Karen Refugees of Phoenix

I received this email from my buddy Jeff the other day:

After I saw the new Rambo movie, I was compelled to call the Arizona Republic and tell them that a large group of the people that were being exterminated in the Rambo movie are living here in Phoenix. They sent out a reporter and a photographer last weekend, and the story ran today, ALL over Phoenix....and my phone is ringing off the hook!

The article isn't completely accurate and he attributes some things to me that I didn't say, but overall, it gets the point across.

Thought you'd enjoy seeing it.

It's an interesting article. Here's an excerpt:

The Rev. Jeff Jackson came to West Dunlap in December in large part because of his decade-long background of working with Karen refugees in Thailand.

He and Glenn Ramey, who has served as the church's pastor for the past 41 years, estimate that 250 Karen now attend their church. It is a remarkable story of regeneration for a once demographically obsolete church that was dying just three years ago.

The base of the church's congregation, Caucasian city-dwellers, had left for the Valley's expanding suburbs. Ramey struggled with the church's decline and gave serious consideration to closing it down and putting the land up for sale. But at the depth of the demographic crisis, recently arrived Karen refugees, many unable to speak English, began showing up at its doors.

"The infusion of the Karen was a great blessing to us," Ramey said.

Read the rest of the article here: link

Prayer update from Kenya

Ed sends this prayer request this week:

The negotiations for peace in Kenya are at a critical crossroads and we are perplexed on how to pray. Politicians are offering worldly solutions that at best can only offer temporary calm. They offer bandages for a disease that requires heart surgery from the Great Physician. Even so, we honestly like the calm while it is here! Praise God that He promises that in our weakness of not knowing how to pray that His Spirit will make intercession for us with groanings that can not be uttered. Please join us to pray as political leaders meet with Kofi Annan to hammer out a so called grand coalition government for Kenya. Even so, please join us in praying come Lord Jesus come.

In the event that Jesus does not come, please pray for Calvary International Fellowship. God willing we will begin having two services next week. This will be our last Sunday with one service and we are busy making preparations for the transition. Please pray we can keep the sense of fellowship and intimacy that this church enjoys. Please continue to pray as we hope to purchase a plot in the very near future.

Please pray for the students and teachers at Disciple Support Ministries. Mathare and Kibera have been the hotbed for most of the post election violence within Nairobi and that is exactly where our campuses are at. Every one of the hundreds of students have horrific stories of violence. It is a humbling experience to stand in front of those pastors and church leaders knowing they have suffered greatly in this crisis. Please pray they would be God's instruments of change in the slums. We see God's hand on this school and pray that He uses this semester to begin the changing of hearts that
will lead to the transformation of churches and lives in the slums. Pray that the students would apply their classes to their hearts and not only their exams. Pray for the students and teacher's safety as they come and go from the campuses.

Shalom!

Ed

HT: Ed's Blog

Refugee Images

Christianity today sent out this interesting article about refugees from Chad.

"This country has huge potential both in terms of human potential and economic potential," Birch said. "And [it's a] tragedy to see a country like this just not ever enjoying peace. I think Chadians would like to see people outside of Chad joining with them and praying for peace and a lasting solution to Chad's problems."

Chad has seen a remarkable growth in its Christian population over the last 30 years, according to Torrey Olsen, senior director for World Vision programs. Most estimates now say that more than one third of the general population is Christian.

Click here to view the slideshow.

HT: Christianity Today

Safe Harbor International Relief - Sudan Aid - Africa Aid - Disaster Relief - Calvary Chapel » Articles » ACTs Team Calvary Chapel Plano Update

Dear Servant Responder: An assessment team is being deployed at 9am this morning from Calvary Chapel Dallas. Dan Luciani and Brady Prather will be going to Mississippi and Arkansas to assess the aftermath of the tornados that roared through the area Tuesday and Wednesday.

ACTS EOC member Rebecca Kuk was in Little Rock, Arkansas on business and was able to do an initial assessment. Two tornadoes touched down in that area and the damage was mainly windows, trees and power lines.

How you can help: Prayer, prayer and more prayer:

* Prayer that the Lord lead, guide & direct Dan and Brady as they assess the damage and determine areas in which an ACTS team(s) could serve.

* Prayer that the Lord would open doors to make the proper contacts needed.

* Prayer for all the people that were impacted by the storms.

* Prayer for the first responders, the Lord would equip them and sustain them as they aid those in need.

Are YOU ready?

Needed: Servant Responders that can deploy.

If you are able to serve please e-mail Marie Ingham mingham@coserv.com and state when you would be able to serve and for how long you would be able to serve.

Praise be to our Lord Jesus Christ as we serve Him by seeking out to the least, the last and the lost.

God BLESS you as we serve the LORD Jesus Christ together.

Pastor Eric Coburn

ACTs Regional Coordinator

Calvary Chapel Plano

Source: Safe Harbor International Relief - Sudan Aid - Africa Aid - Disaster Relief - Calvary Chapel » Articles » ACTs Team Calvary Chapel Plano Update

Why You Should Go To The Mission Field: Most Commonly Heard Excuses: #1

Keith Green wrote a second part to his article listing the reasons you should go into the mission field.  That article lists the fifteen most commonly heard excuses according to missionary societies doing the work of sending workers into the harvest.

1) "But I'm not called."

You don't know how many people I've met who have said to me "Keith, I agree that more people need to go to the mission field, but I've never heard God tell me to go."

Well, the truth is that God has already told you to go in His Word. In fact, He commands you to go... "Go ye into all the world, and preach the Gospel to every creature." ( Mark 16:15) That's right... YOU ARE CALLED!

In fact, if you don't go, you need a specific calling from God to stay home. Has God definitely told you not to "go" somewhere outside your country to preach the Gospel? If He hasn't, then you'd better start praying WHERE to go, instead of IF you should go - for again, you're already called!

Source: Last Days Ministries : Into The Nations : Articles : Why You Should Go To The Mission Field

Learn to Pray Like This

Our missionary friend Ed Compean has been going through it in Kenya. He lives there with his family, transplant missionaries from sunny Southern California. They are living, ministering, and church planting in the middle of Kenya's worst, long-seething political upheaval in years. The prayer that follows challenges my faith and prayer life.

Thank God for giving us a peace that surpasses all understanding. Thank God that though we have at times felt pressed, that we are not crushed. Please pray with us as this Sunday I hope to give a directive to Calvary International Fellowship to not look a the things which are seen but to the things which are not seen. I believe God has created this church with His Son as the head for this special time in Kenya. We are a completely multi tribe fellowship that is built on the foundation of Jesus Christ and I believe in a unique position to minister to these hurting people. CIF has been busy, but I believe it has much greater works in front of it. We have been blessed to see a Kikuyu teach a Bible study in a Luo house, Luhya reach out across tribal lines, and many other examples of the love of God shed abroad in the hearts these dear people. This is supernatural, but only a portion of what I believe God has for us. Please pray as we commit ourselves to being the house of God and sanctuary of His peace amidst this chaos. Please pray that day by day the church would make decisions to pick up their crosses like Jesus. Please pray that CIF would be the instrument of reconciliation between God and man that brings Peace and goodwill. Please pray that we will be hearers and doers of God's word.

Finally, we believe God has shown us to take steps towards purchasing a plot directly next to where CIF currently meets. We need prayer for favor and provision for the costs. We seem to have a good relationship with the owner and he seems to want us to on that land which borders his other properties. Though the costs are only a fraction of a similar plot in America or Mexico, it will still need to be God's provision for this slum church to afford it. We believe God has opened this door, but we are proceeding cautiously.
Please pray, CIF has seen considerable growth and we feel it needs to move, but God's will be done.

Shalom!
Ed

 

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