Archive for May, 2009

Supporting Orphan Impact

May 15, 2009 at 9:28 am · Filed under cmconnect, communities, family, parentunity, pmconnect, resources, smconnect and tagged: ,

Travel to a third world country will change your life. It convicts and challenges us to evaluate our blessed station in life. Some individuals are moved from conviction to action. Craig Jutila is one such person.

When I first heard Craig’s vision to help other families adopt children from over seas I was on board. I saw the need first hand during my travels as a Marine. I knew it was the right thing to do. However, I didn’t know how I could help until I met Jessica Jenkins the Director of Operations for Orphan Impact.

Please take a moment to read Jessica’s guest blog and prayerfully consider supporting Orphan Impact. Your church could play a key role in helping to connect families to orphans who desperately need hope.

“Orphan Impact International began four years ago when founders, Craig and Mary Jutila adopted their daughter from Kazakhstan. Through the process they felt God moving their hearts toward the miracle of adoption and the orphans of the world. They quickly realized that completing their adoption was not the end of God’s hand of adoption in their lives.
The Jutilas decided to make adoption a reality for more families, so they set out to form a ministry to make that possible. Today, Orphan Impact is a thriving adoption grant and orphan care ministry. They have assisted many families over the years and have heard countless stories of God doing the impossible with His provision.
There are a number of ways to get involved with Orphan Impact. The main focus for the ministry is children and families. We operate under the belief that if children are given a good model of service through the elders in their lives now, that will set them up for success in the future. Currently, we have an eight-week curriculum teaching children the importance of caring for orphans. This can be done in a church or home environment. Also provided with the curriculum are quarter tubes, each tube holds fifteen dollars and the money is sent back to Orphan Impact for the family grant fund.

We are excited about the things God is doing at Orphan Impact and would love to tell you more, you contact us at info@orphanimpact.com“  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Comments

A Minimum Connection (Brandon Milburn-SM)

May 5, 2009 at 10:48 am · Filed under smconnect

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Have you used a dial up internet connection lately?  It’s SO SLOW! And so many web pages these days use large graphics and flash objects that trying to load even a Facebook page can get annoying fast.  Dial up is the bare minimum connection to connect to the internet. And though you’re connected, you’re not really connected at the fullest degree.

I feel like that with some of my kids in my ministry.  I can talk to them about some of the deepest topics and feel like I have really engaged their hearts…but then realize that the moment in which that happens is only one or two hours a week.  There are other countless hours throughout the week that are focused on friends, girls or boys, and even other stuff that I don’t wish to mention.  It’s like I have the bare minimum connection with them…because though I have a connection, it’s not really to the fullest degree.

This isn’t true for all of the kids, but for most…the connection is slow.

So I have made it intentional to take one kid and make him my summer project.  I know that I can’t take them all under my wing, but one.  And I will do what I can to make a connection that’s full, where everything is understood, where no walls are formed, and where honesty rules.  In fact I’m thinking of him right now…

He’s the 8th grade kid who is experimenting with pornography, getting nude pictures of girls from school on his phone, who cuts his body to release pain, because his parents just separated, and he feels like the whole world is full of judgers and emptied of just an ounce of love…because love doesn’t exist where he comes from.

That’s my summer project…

My challenge to you is to find a summer project.  Take ONE kid that needs your attention and make sure there is a strong connection.  Teach them the ways of Jesus…teach them before it’s too late.

Brandon Milburn

Community Minister (smconnect)

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