Connect with vital ministries through giving to the Offering for Global Missions

“Our off erings are fl at. We haven’t reached our Off ering for Global Missions goal in several years,” said Snell, who is now CBF’s director of global fi eld ministries. “In many cases our passions are dulled and our compassion is defeated by fatigue. Yet there continue to be unbelievable statistics that tell us one of four has not yet had the opportunity to hear and respond to the word of Jesus Christ.”

Th is special issue of the fellowship!focuses on the 2006-2007 Off ering for Global Missions and the ways in which the Fellowship seeks to be the presence of Christ in a hurting world.

Th e national goal of the 2006-2007 Off ering for Global Missions is $6.32 million, and 100 percent of gift s to the Off ering support global ministries. Th ere are currently 160 CBF Global Missions fi eld personnel serving around the world, and the Off ering provides for their salaries and benefi ts, physical and emotional support, ministry expenses and Global Missions infrastructure.

“Field personnel serve as conduits of the grace and

love of the Great Physician love of the Great Physician into the lives of marginalized, into the lives of marginalized, oppressed and spiritually oppressed and spiritually needy people around the needy people around the world,” said Rob Nash, CBF world,” said Rob Nash, CBF Global Missions coordinator. Global Missions coordinator. “Th ey minister in the hard “Th ey minister in the hard places — where most of places — where most of us could never serve. Th is us could never serve. Th is

annual off ering annual off ering enables us to have enables us to have a corporate global a corporate global witness together witness together as Fellowship as Fellowship Baptists, carrying Baptists, carrying the healing touch of the healing touch of the Great Physician the Great Physician into famished into famished lands.”

Th e focus of the 2006- Th e focus of the 2006- 2007 Off ering is “Famished 2007 Off ering is “Famished Lands … Th e Great Physician,” and this issue Physician,” and this issue includes six examples of includes six examples of CBF Global Missions fi eld CBF Global Missions fi eld personnel who impart the personnel who impart the love of the Great Physician as love of the Great Physician as they attend to emotional and they attend to emotional and physical needs.

In China, Brenda Lisenby In China, Brenda Lisenby ministers at Angel House, one

of the few places in the country that off ers rehabilitation services to children with cerebral palsy. In India, Eddie and Macarena Aldape reach

out to the Banjara people and tsunami survivors, working to meet medical, social and to meet medical, social and spiritual needs.

CBF Global Missions fi eld personnel also live and work on the continent of Africa. Fran and Lonnie Turner work to

bring uncontaminated water and hope to Sub-Saharan Africa, where 10 million people face starvation. In South Africa, Ana Marie and Scott Houser care for the caregivers of people infected and aff ected by HIV/AIDS.

“Th e Off ering for Global Missions is of paramount importance to our ministry in South Africa,” said Scott Houser. “Oft en our culture lends itself to wanting to give to initiatives with names and places that we can see where our money is tangibly going. But I encourage people

to recognize that through giving you’re enabling a ministry [that uplift s] life amidst the suff ering of South Africa.”

Th is issue also includes the stories of CBF’s AsYouGo affi liates Nancy and Steve James and Together for Hope facilitators Ray and Kathleen Kesner. In Haiti, the Jameses use their medical knowledge to provide healing and encouragement. And in

South Dakota, the Kesners build relationships among the Lakota people, an American Indian tribe that has been historically marginalized.

“Each of us is being challenged to enter into the pain of the world,” said Snell. “Th ere is so much to be done, and we are doing so little. It breaks my heart.” f!

By Patricia Heys, CBF Communications

At the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship’s t the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship’s t the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship’s

2006 General Assembly, interim CBF 2006 General Assembly, interim CBF

Global Missions coordinator Jack Snell Global Missions coordinator Jack Snell

made a surprisingly candid appeal for support.made a surprisingly candid appeal for support.

CBFfellowship! COOPERATIVE BAPTIST FELLOWSHIP | WWW.THEFELLOWSHIP.INFO

Volunteer doctors and nurses provided needed medical services in India.Stretch Ledford photo

How to Respond

LEARN – To learn more, go to www.thefellowship.info/globalmissions/famishedlands.icm or missions/famishedlands.icm or missions/famishedlands.icmorder free resources on the Offering for Global Missions from The CBF Store. Visit the store online at www.thefellowship.info/TheCBFStoreor call (888) 801-4223.

GIVE – To give to the Offering for Global Missions, go to www.thefellowship.info/landing/giving.

icm or call (800) 352-8741.

PRAY – To become a Prayer Associate or to learn more about prayer requests, go to www.thefellowship.info/globalmissions/prayercentral/.

SERVE – To find out about opportunities to serve with CBF Global Missions, go to www. thefellowship.info/destination missions.

“... through giving you’re

enabling a ministry [that

uplift s] life amidst the

suff ering ...”

“T hen Jesus went about all the cities and

villages, teaching in their synagogues,

and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom,

and curing every disease and every sickness. When

he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them,

because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep

without a shepherd. Th en he said to his disciples,

‘Th e harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few;

therefore ask the Lord of the harvest to send out

laborers into his harvest.’” Matthew 9:35-38.

ABOVE: The Offering for Global Missions supports the work of Ana Marie and Scott Houser, who minister in South Africa to adults and children affected by HIV/AIDS.Steve Johnson photo

OFFERING FOR GLOBAL OFFERING FOR GLOBAL

ellowship!OFFERING FOR GLOBAL

ellowship!MISSIONS 2006-2007MISSIONS 2006-2007

ellowship!MISSIONS 2006-2007

ellowship!

O F F E R I N G F O R G L O B A L M I S S I O N S

A d a l p e s M i n i s t e r i n I n d i aC O O P E R A T I V E B A P T I S T F E L L O W S H I P w w w . t h e f e l l o w s h i p . i n f o

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‘Oases of hope’‘Oases of hope’Field personnel reach out to forgotten in India

Local villagers counseled Nythia’s parents to accept her fate, advice in line with prevailing social mores and the Hindu faith. But the Aldapes befriended Nythia and her family and with the family’s blessing, located a skin specialist.

Th ey took Nythia and her mother to the city of Pune, where she was admitted to the hospital. Over time, Nythia improved and returned to her village. When the people saw her, Eddie said, “No one could believe their eyes.”

Th e Aldapes, Cooperative Baptist Fellowship Global Missions fi eld personnel, work in India with tsunami survivors, Banjara Gypsies and other marginalized peoples. Th e Banjaras, who fall low on the caste system in

Indian society, number between 20 to 23 million in India but are oft en forgotten among country’s growing population of 1.1 billion.

“We have spoken to Christian and non-Christian groups who say, ‘We don’t have any Banjara here,’” said Eddie. “Th en we ask them to pick any evening and stand by any city thoroughfare. When we meet again, the fi rst thing those people say to me is, ‘Th ere are so many Banjara in our city!’ Th e Banjara Gypsies have fallen through the cracks.”

Th e Aldapes reach out to children like Nythia and her family members, who all recently became Christians. Nythia has been diagnosed with Job’s syndrome, and

she now lives close to her parents in a home for girls, where she can get needed medical attention.

“[Nythia’s] hair is starting to grow,” Eddie said. “She is well on her way to recovery. Nythia and her family are living testimonies of what God can do and how He transforms lives.”

Th e Aldapes — and those they partner with — have found ways to bring the Banjaras and other marginalized peoples back into society. Th ey work to meet physical needs through their connections with several medical clinics,

and they also teach English classes and nutrition and health programs.

Th e medical clinics are usually held on a bi-monthly basis and focus on a specifi c medical specialty, including pediatric care, skin and wound care and general family practice.

“Th e Banjara are outcasts around here, so when we go and meet some of their needs they are very appreciative,” Eddie said. “At the same time, they are very confused because they are not used to having someone take care

of their needs. We off er hope, and they begin to feel they are valuable to God. What’s made the diff erence is the gospel. Th ey are able to see that they do matter.”

Since the December 2004 tsunami that hit Southeast Asia, the Aldapes have been involved with CBF’s disaster relief. In the fi shing community of Cuddalore, Eddie has worked with local fi shermen, whose

boats were damaged or destroyed, to rebuild and repair their boats.

Another ministry of the Aldapes is their partnership with the HIM Institute of Technology, a home to more than 50 Banjara children whose parents suff er from leprosy. Th e children are taught English and computer skills.

“In India I found that our friends are helping to create places of refuge, oases of hope for children whose parents are suff ering from leprosy,” said Darrell Watson, pastor of First Baptist Church of Forsyth, Ga., who traveled to India in 2006. “Th ough the disease of leprosy has nearly been arrested, those adults suff ering from the vestiges of the disease, as well as their children, are still being ostracized and shunned by society.” f!

By contributing writer Celeste Pennington, Estes Park, Colo., and Patricia Heys, CBF Communications

Eddie and Macarena Aldape remember vividly their fi rst

encounter with Nythia, a survivor of the tsunami. She was

malnourished, weakened by tuberculosis and troubled with a skin

disorder — scabies. Once, as she sat with Macarena, the little girl cried

and scratched until she was covered in blood.

Vol. 16, No. 6COORDINATOR • Daniel VestalCOORDINATOR, COMMUNICATIONS & RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT • Ben McDadeEDITOR • Lance WallaceMANAGING EDITOR • Patricia HeysASSOCIATE EDITOR • Carla WynnPHONE • (770) 220-1600FAX • (770) 220-1685E-MAIL • fellowship@thefellowship.infoWEB SITE • www.thefellowship.info

fellowship! fellowship! f is published 7 times a year in Sept./Oct., Special I (Oct.), Nov./Dec., Jan./Feb., Mar./Apr., May/June, Special II (Aug.) by The Cooperative Baptist Fellowship, Inc., 3001 Mercer University Dr., Atlanta, GA 30341-4115. Periodicals postage paid at Atlanta, GA, and additional mailing offices. USPS #015-625

POSTMASTER: Send address changes to “fellowship!” Newsletter, fellowship!” Newsletter, fCooperative Baptist Fellowship, P.O. Box 450329, Atlanta, GA 31145-0329

MeetMeetM Eddie and Macarena and Macarena andAldape

EDDIE AND MACARENA ALDAPE serve as CBF Global Missions fi eld personnel in India. They have two children — Alyssa Ann, 18, who attends Samford University and Emmanuel, 16, who lives with them in India.

Background:Eddie was born in the Rio Grande Valley,

and Macarena grew up in Mexico. Ma-carena earned nursing degrees from Pan American School of Nursing and Baptist Health System School of Nursing. Eddie earned a degree in theology and education from the Hispanic Baptist Theological Seminary in San Antonio, Texas.

Ministry: Macarena has served in various mis-

sions capacities in Mexico and Europe. Eddie has also served on mission trips to Mexico from 1989 to 1995, as well as to North Carolina in 1992. The Aldapes were commissioned by CBF in 2001 and have worked as strategic coordinators for Banjara Gypsy people in the states of Maharashtra, Gujarat and Rajasthan. The Aldapes work to empower indigenous people to reach their country for Christ, as well as establish relationships with individu-als and churches.

Macarena and Eddie AldapeMacarena and Eddie Aldape

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Eddie Aldape, left, has worked with the Banjara people in India for the past five years.

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The tsunami that hit India in 2004 heavily damaged the community of Cuddalore and its fishing industry.

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L i s e n b y S e r v e s a t A n g e l H o u s e , C h i n a w w w . t h e f e l l o w s h i p . i n f o O F F E R I N G F O R G L O B A L M I S S I O N S 2 0 0 6

O F F E R I N G F O R G L O B A L M I S S I O N S

‘Christ followers’ provide early intervention, ‘Christ followers’ provide early intervention, rehabilitation for children with cerebral palsy

At Angel House, each child is inte-grated into a professional program. Th e goal is to help youngsters with mild to moderate cerebral palsy assume normal roles in society, said Brenda Lisenby, who serves in China as one of the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship’s Global Missions fi eld personnel.

“Why do you provide this service?” parents oft en ask Angel House director Kate Wang Fang. Her answer: “We are Christ followers.”

Although the government keeps no record of these births, one private study estimates that 1.78 million Chinese children under the age of 13 have cerebral palsy (CP), a mo-tor impairment due to brain damage. Primar-ily because of poverty and lim-ited services — and China’s laws limiting one child per family — these children are abandoned. While there is no known cure for cerebral palsy, most children benefi t from early intervention.

In a bright room at Angel House, a teacher gently holds onto a toddler stretched out over a giant blue ball — an-other young child is also at play, trying to fi t variously shaped plastic blocks into corresponding openings.

When Fei Fei, 3, arrived at Angel House, he was unable to sit up, and he lagged behind in verbal skills. With early intervention, his cognitive and speech development improved to nearly normal levels for his age. He sits without assis-tance and he gained strength in his legs. Fei Fei’s family matched his progress with great enthusiasm, love and sacrifi ces of their own. His grandfather eagerly hand-craft ed devices to aid in Fei Fei’s therapy, and when the toddler was ready for brac-es, the family paid $150 in cash — equiva-lent to a month’s income in China.

Angel House serves 20 children with a range of physical disabilities. CP can af-fect only the legs, only the right or left half of the body or arms legs, even torso and facial muscles. Th e most common form is spastic CP, involving too much muscle

tone or tightness that results in stiff move-ments of the legs, arms or back. It can also inhibit speech when it aff ects muscles of the tongue and throat.

Th e Angel House staff of 14 forms a professional team consisting of special education teachers, rehab workers, care givers and administrators. Th eir program includes speech therapy, exercise for developing gross and fi ne motor skills,

cognitive development, and role play de-signed to prepare students for transition into society.

“Because non-government orga-nizations (NGO) are rare in China, Kate struggled to get Angel House off the ground,” said Lisen-by. “We relate openly as a Christian orga-nization. We are not always well received. Some local schools and local govern-ments prefer not to partner with Chris-tian organizations. But then there are others who do wish to partner with us.”

In operation for more than three years, this grassroots rehabilitation and education center is quickly growing and maturing with the assistance of local and western teachers — and volunteers. Suzann Fen-ton, a developmental interventionist with Christian Appalachian Project (CAP) in Mt. Vernon, Ky., has traveled to China four times to train the early intervention staff .

“What shocked me are the cultural similarities,” Fenton said. “And how well I understood and fi t into the Chinese culture. I’ve been richly blessed by this experience.”

As part of the training, Fenton mod-eled therapy through “playing with a pur-pose.” She also invited caregivers to shop for toys that build physical and mental dexterity. Fenton modeled home visits, advised staff on basics from how to dress and how to greet parents professionally to ways they could draw parents into the program. She was especially encouraged by the pure dedication of many families,

like Fei Fei’s. “Some families

in China would travel two hours, one way, just to help their child,” Fenton said.

Angel House accepts children through age 13. For nine years, Xi Xi lived under the care of a nanny. While the woman fed and clothed Xi Xi and provided limited physical therapy, there was almost no social interaction. Xi

Xi entered the program at Angel House unable to talk and utterly withdrawn. Caregivers immediately drew her into a

stimulating environment. Th ey also in-volved Xi Xi socially. Students play games, take trips to the park, eat at restaurants and enjoy shopping. Aft er three years at Angel House, Xi Xi has thrived. Now, she greets visitors and talks on the telephone. During their celebration of the Chinese New Year, Xi Xi called home to say, “I love you, Mama!”

Working at Angel House has also been life changing for volunteer and staff — including Lisenby, a Texas native with a master’s degree in elementary education. For six years, she taught

English at a Chinese university. She continues to recruit teachers and work with partners to provide courses in English for Chinese students. She notes that there are many English teaching opportunities — short-term, long-term, for middle school- and university-level students.

But now she believes that God may be redirecting her ministry to focus on groundbreaking work in special needs education, just initiated in China in the ’90s. With her background in education, her facility with the Chinese language, and her growing network, she is excited about the potential for serving in this way.

“We defi nitely work among a mar-ginalized segment of society,” Lisenby

said. “Th is work gives me an opportu-nity to impact whole families and even the community at large, as the Chinese learn how to affi rm and welcome special needs individuals into their society. I am amazed at how God works.” f!

By contributing writer Celeste Pennington, Estes Park, Colo.

In all of China there are few schools designed specifi cally to serve

children with cerebral palsy. One is Angel House Rehabilitation &

Education Center in Guangxi Province along China’s southern border.

Angel House director Kate Wang Fang, right, works with Xiao Yu as her mother participates in training.

MeetMeetM Brenda LisenbyBRENDA LISENBY, a Texas native, serves as one of CBF Global Missions fi eld per-sonnel in Nanning, Guangxi China.

Background:At Austin College

in Sherman, Texas, Lisenby earned a bachelor of arts in history and a master of arts in elementary education.

Ministry: In 1989, Lisenby served in Nanning,

China, teaching English as a Second Lan-guage classes. She then served in Beijing and taught at the Coal Mining Institute. In 1999, Lisenby was commissioned as a CBF Global Missions representative to China. She works with Angel House and coordinates partnerships with Chinese schools, governments and churches. She also works coordinating mission tours, supervising English programs, maintaining a Web site, educating American believers and encouraging Chinese partners help her build networks with Christian groups who share like-minded vision of working openly in China.

Brenda Lisenby

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Brenda Lisenby, right, has facilitated early intervention training for Angel House teachers.

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‘One well at a time’‘One well at a time’Clean water helps Africans fight drought, disease

Th is truth emerges in various ways as the Turners dig boreholes, a form of water wells, for thirsty villagers in Zambia’s bush. As Co-operative Baptist Fellowship fi eld personnel, the Turners invest their expertise and gift s from CBF to help the people of Sub-Saharan Africa have access to un-contaminated water.

“In Matthew 25, Jesus said, ‘I was thirsty and you gave me water. I was hungry and you fed me.’ As a disciple of Christ, I need to be en-gaged,” said Lonnie.

With a depend-able supply of fresh water, villagers can do better than survive seasons of drought. A steady supply of uncontaminated water is also the missing ingredient to securing Zambians against water-borne illness, from guinea worm to diarrhea to cholera.

Th e Turners are veteran workers in Sub-Saharan Africa. When they fi rst ar-rived in the region nearly 30 years ago, life expectancy was 50 years, but today, that estimate has dropped to about 37 years, according to the Macmillan High School Atlas for Zambia.

“Fran and I grew up with poverty,” Lonnie said. “As we review our own pilgrimages, we can see the importance of education in our lives. We also had caring people around us to off er assistance. With access to clean water, sanitation and primary health care, you can turn around a community’s future. When people have access to certain resources, it gives them and their families and their communities hope. It can aff ect a whole nation. As believers and followers of Christ, we must be people of hope.”

Lonnie Turner serves as HIV/AIDS and public policy coordinator for the Fellowship. He can reel off facts about AIDS, but cautions that more African people die from malaria than AIDS, including one in fi ve children in Zambia.

With water wells, which cost $2,000 each to build, the Turners have helped support a number of diff erent communities.

Th e Turners provided a borehole, hoes, fertilizer and seeds for income-generating projects at Widows In Agriculture, a community of 20 women farmers — many who are HIV positive and care for children orphaned by AIDS.

Th e Turners have also facilitated the rehabilitation of one borehole located on the campus of a rural primary school, with more than 1,000 students.

“Th eir basic need is water,” Lonnie said.

“Th at is key. Without it not any develop-ment can occur anyplace in the world.”

In 2005, the Turners encountered graphic images of drought as they traveled throughout Sub-Saharan Africa.

“In our 30 years working in this region, we had never seen the Limpopo River dry, but it was,” Lonnie said. “At Victoria Falls, located in Zambia and Zimbabwe, there was very little water. In fact, many local people said they had never seen it so low — many dams and wells were dry, so people had to carry water for miles.”

But where the Turners helped install wells in 2005, they discovered green fi elds one year later. On their return visit in 2006 to Membeshi, for instance, the Turners were greeted with news that villagers had harvested a bumper crop of maize.

“It was wonderful to see the excitement on their faces,” Lonnie said. “Th ere was food enough for everyone. Th ey had planted tomatoes, groundnuts (peanuts)

and cotton, too. We even enjoyed a meal in the village.”

Land-locked Zambia is one of Africa’s poorest countries, with two-thirds of its 10.4 million people living below the na-tional poverty line. But Zambia has con-siderable agricultural potential, with about nine million hectares of arable land. Only about 20 percent is currently utilized, most of it for rain-fed maize production.

In a world plagued by the eff ects of drought, disease and persistent poverty, these eff orts could seem like a drop in the bucket.

“Th is situation is not hopeless,” Lonnie said. “We are fi ghting poverty one well at a time.” f!

By contributing writer Celeste Pennington, Estes Park, Colo.

Asupply of fresh water can be the diff erence between

hopelessness and hope. It’s a truth that Fran and Lonnie

Turner learned as kids growing up in Harlan County, Ky. In

Zambia, they’ve discovered that a regular supply of uncontaminated

water can be the diff erence between life and death.

MeetMeetM Fran and Lonnie and Lonnie andTurner

FRAN AND LONNIE TURNER serve as CBF Global Mission fi eld personnel in Sub-Saha-ran Africa.

Background:The Turners are both from Harlan, Ky.,

and they both attended the Oneida Baptist Institute, a Christian school in Eastern Kentucky. As a student at the University of Kentucky, Fran earned a degree in social work. Lonnie earned a bachelors degree at Campbellsville College and then attended Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, where he earned a master of divinity. He also holds a masters in international politics from the Free University of Brussels, Belgium.

Ministry: From 1976-1995, the Turners served in

Zambia, Africa. Lonnie worked as a church planter, missions administrator and student worker, and Fran worked in cooperation with an HIV/AIDS ministry, the Family Trust and the National AIDS Prevention and Control Program through the Ministry of Health. The Turners have served with the Fellowship since 1995, and they currently live in Cape Town, South Africa. The Turn-ers work in partnership with local churches, the Ecumenical and Interfaith Community and civil society to address concerns relating to HIV/AIDS, poverty and war in the Southern African Development Community, which includes Angola, Mozambique, South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

Lonnie and Fran TurnerLonnie and Fran Turner

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Lonnie Turner, center, has facilitated the development of boreholes, a form of water wells, throughout Sub-Saharan Africa.

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Water wells provide uncontaminated water to communities, helping to fight off famine and water-borne illnesses.

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H o u s e r s C a r e f o r C a r e g i v e r s i n S o u t h A f r i c a w w w . t h e f e l l o w s h i p . i n f o O F F E R I N G F O R G L O B A L M I S S I O N S 2 0 0 6

Caring for caregiversCaring for caregiversHouser family walks, prays, weeps alongside those who suffer from AIDS

As Cooperative Baptist Fellowship Global Missions fi eld personnel, they serve with their children in Gauteng province, where approximately 31 percent of the people are HIV positive. In South Africa, where an estimated 5 to 7 million people are infected with HIV/AIDS, life expectancy is projected to shift downward from 60-plus years to 46.

Th e Housers have developed a ministry of caring for the caregivers. Th ey connect people who care — in South Africa and the United States — with those who do the caring for people infected with or aff ected by HIV/AIDS.

“In the midst of all the dying there is a whole lot of living going on — courageous, bold living,” said Ana Marie. “It is magnifi cent the way some here live their lives by sacrifi cially helping those who have no one to care for them. Surely it is God at work.”

One of the caregivers in South Africa, with whom the Housers have developed a friendship, is Hannah Kitele, a 30-year-old single mother and foster parent. Kitele cares for her own two daughters and between 10 to 15 foster children, many who are HIV positive.

Th e Housers have provided rent money for Kitele and her family, cooked the family meals and advocated on Kitele’s behalf. Ana Marie has oft en helped Kitele by taking children to the doctor — like the three-year-old boy whose glands were swollen and whose mouth was covered in sores and whose mother had died the week before.

“Th e doctor examined him so carefully

and tried not to hurt him,” Ana Marie said. “When the nurse drew blood, she was as kind as she could be, too. But as I watched, I just couldn’t wrap my heart

around what must be going through this little boy’s mind. It was too much for me to keep my composure. I know Jesus would have cried, too.”

Nurturing Orphans of AIDS for Hu-

manity (NOAH) predicts that by 2015 there will be approximately 2.2 million or-phans in South Africa as a result of AIDS related issues. Th e need for foster parents, like Kitele, will increase. Th e Housers are working in conjunction with CBF Global Service Corps fi eld personnel Caroline

and Josh Smith to provide a psychosocial support program for NOAH’s thousands of community center volunteers. Th ese volunteers work to develop community centers from existing structures that meet the physical, social, spiritual and emo-tional needs of these children without taking them out of their environment.

“Our mission statement is connect-ing people who care with those who do the caring,” Scott said. “It’s a ministry of re-lationships, seeking to bridge ministry initia-tives that are ongoing with interested indi-viduals in an eff ort to alleviate human suff ering.”

All fi ve of the Housers’ children — Daniel, 17; Eliza-beth, 15; Christina, 8; Erika, 5; and Louisa, 2 — are involved in the ministry. Each has accompanied parents

on doctor visits with AIDS patients and been part of supporting Kitele in many diff erent ways. Elizabeth has helped at a daycare run by Metropolitan Evangelical Service, and Daniel has volunteered at the

Helen Joseph Hospital. “A large part of our ministry has

been through our family,” said Scott. “So many of our ministry partnerships and relationships have come about through the infl uence and the involvement of our own children.”

In addition to NOAH and Kitele, the Housers work with a number of other partners in South Africa — Metropoli-tan Evangelical Services, which provides hospice services and temporary shelters; CARE, which focuses on training caregiv-ers and counselors and has established a children’s home; Sinomlando (“We Have A History”), which is involved in their memory box initiative, and Community Information Empowerment Training, which has developed an AIDS prevention curriculum for use in secondary schools.

“It’s our time to step up and be along-side people in suff ering rather than asking why or how this came about,” Ana Marie said. “Th e reality is that it’s here with us, and we as Christians are to be alongside the suff ering, to know about it, to feel it and be willing to be there. Now is the time for Christians to step up and care.” f!

By contributing writer Celeste Pennington, Estes Park, Colo., and Patricia Heys, CBF Communications

Knowing that Jesus wept frees Ana Marie Houser. She and her

husband, Scott, work alongside AIDS organizations in South

Africa, amid a culture of violence and death.

MeetMeetM Ana Marie andScott Houser

ANA MARIE AND SCOTT HOUSER serve as CBF Global Missions fi eld personnel in Johannesburg, South Africa. Their entire family is involved in their ministry — Daniel, 17, Elizabeth, 16, Christina, 9, Erika, 5, and Louisa, 2.

Background:Both Ana Marie’s and Scott’s parents

were missionaries. Ana Marie grew up as a missionary kid in Panama and the Domician Republic, and Scott was raised in Kenya and Tanzania. Scott and Ana Marie met at Baylor University, and they married in 1985.

Ministry: After serving in South Africa from 1989-

1999 with another Baptist sending agency, the Housers were commissioned as CBF fi eld personnel in 2002. The Houser family works with caregivers of people living with AIDS. They are developing a memory box initiative for children orphaned because of HIV/AIDS, participate in support groups for youth and adults either infected with or affected by HIV and are involved in teaching AIDS prevention courses in schools.

Ana Marie and Scott HouserAna Marie and Scott Houser

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The need for children’s homes in South Africa continues to increase as greater numbers of children are orphaned because of AIDS related issues.

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Scott Houser, right, has served in South Africa for 13 years.

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O F F E R I N G F O R G L O B A L M I S S I O N S

K e s n e r s B u i l d P a r n t e r s h i p s i n S o u t h D a k o t aC O O P E R A T I V E B A P T I S T F E L L O W S H I P w w w . t h e f e l l o w s h i p . i n f o

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Together for Hope facilitators engage in Together for Hope facilitators engage in ministry of presence in South Dakota

Th e Kesners went to South Dakota, where they facilitate ministry as part of Together for Hope (TFH), the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship’s rural poverty ini-tiative that strives for economic and community devel-opment in 20 of the poorest counties in the United States. South Dakota has four of these coun-ties, mostly on American Indian reservations.

Most of the time the Kesners conduct their ministry from their home in Lib-erty, Mo., but took this trip to meet new people, build trust and “to fi nd out what life was like,” Ray said. “We learned [certain things] just because we were there.”

It’s a ministry of presence, where the Kesners primarily work on build-ing relationships of mutual trust among Lakota people, an American Indian tribe that has been historically marginalized and unjustly treated by Americans. Th is history has led to some skepticism toward non-Indians, even those who want to come along-side to make like better.

“It takes a lot of patience and a lot of time,” Kathleen said. “It’s not like going in somewhere else where people come fl ocking to you.”

For example, it’s taken three years for residents of Bridger, S.D., to begin accept-ing the Kesners and other TFH volunteers. Th e fi rst year volunteers traveled to Bridger the residents kept their distance. Th e next year, a few residents met the vol-unteers, and now the Kesners believe relationships of trust are being forged.

One sign of trust came when a Lakota woman gave volunteers a star quilt, a traditional Lakota art. Aft er learning more about star quilts, Kathleen collected more than $35,000 in fabric donations, which she then sold

at minimal prices to Lakota women, enabling them to more aff ordably make quilts.

“We sell it so they can continue to have dignity — something they bought not just something given to them,” Ray said.

Th ey also hope to fi nd a quilting ma-

chine for the Bridger community. Other ministry eff orts include building half a basketball court in Bridger and taking school supplies and library books to a res-ervation. Th e ministry has also partnered to bring a mobile dental truck to the area, treating children who may have never seen a dentist before.

Th e Kensers also facilitate missions trips for volunteer teams, develop relationships with local residents, and help “to assess opportunities for community and economic development,” Ray said.

Th e ministry is something they just fell into, Kathleen said. Aft er a few years of re-tirement, Kathleen started looking for a place to invest time and energy. She started by going to Helena, Ark. — another TFH ministry site. She gave a report of her experience

at church on the same night that Chris Th ompson, for-mer South Dakota facilita-tor, reported about his trip to South Dakota.

“Light bulbs went off when I heard about South Dakota,” Kathleen said. “I just knew that was where I wanted to work.”

Th at spark would lead to the Kesners’ involvement in Warm Embrace, a win-ter clothing drive ministry started by Th ompson’s wife, Dana. In December 2003,

Ray used his truck to haul the fi rst col-lection of winter clothes to the Cheyenne River reservation. Th ey’ve been on every Warm Embrace trip since.

“It’s just something that kind of grows on you,” Kathleen said.

Th e Kesners became South Dakota min-istry facilitators in December, aft er Th omp-son resigned because of time constraints.

“Kathleen and Ray have already proven capable in their willingness to spend signifi cant time away from their Missouri home actually to be with local community leaders within counties in South Dakota,” said national TFH coordinator Tom Prevost. “Th ey are building on the trust that the Th ompsons earned along with the many Fellowship folks who are helping to keep the promises of Together for Hope.”

As the Kesners continue ministry leadership, they hope for more jobs in the area, which would help strengthen the area’s economy. Th ey also hope their ministry will have a spiritual impact, although that sometimes seems most diffi cult. Some negative experiences with missionaries in the past have led to skepticism about Christianity among many Lakota. Consequently, the Kesners don’t push a Christian agenda but rather try to encourage local pastors and be the presence of Christ.

“We work with our presence,” Kathleen said. f!

By Carla Wynn, CBF Communications

In May, Missouri residents Kathleen and Ray Kesner covered

3,200 miles in two weeks, building relationships and new

ministry partnerships along the way.

The Kesners have worked to bring a mobile dental clinic to the area, providing services for many children who have never been to a dentist.

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RAY AND KATHLEEN KESNER serve as facilitators with Together for Hope High Plains, the Fellowship’s rural poverty initiative in South Dakota.

Background:Kathleen was born and raised in Rye

Hill, Ark., and Ray was born and raised in Palestine, Ark. The two met in high school and have been married for 50 years.

Ministry: For 26 years, Ray served as a pastor in

churches through out Arkansas and Missouri. He also worked in theological education and as a pastoral counselor. Traveling in their RV from their home in Liberty, Mo., the Kesners work to build relationships of mutual trust among the Lakota people in South Dakota.

Kathleen and Ray KesnerKathleen and Ray Kesner

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Kathleen Kesner, left, worked with Tony Garter, former pastor of the Eagle Butte Baptist Church, to provide large print Bibles to a Sunday School class.

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Ray Kenser, right, helped construct the Tipi Bed and Breakfast in Bridger, South Dakota.

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J a m e s e s B r i n g H e a l i n g a n d H o p e t o H a i t i w w w . t h e f e l l o w s h i p . i n f o O F F E R I N G F O R G L O B A L M I S S I O N S 2 0 0 6

O F F E R I N G F O R G L O B A L M I S S I O N S

Encourage and empowerEncourage and empowerCBF affiliates Jameses work to bring healing, hope to people of Haiti

Aft er six years in the States, the Jameses were invited back to Haiti by the general secretary of the Haitian Baptist Conven-tion, Emmanuel Pierre. Th e Jameses, who previously spent 16 years serving at the Good Samaritan Hospital in Limbe, Haiti, are now Cooperative Baptist Fellowship Global Missions AsYouGo affi liates.

Th e Jameses seek to provide for medical needs and share their faith. As affi liates the Jameses are self-supporting, but they are a part of the CBF Global Missions transformational development team, which encourages growth in every aspect of a person’s life.

“Th e goal is to go beyond curing the fever and to have Jesus go into the places

in their hearts that need forgiveness and reconciliation,” said Steve, who has a medical degree from Universidad Autonoma de Guadalajara in Mexico.

Skilled medical professionals in Haiti are oft en overworked and poorly paid and hos-pitals lack the proper infrastructure to func-tion. According to the Jameses, 80 percent of Haitians can’t aff ord to pay for medical care.

Doctors receive no income subsidies from the government, local churches or foreign sources and are forced to focus on wealthier patients in order to earn an income.

Serving as an extension of their encourager church, First Baptist Church in Burnsville, N.C., the Jameses have three major goals: network people by understanding the con-crete needs in Haiti, encour-age staff at medical clinics as well as Haitian Christians and empower by sharing medical and spiritual training.

Despite cankered dirt roads and transportation

struggles, Steve travels to diff erent clinics to off er medical assistance. During one visit, he saw the Lord’s transforming pow-er come over a man who was thrashing and babbling. As Steve touched the man and prayed for the Lord’s power, another doctor prepared a shot to calm him and the people in the waiting room broke into a hymn, which moved the man to silence

as the people sang. “We came to Haiti to be a help to

people, and we found out what Jesus wanted us to do was be part of his nonviolent transformation,” Steve said. “Without Jesus transformating our world through the returning of good for evil, love for hatred, trust for mistrust, nothing is going to progress.”

One trip to a clinic in Danda resulted in three blown tires, a motorbike losing its brakes, a dead motor and run-ins with United Nations troops. Despite continu-ous hindrances in the trip, Steve was able to help several Haitian doctors and nurses treat an HIV positive, malnourished baby,

a woman with tubercu-losis and many other pa-tients who traveled long distances on foot to the clinic.

Infrastructure prob-lems and sporadic elec-tricity can be frustrating at times, but the Jameses are persistent in their desire to be the presence of Christ in Haiti. As affi liates the Jameses are thankful for how CBF has helped to provide emotional and spiritual support for their family.

“We really feel like we are a part of a team that surrounds us and empowers us every step of the way, from our

church family to the broader Fellowship,” said the Jameses. “We have had many moments where we have felt the presence and power of Jesus working in the lives of those with whom we live and serve.”

Nancy and Steve grew up as missionary children in Burma and went to school together in South India. In 1964, Steve and Nancy were forced out of Burma with

their families, but they met again years later during college and married in 1972.

While each considered serving in Southeast Asia or Africa, Nancy was introduced to medical needs in Haiti when she traveled there as a nursing student.

“I returned to school to study even harder,” said Nancy. “Being able to see so many of the illnesses we were studying about and see how they were treated really left an impression on me and helped me to be a better student.”

Th ough Haiti has experienced lingering political unrest, the Jameses are persistent about sharing the nonviolent love of Christ, which they see as the “heart of his cross and resurrection.”

“Understanding Christ’s nonviolence has empowered me to serve the poor, to go to those places that are more diffi cult, where others may not want to go,” said Steve. “It’s been a blessing to have that consciousness.” f!

By Courtney Hodges, CBF Communications

Far from their home in the Appalachian mountains of North

Carolina, Nancy and Steve James are immersed in heat and

the tropical atmosphere of the Christian University of North Haiti.

Th eir Haitian style bungalow, a bright coral with green trim, pops

against the background of tropical foliage and fl owers. Chickens

peck through their garden and lizards climb the walls of their home

anticipating the next meal.

MeetMeetM Nancy and Steve and Steve andJames

NANCY AND STEVE JAMES serve as CBF Global Missions AsYouGo affi liates in Haiti. All six of their children — Kirstin, Miriam, Car-rie Eileen, Andrew Raymond, Asia Grace and Micah — have lived with them in Haiti.

Background:The James’ were both born to missionary

families who served in Burma in the ’50s and ’60s. As children, Nancy and Steve attended school together in South India.

Steve earned a degree from Alderson-Broaddus College in Philippi, W.Va., and attended medical school in Mexico at the Universidad Autonoma de Guadalajara in Guadalajara, Jalisco. Nancy graduated as a registered nurse from Mounds-Midway School of Nursing in St. Paul, Minn.

Ministry: The James began working in Haiti in

1983. They served at the Good Samaritan Hospital in Limbe, Haiti, until 1999. As Fel-lowship affi liates the James’ seek to use their medical and spiritual knowledge to network, encourage and equip Haitians.

Steve and Nancy JamesSteve and Nancy James

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A clinic in Haiti provides needed medical services.

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Steve and Nancy James travel to medical clinics throughout Haiti, offering training and support to staff.

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KAREN MANGHAM was looking for a way to make missions personal for her church, and she found it through face2face2f face2face2 ace, face, fthe Cooperative Baptist Fellowship’s ini-tiative that links churches with speakers who share about missions and other relevant topics.

face2face2f face2face2 ace sent a face sent a fmissions speaker to Mangham’s Cen-tral Baptist Church in Gray, Ga., where Mangham said a fl ame of enthusiasm for missions was kindled in her small church. Th rough talking and interacting with one of the Fellowship’s Global Missions staff and former fi eld personnel, the church made a solid connection with someone who had worked full-time in missions. Th e speaker put a face on missions for the church, and helped fi eld personnel and their ministries have more meaning.

face2face2f face2face2 ace speakers include, but are not face speakers include, but are not f

limited to fi eld personnel, staff and mis-sional church representatives. Th ese speak-ers can talk about missions and a host of other topics based on the church’s interest

and needs, including the growing desire of churches to know how to be mis-sional. Field personnel and staff also promote the Fellowship’s Off ering for Global Missions, which funds fi eld personnel and

their ministries around the world.

Why should you schedule a face2face speaker?

• To better connect your church with the Fellowship

• To listen and learn from engaging stories shared by Fellowship staff or Glob-al Missions fi eld personnel

• To promote the Fellowship’s Off ering for Global Missions, the major funding source for global ministries

• To learn ways in which your church can be more missional

What events can I get a speaker for?Speakers are

available for events including:

• Sunday morn-ing worship services

• Wednesday or Sunday evening services

• Children’s and adult missions group meetings

• Mission fairs/Conferences

• Camps and re-treats

How do I get a speaker for my church?

• Contact face2face2f face2face2 ace at (770) 220-1630 face at (770) 220-1630 for face2face@thefellowship.infoface2face@thefellowship.infoface2face@thefellowship.inf and identify what kind of speaker your church is look-

ing for and when you would like a speaker. • Aft er listening to your church’s inter-

ests and need, face2face2f face2face2 ace will match your face will match your fchurch with a speaker.

• face2face2f face2face2 ace will handle face will handle fmuch of the logistics of getting the speaker to your church, and provide any additional resources your church needs to ac-company the speaker’s presentation.

• Churches are asked to provide meals and lodg-ing for speakers, and, if possible, reimburse travel expenses. If necessary, CBF will subsidize travel expens-es. Honoraria are at the discretion of the church.

• For additional information, visit www.thefellowship.info/face2face. f!

By Carla Wynn, CBF Communications

O F F E R I N G F O R G L O B A L M I S S I O N S

G l o b a l M i s s i o n R e s o u r c e s | f a c e 2 f a c e C o n n e c t i n g C h u r c h e s w i t h S p e a k e r sC O O P E R A T I V E B A P T I S T F E L L O W S H I P w w w . t h e f e l l o w s h i p . i n f o

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“How-To” Guide Th e “How-To” Guide

for promoting the 2006-2007 Off ering for Global Missions is a comprehensive, easy-to-use resource for teachers and leaders. Th e guide is divided into four sections — educate, promote, encourage, engage — and includes descriptions of resources and explains a variety of methods for connecting with CBF Global Missions. Also included is a DVD, which provides video segments on CBF Global Missions work in South Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa, South Dakota and an overall Off ering refl ection piece. Video tapes are also available by request.

BanksWith one touch,

the pre-folded Off ering for Global Missions banks become small, 14-sided world globes. Th e banks contain a slot on top for coins and a space on the

bottom for a person’s name. Th e banks are especially appealing to children and could be distributed through Sunday School classes, missions groups or children’s sermons.

Off ering EnvelopesTh e Off ering for Global Missions enve-

lopes provide a convenient way for church members to give to the Off ering.

Bulletin InsertsCBF’s values of listening,

equipping and partnering are demonstrated in the details of stories from CBF Global Missions fi eld per-sonnel who live and work around the world. Th e bulletin insert focuses on Brenda Lisenby in China, Eddie and Macarena Aldape in India, Fran and Lonnie Turner in Sub-Saharan Africa and Ana Marie and Scott Houser in South Africa.

Promotional PostersTwo sizes of color promotional posters

are available. Both sizes include the Of-fering for Global Missions national goal

of $6,320,000 and space for congrega-tions to set their own Off ering goal.

Off ering for Global Missions E-Update

Each issue of this electronic newsletter pro-vides timely, innovative ideas and links to resources to help promote the Of-fering. It also contains prayer calendars and opportunities for volunteer missions

service. To subscribe, e-mail your

request to ogm@thefellowship.infoogm@thefellowship.infoogm@thefellowship.inf or call (770) 220-1630.

CBF Global Missions Gift Catalog

Th e Gift Catalog contains project re-quests from CBF Global Missions fi eld personnel around the world. Purchas-ing from the Gift Catalog is one way to support and participate in the ministry of fi eld personnel all year long. Projects range from meals and books for children to livestock and seedlings. To access the catalog, go to www.thefellowship.info/ globalmissions/gift catalog.

CBF Global Missions Web Site

Th e CBF Global Missions Web Site provides information about the Off ering,

including highlighted ministries in the fall and spring emphases. Th e Web site also provides information about the face2face2f face2face2 ace face fSpeakers’ Bureau and access to photos, clip art and chart illustrating giving progress. www.thefellowship.info/global missions/missions/missions famishedlands.icm/famishedlands.icm/ f!

The resources listed below explain the Off ering for Global Missions

and the CBF Global Missions strategy. Use these resources to fi t

your congregation’s unique approach to missions promotion.

All promotional resources are free and can be ordered through Th e

CBF Store. Contact Th e CBF Store at (888) 801-4223 or

www.thefellowship.info.

Connect your churchface2face2f face2face2 ace links churches with engaging missions, other speakersface links churches with engaging missions, other speakersf

2006-2007 Offering for 2006-2007 Offering for Global Missions Resources

Rick Burnette, one of CBF Global Missions field personnel in Thailand, led a children’s sermon as part of face2face2f face.face.f

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Th e “How-To” Guide

Th e guide is divided into four

Global Missions

electronic newsletter pro-vides timely, innovative ideas and links to resources to help promote the Of-fering. It also contains prayer calendars

Inspire: Missions Education ResourcesLEARN MORE about the stories and work of CBF field personnel through the Fellowship’s missions education resources.

The November unit of Form, the preschool resource, Spark, the children’s resource, and Affect, the adult resource, focus on the ministries of Ana Marie and Scott Houser and Caroline and Josh Smith as they care for those in Johannesburg, South Africa affected by the HIV/AIDS pandemic. Chapter three of Ignite, the resource for teen-agers, also focuses on field personnel work in South Africa.

Check out the January and February units, which feature the Fellowship’s work in South Dakota and China. In March, units focus on rebuilding efforts in India.

To order these resources or for more infor-mation, go to www.missionseducation.orgwww.missionseducation.orgwww.missionseducation.or .

for those in Johannesburg,

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R o s w e l l F i r s t C h i l d r e n R a i s e M o n e y f o r M i s s i o n s | V i e w p o i n t : R o b N a s h w w w . t h e f e l l o w s h i p . i n f o O F F E R I N G F O R G L O B A L M I S S I O N S 2 0 0 6

O F F E R I N G F O R G L O B A L M I S S I O N S

Lonnie Turner, one of the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship’s Global Missions fi eld personnel, traveled to Roswell, Ga., a suburb of Atlanta, and thanked the children for their off ering. He told them how the money will make a diff erence in the lives of African children.

“Water is the number one issue for the people of Zambia,” Turner said. “Without water, many school-age children have to spend most of their days getting water for their family. And that leaves little time for school and homework.”

Brenda Dedmon, minister of children at the church, said each year the VBS off ering is dedicated to global missions, and this year she learned about the work of Fran and Lonnie Turner in Sub-Sarahan Africa, who were trying to raise $2,000 to build

a well at Zambia’s Chanyanga Basic School.

Dedmon contacted the Turners and

told them of the church’s goal to raise the money needed to dig the well. Th en she began promoting the VBS off ering with the children in Sunday School.

“We gave each child a ‘treasure chest’ bank along with a calendar of things for them to do between May 21 and June 4 to help them remember to collect money,” Dedmon said. “For example, we asked them to count the number of faucets in their house and put a nickel in the treasure chest for each one. We also asked them to donate a penny every time they fl ushed the toilet. Th is helped them to focus on the need for water and how oft en we take it for granted because it is so easily available here.”

A member of the church contributed to the promotion by building a wooden hand pump. Each day of VBS, a bucket was positioned at the end of the pump

with the amount of the off ering printed on it. At fi rst it was a small bucket, but it grew each day matching the off ering amount until on the last day of VBS it was revealed that $2,316.50 had been collected by the children.

Hearing of

the need in Zambia and being moved by the children’s off ering, a church member donated an additional $5,000, which Turner said will be used to construct other wells in the area, plus provide books and other school supplies in Chanyanga.

“It was overwhelming to say the least,” Dedmon said.

Lonnie Turner told the congregation their generous off ering had made many African children and adults very happy.

“What you’ve done is provide justice to these people and their children,” he said. f!

By contributing writer Bob Perkins Jr., Atlanta, Ga.

By collecting more than $7,300 to build a water well for a school

in Zambia, children who attended Vacation Bible School (VBS)

at Roswell First Baptist Church learned about the impact a few pennies

could make.

I’VE JUST been a few weeks on the job as the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship Global Missions coordinator, so each day off ers new discoveries related to this joyous enterprise of sharing the grace and love of Christ around the world. I’m learning from some good teachers who minister in the hard places of the world with determination and with the joy of knowing that God has called them to their particular places of service. Here is what they are teaching me:

■ Th ere is considerable cost to following in the footsteps of Jesus. I like the commission that Jesus gives to his disciples in John’s gospel. It is clear, precise and to the point — “As the Father has sent me,” he says, “so send I you.” In diffi cult places, day in and day out,

our fi eld personnel work in powerful and eff ective ways, ministering to AIDS patients, digging wells, building homes, feeding the hungry, and sharing the love of Christ with people who desperately need that love. Th is same kind of commitment is demanded of each one of us in our engagement with the world.

■ Local congregations in the United States are essential to the task of global mission. We’ve paid it lip service in the past. We’ve called local churches toward mission involvement in the world and prayed that such engagement would occur. Now it is happening. Th e 21st century is the century of the local congregation when it comes to global mission. In these early days, I have listened time and again as fi eld personnel have described the ways in which local congregations are joining them in meeting the spiritual, physical, emotional and social needs of people all over the world. Th is local church participation in global mission is leading

to the revitalization of the American church while at the same time off ering new models for Christian engagement with the world.

■ A corporate Baptist engagement with the world is essential. Nothing is more important to eff ective global mission than a corporate and cooperative engagement with the world. Our cooperation together as Fellowship Baptists enables our fi eld personnel to remain in their places of ministry for decades at a time, developing the relationships and connections that are essential to eff ective mission and ministry. Th is cooperation also allows for congregations to participate in a national global mission endeavor that is directed toward a single purpose under the Lordship of Christ. We are able to do together far more than we would ever be able to do separately.

■ Th e Off ering for Global Missions is es-sential to this corporate and cooperative engagement with the world. Th e funds

that your church contributes to OGM go directly to supporting the mission and ministries of our fi eld personnel. Our fi eld personnel, in turn, develop projects and partnerships that enable local congrega-tions to participate alongside them in meeting human need and reaching the least evangelized people of the world. It is truly a partnership in the gospel that results in a meaningful engagement of the world with the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Th e lessons I’ve learned are not diffi cult ones. We are in this grand calling to global mission together as individual Christians, as churches, and as the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship. Our common venture is a true partnership in the gospel that is grounded in the work of fi eld personnel committed to a place and its people, supported by the prayers, funding and mission teams of congregations, and directed by the power of God’s Spirit at work in the world. I’m glad to be part of it. f!

Ways to GIVE to the Offering for Global MissionsOnline — Go to Online — Go to Online www.thefellowship.info/landing/giving.icm. For questions regarding online giving, contact igive@thefellowship.info.

By Mail — Make your check payable to By Mail — Make your check payable to By MailCBF and send it to Cooperative Baptist Fellowship, P.O. Box 101699, Atlanta, Ga., 30392. To designate your gift to the Offering for Global Missions, write “Offering for Global Missions” in the memo line.

By Phone — Call CBF toll free at (800) By Phone — Call CBF toll free at (800) By Phone352-8741

Children at Roswell First Baptist Children at Roswell First Baptist raise money, awareness of missions

GIVE

Offering for Global Missions essential to corporate, cooperative engagement with the world

viewpoint: Rob Nash, CBF Global Missions Coordinator

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ABOVE:ABOVE: Lonnie ABOVE: Lonnie ABOVE:Turner spoke to children at Roswell First Baptist Church about how the money they gave affects the lives of children in Africa.Africa.

Children built Children built treasure chests to help remind them to collect money as part of Vacation Bible School.

Photo courtesy FBC Roswell

O F F E R I N G F O R G L O B A L M I S S I O N S

N e w D e v o t i o n a l R e s o u r c e | P r a y e r R e q u e s t sC O O P E R A T I V E B A P T I S T F E L L O W S H I P w w w . t h e f e l l o w s h i p . i n f o

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Prayer Guide serves as Prayer Guide serves as educational, devotional resource

PRAY

Prayer Requests Ana Marie and Scott HouserCBF fi eld personnel in South Africa

Pray for more indi-viduals and/or families, like Hannah Kitele, who are willing to care for orphaned children for life, not just temporarily, and give them a home.

Ray and Kathleen KesnerTogether for Hope facilitators in South Dakota

On the Cheyenne River Reservation, pray that Together for Hope may continue to pro-vide a peace-making infl uence in the Bridger community, which has a history of confl ict.

Pray that Warm Embrace will be able to raise the necessary funds to complete

the basketball court they began construct-ing last summer. Pray, too, for the Lakota youth who are already beginning to use the court. Pray that this will be an instru-ment of hope and that it will become a shining symbol of the presence of Christ in the community.

Pray for the continued development of work in Red Scaff old on the Cheyenne Riv-er Reservation, including a new Pow Wow Ground. Pray that this will be the fi rst of several projects completed in Red Scaff old. Pray that each project will communicate the presence of Christ to the community.

Pray for the strengthening of our part-nership with Tree of Life, which ministers to the Rosebud and Crow Creek Indian Reservations. Pray that this strengthened relationship will open up opportunities

for us to connect with housing and oth-er needs on these reservations.

Brenda LisenbyOne of CBF’s Global Missions fi eld personnel in China

Pray for the transfor-mation — both physical and spiritual — in the children’s lives, and their families, as they receive professional services and individual respect for perhaps the fi rst time.

Pray for the staff at Angel House as they seek to become more professional, obtain more training, and eff ectively serve this marginalized popula-tion in Guangxi.

Pray for director Kate Wang Fang as she leads this school, that she will have the strength and courage to face and overcome tremendous obstacles in the community and the fi nancial challenges

of running Angel House. Also, pray that Angel House will become self-sustaining.

Pray for more appropriate facilities. Currently Angel House is located in two apartments on the third and fourth fl oors with no elevator and neighbors who do not welcome a school in their building.

Pray for volunteers who can provide training and encouragement to Angel House and other similar centers and schools in China that are serving those with special needs.

Fran and Lonnie TurnerCBF fi eld personnel in Sub-Saharan Africa

Pray for the addi-tional funds needed to dig wells and boreholes. A hand-dug well with a pump costs $2,000 to build. A borehole costs at least $5,000.

Brenda LisenbyBrenda Lisenby

Ana Marie and Scott HouserAna Marie and Scott Houser

Lonnie and Fran TurnerLonnie and Fran Turner

Kathleen and Ray KesnerKathleen and Ray Kesner

“We have used both pieces in the past to promote CBF missions and it’s wonder-ful that they have combined the two this year,” said Gloria Freeman, the director of Woman’s Missionary Union at First Bap-tist Church, Ahoskie, N.C. “Every one of my ladies has a copy of the prayer guide. My hope is that they use it with their families during their devotional time, that it will be a source of discussion about the various people groups, and that they will bet-ter understand how our global missions off ering is used.”

Th e year-long prayer guide has been the Fellowship’s most re-quested piece with 35,000 to 45,000 copies being distributed each year.

Th e guide is a personal devotional tool, providing a scripture focus each month, a refl ection on that scripture, and prayer requests from CBF fi eld personnel for each week. Th e birthdays of CBF fi eld personnel and their families are included.

“It’s an educational tool that exposes an individual to areas and needs around

the world that our fi eld personnel are involved in every day,” said CBF Global Missions associate coordinator Tamara Tillman. “It raises awareness. As people pray for needs around the world, they

begin to understand more fully how their global missions dol-lars are invested.”

“I use the prayer “I use the prayer guide in my person-guide in my person-al devotional time,” al devotional time,” Freeman said. “But Freeman said. “But we also use it in our we also use it in our team meetings and team meetings and incorporate it into incorporate it into our group prayer our group prayer time.”

Freeman espe-Freeman espe-cially appreciates the cially appreciates the

photographs that are used in the guide. photographs that are used in the guide. “We are able to read about a people “We are able to read about a people

group and see their picture which helps us group and see their picture which helps us to even better know who we are praying to even better know who we are praying for and helping to support ministry with,” she said.

Mark Green, minister of music at First Baptist Church in Gainesville, Ga., saw the prayer guide for the fi rst time at the 2006 General Assembly and was so im-pressed that he ordered copies for every member of the choir.

“As I looked through it, I realized it highlighted some of the missionaries that were commissioned at that meeting,” he said. “I also thought the guide was beauti-fully produced and was a great tool for creating awareness of the many diff erent mission projects that CBF is supporting around the globe.”

Green will encourage choir members to use the guide in their private devotions to pray specifi cally for the mission focus each week.

“In addition, I am going to read the focus “In addition, I am going to read the focus

for each week in choir rehearsal as part of our group prayer time,” he said. “I want our choir to support our missionaries through constant prayer, and I want to educate our choir on CBF global mission work.”

Th e theme of this year’s guide is Water for Life and it emphasizes the need to pray for those who have not yet experienced “the refreshing water off ered in relation-ship with Christ.” f!

By contributing writer Sue H. Poss, Greenville, S.C.Greenville, S.C.

There’s a slightly new twist on the Fellowship’s most popular

missions resource this year — the fi eld personnel prayer calendar,

formerly a separate piece called Partners in Prayer, has been incorporated

into the annual prayer guide.

2006-2007

C o o p e r a t i v e . B a p t i s t . F e l l o w s h i p

A .Yea r- Long .Gu ide . t o .G loba l .M i s s i on s .P ray ing

Water forLife

Prayer AssociatesEach month, CBF Global Missions through regular mail and e-mail distributes Prayer Associates, containing the prayer requests of CBF Global Missions field personnel serving around the world. Prayer associates are people who are committed to praying for CBF Global Missions on a regular basis. To subscribe to Prayer Associates or to learn more, go to http://www.thefellowship.info/globalmissions/prayercentral/globalmissions/prayercentral/globalmissions/prayercentral ././

11

C B F S e r v i n g A r o u n d t h e Wo r l d | Vo l u n t e e r O p p o r t u n i t i e s w w w . t h e f e l l o w s h i p . i n f o O F F E R I N G F O R G L O B A L M I S S I O N S 2 0 0 6

O F F E R I N G F O R G L O B A L M I S S I O N S

CBF volunteers serve in missions CBF volunteers serve in missions settings around the world

SERVE

Th rough the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship’s Volunteer Missions, Christ-mas was connected with Brenda Lisenby, one of CBF Global Missions fi eld personnel, and the Amity Foundation, an independent Chinese voluntary organiza-tion created by Chinese Christians in 1985 to promote education, so-cial services, health and rural development. Am-ity focuses its eff orts on serving China’s poorest regions, where resources are scarce.

“Amity specializes in ESL (English as a Second Language) programs and has been for 20 years,” said Timothy Wood, the Fellowship’s Volunteer Missions program manager.

Wood, who helped place fi ve CBF volunteers into Amity’s four-week

summer education program this past July, helps potential volunteers become aware of available opportunities in the

U.S. and around the world. Volunteer opportunities range from teaching to construction to providing medical services. Wood said he “fulfi lls a role like a broker, matching individuals and teams who want to serve as short-term volunteers with the appropriate CBF

opportunity.” In China, that person

is Lisenby, who fi rst went to China in 1989 and originally planned to teach English for two years. Later, she decided to make a career commitment to working in China, and she now coordinates partnerships for the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region and CBF English education resources throughout China.

Christmas, whose wife, Carolyn, served

as a teacher in China in 2004 and 2005, engaged students in discussions on American and Chinese cultures.

“I’ll tell the students about everything from jobs to retirement and holidays,” Christmas said. “Th is helps them with their listening skills. Th en I will get them to tell me about similar things in Chinese culture. Th is way, they’ll practice their speaking.”

Neither Ed nor Carolyn Christmas had previous teaching experience, but the Amity program is set up so that anyone can be a teacher.

“Many of the students will eventually ask, ‘Why did you come?’” said Christ-mas. “And we say, ‘We came because we’re Christians and we know God loves us and God loves you, and we want to share God’s love with you.’ I think when they realize we are volunteers and we have paid our way to come, they know we have something special. Amity’s mission is to show the servant side of Christianity, and that is what we are doing.” f!

SERVE – For more information about volunteer opportunities, contact Wood, (800) 782-2451 or twood@thefellowship.info.

By contributing writer Laurie Entrekin, Atlanta, Ga.

For the third summer in a row, Ed Christmas traveled from his

home in Burlington, N.C., to China, where he taught English to

middle school teachers.

CBF Global Missions Categories of Service www.thefellowship.info/destinationmissions

VolunteerOpportunities

Th is list refl ects volunteer missions possibilities related to the ministries of the CBF Global Missions fi eld personnel featured in this issue. To learn about additional Volunteer Missions opportunities, go to www.thefellowship.info/destinationmissions/VolunteerMissions/ or contact Timothy VolunteerMissions/ or contact Timothy VolunteerMissions/Wood at twood@thefellowship.info or (800) 782-2451.

China• Physical therapist, occupational

therapist, speech pathologist and/or developmental interventionists are needed to assist in Tianjin Institute of Children’s Welfare. Th e therapists would provide daily therapy for orphaned children, long term evaluation, and training to the local Chinese aunties, who also work with the children.

• Adults needed to teach Englishat Zhongshan Road Church to adults and children of varying levels of English competency.

• Adults needed to teach English in China for the Amity Foundation, using an American culture and oral English curriculum provided by Amity.

• Worship with Chinese Christiansand dialogue with Christian leaders in Nanning, the capital of Guangxi. Visit with CBF teachers of English and guest teach at the church’s English classes. Play with students at Angel House, a school for children with cerebral palsy, and allow them the opportunity to develop and display important social skills.

South Dakota• A network of churches is needed

to provide funds and labor to move the Pow Wow Grounds in the Red Scaff old community in Ziebach County. Th is is on the Cheyenne River Reservation. A bridge constructed by the Bureau of Indian Aff airs has encroached on their present community grounds.

• Warm Embrace, a Together for Hope High Plains partner, needs help completing a concrete basketball court in the Bridger community of Ziebach County. Half the court was competed in 2006, and they plan to complete the second half in 2007. Half court construction cost is $5,000.

• Lakota Training and Leadership Institute has opportunities for volunteers to serve through children’s Bible camps or sports camps. Th ey are located near a village of approximately 300 people. Construction needs such as painting and other similar home repairs also exist in the adjoining neighborhood.

• White Clay, Neb., Ministry Center which serves the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation needs help starting a Lakota Craft ers Cooperative. Primary needs are funding and specifi c craft ing supplies. Th e center also has construction and clean up needs on adjoining property which they have recently acquired.

Volunteer Ed Christmas, left, has served in China teaching English for the past three summers.

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Career: Personnel who are employed by CBF Global Missions to share their faith cross-culturally.

Contact Matt Norman at (770) 220-1609 or mnorman@thefellowship.info.

Global Service Corps (GSC): One- to three-year assignments that fill strategic needs all over the world.

Contact Amy Derrick at (205) 989-8160 or aderrick@thefellowship.info.

AsYouGo Affiliate: Self-supporting personnel serving through the CBF Global Missions field team structure. Whether through business or education employment or through the direct financial support of churches, it provides a global missions connection for CBF-minded people with

a specific mission calling to areas CBF is not currently sending career or GSC personnel.

Contact Matt Norman at (770) 220-1609 or mnorman@thefellowship.info.

Student.Go: Summer or semester ministry opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students to serve among unevangelized and marginalized people.

Contact Amy Derrick at (205) 989-8160 or aderrick@thefellowship.info.

Volunteer: Individuals who pay their own way to be a part of CBF Global Missions work around the world. Assignments can be short- or long-term.

Contact Timothy Wood at (972) 242-5977 or twood@thefellowship.info.

Kwan Kew Lai provided medical services in India on a 10-day trip organized by CBF volunteer missions.

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