In this issue:
BARTON COLLEGE BASKETBALL TEAM MIRACULOUSLY CAPTURES NATIONAL CROWN
Could Disciples prayers and dreams have helped produce Barton College's miraculous come-from-behind victory to win the NCAA Division II national championship? Whatever the reason, the tiny college, which is located in Wilson, N.C., and associated with the Christian Church (DOC), snatched victory from the jaws of defeat against top-ranked Winona State University after Barton fell behind by seven points with only 45 seconds left.
Barton's improbable comeback victory on March 24 against a team that had won 57 straight games was fueled by its 5-10 senior All-America point guard Anthony Atkinson, who scored the last 10 points of the game. His heroics sealed the game against Winona State, a school of more than 8,000 students. Barton, which has 925 full-time students, claimed a 77-75 victory over Winona. To read more, see: www.barton.edu/athletics/EliteEight.htm
To read a DisciplesWorld article about Barton's victory, visit: www.disciplesworld.com/newsArticle.html?wsnID=11081
EASTER OFFERING PROVIDES SUPPORT FOR WORLDWIDE MISSION
The General ministries of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) have helped to eradicate human injustice and abuse of God's people around the globe for nearly 175 years. Your support of the Easter Offering this Sunday, April 1, helps the general ministries continue such work as funding missionaries overseas, providing communication resources for all expressions of the church, women's ministries, and church evangelism.
Look for a thank you note in your church bulletin. It will be from someone whose life changed because of your generosity. To learn more about the Easter Special Offering, go to: cfcdnn.onapps.net/2007EasterMaterials/tabid/540/Default.aspx
GMP SHARES REASONS TO ATTEND THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY IN FORT WORTH
There are lots of great reasons to attend the 2007 General Assembly this summer. General Minister and President Sharon E. Watkins names several of them in a new video presentation that congregations can use to help spread the word about the Assembly. Organizers are planning for 8,000 Disciples to be present at the biennial event, which will be held July 21-25 in Fort Worth, Texas.
The nearly 5-minute video describes how the Assembly, which is themed "Share the Feast," will focus on worship, God's work to transform the church for mission, business and not the least of all - fun. To view Watkins' presentation, visit: www.disciples.org/ga/media/?id=101
USHERS WILL BE NEEDED AT THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY IN FORT WORTH
Ushers are an often overlooked but essential part of the smooth workings of the General Assembly. If you have an interest in serving as a volunteer usher during business and worship sessions, you are encouraged to enroll now. Volunteers are compensated a small amount for serving as an usher, and will be trained on the afternoon before the Assembly opens.
Ushers will work at business sessions that will be held on the afternoons of July 22 and 25, and the mornings of July 23, 24 and 25. Worship sessions are planned for every evening during the Assembly. To fill out an application or to learn more, see: www.disciples.org/ga/ushering
CHURCHES ACROSS THE GLOBE MOBILIZING FOR PEACE MOVEMENT
The World Council of Churches (WCC) executive committee has approved plans for what is expected to become a major worldwide mobilization of churches for peace, which will culminate with an International Ecumenical Peace Convocation to be held in early May 2011 and an Ecumenical Declaration on Just Peace. Plans call for some 50 ecumenical "living letters" teams to visit churches that are facing situations of violence between 2007 and 2011. There will be at least three visits in 2007, and about 15 visits a year between 2008 and 2010.
The declaration, a theological and spiritual text, will address six main areas of concern: the massive reality of human self-destruction; gender-related and intergenerational violence; the entertainment industry's use of the fascination of violence; violence against nature; the violence inherent in economic injustice in its globalized ramifications and structural expressions, and the age-old scourge of war that continues to plague the lives of multitudes around the globe. For more on the International Ecumenical Peace Convocation, see: www.overcomingviolence.org
MISSIONARIES FIGHT ABUSE, AIDS, POLITICAL REPRESSION IN AFRICA
During a recent month-long trip to southern Africa, Sandra Gourdet, Africa area executive for Global Ministries, met with abused women and children in Zambia, toured parts of Mozambique that were devastated by an earthquake in 2006, and visited with the leadership of the United Church of Christ in Zimbabwe, where there is widespread imprisonment, torture and repression of political opposition, as well as civic and church leaders.
Gourdet also heard from missionaries who are battling the spread of AIDS in South Africa and met with church partners in the Congo about recent gun battles on the streets of Kinshasa between rebels and the Congolese Armed Forces. Gourdet asks that you keep the countries in your prayers.
Global Ministries is a common witness of the Division of Overseas Ministries of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), and Wider Church Ministries of the United Church of Christ (UCC). To read more updates on Gourdet's Africa trip, go to: www.disciples.org/dns/newsletter/linkredirect.asp?id=070330a
EARTH DAY SUNDAY TAKES AIM AT FARM POLICIES
The National Council of Churches (NCC) is asking churches to support Earth Day Sunday on April 22. The theme for NCC's Eco-Justice Program's observation of Earth Day Sunday is "The Food that Sustains Us."
The NCC has produced a resource to help congregations engage in the Earth Day Sunday theme called "Our Daily Bread: Harvesters of Hope and Gardeners of Eden," which introduces faith-based principles for a more just farm and food policy in the United States. In addition, it includes information on farm and food justice, sermon starters, sample liturgy, bulletin insert, ideas for youth and adult study, and suggestions for individual and congregational action. The resource is available to download for free from the Eco-Justice Program website: www.nccecojustice.org/faithharvestworship.html
You may also get to the resources through Disciples Home Missions by going to: www.discipleshomemissions.org/PublicWitness/EarthDay.htm
FLORIDA REGION'S SENIOR ADULT MINISTRY PLANS JANUARY CRUISE
The Senior Adult Ministry (SAM) of the Florida Region is offering a Bible study cruise Jan. 6-13, 2008, which will feature General Minister and President Sharon E. Watkins and her husband Rick Lowery, professor of Hebrew Bible at Phillips Theological Seminary in Tulsa, Okla., as resource persons. Lowery will bring daily inspirational messages.
Anyone interested in taking this cruise should contact Lewis and Martha George at revdrlew@aol.com or book a reservation by calling toll free 800-915-0304. The theme of the cruse is "Heroes of the Seas." The cruise will sail from Tampa, Fla., and visit ports in Key West, Belize City, Belize, Santo Tomas de Castilla, Guatemala and Costa Maya, Mexico.
APPLICATION KITS NOW READY FOR GENERAL YOUTH COUNCIL
General Youth Council application kits are now available! Disciples' youth can download the GYC application kit for 2007 from the Disciples Home Missions web site. Youth who will at least be going into the 10th grade in the fall are eligible to lead the youth of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ).
Members of the GYC will help plan events such as the International Christian Youth Fellowship (ICYF), a gathering of Disciples high school youth every four years for worship, discussion and leisure activities, and General Assembly youth events. For example, the General Youth Council has identified 30 possible sites where it can be in service to others at the 2007 General Assembly in Fort Worth, Texas July 21-25. In addition, the council will help set the vision for our youth by offering their skills and time. For any questions about GYC, feel free to contact Tod Iseminger, of Disciples Home Missions at 888-346-2631.
LEARN MORE ABOUT CHILDREN'S WORSHIP AT UPCOMING CONFERENCE
Learn to create sacred space for children at a conference to be held April 27-29 at First Christian Church (DOC) in Las Vegas, Nev. The conference will help your congregation explore, start, grow and enrich "Children Worship & Wonder" and "Godly Play" opportunities. It is sponsored by First Christian Church, Las Vegas, Disciples Home Missions, and the Pacific Southwest Region. To learn more go to:
www.discipleshomemissions.org/FamilyandChildren/index.htm#SacredSpace
There are numerous opportunities to learn about and train for Children, Worship and Wonder. More news can be found at: www.discipleshomemissions.org/News2007/07.03.FamilyandChildren.htm
FALL MEN'S RETREAT WILL FOCUS ON MISSION
The General Conference of Disciples Men will present Men in Mission, a one-day retreat for all Disciples men on Nov. 3 at Ray of Hope Christian Church (DOC) in Decatur, Ga. The event will focus on how mission can be a transforming event in the life of Disciples men. During the day, men will hear from Carlos Cardoza-Orlandi, a professor from Columbia Theological Seminary who will teach a lesson from the book of Acts.
The keynote speaker, Tom Jewell, regional pastor of Oklahoma, will challenge men on ways to keep the spirit of mission alive in their daily lives. For more information contact Tod Iseminger, director of Men's Ministries with Disciples Home Missions, at 888-346-2631 or visit: www.discipleshomemissions.org/Men/index.htm
TRANSYLVANIA STUDENTS ADOPT MIDDLE SCHOOL GIRLS FOR A DAY
Fifty female students at Transylvania University adopted 40 sixth-grade girls for a day in celebration of Women's History Month on March 28. The middle school girls experienced college life with their hosts by accompanying them to classes, listening to presentations from faculty, eating in the dining hall and enjoying a performance of selections from "Do Black Patent Leather Shoes Really Reflect Up?" performed by the Transy on Broadway theater group.
The middle school students also participated in several workshops designed for them. To read more, go to: www.disciples.org/dns/releases2007/07042.pdf
WEEK OF COMPASSION AND CWS TRAIN WOMEN IN SIERRA LEONE
Week of Compassion (WOC) has worked closely with Church World Service (CWS) on a small-scale economic project in Sierra Leone to help young women get on their feet. The project, which WOC helped to fund, assisted women between the ages 16-30 learn marketable skills. The program targeted previously unemployed women to be trained in basic tailoring and other vocational skills.
CWS and the local YWCA in Freetown, Sierra Leone, helped 22 single women, including mothers, and girls become more self-sufficient through the project. The training enables the participants to earn a minimum of $38 after they have been in the program for at least a year. To read more about the work that Week of Compassion is supporting in Sierra Leone, see: www.weekofcompassion.org/pages/updates/mar0729.html
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