The Church of the Brethren’s Global Mission and Service program has
begun a network of congregational- and district-based mission advocates.
The purpose of the new Global Mission Advocate Network is to equip
districts and congregations to promote and invigorate Brethren mission
efforts at the individual, congregational, and district levels.
Each district and congregation is being encouraged to name a mission
advocate. The advocate will keep Brethren mission work before their
district or congregation through newsletters, websites, conferences and
other avenues, as well as communicate district mission efforts to the
broader network. In addition, the advocate will encourage participation
in funding of Church of the Brethren missions and consideration of
mission service opportunities.
The Global Mission and Service office has committed to provide
regular mission updates to the network including prayer requests,
stories from the mission field, and opportunities for church members to
become involved. The office also has committed to providing avenues for
districts and churches to give support to Brethren mission work, to
regularly host mission-focused events such as the Mission Alive
conference, and to keep an active list of all district and
congregational advocates.
The first issue of a newsletter for mission advocates was sent out
recently by e-mail. The newsletter included a review of the upcoming
theological training in Haiti (see story in “Upcoming Events” below), as
well as a number of mission prayer requests and opportunities to become
directly involved in mission work.
Mission advocates were requested to pray for peace in Nigeria and for
Ekklesiyar Yan’uwa a Nigeria (EYN--the Church of the Brethren in
Nigeria), as well as mission worker Carol Smith who is returning to
Nigeria to teach math at the EYN Secondary School. Prayer also was
requested for mission worker Grace Mishler who returns to Ho Chi Minh
City, Vietnam, to continue her work of training others to
compassionately mainstream the physically disabled.
Service opportunities that were shared include an invitation to join
Bill Hare of Polo (Ill.) Church of the Brethren on a Jan. 9-19, 2013,
trip to build homes in southern Honduras; an invitation to attend
Mission Alive on Nov. 16-18 at Lititz (Pa.) Church of the Brethren (go
to www.brethren.org/missionalive2012
for more information and online registration); and an invitation from
Global Mission and Service executive Jay Wittmeyer to consider traveling
with him to an annual meeting of one of the other Church of the
Brethren bodies around the world.
For more information about the Global Mission Advocate Network contact Anna Emrick at 847-429-4363.
Source:8/9/2012 Newsline
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