While at the Catalyst Conference two weeks ago, I was certainly moved by two organizations that are making a difference in our world - Hope International and Compassion International. Let me tell you a little about each.
Hope International is “a Christian faith-based, 501(c)(3) non-profit organization focused on alleviating physical and spiritual poverty through microenterprise development.” In other words, they collect donations and then LOAN that money out to entrepreneurs in impoverished situations. The small loans enable these men and women to grow their businesses and support their families. The loans, of course, are paid back. The money is then recycled into another loan to help another family. Wow. Great idea. At Catalyst, Hope International gave away over $120,ooo to the Catalyst attendees (approximately 13,000 of us). Each person received $10 and then was challenged to turn their $10 into $100 and send it back to Hope to become a loan for a needy family. That $120,000 has the potential to become 1.2 million if all of us successfully multiply our gift. To learn more about the microlending program, visit their site at www.neverendinghope.org.
Compassion International is an organization most of us have already heard of. Compassion offers the opportunity to sponsor children in poverty at the cost of $38 per month. Each sponsorships helps provide opportunitiy for education, health living, and connection with a church family that will help the child understand the love and grace of God through His Son Jesus. At Catalyst, I had the opportunity to witness the live testimony of a young Kenyan man named Jimmy who was sponsored through Compassion and who’s life was changed. There at Catalyst, as Jimmy shared his story, he also got to meet his sponsor there on stage in an incredible emotional exchange of tears and gratitude. To see this powereful moment, click here.
Just two weeks ago, we collected a special offering at church. Over $450 was donated to send $100 to Hope International and to sponsor a child through Compassion. Our childs name is Frank January Manyanda. He is pictured above. He i s 7 years old and lives in Tanzania. When we receive our sponsorship packet, I will let you know how you can contribute and support Frank through our church.
Okay, so I borrowed today’s blog title from Land of a Thousand Hills Coffee. Their tag line is “Drink Coffee, Do Good.” I hope you’ll do that, but I hope you’ll also eat some BBQ and do some good for some friends of mine. The Ephesus Baptist Church Youth Department is raising money for their mission trip to Alaska. If you love Eastern North Carolina BBQ like I do, you don’t want to miss this opportunity. Be sure to drop by Ephesus Baptist on Friday, May 1, from 11am to 7pm to pick up some BBQ. As a eastern NC BBQ connoisseur(click here for must see video), I have a hard time finding BBQ around here that I deem adequate. So, I will not miss getting some of the real McCoy from the EBC youth on May 1. You can call in orders, pick it up, have it delivered, deliver it to your friends and/or coworkers – whatever. The food is great and you’ll be helping a great cause.
And while I’m on the subject of area BBQ, here’s my top places to go for good (notice my emphatic emphasis of good with bold, italics and underlining!) eastern NC style BBQ:
Barbeque Lodge. On Capital Blvd. in Raleigh, the Barbeque Lodge is my first choice for the Raleigh area (right now) for BBQ. And don’t just get the BBQ – order family style. It’s the way to go. And, as a bonus, they have corn sticks (which I know means nothing to many of you!)
Ron’s Barn in Coats. It’s a whale of a drive out to Ron’s Barn, but some great country cooking and BBQ.
Backyard Bistro. The Bistro is a brand new restaurant that just opened on Trinity Road in Raleigh, next to the RBC Center. A friend of mine is the owner and supplier of BBQ there (he also is cooking the BBQ for the EBC fundraiser!).
Old Time BBQ. Old Time is on Hillsborough St. in Raleigh. Not my absolute favorite, but it’ll do.
Smokey’s BBQ Shack. Honorable mention – Smokey’s on Highway 54 in Morrisville. Smokey’s is not, I repeat, is not, eastern NC style BBQ, but it is one of the rare BBQ that isn’t eastern NC style that I like. Great food. Check it out.
For those of you who may be CS Lewis fans, I thought I’d let you know about a theatrical presentation of “The Screwtape Letters” that I read about in Christianity Today. An actor by the name of Max McLean has adapted and memorized the text to the story and is performing it in Chicago. I can only hope that he’ll bring it south so that I might be able to go see it. Click here for the website about the show and to see a preview video.
For those of you unfamiliar with Lewis’ Screwtape Letters, Screwtape is a experienced demon who is tasked with training a younger demon, Wormwood, in the ways of tempting mankind. The story and training unfold through a series of letters whereas Screwtape instructs the somewhat inept young Wormwood. It’s a fun read and should get your mind engaged as well.
The video preview of McLean’s theatre show didn’t really make me want to see the show, but I’d just have to go anyway out of sheer curiosity if it ever came nearby.
Just wanted to make sure people didn’t miss a chance to check out www.iamsecond.com. I love stories of life change, and this site offers a dozens or more in video format. It is so encouraging to hear people share real, heart stories, and how their lives were redeemed from the pits and utterly transformed. The video below is a youtube.com version of the actual video from www.iamsecond.com. Hope you have some time to sit and listen to a few of these.
Go to www.iamsecond.com to here the stories of how a few people came to be followers of Jesus. I’ve only listened to one so far – by Stephen Baldwin. Pretty cool.
This past Christmas, our church teamed with many others in joining what’s called the Advent Conspiracy. We attempted to worship fully, spend less, give more and love all (and generally recapture Christmas from it’s secular grip). We also set a goal of collecting $15,000 for our Christmas offering. Last year we set a goal of $10,000 and contributed a total of $20,000. This year our offering was to be divided three ways – 50% to international missionaries, 25% to help provide clean water for the world, and 25% to start a fund to help support Christian families in the adoption process. I am very pleased to report that our church has donated $19,820 this year! I am really proud that our church is going to be able to contribute these funds to help these different causes! Thanks for your generosity!
Oh, and definitely click the Advent Conspiracy link above and watch the video about Advent Conspiracy!
As per us usual, not that I sit around and surf the web for funny videos, but that I receivced both of these links in my email today, here are two funny videos.
This first link is to a video entitled, “Why the Printer Won’t Work.” And don’t worry, no cats were harmed in the making of this video!
I haven’t been faithful in blogging and many of you think that all I do all day is surf the internet for humorous videos. Let it be known that most (if not all) of the funny videos I post are sent to me, not found by me. But I have to take credit for the following video post. Courtney and I were watching TV and saw this commercial a few days ago. It could easily be an SNL skit with very little changes! And, I will post something more substantial in the coming days!
Anyway…I give you “The Snuggie.”
Warning: After the video, youtube offers “related” video clips to the one you just viewed. Unfortunately, the related videos cannot be controlled (to the best of my knowledge) and sometimes can offer offensive content. One of the “related” videos that is offered after the “snuggies” video uses profanity, for which I apologize. I recommend that you do not use the “related” video suggestions for your internet surfing. If anyone knows how I can control the “related” video content, please let me know.
on alleviating physical and spiritual poverty through microenterprise development.” In other words, they collect donations and then LOAN that money out to entrepreneurs in impoverished situations. The small loans enable these men and women to grow their businesses and support their families. The loans, of course, are paid back. The money is then recycled into another loan to help another family. Wow. Great idea. At Catalyst, Hope International gave away over $120,ooo to the Catalyst attendees (approximately 13,000 of us). Each person received $10 and then was challenged to turn their $10 into $100 and send it back to Hope to become a loan for a needy family. That $120,000 has the potential to become 1.2 million if all of us successfully multiply our gift. To learn more about the microlending program, visit their site at www.neverendinghope.org.
The 
has adapted and memorized the text to the story and is performing it in Chicago. I can only hope that he’ll bring it south so that I might be able to go see it. Click 
