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Massive talk @hbcnewcastle tonight. Chatting to a newcomer (not a believer) I asked: “big talk for your first time to church!!! How did u find it?” His response surprised me. He loved it because it was not “light and fluffy” and as a “non-religious person” these are the questions he had. So whilst hard he appreciated the honest approach to the Bible and will be back next week. Praying the Holy Spirit will bring him to repentance and faith. #Jesuschangeshearts #bigideaschangetheworld

Teahupoo gets big →

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#compassionindo #mikeandkatie (www.munguishi.wordpress.com)

We’ve recently had Mike and Katie from CMS visit our church. Tonight 170 people joined them at our church HUB to here what they have been doing in Tanzania - training pastors in Tanzania to read the bible for themselves. Awesome work!!!

It struck me while we were in Manado with Compassion Australia that in order for the work of Compassion to continue what is needed is healthy vibrant churches who love Jesus and teach his word day in day out. In other words we need more Mike and Katie’s to keep training pastors do be Bible teachers.

Why is this so necessary for the work of Compassion? Don’t they mainly do aid work?

Wrong. Whilst they are working to alleviate poverty they are unique in their approach. They are Christ-centred, child-focused, and church based. I love this about Compassion… but Compassion needs more gospel workers to be training people in the Bible to ensure that the church remains strong in areas of physical poverty.

Go!!!

"Giving good news in person is fun, but giving bad news in person is important"

Andy Stanley mentioned this in his brilliant podcast (here)

It makes lots of sense, and its really hard to do. But that’s why it needs to be said.

If you’ve decided to make a massive change in your plans as a leader, and people have banked on your previous plans; don’t send an email, say it in person.

If something significant has happened in your church and people are going to feel hurt or confused, say it in person.

(via dmmoore)

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#compassionindo #childsponsorletters #writeyourlettertoday

Today happens to be… WRITE YOUR CHILD DAY

This is a photo taken in the Compassion Manado office.  From here they oversee 39,000 sponsor kids and have a large team of people who volunteer or are paid per letter to translate the letters from English to Indonesian.  The translators were so keen to impress upon us the value of writing letters to kids in the program. I was convicted and rebuked for being financially invested without being relationally invested in the lives of our two compassion children. When we went to the projects this message was reiterated by the kids themselves.  They loved having Compassion Sponsors who prayed for them and loved them.

I have attached a sweet little Youtube video that compassion has done to show you the value of writing letters.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=6EG9WfhIKwI

Ministry Principles & Pragmatics: The goal is the second date →

dmmoore:

If you’re putting on an event for non-Christians, I think the most loving goal is “get a second date”. Make the big aim that they come back again. Make the big purpose that they don’t walk out thinking, “Well I’m not coming back to this next week!”.

If they tap out after one night, it becomes 100…

Dave Moore channelling a mission pastor :)

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CROSSING THE WORLD TO GROW IN LOVE

#compassionindo today we are heading home from Manado. the experience of meeting children and families in poverty feels somewhat surreal as we climb on board our air conditioned bus to the airport and fly out of Manado. what we have experienced are real people, real poverty, real stories and real culture. as we fly back into our comfortable western lifestyles the reality we have seen can easily become nothing but blog posts and Instagram memories. but it can translate into more than that… 1. a resolve to write & pray more for my compassion sponsor children; 2. a determination to speak up for children in poverty; 3. a resolve to radically love people in my local context; 4. never lose sight of the fact that kids in poverty who declare Jesus to be number 1 (nomor satu) are citizens of a city with streets that are lined with gold.

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LOVE IS COSTLY #compassionindo @compassionau #loveisnotoptional Devotions with team each day have been a great way to debrief and to immerse ourselves in the Scriptures. In 1 John we see that love is costly, inconvenient, and very rarely sexy. A trip to Manado (complete with hashtags) or a sponsor kid on your fridge or doing the color run can easily be convenient & sexy love.
“It is easier to be enthusiastic about Humanity with a capital ‘H’ than it is to love individual men and women, especially those who are uninteresting, exasperating, depraved, or otherwise unattractive. Loving everybody may be an excuse for living nobody in particular.”
-C.S. Lewis

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#compassionindo this pic was taken visiting the home of a Compassion sponsor kid. this is the floor of their house. Compassion helped to pay for the rebuilding of this simple hut after a massive storm in 2011. The kids greatest comfort is that his compassion sponsors pray for him and tell him they do in their letters to him #sponsorachild #itworks June 2 @hbcnewcastle

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Thursday…

Visited a child survival program just outside of Manado and one of the child support programs.

Again I was impressed by both programs run alongside the ‘local’ church. Provision of basic health care and advice for mums before and after they give birth is not only enabling families to get the care they need but is also connecting whole families to the church. This was the testimony of the mums who shared with our group. Praise God for the work of Compassion on the ground here in Manado!!

“16 By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers. 17 But if anyone has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God’s love abide in him? 18 Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth.” (1 John 3:16-17)

Friday…

On lighter notes we went snorkeling today. It was awesome!

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#compassionindo Manado is a strange mix of rich and poor. This is the view from our hotel (semi swanky). And only a few minutes walk down the road is a western style mall filled with the middle class of Manado shopping for iPads and fashionable clothes. #prayformanado

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Compassion Manado

Today was our first day of visiting the programs and seeing the work of Compassion on the ground in Manado. First we visited the Compassion head office and then off to a project in the afternoon.

I was really impressed with Compassion Head Office in Manado. From this office they oversee 39000 kids in child protection programs throughout East Indonesia. They are super well organised and all of their staff know their job and understand where they fit in the organisation.

Moving from head office to the project helped me to see how the vision of the head office was being implemented on the ground through the local church.

We visited one of the kids home - lets call him Arnold. Arnold is from a very poor family and lived in a bamboo hut. Arnold also had a learning disorder that was holding him back at school and they had plans to get him into an environment where he could learn better. I was so moved by fact that in his poverty he was being loved to the extent of getting education tailored to his special needs.

All this starts with $44 / month…. If yo are part of Hunter Bible Church on June 2 you can make a difference in a child’s life in Bangladesh.

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Introducing @sedelmar from #compassionindo

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Currently sitting in Singapore airport after a 6 hour nap in the transit hotel.

On the team going to Manado?

Mostly a bunch of pastors
Some video crew
And trip co-ordinator from Compassion
Colin Buchanan :)

What are we doing?

- We will be visiting a bunch of Compassion projects and witnessing the work God is doing in Manado. His will be the most exciting part of the trip.

- Some of the guys on team will actually get an opportunity to visit their sponsor kids.

- And with this many pastors in the room there will be a fair bit of talking shop (not as much as there would be if Dave Moore was here :) )

- oh yeah and a rest day of snorkelling in Manado.

Time to get on the plane…

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#compassionindo Singapore. 6 hour nap. Waiting for the rest of the team before breakfast and then to Manado