Turning Point - Kenya

Jon and Jo are from our church,  Christchurch Woking  (CCW).  They are also linked to CMS through the Salt Programme.   They are with us this weekend reporting on their work in Kibera with Turning Point Trust. 

TPT works in Kibera, the biggest slum in Kenya, 'home' for more than a million people tightly packed in 3 square kilometres. They run 2 centres in Masumau and Kianda, helping to improve the quality of life for families there. It is child-focused community development.  As well as 2 centres in Kibera itself, there are Micro-Finance projects to help families start up small buinesses and a 30 acre Farm Project in Kinangop, 120km northwest of Kibera, to rehabilitatea dozen  single mamas and their many children and to help them with a new life out of the slum.  As Jon said  'It is easy getting them out of Kibera, but it's hard getting Kibera out of them'.

Graceworks is sending a team to work there again this summer running the summer camp for 121 chldren in a boarding school for 2 weeks.  It is being hosted by 'Em', also from CCW who is a volunteer working for TPT. And my son Andy is part of the team.

Have a look at the video materials on the Turning Point website on Kibera,  Camps  and Farm 

and also a video my son Jonny made of one of an earlier camp Project Kenya 2007

I have visited the project a couple of times and met up again earlier this year in Nairobi. It's a great project and Jon&Jo are doing a  fantastic job. 

TWITTURGIES

 twitturgies 

Gerard Kelly's Twitturgies are great. They are 'Tweets for the soul, personal liturgies in 140 characters or less'.   prayers for the mobile 

Here is a selction from July   and they are also archived.  Follow Gerard at BlessatBethanie 

God give me empathy more emphatic than my ego. Grant me poverty more perfect than my pride. Squeeze self. Reduce me to love   10:27 AM Jul 17th from mobile web

When circumstances are hard and heavy, God give me a weightlifter's strength. When challenges are steep and high, make me a mountain-climber    7:12 AM Jul 17th

On every plan and dream, I ask your blessing, God. Every call and conversation. If my schemes flail may your will yet be done  8:16 PM Jul 10th from web

Know your own mind. Hear your own heart. To your own self be true. But connect with your creator. Let the gardener who has grown you own you 7:02 PM Jul 9th from mobile web

Jesus isn't a patch on the old religion. He won't hold a candle to dark empty rituals. New fabric. New wine. New wineskins. 12:23 PM Jul 5th from mobile web

If love is in the air, give me lungs to breathe it God. If I can feel it in my fingers, give me faith to touch a broken world  11:40 AM Jul 3rd from mobile web

God make me an ex-believer: created ex nihilio, freed by your exodus; sustained in exile; burned by extreme love; living in expectant hope  5:32 PM Jul 1st from web

Go Goa go

The 'Goa Team' 

We took the 'India Team' to LHR4 to fly off to Goa for a 3 week summer project.   

They are part of Graceworks and their summer misison projects.  They will be working with Martin and Beena who run Bethesda Life centre ministres. I visited earlier in the year as you may have read on a previous blog.   

My daughter Jo is part of the team, returning for a 2nd year running. She was really looking forward to working in the boys home again.  Pictures   of the kids adorn her bedroom wall. 

They seem to have spend the past I-don't-know-how-many-months fundraising and completed the task on Wednesday with a pub-quiz style event at church which raised £600. 

The connection with CMS is that all the leaders have done the orientation and training module that CMS runs for short term teams. I was also involved in the oprientation weekend running the Bafa Bafa cross cultural experience simulation game. Lots of fun. 

Go Goa go ! 

'Encounters' Redcliffe's Mission ezine

'Encounters'  the Redcliffe College ezine is an excellent free resource for poeple interested in misison  

Produced to resource the mission community, Encounters Mission Ezine is a topical mission magazine / mission journal published online every two months.  Encounters is a place to discuss issues being faced in mission and provides a unique space where those involved in mission can respond and express their views.

I want  to draw your attention to 2 editions in particular, which focus on Asia:  

  ezine No 16 (Feb 07)

  Crucial Issues facing Asian Mission  ed Kang San Tan   a variety of issues facing Asian missions reflected through different approaches spanning North Asia, South Asia and South East Asia   You can download the full issue  or individual articles 

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• Article 1:  The Problem of an Alien Jesus for Asian Christianity with Special Reference to Chinese Buddhists.
  (Dr Kang San Tan, 3782 words) 
  
• Article 2:  Mind the Gap: The Ongoing Need for Language Learning in Missions Training.
  (Dr Paul Woods, 2963 words)
  
• Article 3:  There and Back Again: Reading an Exilic Text for the Post 1987 Operation Lallang Malaysian Church.
  (Rev Anthony Loke, 2522 words) 
  
• Article 4:  Reconciliation as Mission.
  (Rev Dr Pervaiz Sultan, 2299 words) 
  
• Article 5:  The Malaysian Dilemma: Where is the Racially Reconciled Community?
  (Peter Rowan, 1661 words)
  
• Article 6:  The South Asian Diaspora: A Missed Opportunity?
  (Robin Thomson, 2549 words) 
  
• Article 7:  The Growth of Christianity in Asia and its Impact on Mission.
  (Dr Julie Ma, 2730 words) 
  
• Book Review 1:  A History of Christianity in Asia.
  (By Samuel Hugh Moffett; Orbis Books)
  
• Book Review 2:  Shining Like Stars: The Power of the Gospel in the World's Universities.
  (By Lindsay Brown; Inter-Varsity Press)

  ezine No 24 (Jun 08) 

Partnership issues in Asian Misison    ed Jonathan Ingleby  consiting of the papers at the Redcliffe/OMF/CMS conference  Growing Asian Mission Movements: Issues and Models for Partnership   You can download the full issue  or individual articles  

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• Article 1:  China and Beyond: Issues, Trends and Opportunities - The Redcliffe Lecture in World Christianity, 2008.
  (Dr Patrick Fung, 7507 words) 
  
• Article 2:  Asian Mission Movements from South Asian Contexts.
  (Robin Thomson, 3031 words)
  
• Article 3:  Who is in the Driver's Seat? A critique of mission partnership models between Western missions and East Asian mission movements.
  (Dr Kang-San Tan, 3060 words) 
  
• Article 4:  Mission Asia: Practical Models in Mission Partnership - a summary.
  (Dr Patrick Fung, 2083 words) 
  
• Article 5:  Mission in Partnership: A Response.
  (Mark Oxbrow, 722 words) 
  
• Article 6:  Reflections on a Conference: Putting partnership at the top of the agenda.
  (Dr Jonathan Ingleby, 640 words) 
  
• Article 7:  A Dilemma for Obedience: An analysis of Japanese Christian Ethics in Silence by Shusaku Endo.
  (Rev Shuma Iwai, 3431 words) 
  
• Book Review 1:  Just Walk With Me: A True Story of Inner-City Youth Work.
  (by Jude Simpson and e:merge; Authentic Media) 
  
• Book Review 2:  The New Conspirators: Creating the Future One Mustard Seed at a Time by Tom Sine.
  (by Tom Sine; Inter-Varsity Press, USA) 

Redcliffe's ezine has many supporters and contributers, and CMS is one. I have written an article for the next issue based on a paper at the recent conference on Asian Mission Movements. It highlights some of the changes weare going through. I'll keep you posted on its publication.   

A DJ's view on UK Church

BBC Radio 1 DJ talks up church

By Marie Page | June 26, 2009

This clip from DJ Chris Moyles on his Breakfast Radio Show is so encouraging to hear. It shows that people with no personal experience of church can find a contemporary worship service surprisingly relevant to (post) modern culture. In the UK at least, a whole generation has little understanding of church other than traditional weddings and carol services. Church (and therefore Christianity) is sterotyped as old fashioned and irrelevant. Here Chris Moyles talks about a Pentecost service he saw on the BBC.

The service was called ‘That’s The Spirit!’ and shows worship from Kingsgate Community Church in Peterborough. Its on YouTube  See what you think.

I was sent the Link from Music Academy 

Posted in Church stuff, Pick of the Best, Worship | Tagged Chris moyles, Christianity, contemporary worship, DJ, radio 1, songs of praise | 5 Comments

CMS website

Some of the goodies available on the CMS website with Asia links to them. No Particular order. Follow the links.  

 

SONG  We give to you

Six CMS people got together to create a new worship song - this is the result. And its to support Jigsaw in the Philippines 

 

Local heroes of Asian mission

In India, a recent gathering of remarkable people in mission showed the way forward for mission in Asia, says Helen Harwood's article on the Pune conference in India .

Issue 43 - July 2009 - South India

In this edition of Audiomission Jeremy Woodham talks to the Reverend Moses Jayakumar, the general secretary of the Church of South India and mission partners Hugh & Debbie Skeil tell us about their work at the Christian Medical College and Hospital in Vellore,

  

There is a photostream in Flikr from CMS people  Lots of pics from Becky and Shemila in Sri Lanka  Plus the IDP crisis there and some fiundraising events   

    Bangalore Interviews

A 5min video.  Find out more about a CMS Short term team that went to Bangaloret from the Centre for Youth Ministry Students ...

 CMS - Praxis - Philippines Experience

Jigsaw Kids Ministries - The work of CMS mission partners Kate and Tim Lee (9mins)

And some Photos Stories 

ART   He Qi: art of mission 

Watch the development of renowned artist He Qi's (CMS Artist in residence in 2008)  large-scale commission for CMS: 'The Mission of God

EMERGENCY  China earthquake: love in action

Chinese Christians responding to disaster with ActionLove, the social development arm of Asian Outreach, a CMS partner

And Finally some Misison Opportunities 

Mission Service opportunities:   Teachers – various subjects

Nepal, Asia, required as soon as possible
Region: Asia, Role: Education, Time commitment: 1-2 years, Time commitment: 5 years +, Country: Nepal

MISSION TRIPS   Short term team opportunities 2009...

Local Heroes in Asia

Helen who worked for the Asia Team as East Asia Administrator has written about a Co-Mission Partner meeting in Pune earlier this year.  

Helen spoke to Adrian who looks after CMS work in the Region: 

"This was the first ever gathering just for people working with CMS in Asia who are from Asia. It therefore had much more of an Asian than British or Western character and identity.”

For CMS, ever-increasing collaboration in the region could also signal a new step forward.

“Given the growth and current scale of our work in South Asia this is now the time to establish some kind of physical presence in the region,” said Adrian.

Indeed, on leaving the conference, Adrian felt he’d begun to glimpse something new that had hitherto been just a dream. 

“It was not just another conference – there was a clear sense of celebration of the emergence of an identifiable ‘Asia CMS’.”

You can read the full article on the CMS Website  

and an earlier post on my blog The Changing Face of Asia