World Renewal International
Thursday, April 3, 2014
April is Living Stones month!
WHO WE ARE
Children are the future—the Living Stones that build tomorrow's foundation. Living Stones comes alongside local churches or church plants (with training and resources) to help them reach out to the poorest children in their community, with LEND: Love, Education, Nutrition, and Direction. We (currently) work with Glory Sports ministries, Athletes in Action, Massa Humana, and the soup ministry. We are under the umbrella of World Renewal Brazil (www.wribrazil.com ), who works under World Renewal International (www.worldrenewal.org).
UNIQUE
Like Compassion or World Vision, we work with children, families, and communities to help them break the cycle of poverty. The difference is that each program is based out of a local church run by local Brazilians who are sharing Christ and providing the practical and eternal needs for those in poverty. A pastor/leader of the church heads up the Living Stones program, working with different volunteers and helpers such as teachers, cooks, and interested friends. Each leader is to raise their own support so that money donated to Living Stones goes directly to expenses with the children: transportation, food, and supplies.
HISTORY
In 1998, Pastor Assuario (a church planter through World Renewal Brazil) saw the children in the street outside his church, hungry, and with no place to go. So they opened the doors of the church throughout the week, giving food, hope, and educational assistance, and invited them and their families to come to church on the weekend. In 2010, Pastor Flavio started a Living Stones ministry in a rural town, loving the children until their parents began to ask questions about this Jesus. Through Living Stones, a church was also planted.
INDIVIDUALITY
Each Living Stones works within the system that is most efficient for their community: distance ministry (once a month, when there is no local church yet), weekend ministry (can meet once or twice a week), rural or urban ministry (each having their different needs), and sports ministry (working with Glory Sports). But all of the programs have the same focus and goals: to LEND: provide Love, Education, Nutrition, and Direction.
OBJECTIVES
- · A growing church plant (if there was no previous church) and community outreach
- · Sharing and receiving the love and saving power of Jesus
- · Providing a safe place to learn and be educated spiritually, mentally, and physically
- · Children and families receiving the nutritional health and hygiene that they need
Training and direction for families to become self-sustainable, breaking the cycle of poverty and making and becoming leaders in the community
