UMC.org: A June roundup of stories, videos, devotions and news United Methodists can use! for Friday, 13 June 2014
UNITED METHODISTS, YOU DID IT AGAIN!
Watch the Video Diary
Watch the video diary Because of your support of Imagine No Malaria, you’ve given another community in Africa reason to celebrate. People in the Bo District of Sierra Leone are dancing in the streets because Imagine No Malaria is distributing nearly 400,000 long-lasting insecticide-treated bed nets this month. Producer Jan Snider, photographer Mike Dubose and writer Kathy Gilbert are in Sierra Leone covering not only the net distribution, but also the distribution of Vitamin A and de-worming medication to children. See full news coverage.THE CHURCH CASTS A WIDE NET IN SIERRA LEONE
Photo by Mike DuBose, UMNS
Abdul and Maseray Koroma stand with their daughter, Kelvin, 9 months, beside the new insecticide-treated mosquito net they received from the Imagine No Malaria campaign.
Blue bed nets coloring, covering rural areas of Bo
On the first day that Sierra Leone families could pick up insecticide-treated bed nets, hundreds walked to distribution centers to get them, along with medication to keep their babies healthy. Read More
United Methodists have donated $60 million to fighting malaria. As part of that effort, the Imagine No Malaria initiative is distributing nearly 400,000 long-lasting insecticide-treated bed nets in the Bo District of Sierra Leone during a June 5-14 campaign.
Trained volunteers will take nets door to door, as well as educate people about how to use and maintain them properly. This will be part of an integrated health campaign that will also provide Vitamin A supplements and de-worming medication to children. Health partners will distribute a total of 3.5 million nets across the nation of Sierra Leone.
This page will provide updates and continuous coverage as the church casts a wide net to improve health in Sierra Leone.
Follow net distribution trip
Blue bed nets coloring, covering rural areas of Bo
On the first day that Sierra Leone families could pick up insecticide-treated bed nets, hundreds walked to distribution centers to get them, along with medication to keep their babies healthy. Read More
Celebration sets stage for net distribution in Bo
‘Everyone has the right to live,’ United Methodist bishop tells crowd in Sierra Leone. Read More
Partners strive to help Bo become malaria-free
The United Methodist Church works in Bo, Sierra Leone with other anti-malaria groups to rid area of disease. Read More
Volunteers arm communities against malaria
On June 5, 1,720 volunteers will swarm the neighborhoods of Bo, Sierra Leone, to distribute vouchers for insecticide-treated bed nets.Read More
Video Diary: Health Team Covers Sierra Leone
See activity on the ground as volunteers take life-saving nets door to door. The nationwide campaign also offers Vitamin A and de-worming medication to children. View
Work to eradicate malaria deaths starts with God
For a Sierra Leone congregation, it is first the worship, then the work as they gear up to help distribute more than 350,000 insecticide-treated nets. Read More
Campaign aims to save children like Ibrahim
Most fatalities from malaria occur in children under 5. The United Methodist Church and Sierra Leone government are working to save lives. Read More
Imagine No Malaria to Distribute Nets in Sierra Leone
Imagine No Malaria will distribute 400,000 bed nets in the Bo District of Sierra Leone on June 5, 2014.Read More
Watch Kung Fu Grandmaster pastor
Watch Kung Fu Grandmaster Pastor and learn about his three “P’s” At 86, the Rev. Leo Fong, otherwise known as a Kung Fu Grandmaster Pastor, likes to kick up his heels every now and then. Joining him in martial arts moves are rows of older adults who have adopted the retired pastor’s philosophy –– why sit around waiting for the grim reaper to come? Fong, from California, preaches about healthy souls and healthy bodies. His students say that the 10th-degree black belt/martial arts movie actor/inductee in the Black Belt Hall of Fame fills the exercise room with what the Chinese call “Chi,” or energy. One of his healthy learners says, “I want to be just like him when I grow up.” Watch now.
WHAT DO DADS REALLY WANT FOR FATHER’S DAY?
What do dads really want?
What dads really want
As the U.S. prepares to celebrate Father’s Day, we asked dads across the world what they really want for their special day. Guess what? It’s not a new tie! In fact, the gifts valued by these fathers cannot be bought in a store or wrapped in a box. Here are gift ideas that will save you money and offer rich rewards.The gift of presence, not presents. It seems that the older a father gets, the more he values time with his children. “The only thing that Daddy really wants on Father’s Day is a hug and a kiss from his sons, to hear ‘I love you,’ and to spend time with them,” says Russell Southall Sr., 61, a member of Taylor Memorial United Methodist Church in Oakland, Calif., and the father of Russell II, 22, and William, 16.
Sharing personal passions. The Rev. Paul Perez loves when 8-year-old Joshua and 4-year-old Sofia show an interest in the things that excite their dad. “It’s a gift to share with them the things I’m passionate about—from [movies such as] Star Wars and The Avengers to what it means to be a disciple of Jesus Christ and to be a person who stands up for justice and compassion in this world,” says Perez, 32, of Livonia, Mich., who coordinates mission and justice ministries for the Detroit Conference. Likewise, he looks forward to seeing his children discover their own passions. “Each of my children is unique, unrepeatable and singular,” marvels Perez, whose third child, Charles, was born on April 30.
Appreciating family. While it’s natural to go through periods of taking relationships for granted, Father’s Day is a reminder of the privilege of fatherhood, especially for dads such as Bo Wilson, who has tried for years to conceive a child with his wife, Mary. In January 2013, the couple from Dallas, Texas, became foster parents to Alli, a 3-day-old girl whom they now are trying to adopt. “The only thing I want for this Father’s Day is to have another Father’s Day next year with Alli,” says Wilson, 34, an attorney and member of Highland Park United Methodist Church. “Daddy was the first word out of Alli’s mouth.”
The Rev. Laszlo Khaled, a pastor in Hungary, is thankful his children Benjamin, 4, and Lili, 5, like worship services at church. Photo courtesy of Laszlo Khaled.
Doing stuff together. While Father’s Day is not celebrated in Switzerland, David Field embraces his role as father to sons Carlo, 15, and Ernst, 12, whether he is swimming with them in the Rhine River, watching football together, or discussing computer technology. Field, whose wife, Caroline, is the pastor of the Münster congregation in Basel, Switzerland, is the primary caregiver at home. “What I want for my sons is that they have a secure and happy youth, that they grow into responsible adults and that they personally discover the meaning and significance of the Christian faith,” says Field, 50.
Loving God. When the Rev. Maidstone Mulenga took his oldest daughter to college in 2012, he was overjoyed that she wanted to find a church to attend while at school. “I love that my daughters have come to love God on their own,” says Mulenga of Lukonde, 19, and Mukuka, 16. “My wife and I have brought them up in the church, but I am happy they have come to be Christians on their own.” Such is the greatest gift a father can experience, says Mulenga, 50, of Columbia, Md., who serves as assistant to Bishop Marcus Matthews in the Baltimore-Washington Conference.
Listening to dad. “The best gift my sons could give me is to keep listening for a little while longer—to keep paying attention to their elders,” says the Rev. Scott Hagan, pastor of Epworth United Methodist Church in Columbus, Ga., of sons Sam, 12, and Jack, 9. Hagan wants to share the wisdom and values handed down from his own parents and grandparents. “Parenting is about passing along information, but also about exposing our children to what we believe about life and God’s best desires for us,” he says.
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A 21ST CENTURY WORSHIP RESOURCE FOR FATHER'S DAY
Litany of Peace for Father’s Day by The Reverend Jane Sommers
Loving God, we lift this day our gratitude for the loving men
who have brought us the precious heart of your Father Love.
We give thanks to you this day
For those who have shown us kindness,
For those who have shown us courage,
For those who have shown us generosity,
For those who have shown us truth,
For those who have shown us compassion,
For those who have shown us faith,
For those who have shown us love.
Blessed be the name of all sons and brothers and fathers
who reveal a glimpse of your loving presence on earth.
O God, you inspire your people in the ways of kindness
that lift our world from its disgrace.
Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer
For every son, brother, father, grandfather,
who has suffered and endured.
We lift a stone from the streambed of Living Waters
to the forehead of the men and boys in our lives,
touching each forehead with the sign of your healing
for every broken heart hidden from view,
for every secret shame buried in darkness,
for every untold story of regret and alienation.
We touch with this stone the brow of every man
who has suffered for those he loved;
We touch with this stone the forehead of our ancestral fathers
who sacrificed their very lives,
inviting you to heal the wars and woes and wickedness within,
inviting your everlasting peace, that the world might know your peace.
Hear our prayer, O God, for this broken world.
We pray for peace this Father's Day.
For wisdom and equity in the hearts and minds of those who lead us.
For justice with mercy that seeks equitable access to the earth's resources.
For passion and power in our churches to influence public policy for good.
For a new day when justice will roll down like waters across this land.
For the revelation of Father Love that never leaves nor forsakes.
And we lift your hope of healing for all sons, brothers, fathers, grandfathers
who live in mystery as your creation,
who are entrusted with the life and struggles of manhood.
May they grow in Father Love to your glory.
Hear our prayer, O God, for this broken world.
We pray for peace this Father's Day.
Amen.
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Love and respect. Ads scream that dad wants the latest gizmos, golf gear or power tools, but what he really wants is the love and respect of his children, says the Rev. Ron Olson, pastor at Bowman United Methodist Church in Bowman, N.D. Olson, whose sons are 30 and 23, and whose daughter is 11, says this realization was brought home during the last year as his family experienced both joy and adversity—the marriage of his younger son and an auto accident in December, 2013 that left his daughter a paraplegic. “I just want to be the kind of father who has time for his kids and is loved and respected by them,” he says.
Sometimes, it’s the little things. For Jeremy Strait, the father of seven children ages 6 to 2, including six children adopted through foster care, it’s the “little things” they give him that mean so much. “They run up and scream ‘Daddy!’ when I walk in the door from work,” says Strait, 33, assistant director of Wesley Woods Camp & Retreat Center, in Dowling, Mich. “They give me hugs. I find little cards and notes placed under my pillow or in my Bible. I love making memories with each of them.”
Don’t forget the card. During his military career, the Rev. Tom Petersen often spent Father’s Days away from his three children while they were growing up. Today, he still cherishes their handmade cards. “The card I remember most is when my youngest daughter made a card all on her own and would accept no help from her older siblings. She was about 4, I think,” recalls Petersen, pastor of United Methodist congregations in Olivet and Scotland, S.D. “The spelling was atrocious, the drawing was worse, and it’s one that I’ve kept forever. It just said, ‘I love you, Daddy.’”
See a video that features dads talking about the holiday. Most of these dads had the same message shared by Apelu Po’e who is Samoan, “I would like to see my children be ambassadors of peace.”
*Marta Aldrich is a freelance writer from Franklin,Tenn.
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