Our first missions team of 2024 – our Jamaica team – returned on February 22 after serving and making an impact in various local Jamaican communities. The team helped with food distribution and at Teen Challenge rehabilitation centers, as well as shared the Gospel in schools. Many were able to use their gifts and share their personal testimonies with those they served.  I’m so appreciative of every member of our team. What a wonderful start to our 2024 trips and opportunities!

In addition, this Wednesday, February 28 during our Wednesday Evening Service, we will be joined by Chris Oakley. He is a missionary to Budapest, Hungary, and the new Director of Europe’s Heart, which has an evangelical focus on the Roma people of southeastern Europe. Join us at 7:00 PM in the Sanctuary for worship and a great message!

Finally, if you have a heart for missions and would like to receive this monthly update via email, I encourage you to opt-in at this link. This opt-in option is also available on our Missions page. These updates provide a great opportunity to learn about additional missions information, stories, ways to pray and updates. We value your support and would love to stay connected every month!

Find links to all of our missions trips and opportunities on our Missions page.

Questions? Email us at missions@clacamphill.com.

There are many individuals right here in our community who would benefit from a compassionate hand extended in Jesus’ name. We continue to make strides in having an impact in our community by partnering with and supporting local organizations, such as the West Shore School District, Hands & Feet Ministry, Greenlight Operation and more. Here is an update on several exciting upcoming opportunities.

An exciting initiative that we are launching in March is our Mission 10 Work Days. These will occur on the fourth Saturday of each month (March-October) and involve various construction-type projects at various locations.

In March and April, Work Day teams will be assisting with projects at the Bongiorno Conference Center, where countless kids, students and adults have meaningful encounters with Jesus through camps, retreats, conferences and more.

Interested in registering for one or both of these Work Days? Visit our Missions page to learn more.

Would you enjoy offering a simple invitation to join us for Easter to individuals in neighborhoods near CLA? Then please consider registering for our next You Belong Invite Team on the morning of Saturday, March 23. There are lots of statistics that state that people would be willing to visit a church if someone simply asked them. This is your chance!

Visit our Missions page for details.

More details will be coming in the next month but, this spring, we will have a Wednesday evening group focused on prison ministry training beginning April 3. It will be led by Pete Einstein and based on his book, The Inmate Within: Prison Ministry, a Haven of Hope. 
 
While all are welcome to attend, participating in this group will be a prerequisite to participating in prison outreach through CLA. We will also offer a morning training on Saturday, June 8. Registration for the training group and training day coming soon!

More than 100 volunteers serve behind the scenes and when our Breads and Threads Food Market and Clothing Boutique is open. We have an average of 600 shoppers per month who represent approximately 260 families. Various cultures are represented among the families who regularly shop here.

The goal of Breads & Threads, under the leadership of Jamey McClintock, Adult Ministries Director, is to provide shoppers with free food and clothing, as well as build relationships with them so we can share resources that will lead to healing and growth in all areas of their life.

Interested in learning more about volunteering? Email Jamey at jamey.mcclintock@clacamphill.com.

Over the past 35 years, RV Missionaries have worked nationwide with volunteer teams to help build, repair and assist churches and ministry centers. Part of this nationwide team includes John and Diana Kennedy, who serve in our own PennDel District.

John and Diana have been working hard! In 2023, they:

• Developed the Bongiorno Assembly Church with a Children’s Program for the staff and local community members. These weekly services are a connection point to Jesus, which, so far, have allowed five people to choose to become a follower of Jesus and two people to share that decision publicly through water baptism.
• Have established seven Church Mobilization Projects where they will coordinate and work with Church Teams. These projects range from basic repairs through more involved renovations at the Bongiorno Conference Center, Philly Dream Center and several churches.
• Have participated in ministry trainings and continue to present Church Mobilization whenever possible.
• Had many other opportunities, such as Seek & Save, which resulted in more than 800 people being saved and 300 baptisms; encouraging women through daily messages; and establishing a food/supply pantry for the Bongiorno Conference Center staff.

If you would like to know more about Church Mobilization or being an RV Volunteer, visit churchmobilization.ag.org.

In 2016, David and Shirrie Dominguez moved from Florida to Philadelphia, PA as Assemblies of God U.S. missionaries with the intention of planting a church. However, they were overwhelmed by seeing the worst open air drug market in the nation and felt led to change their plans and instead follow God’s plan…initially through street ministry, and then through a church.

Over the years, God has worked in miraculous ways. People have been saved, cared for and ministered to; this year, CLA will continue to be a part of that mission. If you would like to make a difference by being a smiling face to serve food to the homeless, someone to pray with those in need, or interested in dressing minor wounds, please consider signing up for one or more of these one-day trips:

• Saturday, May 11
• Saturday, July 13
• Saturday, October 12

To register, visit our Missions page.

In 2008, Kenyan tribal rivalries moved to an all-time high following a presidential election. As the political dissention festered, the intensity of the situation grew. Chaos in the community quickly broke out, and people started to react with a mob mentality. With hurling weapons and much yelling, the scene became overwhelming.

Many people, especially women and children, ran to hide. In their attempt to seek safety, they ran into a nearby church. In their fear, they wept, prayed and sought God. Unfortunately, things got much worse. The rioters started boarding up the doors and windows, trapping the people inside. After setting the building on fire, the rioters waited to attack those who tried to escape.
 
Sadly, many perished in the fire that day, and most of them were women and children. But our God is a God of love and mercy. He created us with a perfect plan. He wants us to choose to be in a relationship with Him, and free will gives us that option. God created good but, because of sin, human influence gets in the way and distorts what was meant to be.

It is often easier to follow the customs of the world rather than follow God’s direction. Thankfully, God did not give up on us. John 3:16-17 says, “For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him.”

Many Christians are familiar with these verses but, what follows in this Chapter is often overlooked. John 3:18-21 says, “There is no judgment against anyone who believes in him. But anyone who does not believe in him has already been judged for not believing in God’s one and only Son. And the judgment is based on this fact: God’s light came into the world, but people loved the darkness more than the light, for their actions were evil. All who do evil hate the light and refuse to go near it for fear their sins will be exposed. But those who do what is right come to the light so others can see that they are doing what God wants.”

God loves us all. He cares for us so deeply that He was willing to sacrifice His One and Only Son, but we must believe in Him! He deeply loved and cared for the people who died in the church that fateful day, but He loves those same people who set the building on fire. What might be even harder to comprehend is that, if they said “yes” to Him today, He will also forgive them, and they will not perish but have eternal life.

Can you say the same thing – that you love and forgive someone who has deeply wounded you? As a follower of Jesus, our response should be yes but, in our humanness, the reality is that we often struggle with deep wounds and unforgiveness.

It has taken a long time, but God has been healing this area of Kenya. The memories of that tragic day are still present, but tribal rivalries have calmed, and the community is seeking Jesus. After years of political roadblocks, the church is now ready to be rebuilt, but we are not just talking about a building…we are talking about the people.

The people of a hurting community that need Jesus. They need a place to come together and heal. They need a place where they will be accepted no matter what their tribal origins are, or even what their decisions have been. The one decision God cares about is someone saying yes to Him. This is how God is glorified, despite a horrific tragedy.

If you are feeling led to be a part of the rebuilding of His church in Kenya, please consider going and visit our Missions page.