You are crazy not to care

"The crazy folks at Hope Mennonite Church (in Winnipeg) believe God wants us all to take care of the earth.  And they want to show you 350 Bible references to "prove" it!"  

Watch the video below or view all of the verses here.

The crazy people at MCC Ontario believe God wants us all to take care of the earth as well...

So we have developed a DVD resource called handle with care with the goal to "encourage and inspire the Church to take greater care of God’s creation."  

For more info visit http://ontario.mcc.org/creationcare

MCC UN Liason Office Student Seminar

Are you a college or university student?  Want to learn more about Mennonite Central Committee?  ...The United Nations?  ...Mining justice?

Want to travel with me to New York, New York?  (Okay, that may not be a draw...)

MCC: Connecting the World Through Service

Ever heard the musical creations of Playing For Change?  Their motto is Connecting the World Through Music.  I like it.  A good motto and an interesting project.

"Playing for Change is a multimedia movement created to inspire, connect, and bring peace to the world through music...music has the power to break down boundaries and overcome distances between people."

I grew up in a family and in a community that sings a lot together.  And in my travels throughout the world, nothing has brought me closer to the communities that have hosted me more that music.  Music has an good way of bringing people together.

So does service.  If we play on the words of the "Playing for Change" motto we get a good one for MCC: Connecting the World Through Service.

Extraordinary Stories from Ordinary People: Enlace 2010

Enlace is a 1-month service and learning program for 16-19 year olds.  The 2010 Enlace team just returned from Guatemala and El Salvador.  


They learned and experienced a lot.  


But what is the value of all the travel and learning if it only benefits the participants?  Part of Enlace is about enriching the communities that send participants.  So the 2010 Enlace team wants to share their stories - with their families, friends, churches, and ...you!


"We have a whole new perspective on consumerism, the projects of MCC, wealth disparity, natural disasters, and mining, "says Enlace co-leader, Hannah Redekop.  "We've come home to share with you about things we have experienced first hand, and advocate about issues that have become very dear to us. I encourage you to listen and learn." 


The Enlace "experience was very enriching and taught me much about what it is like to live with less," said one recently returned participant, Thomas Loepp-Thiessen.  "I have learned to be skeptical about what I perceive myself needing, and traveling has made me more compassionate to the less fortunate, and more empathetic about international issues." 


They want to share their stories.  Do you want to hear them?  If so, let us know.  You can invite them to come to you.  Or we can let you know where the Enlace Team will be speaking this fall.

Loneliness, Stress, Sex...and technology?

What are the some of the main issues facing youth today?

Sean McDowell (no relation as far as I know) says loneliness, stress, and sex.  Those are definitely issues that I have dealt with.  But there are some others that I have been thinking about lately as well...

A Globe and Mail article that said "9.7 per cent of kids in Grade 7 to 12, or about 327,000 students, spend at least seven hours a day in front of a TV or computer."  

Mountain-man...but no Luddite

I am no mountain-man-Luddite, but that seems a little much.  What ever happened to good ole' street hockey?  Reading books?  Enjoying the great outdoors?  Not much time for those things if you are facebook-creeping and tv-watching 7 hours a day.  If 10% of youth are consuming that much tech (and I imagine there are loads of others who are not far behind...), I would say that is an issue.  Media and technology that we consume affects us.  Deeply.

"In the name of Christ, I quit Christianity"

Interested? I was too.

Check out this link to a short article on the Evangelicals for Social Action (ESA)* website if you want to learn more about that quote.

Once you have read that article, you might be interested in the responses...

~allan

*For those of you who don't know, ESA was started by a guy named Ron Sider. He wrote a really great book called Rich Christians in an age of Hunger. If you ever think about money and faith, you should read it.

IVEP: bringing the world to your home...

I have a really good job.

I say this not because I get paid a lot (though I am very happy with my pay). I say this because I have the opportunity to learn from and grow through my work with MCC.

"Who cares," you might ask? I am not sure...

So let me tell you instead about some of the work that I do, and how you might get involved. It is much more interesting.

I coordinate the International Volunteer Exchange Program (IVEP) for MCC in Ontario. It is a one year cultural exchange program that brings young adults from around the world to our communities. I set up host families and work placements, and spend time with the IVEPers as they process their experience and integrate into church and community life. It is a pretty sweet program that has been benefiting IVEPers and the communities they connect to for about 60 years. Yes, that's right. 60 years: the program is tried, tested, and true.

I like to think of it as a reciprocal program to SALT. SALT sends you around the world - IVEP brings young adults from around the world to you.

To get an idea of what IVEP looks like check out an article that was recently published in a local newspaper about the program.

Or don't, and keep reading to learn about how you might be apart of it...

Enlace 2010: A True Story

So this is Mr. Frank talking and what I’m going to be talking about is a little bit about the group and what I’ve have learned on this [Enlace] trip.

Once A Upon A Time...

...a group of 7 went to a place called El Salvador . When they were in El Salvador they learned so much: they learned to care, love, share, and to work together as a group better. Its not that they didn’t know how to do that before it’s just that they saw and felt the pain of what the people in El Salvador were going through and they just didn’t want it happening to the ones they love and care about. Now they treasure everyday because of what they have learned and it keeps them =) *it means smiling*

So now I’m just going to talk little bit about what I have learned on this trip. I’ve learned to treasure the things I have back home and be thankful to GOD that he has blessed me with a great life and a wonderful family.
So don’t every take anything for granted,
be happy with what u have!

- Frank Her

Enlace 2010: A True Story

Xtra-Normal

The 2010 Enlace group is coming home Tuesday... but we are already gearing up for next year's program.

We have several Enlace video's on the way....some more serious than others. To kick things off, check out the (awesome) promo video # 1...

And be sure to visit the Enlace website.

Walking to Learn with Jesus

As Christians we are followers of Jesus. Not just the Jesus we call Lord, Saviour, Redeemer, Messiah (feel free to add any titles I have missed here...). We also follow Jesus of Nazareth, he who walked the earth as we do.

We can be followers in a variety of ways - whether we walk the Jesus Trail in Israel or walk the streets of a small town in Ontario; whether we serve with MCC internationally or serve our community locally. Regardless of where and how we choose to follow (or perhaps a better way of saying it is regardless of where we are led), we can look to Jesus and the disciples to see how they learned. And how DID they learn? They walked! They got out of their comfort zones and moved and met people and they learned along the way.

I wrote a section of an article called "Walking to Learn with Jesus" for the Nazareth Village publication, The Word on the Street, that is all about this. Click here to see the full article which includes sections by David Landis (the creator of the Jesus Trail) and Linford Stutzman (author of Sailing Acts).

~Allan

J

esus walked and walked! He was on the move. Jesus took risks on the road and did things that others wouldn’t do. He interacted with people whom he was supposed to ignore and hate. As he walked he explored the world around him and related to all kinds of people. Jesus learned as he walked.
Jesus called his disciples to walk with him. “Come, follow me. “Come, learn with me.” The disciples learned many of the lessons of the kingdom on the way through the fields, along the path, on the slopes of mountains. By answering Jesus’ call to “come and follow” we commit to walking with Him, to learn as his disciples did. We commit to move to explore and relate with the world around us.