the sponsored children. The house directors sacrifice to care for the children.  We praise God for their devotion and willingness to serve.  Saved People Serve People.

With VisionTrust, God has allowed us to sponsor 53 children in orphan care in the Central African Republic. Many children were orphaned from parents who died from AIDS.  Although civil war and disorder remain difficult challenges, God is helping VisionTrust locate displaced children and their families so that they can provide relief.  We praise God for faithful sponsors who give to provide help for orphans and their families. 

What is more amazing is how our Grace Place homes have adopted our values. They embody the same value, Saved People Serve People.  

Vannak Yun, house director at Grace Place Battambang, shared a picture where a young child receives help from Grace Place Battambang.  As Vannak testifies, 

"This is the poor family is informed to us by the chief of commune. She has one son, age 12 years old no chance to go to School because she is unable to provide him at all. So on behalf of Asia"s Hope we provided him School uniform two sets, bag, pens, and shoe. He"s so happy to receive that. For giving is better than receiving. God is good. (this Event is prepared at the commune office)"
--posted on Facebook on Wed June 3, 2015

Vannak facilitated a blessing on another Cambodian family who was under-resourced. The boy needed school uniform and supplies. Saved People Serve People!  May God allow us to continue developing fully devoted followers of Christ all around the world. 

To sponsor a child in one of our Orphan Residential Homes, contact Juana Hernandez (330) 264-9459 x246 or jhernandez@woostergrace.org. 

We love these organizations who rescue at-risk children from human trafficking and exploitation

On Sunday, April 12, the world focused their attention on the International Day of Street Children.  I praise God that we partner with organizations that seek to rescue orphans who are at-risk of human trafficking.  

We offer a shout out to the following partnering organizations:

• Asia's Hope--Their blog post shares how God is at work in rescuing children so that they can offer hope to others. A choir of sponsored children from Asia's Hope traveled to Korea to sing and to perform.  This was a once-in-a-lifetime adventure!
• G.R.O.W.--God has truly blessed Faa, the Director of GROW. Her vision of building a campus of rescue homes for at-risk children to receive hope from despair is inspiring. Read Faa's story.
• VisionTrust International--helping orphans in West and Central Africa and in Haiti, VisionTrust provides opportunities to care for kids who have been displaced from natural disasters, human neglect, and violence.  Pastor Tom Peters who is from Grace Church serves in the Central African Republic (CAR) and in Haiti shared one of his last trips to Haiti and to the CAR on Facebook.

G.R.O.W. Director of Operation, Faa

Each organization seeks to rescue at-risk children who could be victimized and become street children.  We thank them for their commitment to offer hope to children.  

Show them love now by sending a donation over and above what you give to other charitable organization. 

• Give to Asia's Hope
• Give to G.R.O.W.
• Give to VisionTrust

  

Help end human trafficking by giving on World Day of Social Justice

Today is World Day of Social Justice!

I praise God that Grace Church seeks to help end human trafficking and to rescue orphans around the world through the partnership of Asia's Hope, G.R.O.W., and VisionTrust.  We partner to offer an end to slavery and a start to a new life.  We understand that a new start does not guarantee a good end always. But we want to show God's love and care for at-risk orphan children.  

Meeting at-risk children

Rather than be enslaved to hopelessness, our sponsored children are free to hope.  Instead of only nightmares, our sponsored children can dream.  

Many children and women are victims of human exploitation.  We are grateful that we can help rescue some of the most vulnerable from modern bondage.  

Juana with orphan child

One of my heroes is my co-worker, Juana Hernandez. She oversees the orphan care ministries of Grace Church. She helps coordinate the sponsorship of our sponsored children with Asia's Hope. We are rescuing 87 orphan children who would be most vulnerable for human trafficking and modern slavery.  I thank God for Juana's enduring efforts to care for the least, the last, and the hopeless.  

To help end human trafficking, please donate to our partners.  Giving offers hope that social justice prevails.  

To give now, please visit:

• Asia's Hope
• G.R.O.W.
• VisionTrust

Integrated Ministries Grace Church supports

WHAT IS INTEGRATED MINISTRIES?

Integrated ministries is a description of ministries whereby The Church follows God's directive to share the Gospel in word and deed. Grace Church will share the work of Christ (the Gospel) and share the love of Christ (our good works) with every human being.

As the Commitment to Common Mission for Grace Brethren Churches states,

"We affirm that God has created human beings with physical, emotional and spiritual needs and that the Church expresses the compassion of Christ in proclaiming the Gospel while caring for various needs of mankind.

We call upon the Church to bless believers, strengthen churches and reach the lost by showing the works which reflect true faith (James 2:26)

• Assisting those in need,
• Promoting economic, family, and personal development,
• Encouraging the development of businesses with a missionary focus (Business As Mission)"

Grace Church supports the following Integrated Ministries: 

Water for Good

Water for Good, providing fresh water and community based resources for people and communities in the Central African Republic and beyond.

Asia's Hope

Asia’s Hope, providing comprehensive, family-style care for orphaned children at high risk of sexual and economic exploitation in Cambodia, Thailand, and India. 

GROW founder, Faa

GROW, rescuing children and youth at-risk for the sex trade in Thailand. 

VisionTrust

VisionTrust, developing orphaned and neglected children into mature Christians.



We praise God that we can support these integrated ministries to share the work of Christ (the Gospel) and to share the love of Christ (our good works) with these partnering organizations.  Please pray for the year-end appeals as they seek to do good in the years ahead.

Rescuing Children At Risk for Human Trafficking

Team Hope International

 

It started with an extraordinary need. Hundreds of thousands of children in Southeast Asia, many of them orphans, being trafficked. Exploited. Raped. Some of them by their own parents.  The very people who gave them birth selling them for a buck. 

The need gave way to extraordinary passion.  One woman who found a way to help more than one of the least of these, and through her efforts, Team Hope International was born. Together with her husband, God is allowing them to help the helpless.

You can find out more by going to the Team Hope International website. 

Diane Tirakis coordinates Team Hope International at Grace Church.  Team Hope seeks to raise funds for organizations that help rescue orphans and children at risk for human trafficking; specifically through the ministries of Asia’s Hope and G.R.O.W.  

Asia’s Hope is a non profit agency committed to mobilizing resources to meet spiritual, physical and educational needs among Asia’s poor.  G.R.O.W. is a an organization committed to rescuing at risk children in Thailand to place them in small, family homes.   

To sign up for Team Hope International, visit teamhopeintl.org or contact Diane Tirakis, dtirakis@hotmail.com (330) 345-5779

[VIDEO] Bible Quizzing recognized at NEO District Conference

District Moderator, Ron Boehm, reserved part of the program to honor those people in our district who have served faithfully in our ministries. Tho' many could have been chosen, a handful were asked to attend and to give praise to God by receiving recognition for ministries well done.

Chuck & Missy Steiner serve faithfully as coach and as host for Bible Quizzing events in the NEO District. I have witnessed the evenings reviewing verses, challenging students to do their best, and offering insight into what the verses mean in real life. Last year on of my sons joined the team. He grew in character as he reviewed God's Word every week.

Thanks to Chuck & Missy for their faithfulness! I wished I would have mic-ed myself. Next time!

To send them an encouraging note for their faithfulness, you can send a note care of Wooster Grace, give them a call, or stop them when you see them and say thanks.

Chuck & Missy Steiner
C/O Wooster Grace Brethren
4459A Burbank Rd
Wooster OH  44691

Please watch this video clip. I caught them before they departed from the district conference.

Top Ten Images from Global Outreach 2010

As I pause to reflect on all that God has done through Wooster Grace, I praise God for His work in peoples' lives.  So here are my top ten images of what Wooster Grace did with the generous and faithful giving in 2010.

I post these images in no particular order:

• Our missionary partners from Wooster Grace--Hoberts, Triplehorns, & Kane's;
• My visit to Grace Place Battambang; 
• Ministry with GoTeam to serve with Kane's & Good's and CMPs; 
• Swain visit and help with VBS; 
• Ngoumape visit for construction of James Gribbell Ministry Training Center in Bangui CAR; 
• Nanga from ICDI visit to move forward in holistic community development; 
• GROW gets a truck for Faa to transport kids more safely; 
• Short-term Adult trip to New Mexico by ABF (Significant Times); 
• Student Ministries short-term missions trip to San Francisco, CA; and 
• Team Hope Cleveland 2010 (txs Jeff for photo);

Please comment and share what you think I missed or send me a photo of what could or should have been included. I do miss things. Can't wait to hear from you.

Struggling to pray

The Global Prayer Walk is more than half over. I am impressed with how God is using His followers to impact the world. I am glad for Grace Brethren International Missions and their commitment to provide a prayer guide. I appreciate GBIM for expanding the prayer guide to include what national Christians are doing in partnership with those of us in the United States.  I look forward to praying through the rest of the prayer guide.


One of the ongoing battles in my life is habitual prayer. Although prayer is one of the foundational stones for a vibrant spiritual life, I find it difficult to incorporate it regularly. In fact, I know that the Bible challenges everyone to "pray without ceasing," to pray continually (I Thessalonians 5:17). Yet I am so distracted by many things: Google reader, ESPN, weather channel, music on the radio or on the shuffle, phone calls, text messages, tweets, FB notifications, etc.   What's a follower of Christ suppose to do?

I must lash prayer to my highest values. If following God is a high value, then I will make time to pray. What the prayer guide does for me is set my focus on what God is doing in the world.  It provides an overview of what God is doing. Then as I am prompted I can focus my attention to one or two people or countries or emphases from the prayer guide to explore more intensely. 

To make something a habit involves a measure of discipline. I read a great book by Twyla Tharp, The Creative Habit (2003), where she advocates planning for creativity. She demystifies creativity. She also provides insight for making something as intangible and abstract as creativity into a tangible, concrete habit.  Likewise, you can create a prayer habit.  Although I do not have 12 chapters and 32 exercises for you to learn how to develop a prayer habit. I will offer a comment and one exercise that has helped me.

One thing Twyla shares, rituals are "automatic but decisive patterns of behavior at the beginning of the creative process."  I apply this to prayer. To make prayer a habit, I must institute an automatic but decisive pattern of behavior at the beginning of the process to trigger prayer.  So try this exercise that Pastor Ivanildo shared with me. As soon as he awakens, he gets out of bed and goes to his knees to pray.  If you cannot make it on your knees, then sit up and bow your head.  Place the prayer guide near your bed--on your nightstand, shelf, pile of clothes, or stack-able crates. So when you awaken, open it and pray.  Try this with me this week.

If you have a helpful exercise to create a prayer habit, then please share it here or on the Facebook event page.  We need each other. We need to help each other.  Please post how you are moving towards a habit of prayer. 

Into the Wild

photo by gauravonomics

My year listening to God

I watched the movie with my wife at the dollar theatre a few months ago. I liked the journey that the character took. He sought solitude to find himself. Then found himself in solitude. But hunters eventually found him alone in the end. My spouse commented how depressing the movie was to her. But in my opinion, I view the ending of the movie as a challenge to engage others now during the process of trying to find yourself rather than hope to engage others after I find myself.

Jesus sought God in solitude. He tried to center himself with His own relationship with God the Father. As God the Son, Jesus wanted communion, but people got in the way.

photo by david locke

In my readings this morning, Jesus tried to get alone with God but people were along the way. In fact, the text reads, "[Jesus] left in a boat to a remote area to be alone. But the crowds heard where he was headed and followed on foot from many towns. Jesus saw the huge crowd as he stepped from the boat, and he had compassion on them and healed their sick (Matthew 14:13-14)."

Later on, "Immediately after this, Jesus insisted that his disciples get back into the boat and cross to the other side of the lake, while he sent the people home. After sending them home, he went up into the hills by himself to pray. Night fell while he was there alone (Matthew 14:22-23)."

photo by ingorrr

If Jesus had to make time to get alone with God, then I must follow His example. It is hard to carve out time to read the Bible and to hear from God. I learned that I must set the time and the place in order to benefit from getting the time to work. When I have set the time and the place, I have been more regular with my time reading the Bible. So, I challenge you to set the time and the place to read the Bible today for tomorrow's schedule. Then watch God come to you and speak to you from His word.

Jesus went into the wild and made time with God. So too, you and I need to go into the wild and discover our true identity in God by spending time with Him. May you experience the growing insights and direction from God by reading the Bible.