We live in a world with incredibly complex social issues—poverty, homelessness, fatherlessness, and injustice (to name just a few). The American culture challenges us to imagine what is possible, right what is wrong, and take action. And, as Christians, we know that Jesus came to “proclaim good news to the poor…freedom for the prisoner…recovery of sight for the blind…[to] set the oppressed free…[and] proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” (Luke 4:18-19)

This alone should propel us to action. And, it does propel people to action. We want to make a difference. Volunteers are a necessary and critical resource for healthy communities and ministry efforts.

One in four adults in the U.S. volunteers regularly (about 3 hours per month). In 2010, volunteers contributed nearly $173 billion in value to the nonprofit sector! This impact is staggering. And, young people are serving at a greater rate than ever before. 30% of Gen Xers volunteer and Millennials serve at a rate of 21%.

As you digest this fact, it’s hard to ignore the impact technology can have in this arena. 46% of American adults own a smart phone (that number jumps to near 70% for those under the age of 35). We live with our phones, tablets, and laptops nearby. When we connect with friends and causes, it’s not uncommon to use the internet.

However, so often the nonprofit community is not harnessing this power. We need to get better at leveraging these often free resources to engage people in ministry. People want to make a difference. They want to connect with felt needs in their neighborhood, and they’ll pick up their smart phone and land on a webpage to explore opportunities, generate ideas, and finalize commitments.

Ministries can use technology to

1. Recruit – share volunteer needs on your own website, share this information with others through social media, eletters and platforms like Meet The Need that seamlessly integrate with other websites
2. Register – Take registrations through your website and the sites of other local organizations
3. Remind – Send online reminders, cancellations and adjustments
4. Revise – Change and communicate volunteer needs and details
5. Record – Track outstanding needs, audit and calculate volunteer hours

As we work to be more effective in how we steward and thank volunteers they will continue to serve and grow in ministry. Ultimately, the goal is to create an environment where volunteers use their time, talent and treasure to share the love of Christ with others. Believe it or not, technology can be a powerful tool to recruit, equip, and retain life-long volunteers.

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“For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba Father”.”

-Romans 8:14-16

Our Family

Adoption in the Bible is not only literal in the sense of becoming a foster or adoptive parent such as mandated in James 1:27, but adoption is mentioned in scripture to illustrate God’s ‘claim’ on each one of us.

By our sinful nature we are separated from God, but through His adoption of us as His children we come home.  This is a perfect illustration and example for us and the earthly adoption journey.  Being a foster and adoptive parent myself I can attest to the fact that because of circumstance my children were in many ways alien to me, but through God’s love and acceptance of me I understand how important it is to love a child who needs a family.

Our  family’s journey, which you can follow in our BLOG at www.arethesekidsallyours.blogspot.com has been a rollercoaster of joy and pain.  Adoption is not for the weak, but like every tough journey the rewards are amazing!  Running a marathon isn’t easy – it takes training, perseverance, determination and time, but the satisfaction of completing the race is worth every minute of hard work.  Adoption and fostering is much the same – it takes a lot of planning (Get the facts on fostering and facts on adoption) prayer, dedication, grace and persistence, but the joy of giving a child what they need, which is a family is worth it.  God has a special place in His heart for the orphan and when we follow Him to the orphan and get involved we get very close to the heart of God – and that place is quite special.  Foster and adoptive parents will tell you that the intimacy with the Lord through their journey is so special.

Christian music artist Steven Curtis Chapman who has done so much work for orphans through “Show Hope” was sharing once about how he had not really wanted to consider adoption as it wasn’t his calling. After bringing his little girl home from China through adoption he admitted that he “Almost missed this”.  God had laid something on his heart that he almost passed by.  He was so glad that he did submit to God, and it changed his life.  He became for his children what we need from God when we cry “Daddy” to him.

Whatever it is God is calling you to do, whether becoming a foster or adoptive parent, or whether it’s something else DO NOT MISS IT!  Don’t let the opportunity to make a difference pass you by!

-Jason

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“Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.”

-James 1:27

The Wright Family

There are many ways we as families can get involved in the lives of others, making a difference.  This can make us a little uncomfortable at times when God pushed us to step out of our comfort zone.  Taking ‘uncomfortable’ to a new level are the many families who are choosing to become foster and/or adoptive families.  Raising children is a tough nut to crack, and raising kids with fostering and adoption in the mix is a whole different ball of wax.

That being said, I do firmly believe that God is calling each of us to do something about the orphan.  There are those who take the mandate of James 1:27 quite literally and open their hearts and homes to children through a foster or adoptive placement.  My family is one such family and I want to share a little of our story.

My wife, Dawn and I are parents to 9 beautiful children.  Six of our children came to us through the foster care system in two different states.  One of our children came to us from Ethiopia, one a US domestic agency adoption, and one a US special needs adoption.

I won’t go into the details of each child’s story, but I want to express some of our heart for adoption.  This isn’t just to make you feel ‘warm and fuzzy’ about our family; it is meant to stir your heart to see how God is calling you.  As mentioned before I am a firm believer that God is calling ALL of us to action for the orphan in some way.  Maybe you’re not meant to adopt or foster a child, but that doesn’t mean you’re ‘off the hook’.  The orphan crisis both at home and overseas is staggering and WE (The Church) cannot ignore the problem.  There is an estimated 165 million orphans in the world today.  Yes, you read that number right!  That number is too big for us to say “I’m not called”.  We are all called to do something.  If you don’t feel able to open your home to a child as a foster parent or through adoption, then get behind those that are!  Foster and adoptive parents need your prayers, your baby sitting help, gift cards, respite, encouragement, a meal prepared, a person to talk to, a cheer team to greet them at the airport when arriving home with a child, a baby shower (Or gift shower for a teen foster child),  fund-raising help, recognition in the church, and plenty of people in the body of Christ to love and welcome these children into the church family!

See?  There’s something practical you can do to be a part of the solution!  Ask if you have an adoption or foster care ministry in your church and get involved.  Become a foster parent (There is such a shortage), consider adopting a child – it will change your life.

I will share a little about our family in more detail in Part 2, but to learn more now about our family’s journey through adoption check out our blog at:  arethesekidsallyours.blogspot.com

-Jason

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Click the picture above for USA TODAY news video

Since The Church was born two thousand years ago its  message of Christ’s love for us hasn’t changed, but our world never stops changing.  We are very aware that the world we live in now is very different than the days of the first Christians.  Back then the Word had to be preached in person, the Scriptures had to be written by hand and I took months to sail around the world.

Today with modern technology we can literally see and hear someone talking with us anywhere in the world in real time, we can go online from our mobile phones or tablets anywhere and be updated in an instant with world news as it happens.  Although sometimes it’s hard to keep up with the changes happening around us it is also an exciting time for The Church.

At no other time before have we been able to connect to one other like we can now and this is great news for The Church whose goal is introduce others to a relationship with Christ and in relationship with one another.  Churches today are utilizing 21^st century such as:

• Interactive Websites
• Mobile Apps
• Online Study Guides
• Online Bibles and Devotionals
• QR Codes in bulletins and flyers
• Online Campuses

Just a few weeks ago my wife and I dedicated our children at church in Tampa and my parents in the UK, over 4000 miles away were able to watch the service live in their living room!  How awesome that we can be connected like this.

Technology is being used like never before when it comes to serving others.  We are called to be the hands and feet of Christ outside of the four walls of the building.  Meet The Need’s use of 21^st century technology is a key for us to “Be The Church” by connecting the body of Christ with those in need in our world!  It’s exciting to see the church coming together as one in serving others.  That’s what The Church should look like.  We are excited to partner with churches like Christ Fellowship in fulfilling Christ’s great commission in Matthew 28:19-20:

“Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,  and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

-Jason

Posted in Articles, Business & Administration, Families & Individuals Serving, Media, Missions & Outreach, Partners
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“Do your work willingly, as though you were serving the Lord himself, and not just your earthly master.  In fact, the Lord Christ is the one you are really serving, and you know that he will reward you.”   - Colossians 3:23-24

“Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it.”  -Proverbs 22:6

Serving others in need is what we are commanded by God to do.  We read in Colossians that as we serve others it is really Christ we are serving.  Do we take the time to really ‘see’ Jesus in the face of the person we’re serving?  Do we recognize that he is at the heart of what we’re doing?

Serving is kind of like Christmas – it is fun to get together with other Christians and serve, there’s activity involved, it feels good.  But we can make the mistake that just like Christmas we can forget that Jesus is at the heart of it, that it is something that we should continue to do all through the year.  Serving ought to be a daily lifestyle, not just focused on events a couple times a year.

In order to make serving a lifestyle we need to get involved regularly.  Any ministry can only survive with ongoing year-round volunteer help.  We have to be the church outside of the 4 walls – Be the church in our homes, work place and communities.  We need to cultivate this lifestyle in our family – our children need to see it and they can be involved too.

This post marks the first in a series I will share about how families can serve together as part of a lifestyle, not only event-based (Although events are great ways to kick-start serving or to accomplish a larger project).

I would like to share one simple way that our entire family have been able to serve together, and yes there are plenty of opportunities for families with young children to serve together!  It has been great for our family to help pack dry meals for those in need around the world.  Our kids have been a part of the body of believers in making a difference in the lives of others.  We have been blessed to help with an organization here in Florida (Feeding Children Everywhere) that packs meals with the help of thousands of volunteers to be shipped around the globe.  This has been one great way to teach our children about the needs of others, to give them an active role in serving and a reminder of how blessed we are.

Serving takes the focus off of us and makes us think of others.  As we continue as a family to seek ways to get involved in serving outside the walls of the church building our prayer is that our children grow up in that lifestyle and be a part of what God is doing in the real world.

-Jason

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“Each one of them is Jesus in Disguise.” – Mother Teresa

Reflect back to people you see every day and ask yourself “Do I do this?

Mother Theresa, when speaking of the very poorest in Calcutta said that, “Each one of them is Jesus in disguise.”  She sums up in this one short sentence how in the ordinary day to day serving of others we can have an extraordinary encounter with Christ himself!

Jesus said:

When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’

Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’ “The King will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.’   -Matthew 25: 31-40

We are called to see the lost, the poor and the sick as Jesus sees them – like the dearly loved children that he created in His image.

Love them as God has loved you!

-Jason

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“The Spirit of the Lord is on me,
   because he has anointed me
    He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners
   and recovery of sight for the blind,
to set the oppressed free,
   to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”

-Luke 4:18-19

I talked in my last post “What can I do?  Part 1” about how we are often moved and stirred in our compassion for those in need, but feel overwhelmed with the complexity of the problem or not equipped to help, so we usually don’t.  I shared last week about taking time to care about the homeless or those in need of help.  This week I would like to talk about those in poverty around the world – and our family’s experience.

About four years ago the Lord spoke to us about sponsoring a child through the Christ-Centered organization “Compassion International”.  Other great Christ-Centered organizations like “World Vision” also have sponsoring programs around the world.  We had heard about Compassion before and knew about sponsorship programs, but never applied that to our family.  God spoke to us that this was a simple, yet far reaching and impactful way we could make a difference in the lives of others.  The great thing about the child sponsoring through Compassion is that, yes you can make a difference in a child’s life, but it will have a huge impact for their whole family.  For less than the cost of eating out once a month our gift can provide medical care, nourishment, opportunities for education, connection to the body of Christ where they live, and encouragement through letters and pictures and most importantly prayer from our family here in America.  It’s do-able!

Since then we have stayed in contact with 13 year old “Ripon” in Bangladesh and it has been a blessing to know our ordinary family has been a part of the solution of poverty in our world.  We have recently felt called to step up ‘to the next level’ and sponsor another child too – so we are also praying for and supporting 5 year old “Elang” in Indonesia.  I can’t help but imagine if even 50% of Christian Families here in the United States sponsored a child there would be a waiting list HERE for a child, not waiting children THERE!  Just a thought!

We don’t have the excuse that the problem is too big or the situation too complex.  We don’t have to “rack our brains” trying to figure out how we can help.  Some awesome God-led people have gone before us and made it straightforward for us to get involved.  It doesn’t have to be complicated, but we are called to action!  What are you going to do?

-Jason

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What outcomes would you like to see from your charity?

Think about it. What do you consider important—self-sufficiency, salvation, healthy living, artistic expression, stable parenting—the possibilities are endless. And, I’m guessing the answer is different for each of us.

However, we should know the answer to this question.

The answer to this question will direct our giving.

Lupton, in his book Toxic Charity, suggests that we should restructure our giving (time, talent, treasure) to produce the results or outcomes we are hoping for. We should ask this as individuals and perhaps as churches too. What outcomes do we want our giving to produce?

Are we directing our resources in such a way to achieve these results, or are we doing what happens to be most intriguing or popular. Often the journey on the road to our desired outcomes is long…and perhaps rocky. It can’t be accomplished by a quick collection of food or toiletries (although I highly encourage these efforts), but might involve a personal commitment to disciple a single mother for a year. Spending time with her celebrating joys and time weeping in sorrow—giving her so much more than food for her cupboard. Building trust and forming a real relationship. It’s not easy. Well, at least for me it’s not.

I’m thinking about these things. And, it’s challenging me. Am I going deep enough? Am I really willing to look at what I’m investing in and make changes? It’s a tough discussion to have. I hope you’ll join me.

p.s. Lupton shared an illustration of a food co-op rather than a food pantry that was pretty inspiring. Visit the organization’s website (Georgia Avenue Community Ministry) and check them out.

Posted in Community Development, Families & Individuals Serving, Missions & Outreach
Tags: Toxic Charity
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“The Spirit of the Lord is on me,
   because he has anointed me
   to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners
   and recovery of sight for the blind,
to set the oppressed free,
   to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”   

-Luke 4:18-19

We are often moved by images of famine and suffering, our compassion is stirred when we see a homeless person holding a cardboard sign, we feel a sense of injustice at poverty levels for families in places around the world.  The problem is that we usually don’t do anything about it because we either don’t know what to do or we feel helpless because the issues are so complex.

For example do we give money to the homeless man?  Is he going to use it for alcohol?  How will I know it will meet a real need?

What about poor families and individuals around the world?  The problems are so big because international governments are involved and corrupt, right?  These kids I hear about are half way round the world in India – it’s not possible to ‘get involved’!

Although the problems are often complex and it’s hard to discern the best action to take in helping others we are called to still ‘do’ something.  It’s not always easy, but then again ‘easy’ was never a promise of Jesus!  Jesus’ words are our purpose.  We are his voice of love and compassion to others, our hands are His.  Therefore we should be reaching out to those in need with actions of hope, love and healing in Jesus’ name; and reaching out to those in need with words of hope, love and healing in Jesus’ name!

How do we do this?  What we can do is prayerfully do what we can, following the prompting of the Holy Spirit. I will talk about the homeless  here in Part 1 and then talk about families in poverty around the world in Part 2 next week and share a little about our family’s experiences.

There have been times we have stopped to make time to care. I always ask the person in need their name and I listen to their story.  If I stop and talk to someone in this type of situation I have made a rule to not offer money.  I have offered them my phone to call someone if they want to let them know they’re okay, I have gone back into Walmart and bought them a meal and I have bought a tank of gas to help them get to the next point.  One time in the parking lot of a Walmart a dad approached us and wanted to give his kids something to eat.  We literally had just bought bread, sandwich meat, drinks and snacks – all of which we gave to him.  If there is a genuine need, most likely God has used us to meet it.  If nothing else we have stopped and taken the time to validate this person.  Then we have chosen to pray for them by name afterwards.

There are also ministries and churches in our communities that can help to the next level and it is good to get to know how to refer someone for help.  We are blessed here in the Tampa area to have a great ministry working specifically with the homeless and low income families called “Metropolitan Ministries”. Check out their ministry to learn more about serving poor and homeless families and helping to prevent homelessness.

If the body of Christ won’t respond then who will?

-Jason

Posted in Families & Individuals Serving, Missions & Outreach, Partners
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“Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give,

not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.”  -2 Corinthians 9:7

 We have a children’s book in our home “Small Gifts in God’s Hands” by Max Lucado.  It is a heartwarming story about a boy who offers his little lunch to Jesus, just a small gift, but in God’s hands it is multiplied and over 5,000 men are fed!  The point of the story is that often times we perceive our offerings to be small or insignificant, but when offered to God cheerfully and with a pure heart can make a big difference for the Kingdom.

This past Valentine’s Day our family made some yummy chocolate cupcakes!  We decided to run by during lunch time and deliver one to my wife’s (Dawn) grandma at the nursing home.  We were only there about 15 minutes and it didn’t seem like a big deal to us, but later on Dawn’s mom phoned and said that she had spoken on the phone with her grandma.  Grandma was so touched that we had stopped by and spent time with her and remembered her on Valentine’s Day.  Wow!  A cupcake was a small gift, but in God’s hands it was big!

Back last Christmas Eve we were at the nursing home visiting Grandma and singing her some Christmas carols.  I felt prompted to take our girls and go around and visit with the other residents during their dinner.  We gave hugs, encouraged and simply listened.  We discovered that several of the residents had no one coming to visit them over Christmas.  What?  Not one person was coming to visit them?  I am so glad that the Holy Spirit whispered to me about taking time to walk around and visit.  We were there anyway – no big deal – just a small gift, but yet in God’s hands I believe that small gift was multiplied.

Where can you get involved in the places you are already at?  At work?  At school?  On your daily commute?  At the store?  On your street?  God has many opportunities for us to be His hands and feet today – we just need to open our hearts, our eyes and our ears to him.  It may not seem like a lot to stop and talk to someone.  It may seem insignificant to us and to the world, but “No gift is small in God’s Hands”.

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