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AM-CCSM News
2010 Short-Term Teams
Dates for our 2010 international short-term teams are now available from your local AM-CCSM base.
Is Prayer Important?
When we head for the mission field, many of us imagine that we will soon be busy doing amazing works for God, seeing lives transformed and even whole communities changed with the power of the Gospel. But then we arrive and really begin to dig into language learning and adapting to a different culture, and we discover that this life-giving change often comes much more slowly than expected. In the effort to touch more lives and see this change come more quickly, we can easily get lost in doing many good deeds, and lose sight of the importance of building a firm foundation. We all know that Jesus is our foundation, but what does that really mean? We must spend time with Him in prayer to experience the reality of Him as our Rock.
A Letter from China
There are thousands of opportunities for native English speakers to teach English in China. The door is wide open! Restrictions on the open sharing of your faith vary from college to college. ‘M & A' are our longest-serving English teachers and their lives and witness have had a powerful impact on literally hundreds of young Chinese students. Here they share the situation following their move to a new teaching situation in a comparatively small city:
Great Fellowship and a Time of Inspiration
"A great time of fellowship, teaching, refreshment and relaxation." - ‘A & L'
Reading the Bible - A Dangerous Thing
Reading the Bible can be a dangerous thing! It can change your life, especially when you believe, like I do, that it is God's own words to us as His children. The more I read and ponder God's commands to us, the more I see that He does not want us to keep the good news of the Gospel to ourselves. It is meant to be contagious, to spread from person to person. We are all called to participate in missions. This is not just something for extraordinary "super-Christians." We are all called to participate, some to send and some to go. I pray that you will each earnestly seek for what God has called you to do and where. That is what I have done and continue to do. It's a real adventure!
My Dream
Recently, whilst ministering in Singapore, after a long and hard day's work, I sat down to watch a game of football on TV - afternoon games in the UK are actually evening programmes in Asia, given the time difference. Manchester United were playing. (I have to be honest and open and say that I am not a Manchester United supporter!) In the 92nd minute of the game (in other words, in time added on) a young 17-year old Italian player who had never played for MU before scored the winning goal. Being Italian, he expressed exactly what he felt... celebrations which included kissing the camera and a number of other similar actions!
In Their Own Words
"The time at the orphanage was tough in several ways. Yet God had clearly called me and provided for me to come on the team. When I saw things happen that I didn't like and seemed wrong, He reminded me again that whatever loss of comforts and whatever challenges I experienced and didn't like, it was nothing compared to the sacrifice Jesus made when He left the glory and joy of Heaven to come to earth and live an uncomfortable life and die an excruciatingly painful death for me. Recognizing again this basic fact gave me a new love for Him and for these children whom He has made and loves dearly. God told me that in spite of what sometimes seems slow or even no progress, He IS working and He DOES want us to keep on going to fulfil His purposes of bringing His love and purposes to these children. Bringing God's love to those children even for just a week is worthwhile and imperative, and our going there IS making a positive and lasting difference to their lives. When we follow Him, our labour is NOT in vain. His ways are amazing." - Mercy team member
"I give thanks to God for allowing me to see things through His eyes and listen to those we visited through His Heart. God showed me the needs of the land and the cry of the young generation in China. What impacted me was the need for more people to serve in the field." - Pastors' team member
For the Least of My Brothers
The plight of the needy in China can be horrendous. Poverty is rampant in this vast nation where more than half of the population still lives in rural communities, and in many areas there is a distinct lack of amenities that we in the developed world consider basic necessities. AM-CCSM's mercy work team has been privileged to help change the lives of children in several villages in rural China and to make a difference in a state-run orphanage where 70% of the children have been abandoned because of physical or mental handicaps.
Reaching Hungry Hearts
The year 2008 was a busy year for us all in Antioch Missions-Chinese Church Support Ministries. Each year is busy, but with all that happened in China in 2008 it seemed busier than normal. The terrible earthquake that claimed many lives and left millions homeless gave us much to do. The Olympic Games gave so many opportunities to share the Good News, and we made sure that we had plenty of Christian teaching books available for the churches in China.
A Life-Changing Path
It was in 2005, in Cape Town, South Africa, that I first heard of Antioch Missions-Chinese Church Support Ministries.