One almost feels overwhelmed by the severity of needs that are apparent around the globe. As the pastor of a small rural church in the United States I minister with those who are the “salt of the earth” in so many ways. Many have not traveled the globe but still have “hearts” that love and pray for those in every corner. We recently decided to expand our horizon of ministry by seeking an international ministry that would provide an opportunity for us to join their efforts in addressing some of these distant needs while at the same time helping to build a new food pantry in our local community. We decided to link together with Life International in supporting their Water for Life program, drilling wells around the globe.
After contacting Chris Banning, who assisted us with information and promotional materials we spent the next three months or so promoting the Water for Life program as well as our local food pantry. Our congregation was very supportive and ended up raising funds to provide three wells in addition to a comparable amount for the local food pantry. Near the end of our fundraising we were encouraged by John Yeatts, National Coordinator for Churches for Life, and were able to meet for a short visit in our community. This led to the opportunity for John to return at a later date and to minister to our church as well as to address our local conference of churches for an all day meeting.
I was encouraged to know that an international ministry would take time to support small church ministries and found that Life Outreach was genuinely interested in our ministry and not just in securing support for their work. I would encourage other churches that may desire to link together with an international ministry to pray about helping support the ministry of Life Outreach. A small church is able to leverage resources and capabilities that would be out of the question, otherwise. We have found a new friend in ministry as well as an organization that is able to extend our support to those around the globe.
Sometimes God may not be trying to get us to start something new as much as He is trying to get us to join in with someone already doing His work.
Pastor Dale Bales
New Liberty Congregational Christian Church
If you would like to join Pastor Bales and the members of LIFE Change Christian Church, Please visit our page About CFL
