Yuridia has her eyes checked

“Open my eyes Lord, I want to see Jesus. To reach out and touch Him, to say that I love Him.”

A few weeks ago we concluded a mission trip with a group from North Park University (NPU) in Chicago, IL.

It was a health screening ministry. We host quite a few mission groups that are interested in doing community health screenings and theyare always very rewarding. The majority of the time, what we see are anemia (in both children and adults), LOTS of cavities, high blood pressure, and high glucose levels. These conditions are important and do need follow up care.

However, every once in a while something really unusual happens and that is what occurred the week that the mission group from NPU was in Oaxaca, Mexico.

My job for the week was to enter all the data from the health screenings into the computer so that there could be followup. Not very glamorous, but needed. As I sat at the computer one morning watching the various health screening stations around me (height and weight, blood pressure, anemia testing, glucose testing, etc.), a Oaxacan came up to me and said that we had to make sure that we saw a little girl that had just come into the building.

This little girl, along with her father, and the pastor of the church the girl attended, had walked two hours and then taken a bus for another 12 hours because they had heard that a health team was going to be in town. What made this 10-year-old girl unusual?  Since the age of five, Maria Yuridia has basically been blind in one eye and had limited sight in the other. She had been to the doctor, but no one could figure out what was wrong with her eyes.

Covenant missionary, Doctor Cindy Hoover, had just received a new ophthalmoscope, with help from a supporting church, and this was the first mission trip where she was using it. When Cindy looked into Maria Yuridia’s eye, she saw a large mass that could have been anything from a tumor to a cataract. Cindy called the pastor over and together they called a Christian organization in Oaxaca named “Manos de Ayuda” (Hands of Help). They work out of a hospital in the city of Oaxaca where people can get medical care at a reduced costs.

An appointment was made immediately with an eye specialist and before leaving, the mission team, the Oaxacan Covenant missionaries, and the pastor of the church where we were working, prayed with Yuridia and her father. She was then in God’s hands.

At the eye appointment, the ophthalmologist discovered that Yuridia had cataracts in both of her eyes, with the one cataract in one of her eyes so thick, it was causing her blindness. Further tests confirmed this diagnosis. Because of her age and the severity of the cataracts, it was decided that Yuridia needed immediate surgery. Manos de Ayuda offered the surgery at a reduced cost and it was scheduled for the end of March. The doctor warned that although there was hope, Yuridia might not regain sight in the eye most severely affected because the optic nerve in that eye might have atrophied.

Meanwhile, back at the health clinic, we continued discussing Maria Yuridia, and the visiting NPU team offered to help pay for the surgery. God was working in everyone’s heart on that day.

Maria Yuridia and her father returned to the city of Oaxaca at the end of March for the first surgery. It was done with no complications and by that evening, she had regained some of the vision in the most severely affected eye.

She now has hope for a better future—one that will include being able to see Jesus in the world around her. Everyone involved was grateful to be able to be part of God’s plan for Maria Yuridia’s life.

Covenant Missionary Prayer Calendar – This is a  convenient daily guide to pray for Covenant missionaries and the countries in which they serve. Each day includes information on Covenant missionaries, as well as where and how they serve. The new edition is released every year at the Annual Meeting in June, but is available for ordering throughout the year. The prayer calendar can be ordered from the Covenant Online Bookstore.

Praying for Missionaries Bookmark – Find out how you can pray for missionaries,their families, and their daily needs, which is one way you can partner and participate in their ministries. All missionaries desire to be in the center of God’s will for their lives, to carry out an effective ministry, to relate well to people from the adopted culture, to care for family and fellow missionaries, and to remain healthy – bot physically and emotionally. You can download this bookmark from the Covenant website or order copies at the Covenant Online Bookstore.

Prayer for the World Bookmark – We pray so that all people may know God’s love and grace through Jesus Christ, and the power of the Holy Spirit. This bookmark/insert focuses on praying for people, daily needs, and crises around the world. It can be downloaded from the Covenant website or ordered at the Online Covenant Bookstore.

Praise and Prayer Requests List – This weekly prayer list includes current requests from missionaries and ministry partners around the world. You can subscribe and receive this prayer list via email from Covenant World Mission.

005 | Preaching a “Glocal” Vision
To be the church in the age of globalization requires us to re-frame our understanding and practice of mission. More specifically, it requires us to understand the relationship between global and local mission. The question for this workshop is, “How does this new understanding of a “glocal” vision inform our preaching?”

Al Tizon, associate professor of holistic ministry – Palmer Theological Seminary

110 | Peace & Justice in the Holy Land: Christians Seeking Reconciliation at the Heart of the Israeli/Palestinian Conflict
The Israeli-Palestinian conflict has raged for more than half a century. Historical narratives of deep pain and suffering continue to play out in the region today. This workshop will focus on the history of Christian engagement in the Holy Land and the role of Christ followers in pursuit of reconciliation and justice. Learn about organizations and individuals working to make a positive difference in the Holy Land while seeking to discern how God might be calling all of us to be advocates of peace and justice in the midst of conflict.

Mae Cannon, senior director of advocacy & outreach
Gary Burge, professor of New Testament – Wheaton College

111 | Serving Globally at Home
The shrinking of our planet and the emergence of relational highways provides local churches with unprecedented potential for global impact; beginning with Pastor Chamron Phal’s inspiring story of survival in the killing fields of Cambodia, and his subsequent ministry sharing the Gospel and planting churches in his homeland, including among his former Khmer Rouge communist soldiers. In this workshop we will demonstrate how a church (of any size) can connect with and support Kingdom ministry in another part of the world.

Linnea Carnes, retired Covenant pastor
Allan Serrano, senior pastor – Evangelical Missionary Covenant Church
Chamron Phal, associate pastor – First Covenant Church

On June 24, a group of 10 young adults from two campuses of the Newsong Church in Southern California came to assist the Japan Covenant Church in disaster relief efforts. I joined the team for a few days to help with transportation and was deeply touched by their enthusiasm and faith. What prompts young professionals to take personal vacation time, pay their own way to travel to a foreign country and do something they’ve never done before for people who don’t even speak their language? The concept of “surrender to God and faith that He will provide” was clearly evident in the team as they sought to serve. What a foundation for ministry!

This is how it worked for the Newsong team. During their first week in Japan they worked with Samaritan’s Purse, a Christian organization with several base camps in the disaster area. Following the disaster, many homes were damaged by the tsunami, but not completely destroyed. On this occasion, the Newsong team went to Minamisanriku to assist a family there. When the flood waters came in, the entire house was submerged up to the roof. While the structure remained intact, everything in the house was damaged, so the Newsong team helped by removing the mud, floorboards, drywall and ceiling. Once the house was cleaned out, volunteer carpenters were scheduled to put in new drywall, floors and ceilings.

Since many of these owners didn’t have insurance to cover this kind of damage, Samaritan’s Purse has stepped in with volunteer labor to help. Owners are invited to join the team as they stand in a circle and pray at the beginning and end of the day. The custom seemed strange to them, but they were deeply moved by the compassion of people who were willing to come and help.

Every owner has a unique story to tell, and over the process of a week a significant bond is formed between these Japanese families and the volunteers. God speaks his love into relationships like these and doors that have been closed for centuries begin to open.  Samaritan’s Purse has helped more than 500 families reclaim their homes, and in the process, established new channels of communication for sharing the love of Jesus Christ.

At the end of their first week the Newsong team made its way to Ofunato where the 3.11 Iwate Church Network, a group that we are closely associated with in Tohoku, put on a Summer Festival for the neighborhood, especially those living in temporary housing. Our full-time staff, guided our participation in the festival. The Newsong team was responsible for barbecuing hamburgers and serving the crowd. (200+ people)  Other stands included takoyaki (octopus cakes), home made sausage roasted over an open pit, children’s crafts, games and even a stand for foot messages.

Disaster relief takes many forms. While it is easy to repair a building, broken lives are far more complex, so this festival was designed to encourage the residents through delicious food, a free concert and lots of warm friendship empowered by the love of Christ. Once again the team experienced the power of simple acts like drinking tea with those living in temporary housing, playing games with the children and helping with small construction projects. Not only are these acts of love appreciated, they are transformational for the team and the Japanese families who have lost so much. The love of Christ is incarnate in these acts of mercy, and everyone is changed by His presence.

The 3.11 Iwate Church Network and two local community centers jointly sponsored the festival. The on-going partnership between local officials and the church is one of the significant developments of the church’s disaster relief effort. Please continue to pray for the joint relief effort and the many teams who continue to respond to the Lord’s nudging to go and serve.  Many thanks to the Newsong Team for their efforts on behalf of the Japanese.

Three years ago at CHIC 2009 students and leaders gave generously to help support the work of Ruthie and Peter Dutton and Mekong Valley Foods in Chiang Khong, Thailand.

Today, Ruthie and Peter report that the mill has been operating for thirteen months producing 1,700 tons of blended flour. This flour, that is similar to cream of wheat, is a mixture of soy, rice, vitamin fortification, and sugar. This mixture has been distributed to undernourished children in Burmese refugee camps in Thailand and feeding programs in Laos, Cambodia, and Burma. Children receive many of their nutrition needs from a one and 1/2 kilo portion of the flour blend each week. Ruthie and Peter report, “We have encountered several hurdles along the way but God has been faithful and provided what we needed. We are feeling positive and thankful to God.”

In addition, the mill employs a staff of twenty local Thai workers. “Some of these workers are believers,” Ruthie explains, “and we continue to pray that we’ll see changed lives among those who are not yet believers.”

Please continue to pray for the work of Mekong Valley Foods, the children who receive the nutritious food and the workers of the mill.

Dave Cairns, the executive director of Pilgrim Pines Camp & Conference Center, Swanzey, NH, caught a longer-term vision for connection to the Russian ministries that goes beyond the summer offering. In early May 2012, Dave took his third trip to the Ural Mountains of Russia to meet with pastors, camping leaders, and youth groups. The Russian Christians are learning about camping models, discussing possibilities for a permanent regional camp, and discovering how camping can help the church develop leaders. Dave looks forward to spending a week each year in Russia, as a young camping ministry takes shape in the Ural Mountains. We thank God for Dave, Leonid, Pastor Alexia, and many other leaders as they faithfully follow Jesus’ call to “go and make disciples.”

Through the discipline of prayer, we remember God is God, and we are not. “Be still and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” Psalm 46:10. In prayer, we connect with God – Father, Son and Holy Spirit – acknowledging that change in this world is possible only through his power, love, and grace.

“To pray is to change. Prayer is the central avenue God uses to transform us.” (Richard Foster, Celebration of Discipline). Spending time in prayer shifts our thinking, shapes our will, calls us to surrender needs and concerns, draws us to listen to the One who loves us and loves this world. Prayer also effects change in the lives and circumstances of those for whom we pray. God answers prayer and somehow, remarkably, interacts with our prayers to make a difference.

If you would like to join people from all over the US and Canada who are praying for missionaries and ministries connected to Covenant World Mission, you can sign up for the weekly Praise and Prayer List. We also have a bookmark available on Prayer for the World.

Fred writes:

“I arrived home in Prague last evening. Overall the trip went well. I was healthy for the whole time. My plane connections all arrived on time, which is big when flying domestically within the DR Congo. My translator did well.  I was able to sleep fairly well for the most part. And my students were excellent. They were the same students as I had in November of 2010, so they knew me and knew my style. They were responsive to my questions, and came up with the some insights that really surprised me. I taught from 8 a.m. to 3 or 4 p.m. with time off for lunch. I met with two students each day for lunch. By the way, those were the only students who got lunch that day. Some students rode their bikes over very tough terrain, about 350 miles, to get to the class. I also got to preach one Sunday to a congregation of 1,300 people.

“Thank you for your prayers. I really felt affirmed while I was teaching. One day I felt like Eric Liddell, “I feel God’s pleasure when I teach.”