Missions Catalyst 04.26.10 – Resource Reviews

In This Issue: Missions Resources for Kids!

• Free Magazine and Online Game
• Books for Preschool/Elementary and Youth
• DVDs for Elementary and Youth
• VBS Giving Projects
• Prayer Event Resources

Missions Catalyst is a free, weekly electronic digest of mission news and resources designed to inspire and equip Christians worldwide for global ministry. Use it to fuel your prayers, find tips and opportunities, and stay in touch with how God is building his kingdom all over the world. Please forward it freely!

Resource Reviews are published once a month. This edition by Karen Hardin. Contact Karen.

Dear Readers,

Dandelions germinate and flourish without our help, but raising kids with a heart for missions takes nurture and patience. At a recent conference, I met Austin Gutwein, a 15-year-old with a God-sized passion and vision for AIDS orphans in Africa. What struck me was that God had birthed this vision when Austin was nine! Austin’s story (read more below) reinforces one of the reasons I serve as a children’s mobilizer: God chooses to use kids in his kingdom. Here are some resources to inspire and equip the kids sitting around your dinner table or in your class.

Free Magazine and Online Game

The first issue of “Compassion Explorer Magazine” launched in January. This 16-page, quarterly magazine introduces kids to children at risk around the world, and highlights both adults and kids who are making a difference in their lives. Published by Compassion International. For a free subscription, send an email here.

Also from Compassion International, Quest for Compassion is an interactive, online game designed to educate children about global poverty and stir up a compassionate response.

BOOKS

For Preschool/Elementary:

Families on Mission: Ideas for Teaching Your Preschooler to Love, Share, and Care by Angie Quantrell. Provides activity ideas for parents to teach their preschool children about missions, and  about loving and serving others. Most activities take 10 minutes or less. Chapter topics include loving, sharing, caring, praying, giving, doing and helping. Available from New Hope Publishers, US$9.99.

Zowie! 200+ Ministries Kids Can Do by Jodi Blackwell and Jill Goldner. This is a great resource for parents and teachers to equip elementary-age children to get involved in hands-on ministry in their community. Some ministry projects are family-oriented. Others are designed for groups of children. This book includes ideas for trips to nursing or veteran’s homes, hospitals or clinics, food banks, family shelters, childcare centers, and more. Available from New Hope Publishers, US$12.99.

Missionary Stories from Around the World by Betty Swinford. These short missionary biographies demonstrate how God has been at work in every corner of the globe. Perfect as short bedtime stories or as a chapter book for independent readers ages 8-12. Published by CF4Kids. Available in the U.S. from Amazon.com, US$9.99.

New from the “Christian Heroes: Then & Now” series by Janet and Geoff Benge are Isobel Kuhn: On the Roof of the World and Elisabeth Elliot: Joyful Surrender. This is a great series of chapter books for kids 10 and older. Available from YWAM Publishing, US$8.99.

Free downloadable mission stories for children in PDF format. Six are mission stories for preschoolers, previously published by Woman’s Missionary Union (WMU). Eight are missionary biographies for elementary-age children from WMU’s “Children in Action: Special Assignments.”

For Youth:

Take Your Best Shot: Do Something Bigger Than Yourself by Austin Gutwein with Todd Hillard. At age nine, Austin watched a World Vision video about Maggie, an AIDS orphan in Zambia. He realized she wasn’t any different from him except she was suffering. Austin felt God calling him to help orphans like Maggie, using something he loved – basketball. On World AIDS Day, 2004, he shot 2,057 free throws, one for every child who would be orphaned during his day at school. With friends and family sponsoring him, Austin raised $3,000. Funds were used by World Vision to assist eight orphaned children.  But Austin didn’t stop there. He founded Hoops of Hope to inspire and mobilize other kids to act on behalf of orphans.

This book is perfect for tweens and teens who are seeking to serve in ways that express their passion and utilize the gifts God has give them. Each chapter closes with a Scripture passage, questions, online experience, and a “take action” activity. Available from Thomas Nelson, US$12.99.

DVDs

For Elementary:

“The Perpetua Story” is the latest DVD in the Torchlighters: Heroes of the Faith series. Click to see a preview. Each DVD includes a 30-minute animated video (English and Spanish) and a documentary. Other titles in the series include William Tyndale, Jim Elliot, John Bunyan, Gladys Aylward, Eric Liddell, and Richard Wurmbrand. Recommended for ages 8-12. Available from Vision Video, US$11.99.

For Youth:

In Underground Reality: Colombia, seven youth travel through the villages, prisons and jungles of Colombia and learn the reality of serving Christ in difficult circumstances. Four 25-minute episodes introduce Alex, a former assassin now turned to Christ; Celso, a mission worker who was kidnapped by the FARC (Revolutionary Armed Forces of Columbia) but still ministers in guerrilla-controlled areas; and Luz and Yubis, women whose husbands were killed for their service to Christ. The youth team witnesses firsthand the power of God in overcoming violence with an amazing message of hope and forgiveness. Produced by Voice of the Martyrs, US$29.

Also available, Underground Reality: Vietnam, US$19.

VBS Giving Projects

Build-A-Bed project through Sweet Sleep. Money collected provides pillows, sheets, blankets, frames, mattresses and mosquito nets for orphans. For project materials, go online or call 615.730.7671.

Children’s Gospel Clubs project through the India Gospel League. Each dollar collected will send a child in India to a six-day Gospel Club event similar to Vacation Bible School and provide discipleship for one year. One child, one year, one dollar. Request offering collection boxes and prayer cards for the children in your group by going online or calling 888.352.4451.

OneVerse Bible translation project through the Seed Company. Your VBS missions giving program can have a global impact – reaching the last languages with God’s Word through Bible translation. Register online to receive resources for the OneVerse Mission Module or call 866.663.8377.

Operation 1 + 1 project through Kidzana Ministries. This year’s giving program focuses on unreached kids in the Middle East. Free resources include a Director’s Guide on CD, a DVD with short segments on five countries in the Middle East, prayer cards, giving boxes, parent flyers, and posters. Order materials online or call 800.222.6241.

Rice Bowls project through Rice Bowls. Small, plastic banks in the shape of a full bowl of rice are provided free to your church, group or organization. Collected money is distributed to provide food for Christian orphanages. Order materials online or call 866.312.5791.

Shoes for Orphan Souls project through Buckner International. Your group can either collect pairs of shoes for orphans or collect money that will be used to purchase shoes. Sign up online to Host a Drive and receive all the promotional materials: posters, bulletin inserts, brochures and a DVD. Check out the downloadable SOS Youth Curriculum. For questions, call 866.774.7463.

Prayer Event Resources

This year’s World Weekend of Prayer for Children at Risk is June 5-6. Downloadable prayer resources from Viva Network include a PowerPoint suitable for a church service and a Prayer Guide Booklet with interactive activities to engage families in praying for vulnerable children around the world.

Check out Red Card, an 8-week curriculum that equips families to pray for and take a stand for children at risk. Published by Caleb Resources and now available from Pioneers.

Upcoming Missions Events

247 TO GO Workshop (Colorado Springs, CO, USA). May 21 to 22. That’s 247 large, unengaged Muslim people groups. Come explore what you can do. Sponsored by Frontiers.

iBAM course (Colorado Springs, CO, USA). June 13 to July 9. Introduction to “business as mission.” Participants can also come for just the first two weeks and/or join a 7- to 10-day field trip. Sponsored by YWAM’s Business as Mission Resource Team; open to all.

>> Complete calendar.

Questions, comments, submissions? Contact us.