Do churches need a great awakening? Do they need to be awakened to the fact that there are 143 million orphans? Many orphans are being cared for well. However, much more help and money is needed.
Orphanages are in need of support. There are orphanages without heat, hot water, and basic necessities. Some lack the staff needed to properly care for and love the children. Every year, thousands of children turn 16 and are forced out of the orphanage. Because they are young and unskilled, they are unable to financially support themselves. Therefore many of them commit crimes, turn to prostitution, or commit suicide.
Many orphans aren't fortunate enough to call an orphanage their home. India can't provide for it's 18 million orphaned children, so many of them fend for themselves by living on the streets. 12 million African children have been orphaned, mostly due to AIDs having killed their parents. A lot of them now live on the streets or have been forced into slavery. Yes. Slavery. I heard on the Family Life Today radio show that there is more slavery going on in the world than at any other time in history. Thankfully, Christian organizations like All Kids Can Learn International are helping by building orphan villages to provide homes for some of these children.
In my own country, the United States of America, we still have 118,000 foster children that are currently available for adoption. The U.S. seems to be busy pointing the fingers at everyone else's problems, yet we have our own orphan crisis here.
These are just some of the facts, but they can easily be changed.Over the years, Christian churches have shown compassion to less fortunate and hurting people. There is free help and services available for people who are hungry, homeless, poor, in need of counseling and support groups. Many churches are reaching out to sponsor orphanages and are encouraging their church members to adopt. But why is it taking so long for the rest of the churches to awaken to this crisis? Why are there still 143 million orphans?
Until every orphan has a home, churches need to make the orphan ministry a top priority. We have the money, the resources, and the ability to help. Now we need the initiative, the passion, and the commitment of every church. This is a problem that could disappear. God is waiting on us. He has already told us the need. He's already told us what to do. So why are there so many Christians still looking the other way?
If you're interested in starting an Orphan Ministry at your church you can order a book with DVD for $10 from Hope for Orphans
Individuals, families, and churches can find realistic ways to help orphans on my site How To Help Orphans
Thankful Thursday Meme For this Thankful Thursday, I want to express my appreciation to some modern-day Christian heroes - those Christians who are so serious about living out their faith that they are willing to sacrifice their comforts or safety to serve the Lord.
I appreciate what you Christian heroes are doing to help people. You aren't doing it for fame or for an earthly rewards. You are doing it to serve Jesus, and with a sincere compassion for others. I am thankful for:
Native Christian missionaries witnessing in their own countries - living on low incomes, using bicycles and their own feet for transportation, risking ridicule and physical abuse in countries where Christianity is not the norm. Gospel for Asia
Christians who go to places like Sudan - to bring comfort and relief aid to persecuted Christians, and to help them rebuild after their villages were attacked by Muslim soldiers. They go despite The Department of State warning them that it is too dangerous to travel in Sudan. Voice of the Martyrs
Christian students working as modern-day abolitionists to end slavery - raising awareness, motivating students to do their part, and participating in activism. Yes. Slavery still exists. There are 27 million slaves worldwide - more people are in slavery now than during the trans-Atlantic slave trade. Zach Hunter author of Be the Change
Christians who dedicate themselves to helping orphans by preparing them for adulthood - providing academic opportunities, life training skills, mentoring, career placement, and health programs. When orphans turn 16 many of them are kicked out of orphanages and state institutions. They are expected to fend for themselves. An estimated 60% of orphan girls turn to prostitution and 70% of orphan boys to crime. Orphan's Promise
An unborn baby's heart begins to beat at 10 days.At 40 days she has measurable brain waves.An unborn baby shouldn't be thrown away like a piece of tissue.
Soapbox Sunday Meme Today, I'm going to stand up on my soapbox and write about something that has been affecting me. At first, I didn't think that there was anything spiritual about this topic. However, after I got writing, I was able to add in a spiritual message to this post after all.
I've been without a vehicle for the last 8 weeks. The hardest part has been having to shop at the nearby neighborhood grocery store. I'm very grateful to my next door neighbor, Roger, who gave me a couple of rides so that I could buy food for my kids. However, I do have a complaint and since it's Soapbox Sunday, I'm going to express it.
Why does the local store have to charge 2 - 3 times the amount for the same grocery products that I can buy at a store just 20 minutes down the road? I would think that more people would be able to support their local grocery store if the prices were lower. Instead, most people here drive the 20 minutes to load up on food and pay 1/3 of the price. The only reason that I would ever go back to this store is if I'm in another desperate situation.
While shopping, a few days ago, I didn't get every item that I had on my list. I just couldn't bring myself to pay $2.39 for a small can of pears or $7.95 for a bag of chicken nuggets. We will just have to replace a couple of planned meals with pancakes, hot dogs, and boxed macaroni and cheese. I'll have to make a lot of bread or biscuits to fill up the kids' tummies.
If there is some way that I could make this post of importance, I guess that it would be to try to motivate you to shop around for the best deal on your food. Even if you have to drive an extra 20 minutes, it will save you a lot of money. You may need to buy 2 weeks of groceries at a time so that you only have to drive the distance twice a month. Try comparing the prices and adding up the totals that you save. You could end up saving hundreds of dollars every year.
The Bible tells us to be good stewards of the money that God had entrusted to us. Just cutting back on the cost of your groceries will add up - month after month after month. If you don't know what to do with the extra money, ask God. There are orphans, missionaries, and Christian organizations that He could tell you about.
What would happen if we all witnessed - to the people in our own little area of the world? Many of us want to leave the evangelizing up to the "Called" or to the missionaries. But, I don't think that is what Jesus intended for us to do. He said: "And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” Acts 1:8
Michael W. Smith & African Children's Choir
What can you do?
Deliver Church Event Fliers or Holiday Gift Bags to Your Neighbors?
Help Christian Orphan Ministries?
Witness through the Internet?
Minister to the Neighbor Kids?
Pass Out Tracts?
Start a Bible Study at Work or Home?
Start a Play Group at a Church to attract neighborhood women?
Volunteer to Help at Church Evangelistic Events?
You can search through hundreds of ideas and find one that fits with your personality at Easy to Evangelize.com
This week, God has shown Himself to me in these ways:
The kids and I had a nice Easter weekend, even though Dad is still working out of town. We kept the Christian radio station on all day on Good Friday and we heard so many neat songs and shows that talked about the Resurrection.
My husband found and bought us a van. We got exactly what we wanted at the price we wanted. Thank you for Your provision, God. I wrote about this topic yesterday. (If you're interested.)
I feel like God is encouraging me to become more bold and to stand up for the truth. So, I'll write the rest of the post about that.
This week, I added something new on my sidebar. It is a daily "pray for your husband" idea. It also links to the site that has come up with all of the prayer suggestions.
A few nights ago, I was using the 25th prompt to pray - That my husband will be courageous in his stand against evil and injustice, that he will stand for the truth. As I was praying, I realized very quickly that I needed to pray for myself in this same area.
Ephesians 6:14 tells us to stand firm against evil with the belt of truth. 1 Corinthians 13:6 tells us that true love does not delight in injustice but rejoices with the truth.
However, if the truth brings about a lot of controversy, then that's hard for me to handle. I try to avoid controversy. I'm a "keep the peace" kind of woman. I've had 3 negative comments on my blog and I sure didn't like that. I know. That's what comment moderation is for. And I don't have to take the negative comments personally. Well, I'll be honest and admit that I did tone it down a bit when writing my posts.
I don't feel right about doing that though. I need to become more bold in writing about the truth. So, I've decided that if I feel prompted to write about something controversial like Pro-life or Creationism, then I'm going to do it. It's more important for me to obey God.
Those of you who agree, I would appreciate a quick prayer. I need God's strength with this. It seems to be an area in my Christian faith where the Lord wants me to grow. I'd like to encourage you to think about this and to stand and speak out for the truth, also. We have a wonderful opportunity to influence people through our blogs.
A few days ago, I noticed that Ben Stein has a new movie coming out April 18th called Expelled. The movie is going to expose the fact that educators and scientists are being ridiculed, denied tenure and even fired for believing that there might be evidence for creationism. Now that is standing against injustice and standing up for the truth. If Ben Stein can do it, then I can do it. And he has so much more to lose than I do.
