A Thank Offering
Gratitude to God is a critical core value of the believer – both for who God is and what He faithfully provides. Closely allied to thankfulness is remembrance. The Lord wants us to remember Him, not only when we worship, but in our daily life choices as well. And it’s always important to praise Him. […]
Wrap up a Bicycle
In September Kathy and I flew to Africa to visit our champion partners in South Africa, Zambia and Malawi. It had been Three Long Years since our last visit. So good to connect in person rather than the stopgap ZOOM meetings we’d conducted during the Covid pandemic. We were grateful and humbled to see that […]
A Double Blessing
I think we’re all troubled by the world of hurt in which we live. On the heels of a slow three-year COVID-19 retreat we’re suddenly facing serious environmental news – major rivers drying up (Germany’s Rhine, the Colorado in the US, the Yangtze in China, and even the Jordan in Israel), horrific pollution of “sacred” […]
Light a Candle in the Darkness
I don’t think any of us of the post-Second World War generation have ever experienced such dark times. There’s no need to list the litany of troubles facing us from natural disasters to pandemics and brutal regional wars. Our world is in a dark place. But as tough as it is for us, living […]
Ukraine Orphan Rescue
The world is in uproar since I last wrote to you. The conflict in Ukraine is dominating our lives, easily eclipsing the ongoing Covid crisis. While we watch in horror, “Putin’s war” as it’s called, continues to decimate cities and human lives. Every day brings new destruction. Indeed by the time this letter reaches you […]
Fatherlessness – The Pivot Point of Poverty
We’ve read the reports and have seen the videos of countless migrants desperately trying to reach Europe from Africa on leaky inflatables. Some make it but many perish.The look of fear and panic on the faces of those pulled from the Mediterranean is soul crushing. Many of these migrants are young men, some of […]
The Cost of Survival
As I sat down to write this letter to you my WhatsApp pinged with a message from Pastor Kyle Tolman, our partner champion in South Africa. Read it and weep… The United Nations designates orphaned children raising children as “Child Headed Households”(CHH). We care for scores of these children in South Africa, Zambia, Malawi, and […]
June 2021 Update
I answered a WhatsApp call in the early hours of the morning. It was Prem, our church partner in Chennai, India. He confirmed my worst fears: “The pandemic is ravaging the city. The infection rates are soaring and people are dying. But, a wonderful thing has happened, Pastor! The state government has reached out to […]
Pandemic Relief – Update from Malawi
As I write we’re into Year Two of the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic. We all feel the impact. And we’re ready for it to end. We’re tired. But, ironically, we’re also renewed in the sense that we’ve been forced to re-examine our lives, our values, our relationships, and our spirits. We’ve been “orphaned” from loved […]