EFCA ReachGlobal News

Updates for mission pastors and church leaders

In this issue

• Cyclone Relief in Myanmar
• Earthquake relief
• Correction regarding leadership conference
• 2009-2010 ReachGlobal prayer guide
• Supporting a missionary
• Choir robes for Congo
• Vision trip to Congo
• GodSighting and Prayer
• 2008 Leadership Conference (repeat)

Cyclone Relief in Myanmar

This is an email update from one of our national leaders in Myanmar who is helping to lead relief efforts:

Dear Friends,

Thank you so much for your prayers for the relief work. I would like to share with you regarding how God protected us last Sunday night. We went to a village where there were numerous victims from the cyclone. While we traveled, God stopped the rain and provided sunshine the whole day. It had been raining for nearly a week prior to this day. Then God protected us from the authorities at a check point. That night (Sunday, May 25), 50 groups of local relief workers and cars were stopped and arrested for attempting to enter Yangon from the Delta (the next day they were all released). I see God's hand is over us. In Myoung Mya Town, refugees were asked by authorities to leave refugee camps and return to their village. Most of refugees don't know where to go because Nargis wiped out their homes.

The Junta keeps international aid in store houses with very little distributed to victims. That is why we local people are helping with immediate needs (food and clothes). The schools are supposed to open in June, but buildings are not yet built. The Junta made agreements for international help but have too many rules to observe. This prevents aid to get to necessary places. We don't trust what they say.

Please continue to pray for:

1. God's protection and good physical health as I travel and help people receive aid.
2. Wisdom to see God's direction for building relationships with people for the purposes of church planting.
3. More local partners committed to long-term missions in the Delta region.
   
4. The children's education and future.
   

Again, thanks so much for your prayers and financial support for relief work. God bless you all.

What can you do?

Pray for:

• our in-country leaders to be led and protected by the Holy Spirit.
• an outpouring of God’s blessing to meet needs.
• people to be exposed to the compassion of Christ through the response of our national partners.
• wisdom in our strategies that will direct our response to this crisis in the coming months.

Give
The greatest need continues to be for resources to meet immediate needs and sustain a long-term response. We have established the Myanmar Disaster Relief fund and are accepting donations.

A bulletin insert is available on the EFCA TouchGlobal Web site summarizing information regarding the need, our response and how to give. Download the insert at http://www.touchglobal.org/myanmar/

We recognize that it is very important to ensure that donations are used strategically and with transparency and accountability. Therefore, we are seeking to build a coalition to effect a unified response. We pray that God's people would give generously enabling the love of Christ and the gospel to be spread in this land of oppression.

Please make checks out to EFCA and send to:
Myanmar Disaster Relief Fund #21709-3989
901 East 78th Street
Minneapolis MN 55420

or Donate Online

Earthquake relief

The below is the most recent report from ReachGlobal personnel:

CHENGDU ATMOSPHERE: Over the past week, life has returned to “normal”: people biking to work, waiting at the bus stops. Traffic is at its usual craziness; people out running errands, eating out. There are still post-earthquake oddities: people sleeping outside, planes flying low overhead, supply-filled trucks leaving town, and donation stations on every intersection. There is this underlying subdued quiet that permeates the air. I think people are trying to figure out how to cope. More people seem to be eating out. I don’t think people want to spend too much time in their homes in case a big aftershock comes. I also think they don’t want to be alone with their own thoughts.

As you probably saw in the news, China called for three days of mourning for the earthquake victims: flags were at half-mast, entertainment places were closed, and the Olympic torch relay was suspended. On Monday at 2:28pm, everyone stood in “silence” while cars, buses, fire trucks, trains, and boats sounded their horns for three minutes. We were walking out on the street at the time. I found it to be an interesting way for people to recognize the devastation the quake left - drowning out the grief with loud noise. It was a unique cross-cultural experience.

You can continue to read updates from our field staff and from the EFCA TouchGlobal Crisis Response Team by going to the TouchGlobal Web site.

Gifts can be made to:
EFCA TouchGlobal, 901 East 78th Street, Minneapolis, MN 55420-1300
Attn: Crisis Response Ministry (China Earthquake Relief Fund)

or Donate Online to help aid this disaster.

Correction regarding leadership conference

The ReachGlobal dinner will be held Tuesday evening, June 24. The previous special broadcast that went out indicated this dinner would be on Wednesday evening. You may sign up for this dinner when you register for the conference at www.bthetree.org.

2009-2010 ReachGlobal prayer guide

The 2009-2010 ReachGlobal Prayer Guide will be available at Leadership Conference in St. Louis. You may pick up free copies at Leadership Conference or have them shipped to you (suggested donation $5). Shipping of the new Prayer Guides will begin July 1 and will be shipped to those who have requested them. Please email reachglobal@efca.org to request copies of the new Prayer Guide.

Supporting a missionary

Why does it cost so much to support a missionary? This is a question asked frequently from local churches and individual missionary supporters. To help communicate the answer to this question, ReachGlobal has put together a PowerPoint presentation for you to view called ReachGlobal Support Schedules. It is located under "popular links."

If you have questions regarding this presentation, please contact Daryl.Anderson@efca.org.

Choir robes for Congo

Does your church have old choir robes you don’t use anymore? If they are still in good condition, there are many churches in Congo that are very eager to get them. Your church could make a very appreciated gift to a choir. If you can help, please contact Dr. Tom Cairns at tom.cairns@efca.org or call 1-800-745-2202.

Vision trip to Congo

Is your church considering a partnership in Africa? Are you seeking ministry to orphans, widows and handicapped people? Is your church interested in helping with medical work in a remote part of Africa?

The Evangelical Free Church of Congo is the second largest Free Church movement in the world, yet it has some of the greatest needs in areas of compassion and leadership development ministries. These are the two areas that the EFCA seeks to partner with them to help.

Civil war, AIDS and other social upheaval in the last decade have left the church with thousands of widows, as well as orphans, and disabled people. They are eager to learn job skills and have a livelihood. The church is developing the Elikya Center to train these needy people.

Four times a year we offer vision trips for senior pastors and church leaders to go to Congo to see the needs and get a vision for how their churches can connect and participate there. We also take medical teams and others who can help train the doctors and nursing staff at the Tandala Hospital.

If you would like more information, please contact Dr. Tom Cairns at 1-800-745-2202 or tom.cairns@efca.org, to learn how your church can be involved in helping or going on a vision trip to Congo.

GodSighting and Prayer

GodSighting - Africa

Two months ago, the need for funds for the Bible Project in Congo was communicated through ReachGlobal News. Below is an update from that need:

We have launched a Bible Project in Congo to help meet a critical need for Bibles among the Evangelical Free Church of Congo. Due to civil war and economic hardship many of the 900 Congo Free Churches had only a handful of Bibles and many of the Bibles they had were falling apart. The original goal for the project was to raise $30,000 to help get 5,000 Bibles into the hands of Congo Free Church leaders. God has moved in an amazing way since I first made this need known. To date we have sent almost $30,000 to Congo to buy Bibles and another $5,000 has been committed toward the project. However, the need continues to be very great among the Congo Free Churches. There are still too many church leaders who do not have access to a Bible. Our goal is to raise an additional $30,000 over the next several months in order to see a total of more than 9,000 Bibles distributed among the 900 Congo Free Churches. Praise the Lord for the way God continues to answer our prayers and use us as vessels to spread His gospel.

Prayer

The ENGAGE team will be hosting a Readiness Event (REV) May 31 - June 6, where candidates come for assessments and interaction with ReachGlobal leadership. Please pray that the following goals are met:

• Determine if ReachGlobal is a good fit (their fit with us and our fit with them)
• Evaluate their aptitude for cross-cultural life and ministry
• Assess their potential to be a team player with other missionaries
• Receive a thorough understanding of the candidates’ wellness with the help of a trained professional
• Effectively communicate God’s unique design for individuals
• Provide tools to help accepted candidates raise up a team of prayer and financial partners
• Orient candidates to the operations of ReachGlobal
• Provide candidates with a good understanding of the ReachGlobal opportunities around the world

Additional prayer requests for the candidates:

• Pray that the challenging experience of being away from their children would sharpen those who will be leaving families behind and give them time as couples to process things together.
• Please keep their travels in your prayers, since some will be coming a great distance to be a part of the event.
  
  

2008 Leadership Conference (repeat)

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