I am not sure what is on your list, but here are three things that will absolutely be a part of any LIVEº team.

1. Team

It isn’t just because the world seems to be talking about teams that we value sending teams to serve. We send teams because they are effective. We send people that understand the value of complementing each other’s gifts and abilities. We understand the value of working alongside someone makes the good times better and the hard times easier. We understand that teams can be a great example of how the Church should work. LIVEº values teams. If you desire to work alongside others then LIVEº just might be for you.

2. Holistic Approach

This is a value that can be misunderstood. Some people hear “holistic” and they think all that is happening is helping people raise their standard of living. To us at LIVEº, holistic means seeing people’s needs be met—that MUST include spiritual needs. A person is not healthy if they are well-fed and still on their way to an eternity without Christ. Holistic also means that LIVEº team members work out of a sense of being completed by the work of God in their lives. LIVEº team members serve because they can’t imagine any other way to live their lives. If this approach to life and service resonates with you, LIVEº might be right for you.

3. Now is the best time to do something

This world has its share of problems. We all hear about natural disasters, poverty, sickness and other issues and we know there is now magic way to fix things. The cure to what ails the world is the transforming power of Christ and the best time to make that power known is today. Perspective LIVEº team members find it difficult to stand idly by. If you have been looking for an opportunity to get involved LIVEº might be the answer.

If you seem to resonate with any of this check out how to get involved with LIVEº at our web site www.powerofnothing.org and join a LIVEº team!

I am also looking forward to visiting the Genocide Museum again. I know that I will be shaken once again at the thought of how many died in those 100 days of genocide. I will also be impacted by those I see whose lives have been forever changed by that horrific event.

•Please pray for me and for the Midland, MI team as we prepare for our time in Rwanda. •Please pray for all the travel involved. Pray that I can make all my connections and that I will get my passport back with some more pages in it in time for the trip. •Please also pray for the people of Kigufi, that God would be working in them while we are there and that they will be sensitive to the working of the Holy Spirit. •Please also pray for health and safety for the entire team. We will be traveling from June 18th to July 4th.

1.My relationship with people

This should e an obvious one. The way I view people has been utterly changed since becoming a Christ-follower. I now view each person as someone with incredible value—being made in the image and likeness of God, even the guy that punched me in the eye back in eighth grade when I made fun of his sweater. If I had it to do over again I would not make the comment. Not because it would help me avoid a black-eye but because it offended God. The way I treat people has been forever changed by knowing Christ.

2.My relationship with the environment

Yes, it’s true. I would not consider myself an environmentalist in the least. I would consider myself someone that has been charged, by God, to care for the environment. I choose not to litter because it helps care for creation. I choose to recycle because it honors God. I choose use energy saving light bulbs because it honors God—not because it decreases my “carbon footprint”.

3.My relationship with money

I view money differently than I did in my pre-Christ days. Money is something that God has entrusted to me. That means I need to use it in a way that reflects the wishes of its true owner. That means 10% goes to the church. That means taking care of my family’s needs. That means getting out of debt. That means a whole lot of things. Again, the motivation is not to get rich or anything like that. The motivation is to honor God with my actions and my resources. That will likely mean having what I need, when I need it—because God is a faithful God. Think about what this world would look like if more people followed God’s plan for care and use of relationships, the environment, and money. I have a feeling that we would be in a different place. I know I still have a lot of room to grow, but I am convinced that if Christians would think through what God has to say about these three areas of life we would see a different world.

That is what LIVEº is all about—helping people gain a better view of God’s perspective on the use of resources. That is why we are sending teams to parts of the world that are suffering because of an absence of a godly view of resources.

I guess it is sometimes healthy to take stock of your life and examine what it is that you hold onto that isn’t healthy.

There seems to be a misconception that we are sending teams to help improve the living conditions of our target groups and nothing more. That couldn’t be farther from the truth. We are sending teams to point people to the only solution for their problem—Jesus Christ.

I am convinced that the dire circumstances that exist in the world today are present because humankind has, by and large, abandoned a God-centered worldview. People are not without Christ, and therefore without hope, because they are poor—people are poor because they are without Christ and without hope. Transformation of a culture takes place when people have transformed lives. When lives are transformed a completely different view of resources is present and, most importantly, God’s blessing on the people.

That may be a very radical way of thinking but I am convinced that the key to changing this world is bringing the transformational power of the gospel to people who are currently without it. Once Christ is embraced then families, communities, and entire cultures can be radically changed.

This trip will span two Sundays, which means I will have an opportunity to worship with those I have prayed for over these past 14 months. This is one of the benefits of this type of ministry. It doesn’t matter where I go, it is always fun for me to catch a glimpse of what it will be like when the church is ultimately united with Christ. This has been one of the things that leaves a lasting impression on me and I am very excited to have this chance.

There will be one other objective to my presence in Rwanda. As I have been in churches or other venues speaking about LIVEº there is a photo I have continually used when explaining the probable ministry in Rwanda. My desire is to know the story behind the face in the photo.

Here is the face I will be seeking out:

Check back for the story.

What are your thoughts? How can you help us effectively communicate the message of holistic ministry?

Angola 19

In Angola 19% of infants will die before thy reach the age of one.

Batswana 37

In Batswana 37 out of every 100 people are infected with AIDS.

Burundi 57

In Burundi 57% of all children are suffering from moderate to severe stunted growth.

Mozambique 33

The life expectancy, at birth, in Mozambique is 33.1 years.

Zambia 86

86% of the population in Zambia lives below the poverty line.

Click herewww.statattack.com to go to the web site.

The thing that makes me stop and think is not just the fact that these statistics are shocking, but that my relationship with Christ causes me to care deeply about the well-being of everyone represented. I am not just talking about the infant mortality rates and AIDS but I am also thinking that the transforming power of Christ has not yet affected these places. The only real way to affect change in these situations, as well as in our own country, is to bring the transforming power of the gospel to bear on culture. Any malady or pathology is, at its foundation, a function of man’s rebellion against God.

Lord, Help me to persnally submit myself to your authority and be transformed in my mind. Help me to walk in the guidance of your Holy Spirit and to be an instrument to bring that transforming power to my culture and to others around this world.

Amen

For more on the story: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/help/3681938.stm

Jose Ramos-Horta was released from an Australian hospital and is expected to return to East Timor in several days.

For more on the story follow this link: Ramos-Horta Released From Hospital

Karen in N.O.

Karen Green has been in New Orleans for nearly the entire month of March. She has become known as the LIVEº lady as she helps out by taking pictures and working with various teams to debrief at the end of their week. However, the primary reason for her time in New Oreleans has been to present LIVEº to the many teams that have been there to work in the community. She has been able to challenge individuals to take what they have been doing in the U.S. and do it overseas. It is the same type of ministry but on a whole new level.

Important Date Set

We at LIVEº ahve come to the point that we have enough people in the application phase where we have set a date to bring applicants together to affirm their place on a LIVEº team. Applications will need to be in by May 16 and then we will have the Readiness Event on July 10 to 14.

Push for More Applicants

The LIVEº staff has been working hard to inform churches and individuals about the opportunities that LIVEº has available. We have been working to get into 10 hurches over the course of a 10 week period. In each church we are hoping to find 10 people with an interest in LIVEº. That translates into 100 people that will enter the application process and from there we hope to field the balance of three teams that will leave later this year for the field. If you have interest or questions please contact me at bryan.kline@powerofnothing.org and I will connect you with the information that you need.

We are closing in on the formation of our first teams. There are a few more appliactions that have come in and we are processing them. Keep praying for leadership of these teams. We have some very solid leads and we are trying to push them along (not too hard though).

We are also talking with two locations in Latin America to send teams. In both situations the team leadership might already be on the field and it would be simply a matter of sending the team. That would be great. Please be praying that we would make quick connections with these locations and be able to open up applications for them.

Staff

We are going to have our first addition to full time staff. Karen will be joining us next week. This is a major help as she has some tools that our teem greatly needs. Pray that she would adjust to the Minnesota cold quickly and develop a great network of friends. Also, please pray that we would be able to bring her into the LIVEº team with a ton of grace and an equal amount of care.

There are no major staff trips this month but we are looking at getting some training for our personnel that we will be able to pass along to LIVEº team members. Please pray that we would be able to arrange schedules to make this happen.