A Moment for Mission
“God is the one who enables you both to want and to actually live out his good purposes.” —Philippians 2:13, CEB
Wakwanyemboe Eloge Lwamba had high hopes of obtaining an undergraduate degree in medicinal chemistry when he enrolled at Cape Peninsula University of Technology, Cape Town, South Africa. He had a commitment from someone who planned to pay his college expenses, but the plan fell through when the person died.
“At the end of my first year of college,” Lwamba said, “I owed a certain amount of money to the university. I had to do small jobs off campus to support my financial needs. It was very tiresome to work all night and be in school during the day. It was a time of uncertainty.”
Then Lwamba’s friend introduced him to the World Communion Sunday scholarship.
“When I received the scholarship,” Lwamba said, “it brought my stress level down to the point I was able to study like a normal student. World Communion Sunday is a time where diversity is brought to the table as something to celebrate. Jesus died for all people, regardless of our backgrounds. Nothing makes us more like Christ than the feeling of appreciating others, regardless of who they are.”
One of United Methodism’s six churchwide Special Sundays with offerings, World Communion Sunday calls the church to reach out to all people and model diversity among God’s children. When you give generously on World Communion Sunday, you equip gifted, qualified students from around the globe to become the world changers God created them to be. Give now.
Offertory Prayer
Loving God, you have a life goal and purpose for each of us. Guide us to discover your plans for us and to live in service to you and your children. In your name, we pray. Amen.
From Discipleship Ministries: Seventeenth Sunday after Pentecost — God of infinite patience, just as Moses was worn down by the complaining of the Israelites, so you must tire as we pray for things we want and not the things we need. As we give our gifts to empower your church, help us to see the things that really matter, places where we can provide for others in need, and deepen our trust in you to take care of us. This, we pray in the name of Jesus, our rock and redeemer. Amen. (Exodus 17:1-7)
From United Methodist Men: God of grace and God of glory on Your people pour out Your power: the power of peace in our hearts and the power to be peaceful and to be able to receive peace from one another. The power of healing in our hearts and the power to be healed and the power to receive a prayer of healing from one another;
The power of love in our hearts and the power to be loved and the power to receive love from one another. Dear God, we ask this prayer for the living of these days. Amen. – William Waddell, N.C.
Newsletter Nugget
After completing undergraduate studies at Cape Peninsula University of Technology, Lwamba plans to pursue a PhD in medicinal chemistry and establish a career in research. “I want to develop pharmaceutical drugs and medicine to help people in need,” he explained. “Because I want to add value to life, rather than focusing on personal gain, I opted for a career in chemistry. This will allow me as a scientist to be at the forefront of my field, testing and providing information that is useful for the development of medicinal drugs.”
One of United Methodism’s six churchwide Special Sundays with offerings, World Communion Sunday calls the church to reach out to all people and model diversity among God’s children. The collective gifts of United Methodist congregations and individuals provide World Communion Leadership Scholarships, Ethnic Scholarships and Ethnic In-Service Training.
When you give generously on World Communion Sunday, you equip gifted, qualified students to become the world changers God created them to be. Give now.
— Elsie Cunningham, freelance writer, UMCom retiree, now living in Jamaica
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