New Hope Fellowship is excited to take on a project

Small but excited, New Hope Fellowship (NHF) is looking forward to the next project opportunity in support of their Ugandan friends at Glory of Christ Community Development Initiative (GOCCDI) in Dwaniro (nestled in the Rakai District). Kyle met with four Rakai Team members yesterday (Sunday, March 8, 2009) at Big T's in Lawton, MI, for their monthly gathering. As salads, Buffalo chicken wraps, and Death by Chocolate were served, the team watched a 15 minute video Kyle brought back from his recent travels, which showed the daily life of Joyce, one of the students at Glory of Christ School.

Lot's of questions were asked about Joyce and the school and church: "How many people live in that house? How did you all sleep in there? Is Jack fruit good? Do they actually drink that water? You didn't drink it, did you?" And, of course, "So, what can we do?" Great question.

The team wrapped up the meeting talking about what they could do and when, an awesome opportunity to discuss the values of Orphan Justice Mission, which include the sometimes seemingly polar Generosity and Sustainability. Generosity is the willingness to share resources for the good of all (often an immediate response to sympathy) and Sustainability is the strategic empowerment of the community to be able to support themselves without depleting their resources (a slow process of growth). So how can New Hope be both generous and help GOCCDI become sustainable? That's where the partnership with OJM comes in. OJM desires to work with all partners to help each maximize their efforts to get kids taken care of, not just for today, but for tomorrow and beyond. Part of that cooperation means being patient while one side or the other takes their next step.

OJM is presently working with GOCCDI on firming up their leadership and building capacity. This sometimes seems like a slow process, made more difficult because you can't "see" the progress, but this will lay the foundation for more tangible projects down the road.

So the NHF team is thinking about what they can do, even now, to be ready for a project when the time comes. And of course, prayer is a project that's always ready to go.

The Prairie Chapel devotes three Sundays to Uganda partnership

The Prairie Chapel (TPC) in Schoolcraft, MI, a Remote Care Partner of Glory of Christ Community Development Initiative (GOCCDI) in Dwaniro, Uganda, is devoting three Sunday morning services to their work through Orphan Justice Mission for children in Africa. As a Remote Care Partner, TPC has committed to a long term relationship with GOCCDI (at least five years), which includes running a PenPal program for relationship building, supporting at least two development projects a year, designating a monthly support amount to Glory of Christ School, and committing at least two services a year to explain and celebrate the partnership to the church body. In fulfillment of that commitment, Dave Sanders, Lead Pastor of TPC, designated three services leading up to Easter Sunday, beginning March 22, 2009, as global mission Sundays for a series called "God's Eyes". The series will raise awareness about the global orphan crisis and challenge the church to see the fatherless as God sees them—children who need love and provision, and above all else, a Heavenly Father.

The series will include several special video segments including a presentation of facts and statistics concerning orphans in Africa, a mini-documentary of the daily experiences of two orphans, Joyce and Glivis, in Dwaniro, and a filming of a Sunday worship experience at Glory of Christ Church, Dwaniro.

The messages have been developed by the TPC Africa Team in conjunction with Pastor Dave, and will include presentations by Dave and various Africa Team members on God's heart for the orphan, both physically and spiritually. OJM Executive Director Kyle Douglass will also present on the release-based orphan care model during the first series. Each message will conclude with action steps individuals can take to get involved, such as making commitments to pray, signing up as a PenPal, joining the Africa Team, or supporting a project financially.