We are not hosting an Egg Hunt this year. I know many churches probably don’t do Egg Hunts because it is too “secular.” They believe Easter is about the Risen Christ, not plastic eggs and candy. I respect their convictions. For us though, we think you can hold both hand in hand. Yes, the Resurrection is…
Category: Family
When your child gets a new Bible…
We hand out bibles to 2nd graders every year in May. Our church values children and this is one of the ways we celebrate significant milestones in their lives. However, we know that if we want them to develop a love for God’s word, it has to be in partnership with the families. So for our part, parents can count on…
Marriage – guest post
Enjoy this guest post from my friend Jeff Green. He wrote these lovely words in celebration of 25 years of marriage to Tricia Green. They struck a chord in me. I think they will do the same for you. In light of our 25th anniversary, Trish and I thought a lot about how to celebrate…
Just Talk About It
The Search Institute published research findings from a study called Effective Christian Education: A National Study of Protestant Congregations. These findings tell us what factors were involved in producing adults who now profess a mature faith. Here’s what they found: Certain personal experiences have a measurable positive impact on the maturity of faith of the…
Rwanda day 7
Today was our final day in the Butare area of Rwanda. We visited a few more groups and a few individual families. These are all in their first year of Zoe and they are filled with hope for their future. Each are working on group farming projects and beginning their individual businesses. We met with…
Rwanda day 6
Everything in Zoe is done through working groups of 80-100 children. At their first meeting they elect a chairperson, a secretary and a treasurer. They also select a few mentors from adults who have been kind to them in their community. Then, they have regular meetings and decide how to distribute resources. They attend trainings…
Rwanda day 5
God’s house is big. Today we joined our Rwandan friends for worship in a local church here in Butare. This is not like any church I have been in before. It was open air, on the top of a small mountain, with a gorgeous view. One of the Zoe staff told the church leaders we…
Rwanda day 4
It is truly amazing what children can do. At one of our stops today, we met with a large group who have co-op projects farming corn and rice. They are in their second year of the program, but told us today that they are ready to graduate from Zoe. Later, when our host Gaston explained…
Rwanda day 3
Today, I was surprised by God. I don’t know why I am ever surprised by a God so big and so good, but he is working miracles beyond what I thought possible. In our visits today, the theme seemed to be one of orphans giving back to their community and to other orphans. These kids, who have…
Rwanda day 2
It has been a day full of stories, prayers, singing, dancing, celebrating, and cow-chasing. Yes, you read that correctly — cow-chasing. We were to present one of the orphan groups with cows, but the cattle were not cooperating. So, there were some “muzungoos” (the name for non-Rwandan people) running around, chasing cows and looking pretty silly. We visited three villages…