As many of you remember last week we had some special guest, Kristine Vainovska and Rev. Gita Mednis, from Latvia with us for worship at Awaken. This is a picture from last week after Awaken.
(this is some of us posing for a picture with Kristine)
Here is a video from Latvia. Ceesu bazniica = building for purchase in Cesis, Latvia to be made into a place of worship with your help!
Main Site – www.ImagineNoMalaria.org/
Twitter – http://www.twitter.com/imaginenomalaria
Facebook – http://www.facebook.com/umcImagineNoMalaria
Youtube – http://www.youtube.com/user/ImagineNoMalaria
You can see all of the above links in the column on the right under “Imagine No Malaria” (“INM” stands for Imagine No Malaria.)
Every 30 seconds a child dies from malaria. It is a disease that is preventable and treatable. We eliminated it in America in the 1950s, but today 90% of deaths from malaria occur in sub-Saharan Africa.
Our conference raised $135,276 with the Nothing But Nets Annual Conference offering in 2007, resulting in 13,527 bed nets now providing protective coverage for families in Africa! Imagine No Malaria is the next step in the goal of ending suffering and death from this preventable disease. It continues to include bed nets, but expands into other areas of prevention, treatment, education, and communicating life-saving information.
Our conference’s minimum goal with the 2010 Annual Conference offering is the equivalent of $1 for every member of this conference — about $164,000. Individual contributions can be made through your local church. Totals will be reported during the 2010 Annual Conference June 6-9 in Fort Worth. The INM offering will continue through the end of this year and on until our goal of $1 per member has been reached.
We anticipate a celebration of accomplishment in June 2011!
Today is World Malaria Day.
Watch this video to find out what Imagine No Malaria is all about.
A message from the Latvia/Lithuania Consultation and how you can participate.
You are invited to participate in the Latvia/Lithuania Consultation via webcast this coming weekend at First United Methodist in Lancaster, Ohio. Two full hours of the joint session will be broadcast from 10:00am-12:00pm Eastern Standard Time on Saturday morning at the following website: http://gbgm-umc.org/consultations
Through the miracle of technology via the internet we are able to include all of you who can spare a few minutes to join us. Even if you are in Latvia and
Lithuania, you can participate. That’s right! Simply go to the website and you
will be able to see and hear everything live. You will also be able to ask questions as if you are with us in person. How? There will be a facebook box beside the video window. You can log on to your facebook account and ask a question or make a comment. We will be watching and answer your questions.
The world is getting smaller by the minute. In addition to the webcast and
facebook questions, we will also feature live interaction via skype with some of our wonderful leadership in Latvia and Lithuania. Wow! This is your opportunity to be apart of the Latvia/Lithuania Consultation in a way not imaginable before. For those of you watching and participating in Latvia and Lithuania, please remember the time difference. It will be broadcast on
Saturday from 17:00- 19:00.
We are especially grateful to our host church coordinator Tim Binkley and our GBGM webteam leaders Margaret Wilbur and Jay Rollins for making this possible.
Please join us Saturday!
Blessings in Christ,
Patrick Friday
Webcast Host
Tonight we are welcoming special guest Kristine Vainovska to Awaken. Kristine is the Volunteers in Mission coordinator for the United Methodist Church in Latvia and is also the assistant to the superintendent, Rev. Gita Mednis. We are very excited to welcome Kristine to Awaken. This is the beginning of a partnership that we (Meadowbrook United Methodist Church) are entering into with the United Methodist Church in Latvia. I hope you will come and meet Krisitne and worship with us tonight! Worship will begin at 8:00pm. You can come on up as early as 7:00pm to meet Kristine and hang out with us before worship begins. Bring a friend to join us tonight and we will see you very soon!
Latvia has a negative birthrate. Coming out of the long communist occupation, our social services have not yet caught up with the great needs in our society. The UMC in Latvia felt a call to help young women, who, if helped, would choose to keep their baby instead of having an abortion. God directed our attention toward pregnant teens living in orphanages or crisis centers. Once a teenager becomes visibly pregnant, they are no longer allowed to live in the orphanage.
Hope Center in Latvia
Goals and Objectives
1. To be able to break the dysfunctional family cycles for these young mothers and their children.
2. To integrate these young mothers and their children back into society so they may be productive members of their community.
3. To finish the renovations needed on the Liepa and Straupe Hope Centers.
4. TO come up with a plan for the additional space in the Straupe Hope Center that could generate additional income.
The Methodist Church in Latvia was closed for over 50 years. Latvia was occupied by the Soviet Union and the Methodist Church was seen as a CIA agent because of its close ties to the United States. The church, with the help of the General Board of Global Ministries (GBGM), re-opened its doors when Latvia re-gained its freedom. Today, there are 13 congregations and it is a growing church. GBGM and World Evangelism’s support has enabled the church to not only exist but to train new pastors and welcome a new generation of Methodists.
The United Methodist Church in Latvia
Goals and Objectives
1. To give the people of Latvia an opportunity to experience a Wesleyan model of being a people and a church of God.
2. To develop a strong lay, clergy and youth base for this new ministry.
3. To build up existing congregations and plant new ones.
4. To reach out with more social and diaconal ministries.
5. To continue to run the Hope Centers while the need exists.
6. To become self-supporting and then reach out to other emerging churches.
Learn about the Wesley Camp in Latvia!
You are always welcome at WESLEY CAMP & RETREAT CENTER!
Wesley camp is open to all Christian groups who seek spiritual growth and renewal in their lives. Their international camp is a place for making disciples of Jesus Christ in a beautiful outdoor setting on the shores of the Baltic Sea. The leadership team is focused on helping each person to grow closer to God and to develop a stronger relationship with Jesus Christ. The place is called, “Holy Ground.”
Wesley Camp & Retreat Center is owned and operated by the United Methodist Church
(click on the logo to learn more)
Welcome to Texas Kristine. If you can’t already tell we are very excited to have Kristine Vainovska join us at Awaken this Tuesday night. Kristine works for the United Methodist Church in Latvia. Come and hang out with us and Kristine before Awaken starts beginning at 7:00pm. Then Kristine will bring the message that night. Worship will begin at 8:00pm. Gather together several of your friends and bring them up. You will not want to miss this! We will see you all soon!
(this is the Latvian Flag)
Methodism first came to Latvia in early 1921, quickly grew to 20 congregations, and in 1925 sent its first missionary to India. World War II and the Soviet period reduced the church to barely nothing until Latvia regained its independence in 1992.
The rebirth of Methodism in Lithuania is an amazing story of God’s grace and God’s people sharing with one another. Today, The United Methodist Church in Latvia has 13 organized churches in Latvia (11 Latvian speaking, 2 Russian speaking) .
Two major programs are Wesley Camp, a 30-acre retreat on the shore of the Baltic Sea, and Hope Center, which provides shelter for homeless and underage pregnant girls:
Here is a link to the Friends of Latvia winter newsletter if you are interested in checking out what has been going on.
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Awaken Worship Gathering 