dream

Church planting in the Ukraine…
Working as a midwife in a hospital in Niger…
A business manager in Senegal…
Media coordinator in Benin…
Coordinator of Evangelism and Counseling at an African hospital…
Dorm parents in Spain…
Linguist wanted in Central Asia…
Speech therapist in Japan…
Basketball players wanted in Juarez…
Event planner for Cafè 1040, United States…
Graphic designer…
Inner-city teacher…
Campus staff…

…the list goes on and on.
The possibilities are endless.

When Jesus Christ commanded us to “go”, He didn’t necessarily mean go overseas. There are opportunities to serve right around the corner. As City Light Church celebrates Missions Month in May and raises awareness of how we can participate in the Great Commission, we encourage you to think of ways you can be pro-active. Spend summer vacation visiting friends overseas. Take a short-term mission trip to downtown Los Angeles. A Saturday trip to Mexico. Volunteer at a missions conference. Have lunch with missionary friends.


The list above is only a fraction of the possibilities that exist out there. Missions isn’t just about sweating and building a church, or leading VBS, anymore. Welcome to the 21st century. And welcome to God’s dream… in all shapes, colors, and sizes.

If you have questions or want to find out more about ways to “GO”, contact the World Ministry Team. The opportunities above were found through www.RIGHTNOW.org, but there’s so many more.

What are all the different ways God can stir your heart?

DARE to DREAM.

Be the Change

Generation Against Global Injustice (www.thegagi.com) is an organization in Torrance dedicated to raising awareness about the issues of global poverty and modern-day slavery. Their mission is to educate, advocate, and congregate about these issues and help others do the same. Michael Kang started the organization after watching the documentary, Invisible Children.

He says, in an interview by KoreAm Journal, "Change can come from any age, gender, nationality, or culture. All you have to do is find your passion and go after it. Remember, it just takes one to make a difference."

Pretty inspiring, huh?

What is more inspiring though, at least for me, is that he is only 17 years old. If a 17 year-old cares enough to fight modern-day slavery and global poverty by beginning this organization, what are the rest of us doing in order to contribute to the cause?

Think of Me

...a music video made by Francis Chan's Cornerstone Church...
that speaks to the heart of global poverty.

poverty

It's difficult to imagine that 30,000 children die each day due to poverty and hunger. While we live in a culture where food abounds - on television, the Internet, fast-food restaurants on every corner, leftovers in our refrigerators - the world is vastly different just a few thousand miles (or a couple miles) from us.

March is Poverty Awareness Month for City Light Church. Poverty, as defined by a dictionary, means, "the state or condition of having little or no money, goods, or means of support; condition of being poor; indigence."

Following are a few statistics regarding poverty, taken from Global Issues:

• Almost half the world (approximately 3 billion people) live on less than $2.50 per day.

• At least 80% of the human population lives on less than $10 per day.

• According to UNICEF, around 30,000 children (0-5 years) die each day from poverty.

• Out of the 2.2 billion children who live in this world, 1 billion live in poverty.

In August 2008, the World Bank announced that the poverty line would be set at $1.25 per day. It used to be $1.00 per day.

Can you imagine living on $1.25 per day?
1.4 billion people around the world do.

The United States, touted as one of the most developed nations in the world, also has its share of poverty-stricken households. According to a BBC news article from September 2002, the number of U.S. citizens living in poverty hovered somewhere around 33 million.

The United States poverty threshold is set by the U.S. Census Bureau. In 2007-2008, the poverty threshold for a household of 2 was set at $14,000/year.

* * *

So... what can we do? Practically speaking.
That's what the month of March is about...
raising awareness about poverty, but also raising awareness of what we can do to help fight this humongous issue that seems so distant, yet is so close to home.

Please stay tuned.
May God tug at our hearts and give us compassion for those who need it the most.

First Sundays

Prayer...

...changes our hearts.
...changes God's heart.
...can move mountains.
...can grow a mustard seed.
...can bring rain.

It draws us into communion with God...
...draws us into community with one another...

Prayer is not an end in itself.
It is a means to a greater End.
Prayer teaches us...
...to hope...
...to grow...
...to dream...

It is a journey into our hearts.
A journey into God's heart.
God's heart for His people... for His kingdom... for the world.

Prayer moves us.
It moves God.

Prayer moves the world.
* * *
At the top of the month, every first Sunday, we pray. We pray for China, for Uganda, for downtown Los Angeles, for the missions movement.

Please join us at 9:30 a.m.
* * *

China

It's a country approximately the same size as the United States, and yet it boasts a sizable number of the world's population. Beautiful, stark, and teeming with life, China has always seemed to be on the forefront of world mission targets. We will be praying specifically for the People's Republic of China in the next few months, as we hold our once-a-month missions/morning prayer meetings before worship service. As we highlight China, we will also do our best to keep this blog updated with relevant issues and news regarding China and other parts of the world.

We hope you will join us as we learn about and pray for this nation, so dear to many of our own hearts, and that God will open your own heart to the need that exists there.