Archive for 2011
Marie Shantal’s story: a very bad day in Haiti
Eight-year-old Marie Shantal went to school just like the other children in her middle class Haitian neighborhood on that fateful day in January 2010. But, as she walked home from school with her friends, the ground began to shake. Buildings fell around her. Thousands of people ran, screaming, into the streets! She got separated from…
Read MoreRemember, remember not
One of the paradoxes of the Bible is God’s call to remember but not dwell on the past. “Remember that you were a slave in Egypt and the LORD your God redeemed you from there,” declares Deuteronomy 24:18 (NRSV). That memory forms the basis of Israel’s identity. When remembrance turns to nostalgia, however, God has…
Read MoreWill you join us as we join God?
Christmas reminds us that God is on a mission. Our future and the future of the church rest entirely on our embrace of that mission. We start by discerning God’s activity in the world. Then we enthusiastically align our priorities with God’s. At VMMissions, God’s work takes many different forms. • Church planting efforts in…
Read MoreVirginia youth build relationships with Jamaican community
On July 5, fourteen senior high youth and four adult leaders from Mountain View Mennonite church, in VMC’s Southern District, left the mountains of Virginia for the mountains of St. Elizabeth, Jamaica. We were going to do a work project in the Top Hill community, where Rodney & Lindsey Nice were serving as missionaries with…
Read MoreMusic educator shares in worship with the Italian Mennonite Church
When Phil and Marcia Lehman left Bari, Italy in 2009, Centro Koinonia prayed fervently that God would provide musicians. Over the past two years, these prayers have been answered through church members like Luigi, Elena, Valentina, Francesco, Chris, and Melody. However, the church desired more training, prompting them to request that VMM send me as…
Read MoreHumility and growth: Partners in Mission turns 25
When I began working at VMM one year ago, the organization was in the midst of routine transition. A new strategic plan was in development, and several program directors were moving on from their posts. Like a plant entering a new season, the ongoing process of growth was being felt more acutely, in exciting and…
Read MoreLezha Academic Center opens first school year
The sounds of school ring loud and clear this September at Albanian Christian School’s Lezha Academic Center (LAC) in Lezhe, Albania. The city is located along the Adriatic Sea in the northwest corner of the country at the foothills of the Albanian Alps. Virginia Mennonite Missions has had a presence in this city of approximately…
Read MoreChildren in Bari, Italy, enjoy meaningful activities at “Happy Week”
What occupies the long summer days for children who live in high-rise apartment buildings in densely-populated Italian cities? Many parents ask this same question! In the South, parks are usually few, crowded, and poorly equipped. Apartments have limited space for active play. Recognizing this opportunity to meet a felt need, the Mennonite churches in Italy…
Read MoreEducator lays foundation for new partnerships in Israel, Palestinian Territories
Partners teams have traveled to the Palestinian Territories and Israel over the last 5 years to volunteer at Nazareth Village and teach English to local children. These groups have traveled the land, stayed with host families and learned quite a lot about Arab & Israeli history, life and culture in the Galilee. Through these successful…
Read MoreVirginia youth build playground, relationships with Jamaican community
What neither we as leaders and planners nor the youth anticipated was the rich fellowship with the deaf community of Top Hill… Over the coming years, I anticipate that these experiences will be the most valuable “things” that they brought back from Jamaica.
Read MorePartners pedals to Pittsburgh
It was a hot day in the City of Bridges as the group wound their way along bike paths and city streets. They were following a couple they met on the Three Rivers Trail a couple miles earlier who had offered to lead them in to the Convention Center in downtown Pittsburgh and were telling…
Read MoreIndonesian Mennonites promote interfaith dialogue
From mid-January to the end of March 2010, my wife Cathy and I were in Indonesia on a short-term Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) assignment during our sabbaticals, mine from Park View Mennonite Church, Cathy’s from Eastern Mennonite University. We stayed on the island of Java, in the city of Salatiga, centrally located on the island…
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