July 2017Upcoming Learn2 OpportunityThe Church Has Left the Building - Let’s explore together God’s commission to reach our neighborhoods, our city, our nation and the world with the good news of Jesus Christ. Journey through the history of missions, including inspiring stories of Asbury’s involvement in Tulsa and beyond. Learn2 class at 9:15 am in Room 2820, taught by outreach directors, Radhika Aussieker and Jim Davis. 2nd Saturday Recently, we celebrated our amazing volunteers of 2nd Saturday. Lanette Celoni shared some facts and figures that showcase the output of this outreach through Asbury Local Outreach. Did you know?
*The latest estimate of the value of a volunteer hour is $23.07 in 2017 (Non-Profit Times Report)
We recently celebrated our wonderful volunteers. Two of those honored were Tom Kurzyna and Jan Steffensen, both pictured with Betty Higgins and Lanette Celoni. This heat map shows everywhere that Asbury 2nd Saturday and Day of Service has served over the last 8 years--some places we have volunteered one time and others multiple times. We have had small and large scale projects. After the first iteration of this map three years ago, Asbury has decided to “adopt” certain focus areas. You can see those areas are shaded gray on this map. Through these adoptive efforts, we have seen wonderful collaboration of many partnerships with churches, schools, neighborhoods and our local government. We hope that over time there will be an increase in the livelihood of the individuals and families overall. These are just a few of the comments we have heard from 2nd Saturday volunteers:
Please contact any of our 2016-17 Local Outreach Board Members if you have questions about local outreach initiatives:
Syrian Refugee Crisis – Asbury has recently sent funds to provide food aid to those who are still in Aleppo. Please pray for our brothers and sisters in Christ as they distribute that aid. We will also be having two gatherings on Tuesday, July 11, to further discuss plans for Asbury’s future work with the Kinship Network, including ways to get further involved. One session will be at 3 pm and the other at 6:30 pm, and they will be the same. Our intent is to gather those who are interested to plan and pray for next steps. Please come to learn, brainstorm, pray, and/or find your place to get involved. Room 2821. Estonia – The Estonian Methodist Church has just celebrated 110 years in existence, which includes its survival under the Soviet years. A group of nine from Asbury was in Estonia for the celebration in June and also attended the annual Friends of Estonia meeting. An important part of ministry in Estonia is the Baltic Methodist Theological Seminary, which has recently received a seven-year government accreditation and is exploring a joint master’s degree program with Asbury Theological Seminary in Kentucky. Both seminaries are financially supported by Asbury. Pastor Tom Harrison and Mary Ann Smith are both on the board of the Baltic Seminary. Tanzania – We rejoice that rain has come to Tanzania, helping to reduce the severe drought. However, many families have lost livestock or crops due to the extended drought. Our partner, the Lutheran Church of Tanzania, continues to distribute emergency food with funds provided by Asbury and the Family Fellowship Community. Faith Comes by Hearing – FCBH is an Asbury-supported ministry which takes its name from Romans 10:17 and has produced Scripture recordings in almost 1100 languages! Audio can be delivered by the Proclaimer device, which is powered by solar cell or hand crank, via micro-SD card in either a flip phone or smart phone, or by internet or satellite. The ministry also uses innovative technology to record Scripture by native speakers in remote locations. Asbury has partnered with FCBH in the Congo, having purchased 5000 micro-SD cards in the Kiluba language, and in Tanzania and the Caspian area by providing Proclaimers. What an innovative and effective ministry! Learn more at faithcomesbyhearing.com or bible.is. Big Heart Orphanage, Reynosa, Mexico This wonderful update is written by one of our college students, Morgan Livingston. After spending two days at the ranch, it was time for us to brave the 10-hour car ride into Mexico. Upon our arrival, we were greeted with open arms, smiles and lots of great food. We were treated just like family by the people at Big Heart and got to meet the adult leaders and other student interns that are dedicating their time to the orphanage and its children. We ended the night with a powerful worship and praise session before turning into our cabins to get a good night's sleep before a rigorous day at work. Our first full day at Big Heart started at 7:30 am with a big, hearty breakfast and lots of prayer and encouragement for the tedious work day ahead. Our team spent the first half of the day mixing and pouring cement while Papa Joe and Tom (Golliver) installed a dishwasher for the orphanage kitchen. The heat increased steadily into the 90s, and the work was pretty intense, but all the more rewarding when we finished. After a few hours of work, we took a lunch break and went to an authentic taco stand nearby. After lunch, we came back to the orphanage and did some more work. Some of the team went to paint at the junior high while others stayed back and helped with some reconstruction in the kitchen. After a few more hours of work, we were able to go out and play with all of the children who are currently living at the orphanage. The sheer joy that these kids exuded was an absolute work of God. Spirits were lifted tremendously after the grueling work day, and a lot of us got to start building meaningful relationships with the children. The amount of love that these children have in their hearts astounds me, and their faith in the Lord is just as breathtaking. After spending one day with them, I have been reminded of the true meaning of childlike faith. - Morgan Livingston Mission Team OpportunitiesCamp Gideon, Estonia Agape Church, Parnu, Estonia 1Nation1Day, Nicaragua Guatemala City, Guatemala Tanzania
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