Thoughts on why I am interested in participating in this global opportunity….
If we buy into what Jesus holds for us and his invitation to go into all the world and make followers, not to mention this being the anchor point of our denomination, then Global Mission that exposes a message of grace, hope, and love should be a significant part of our DNA as United Methodists. The Angola Partnership is a fairly sound project for our conference… we pay the monthly salary ($40.00 per month) for over 50 pastors in East Angola. The fact of the matter is that these people, as I understand it, rely on this partnership to support their ministry, and our financial gifts allow them to spread the message of grace, hope, peace, and love. These people live within a drastically different life situation than we do… our mere presence brings them hope… a macro level of hope that they long for. I have only learned of this element of hope though my experiences in Mexico, China, South Korea, and Costa Rica. In some ways we are ‘Jesus’ to these people when we are in their midst… representing a global Kingdom of Love. It is not the resources that we bring to countries like Angola that matters the most, it is the physical presence of hope that is transformational. Jesus’ ministry was ‘presence’ centered and so too should ours be. Our presence alongside Jesus’ message of love gives them hope within a context that may sometimes feel hopeless. We give them voice within a reality in which they feel voice-less. We are traveling to Angola to document the stories of the East Angolan people, and bring back those stories to share with the people of the Yellowstone Conference in hopes of fostering continued support… but most of all, we will be lending them our five human senses for a short time so that we might come to understand their reality at a deeper level. Jesus brought hope to a hopeless situation over 2000 years ago… this is an opportunity for Jeremy, Kristen, and I to bring HOPE from the wilds of Montana - the same level of hope that sustained the early pioneers of this wild and treacherous land in which we reside. To me, the opportunity to provide hope on a relational level is enough to risk the threats of Malaria, Aids, active land-mines, various civil war by-products, third world conditions, elements of extreme global poverty, and the thought of being away from home for weeks. Our partnership with the people of East Angola is not something to be taken lightly… our presence on their continent and in their villages and in their homes communicates our intentions, as a conference, to be faithful to this partnership as well as our faithfulness to Jesus’ message of cosmic love. The opportunity to touch the lives of the East Angolan people and bring their stories back to the western world is not only a privilege, it is a Kingdom-oriented blessing. This global mission immersion work is built on love and love is built on this crucial work… at least that is how I understand Jesus’ invitation to all of us.



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