Word & Deed October 2022

October 2022

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Meet Laura Muema

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Everyone Deserves to Eat

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Active in Mission: Thank You!

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Fall Appeal: Build the Church

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Hopeful Gifts for Change 2022 Gift Catalogue

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Field Staff Updates

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National Day of Truth and Reconciliation Resouces

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World Food Day is October 16 and we share how your generosity is feeding the hungry in this month’s feature article. On September 30, CBM and our denominational partners hosted an online Service of Remembrance and reflection. Make sure to check out the resources available curated by the event committee.

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Laura serves alongside the Africa team, contributing to CBM’s overall ministry in the areas of family ministries, social support for vulnerable children, gender equity and empowering women.

For the past two years, Laura worked as a project officer with African Christian Church and Schools, our local partner in Kenya. In this position, she worked in the areas of Children’s education support and scholarships, and she provided support for CBM’s SENT trips when teams visited projects in the area. Previously, she worked with CBM under our Africa subsidiary Wordeed Inc.

Laura holds a graduate diploma in Community Development and Social Work and is in the process of completing a post-graduate diploma in Sociology and Social Work. She has also completed certificate courses in Gender and Human Rights, Gender-Based Violence, Entrepreneurship and Business Creation, Community Leadership Training and the Formation and Functions of Self-Help Groups.
Laura lives in Nairobi, Kenya with her husband and children. She loves to travel and spend quality time with her family. Her favourite food is pilau (spiced rice) and biryani.

INTERVIEW

Q: How did you navigate the decision to work for CBM as Global Field Staff?

My decision to work for CBM came about because of my experience working with CBM previously. Working with Aaron and Erica Kenny, former Field Staff in Africa, helped me understand how Integral Mission works and how word and deed go hand in hand in spreading the gospel. This experience also allowed me to grow in my love of Christ and helped me develop my love of working with people of diverse cultures and origins. CBM also encourages working closely with one another and being mindful of each other’s welfare: socially, spiritually, physically and mentally.

Q: What is one thing God has been revealing to you through your work?

Over the past couple of months, God has been revealing to me the need to set right my relationships; with those around me, those close to me, in my family, my neighbourhood, my church and those I work closely with. God has constantly been reminding me that charity begins at home. I am also learning that I should strive to make those around me feel important, worthy, loved, and appreciated. Through my work in Kenya, I have worked with Muslim communities as well as Christian/ Kenyan communities. This has taught me to appreciate the diversity in our cultures, religion, and demographic differences and appreciate all that each person brings to the table. This is a holistic mindset in terms of appreciating each other’s religion and culture and how we work well together in making our communities thrive.

Watch Now

Watch an introductory video of Laura Muema. 

Prayer Points

Pray for good working relationships with the different Church Partners that we have across Africa and beyond.

Pray that God will provide me with leadership, protection, and guidance as I work with SENT teams in the future.

Pray that God will continue to protect and bless my spouse and children as we support each other in the work that God leads us to do.

  Learn More about Laura Muema

Are you interested in joining CBM as Global Field Staff?

Are there other people you know who might?

If you are passionate about how God’s love transforms people’s lives, and want to join our team, contact Member Care: membercare@cbmin.org OR call 905.821.3533. We welcome the opportunity to talk with you.

For more details, visit cbmin.org/job-opportunities

Food. We all need it – yet around 768 million people in the world experience hunger. At the start of the year, CBM invited Canadian Baptists to feed the hungry through a matching grant opportunity. We asked for you to join us in giving hope to the hungry in places like South Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda, Kenya and Lebanon.

Through your generosity, just under $125,000 was raised to feed the most vulnerable in Jesus’ name, and to offer opportunities for people to thrive, not just survive. 

Your financial assistance is already at work through our partners. Here are three stories of the impact you make when your respond to our appeals for support.

In the DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO, CBM is working in the South Kivu Province. The goals of this project include increased soil fertility, an increased number of farmers with access to high quality seeds, cuttings and improved seedlings, increased food production and consumption, and an increased percentage of farmers with access to loans and the food market. 

Through this project, participants were trained on conservation agriculture practices such as soil protection through mulching and planting trees to protect the environment. Village Savings and Loan Associations were created, and farmers were able to buy animals for breeding, consumption, and generating manure. Farmers also learned about the advantages of kitchen gardening, along with growing techniques, and how to sell extra produce in the markets. 

Farmers like Mrs. Namwezi learned about the value of planting high-yielding crops. After receiving training, she uprooted her eucalyptus and sugarcane plants and planted vegetables such as tomatoes and cabbages and began growing them using the techniques she learned. She also joined the local village savings and loans group and is saving one dollar each week. After a year of saving, she was able to buy two pigs. She said, “I am so happy to be a part of this project because now I have a home garden and am eating two healthy and nutritional meals each day. The VSLA program has been a great help for me and with the money I am saving, I plan on upgrading my house.” 

“It is real, true and easy.” These are the words from Keziah Wangui, a project beneficiary farmer in KENYA who was asked about her views towards Conservation Agriculture Technology. “All it requires is the farmer’s commitment and the zeal to do it,” she said. 

Keziah, who is 56 years old, says that she has been farming for many years using conventional methods. Many seasons, she got very little or no harvest at all. “After working the land all season, the results were very frustrating.” This was the routine experience of farmers in the community. ACC&S identified that food security was a major problem in the area due to low crop yields, unreliable rainfall, poor farming practices, limited accessibility to certified seeds and declining soil fertility.

When Keziah was invited to attend the conservation agriculture workshops held by ACC&S, she started a trial on her land using the new techniques. “I started with ¼ an acre and now I have extended it to a whole acre.” 

As Keziah confirms, she has seen the benefits that soil cover, minimum soil disturbance and crop mixing have provided on her land. She says that covering the soil has benefitted in moisture retention and has increased the soil fertility while preventing soil erosion. Crop mixing and association has increased production, diversity and the nutritional value in her family. 

The food security project has provided a solution to the issue of food insecurity which has been a regular problem in the community. With a smile, Keziah shared that the economic status of her family has improved through the sale of surplus produce, and the money has greatly assisted in paying secondary school fees for her daughter. She added that she is saving for her daughter’s college fees as well. “This project brought a lot of hope to my family. May God bless the ACC&S.” 

LEBANON is one of the most densely populated countries in the world and hosts the highest number of refugees per capita. Lebanon continues to face multiple converging crises—severe financial instability, COVID-19, and the lingering impact of the August 4, 2020, Beirut port explosion—all of which have come on top of the Syrian refugee crisis and have contributed to high levels of food insecurity across the country. Since 2019, Lebanon’s economic crisis—considered by the World Bank as one of the worst global economic crises in the past 150 years—has resulted in massive unemployment, inflation, loss of purchasing power, and increased hunger. In July 2021, UNICEF estimated that 50 percent of the Lebanese population was living below the poverty line due to the country’s worsening economic crisis. According to the UN World Food Program, 9 in 10 Syrians in Lebanon are living in extreme poverty.

The Ukrainian crisis has already resulted in an increase in food prices across Lebanon. As of April 2022, the crisis had led to a 91% increase in the price of sunflower oil, a 70% increase in the price of sugar, and a 46% increase in the price of bread.

CBM, through our membership with the Canadian Foodgrains Bank is working with our on-the-ground partner MERATH to provide monthly food baskets for Syrian refugees living in Zahle. Refugees in the region continue to struggle to provide for their families, with many households eating less frequent meals, buying cheaper quality food items, skipping meals, and borrowing money and food from local shops. Often, parents are forced to withdraw their children from school and allow them to work outside the home.

Wafah is a 45-year-old mother who fled the war in Syria and has been living in Lebanon for more than five years. Four of her children attend the nearby school run by the local church. Each month, Wafah receives a food box from the church, along with diapers and other essential supplies. “Most Syrian refugees would prefer to feed their children and go without food themselves. I do this sometimes too. Every refugee here has had to make that decision and do what they can to feed their kids. I thank every organization and family that is trying to help. Without this ministry, we would go hungry, as the box has all I need to cook our food. My little baby needs milk and diapers and the church supplies this.”

Hunger and food security continue to be a widescale, growing global issue. CBM remains committed to fighting hunger for the long haul. Our long-standing membership in the Canadian Foodgrains Bank is one of the very impactful relationships assisting us in this fight. As the prophet Isaiah declares, we honour God by “loosening the chains of injustice, sharing our food with the hungry, providing the poor with shelter, and clothing the naked.” (Isaiah 58:6-7, NIV)

World Food Day is October 16!

Click the button below for church resources and opportunities to advocate for the hungry.

Active in Mission: Thank You

Thank you for taking part in Active in Mission 2022! Because of your support, hundreds of kids can receive education and tutoring!

WE WANT YOUR FEEDBACK!

Please fill out one of the surveys below to let us know what was helpful, and how we can improve for next year.

Fall Appeal: Build the Church

As we enter a new season of ministry here in Canada, we are hearing first-hand accounts of pastors fatigued from navigating the new church landscape post COVID. I’m sure many of you reading this know these stories as well.

In our global ministry context, leaders are sharing how a lack of pastoral training and resources to navigate the needs of their communities have left them feeling burned-out and exhausted.

Will you help us to re-energize these important ministry leaders? Your gift will provide new opportunities for discipleship training, pastoral coaching, workshops and leadership training – building leaders up to be a sustaining witness to those they serve.

Hopeful Gifts for Change 2022 Gift Catalogue

Looking to make a lasting impact this Christmas season? We invite you to explore our gift catalogue, Hopeful Gifts for Change. From education to justice to poverty reduction to building the church, you’ll find a gift that ignites your passion. As we work to mitigate the devastating effects of COVID-19,  we invite you to find the people, places and causes that resonate with you. We thank you for your faithful generosity as you answer God’s mission call.

Field Staff Updates

Bridi Ministry Update March 2023

Thank you for following my news. In this newsletter, you can read about a couple of highlights from the ministry in the Middle East and North Africa region (MENA) through graduates from the Arab Baptist Theological Seminary (ABTS). Last April we visited Sudan, this trip aimed to spend time with...

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Dyck Ministry Update December 2022

Sometimes we use the phrase “Hindsight is 20/20” for things that we think could have been better if we had only known ahead of time what was to come. I’ll use “Hindsight is 20/22” as a way of looking back on the year, recalling how things have been better than...

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Dyck Ministry Update Sept 2022

Meeting virtually is better than virtually meeting, but it’s still not the same as meeting people face to face. I’m reminded of I Corinthians 13:12 where Paul says, “For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face.” Since the beginning of...

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Bridi Ministry Update Sept 2022

Thank you for following my news. In this newsletter, you can read about a couple of highlights from the ministry in the Middle East and North Africa region (MENA) through graduates from the Arab Baptist Theological Seminary (ABTS). Last April we visited Sudan, this trip aimed to spend time with...

Read more >

Raju Ministry Update June 2022

“ Do not let your heart be troubled. Believe in God, believe also in me.” John 14:1 We praise God for His assurance, protection, and blessings amidst difficult and adverse situations. As the Covid infections reduced, I could make visits to all the partners as usual, and I could see...

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Lilian Yang Ministry Update Sept 2022

This year, Thailand opened up the country to welcome more tourists from all over the world. Airports have become busy, hotels have had more guests, and many shops and restaurants reopened. Schools are filled with students again, and churches hold in-person services. People are happy to be able to see...

Read more >

National Day of Truth and Reconciliation Resources

Go into the land, love God and love others.
Act justly, love mercy, walk humbly. 

On September 30, CBM and our denominational partners hosted an online Service of Remembrance and Reflection. We are so grateful for the Indigenous leaders who fleshed out the service, leading us in prayer, song and teaching. Should you wish to find out more about their ministries, please visit the home page at www.cbmin.org/nationalday

We have also posted three more resources that may assist you on your journey to learn and understand the past and the present for Indigenous Peoples. May these direct us towards a generative future together, walking in a good way. Danny Zacharias’ message has also been posted on the home page.

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2022-10-03T14:00:29-04:00

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