A MOMENT FOR MISSION
"Make me to know your ways, O Lord; teach me your paths. Lead me in your truth, and teach me, for you are the God of my salvation; for you I wait all day long." — Psalm 25:4-5, NRSV
Because of your generous support of World Service Special Gifts, since 2004, the Methodist Global Education Fund for Leadership Development has assisted United Methodism worldwide through three programs.
The first is the Technical Assistance Program, through which the Global Education Fund promotes "the planting of schools" and supports the creation of new institutions in Mozambique, Sierra Leone and Tanzania.
The second is the Methodist Academic-Exchange Program (MAP). Through MAP, the Global Education Fund connects volunteers and institutions around the world. These include students volunteering for service abroad; faculty teaching at Methodist schools in Africa, Asia Pacific and Latin America; and administrators offering knowledge and expertise to institutions in Mexico, Democratic Republic of the Congo and other places.
The third is the Grants and Scholarships Program (GRASP), through which the Global Education Fund provides scholarships and impacts local communities around the world. In 2018 alone, the program received more than 600 applications. Most GRASP recipients are studying at United Methodist-related institutions in Africa.
For more information on the Methodist Global Education Fund for Leadership Development, visit the website www.globaleducationfund.org or contact the Office of Global Education and New Initiatives at the General Board of Higher Education and Ministry: [email protected].
Other World Service Special Gifts recipients include the Africa University Endowment Fund, the Leonard Perryman Communications Scholarship for Ethnic Minority Students, the National Anti-Gambling Project and the Lay Missionary Planting Network. Thank you for your generous gifts!
— Amos Nascimento, General Board of Higher Education and Ministry
OFFERTORY PRAYER
Loving God, make us to know your ways, teach us your paths, lead us in your truth and teach us. You are the God of our salvation. In your name, we pray. Amen.
From Discipleship Ministries: Fifth Sunday after Pentecost — God of compassion and mercy, we remember Jesus' parable of the Samaritan, who came upon a man beaten and bleeding and felt compassion and gave him care. From this parable, we use the name "Samaritan" for an act of compassion or a good deed, missing the point that what you would have us see was not a deed or act but a whole way of living. In the same way, you long for not the act of our offerings, but a life lived giving ourselves selflessly for others. We know you can transform acts of giving into lives of giving, and we pray that boldly in the name of Jesus, who gave all. Amen. (Luke 10:25-37)
NEWSLETTER NUGGET
United Methodist support of the Lay Missionary Planting Network, through World Service Special Gifts, nurtures lay planters with passion for the gospel, compassion for God's people and a boldness to produce a great harvest.
The program's premise is that God calls all people, both clergy and laity, for specific ministries. Discipleship Ministries offers a training experience to clarify each individual's sense of call and to solidify commitment to church planting. The goal is to equip laity with the knowledge, skills and abilities to be United Methodist church planters.
The curriculum consists of 10 sessions with specific purposes that encourage participants to consider how they are called to help plant new United Methodist congregations. The training is based on Scripture, basic theology and practice of The United Methodist Church, research and best practices in church planting and the experience of other United Methodist churches.
To learn more about the training, contact [email protected]. Also available are partnership grants to start Spanish-language Lay Missionary Planting Networks.
—Adapted from Discipleship Ministries website