In This Issue

EFCA Tsunami Relief DVD Wins Telly Awards

"Rebuilding Lives," the EFCA Compassion Ministries DVD presentation on tsunami relief work in South Asia, was recently awarded five Telly Awards. The DVD presentation won a Silver Telly Award, the highest honor, in the category of Sound/Sound Design. Four Bronze Telly Awards were also won in the categories of Editing, Charitable/Not-for-profit, Motivational, and Public Relations.

The Telly Awards honor outstanding video and film productions. The 27th Annual Telly Awards received over 12,000 entries from all 50 states and 5 continents. The Telly is one of the most sought-after awards by industry leaders, from large international firms to local production companies and ad agencies.

To request a copy of the "Rebuilding Lives" DVD go to: http://www.efca.org/rebuildinglives/order/index.html

For more information on EFCA Compassion Ministries' relief work in South Asia, go to: http://www.efca.org/international/compassion/crisis/disasterreliefupdates.html

To read more about the Telly Awards, go to: http://www.tellyawards.com

Sudan Update/DVD Coming Soon!

SUDAN: GOING HOME

In the last issue we shared an editorial from our filmographer who spent some time filming the repatriation of the Sudanese in Sudan. Below is a second editorial. In the coming weeks, every EFCA church will receive a DVD with a Sudan update.

Sharing compassion and extending mercy are critical components of the EFCA vision to multiply healthy churches among all people. Given God's provision, it is our responsibility to seize this opportunity to serve the families of the EFC of Sudan (EFCS). Our assistance will give them and other Sudanese repatriates currently living in refugee camps a chance to return home. Their needs are evident as seen firsthand by EFCA's video journalist:

The land calls to them, and being stuck in another country against their will is so hard on them. Everything in their being yearns and needs to return to Sudan, return home. Just to give you an idea of why help is necessary, picture this: they do not have good health and own nothing. They must hike from the refugee camps to reach their 'home' in Sudan. The Sudanese have few skills necessary for self-sufficient living.

Basic supplies such as, cooking utensils, blankets, food, medicine, these things are in such short supply. They desperately need medical help, temporary food, and training on how to provide food for themselves. I cannot imagine what it would be like to go through this.

Specifically, Ed Pollasch of the EFCA International Mission in Africa shares that the following items, which can be purchased in East Africa, will be needed by Sudanese families:

  • Kitchen essentials: ladles, pots/pans, plates/cups, barrels for food storage
  • Assistance with transportation needs
  • Mattresses and blankets
  • Corn and beans
  • Agricultural supplies: seeds, shovels, hoes, and machetes
  • Shoes and clothes for school children

The needs are profound and real. In continued partnership with the EFCS, EFCA Compassion Ministries will help direct our efforts to support EFCS pastors as they help others on their journey home--God's love in action, person-to-person. Each of us will grow through their experience. Watch for the next update sharing the faithful and powerful insight of one EFCS pastor, as well as more information on the Sudan DVD presentation each EFCA church will receive at the beginning of April.

New Tools for Missionary Candidates

As the International Mission has sought to focus more directly on the health and the strengths of missionary candidates, we thought it necessary to inform the local churches what self-knowledge tools we are using to help us measure these areas. There are multiple ways we are seeking to measure the health and strengths of missionary candidates, but the following are some tools that might be helpful to you as you seek to build international missions in your church.

  • MMPI
  • StrengthFinder
  • MBTI (Meyer's-Briggs)
  • Cross Cultural Adaptability Indicator
  • DISC
  • Firo-B

These tools will be one way for the Assimilation Department, and the IM as a whole, to make better decisions concerning what ministries candidates should take part in and what ministry teams they can be most effective serving with. The intention is to help candidates use the way God has wired them to minister in the most effective way possible around the globe. The above tools are referenced as "self-knowledge tools" because we want candidates to get a better understanding of who they are, what their strengths are, and how they function best according to the way God has made them. If you have questions about the use of these tools in our missionary induction process, please contact Denny M. or Gene V.

Attention! EFCA Churches Ministering in Russia or Ukraine

James Lauderdale, the International Mission Area Leader for Ukraine and Russia, is seeking to find out which EFCA churches are doing ministry (short-term teams, supporting a national ministry, etc.) in these two countries. If your church has a missions effort in Ukraine or Russia (or, if it is interested), please contact James Lauderdale at jhlauderdale@efcaim.org. The purpose of this inquiry is three-fold:

  1. To have more in-common knowledge of the ministry activity of EFCA churches in Ukraine and Russia.
  2. To inform EFCA local churches of the IM's efforts in Ukraine and Russia.
  3. The bigger picture purpose: to work together as strategically as is possible.

Leadership Conference Update

Please join the EFCA International Mission for breakfast on Thursday, June 29, 2006 from 7:00am - 8:15am. The cost is $16.00 per ticket. You will have the opportunity to sign up for this event on the EFCA Leadership Conference website beginning April 1, 2006. For more details on the logistics of the Leadership Conference and to sign up, please go to the Leadership Conference Website.

The EFCA International Mission will be hosting four summits (the Africa Summit has just been added to the schedule) that will take place in Denver at the Colorado Convention Center on Tuesday, June 27, 2006 in conjunction with the EFCA Leadership Conference.

  • Africa Summit - facilitated by Kevin Kompelien. 12:00pm - 5:00pm (this summit will begin with a joint lunch with participants from other IM summits)
  • India Summit - facilitated by Sam and Sharon Mall. 12:00pm - 5:00pm (this summit will begin with a joint lunch with participants from the other IM summits)
  • Indonesia Summit - facilitated by Bala Balasingham. 12:00pm - 5:00pm (this summit will begin with a joint lunch with participants from the other IM summits)
  • IM and the Local Church (Mission Pastors) Summit - facilitated by Gary Hunter and the Executive Director. 9:00am - 12:00pm (this summit will end with a joint lunch with participants from the other IM Summits)

If you are interested in attending one of the summits without attending the Leadership Conference, please e-mail im@efca.org with the name of the summit in the subject line.

If you have any questions regarding the summits or the breakfast, please contact Cathy Allen at callen@efca.org or call 1 800-745-2202 ext. 453.

Katrina Financial Report

If you are interested in the Hurricane Katrina Relief financial report please Click Here. This report shows where donated funds have been allocated since August 2005. It allows individuals and churches to see where their donations have been used.

Sand Castles (Repeat)

The EFCA International Mission is committed to doing a better job at communicating with the local church, donors, missionaries, and prayer warriors about the on going work around the globe. In light of this commitment, the EFCA International Mission will begin sending out a newsletter with stories and pictures from the field (specific names and locations will not be given to protect the workers serving around the world). This newsletter will be called "Sand Castles" and will be sent out in the middle of every month to give updates (stories and pictures) of the various ministries going on around the world.

The next issue of Sand Castles will be sent out April 15, 2006. If you are interested in the work of the International Mission and would like to receive this monthly update, please Click Here to sign up.