the grapevine
(Issue #74; October 1, 1999.)
newsy highlights
Important Notices 2
Visitation to the PI 4
YA/SGA Get-Together 4
Peter's Trip to Brazil 7
Activated News 14
Website News 15
Family Stats 16
kidbits
new additions …
Alen Daniel, 1st child, born to Martina and Pavel on July 3rd.--Romania
Richard Andrew, 2nd child, born to Abi Tall and John on July 17.--Hungary
Susanna Joy, born to Pearl and Simon on July 23rd.--England
Caleb Apocalipse, born to Crystal and
Samuel on July 24.--Brazil
Daniel Happy, born to Sophie and Lucas on July 29th.--Hungary
Karen Angel, born to Paloma and Lucas on August 2.--Brazil
Marisol Siervo, born to Maria and Jordan on August 4.--Ecuador
Miguel Angel, born to Hannah and Pablo on August 9.--Colombia
Celine Lianna, born to Gentleness and Estevao on August 11.--Romania
Steven Wyatt, 6th child, born to Kristy and Zeb on August 14.--Brazil
Robert Christopher, 2nd child, born to Sara and Levi on August 17.--Romani
a
Tobias Julien, born to Christiana and Micha on August 17.--Germany
Mabelle Aurore, 4th child, born to Heidi and Luke on August 19.--China
Selena, 1st child, born to Maria and Luca on August 21.--Italy
tidbits
taken …
Luke Faithful (British) and Lisa Daniella (Russian) were married on February 18, 1999!
On June 5 we had a nice wedding with our relatives, friends and some Family members attending. We were a bit concerned as the wedding was organized by our parents, but the Lord
did many miracles and it was a nice time.--Grace Amazing and Matthew Patient, Poland
CM disciples …
Pearl (19, Russian) joined in Russia.--July
Meekness (18, Slovakian) joined in Slovakia.--July
Ester (30, Brazilian) joined in Brazil.--August
Timothy Daniel and Esther (both Russian and 22 years) joined in Russia.--August
Paula (18, Czech) joined in Slovakia.--August
FM disciples …
Priscilla (36, Brazilian) joined in Brazil.--August
Fabio (48, Colombian) joined in Colombia.--
August
ponder
There is no exercise better for the heart than reaching down and lifting people up.
backtracking
From Barry and Windy, WS Audio Department: We would like to clear up a few credit mistakes, so that we can give proper credit to whom credit is due. Thanks for your patience, and we're sorry about these blunders.
Going back to Oasis of Love, on the CD label it says that Chris sang the duet of “Make My Heart Your Home” (track #1) with Hopie, when it was actually Jeff singing
there.
On Unbeatable (KAT #1), there's a little mix up on track #12. The song We Have the Answer, and the song Two Ducks and a Frog, are on the same track, yet track #13 is also Two Ducks and a Frog (which comes in at a lower level also). This was due to a technical problem, and slipped through without us catching it before we sent it out for duplication. We're very sorry about this mistake.
Heart Beat (FTT #15), the title for song #10 was missing from the CD label. The name of the song is
Take Time. Philly, we love you!
On Big Change Comin' (FTT #16), the credits to the song Date with an Angel should read as follows: [Singer/music/lyrics] Angelique/Katrina L., Andrew V./Andrew V., Katrina L., Barry, Windy
Also on the song I'm in Love, the credits should read as follows: Vas/Vas/Vas/Guitars by Robin/Produced by Vas.
babymania
Payoff Time
By Jaz, WS
I'll never forget the day when Kimby came running up to me and said, quite out of the blue: “Mommy, I need to go pee!” It
's the moment you dream about by day and pray for by night; the time when you see all your hard-earned investment has paid off, and everything sort of slips into place.
They sneak up on you, these moments, and it's usually just about the time you've given up holding your breath for them. Kimby had just turned two-and-a-half, and the potty training saga had stretched on zealously over the past year. Roxy and I have had all kinds of ups and downs, backs and forths, high times and low times with
Kimby, and she'd gotten to where she had made substantial progress and generally stayed dry all day. The one main hurdle that she absolutely would not budge on was this concept of recognizing that she needed to go, and asking for it in time. She did pretty well at holding it, but if for any reason we forgot or didn't bring her in time … sigh!
Now I can see that all that time when we thought it wasn't sinking in, she was actually just moving her peaceful way along through the stages of growth,
all of which are apparently needed in order for something to stick. In Kimby's case, her stages of potty-training went something like this:
- The hold-out stage: You can bring a kid to the potty, but you can't make them produce. Learning how to deliver on demand was quite a tall order at first!
- The kicking-and-screaming stage: Not literally, of course, but this is the time when she would rather have done just about anything (except maybe bedtime) than sit on that potty. Once finally coerce
d onto the seat, she was happy to deliver, but sometimes getting there was quite the headache!
- The late-warning stage: This is where you hear the “Mommy, I gotta go” and in the same instant you see the little puddle on the clean tiles. A very sad stage indeed!
- The rose-by-another-name stage: This was almost as good as the real thing, her most recent stage. For some reason, she'd taken to saying, “Mommy, I'm coldie” whenever she had to go. After a couple of times of passing her a long-sle
eved shirt or sweater and then exclaiming at the resulting puddle on the floor, I finally connected the dots and started whisking her off to the potty on the very first “coldie” alert. (Resulting in some rather perplexed looks when she actually was cold and just wanted a sweater!)
And now, here we are--victory at last! It's funny how easy it is to gloss over these little victories, or think that they just “happened.” But when I heard that pitter-patter of little feet running towards me, and th
at chirpy little voice speaking those words I'd so long dreamed of hearing, I couldn't help realizing that all of our time and prayer had finally paid off.
The funniest thing was that it really was an “overnight conversion.” Ever since that morning, she has consistently come to us every time she needs to go, giving us plenty of warning and holding it till the facilities arrive.--Or once even (gasp!) going to get the potty herself and settling about her business on her own, when we weren't quic
k enough on the draw! There have been some accidents here and there, but these are by far the exceptions.
There was nothing that had happened that day or the day before that had pre-empted this great and life-changing metanoia, no great instruction or correction. But I guess somewhere along the way, something in her little mind and heart just clicked, and the time was right. She grasped the concept, and that was that. One more lesson under the belt.
Isn't that just the way it is with kids? Y
ou give and give, and sometimes you don't see any results. Sometimes you even start thinking it's all in vain and it's not going anywhere. All the reminders, the times when your patience is tried to the limit and you think, “Maybe I'm just spinning my wheels here, maybe none of this is sinking in at all.” The continual cycle of remind-forget, remind-forget, remind-forget. But then one day they wake up and … poof! They toss out some priceless bit of knowledge, as though it's something they knew h
ow to do all along. And then you know--all those times when it looked like all your love and sacrifice wasn't going anywhere, it was. And it's all worth it when it comes time for the payoff.
post-its
S2K-related reminder
WS: In the light of the S2K, we want to remind all Homes and Family members that CM-only publications are not to be removed from the CM Home by any members changing their status to FM. Likewise, any CM Homes that move to FM status are required to turn into their continen
tal office any CM-only publications. Please see Section B of the “Classifications of Family Membership and Literature” on page 358 of the Charter for which pubs Fellow members are permitted to have.
New CVC e-mail address
The CVC has a new e-mail address. Please direct your CVC e-mail (in-Family or GP) to the following address from now on: cvc@cvcollege.com
backtracking
In Grapevine #68, the Shine On tally for 1st place in souls was incorrect, meaning that the Homes in 2nd, 3rd and 4t
h place now move up to 1st, 2nd and 3rd place. 1st and 2nd place, feel free to collect the increase in your tool gift; 3rd place--congratulations! The correct shiners for May 1999 are as follows:
Teamwork Per Adult Total
Rufus/Dulce/Ivanna, USA 6,250 25,000
Michael/Maria, Japan 2,570 7,710
Peter S./Crystal S./Mary M., USA 2,261 9,042
Special Offerings
Dear Ones,
We pray you are having a very wonderful month and that the Lord is helping you with your Y2K prep, as well as your main j
ob of witnessing His love to others! Again, we want to thank all of you for your faithful service to the Lord and dedication to His Family. What a job we are doing!--By His grace!
Below is a list of those 57 Homes which sent in a special offering to WS with their August TRF. We are so very thankful for your extra giving to WS. We just couldn't make it without these gifts, and we are very appreciative of your extra effort to send them in. We pray that the Lord will reward you many times for thi
s, which we know He will.
With much love,
Your WS Office
Philippines Home # 01
David/Miracle, India Area
Philippines Home # 09
Turkey Home # 03
Ivan/Liberty, India Area
Micha/Christiana/Lisa, Germany
Francesco, EU
Joao, EU
Unknown, EU
Marc/Pandita, EU
Tim Lovebridge, EU
Tim/Esther, EU
Michael, EU
Josue/Mary/Philip/Pr, EU
Martin/Ella, EU
Steven/Christina/Mic, EU
Martin/Mercy/Jonathan, EU
Precious, EU
Simon/Pearl/Simon F., EU
Jonathan/Mary/Christ., EU
Elijah Ever, USA
Samuel/Rosita, Mexico
Darren Colton, Canada
James/Faith, USA
David/Ina, USA
John/Dawn, USA
Paul R/Mel/Mar
Jason/Phoebe/Simon
Michael/Debbie Tree
Jim/June, USA
Tim/Dove/Rejoice, US
Aaron/Naomi, Japan
Lily/Rosa, China
Kanazawa Home, Japan
Steven/Mercy, Japan
Jonathan/Faith, Australia
Claire, China
Mike/Victoria, China
Abel/Joy, China
Clay/Victory, China
Peter/Crystal, China
John/Joany, China
Japan TNT Home
Tommy/Lily, Japan
Tim/Pho
enix, Japan
David/Pandita, Japan
Tim/Comfort's Home
Stephen/Anna, Taiwan
Michael/Ruth, Australia
Paul/Angie, China
Nahum, SA
Lucas/Rute/Madale, SA
Francisco/Kitty, SA
Tiago/Priscila/Jeremias, SA
Matthew/Jonathan/V., SA
Lydia
Amie
Introducing… the Video Grapevine
Wouldn't it be exciting to regularly partake of the “exploits” that the Family is doing across the globe via video? DV, you will be enjoying just such entertainment in the near future, thanks to the help of a
great crew in Thailand who have volunteered to compile and edit an international Video Grapevine.
The idea would be to combine material from as many different areas and countries as possible, to share news and views of all that the Lord is doing through our Family worldwide. We hope that once this project gets up and running you might be able to get a new video quarterly, with fresh sights and sounds hot off the cameras.
Of course, in order for this Video Grapevine to become a reality, we'r
e going to need the footage from YOU!
The CROs and VSs will take these inspiring and faith-building videos with them when visiting Homes, and your Continental Office will make the videos available for Homes or groups of Homes to order at the lowest possible price. (For example, a City Council could collect funds from the Homes to pay for a copy or copies of the video, to be circulated among the Homes in that city.)
We'll turn the floor over to the editing crew now, for some guidelines you wo
n't want to miss reading if you want to get your local work “on TV.”
Hot Tips From the Video Grapevine Editing Crew:
Do you ever watch a video and think, “I could do those pictures! I could catch news like that!”?
Well, you can! In fact, it's pretty straightforward! If you have a camcorder, lots of curiosity, and a desire to get involved in what's going on.
Step 1: Grab your camcorder and head for the action.
Don't forget to check you have:
enough new tape
batteries charged
microphone and cable
headphones
Step 2: Once you get to the scene of the action, make a quick evaluation of the entire scene and shoot up a prayer. Now, pull out your camcorder, put a tape in, make sure you're recording audio as well as video, and get to work. (To see if you're recording the audio or not, plug your walkman headphones into the headphone socket.)
Step 3: News videography revolves around a basic concept: Wide, medium and tight.
This means, you first get a wide shot of t
he entire scene or area where the action is. This allows your viewers an immediate sense of what's happening. Once you've done your first shot, please turn off the time and date on your camera. Thanks.
Step 4: Next shot go for a medium shot of the same action, followed by …
Step 5: A tight shot of action, good close-ups, people doing things. Catch it as it's happening!
Hold your shots for up to 20 seconds. Give good, long, clear shots of the action. [It makes our job a lot easier!] C
ontinue shooting wide, medium and close-ups of the things that go on around you.
Touching...crying...emoting...giving...sharing...caring...exciting...thrilling...feeling...loving... heart-touching stuff is what will make news and motivate people. If it moves you it will probably move others, too! Love is an emotion!
A little tip... When you really want to get the feel of what's happening, go in close as you can with a wide shot. This makes people watching it feel part of the action!
Step 6: While you shoot, look for people who could tell you what is happening and get them to tell their story to you on tape. Accounts of what's happening on the scene are called “soundbytes,” a key to a good story.
When you find a potential person to interview, get them to say their name on tape and then ask them to explain what they saw or what they're doing or what's happening. You won't have time to chase the people down afterwards, so get them on the scene or at least write down their
names and send it in. [*Please send the note with the tape! Tx!]
Step 7: You head home with the tape in the camera. Once you get home check your footage (and… it's a good time to also recharge your batteries). Then mail the tape to us at:
THOMAS
P.O. BOX 343
44/1-3 ASOKE ROAD,
BANGKOK 10110
THAILAND
…and we'll be happy to edit your footage and pass your stories around on the next Video Grapevine! God bless you! We love you!
[Note: We can't promise that we will use every b
it of footage that is sent in to us. Please be sure to check in with the Lord before embarking on a filming adventure, so that you can be sure it will hit the mark and be useful and a blessing to the entire Family. Thanks!]
Your Video Grapevine team
P.S. We can take almost any format or tape type you send us... That's NTSC, PAL, Secam or Mesecam systems; Betacam, U-matic, Hi-8, Video 8, Super-VHS, VHS, VHS-C and DVC. (But DVC we can only handle PAL at present.) We can't return tapes, so
if you want to keep a copy of your shots then copy them off first. (Send us the original if possible, or at least the best copy you can on NEW tape.) Thanks! GBY!
MO discussion sites shutting down
From MO Web Team
Dear Family,
We love, appreciate, and pray for all of you. At Mama and Peter's request, we have closed down the discussion boards on the MO website, at least for a time. The purpose of the discussion boards was to provide you with a place to relax and exchange ideas, informati
on, just talk with friends and others in distant lands, of like minds and hearts, with the same goals and desires. For most of you it served that purpose very well. However, sadly, some did not use it for that, and despite warnings and exhortations, they chose to use it as a forum to voice, and thus spread, their discontent and other ungodly, unedifying views.
After taking it to the Lord in prayer, He indicated that at this time it would be good to close it down until it can be better supervis
ed, and people have been able to make their decisions about whether they want to be CMers, FMers, or leave the Family. Once these things have happened, we will pray again and see if it might be possible to bring it back.
We want to express our thanks and appreciation to all of you who did use it properly and benefited from it, and participated to help make it work and be a success. We are truly sorry that for the inability of some to behave, all have to suffer.
Our love and prayers are with
you all,
Your WEB Team
New: Photo Page!
And … where to send your pictures!
From the Web team
Dear Everyone,
We're starting something new on the Members' site--a PHOTO PAGE!! Of course, in order to do this we need photos of you! It can be a picture of you doing anything e.g., witnessing, singing, dancing, playing, doing CTP, or yes, just standing by a tree! Or it can be a picture of your family, your wedding, your kids, your road trip or your day at the beach/park/mountains--whatever!
! Got the picture? Good! Send it to us!
We have a new e-mail address for photos which is: photos@familymembers.com (Please also use this e-mail when sending photos to any other WS Pubs (e.g., Zine, Grapevine, the Zine Online, Kidland, EVE, FSM, FAR [GP site], etc.). You can also send your Heaven's Library art files to the photo site, or to the FTP site mentioned below. Just be sure you specify who it goes to. This is so important! E-mail is the preferred method for sending small amounts of pho
tos, however we've also set up an anonymous FTP site for those who prefer, and for those who are sending large amounts of photos. To upload your photos via FTP, connect to: ftp.familymembers.com anonymously and upload to the incoming directory.
So send `em in!--The more the merrier! And be sure to enclose a brief caption as well. (If you FTP your photos, please upload a text file with your photo info or send us an e-mail with captions.) Thank you in advance for your contributions. We hope this
will be a fun addition to the site and a blessing to you, our dear Family. We love you!--And are looking forward to receiving your pictures!
[Note: When sending in photos please bear in mind that they need to be good quality, or else we can't really use them. JPGS are the best. The ideal resolution (or size) would be 1024x768, but for photos for the web Photo Page, 640x480 is fine.]
Y2K prep
Ben and Meekness, Botswana: Being a small team, it has been easier for us to get Y2K prep going
. So far we are two months ahead with building up our survival stock of food, water, juice, milk and other things we can't do without. Ninety percent of the stuff has been provisioned, and from time to time we browse the supermarkets. Without fail we come across bargains, which we then buy. Our outreach has also been going very well, and we've built up a two-month buffer.
After hearing from the Lord about Y2K prep, we really started moving forward with our plans. Meekness put everything down o
n paper, with columns for quantities needed as well as quantities on hand. She did a thorough study of the MO Letters on survival and came up with a well-rounded list of what we needed. Grandpa has said it for years now in the Letters.
One key that we found was that we couldn't get discouraged, but to rather have crazy faith, work on it every day, and over time it builds up. It helped to have a sense of urgency in our survival thinking--not being fearful or worrying, but rather alert and conti
nually asking the Lord in prophecy how to go about doing it. And the Lord has not failed yet!
YA/SGA get-together in China!
By Jeff, PACRO
I just returned from a gathering of YAs and SGAs in China, held in late August. This fellowship was different from anything I had ever attended before. We had no organized meetings, and only one united event, which was a boat ride down the beautiful river on the last day, which is a very normal activity for foreigners to do. We went to a beautiful sec
luded spot and dropped the anchor, and all went swimming. The people who owned the boats cooked lunch for us, so by the time we had finished swimming we headed back up the river and ate a delicious Chinese meal!--All this for $5 a person!
Every young person I talked to was so thankful to be together, and it was a good chance to get to know each other and see who else was on the field. These were the two things the Lord had said in prophecy this gathering was for--fellowship, and a chance to ta
lk with their shepherds. We had plenty of time for both. The place was very special and unique (wish we could send pictures, but we want to go there again, ha!), and perfect for all of us to gather and blend in with other travelers and tourists.
This group of young people were all very focused on the field, on learning the language, trying to become one, had very few worldly attitudes or appearances, were willing to make the sacrifices to be there (some hadn't met other Family young people for
over a year or more), were committed to reaching the Chinese, etc.--All the things you want our missionaries in the Family to be!
Of course, many of them battled with the tight security in witnessing and in communications with each other, and the extreme isolation some of them have to put up with. Nevertheless they were all cheerful and very thankful that the Lord had provided this special time to be together. Although there is still only a small group of YAs and SGAs in China, they were so t
hankful to see that others like themselves had similar goals and that they were not alone in this fight to reach such a vast land. It was a privilege and treat for me to meet them, and I am already hoping I can go back there soon to spend more time with these faithful and dedicated young people!
Anna (20): The whole time I was on a spiritual “high” getting to meet everyone, seeing old friends and finding new friends. It was really strengthening to be around so many sold-out young people. Our
whole time together was a uniting time of bonding and strengthening, as well as being a total blast.
The way we worked this time together was different than in past camps or fellowships where we'd have big meetings and long united times with everyone in one big room. There was just no way to pull that off and it would have been too risky in this sensitive field. We didn't really know how it was going to work, but it was perfect--everyone had lots of opportunity to fellowship and get to know e
ach other. It was surprising to see all the people that we didn't even know were here in China, and the Lord gave us sweet times together.
The main thing that made this camp such a blessing was the fact that we are all here with the same vision of reaching China. We all have our weaknesses and our times of being attacked by the Enemy, but the one thing that we all have in common is our love for this land and its people. Our goal is to stay here as long as we can and become one to reach the peo
ple of this field.
Another thing that went on throughout the time we spent here was talk-time with the shepherds. GB Jeff, Titus and Rachel, they spent most of the time here talking with all of us “shepherd starved” people. We got to pour out our hearts and share our visions and goals for the future, burdens, etc. The times we spent together talking honestly about situations, problems, victories, experiences and just everything really lightened my load and made me feel the Lord's love.
There
was lots to do here in the form of activities. Bikes could be rented for about 75 cents a day, mountain climbing and swimming. The last full day of the fellowship we rented three boats to take us all down the river to a secluded spot where we swam and ate and got to be with everybody at one time.
After the Taiwan quake … 7.6
Sweetie, PACRO: (written 21/9) All the Family in Taiwan are fine. It was a very big earthquake, 7.6 on the Richter scale, which is bigger than the Kobe earthquake. T
he epicenter was in the mountains, not too far from the city of Taichung, where we have five Family Homes. There has been a lot of damage and the last we heard the water, electricity and gas are still off in Taichung, and large parts of the whole country are experiencing electricity blackouts. Aaron and Jewel and Andy and Marie's are safe, but their next door neighbor's house collapsed--what a miracle of His protection. Four of the Taichung Homes had to evacuate because their apartment buildings
aren't safe anymore. Some went to another Home in the same city. Some are living in army tents that the Taiwanese Army set up for those who lost their houses due to the earthquake.
The Family in Taiwan are already looking into what they can do to help with the relief work and comforting the victims and their families. Already there are 1,100 people reported dead, and that's only the first accounts.
Heidi at the China Desk, in southern city of Taiwan: (written 22/9) The quake didn't hit th
e city that we are in so bad, though we definitely felt it, as well as a strong 6.8 aftershock just this morning. We haven't heard what damage that caused. The death toll is now up at 1,700, with thousands injured and over 1,000 still missing. Pray for the situation as it seems to be quite chaotic. One Family Home is staying at an army base, and another went to a different Home. Marcus and Christina are staying with Catacombers. TTL no one got hurt, but the China Lit Pic's office was messed up,
and Aaron and Jewel's place was also all messed up. They said that everything glass smashed, and most everything fell over. GBT! Folks from Taipei are going down to help.
Tim and Taichung relief team: (written 22/9) We presently are with Matthew's Home along with Jimmy and Joy. Andy and Aaron and families are in a military campsite in the military base near our old Home. They cannot enter their compound except to get things, so they are somewhat homeless, but amazingly are doing great with t
he army taking care of all their needs, TYL!
My Home has now camped outside Matthew's place, where the Lord has done quite a few interesting things. Last night the Lord encouraged us to go ahead with a relief work ASAP. Upon hearing from Him, I (Tim) started to get an avalanche of phone calls from other Homes asking about relief work. I called dear Crystal about helping me with the media side of things, and then Michael offered his help, as well as Gioia and some of the Taipei brethren.
Matt
hew's Home has basically become a relief work center for the Family overnight as well as a communications and coordinating hub for the various relief work being done in Nanto and Puli, the hardest hit places in Taiwan. I have found that sleeping in a tent now is helping me relax a bit, with the earthquake aftershocks massaging my shoulders and back while lying on my back. Ha!
Army site: (22/9; 3:00 p.m.) Aaron and Andy's army site is a site now for the homeless victims of one of the hardest-
hit places outside of Nanto. They have their needs taken care of, and the military have introduced us to many people there. They have a show for 2,500 people there, and at least 3-4,000 tracts to give out. Priscilla and five teens will go there to help them after the show. We can distribute tracts there and witness, as they know we are Christians and we are friends of the top three military overseers at this camp, TYL!
Red Cross: Matthew and Christina of Marcus went with the Red Cross this a
fternoon to see the Nanto site and where we can help. They gave us a list already of things that they need. They seem quite desperate. We'll be helping them in the following areas:
Shuttling food and medical supplies to the Nanto area and using 4WD vehicles to drive up to Puli to deliver the same to the hardest hit areas there. The Lord has supplied 2 to 3 4WDs for free for a week, TYL! Day and night trips have been going out.
Two hospitals need our assistance in Nanto.
We have set up a
camp base in the Nanto City Stadium, where we will be coordinating the local relief work.
Other organizations have been approaching us for help in other needy relief work.
Stopping by the roads to witness and get out tracts to the folks living in damaged areas.
News from our Family Home at the epicenter of the Athens earthquake!
Dearest Family,
By the Lord's supernatural protection we are still here, well and safe without even a little scratch! Our wonderful Jesus has carried all of
us through the big earthquake that occurred on Tuesday, 7th of September, in Athens.
Our Home was at the epicenter of it, and we really felt the Lord's angels around us, holding it up for our sakes. We were having our quiet time and Manasseh, Praise and kids passed by to pick up some diapers and left. It was 3:00 p.m. and only Rachel, Agape, the five kids and myself (Mary) were home--no men. Personally I had a strange feeling, like something was wrong, and I wanted to pray. Sure enough, sudden
ly there was a very strong shaking and the whole house started falling apart. Everything was trembling around us and I started praying out loud for the Lord's help. Miguel (11), who was sleeping on the top bunk, fell right on top of me on the bottom bunk and we were praying together, when Rachel with the baby and the other two kids came to our bedroom door. Then Agape with Dimitri (3) came out of their room, and it was a real miracle because a few seconds later, big blocks and bricks from the wa
ll fell upon Dimitri's bed, which could have killed him.
Truly the Lord in His mercy spared our lives! It was a real miracle the way we got out as all the doors were blocked and wouldn't open. It was such a miracle we got out safely! What a loving Father we have!
A few minutes after the earthquake, Manasseh, Praise and their kids, who were still nearby, came back to check if we were okay. It was a great comfort to be able to be together to pray and thank the Lord for His mercy and care. He c
onfirmed His promises of protection for His Own, and said that more events like this will fall upon the Earth. He wanted us to be more prepared, as we realized that we are not yet ready for Y2K.
There are lots of valuable lessons we need to strive to learn and the most important is how to put into practice the powerful new weapons the Lord has trusted us with, how to have a stronger connection with the Lord, hearing the whispers and leading of His Spirit, especially in these Last Days, to have
unity and real love for each other and others. The Lord said that He would keep the house up for us until we were able to take all our things out of it safely too. And He did!
All communications--phone, electricity, etc., were cut off for hours. By a miracle, Agape was able to get through to Joshua's mobile phone. That was about the only phone line that worked and kept on working although no other mobile phones worked. We couldn't even find gasoline until the next morning! That night the medi
a said it was the worst night Athens had ever had, and that it was the strongest earthquake the country has had for the last 200 years!
The first two days we slept outside of our house. On the third day the army set up tents nearby our house and we claimed three of them. Manasseh and Praise are also staying with us in the tents, as their house is not livable anymore. There are almost 100,000 homeless in the city, 133 dead and a few thousand injured.
The tremors haven't stopped yet one week l
ater, and we still have quakes. The first day, people were in fear and most of them were driving like crazy in every direction to get away from the buildings. Many are more desperate and broken, while others are getting bitter and hard.
A few of our provisioning contacts shared with us how the earthquake had a negative effect on their children, who are now fearful to stay at home or go to sleep at night. We suggested that they pray with their kids before bed and read Bible stories with them. W
e shared with them the reality of the spirit world, and how Jesus hears and gives the answers to everything. Now it is even more timely to reach out to people, and we feel that one of the reasons we were so close to the heart of it all is to comfort the people around us with the Lord's love and His message of hope and a better future to come.
We have lots of friends, contacts and relatives coming over to see us, and they are helping in many ways with food, clothes, finances, etc., even invitin
g us to stay with them at their homes. The government has given some money for the homeless, so we got some too. There is a possibility that they will also help partly towards our rent. We are looking for new housing, but unfortunately people are taking advantage of the situation and have raised the rents really high now, plus it's harder to find as the need is greater this moment.
The national TV station came to our tent and interviewed Praise about the earthquake, and she took the opportunit
y to witness. Two of the news crew members prayed with her to ask Jesus into their hearts.
We're so thankful to have Jesus, for He is everything! We love you so very much!
With lots of His Love and prayers,
Mary Lamb and everybody here (Joseph/Rachel, Joshua/Agape, Manasseh/Praise and kids)
RIDDLE: What's more powerful than 200 atom bombs?
By Samara, Istanbul Home, Turkey
[Answer: The earthquake last month! They say that the quake that hit Turkey was more than 400 times the force
of the atomic explosions that hit Hiroshima and Nagasaki!
The killer quake that hit Turkey last month is said to have been the biggest of the century. It was pretty freaky to say the least! It happened in the wee hours of the morning on August 17. There had been absolutely no warning, and since earthquakes aren't a regular occurrence here, no one was prepared.
We were all blissfully sleeping in our beds, when at exactly 3:00 a.m., our whole house started shaking! One of the uncles in the
Home dashed upstairs shouting “everyone out!” Everyone started tearing down the stairs--some in panties, others with sheets wrapped around them, in any and all strange manners of clothing.
There is no way to describe how horrible it sounded, except like hell; there was glass shaking and every beam and board in the house groaning and sounding like it was about to cave in. There was a roaring sound like a giant bulldozer moving through the house.
Thank God we all made it out. However, 30-40,00
0 people weren't as blessed as us, and died in the quake. We spent all of that night sleeping in the dewy grass with the ground pulsating under us as if trying to recover from what had happened. The obvious then happened--blackout, curfews, military moving in to keep the peace, etc. We, along with most other people in the city, spent the next few nights sleeping outside!
We went the following day to check out what had happened. At the epicenter where the earthquake hit, the town was completely
leveled, as it was also on the sea front where tidal waves pulled whatever wasn't destroyed by the earthquake into the sea. We all had to wear masks as the area reeked from the smell of so much death. About 300,000 were left homeless. Nations from around the world flew in supplies, relief workers, and dogs to help locate those buried under the rubble and tents.
Thus the famous tent cities were born, where thousands of tents were set up for those who had survived. Whole cities emptied into the
tent camps as tremors have become daily occurrences, and most of the remaining houses that are still standing are ready to collapse. We have been working up at this place for almost a month now, at first just helping to set up the camp, and then digging in the mud, working in the kitchen, holding crying babies, etc. Both of our Homes in Istanbul have pretty much put everything else on hold, as our personnel are busy full time in this situation.
One more disaster that happened apart from the e
arthquake, and then the baking heat which made the area stink, was that intense rain fell, turning everything into a sea of mud, drenching the tents and making life miserable. We approached all of our friends and supporters and people have been donating soooooo much!--From fresh fruit to play dough, school supplies, vegetables, pudding, plastics, toys, clothes, you name it. We've been going camp to camp distributing, as well as taking care of the kids and doing puppet shows and other activities
for them.
The Lord said in prophecy that He had sent this earthquake to crack open people's hearts, and that is exactly what has happened. People here are so broken, and they completely devour the Heaven books that we've distributed. Prior to this the Turkish government had been cracking down on any and all sorts of evangelical activities, and deporting Christians. We've had to work with the military in these camps, and after watching us doing the most menial tasks, like picking up garbage ank
le deep in mud, etc., we have totally won their trust. Now begins the time when we can start mending people's spiritual wounds.
We really need support since, as you can imagine, people have lost everything. Most of our time is spent at this camp, and we desperately need any help you can give. Please keep us in your prayers most of all as there are still earthquakes taking place. If any of you feel like you can help with a gift at this time we would really appreciate it. Please send to: “Istanb
ul Earthquake Team” via your TRF, or F.E.S. Quake Fund via FCF.
Account of our trip to Gölcük (area worst hit in the recent earthquake in Turkey)
By the Izmir team
As you well know, one of the most destructive earthquakes ever occurred on the evening of August 17 in the Istanbul area of Turkey, 500 kms away from our Home…
The next morning, all the TV channels were broadcasting live, minute by minute, the terrible news of such widespread destruction. Seven main cities were worst hit: Gö
lcük, Kocaeli, Sakarya, Yalova, Avcilar (one of Istanbul's suburbs), Bursa and Eskiþehir. We spent the first day in prayer, as there was so much that needed to be done and we felt very small in front of the magnitude of God's doings.
Calling the Homes in Istanbul was not possible, as all phone lines were disrupted. Again, all we could do was pray. We were so grateful to be able to go to our precious Jesus and let Him handle our heavy hearts. We heard later on that the people in the Family Home
s were all safe and sound. What a relief it was to know that all was well and that He had cared for His Own!
The Lord led us to join relief efforts with a team sent by a friend's company, so the eight of us prepared in a hurry, piled early the next morning into our camper and traveled the whole day. Through a sweet friend who owns a gas station, the Lord provided the fuel we needed to get there and we arrived on the spot late at night.
The place appeared to us rather spooky, as all around us
were dust and crumbled buildings, some smashed flat to the ground, some tilted in grotesque positions, some of them only having slipped off their foundations, the first floor being at the level of the streets. It was a “ghost town.” The laundry was still hanging on the balconies, some homes seemed ready to receive back their occupants, yet all was eerie, quiet, deserted and unreal. No one was in the streets except the relief teams, military, police forces, or volunteers. Only the screeching sou
nds of the ambulances broke the silence. It was a state of complete ruin and despair. There was an awful smell everywhere, and it was safer to wear masks.
It took us a while to locate the meeting place, and by the time we got there our friends had left. This was the set-up the Lord had for us. We entered the municipality building and met with the officials. They were so impressed that we had left everything behind, and that our whole family and some friends--all foreigners--had come there as s
oon as we could. We were put in touch with the security team of Gölcük, special police forces that are usually involved with fighting the terrorists in Eastern Turkey.
Each and every one of the officers we met were so appreciative of the time we spent with them, hearing their side of the involvement, hearing their aches, and just being there for them. Most of them hadn't slept in days, and in spite of their exhaustion, they were going out of their way to receive us in the midst of this chaos,
bringing the traditional tea, and later on they sweetly fed us all. When it came time for bed that night, it was no small affair to fit all eight of us in our van, which normally could comfortably sleep four or five people. It was rather an odd sight.
After a short rest, we woke to a gloomy rainy morning, brushed our teeth right there in the street, and went to the same water tank as the locals. There was no running water anywhere, no proper toilets, no electricity, and the streets around us w
ere filled with rubble and disoriented people. People were camping out everywhere--on the town square, on the sidewalks, away from the buildings, in open spaces.
Our police friends came to greet us and introduced us to the main relief team, headed by a very kind man in his mid-fifties. We were directed to help in the food and supply lines, and for many hours some of us stood there. It was such a heartbreaking sight, lines and lines of people having lost all, coming to get bread or basic necess
ities. Each person passing was desperately hoping to get some recognition, some acknowledgment, and we felt as if we were a non-stop running fountain of love, hope and comfort. All in their own ways were grateful for the look, the pat on the arm, the brave smiles we were trying to put on for them, when all along, inside, we felt like weeping. Some were as bold as taking us into their arms and thanking us over and over again.
Others of us were directed to help with translating. Again we could s
ee the Lord's hand, as there were teams of Mexican's who could not make themselves understood. Two of our SGAs went with the teams and their dogs to try to locate people under the rubble.
One day felt like a week to us, as every slot of time was filled with some new event or our having to help here or there, or sit with people and just be a presence, a listening ear, a comforting hand--just being there for them.
The above account of events took place a couple of days after the earthquake. Ma
ny relief teams came from all over the world. There were Japanese, Malaysians, South Africans, French, Belgians, Mexicans, and a great variety of Turkish people from all over the country. In a situation like that, all barriers fall and everyone is there to help. There is an immediate kindred spirit that unites and cements all interactions. It is an overwhelming feeling to be surrounded with people who care for their fellowman. Everybody is making a sacrifice to be there; everyone feels called to
come to the rescue.
[in a box: One interesting fact is that Turkey is an area prone to such events as earthquakes. In the last four years that we've been living here, towards the end of the summer, every year has brought tremors and minor earthquakes.
We were following a study on a TV explaining the frequency of the quakes since centuries past. It was explained that at least one significant earthquake took place every 50 years (6.5) and a dramatic one (7.5 and over) every 100 years.
The
y were showing an interview taken three years ago in the Istanbul area, and different people were asked the question “What if…?” Most people answered things like: “May God preserve us from such things…,” yet this year did bring God's hand in an unmistakable way.]
Please pray for the dear people of Turkey who are slowly recovering from this ordeal. Much was destroyed; thousands of gallons of fuel burned or went in the sea. Hundreds of thousands of people have lost their dwellings and are livi
ng in tents put at their disposal by the Red Crescent and the army. But winter will soon come and emergency lodgings have to be built. We've already had a few bouts of cold, and rain has been pouring down in the damaged areas, so that the “tent cities” turned into “mud cities.”
Please pray for the many children who became orphans, and for them to overcome their fears. Two weeks later, some still find it impossible to sleep. Teams of psychologists are now on the spot trying to help children and
adults alike overcome the trauma.
Please pray for us Family folks, who are trying our best to be a blessing and an encouragement to all these dear people. Thank you so much for your earnest prayers. WLY!
Following are a few snapshots of people we interacted with:
This young Mexican fellow came with his team and trained dogs to rescue survivors under the rubble. As a young man, he happened to have been in his school bus when Mexico was hit by an earthquake. He and his fellow school fri
ends were spared. He was thirteen at the time and that is when he decided to dedicate his life wherever there would be a disaster. He was a simple fellow, who paid for his own trip and quietly went to where he was called, God bless him!
There were the special police officers who at a moment's notice were going where even angels fear to tread, as they never knew if they would come back. One such officer lost the use of one of his arms on an earlier mission when a bullet went right through his
elbow!
There was a Turkish farmer who had lost his family earlier on, and came to help, as he had no one to go to. There, he felt of some use.
Another humble man working next to us in the food and supply line, whose family survived the ordeal and was now living in a Red Crescent tent. He was so stressed that he could not eat, yet he was there giving of himself for hours and hours on end. We had to take a break and sit with him and encourage him to eat a few crackers and drink a cup of f
ruit juice. A little later we saw him going and washing himself, face, hands and feet before praying according to his Muslim tradition. This is where he was gathering the strength to go on, God bless him.
netsite
GP SITE STATS -- August 1999
Distinct Visits: 14,554
Daily Average: 469
Total Downloaded: 2.1 gigs
Total MP3's Downloaded: 521
Top 10 MP3 Downloads:
29 Eagle Bleeds
22 Pet Shop
19 Spend Time
16 Bigger Jam
15 Sea Wash Over Me
14 City of the King
13 Show Me
13 You've Got Today
13 No More War
13 Win the World Together
Lit Downloads:
23 Poster Screensavers
18 MO Letters
5 Mountain Streams
4 Word Basics
3 Living Waters
3 Who Is Jesus
2 In Search of Truth
MEMBERS' ONLY SITE STATS -- August 1999
Distinct Visits: 9,762
Daily Average: 314
Total Downloaded: 3.1 gigs
Top 20 Pubs Downloaded
290 Grapevines
177 Heaven's Library
166 Book Summaries
112 Zine
102 Prayer Lists
88 END
74 FSMs
70 WinePress
66 Chart
ers
64 MLKs
63 Heaven's Library books
57 FJWL for Tots
52 LinkUp
40 Kidland
38 Eve
34 GP Tracts
23 Blade
17 Reflections
14 Spanish Pubs
13 FC Pubs
Other Downloads:
176 MP3s Downloaded
170 Jesus Scrawlathon Downloads (Pictures of Jesus)
141 News Articles Downloaded
76 Screen Savers (The CS collection and Poster collection)
46 Family Stats
22 Now It Can Be Downloaded (Photos of Dad)
MO site feedback:
To be able to download the latest pubs and even extr
as such as the “overflow” has been such a treat and really gives the computer meaning, besides the use for HomeARC and CPY and writing letters to the brethren and my flesh family. The highlight of any activity on the computer is definitely getting the New Wine! Viewing some of the pubs in color is quite a treat and the opening up of a REAL treasure chest. Also the added blessings of being able to download new songs before they are even out, and being able to get the pictures of Dad and lots of o
ther goodies from the Family Web site is the greatest!
--Belte, Hannah and Tiana, Japan
We've been getting several e-mail sheep referred to us by the Web page team, and we're getting orders for material. Many of these people are searching, and have deep questions about spiritual matters and about God. We hope to organize something to be able to feed them monthly.
--Ben, Maria and Hannah, Mexico
GP site feedback:
A pleasant experience to find your site. Brings me joy to see that you
are still out there. I was associated with the group in Melbourne and Adelaide, Australia, back in about 1973-75. And the most important thing--I still love Jesus.
--Norm Y., Australia
My name is Ian. I was in the Family all my life until about 4 years ago. I am currently writing a book on my life and experiences in the Family, and found your Web site while doing research. My book is not about The Family, but does contain a lot of information on your group, simply because that's where I gre
w up and it has of course influenced me greatly. If you want, e-mail me or give me a call, I would love to chat anytime. I found your Website to be very professional.--Kudos to whoever was the designer(s).
--Ian, North Carolina
I met a group of young people from your organization while on vacation in San Francisco. We all sat around, chatted and listened as one of the guys in the group played some really great tunes. I am interested in learning more about what I heard that day. I was given
a poster but have since lost it and wonder if you would send me some more info and put me in touch with someone who is a part of your organization.
--J.L. Meredith, Kansas
This is an open letter to the Family: My name is Tony. I'm a single parent of an 11-year-old daughter. For the past six years we have been bouncing from church to church seeking God, but all we ever found was lies, false teaching, broken hopes, false prophecies, even one church that was more concerned with rolling on the
ground and forcing the members to “pray in tongues” than teaching the truth about God and Jesus. But now that I have been in contact with one of your members who not only has expressed real Christian love towards me and my daughter, but has also sent me materials concerning your work and mission, after reading these I feel the truth and teachings that I have been looking for may be found with the Family. The love I see expressed through your members is the love Jesus was talking about, but was a
lways lacking in whatever church we attended. I'm not sure if we can ever meet any of you in person, but my heart goes out to each and every one of you for the work you are doing for the Lord.
--Tony-Ashley K., Massachusetts
Japan web report, August 1999
Stats: We received 5,088 distinct visits (5,810 in July) and 676 MB were downloaded.
E-mail responses: This month we received a request from one of the major search engines, “Lycos Japan,” for permission to introduce our Japanese Cou
ntdown site in their directory service.
Another request came from an Internet magazine Acara. They want to introduce the Japanese Countdown site in their October issue along with different Nostradamus related sites. It's out now in the bookstores and convenience shops (circulation: 160,000). PTL!
Spanish Web site team:
In the past 25 days (August) we've received 65 letters from the sheep! We've had ever so many people visit the page and we've started sending out our own Spanish e-mail n
ewsletter. The 1st edition went to 75 recipients (only one of whom asked to discontinue the mailing), and the second one to 133 recipients! It's gotten lots of positive response, and it's a wonderful way to witness to the people who we don't have all that much contact with. Here's a letter we recently received.
Yes, I have been reading your Web pages in Spanish www.lafamilia.org and also in English at www.thefamily.org. I find the MO Letters to be a great tool at this moment. The history of
the organization is also very interesting.
I am committed to doing God's will with my life, and offer myself as a living sacrifice. I say to Jesus, if He can use anything, then Lord, use me. I don't want my own will to be done anymore, I just want to know God's will and have the courage to live the life He wants me to. This is what my whole life has been gearing up to, the triumphs and failures, everything was about getting to this point in life where I am capable to let go of my ego and say “
here I am, Lord, what do You want me to do? Reveal Your will to me. I believe it no longer is just about a Sunday appearance in a church, or a part-time effort in community service projects. I am now ready to give my life and service to the Lord full time, every waking moment.”
Jesus has revealed the Family to me. The general purpose is clear to me, since I am learning from the material in the Web pages and will soon meet members of the organization, but the specific purpose is still to be rev
ealed. However, I don't worry about my future anymore, it is in God's hands. I just continue to grow strong in the Lord. I pray, I study His Word, and do whatever good acts He reveals to me.
Love, peace and abundance, Walter
More reactions to the Activated program, from you!
I personally am thrilled about the Activated program. When I first heard about it I could only praise the Lord that something was going to be happening to help me feed all the precious sheep I had on the line. Havin
g been a full-time outreach person for the past six years, as well as a wife and a mommy to a junior teen and MC, I've found my personal schedule getting tighter and tighter. There never seemed to be enough hours in a day.
I am the type of person who really gets involved in the lives of the sheep, praying and looking for things to feed them, things that they need that day. I mainly did follow-up, and it takes a lot to keep up with people on a personal level. I was at the point that I started t
o understand why churches were started, as it was becoming almost impossible to feed everyone I knew--or at least feed them the way I felt they needed to be fed. I always felt I was falling short of the goal of getting them to where they needed to be with their walk with the Lord.
Then the Lord started laying it on my heart to get involved in this program, so I volunteered to help if I was needed, and I soon found myself with a whole new ministry. At first it was hard to forsake the sheep I kn
ew personally; in fact I cried the first two days, but the Lord comforted my heart that He had a greater vision and a greater flock that He wanted to entrust me with. So by faith I took the plunge and joined the Activated team full-time. Well, the rewards are more than worth it. I can say with full conviction this is what we need. This is what I needed when I was on follow-up. It's what I need for my relatives and friends in the System. It's a program that any outreach person can build on if we
are faithfully dropping the seeds into the hearts of those around us. It is a block upon which we can build.
It may not be for every person we meet in our day-to-day fundraising, but in my personal experience, even those folks eventually get turned on and would benefit from this magazine. If I look over the list of the 150-plus people that I took care of to varying degrees in my last situation, I would say that a majority of them I would try to get signed up. They know what I stood for even if
they didn't necessarily want the whole package. But they all were interested in the Word to varying degrees, and were very respectful of it. To me, this is just tops and I am thrilled about it!!!
--Penny, India Activated Desk
Often in my outreach I feel kind of stumped as to where to take people next and what exactly to read to them from the abundance of material we have available in the Family. Sometimes it is hard to hear from the Lord for each one on what to feed them. In that way I fee
l Activated is such a blessing, as it can just take people through a course and brings them along. It's something that I can then build on in my follow-up. I am very happy for that.
--Johnny (YA), India
WOW! This is the greatest! I feel like this is one of the best things that could have happened to the Family. I was even losing my zeal to win souls, as I was so discouraged with my follow-up! I felt so discouraged about it when I compared us with guys like the Mormons, who have their follow
-up so organized that their witnessers have a series of seven classes already laid out for them to give to potential members. Anyone who survives the seventh class is considered indoctrinated enough to become an official member. The Jehovah's witnesses too. No wonder they are two of the fastest growing religious groups in the world.
But it's as though the Lord left the best wine to serve last. This is such an answer and so needed and is going to bear so much fruit. I am super encouraged! Yeste
rday I tried Activated magazine #1 on a person I'd met for the first time. After she got saved and seemed so sheepy, I pulled out four copies and gave one to each one present, and asked her if she would mind reading it to us. You know what happened? She read it all and got so into it that she just kept going--totally absorbed, seeming completely oblivious to us--and she just ate it all up, cover to cover. The MO Letter excerpts really seem to move her. As soon as she finished reading, she remain
ed pensive for a few seconds, and blurted out in Spanish, “This is so precious!” WOW! Activated! is going to work! I just feel it!! I am completely on board. If there is anything I can do…
--Cush, Mexico
Visitation to the Philippines
By Anne, ASCRO
All the Homes we visited are very beautiful, with a good standard. Three of the six CM Homes have swimming pools, and the others that don't are still very nice houses in good residential areas. PTL! Something that impressed us in all the Home
s was how sweet and precious the younger children are. They were all--without exception--outgoing, loving and communicative. We encouraged the parents with the good training they were giving their kids, as they were all also getting good and consistent schooling. Even though for the most part there were many more children than adults, it was obvious that the parents and teachers were pouring all they could into them, because they were so sweet, real precious little kids.
Of the six CM homes in
Manila, four are comprised of mostly PI nationals, who have been there for quite some time. Most, actually were a part of the one PI Home several years back during the whole “Manila Story” situation. It's exciting to see the work prospering and the Lord doing things for them, despite the Enemy's efforts to stop the work there a few years ago. The other two Homes are Amos O'Test and Faith, who along with their teens and children moved to the PI about eight months ago. They are really excited wit
h the potential there, and are very thankful to be back on the mission field after quite a few years on home fields (the US and Australia). Then there's Steven Watchman and his Filipina wife, Mary, who returned from South Africa a few months ago due to visa problems, who have opened another Home.
In prophecy, the Lord encouraged the Manila Family that there is a lot for them to do, and that they're not to look on the Philippines as a home field, because in reality it is a mission field. The te
stimonies we've heard from the Homes were really inspiring! One Home, a two-man team, went on the road to the provinces and got out 150 videos, and 90 videos on another occasion. They also have various CTPs--one in a prison which one CM Home and one FM Home work at regularly, and have a little “church” going on in the prison with about 60 inmates who they minister to regularly.
Amos gives a weekly Bible class to friends and people they meet, and other Homes can bring their friends to it as wel
l. This is still getting off the ground, but it's a real good idea. He also gives a weekly class to the teens in the area. I guess it's something that's pretty easy to do in the PI, as people are already so geared towards this kind of thing (Bible classes, etc), probably the easiest of any country in our field as they already have a foundation with Jesus, Christianity, etc.
happenings
[From one Gospel tract]
Philip and Meekness, Namibia: We had a very inspiring meeting with three of our
94 Correspondent Bible Study sheep. Marcus, one of them, is 18 and lives 800 km north from our city, almost on the Namibian/Angolan border.
One day on the street (in his city) he found a small, ripped piece of paper. There were a few words left explaining something about Bible studies, and there was also an address! He decided to write and that's how our communication started.
It all happened few months ago. … Over the period of those few months Marcus single-handedly gave out around 1,000 p
osters and over 1,200 tracts! He witnessed to many of his friends, and now 15 more people from his school are writing in for Bible studies! Just yesterday we met with Marcus and two other teens who came to our town for a school excursion. They all prayed with us to receive the Lord, and got a big box of posters and tracts for distribution!
In one of his letters Marcus wrote: “Please send me more of your posters and tracts, especially the `666' ones. There are lots of youth in my city and I wan
t to do something for them….” We feel like the bush fire has started!
[2 years in Africa]
Ben and Meekness, Botswana: The Lord has been doing so much for us. In the two years that we've been here, this is what has happened:
--Around 6,000 souls won
--Lots of tapes and CDs distributed
--Thousands upon thousands of posters out
--Over 3,000 videos out
--$20,000 worth of food distributed to the poor, churches, villages and rundown areas
--500 kg. of beans donated to the poor
--B
lankets distributed to various handicapped centers for children
--We've covered over 130,000 km of African soil, spreading the Gospel!
--Educational books made available to thousands of less than fortunate children in Botswana
--2,000 disposable diapers provisioned
--2,680 liters of petrol received at no cost
--1,200 donated liters of milk received
--Have built lasting and long-term fruit: supporters, friends and contacts
--500 liters of the finest 100% fruit juices donated to us
--4,800 people have been fed via mail ministry
--Free car wash and service available for as long as we want
--Regular supply of fresh fruits, veggies and cheese
--The Lord has blessed us with three kids (one coming soon!)
All this to say, it certainly pays to obey the Lord when He says go! I remember someone commenting, “What on earth are you going to Botswana for? There's nothing there!” Well, we may be out here in the bush and in a predominantly desert area with temperatures going a
s high as 57°C at times, and a very tiny population, but Jesus has never failed in any of His precious promises!
God bless our dear king and queen for showing us the way and continually leading us through with the New Wine. Here in the heart of Africa we've found happiness, fulfillment, challenges and battles. Every day is a battle, but we're winning! And the best is yet to come!
[Seminar reactions]
Islamabad Home, Pakistan: We conducted a four-day teacher-training program on various topi
cs for 50 teachers representing five schools of Bahria College (Pakistan Navy Education Foundation). When they saw the certificate we were going to give to the teachers for completing the course, they printed their own using the same style and quote as ours. Below are some reactions:
“I have taught for 15 years and attended many workshops, and yours has been the best. The presentation was with simple language and with expressions we could understand, rather than complicated terminology we ca
n't relate to. I could see you really did your homework and planned it real well. Please let me know where and when I could attend a further workshop.” (Principal)
“It was nice, cheerful and well prepared!”
“May God give all of us the initiative that He gave you to help teach others.”
“It was splendid, with the highest standards!”
“The Family should conduct workshops again and again!”
“The use of many skits and video clips helped us to understand the material covered.”
“It helped us
get over the confusion regarding the different aspects of `what should be the purpose of education!'”
“It was lively and was not restricted to theoretical aspects only, which one can always read in books anyway.”
“Well done! It was wonderful! Carry on with such fervor! When are you going to train us again?”
entertainment
Movies Rated for Juniors and Up
DEEP END OF THE OCEAN, THE (1999)
Michelle Pfeiffer, Treat Williams, Whoopi Goldberg
Drama/character study about a woman whose th
ree-year-old son disappears in a crowded hotel lobby, and the effect it has on her family and marriage. Intense and thought-provoking, with many good lessons.
GREAT TRAIN ROBERRY, THE (1979) [a.k.a. “The First Great Train Robbery”]
Sean Connery, Donald Sutherland, Lesley-Ann Down
Light, somewhat unrealistic comedy set in 1855, about three thieves who plan to steal a large shipment of gold from a moving train. Entertainment only.
MURDER OF CROWS, A (1998)
Cuba Gooding Jr., Tom Berenger,
Eric Stoltz
Mystery/drama about a disbarred lawyer who retreats from society to write a book on his experiences, and a mysterious old man who befriends him right before the man's death.
THOMAS CROWN AFFAIR, THE (1999)
Pierce Brosnan, Rene Russo
A suave multi-millionaire businessman leads a secret life which involves the theft of a masterpiece from an art museum. A top insurance investigator sets about to convict him for his crime. Entertainment only.
Non-Recommended Movies
BLAIR W
ITCH PROJECT, THE (Heather Donahue, Michael Williams, Joshua Leonard; 1999)
EYES WIDE SHUT (Tom Cruise, Nicole Kidman; 1999)
FLIRTING WITH DISASTER (Ben Stiller, Patricia Arquette; 1996)
YOUR FRIENDS AND NEIGHBORS (Jason Patric, Ben Stiller; 1998)
reviews
The Deep End of the Ocean
(Jesus speaking:) This movie is a sobering, true and somewhat traumatic account of what can happen to the people of the world who do not have the protection of My Spirit. It's so easy to take your eyes off o
f one of your little ones for one second--and sometimes that's all it takes.
When you see this movie, parents especially, it's very important that you keep the proper perspective in mind, and that you guard against the Enemy's inroads of fear and worry that such a thing could happen to you. It's true that the Enemy goes about as a roaring lion, but he is limited in the attacks that he can perpetrate on My children who are under My protective power, and he is limited even further when you are d
esperate in prayer and sensitive to and following the whispers of My Spirit.
So let it rekindle in you a desperation and vigilance in the care of your precious little ones, yes, but do not give way to the fear and worry and doubts of the Enemy. I am able to keep all of those who put their trust in Me.
There are also many precious lessons on communication, honesty, unconditional love, and seeing the needs of those around you. This is not a light movie; it's meaty and heavy. But it has a sweet
, touching spirit, and it will move you to search your own hearts in many different areas. If any of you who see it feel particularly moved by it, take the time afterwards to come before Me individually, and ask Me if there are any specific messages that I have for you personally from the movie, and I can teach you even more. (End of message from Jesus.)
The Great Train Robbery
(Dad speaking:) This is a good old-fashioned movie. It's fun entertainment, without all of the bad language and hi
gh intensity action that movies these days provide. It's wittier in nature, and because they didn't have a whole lot of special effects in those days, they've made the plot quite interesting, which more than compensates for the lack of explosions, car chases, etc., that have become commonplace in movies today.
It may not be to everyone's liking, but I think that most will find it enjoyable, interesting and entertaining. The heroes in this movie aren't fighting for the right cause. They're stea
ling, which is not according to God's laws, but I think our folks are mature enough, and know what's right and wrong. It's a good movie overall and one that I would deem watchable. (End of message from Dad.)
A Murder of Crows
(Dad speaking:) This is an all-true-to-life film about lawyers. It's an exposé. You will see how corrupt they really are. It's very sad that those who know so much about the laws of the land are the very ones who twist, bend, and downright break them for their own prof
it. It goes to show you the “Devil's justice” and the power of money. It also shows the dangers of pride and the pitfalls of deceit.
When you see a film like this, you realize what a miracle our court victories have been. Maybe after you watch this you could take a couple of minutes thanking the Lord for helping us defeat our enemies in the courts, in spite of all their lies, lawyers, judges and money. Wow! PTL! Thank God for His love and mercy. (End of message from Dad.)
The Thomas Crown A
ffair
(Dad speaking:) This is a good movie because it combines love and romance, mystery and suspense together in a fun, keep-you-guessing story with no bad language or violence. It's in the tradition of the “perfect crime” story, and unfortunately because there's stealing involved, it's not a good example by any means. One redeeming factor, though, is that the motives of the main protagonist, Thomas Crown, are not evil, nor are his actions harmful to others, which if they had been would have
made it much worse, of course. I don't want to give away the plot, so I'll stop before I do! (End of message from Dad.)
Mama jewels on … the definition of victory
--to a staff member
Although you may feel rotten, as long as you're hanging on, you have the victory! If you're holding on and you're continuing to say, “I'm going to do my best no matter what it takes, no matter how horrible I feel, no matter how stretched I am, no matter how blindly I'm proceeding, no matter how wounded I am, n
o matter what a failure I feel like. I'm just going to hang on and Jesus is going to have to kick me out if He wants me to go because I'm not going to let go! No matter how down I get, or how little I think I have, I'm just going to stick. I'm going to stay.”
That's victory, folks, that's victory. Don't think that you have to be on top of the world or feeling so inspired, feeling like you've accomplished so much and that you're really putting the Devil to flight, or that you've won victories a
nd seen great miracles. You don't have to be seeing those things; you don't have to be feeling those things; you just have to know that you're determined in your heart never to give up.--That is victory.
So keep going! We know that it's not always going to be like that; you will feel feelings of victory and inspiration, but when you don't, don't give up. Just hang on and look forward to the things the Lord has in store!
forum
[CM/FM teen phenomenon]
Mark, SACRO: An interesting phenomen
on I've noticed is the good-quality disciples we are finding in many of our FM teens who are returning CM.
Hearing some of their testimonies, I see how they really had to make a forsake-all decision when they considered rejoining. One boy I met from Spain who is in the midst of his transition period told me he had to pray and count the cost, as he had a good job, a girlfriend, System friends and belonged to a soccer club. He knew what would be expected of him in the Family, but felt it was wor
th forsaking all and that that was the life for him. Although he enjoyed certain freedoms in the System he didn't want to live his life selfishly and for personal pleasure.
I've talked to others who told me the same story--that they had had their fill of movies and computer games, and knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that the System has nothing of lasting value to offer. These FM teens are making a conscious decision to leave all this behind. It's then sometimes a shock for them, and disillusio
ning to see the state of some of our CM teens lusting for all the things they just chose to leave behind. This also happens with some of our new disciples who are joining in their late teens or early 20s.
[Exercise and diet change]
Seek, Mexico: The girls here in Morelia have started regularly meeting at a stadium where we can run or do fast walking and exercises together. Some of us in just a couple of weeks of exercising about every other day have already seen the wonderful results with w
eight loss, better health, and general well-being. I agree with a book I read that diets alone don't really do the trick for losing weight. What does work is good regular exercise, and eating a balanced diet of healthy nutritional foods.
Since the Mexico Workshops, we have concentrated more on new recipes that are nutritional and low in fat. I have started noticeably losing weight, without really changing the amount of what I eat, but rather the type of food I eat, and getting a good workout a
t the track with the other girls several times a week. We have started eating much more fruit, vegetables, and an assortment of beans prepared in new ways. In just two weeks I can already fit back into my jeans that haven't fit me for some time now!
One thing that has helped is that a number of us got behind this push together. It's difficult when one person in one of our busy Homes wants to have a special diet. It's hard on the Home to provide a different diet and hard for the person to actua
lly find time to prepare it. But we just started changing our menus for the whole Home, and everyone is getting a much healthier diet.
When you go to the market provisioning, you can't always only take what is given to you and try to live on that. You need to decide what you need to have a balanced diet. This word “balanced” is a key word in health and nutrition, as the food all works together to provide good digestion and assimilation of the nutrients you need. When something is missing, then
your body might not be able to assimilate some other nutrient that you have in your diet.
So we've started taking a little extra finances with us on provisioning day, and when we see, for example, that we didn't get any green vegetables, then we buy a few kilos of broccoli, green beans or spinach. We also buy a variety of dried beans because some that we don't provision actually have more protein. A good health book will list the nutrients that you find in each of the foods you eat.
person
als
Looking for Gabriel (brother of Sarah and Victor) … Vesna here! Been trying to contact you to no avail! My e-mail is: Vesfrenchy@hotmail.com. Looking forward to hearing from you!
Dear Jeriah and Maria, where are you? Long time no hear. Drop us a line. Much love, Abel and Marie Claire (Calcutta, India). Add: J. Birdi, PO Box 16253, Saray Bose Rd. PO Calcutta, India 700029.
We received a letter for Hendrick R. H. Jr. that we don't know where to forward. It's from the US National Park S
ervice informing him of their desire to purchase some land that belongs to his family. Please contact EURCRO with details on where to forward the letter. Thanks!
David Courier, this is Pavel. You met me many times, in Barnaul, in Taskent. Now I am much closer to you, in Bratislava. Can we get in touch by e-mail? Write me at e-mail: rodina@internet.sk.
Joy M., Eva, I moved plus I don't have your new address, please contact me via Russian ABM. Address it to Gala in Ekaterinburg.
Dear Bosnia
Team and to whom else it may concern. I changed my e-mail address to: Manna14136@t-online.de. Please use this one from now on. TYSM!--David Newheart, Stuttgart, Germany.
Seeking contact
John Willing (Niels Ole Amtoft in Denmark), is trying to get back in touch with his two daughters who are still CM--Rachel and Kristy. Last he knew they were in the US traveling. His e-mail address is: smiletoday@forum.dk. He'd like to hear from you!
Dear Mama,
My mate Pablo died of cancer about four ye
ars ago--but not without leaving me with a little son. It was his first son for whom he prayed at New Year's Eve. The same year he also died suddenly of melanoma. (He felt perfectly fine until about two months before his death.)
I had had a son 10 years earlier with Brazilian Tiago, who died six hours after he was born prematurely. That same night I asked Jesus if I could keep him, but said that if it was His will He could take him back home with Him. After that I didn't have any more children
.
Then five years ago, before Pablo and I knew that he was going to die, a precious single mom, Joy (now Jasmine), came into our lives. Pablo really liked her, and both of us took her into our circle together with her children, and we became quite close. When Pablo wanted to share with her sexually I felt scared at first because I knew how much he longed for a child. He even told me that if she were to become pregnant by him, he would have to consider her his wife. So I confessed my fears to J
asmine who then proceeded to tell me that the Lord had shown her to give us the baby if she got pregnant. Both Pablo and I had a difficult time accepting such an offer of adoption. We thought it would be too difficult for a mother to give away her baby, especially a sweet mommy like Jasmine who adores little babies. But she was very positive about it and very decided. She felt so sure of the Lord's leading, even having received specific prophecies confirming it. Only a few days after declaring h
er decision she conceived.
She gave us the news of her pregnancy when she was already three months pregnant. On the same day, unbeknownst to her, we had just found out that Pablo was most probably going to die soon. She sat us down and declared excitedly: “You are going to have a baby!” Can you imagine? We were so amazed at the Lord's timing.
I was still fearful to fully receive such a wonderful and costly gift, and so decided in my heart to wait and see how things developed. Jasmine stayed
by our side through the difficult weeks of Pablo's illness, where we drew even closer in spirit. The Lord even gave the three of us individually the baby's name, before we knew if it was going to be a boy or a girl.
Only four months after Pablo graduated to the Heavenly realm, I received our little baby boy Samuel at the moment of his birth. He looks and acts a lot like his daddy, and is (like the Lord told us in prophecy) the answer to my prayer 10 years ago, when the Lord saw fit to take my
first little son back with Him.
Jasmine, at present, is living in the same Home as me. The Lord has given and continues to give her total peace and grace about it all. She says to her, the baby has been ours all along. Sammy calls her Aunty Jasmine, and he spends a lot of time with her kids as well.
It's just so beautiful and completely miraculous. Every day I look at Sammy and see Jesus´ love in a very special way.
--Love, Nina, Peru
help wanted
We are Gideon and Claire (Thai nation
als). We have eight children and Claire is pregnant with number nine. We are opening a new Home in Thailand. We need your prayers and support. Please send gifts through ASCRO. Thank you so much. WLY!
I'm Angie (16, of Australian Mike). I've been living in China for nearly three years already and the Lord has called me to reach the field of Yugoslavia and help out with the Kosovar refugees. I'm planning to go to a Home in Eastern Europe that has that ministry. I'm going to need $3,000 for my
airfare and landing funds.
You could be a part of the ministry there by helping send me there! Please send donations to: Angela, CN607.
My name is Veronica. I'm a Russian national (25) and I have been in the Family for one year. The Lord is calling me to India, but it's very difficult to raise funds in Russia right now, especially since the ruble crisis last year. I am praying for the Lord to supply enough funds for my airline ticket, as well as some landing funds, probably about $1,000 wi
ll be enough. Would you be willing to help me?
We are Paul and Charity presently living in the Czech Republic. We have six beautiful children (3-12). We have done some singing with them in the town where we live, and are witnessing to the nearby cities, but without a vehicle it is a bit difficult, and even more so to do CTP and provisioning. Our vision is to launch out with our little fireballs singing, performing and witnessing wherever we go. A camper van would help our vision to come true
. To purchase it we need your help. For any donation big or small we'll be very thankful. Contact us at e-mail: riverside@putnet.cz. Send donations through EURCRO to CZ006.
The boy by the river
From M. and C., China
It was the kind of meeting you usually only see in the movies--strangers scanning the faces in a hotel lobby, searching the crowds, hoping to catch a glimmer of recognition in someone's eyes. Then we saw it! That smile was unmistakable. “Shao Ming! After thirteen years ... it
's really you!”
By this time the grin that graced his rugged features had erupted from ear to ear. Pumping our hands vigorously in an animated gesture, this handsome Chinese businessman marveled, “It's a miracle of God! No one could deny it!”
We certainly agreed, for we had last met Shao Ming thirteen long years ago, on one of our first visits to China. At that time he was a teenage boy, full of dreams and questions. We had met him by the side of a river one day, where he struck up a convers
ation with us to practice his newly learned high school English vocabulary. He asked about our life abroad, what we did and how we lived.
That's when we were able to tell him about Jesus. We told him our life stories and how we had found an answer to so many of the questions that at one time had seemed so baffling. We explained how we found a Savior who loved us enough to die for us, who would help us live forever with Him. Sitting with us on the banks of the river as the sun went down, Shao M
ing prayed with us to receive Jesus into his heart.
We talked and talked for much of that night and most of the next day. We spoke of love and of hate, of the world's aching past and of Heaven's bright future. We talked about sadness and happiness, and how one day Jesus would wipe away all tears from our eyes. We saw hope born that evening in that young heart, and we knew that even though we would have to leave Shao Ming, God's presence would remain with him forever.
That was the last time w
e ever saw him until that wonderful day in the hotel lobby recently, thirteen years later. Oh, we had written him a number of times, sending encouraging little cards or notes of greeting. Oddly, we had received no replies. We weren't sure if it was the censorship of the mail, or problems with the address, but finally, after receiving no response to our many letters, we ceased writing. Years passed, and we moved. And moved again. And again--you know how the life of a missionary is!
Then one day
it came. A fat envelope arrived in our PO box, covered back and front with forwarding addresses and stamps. We opened it up to find a 10-page letter! The eager young boy we had known had matured into a successful businessman. Since we had last seen Shao Ming, he'd studied and traveled abroad and experienced many changes in his life. He'd known happiness and sadness, love and loneliness. China herself had passed through nearly as many changes as had our friend--from Tiananmen Square, to economic
reforms and the current open door policy to the outside world.
Shao Ming wrote that he'd found a measure of success in his work and adventure in his life, yet a hunger and yearning remained deep in his heart. He realized after many years of futile attempts, that such emptiness could only be filled by God's love. Could we help him, he asked us, regain that peace he had once found by the river so long ago?
It would be several more years, a number of letters and phone calls, as well as moving
our family to China, before we would actually meet face to face again. Searching the crowds that happy day in the hotel lobby, we found those same bright eyes smiling into ours. I thought we would burst from happiness, thanking the Lord over and over for bringing us back together again.
As we sat at a table in a quiet restaurant, filling each other in on the details of all that had transpired since we'd seen each other last, Shao Ming pulled a crumpled packet from his suit jacket. Gingerly unf
olding the worn paper which had been carefully reinforced with tape along the creases, we saw a dog-eared poster proclaiming “What Everybody Needs Is Love!”
“Over the years, whenever I was discouraged I'd read that and think of you. It gave me peace. I carry it with me wherever I go.” He also pulled the many letters and notes we had written him from the packet, and told us how much each one had meant to him.
Shao Ming is now studying God's Word and learning more about the Man he met by the r
iver so many years ago. “Every hungry heart shall be filled, and they that seek shall find.” I live close to that same river now, and often when I go there I see other young people who remind me of the boy we met so many years ago. They also search for hope, truth and a purpose in life. The Man of Love is waiting to come into their lives too. I pray we'll be there to speak with them and point them in the right direction.
Will you help us be there for them? We're living by faith, and need your
support to make the miracle happen again. Right now we need pledges of $600 to cover our rent and food bills each month. Thank you for helping us be able to be here for them.
letter to the editor
Re: Taking help for granted
I agree 100% with the FGA woman in Grapevine #71, who talks about giving the teens in childcare more appreciation.
It's very easy to take them for granted and just expect them to take the kids till dinner, and often even after during Home meetings, etc. When I was w
orking in childcare it was rare to hear a “thank you for taking care of my kids for me,” and it was often difficult for me to keep the vision day in and day out.
When I was on childcare as a teen, there were lots of things I always made myself promise I'd be sure to do if I ever became a parent--e.g., always give the caretakers encouragement, never be late to take my kid, say “thank you,” etc. But now I find that I need to remind myself of these things, lest I start expecting too much of them
myself.
--YA girl, Thailand
Idea: sweet things Homes can do for single parents
-Take in some of the children, at least occasionally, for schooling, fellowship, and parties.
-Take the older kids on occasion in order to give the single parent more time with his/her younger ones.
-Help specifically with a single mom's boys or a single father's girls, as it's easier for a mom to do things with her girls, a father with his sons, while the boys need a daddy's hand, and the little girls need
activities with a mother figure.
-Invite a single parent for an outing with his/her kids.
-Take turns to be in the single parent's Home on a weekend or a certain day of the week to help him/her, even on a regular basis.
-Provide talk times for the single parent's JETTs or teens.
-Take the children for a night and part of a day so the single parent can have time alone with the Lord.
ideas and tips
There are so many key, life-changing things in each GN. Most of us mark and write not
es, but with the fact of life being that we're very stretched time-wise and often need to fill in for others and take on more responsibilities than we should, we end up not managing to always stop and counsel about each and every GN and put the changes into effect in our lives as we should. Marina (of Tim) had the idea to take each key GN or FSM that's directional, and delegate it to one person in the Home who could focus and try to help push that particular GN through. I really liked that idea!
I just copied the list of 61 amazing suggestions in “Do the Humble Thing” GN which I'm printing out over a number of pages. Printing up key quotes attractively more often might help us try to help these precious Words take hold of our hearts and affect real change!
--Robin, Japan
Members only Family Web site
--www.familymembers.com
November UserID: november
November password: all4114all
behind the scenes
By Peter A.
During the first week of September, I spent a little over
a week in Sao Paulo, Brazil, accompanied by Matthew, Francis and Jenna, where a six-day follow-up meeting took place. One or two attendees from each CRO area took part in this get-together (SACRO, particularly Brazil, sent considerably more since it was held on their home turf at little travel cost), so that every area would be represented; there were 19 attendees in total.
The purpose for this meeting was to gather some follow-up representatives from around the world in order to counsel, pray
and plan out the post Activated! follow-up program. As you've read in the Activated! GN (GN849), once a sheep has been subscribing to the Activated! course for a designated amount of time, we hope to be able to turn that sheep over to your local Family Homes. The Family Homes would then take up the torch of ministering personally to the sheep, feeding them, giving them personalized classes, teaching them to witness, etc.
We realize that in order to do this, you will need materials to do the j
ob with, such as classes, more GP feeding materials--in short, the Lord has shown us that an entire post-Activated! follow-up course will be needed in order for you, our precious Family, to be able to bring along these sheep and hot leads--as well as other sheep you minister to personally who may not be Activated! subscribers--all the way from basic Bible knowledge to discipleship, or through to however far they're interested in going. At present if we were to give Family Homes a list of address
es to follow-up on, it would take a great deal of each Home's time to compile classes, look up Word on the HomeARC, chart out a balanced course and spiritual diet for the sheep over a period of months or years.
Although some of you have been faithfully ministering to your sheep and following-up on them for years, for the most part, one reason why the Family has been weak in the area of follow-up is because there has been no plan or course already laid out to follow--you have all been just to0
busy to prepare one. This is what we're hoping and praying the Lord helps us to create--a series of courses, basic, intermediate and advanced, that take someone all the way from the time you first meet them through to discipleship in some form or other, at which point they can decide what level of discipleship they want to go on to, be it outside witnesser, live-out, FM or CM.
This is a mammoth undertaking, so please keep this project in your prayers. During this meeting, we were able to cover
a lot of ground, and the representatives who attended were able to chart out a skeleton for two follow-up courses that will be worked on in the near future. The first course in the series will be to familiarize new converts with the basics of Christianity, and will last from 3 to 6 months. The second course is the “Discipleship Course,” for those who complete the first six-months and are more serious and interested in going on to some form of discipleship; this course will last for approximatel
y one year. We're hoping to make these courses very complete, with all the material you need to teach the classes included, along with a teacher's handbook and student workbooks. During the meetings the delegates were able to pow-wow many of the tips and lessons that they've learned in pioneering successful follow-up ministries, which we hope to include in the teacher's handbook or a separate how-to manual.
We in WS who attended the meetings were able to get a tremendous amount of input from t
he delegates concerning follow-up, feeding the sheep, the needs of each field, and now we'll begin work on it with the help of Abi Morningstar from the European media desk and other attendees from the meetings. This follow-up program, like the Activated! ministry, will require a great deal of work and prayer. Our goal is to have it available to pass on to you before we turn over any Activated! addresses, so that it will be possible for every Home to effectively follow-up on the sheep the Lord ha
s given us. During that first year we will be faithfully feeding them with the Activated! material and encouraging them to order other feeding Family products.
Each of the delegates who attended the meeting are involved in a follow-up work of some sort. Several Homes in South America, particularly in Brazil, have large and fairly advanced follow-up ministries, and are completely supported through their follow-up and the tithes and gifts of their live-outs. These Homes are bearing a tremendous
amount of fruit, due to prayerfully following the Lord step by step and helping to pioneer the way. They've prepared many courses and classes, which we'll be able to glean from in putting together this new follow-up course.
We realize that there are others of you out there who also have wonderful follow-up works, and we're sorry that we weren't able to bring everyone who has been a pioneer of this ministry to these meetings; due to financial constraints we were only able to have one or two rep
resentatives attend from areas outside of South America. However, we'd be very thankful to receive follow-up testimonies, pointers, tips, lessons, photos, articles and how-to's from anyone who has experience and is willing to contribute. We need your input and most of all, your prayers, in order for this follow-up course to become reality. Now begins the pick-and-shovel work on it, so please keep all those involved in your prayers. We love you!
reaction from one of the attendees
Dear Mama,
It's been wonderful to be able to work with dear Peter, Matthew, Francis and Jenna, as well as those attending the meetings from the different fields. It's such a privilege to be working together during this time.
Peter and the others from your Home are so hardworking, so dedicated and committed that I wish every Family member would be able to see the way they sacrifice for us and how their whole time, life, mind and actions are geared toward helping us, the Family. If anyone ever battled i
n reference to WS people, how they live and what they do, just seeing this would dispel them all.
At the same time they're so fun to be with and so “normal”--the way they interact and play soccer with us, crack jokes and all. They're so sweet and enjoyable.
I could go on and on about Peter's humility and what a wonderful king we have, such a sample of true love and humility, but I don't want this to get too long. I pray we can be a blessing and at least come close to this same love and dedic
ation to the Family, and that what we do during these meetings will be of benefit to the Kingdom.
In your service forever,
Fran (Lima, Peru)
Shine On -August `99
TEAMWORK Per Adult Total
SOUL SHINERS FOR AUGUST `99
Samuel/Rosita, Mexico 2,750 5,500
Pablo E., Chile 1,097 2,194
Josue/Maria, Mexico 942 4,712
Andres/Luz, Colombia 780 1,560
David/Maria Rosa, Brazil 625 1,250
Madras Deaf Home, India 560 2240
Mark/Faithy, India 448 895
Steven/Claire/Daniel/Crystal, India 430 1720
Mary
/Johanna/Mercy, Ukraine 383 3830
Jimmy/Teresa, Japan 340 680
POSTER SHINERS FOR AUGUST `99
Steven/Mercy, Japan 3,750 7,500
Peter S./Crystal S./Mary M., USA 3,523 14,093
Chriatmas, Japan 2,587 2,587
Martin/Mercy/Jonathan, Mozambique 1,625 9,752
David Searcher/Pandita First Love, Japan 1,506 6,024
Jafet/Julieta, Mexico 1,500 3,000
Promise, Japan 1,345 1,345
Ezequiel/Maria, Mexico 1,250 2,500
Michael Christian/Maria Christian, Japan 1,218 4,875
Francis/Joanna/Christopher, USA 1,210 13
,308
TAPE SHINERS FOR AUGUST `99
Samuel/Sara, Mexico 201 401
Pablo E., Chile 185 371
Charity Rose/Cancion, USA 125 250
David/Madalena/Paula, Brazil 111 444
Micah/Merry, Japan 97 976
Samuel/Clara, Spain 90 181
Josue/Abigail/Caleb/Heidi, Costa Rica 80 404
Sam/Maria, Brazil 76 153
Tim Newlove/Elisabeth, Spain 70 211
Samuel/Rosita, Mexico 63 126
VIDEO SHINERS FOR AUGUST `99
Ben/Meekness, Botswana 100 200
Abner/Esther/Claire/Sharmini, South Africa 54 163
Jesse/Maria Clara, Brazil 3
9 79
Marcos/Abby, Brazil 36 73
Andrew/Lena/Angel, Swaziland 35 140
Juan F./Ester/Susana, Brazil 33 166
David/Esperanza/Santiago, Peru 30 90
Tim/Marie/Dove/Simeon, Indonesia 28 225
Pablo/Zacarias/Clarita/Joy, Colombia 26 160
Phinneas/Joy/Matthew/Ama, Mexico 25 124
Also included with this file:
Family statistics flier--August `99 (PDF)
(End of file.)
Copyright (c) 1998 by The Family