30th May, 2009
THE WORLD AS NEAR AS YOUR FINGERTIPS
If you want to get started in mission on the Internet or with mobiles this international panel of speakers
will give their expertise and experience to bible colleges,
conferences, churches and missions. Some will talk to you over the
phone or Skype. You can request a speaker to visit or if you know how to use the web for mission then you can also apply to join the panel.
29th May, 2009
DON'T BE STOPPED AT FIFTY
Last month we answered the question What shall we do with our lives between ages 60 and 80?
but now there is a new question: What shall we do with ourselves at 50
as redundancy and early retirement bite and church only allows
people our age to make the coffee? Ouch! Intriguingly Numbers 8.25 ESV
gives the idea that at age 50 the Levites
would withdraw from normal duties and work no
more. Instead they were told to serve by keeping guard. So
actually there is nothing new about a change of life for the
better at 50. Keeping guard speaks of a watchman's role of
having eyes and ears open; an intercessor's role in prayer; a
governing role in evaluation and decision making; a
protecting role in bringing wisdom from the school of life
to emerging young leaders, and so on. In DCI we love our 50 and 60
year olds and the young leaders would be lost without them.
28th May, 2009
OUR WORLD OF FREE OR LOW COST TRAINING
Our partner in Lima, Peru, Juan has a free School of Mission open in Picapiedras. Juan says they are on Lesson 10 and that everyone listens carefully with their eyes wide open as they hear for the first time what God is saying to them.
Pastor Dave Broos in Bandung, Indonesia wants us to know that he has started a School of Mission as well and they have the lessons online as well.
Our partner in Haiti, Johnny August, leaves for Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic this week to open the first free School of Mission. Photos soon.
27th May, 2009
THE DO'S AND DON'TS OF INTERNET FUND-RAISING 2/3
If you ask for a hand-out don't be surprised if people walk by you. Luke 16.22
says that the time came when the beggar died, which is something
that needs to happen again in the Internet shops around the world.
Don't ask for a hand-out because next month you will be just as poor
again and still begging. Think about applying for a hand-up, that is
finding capital to make money long-term through work.This will
take you out of poverty and into prosperity, that is having enough for
yourself and plenty to give to others. More in the Money Forum.
See part 1
26th May, 2009
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FIRST
PHOTOS OF UGANDA PLANTATION
DCI Business for Mission creates funds in the developing world
for the developing world. Led by our partner
Jonathan, plantations are already producing cash crops for
food and for sale in Burkina Faso, Liberia, and now Uganda where George Purkweri made
a good start this last week by planting bananas, ground nuts,
pineapples, fruit trees, cassava, mangoes, oranges, avocado and papaya
in the first stage of developing 100 hectares of good land. Indonesia follows soon with crops, lobsters and fish farms. See the photos here.
25th May, 2009
FREE DISTANCE LEARNING UNIVERSITY COURSE
If you live in the UK or Europe, the prestigious University of Wales are offering
their Certificate in Interpersonal Skills for Volunteers course for
free, yes free, with regular start dates and first class personal tutor support. Use the code LAMP99 to apply online
here
23rd May, 2009
TOP OF THE
WORLD FOR A CHANGE
Some of our people take God's love into really dismal places; for me I
think seeing thousands of families living like animals on Smokey
Mountain in the
Philippines was the worst
and the squalid, barren
refugee camps in Uganda were
nearly as bad. But just sometimes we get to see
God's creation at its best. Rolando is back from
Tambo, up
in the Huanuco Andes of Peru where the people made him very
welcome
and cooked their special soup for him. See the
photos.
22nd May, 2009
ONE FRIEND TO ANOTHER
Like
most people I
have a way of reading the Bible, although what happens is that the
Bible reads me and speaks to me about what it
finds. On Monday I read a bit of history from Genesis to Job;
on
Tuesdays I
read about Jesus from Matthew to Acts; on Wednesdays I get
into wisdom and
worship from Psalms to Song; on Thursdays I go for everything that
John wrote; on Fridays I read the news before it happens from
the
prophecy books of Isaiah to Malachi and on
Saturdays I read some of Paul's and James' letters. But today it
was Psalm
119, just the longest chapter in the Bible. I did it but I was a
bit late for breakfast !
21st May, 2009
DIGNITY AND FAITH IN THE MIDDLE OF UNREST
This graduation of a free DCI
School of Mission took place in a tense area of
northern Pakistan, not far from Afghanistan and Iran, click here to see more photos.
As usual for security reasons it's no names, no locations and no more
details on the Internet, but we send a very big well done to the
teachers and students. God bless and keep you all safe.
20th May, 2009
THE WORLD'S NOTICE BOARD
Rodrigo Sanchez of Mission
Africa in Chile has a staff of 70. In Kenya
they are supporting 3 churches and building an orphanage for a contact
they met on this page. Rodrigo wants to extend the work to other
African countries.
Joćo Batista dos Santos from Brazil has opened a base en
Kathmandu, Nepal to train leaders and
helps pastors in two Bhutan refugee camps. Joao is in
Brazil right now, see his web page - and he is happy
to speak tell you more.
One of our great partners in DR
Congo, Jules Wazeng in Lubumbashi, says
that his School of Mission has 68 students
who come four times a week for four hours of studies and things are
going their way.
19th May, 2009
PASTOR OR POLITICIAN
WHO
HAS THE MOST INFLUENCE ?
A
senator was pondering how to influence people the most, whether as a
politician who is able to introduce laws that can help millions of
people, or as a pastor who continues to offer hope and consolation to
people in their daily struggle? The answer is not about who can most
influence others. What matters is our vocation or our call. To what or
to whom are we called ? When we make the effect of our work the measure
of our sense of self, we end up very vulnerable. Both the
political and the pastoral life can be valid responses to a call and
both can be ways to serve and to have power. The final issue is not the
visible result of our work but our obedience to God's will, never
forgetting that God's will is always an expression of God's love.
By Henri Nouwen, from The Diary of His Final Year.
18th May, 2009
THE DO'S
AND DON'TS
OF INTERNET FUND-RAISING 1 of 3
If
someone from another country, a man that you had never seen before
knocked on your door and without any explanation asked you for money,
and probably quite a lot of it, what would you say to him ? Correct! So
rule number one is to find out who you are writing to, greet them
courteously and introduce yourself properly. Then ask for permission to
make an application and if the answer is yes, ask what information they
would like to know. More in the Money Forum.
16th May, 2009
FOURTEEN HOUR WALK FOR NOTHING
I know that it is not a good photo taken
at nightfall in Euthini District in remote Malawi. The children of these two
ladies were sick so the Mum's left home at 3 in the morning and walked
7 hours to the nearest clinic only to find that it had no pills of any
kind. So they walked 7 more hours to return home with only sweet cane
to chew for food. Next day they did it all over again. The
DCI Fund is working with local people to build a new simple
clinic which will be sustained by local industry, and we welcome your
enquiries to support this major project to save many lives, especially
those of children with malaria.
15th May, 2009
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Huancayo - Peru |
BUILDING
BEGINS FOR CHURCHES AND LEADERS IN PERU
Our good friend Rolando Canazas in Peru has been busy. He is part of
the group
in Huanuco
who are doing a new translation of the Bible into Quechua
for the notorious coca growing district of Huallaga and he is looking
forward to taking the School
of Mission to the churches up there. Back
home in Huancayo, the church there has
started the construction of a
beautiful new building and Rolando is in the 3rd week of teaching
the School of Mission lessons to 50
church leaders all of whom say they are
ready to do what they are learning - see the photos. Last month this
tireless man opened a new work in Orcotuna-Concepcion . . in fact he
never stops.
14th May, 2009
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RARE
PHOTOS FROM DEEP INSIDE MYANMAR
Believers can face a hard time in Myanmar,
formerly Burma, so no names or locations but click on this link
to see some happy village people enjoying learning God's word last
week. Three of
them decided to follow Jesus and were quietly baptised. Is
this lovely news from our partner Bk.
13th May, 2009
LIBERIA'S CHURCHES FLYING AGAIN
Our new friend in Liberia senior pastor and writer Charles
Johnson who has followed Jesus for a long lifetime
e-mailed us some more good news, "Our Liberian churches are
moving
once again like birds flying, not just flapping their wings as was the
case during the war years. When peace was restored churches from
overseas came as partners with us to hold seminars and mass miracle
meetings where the Holy Spirit worked like blazing fire breathing new
divine life into believers, healing and leading many people into the
way of Salvation. Had it not been for these churches coming to us then
our stagnant local churches, lacking in spirit and vision, could have
perished if they had stopped moving."
12th May, 2009
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BASEBALL
MEETS CHURCH IN CUBA
In Camaguey, Cuba our sports
enthusiast friend Ranledis who has a DCI School
of Mission there, is
playing baseball with the a crowd of young people who would never
normally go
near church but he gets to give them a micro-message about God's love
and pray for them before every game. Ranledis also turns out dozens of
meals every week
for neglected elderly people and children. Click here to see the
baseball photos, then press slideshow.
11th May, 2009
ONE FRIEND TO ANOTHER
What do you mean that science has buried God ? C.S.
Lewis that said,
"Men became scientific because they expected law in nature, and they
expected law in nature because they believed in a law-giver," and it
was the father of modern science Francis Bacon,1561-1626, who
taught that
God has provided us with two books - the book of nature and the Bible,
and that to be properly educated one should study both.
10th May, 2009
FAITH AND HARD WORK OF ONE
MAN
EDUCATES FIVE
THOUSAND POOR CHILDREN
Our partner since 1984 in one of the world's poorest countries Burkina Faso, Philippe
Ouedraogo of AEAD,
now has the astonishing number of
5035 children in 70 village or bush schools. That's what anyone would
call nation-building. And he still finds time to lead a growing church,
train leaders and be a channel for development for thousands of really
poor people. So if your church or school wants to sponsor a school or a
child in Burkina Faso, write to Philippe.
9th
May, 2009
PAKISTAN SECURITY
CLAMPDOWN
CUTS OFF GRADUATION
Quetta is in turbulent north-west Pakistan on the border
with Iran and
troubled Afghanistan with the Taleban and
their Al-Qaeda militants never far away. Our partner Pastor
Sarwar has three DCI style Schools
of Mission right there and other fast growing
Schools in Lahore, Kasure, Raiwind and Sultan Kay
all turning
out the men and women of peace that Jesus talks about. Just lately
Sarwar couldn't get
through to Quetta for the graduation of 12 students because of
the ever present terrorist threat
7th May, 2009
THE LEADER'S
REFLECTION
A
professor stood before his philosophy class and in silence he picked up
a very large empty jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls. He
then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it
was. The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured
them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into
the open areas between the golf balls. He then asked the students again
if the jar was full. They agreed it was.
The professor next
picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand
filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full. The
students responded with a unanimous "Yes." The professor then produced
two cups of coffee from under the table and poured the entire contents
into the jar, effectively filling the empty space between the sand. The
students laughed.
"Now," said the professor, "I want you to
recognise that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the
important things, your family, your children, your faith, your health,
your friends, your call and your favourite passions. The things that if
everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still
be full. The pebbles are the other things that matter. Your job, your
house, your car. The sand is everything else. It's the small
stuff but if you put the sand into the jar first," he continued, "there
is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls.
The same goes
for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff, you
will never have room for the things that are important to you. Pay
attention to the things that are critical to your peace and well-being.
Play with your children, have those medical checkups, take your partner
out, make time to be alone with God, have a holiday because
there
will always be time to clean the house and wash the car. Take care of
the golf balls first, the things that really matter. Set your
priorities, the rest is just sand and you build your house on it at
your own very great risk.
One of the students raised her hand
and inquired what the coffee represented. The professor smiled. "I'm
glad you asked. It just goes to show you that no matter how full your
life may seem, there's always room for a cup of coffee with a friend."
(Anon, with thanks to Karen Clarke at VW)
More Leader's Reflections
6th May, 2009
LOOKING FOR CHRISTIAN WORK ?
Here's the list of global employment
opportunities from Oscar, the UK's number one
information site for people in mission. In English.
5th May, 2009
CREATION TO CHRIST VIDEO ON CD
First see this video from the Hope
Project
which is a most beautiful presentation of God's story from creation
to the resurrection in simple easy to see and hear English or
Spanish. The CD costs just $15. Now, if you are in missions or are a
pastor or Christian worker go to Roofbreakers
and apply for a free interactive CD ROM for teaching
English which includes the full Hope
film. Our thanks to Brigada for the news and to
Roofbreakers for their generosity.
4th May, 2009
SECRET POLICE RAID TASHKENT HOME
FINE
THREE AND DEPORT ONE.
Can you believe that after Uzbekistan secret police raided a Tashkent believer's
home three
men were each fined more than eight year's wages, had their
Bibles
and Christian songs confiscated and one Kazakh
man with legal papers was put over the border without money.
More
from Forum 18 Norway.
3rd May, 2009
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WHERE A
CHILDREN'S
PARTY CAN BRING JAIL OR
WORSE
It's an innocent and very happy Easter party for poor slum children but
these children are in South East Asia where it would
only
take one complaint to cause religious violence or bring the police to
the
door. Click here to see the photos. But
as our partner says, "If we refuse to welcome kids
how can they know Jesus? Now they can all say why Jesus came to the
world. A seed of faith has been planted and it will our
prayers and
yours causes that seed to grow."
2nd
May, 2009
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NO NAMES,
NO LOCATIONS - IT'S BELARUS
Europe's last dictatorship is Belarus
which has a reputation
for giving some pastors, believers and churches a hard time. So for security
reasons no names, no
locations but these neglected children had a fantastic time over
Easter. They heard about God's love, enjoyed a party and got some
presents. We are proud to have helped to make this possible. Click here to see some lovely
photos.
1st
May, 2009
THE WORLD'S NOTICE BOARD
Kingdom Life in Ghana has begun a DCI
School of Mission in Kumasi and Samuel
Adu-Gyamfi is the leader to contact.
Etnopedia has 2,500 profiles from
a Christian perspective of unreached
peoples in eleven European and Asian languages, you can more Wikipedia
style.
To hear good preaching in English by very
well known pastor, David Shearman of the Christian
Centre, Nottingham
click here
to download free podcasts.
Click
here to send
in your news or story
Next
page
WOULD YOU LIKE TO SEE SOME OF
OUR PHOTOS?
Click to
see our Picassa Albums from around the
world.
Choose
one and then click Slideshow to see the display.
Click here
for Schools of Mission around the world
Click here
for Banking for the Poor projects
Click here
for projects to help orphans and the poor
Click here
to see some of the people in the DCI family
Les
and Pilar
Who
are we ?
Click
here to see our Vision and Values statement.
Click here to see an
illustration of what we do, more or less.
Click here to see our statement
of faith
Click
here to see a forthcoming Wikipedia article
on our work, researched and
written independently of ourselves as part of academic studies
requested by the
prestigious Fuller Seminary in the USA.
HOW YOU CAN HELP US
How
to join us?
Click
here for a special page
ABOUT THE EDITORS
Les
Norman is a writer, guest speaker, the editor and the publisher of these
pages that call attention to the lost, the last and the least of the
world. Since 1977 he has been following the call of Christ. He is
married
to Pilar and they have three children.
Find out more here
To enquire about a visit to your church, group or conference click here.
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To the ends of the earth
till the end of the age.
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