Lenten Alms 2008
Many thanks to our church family
and friends for your generosity in our Lenten Alms project, the 30 Hour
Famine. With your help, we raised $12,850 to the Glory of God and
the benefit of the hungriest of the hungry children through the ministries of
World Vision. The funds we raised will feed 35 children this year.
The 30 Hour Famine: We Did
It!!! We Were Hungry!!!
Photo: 600 candles. We
gathered in the new church at 5:30 Saturday evening to break our fast with
Holy Communion. During the service, 600 candles, representing human lives,
were extinguished one by one--that's 600 lives lost every half hour due to
extreme poverty and hunger.
Thanks to the prayerful and
financial support of our congregation, we completed our 30 Hour Famine! It
wasn't easy...but we had a fantastic time.
We arrived at 6 PM Friday
already six hours into our fasting and we entered into the Tribe competition
where we learned the facts of hunger and experienced the effects of hunger on
our living and interacting with others. We had a good time and learned a
lot too.
After a round of Manhunt we
closed the day with midnight devotions and 300 candles extinguished one-by-one
before our eyes in 15 minutes to represent the 29,000 who die daily from the
effects of hunger. And God opened our eyes and hearts.
Saturday we got a feel for the
number 29,000. Do you know what it's like to take that many fingerprints? It's
a number that is too big for what it represents. We shared our hungry
energy and strength in our service project--helping the Calico Cat Pantry
and Thrift Shoppe with much-needed projects. By noon we were on the
road to local supermarkets to see how much food we could buy with our own $10
donations. The rest of the afternoon was devoted to rest and reflection
and preparations for our 600 Candle Holy Eucharist where we broke our fast at
the table of Christ--on his body and blood of Holy Communion. And
finally and gratefully, on to the undercroft to share a meal with all our
supporters and those who fasted behind the scenes with us.
We learned much. And we
hope not to forget what it means to Be Hungry. God has shown us that we
can care about His hungry people, and with God's help we will!
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Lenten Alms 2008: Our
Youth Take the Lead
Combating Hunger Around the
World & in the US Through Participation in the 30-Hour Famine to
Support the Feeding Programs of World Vision
More than 850 million people
around the world are chronically hungry. For children malnutrition is a real
and terrible killer. It is the cause of more than half of all deaths in
children under the age of 5. Today and every day 29,000 children will
die of starvation and hunger related illnesses. This year our Lenten
alms will go to support the feeding programs of World Vision both in the US
and around the world.
World Vision is a Christian
relief and development organization dedicated to transforming the lives of
the world’s poorest children and their families in nearly 100 countries
including the US. Working through local organizations and churches, World
Vision targets critical needs such as clean water, reliable food supplies,
access to basic healthcare and education. For every $30 of Lenten alms
we can feed a hungry child for a month. For every $360 that we raise, we can
feed a hungry child for one year. How many children can we feed? How many
young lives can we save?
For more information about
World VIsion's 30 Hour Famine, visit www.30hourfamine.org.
This year our youth in all 3
youth groups – Rite 13, J2A and YAC will lead us in our Lenten discipline
through their participation in the 30 Hour Famine, Feb. 22-23 which is
sponsored by World Vision. The Famine will take place here at Christ Church
and in the local community. While they fast for 30 hours to identify with
the hungry around the world, they will learn about global hunger through
study, discussion and hands on activities at Christ Church and in the
community. Everyone can participate in our annual Lenten Alms Project! If
you pray, fast, & give alms during Lent, you are part of the project. In
years past we have built houses in El Salvador, floated an ark full of
animals for around the world, built fresh water wells in Uganda, supported
30 orphans for a year in Ghana, and provided enough mosquito nets and
malaria medicine for 14 villages in Zambia. This year our emphasis is on
hungry children around the world and at home through the feeding programs of
World Vision.
Here’s how you can get involved and make a difference:
1.
Support! our youth by · volunteering to assist with the 30 Hour
Famine on Feb. 22 & 23. Sign up in the undercroft. · Join the youth as
they conclude their fast at the 5:30 Eucharist & “break-fast”
potluck supper on Sat. the 23rd. · Sponsor one or many of our youth as the
fast for 30 hours.
2.
Pray! for… · hungry children in the US and around the world. ·
that we all will come to know what hunger means to our brothers and sisters
· that God will use each of us to alleviate the suffering of the
hungry.
3.
Fast! · Save the money you would spend on certain meals and donate
it to our Lenten alms project. · Join our youth and conduct your own fast
on the 22nd & 23rd of Feb.
4.
Study! · Visit www.worldvision.org or www.30hourfamine.org to learn
more about the famine and the projects at home and abroad that World Vision
sponsors. · Look at our Lenten bulletin board in the undercroft. · Read
our Lenten brochure on this project. · Make an alms box--a coffee can or a
small box and decorate it. Put your daily alms into the box and bring it to
church on April 6. · Watch the coffee hour videos on World Vision’s work.
5. Watch! for the next issue of the Crier to read about specific World
Vision projects and stories of lives saved and changed.
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Welcome to Christ Church, Middletown