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I ran into a high school acquaintance of my 25-year-old son last Monday. His parents are very involved in a local United Methodist congregation. I inquired about his involvement, knowing that I had seen him at Ginghamsburg on several occasions in the past. He informed me that he was no longer a Christian but had converted to Buddhism several years ago. Compassion is the highest value of the Buddhist tradition, and, as my young friend reminded me, quite frankly it is not a value that is highly demonstrated by many people in the Christian church. I have noticed other young friends from my children’s generation who have grown up in solid Christian families but who no longer participate in a local congregation. Many from the post-1970 generations see the church as an organization of irrelevant programs and activities rather than a community that embodies the incarnation mission of Jesus in the world. Perhaps it’s not too surprising that only 4.7% of United Methodist clergy are age 35 and under. Jesus is the embodiment of compassion—the demonstration of God’s love that is willing to pay the ultimate sacrifice for the oppressed and distressed.
Posted By: Pastor Mike Slaughter on Oct 18, 2007 03:22PM
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Prayer for our sisters and brothers in Darfur remains urgent! On Monday, October 8, the key rebel-held town of Muhajeria in south Darfur was attacked. At least 45 were killed and dozens wounded. Muhajeria is located in the same region in which The Sudan Project’s agriculture, child development & protection, and safe water programs funded by Ginghamsburg Church and its partner churches, schools and businesses are located.For the latest video update on the child development program, click here.
Posted By: Pastor Mike Slaughter on Oct 11, 2007 03:22PM
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I received this letter from a concerned sister in Christ after my message on The Way Of Simplicity this past weekend. Many Jesus followers are wrestling with our responsibility for the care of God's creation. I would really like to hear your thoughts….
Posted By: Pastor Mike Slaughter on Oct 09, 2007 03:22PM
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Last night Carolyn and I met with Ginghamsburg house church leaders in our home. I was reminded that this is truly the church in its most basic form.
This was the way that the initial leaders of God''s movement heard God's voice and grew in faith and spirit 28 years ago when we began our ministry in our home. One of the first books that we read together in 1979 as a faith community was George Hunter's, The Contagious Congregation. He makes the point that discipleship is a process that has three dimensions:
Posted By: Pastor Mike Slaughter on Sep 29, 2007 03:22PM
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We have just finished a great weekend at Ginghamsburg. We reconnected with old friends and met new ones as we gathered on our campus for the second "Change The World" conference. Many of you are very aware of Ginghamsburg's Sudan Project in the south Darfur region. The United Nations has deemed this area the current "worst humanitarian crises in the world." We have already invested over 1.8 million dollars in the last two years in a sustainable agriculture project, establishing 90 schools and training well over 200 teachers, and currently building 10 water yards that will eventually serve nearly 250,000 people and their live stock. It is truly amazing what God can do when God's people are willing to follow Jesus in the way of sacrificial service
Posted By: Pastor Mike Slaughter on Sep 25, 2007 03:22PM
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Another one of my young friends, Kelechukwa Oparah, meets every Wednesday night in a local restaurant with a group of young men who are seeking a relevant faith that is not afraid to confront real life issues. They are not looking for big or slick or programmed. They call their church “Boys-Beer-Bible.” It is a safe place for young men who have honest questions to hang out without the fear of rejection or judgment. God is doing a new thing.
I met with Minni Minnawi , the rebel leader of the Sudan Liberation Army (SLA),which holds this town, when I was in Khartoum in June after visiting the projects in Darfur with our strategic partner, the United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR). Minnawi is the rebel leader who signed the May 2006 peace agreement with Sudan’s government and is currently considered the president of Darfur. He and other rebel groups blame the Khartoum regime for the attack, which also included aerial bombing, banned in the region by the U.N. This attack is the latest of an upsurge of violence in south Darfur after 10 African Union peacekeepers were killed, allegedly by one of the region’s rebel factions, last week. Some humanitarian groups and the U.N. are advising nonessential staff to leave the area. Minnawi has stated that the attack on Muhajeria has a negative impact on the Libyan peace talks set to begin on October 27. These talks, to be mediated by the U.N. and African Union, will be held between the Sudanese government and a range of rebel groups in a new attempt to end the four-year-old conflict in Darfur.
But I wanted to speak to you about another issue of suffering, a hidden, almost unimaginable suffering: animal agriculture or factory farming. God's sentient creatures, whom he loves and cares for, cannot make sense of the suffering (as far as we know) that they experience from the intensive confinement, genetic manipulation, castration, tail docking, debeaking and other procedures often done without anesthesia or vet care in the massive animal agriculture business that animal advocates refer to as factory farming. Ten billion land animals and countless aquadic creatures are raised in these horrible factory farms each year in the U.S. alone.
