news article
Prayer partners: Another life-saving tool in the Africa 360 toolkit
September 15, 2015 / By Kathleen Rubino / .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
For Every Child, Save a Child is a pilot program specifically geared toward Imagine No Malaria, one half of Africa 360 – the Upper New York Conference’s holistic plan for health and education initiatives in Africa that benefits Imagine No Malaria and Africa University.
The program is the result of a partnership between Africa 360 and the Liverpool First United Methodist Church, which will be the first church in the Conference to participate in the program. Laurel O’Connor, Africa 360 Field Coordinator, met with the Rev. Alison Schmied, associate pastor at Liverpool First UMC, to brainstorm ways to help people realize giving is a lifestyle and not a one-time event.
So, how does it work?
Each child or youth in a congregation will make a craft – either the prayer pot craft included in the instructions (see link at end) or another chosen by the church – with his or her name on it. Each member of the church will then choose a child’s craft, and that child will become his or her prayer partner. During the church’s chosen time frame, congregants will pray for their child/youth and will also pledge to give to Imagine No Malaria to save a child’s life in honor of their prayer partner; at Liverpool First UMC, that amount is $10 a month.
“Churches from all over the Conference have been asking about ways to connect their Sunday School with the Africa 360 initiative in creative ways; For Every Child, Save a Child connects youth with other generations in their church as well as children in Africa,” O’Connor said. “The craft teaches the youth that they can plant the seeds to encourage the congregation to live generously.”
Rev. Schmied said the program is about connecting in mission with “our own kids.”
“It’s a way to show them God’s love and act out what we talk about all the time,” she said. “The real goal is to transform lives, to be aware of our place in the global community.”
In addition to the craft, each prayer partner at Liverpool First UMC will receive an “All About Me” form, detailing more information about each child with the hope of deepening the relationship between prayer partners. The church will also host events throughout the year to keep the prayer partners connected.
“It is a wonderful opportunity to educate the children about the spiritual discipline of planning ahead and giving to others as a lifestyle, rather than a one-time event," Rev. Schmied said. "We want our kids to learn that our giving not only funds projects, but is also a means of sharing God's love with our global community."
On Sept. 27, O’Connor will visit Liverpool First UMC to preach and explain the program. By the 2016 Upper New York Annual Conference session (June 2-4), the program will be completed. Rev. Schmied said she hopes it will start up again the following year.
O’Connor emphasizes that the program is flexible; each church can determine the period of time in which it would like to participate in the program – it could be a month, during Advent, a year, etc. She hopes it will spread to other churches.
If your church would like to be a part of For Every Child, Save a Child, visit the Africa 360 Toolkit for craft instructions, a video about the project (also featured above), and Imagine No Malaria resources. For more information and ideas about Africa 360, check out the summer issue of the Advocate or contact O’Connor at Africa360@unyumc.org.