by Peggy Shirley
Today, we were filled with great joy to visit El Adaima Church and once again see Reverend Shenouda Girgis his wife, Angel and their children; Joshua, Jonestta and Justin, and their congregation. We were excited to be in fellowship with them again and celebrate with them the new church they are building.
Read Moreby Kendra Norton
If God is on the move, then his church is on the move too -- sometimes in surprising ways. That is exactly what is happening here in Luxor, the latest stop on our church journey through Egypt.
After a restful evening in this small, quiet city (at least compared to Cairo), our group divided in half to visit different churches, and one group had the privilege of visiting the Presbyterian Church of Luxor and meeting Pastor Mahrous Karam. This church is on the move in the most literal way.
Read Moreby Tim Norton
Word and deed. The phrase has been ringing in my ears all day. Christians join God's mission by proclaiming Christ with words and demonstrating Christ with actions. The two cannot be separated. Making Christ known is an epic pursuit of show and tell -- word and deed. The phrase is a fitting summary of our final day in Cairo before journeying to Upper Egypt.
Read Moreby Matthew Hornaday
After sleeping in a bit, we enjoyed a life-giving day with leaders and students of the Evangelical Theological Seminary in Cairo (ETSC) learning, worshipping, laughing, and even riding on a felucca boat. Dr. Tharwat Wahba*, Dr. Atef Gendy, and Dr. Sherif Nakhla shared about the history of ETSC and how ETSC has evolved since Dr. Atef became President in July 2000.
Read Moreby Frank Dimmock
Yesterday was a busy but exciting day. Navigating Nairobi traffic, I was able to pay the printer and collect 200 copies of the Healing the Wounds of Trauma curriculum which has been translated into Nuer. Nuer is the heart language of the South Sudanese with whom The Outreach Foundation is working. I flew on to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, with my precious cargo of books and will be going to Gambella, at 5:30 a.m. tomorrow, where the Nuer refugees from South Sudan are encamped. We will be getting updates about the trauma healing work and the education programs in each of the six camps. I am excited to see what progress has been made since June – and they are very excited to receive the training materials in their own language!
Read Moreby Deena Candler
After a couple of busy days visiting churches, today was a day to experience Egyptian history and culture. We began with a visit to the pyramids of Giza and the sphinx. This is the only remaining wonder of the 7 wonders of the ancient world, and it truly is magnificent.
Read Moreby Mark Mueller
The Middle East has many lessons to teach the church. In Iraq, the church has remained the faithful remnant despite war, sanctions, and upheaval. In Lebanon, the church moves forward amid protests, poverty, and instability. In Syria, the church is rebuilding after invasion, strife, and migration. In each of these countries, the church has served as a model of resiliency and faithfulness.
Read Moreby Marilyn Borst
It would be a few days before all 17 members of our team would be here in Egypt together – some were delayed by winter weather and others took a detour to see their sister-church in another part of the country. But on Saturday, the 10 of us who had arrived the night before greeted the new day in our ”home” for the next 6 days: ETSC (Evangelical Theological Seminary in Cairo). We soon saw precious family like Mariam Hanna, who is Director of Development for ETSC, and students like Amen Magdy, a third-year student who was excited to share news of his engagement to Sarah Iskander!
Read Moreby Juan Sarmiento
On Tuesday The Outreach Foundation group visited the facilities of Amity Printing Press in the city of Nanjing. We were very warmly received by Chief Executive Officer Mr. Luke Liu and a few others of its very professional team of approximately 400 members.
A joint venture between the Amity Foundation (a Chinese Christian Non-Governmental Organization) and the United Bible Society and the United Bible Societies, it was established in 1985 with the priority to serve the Christian Church in China. We learned that more about two very important dates worth mentioning.
Read MoreThe official Protestant church in China (Chinese Christian Council/ Three-Self Patriotic Movement or CCC/TSPM) has its origins in the mission work of primarily American, British and Canadian denominations during the 19th and part of the 20th century. Anglicans, Baptists, Lutherans, Methodists, Seventh Day Adventists, Presbyterians, and others Protestant movements, including those originated in China, were required to come under a single organizational roof in 1949. As one would imagine, bringing such a diverse group together into one organization would not be a simple task but it seems to me that it has been worth it. Contrary to most predictions, in its 60 years of existence, the official Protestant church has grown from less than a million to around forty million.
Read Moreby Juan Sarmiento
Since my arrival in the amazing city of Shanghai, I have greatly enjoyed the company of Rev. Choon Lim, who serves as Regional Liason for East Asia with the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A). A native of Korea, Choon has been with each of the three groups with which I have visited China in recent years. His deep knowledge of and love for this part of the world, as well as his language skills, have helped many of us grow in our capacity to relate to God’s people in the country.
Read Moreby Marilyn Borst
Mosul. The name does not immediately conjure up frightening images for me as it does for most.
Yes, I am well aware of its recent history: of its gradual takeover by fundamentalists when the U.S.-led war in 2003 destabilized Iraq, of the subsequent terror wrought by ISIS upon Christians and moderate Muslims who had called it “home” and the of the “battle for Mosul” which defeated ISIS there but decimated a large part of the historic Old City.
Read More
