Minute for Mission: Christmas Joy Offering

December 19, 2021

In the story of God, as we tell it, there is a barrier that exists between the Created world and its Creator. A wall. Sin, we say, separates us from God, and separation from God is unbearable.

And our story goes on to say that God, seeing that we had no hope in ourselves of getting over, or through or around what separates us, offered us a gift in Jesus Christ who opens a door — a door we could not open ourselves.

What a gift!

 But the story goes on to say that Jesus is the perfect gift; not only opening a door but coming through it. Our story says God is with us.

In Jesus, God joined with humanity, pointing the way to the end of our separation. And in his life, death and resurrection, so our story of God goes, Jesus is the door, now standing open. The giving continues because God is with us, still — and always.

Because being with us is part of God’s story, being with others is part of our call.

The Christmas Joy Offering opens doors of opportunity for the leaders who are shaped and supported through our gifts — doors that lead to hopeful futures for young people at Presbyterian-related schools and colleges equipping communities of color. Our gifts open doors that lead to relief for church workers and their families when emergency needs arise.

Proverbs, a book of wisdom sayings, states that it’s a person’s gift that opens doors. As we give generously to the Christmas Joy Offering, we seek to not only meet needs, but to meet people, to come through the door that generosity opens. We open the door to celebrate “God with us!” We open the door with each and every student who will soon inspire and lead the world. We open the door with each and every church worker who helps us share God’s story with the world. 

The story of God, as we tell it, is not about a barrier, but about a gift. It’s not about the separation, but about the gift of “being with.” Please give generously to the Christmas Joy Offering, in celebration of God’s perfect gift to us. Give because it brings us together, to open doors of relief and opportunity and to relationships that are part of God’s story, a part of God’s perfect gift to us.

Bryce Wiebe, Director, Special Offerings and Appeals

Let us join in prayer for:

PC(USA) Agencies’ Staff
Penny Franklin, Executive Relations Coordinator, Presbyterian Foundation
Brian Frick, Associate, Camps & Conferences, Christian Formation, Presbyterian Mission Agency

Let us pray

God, with us, we are grateful for your perfect gift, Jesus Christ. May we learn, through your open door to us, to be open to others and offer ourselves to those in need. Amen.

Minute for Mission: A Season of Peace begins

September 5, 2021

Congregations of many denominations extend the peace of Christ with a blessing during their service. “The peace of Christ be with you (and also with you).” It is a blessing offered and a blessing returned in kind. Extending the peace of Christ is part of an active, engaged faith — a witness to what it means for us to be building the household of God.

In God’s house, people who are different from each other in almost every way live together and seek ways to bring about Christ’s peace in every part of our lives. We speak out and claim the truth in Second Thessalonians, “May the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times in all ways.” In our church gatherings, we practice offering Christ’s peace, trusting that the blessing offered will also be returned.

It’s easy to see peacemaking in the world as some distant impossibility, too vast and unrealistic to ever engage in effectively as individuals. A Season of Peace is meant to help us remember that engaging with our own internal conflicts, building healthy relationships with each other, grappling with issues of justice in our communities and re-imagining international relations are crucially interconnected steps on the path of peacemaking. 

Daily reflections during A Season of Peace are designed to help participants explore practices for building peace on every scale. This monthlong pilgrimage is designed to deepen the pursuit of peace for congregations, small groups, families, and individuals. This year’s reflections are designed to help participants explore the various forms of peacemaking through the arts.

A Season of Peace begins Sept. 5 and culminates on Oct. 3, World Communion Sunday, when the Peace & Global Witness Offering is received.

We are the church, together. We are peacemakers, together. We are the builders of God’s household of peace. And when, together, we all do a little, it adds up to a lot.

Bryce Wiebe, Director of Special Offerings, Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)

Let us join in prayer for:

PC(USA) Agencies’ Staff

Fred Tangeman, Communications Specialist, Presbyterian Historical Society
Allison Taylor, Art Director, Presbyterian Publishing Corporation

Let us pray

Gracious God, sharpen our vision through the eyes of Christ, that we might practice your peace, at all times and in all ways. Amen.

Today in the Mission Yearbook - ‘Addressing the root causes of hunger is always better than focusing on the symptoms’

An International Peacemaker in the midst of war takes on hunger at the source

April 29, 2021

Jaff Bamenjo, an international peacemaker for the Presbyterian Mission Agency, knows just how important gifts to the Peace & Global Witness Offering are in helping to feed those who are hungry. Courtesy of the Presbyterian Mission Agency

Imagine learning your family member’s home was burned down by the army, or that your brother-in-law was brutally murdered by soldiers in your hometown.

It seems an impossibility, even a ridiculous notion, to those of us living in the U.S. But since 2016 that has been the reality for families and communities in Cameroon — violent acts committed by the very military members who should instead be protecting them.

“Civilized people cannot afford to remain indifferent to the unfolding silent humanitarian disaster in Cameroon,” said Jaff Bamenjo, coordinator of the Network for the Fight Against Hunger in Cameroon (RELUFA) and an International Peacemaker sponsored by the Presbyterian Peacemaking Program and World Mission.

It was Bamenjo’s aunt who, in April 2019, lost her home when the military set fire to it. It was his sister’s husband who was killed “not because he committed any crime, but simply because in a war zone everyone is a target,” Bamenjo said.

But even as he grieves for those lost and worries daily for the safety of his family, Bamenjo continues more than a decade of work to help others who are suffering. In 2005, RELUFA identified recurring hunger problems in the poor and densely populated northern region of the country.

“RELUFA worked with communities to understand what kind of intervention will respond to communities’ needs, avoid creating dependence and will be sustainable,” he said. “Communities involved in the initial program proposed a system that will make food available in the community at all times and that will not distribute but provide foods to grain bank members to reimburse during their next harvest. ”Creating these banks helped people in these communities avoid paying high prices for food during lean times and ensured that food was available year-round. But as RELUFA was addressing the root causes of hunger in Cameroon, a new danger was growing.

The English-speaking minority in Cameroon were feeling marginalized in a mostly French-speaking country. In 2016, response to growing inequities, lawyers and teachers organized peaceful protests. The government responded violently, and that escalated into war.

“These acts of barbarity and inhumanity violate the sacredness of human life and are sacrilegious to the worship of God,” wrote one member of the Presbyterian Church of Cameroon.

Amidst this chaos and violence, RELUFA continues to work to help the most vulnerable populations.

“RELUFA has developed a scheme to seek funds and help the people affected by the conflict in the northwest and southwest regions of Cameroon,” explained Bamenjo. “Addressing the root causes of hunger is always better than focusing on the symptoms. Solving problems at an early stage is always better than running behind to resolve conflicts.”

The Presbyterian Hunger Program has developed strong partnerships with RELUFA. Your support of the Peace & Global Witness Offering enables the Peacemaking Program to host the International Peacemaker program so peacemakers like Bamenjo can share with congregations about the challenges some of sisters and brothers face.

The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) also has a long-term relationship with the Presbyterian Church of Cameroon. The Offering provides support for PC(USA)’s ecumenical relationship with the World Communion of Reformed Churches as well as International Peacekeepers in the region.

“As an individual, I feel helpless, but I know I have strength because of the many people in the world who do care,” said Bamenjo. “It is unacceptable to stay quiet, stand by and watch the slaughtering of innocent people who only demand their rights and accountability. Let us contribute in any way possible to make sure peace returns to Cameroon.”

Give to the Peace & Global Witness Offering to continue the valuable ministry of the Peacemaking Program.

 Bryce Wiebe, Director of Special Offerings, Presbyterian Mission Agency

Let us join in prayer for:

PC(USA) Agencies’ Staff
Jose Irizarry, Board of Pensions
Valerie Izumi, Office of the General Assembly

Let us pray:

God of mercy and justice, we thank you for the fire that purifies and the Spirit that sustains. Bless our modest efforts to speak in your name. Amen.

Today in the Mission Yearbook - A voice to affirm all people

Nurturing Hagar’s Community Church at the Washington Corrections Center for Women

April 6, 2021

“Prison Resurrection,” artwork created by Hagar’s Community Church. (Photo courtesy of Hagar’s Community Church)

The Washington Corrections Center for Women is both the largest and the only maximum and medium security prison for women in the state. It’s surrounded by barbed wire, and you have to go through five locked gates to get to the main population.

Inside this fortress of concrete and steel, thanks to the work of three dynamic Presbyterian leaders, a unique worshiping community has been planted — Hagar’s Community Church.

“The women I have the opportunity and the privilege to pastor to are wonderful and deeply knowledgeable about the Bible,” said Rev. Lane Brubaker, who leads Hagar’s Community Church. “They are learning that they are still indeed loved by God and are not defined by their worst mistake. But, rather, they are defined by their beloved.”

Olympia Presbytery worked over several years with Prison Congregations of America to set up the prison ministry. The Rev. Christine Long led the effort to plant a church that would provide a safe, open and inclusive place for women to worship inside the prison. It was finally established in January 2019.

Brubaker leads Bible study and worship on Saturday evenings. She handles a more contemporary service with music while her husband, Crawford, leads a quieter, contemplative worship time. The two simultaneous services were developed after talking with the women — some of whom needed time to quietly reflect after living in the general population, while others longed for interaction. But what’s perhaps most impactful is providing a place of acceptance.

“For some reason in prisons, groups and programs tend to be more conservative and not accepting of all orientations and gender identities,” she said. “We are a different voice that affirms all people, and we give them a place to be honest about who they are. I’m often asked, ‘Why are you so much more inclusive than the other groups?’ My answer is that it’s not just Hagar’s Community Church, but it’s what my denomination thinks.”

As part of her ministry, Brubaker spends several days every week behind bars. She offers six pastoral care groups throughout the week — from guided meditation and breathing practices to healing through music. She sees the first year of the church as just the beginning.

“We are helping women process and handle their incarceration through God’s love and guidance, and we want this to be a healthy, sustained ministry,” Brubaker explained. “There are some women who are incarcerated for many years, some for their whole lives. The dream of the presbytery when this started was that it would be a ministry that continues long into the future.”

The promise of a long-term ministry is there thanks to the support of congregations like Skyline Presbyterian Church in Tacoma and visionary church leaders like the Rev. Robyn Hogue. She saw the opportunity to provide for this new ministry that works toward reconciliation and expand the congregation’s vision of what God makes possible.

The church used its portion of the Peace & Global Witness Offering to fund Hagar’s Community Church and, as a result, has grown its Offering. Brubaker says the prison ministry would not be able to maintain itself without those financial gifts and that every congregation should be looking to expand outreach to places not yet considered.

“I think there’s a lot of room for more worshiping communities like this to be established,” she said. “That would be an awesome response to this ministry — that others would start doing this work, not just in prisons but in other places too. All of us should be listening to the call and listening to God to find where these worshiping communities are needed in all sorts of different, unique places.”

Bryce Wiebe, Director of Special Offerings, Mission Engagement & Support, Presbyterian Mission Agency

Let us join in prayer for: 

PC(USA) Agencies’ Staff

Denise Hampton, Administrative Services Group (A Corp)
Jieun Kim Han and Martin Han, Presbyterian Mission Agency

Let us pray:

Lord, help us to be instruments of your grace: constant in our love, unrelenting in pursuing peace and faithful in working for all. Amen.

Today in the Mission Yearbook - Sharing the peace of Christ with the world

PC(USA)’s Peace & Global Witness Offering supports peacemaking and reconciliation

March 26, 2021

Hagar’s Community Church — housed in the Washington Corrections Center for Women — is supported by congregations like Skyline Presbyterian Church in Tacoma, Washington, which used its 25% portion of the Peace & Global Witness Offering to fund the prison ministry. Courtesy of Hagar’s Community Church

War, disease and imprisonment: These words have the power to fill the heart with pain, fear and hopelessness. They often make the lips of those witnessing such strife ask, “Surely, this is not where God lives?”

Presbyterians working for peace and justice would beg to differ though, saying that it’s exactly in such strife where God’s love should shine the brightest. And through their gifts to the Peace & Global Witness Offering — which congregations traditionally collect on World Communion Sunday, the first Sunday in October — they are supporting peacemaking initiatives that ease pain through action, provide comfort in the face of fear and show love to the hopeless.

Every gift to the Peace & Global Witness Offering enables the Church to promote the peace of Christ by addressing systems of conflict and injustice worldwide. Out of the money collected, individual congregations are encouraged to use 25% of the offering to connect with the global witness of Christ’s peace. Mid councils retain an additional 25% for ministries of peace and reconciliation. The remaining 50% is used by the Presbyterian Mission Agency to advocate for peace and justice through collaborative projects of education and Christian witness.

Jaff Bamenjo, an international peacemaker for the Presbyterian Mission Agency, knows just how important gifts to the Peace & Global Witness Offering are. As a coordinator of RELUFA (Reseau de Lutte contre la Faim), the Network for the Fight Against Hunger, in Cameroon, Bamenjo has worked for more than a decade addressing hunger in the poor and densely populated northern region of his home country.

With gifts made to the Peace & Global Witness Offering, Bamenjo was able to travel last year to the United States to share the joys and sorrows of the people of Cameroon while also sharing what the most critical needs are.

More than 3,000 miles south of Cameroon, Presbyterians are tackling another need — helping vulnerable populations understand how HIV and AIDS spread, and how to cope with the effects of each.

“This is an issue that has been pushed under the rug for many reasons, including stigma and discrimination, and it’s becoming forgotten because people are living with it rather than dying from it,” said Phyllis Wezeman.

Wezeman is a member of First Presbyterian Church of South Bend, Indiana, and president of the board of directors for Malawi Matters, a nonprofit that has not shied away from talking about HIV and AIDS. The organization develops and facilitates HIV and AIDS education with the people of Malawi to alleviate misinformation and create understanding among those living with the disease.

Malawi Matters is 100% volunteer driven, with volunteers traveling to Malawi to serve as facilitators on teaching teams. Beyond teaching teams, Presbyterians support the nonprofit with monetary gifts to the Peace & Global Witness Offering, as well as by supplying pens, pencils and other items for the educational classes.

For the Rev. Lane Brubaker, it does not matter that she must go through five locked doors to get to her congregation. “The women I have the opportunity and the privilege to pastor are wonderful and deeply knowledgeable about the Bible,” she said. “They are learning that they are still indeed loved by God and are not defined by their worst mistakes. But rather, they are defined by their Beloved.”

Brubaker leads Hagar’s Community Church, which operates within the Washington Corrections Center for Women. The Presbytery of Olympia worked over several years with Prison Congregations of America to set up the prison ministry. It was finally established in January 2019.

The ministry is supported by congregations like Skyline Presbyterian Church in Tacoma, Washington, which used its 25% portion of the Peace & Global Witness Offering to fund Hagar’s Community Church. Skyline Presbyterian’s pastor, the Rev. Robyn Hogue, saw an opportunity not only to provide for a new ministry, but also to expand the congregation’s vision of what its gifts can make possible. As a result, Skyline Presbyterian has seen its Peace & Global Witness Offering grow.

“I think there’s a lot of room for more worshiping communities like this to be established,” said Brubaker.

Bryce Wiebe, Director, Special Offerings, Presbyterian Mission Agency

Let us join in prayer for: 

PC(USA) Agencies’ Staff
Lacey Gilliam, Presbyterian Mission Agency
Sharon Dunne Gillies, Presbyterian Women

Let us pray:

O Lord, help us to see the light and gifts of others. Teach us as we teach your word and love. Place your strong hands upon us and lead us into a life of compassion and service. Amen.

Minute for Mission: Peace & Global Witness Offering

 October 4, 2020

Peacemaking is active not passive, doing not waiting.

 Let’s let that sink in for a moment: Peacemaking is active, not passive; doing, not waiting.

And this is A Season of Peace when we, the church together, are focused on seeking peace and reconciliation. Together we are building God’s house of peace where all are welcome, where all can find compassion, peace and justice.

We are the peacemakers.

 The Peace & Global Witness Offering unites us with Presbyterian peacemakers across the country and the world who are also active, not passive; who are doing, not waiting.

In Baltimore the Hunting Ridge Presbyterian Church used their share of the offering to promote anti-violence programs in their schools.

The Central Presbyterian Church in Dayton, Ohio, used their share to send a delegate to the World Presbyterian Peace Fellowship in Colombia to participate in conversations about the progress of the peace accords in areas of the nation wracked by revolution.

The Presbytery of the Pacific supports efforts to bring about change for low-wage workers and other vulnerable community members in the Los Angeles area.

The Peace & Global Witness Offering has helped end the forced inscription of child soldiers, to end gender-based violence and violence against women, to seek peace through nuclear disarmament, to end hunger and promote peacemaking in places like Madagascar and Rwanda.

During this season of peace, we have heard stories about Presbyterians working together to support sustainable food programs in war-torn parts of Cameroon. We’ve heard about the establishment of a new worshiping community in a Washington prison and a program to provide education to prevent STDs and HIV/AIDS in one of the worst-struck regions of sub-Saharan Africa.

With our gifts we are part of all these efforts, whether they are right here in our own backyard or in places we’ve never seen and maybe never will. But these are all places that have one thing in common — the need for freedom and dignity that Christ wants for us all. Let us offer the peace of Christ at all times, in all ways.

We are the peacemakers.

 We are the church, together. We are peacemakers, together. We are the builders of God’s household of peace. Together. And when, together, we all do a little, it adds up to a lot.

Bryce Wiebe, Director of Special Offerings and Appeals, Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)

Let us join in prayer for: 

PC(USA) Agencies’ Staff
Derrick Perkins, Administrative Services Group (A Corp)
Lisa Pesavento, Presbyterian Foundation

Let us pray:

Prince of peace, make us active in reconciliation as we seek to build your house. May your spirit join these gifts that all might be instruments of your peace. Amen.

Today in the Mission Yearbook - Despite the pandemic, churches find they’re maintaining ecclesial health

Familiar Bible stories can take on new meaning during this extraordinary time

August 15, 2020

The coronavirus has inflicted any number of health crises on Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) congregations — but in some tangible ways it’s also enhanced their ecclesial health.

Bryce Wiebe, director of Special Offerings.

Bryce Wiebe, director of Special Offerings, was the guest on a recent Vital Congregations webinar series on the Seven Marks of Vital Congregations . With the help of the Zoom call’s more than 50 participants, Wiebe explored the final mark, ecclesial health, which Vital Congregations defines as “whether our mission, vision and values match up with the ways we live together.”

It requires evaluating “whether our buildings provide access and services to people. Does the way we worship reflect who we are and is it in alignment with who we are and who we profess God to be?” Wiebe said. One place to begin that evaluation is to use a document Wiebe wrote called “Ten Stewardship ‘Do’s’ During the Pandemic and one ‘Do Not.’”

One of Wiebe’s suggestions is to listen to stories of faith found in Scripture anew in the light of COVID-19 crisis, especially the accounts of wilderness and resurrection. “I have been reflecting on Scripture, and it’s changed a lot for me,” Wiebe said. “It’s an important time to dig into Scripture and listen for the way the story changes and changes us while we are in isolation.”

Wiebe and staff at Vital Congregations then got participants talking by asking some discussion questions. During this difficult time, what are the things that look healthy? Answers included more and more churches sharing worship-hosting duties with one another, the value of weekly clergy gatherings, increased interest in online prayer support and Bible study, the creativity shown by how Presbyterians minister to one another and online giving being employed to bolster congregational finances.

Asked to identify the current challenges to ecclesial health, participants mentioned the people who can’t or won’t participate in online worship, finances, the grief around putting off or limiting funerals, and music during worship, among others.

Asked what new rituals are emerging, one participant said, “A new habit is to focus on the needs of our communities where so many are out of work and can’t feed their families, rather than (focusing) simply on ourselves.”

Another mentioned this online worship innovation: the Zoom worship services opens 30 minutes early “for people to greet each other and converse — a chaotic scene but well worth doing before the 9:45 service.” Those who have worshiped online remain after the service for more conversation and greetings. Often, they’re given a guided question to discuss, such as “What signs of resurrection have you been seeing?”

Virtual worship has another advantage, as Vital Congregations’ the Rev. Carlton Johnson pointed out: “Most of the time during worship we are looking at the back of someone’s head,” he said. “In a setting like this, we can look at the faces of 50 people.”

Wiebe said when he’s been asked to preach online, “I’ve tried to embrace the intimacy of it by trying to be as close and communicative as possible.” It may be counter-intuitive, but online worship “does allow us to be close,” he said.

Wiebe, who came to his job in 2015 with a background in Christian education and justice advocacy, said he’s recently seen more parents getting involved in faith formation with their children. One participant said he’s noticed the same thing: At his church, he’s seen more people who can help lead worship because it’s recorded during the week. “There is a lot more empowerment of families experiencing faith formation together in their homes than there was before,” he said. “Recorded worship is allowing for people to worship when they are available, rather than either go on Sunday or not at all.”

“Many people are watching three to five services each week,” another pastor said. “I’m encouraged by the number of people listening and spending hours in more worship services, some Presbyterian, some not, but it’s encouraging that more people are worshiping more.”

“I am grateful for the church,” Wiebe said at the end of the hourlong webinar. “My heart breaks with so many and my heart rejoices for so many. For many it feels like the world has sped up even as it’s slowed down.”

Mike Ferguson, Editor, Presbyterian News Service

Let us join in prayer for: 

PC(USA) Agencies’ Staff

D.J. Lee, Board of Pensions
Laura Lee, Presbyterian Women

Let us pray:

 Christ, we thank you for being the Word made flesh. As you ministered to those around you through touch, sight and sound, teach us to make use of our whole selves — body, mind, and spirit — to do your work. Give us the courage to take action and grace to welcome all with a loving spirit. Amen.

Minute for Mission: Pentecost Sunday/Pentecost Offering

Take a minute to look back on your life. Who all have you lived with? In the earliest parts of our lives, we might live with parents or grandparents or other caring adults. Perhaps siblings. Over the years, we might live with friends and extended family, family of choice or even sometimes with strangers. And sometimes we might find ourselves living alone.

No matter whom we live with now, or whom we have lived with before, God’s vision for the world is that everyone finds a place within God’s kingdom — God’s house. What we celebrate at Pentecost is God’s pouring out of the Holy Spirit so that people of every identity and language can hear a word of welcome into God’s household. All belong in God’s household, and we get to live together, and learn together and celebrate together.

At Pentecost, we look especially to the children, youth and young adults with whom God has called us to live. The psalmist reminds us of the importance of faith being established during our earliest years, saying, “God from my youth you have taught me, and I still proclaim your wondrous deeds.” God’s youngest family members need support to build their full potential in both faith and life, and all of us have a role to play. These young ones also show and sometimes teach all of us more about faith in Jesus Christ and how the Holy Spirit is moving in our world.

The Pentecost Offering lets us support the development of children, youth and young adults in our community and throughout the country. Forty percent of this offering stays within our community because we want to build the household of God together, in this place. The remainder is sent on to our denomination so that young adults can lay a foundation for their lives through a year of service as part of the Young Adult Volunteer program. It is also used to support ministries with youth, through experiences of worship and formation like the Presbyterian Youth Triennium, which gathers nearly 5,000 young people every three years to learn and grow. There is also a portion of this Offering that supports the education of every child in this country, through the Educate a Child, Transform the World national initiative. Even when there are no children or young people in the places where we live, there are many, many with us in the household of God.

During this Pentecost season, I want us to celebrate the fact that we are building a life of faith and building the household of God with our children, youth and young adults. Through our gifts today, we join with them and with God in building that household together. And you know what we always say … if we all do a little, it adds up to a lot.

Bryce Wiebe, Director, Special Offerings and Appeals

Let us join in prayer for: 

PC(USA) Agencies’ Staff
Chad Dusatko, Presbyterian Mission Agency
Sandra Duverge, Presbyterian Mission Agency

Let us pray:

Holy Spirit, breathe on us. Inspire us to give and to grow your household. Thank you for the special place you offer to the youngest members of your family. May our efforts reflect the joy and delight that Jesus showed in welcoming children. Amen.

Minute for Mission: Easter/One Great Hour of Sharing

April 12, 2020

I bet that some of us, when we were growing up, were told that there were certain ways to behave in the church building, because it is God’s house. Maybe it was not to run, or to keep our voices quiet, or maybe we were taught to invite others in. This is God’s house.

In Isaiah 58, the author is addressing a people who have returned to Jerusalem, where the Temple — God’s house — was in shambles. In that rubble, the prophet challenges the people not to rebuild the building or to restore their religious rituals, but to care for the hungry, the weak and the vulnerable — the prophet called the people to become the house of God. We, too, are the house of God. We are called to become, as Isaiah promised long ago, “repairers of the breach, restorers of streets to live in.”

Together, we become the household of God through One Great Hour of Sharing. We extend shelter to those who have no place to stay, offer compassion to those who have pain — be it physical, emotional or spiritual — and we set a feast, with God, for those who lack access to enough food to eat. 

When the wind and water wipe homes away, or bombs destroy the dwellings of the innocent, or people lack safe and affordable housing, One Great Hour of Sharing extends a roof.

When conflict and war cause famine, or the environment endangers the land of farmers, or those who work the fields are not paid enough to feed their families, One Great Hour of Sharing welcomes them to the table.

When water becomes scarce, or when it must be accessed by walking long and dangerous distances, or when the pipes or sources become poisoned, One Great Hour of Sharing rushes in as a spring of life-giving water. 

We are the house of God. Let us welcome those without a home into God’s house. Let us invite those without enough to eat to God’s table. Let us invite those who thirst to the spring of God’s fountain. May we be called, as Isaiah said, “repairers of the breach, restorers of streets to live in.”

Bryce Wiebe, Director, Special Offerings and Appeals, Presbyterian Mission Agency

Let us join in prayer for: 

PC(USA) Agencies’ Staff
Herbert Beverly, Office of the General Assembly
Teresa Bidart, Presbyterian Mission Agency

Let us pray:

Draw all people together, gracious God, and make us your house. Let us create a home and a wholeness for people in need, so that the whole human family will know your love. Amen.