Restored – To the Land of the Living

Some of you may recall the prayer requests shared for Lanessa Allman last year (She’s Chris Allman’s sister-in-law and attended UMHB with us.)

Last year she was struck with encephalitis and several other complications after giving birth to her fourth son.

And now that she’s had time to heal and recover, she’s put her story into words and self-published a book, “Restored – To the Land of the Living.”
Continue reading Restored – To the Land of the Living

iPhones and dirty Coltan #justicefriday

Line outside Dallas' Apple store | Photo by alexmuse

Today a new iPhone 3Gs is being released to the masses. Folks were lining up around the block to get their hands on Steve Jobs’ latest gadget.

The new 3Gs just adds to the iphone buzz on Twitter about the new iPhone 3.0 OS (released earlier this week).

And I get it. I’m a huge fan of technology and gadgets – including my beat-up BlackBerry Curve 8310.

But what if these things we consume on a daily basis are enslaving folks in more ways than we realize (there’s a reason folks have fondly adopted CrackBerry as an appropriate nickname for their BlackBerry)?
Continue reading iPhones and dirty Coltan #justicefriday

Obama administration looks at human trafficking

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Hillary Clinton wrote an op-ed piece in the Washington Post today regarding human trafficking and the Trafficking in Persons Report 2009, which was released by the US Dept of State last week ::

Twenty-year-old Oxana Rantchev left her home in Russia in 2001 for what she believed was a job as a translator in Cyprus. A few days later, she was found dead after attempting to escape the traffickers who tried to force her into prostitution.

Oxana’s story is the story of modern slavery. Around the world, millions of people are living in bondage. They labor in fields and factories under threat of violence if they try to escape. They work in homes for families that keep them virtually imprisoned. They are forced to work as prostitutes or to beg in the streets. Women, men and children of all ages are often held far from home with no money, no connections and no way to ask for help. They discover too late that they’ve entered a trap of forced labor, sexual exploitation and brutal violence. The United Nations estimates that at least 12 million people worldwide are victims of trafficking. Because they often live and work out of sight, that number is almost certainly too low. More than half of all victims of forced labor are women and girls, compelled into servitude as domestics or sweatshop workers or, like Oxana, forced into prostitution. They face not only the loss of their freedom but also sexual assaults and physical abuses.

To some, human trafficking may seem like a problem limited to other parts of the world. In fact, it occurs in every country, including the United States, and we have a responsibility to fight it just as others do. The destructive effects of trafficking have an impact on all of us. Trafficking weakens legitimate economies, breaks up families, fuels violence, threatens public health and safety, and shreds the social fabric that is necessary for progress. It undermines our long-term efforts to promote peace and prosperity worldwide. And it is an affront to our values and our commitment to human rights.

I for one am glad to see Clinton bringing this to light through her position. I know it’s not the first time administrations have looked into this issue or talked about this issue. But I do hope that as awareness continues to rise this administration will really step up to the task of ending human trafficking in the US and abroad.

Read More
See the Dept of State report

(picture from Power to the Poster :: download. print. post.)

Fill in the blank

love wins

Quick… take this well known passage and fill in your name in each of the blanks ::

If I give everything I own to the poor and even go to the stake to be burned as a martyr, but I don’t love, I’ve gotten nowhere. So, no matter what I say, what I believe, and what I do, I’m bankrupt without love.
Continue reading Fill in the blank

God’s heart for the poor

As noted earlier, God has a huge heart and love for YOU – but he also has a huge heart for EVERYONE ELSE – including the poor, the marginalized, the hurting, the oppressed. And if we’re to be on the side of God – we should be on the side of the poor.

As a refresher, check out this list of Scriptures from the MissionalChurchNetwork:

Continue reading God’s heart for the poor

you matter!

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Seth Godin shares ::

  • When you love the work you do and the people you do it with, you matter.
  • When you are so gracious and generous and aware that you think of other people before yourself, you matter.
  • When you leave the world a better place than you found it, you matter.
  • When you continue to raise the bar on what you do and how you do it, you matter.
  • When you teach and forgive and teach more before you rush to judge and demean, you matter.
  • When you touch the people in your life through your actions (and your words), you matter.
  • When kids grow up wanting to be you, you matter.
  • When you see the world as it is, but insist on making it more like it could be, you matter.
  • When you inspire a Nobel prize winner or a slum dweller, you matter.
  • When the room brightens when you walk in, you matter.
  • And when the legacy you leave behind lasts for hours, days or a lifetime, you matter.

Continue reading you matter!