From Asia Harvest:
Dear Friends,
No doubt you have heard about the huge earthquake that struck a remote area of Qinghai Province, northwest China, last Wednesday.
The damage is centered on the town of Yushu, home to 85,000 people (see picture taken before the quake). More than 90% of the buildings in Yushu have collapsed. The latest reports from China have the death toll at almost 2,000, with many people still missing. The area has experienced more than 1,200 aftershocks in the last five days.
It is hard to imagine a more difficult and remote location for such a disaster to strike. Many of the villages that have been devastated lie at high altitude, and temperatures are below freezing at night. Some of the Chinese soldiers that were sent to help in Yushu have suffered from potentially-fatal altitude sickness. This part of China is home to the Northern Khampa Tibetan people. Most of them lead nomadic lives, herding sheep, yaks and goats on the plateau. In the past we have written about this unreached group in our prayer books. Here is a link to one of our profiles on the Northern Khampa people.
Within hours of the earthquake striking, a team of Chinese and a few foreign Christians travelled to the disaster zone to help. Most of these believers were involved with the earthquake relief efforts in Sichuan Province in 2008. The combination of their loving help and bold witness for Jesus Christ saw thousands of people in Sichuan come to faith in the living God.
In Yushu they [KEEP READING]
Please check out these opportunities to support the relief effort underway in Haiti. We will continue to provide further means of involvment as the opportunities develop.
Relief Teams
In this first phase of relief, teams are being assembled to provide the skilled assistance needed for basic rescue and care. If you are trained as a disaster relief responder, a medical worker, or if you can speak/translate Creole. Mercy Works is assembling teams that will begin deploying this Monday and every subsequent Monday indefinately. Fill out the application on their site and email it to the contact provided if you are interested.
Fundraisers
While some organizations are asking for goods to be donated, the most helpful means of support in the first and critical phase of relief is money. This allows the aid organizations and ministries to purchase the needed supplies as close to the area of need as possible and provides the needed funds to deliver these items as well. We have listed a couple of opportunities to participate in giving funds over the next week.
Benefit Concerts/Shows
Dominican Joe all-day, Haiti disaster relief fundraiser - this fundraiser will be all day Monday, January 18th with live music from 10:45 am until 12:00 pm. Check out the website for more details.
Hope for Haiti - a benefit show hosted by Music for the City, will be at The Parish at 7pm. The show is $10 and all proceeds will go directly to Real Hope for Haiti. Check out the website for [KEEP READING]
Now that daylight shines on the city of Port Au Prince and the rest of Haiti, the evidence of the devastation caused by the massive earthquake is mounting. As time passes, we are also recieving more updates on ministry partners and friends currently living in and around the city. The cellular network is still down in most areas making communication difficult, but we have recieved news that the children (including Amos, Aaron and Jamie's son) and staff of Real Hope for Haiti are safe. You can read more on Aaron Ivey's blog about their situation.
During this first wave of relief, the best things that you can do is to pray and give financially to those who are already on the ground and able to provide medical care and distribute the needed basic life-sustaining supplies such as food and water.
Some prompts for prayer:
• Pray for coordination and efficiency in the immediate recovery efforts. The first 72 hours following the earthquake are critical in searching for those who may be trapped in rubble, treating the injured, and preventing further loss of life.
• Pray that damage to the airport in Port-au-Prince would be miraculously limited, enabling aid agencies to rush necessary emergency aid to the country.
• Pray for the safety of people now living on the streets.
• Pray for hope. A sense of despair can lead to rioting, looting, and further destruction.
• Pray that those affected would work together and be filled with supernatural patience and compassion.
• Pray for justice [KEEP READING]
As many of you have probably already heard, a major earthquake (~7.0) hit 10 miles south west of Port Au Prince, the capital of Haiti. The earthquake struck just before 5 pm and initial reports indicate heavy damage.
One of our ministry partners in the capital, Troy and Tara Livesay with WorldWide Village and Heartline ministries, posted an update on their blog that they are safe and accounted for. You can follow their updates as they are posted.
We have not yet made contact with our partners, Real Hope for Haiti in Cazale, Haiti. Cazale is located near to the capital, but is in a remote location. Communication is currently difficult due to the heavy volume of calls on the digital phone network.
We will begin preparations regarding how to best respond in serving our neighbors in Haiti and will continue to post opportunities, from donations to possible relief teams, as we learn more.
In the meantime you can do two things:
PRAY!
- Pray for the staff and children of Real Hope for Haiti.
- Aaron Ivey (one of our worship pastors) and his wife, Jamie have a son, Amos, that they are waiting to bring home from Cazale and have yet to hear any updates on his status.
- The ministry of Real Hope for Haiti rescues and cares for many children that are on the brink of death from malnutrition.
- Their clinic is one of the only sources for medical treatment for many of the surrounding villages, pray that they will be able to treat those in need.
- Pray that Christ would shine [KEEP READING]
Ramadan begins in one week (Aug. 22 - Sept. 20). Ramadan is the the holy month of fasting for Muslims all over the world. This means that for one month, over a billion Muslims globally will be seeking God through prayer and ritual.
What an amazing opportunity for Christians to pray that Muslims all over the world would encounter God.
Here's a brief overview of Ramadan from Wikipedia:
"[Ramadan] is the Islamic month of fasting, in which participating Muslims refrain from eating, drinking, sex, smoking, and anything that is not of a good nature or in excess from sunrise until sunset. Fasting is meant to teach the Muslim patience, modesty and spirituality. Ramadan is a time to fast for the sake of Allah, and to offer more prayer than usual. Muslims also believed through good actions, they get rewarded twice as much as they normally can achieve. During Ramadan, Muslims ask forgiveness for past sins, pray for guidance and help in refraining from everyday evils, and try to purify themselves through self-restraint and good deeds."
Matt spoke Sunday about the tremendous growth of the Chinese church. He called us to Get in the Fight! It will take every Christian knowing and applying their spiritual gifts to advance the Kingdom of God.
While the church is in decline in Europe and the USA, the church is China is growing exponentially. This growth is amazing especially since the Chinese church has very little resources, equipping, outside support, and education.
RESOURCES TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THE CHINESE CHURCH
Faith of our Fathers book: "Through engaging and gripping retelling of some of the most significant stories in China's history, Faith of Our Fathers reveals God's guiding hand upon the Chinese people from the very beginning of their existence....The burgeoning growth of the church in China is one of the startling trends in Christendom in the 21st century....The Chinese are rediscovering a God who has been a constant presence in their history and culture for more than four millennia."
Chinese Missionaries: Check out this Newsweek article on how Chinese missionaries are playing their part in spreading the Kingdom of God. One of the most exciting movements among the Chinese is the Back to Jerusalem Movement!
The Heavenly Man: One of the most fantastic books that I have read in a long time is the story of Brother Yun, an annointed leader of the Chinese underground church movement, entitled The Heavenly Man. This book will challenge you, inspire you, and call you to radical discipleship [KEEP READING]
We believe in the sovereignty of God over all things. We also believe that God uses everything from current events to demography to accomplish His redemptive purposes. Therefore, we hope that all followers of Jesus will be global Christians who have their ears tuned not only to the Scripture and the work of God but also to current events all over the world. You might call this, as did John Stott in his book The Contemporary Christian, the practice of “double listening”.
Check out the news sites below and why not try “double listening” yourself. We encourage you to know the Scripture, but also know the news, and obey all that God has commanded us you!