make known His deeds among the peoples!
Oh give thanks to the Lord; call upon his name; make known his deeds among the peoples! Sing to him, sing praises to him; tell of all his wondrous works! Glory in his holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice! Seek the Lord and his strength; seek his presence continually!
Psalm 105. 1-4
At Restoration, 10 cents of every dollar goes to serving the poor and vulnerable, and building ministry partnerships in Arlington and around the world. Recently our vestry set aside some of our ‘outreach’ budget to be used on exploratory trips as we seek to build a relationship with a church or movement in another country.
We had a wonderful partnership with World Orphans in the country of Moldova. Over a 3 year period, Restoration helped to establish a transition home for teenage girls who were vulnerable to trafficking. We gave our time, talent, and treasure to secure the facility, to teach them a trade, and to provide them a nurturing environment. Joyfully, this home will now be sustained by a local church in Moldova. We are thankful to God for the opportunity to have been a part of it.
For most of 2012, our Outreach Steering Team has been praying about what people and places might be next for Restoration. Today, Jesse, Sarah, and Clara Blaine will move to Phnom Penh, Cambodia. We are so proud of them and excited to hear what God will do through them as they labor to rescue orphans and plant a church. It is our sincere hope that Restoration will have a long term companionship with the Blaines and with the people they serve in Cambodia.
A few hours after the Blaines take off, Liz Gray, Jon Terry, and David Hanke will fly to Asia with much prayer and expectant hearts. We will visit contacts in 3 cities. In every place we will ask the Lord for discernment and wisdom– is this a place where Restoration people could be a part of building God’s Kingdom? Is this a place where Restoration people could find their place in God’s story and be discipled to look like Jesus? We hope so. But we fly in faith. We pray in faith. And we listen in faith. . Many, many people have loved its people in the name of Jesus for thousands of years. We jump into a long river of grace. And we ask: God, is this a place that you are calling our church to make your deeds known among the people?
The vision of our church is to see broken people all over the world being restored by grace and living God’s story. Today, as we scatter a few of our folks to Asia
and Cambodia, we will also sow in Kampala [Santiago S.], El Salvador [Liz J.], K Street [Sammy S.], Capital Hill [Robert M. and Gaston and Ryan and…], Flint Hill School [Liz B.], the pentagon [Dietrich] and the place where you set your foot… Glory in His holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice!
One more thing– we had a great and lively conversation about the exterior of the building last night. We looked at 15 or so different ideas and gave lots of feedback– death by sticky note. 🙂 I love the confluence of these conversations– a home for us on Quincy street that will resource a vision to declare His Glory in Arlington and among the nations.
This is so exciting!!
-David
