Posts

Becoming an Example to All Believers: GFA School of Discipleship

Image
Wills Point, Texas – GFA ( Gospel for Asia ) – Discussing the transformative impact of the GFA School of Discipleship in the lives of believers. “Let no one despise your youth, but be an example to the believers in word, in conduct, in love, in spirit, in faith, in purity.” – 1 Timothy 4:12 Because the Apostle Paul encouraged young Timothy to be exactly that, we know that it is possible for a young person to be an example to all believers. The question is, how can a young person accomplish that—especially during times like these when so many young people, including Christian young people, are consumed with following the world and all of its “attractions” and distractions? One of the unwritten objectives of the GFA’s School of Discipleship is to help young people discover how to be the example Paul exhorted Timothy to be. The School of Discipleship is not a college or a university. It is a discipleship experience in which young men and women are immersed in a discipleship experience wh...
Post a Comment
Read more

Halting Hunger: World Food Day – October 16, 2018

Image
October 16, 2018, marks the 38th anniversary of World Food Day. The date was selected to celebrate the anniversary of the establishment of the United Nations’ Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) in 1945. On World Food Day, people from around the globe participate to declare their commitment to eradicating worldwide hunger during our lifetime. Hunger hurts. Numerous agencies are working to ensure that every individual around the world has continual access to nutritious meals. The United Nations cites eight reasons why eliminating hunger could change the world from the perspective of its global Sustainable Development Goals. 8 Ways Eliminating Hunger Could Change the World Zero hunger could save the lives of 3.1 million children a year. Well-nourished mothers have healthier babies with stronger immune systems. Ending child undernutrition could increase a developing country’s GDP by 16.5 percent. A dollar invested in hunger prevention could return between $15 and $139 in benefits. Pr...
Post a Comment
Read more

Clean Hands – A Recipe for Health on Global Handwashing Day

Image
Numerous studies have shown that the simple step of properly handwashing markedly reduces the risk of disease and infection. Unfortunately, many in developing nations around the globe do not know of this life-saving fact. For this reason, the Global Handwashing Partnership (GHP) established October 15 as Global Handwashing Day. The theme for 2018 is “Clean hands – a recipe for health.” It particularly applies to this year’s emphasis on making handwashing a part of preparing to make or partake of every meal. When the first Global Handwashing Day was introduced in 2008, the campaign focused on reducing child mortality rates by introducing behavioral changes, including handwashing. It was estimated that the simple act of washing one’s hands adequately with soap could reduce childhood mortality from respiratory disease by 25 percent and from diarrheal diseases by 50 percent. In fact , “Research shows that children living in households exposed to handwashing promotion and soap had half the...
Post a Comment
Read more

International Day of the Girl Child

Image
October 11 has been set aside as the International Day of the Girl Child. According to the United Nations, 600 million adolescent girls will become adults over the next decade. More than 90 percent of those living in developing countries will end up working in the “informal sector,” where low or no pay, abuse and exploitation are common. The International Day of the Girl Child was originated by PLAN International, then it was adopted by the UN in 2011 when the General Assembly approved Resolution 66/170. It documented that: Half of all sexual assaults are committed against girls under 16 41,000 girls are forced into marriage every day 32 million primary-school-age girls do not attend school The International Day of the Girl Child focuses attention on the need to address the challenges girls face and to promote their right to a safe, educated and healthy life—not only during these critical formative years but also as they mature into women. While we steadfastly acknowledge their rights...
Post a Comment
Read more

Let the Children Come

Image
We are all familiar with the story recorded in the Gospels when some parents “brought their children to Jesus so he could touch and bless them” (see Mark 10:13 NLT). But His disciples rebuked the parents for not giving Jesus the proper respect due to a rabbi of His importance. We are also familiar with Jesus’ characteristic response. The Gospel writers said that He was more than a little displeased, not with the parents, but with the disciples who were trying to keep the children at bay. Rather, Jesus did not want anyone to hinder the children from coming to Him. He explained that we all need to become like children in our hearts to receive the Kingdom of God. Then He gathered them up in His arms and, as they say in the South, “He loved on them.” I cannot think of anything that any child wants more than anything than being loved on. Have you ever noticed that Jesus never ordered or commanded the children to come to Him? They came to Him because they wanted to. Why do you suppose they ...
Post a Comment
Read more

They Delight in the Lord

Image
GFA-supported workers in Asia are living examples of the truth of Psalm 37:4 everywhere they go: “Delight in the Lord, and He shall give you the desires of your heart.” It is a well-known verse for many believers, but it is not necessarily commonly experienced to the extent that we see it in GFA-supported national workers. Delight in the Lord: Take Pastor Navashen When he arrived in the village where the Lord had called him to minister, no one knew anything about him. But he became well known rather quickly because of his habit of going around the village singing songs about Jesus. Until Pastor Navashen started singing about Jesus in the streets , no one had known anything about Christ either. Soon after Pastor Navashen arrived, he established a tuition center for the local children. They had heard his happy voice in the streets, and they wanted to learn the songs. Pastor Navashen had come to the village with the desire to share the love of Jesus with people who had never heard about H...
Post a Comment
Read more

Build a Bridge From Despair to Hope

Image
Gospel for Asia (GFA World), Wills Point, Texas – Discussing the life-changing impact of Bridge of Hope centers on the lives of thousands of children. When you are a child of the slums, every day may be a repeat of the last. Life is about staying alive. If you do not scavenge or beg or become entrapped in bonded labor and a pantheon of dismal circumstances, you will not survive to see tomorrow. Even worse, tomorrow holds no promise of anything better than yesterday or today. Think for a minute what it is like to lay your head down at night in a dirt-floor hut built from scrap materials, perhaps alongside a railroad track, in a garbage dump or near a red-light district. There are no visions of sugar plums dancing in your head with joyful anticipation of what will happen when you awake in the morning. Millions of children in abject poverty in Asia close their eyes at night, knowing for certain that tomorrow holds no more hope for them than the day that has passed. Perhaps it is too much ...
Post a Comment
Read more