::World Cup Prayer - Day 1 (South Africa)::

Since I didn't start on time (I'm a slacker), we are going to cover two countries today. So what better place to focus then the host country of the 2010 World Cup...

The Republic of South Africa

FYI: South Africa isthe first African country to host a World Cup...pretty cool.

Relevant Magazine p

osted a gut wrenching article a couple of days ago that outlined the ugly side of the World Cup: Human Trafficking. It is easy to become focused on the fantastic matches or be distracted by the glitz and glamour (...or very unglamorous fat dudes with face paint) and then miss the other things that go on with an event like this one.

Here are a few of the heart-breaking "highlights" of the article:

• In 2005 the International Labour Organization estimated that human trafficking had profits of $31.6 BILLION...and it's only growing!

• South Africa has been a documented source, transit, and destination for the trafficking of men, women, and children...many of the people end up in South African brothels.

• Officials have said that these brothels "weren't here a year ago"...meaning that business has spiked because of the World Cup visitors and business coming to town.

• Laws and prosecution against the perpetrators of these heinous crimes are incredibly weak.

...a few thoughts for prayers...

Pray that the Gospel would explode in South Africa and that people from around the world would hear and respond to it.

Pray for the men, women, and children that are devastated by human trafficking every day. Pray that the church would step up and help the helpless. Pray for ways that you can get involved in the fight.

Praise God would ending Apartheid in South Africa and moving the country down a path of racial reconciliation and healing.

Pray for the 15% of South Africans who claim no religion at all. The majority of the country claims to be Christian but many combine it with tribal religions. Pray that the true Gospel of Jesus Christ would take root.

What did I miss?

What are you praying for?

::World Cup Prayer - Day 1 (USA)::

Today is the beginning of the journey and I am excited to dive in and see how God will use this little adventure to glorify His name and challenge me along the way. Is anyone else out there going to be joining me?

I will be utilizing resources from World Soccer Journeys and the Joshua Project as I post prayers and thoughts about each of the countries in the World Cup. Check out both of these sites and you stand in awe at what God is already doing around the world.

The first country up is...drum roll...

The United States of America

Where else do we start except our own backyard?

Do we pray for our neighbors? Do we pray for our families?

What about the widows or the orphans in your city?

...a little background...

Fifty-one percent of Americans are Protestant and 26 percent are Catholic or other Christian. The largest population of Jews outside Israel lives in the US.

Buddhist Americans and Muslim Americans are almost equal in number.

In this land of religious freedom and religious diversity, pray that followers of Jesus Christ will share His love so effectively that their fellow Americans of all faiths will be drawn to Him.

...a few ideas for prayers...

Pray that the Gospel of Jesus Christ's death and resurrection would take root in the hearts of Americans.

Pray for the President, Congress, and other government leaders

Pray for Christians in our country; that they would not be lulled by comfort and live passionately for Jesus Christ alone.

What did I miss?

What are you praying for to happen in the United States?

::Pray for the World::

It has been WAY too long since I have blogged and I am hoping to change that over the next few weeks. My struggle has been not knowing what to say...do I write about recipes & cooking, talk about adventures around the Dore household, or expand on what God is doing in my life. Every time that I thought I knew what to write about...I procrastinated and changed my mind. Not any more.

God has been pressing on my heart regarding my prayer life. Honestly, prayer is a very weak area of my journey with God; and that is because I place so many other things as more important. I realize this about myself and have decided to take a few intentional steps and this blog is going to be one of them. How is that you ask...you shall see...

In case you missed it, the World Cup has started and this is the biggest sporting event in the world. People around the world from the U.S. to Spain to North Korea are tuning in to watch their teams play for their country. That's 32 countries passionately cheering on their teams...

What would it look like if they were praising the Creator? How different would the world look if they were worshipping Jesus Christ?

That's what this journey is about and I hope that you will join me on it. I will be praying for each country that is represented in the World Cup.

We are starting a day late so tomorrow with focus on the United States and South Africa.

I pray that you will join me on this adventure. It's gonna be fun.

::Compassion::

I don't blog over here very often; I guess I really don't know what to say on here. I have no problem blogging on the Trinity Chapel Students blog...but I never know what to write about, talk about, etc.

This blog has been difficult to write. I wanted to write it but I didn't want to sound prideful, congratulate myself, or make you say "way to go Brent and Julie"... so please know that this is not my intention. My intention is that the name of Christ would be made known to the world. And my hope is that through this blog and this adventure that Julie and I have begun...that the name of Christ would be glorified and that the hurt and oppressed in the world would be encouraged, loves, and supported.

Have you ever heard of Compassion International?

...If you have ever been to a Christian concert or conference; there is a good chance that you have heard of them.

Compassion International is an international ministry that stands in the gap and works to love, encourage, and share the good news of Christ with children in some of the most difficult and poverty-stricken areas of the world. Their passion is to see children loved and brought out of poverty because Christians around the world sponsor a child for $39 a month. They were founded in 1952 and today support over a million children in 25 countries...WOW!

Well, I have known about Compassion for a very long time. I grew up going to all the concerts, camps, and conferences and saw their tables but I never truly understood the importance of what they were doing. My family even supported a child when I was in High School for awhile...but it was just something we did; there was never any thought or passion behind it. So, I went off to college and never really thought about it. I was consumed with studies (...well, sorta), church, BYX, and much more but never considered the fact that Christ has made it very clear that we as followers of Christ are to love the orphans, widows, and the oppressed in the world.

How could I have missed it? It's pretty clear...

Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this:to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world. - James 1.27

In the past few months, my friend Todd Engstrom has really challenged me in regards to Christ's call on believers to love the orphans in the world. I saw very clearly that Julie and I needed to do something...but we can't support adopting a child right now? What can we do?

Enter Compassion International. This is where we can start. This is what we can do. So, we started supporting a child named Naole from Ethiopia. It has already been an incredible blessing and we have only been doing it for 3 weeks or so. We are honored to be a part of his life...I already want to go visit him.

$39 a month to change a child's life...that's well worth it. That's 7 less Starbuck's drinks a month...that's 1 less dinner out...that's not very much.

However, I still never realized the true impact that this program has until I watched this video from the recent Catalyst conference. (...I almost started crying in the DTS library...seriously)

Mark had been sponsoring Jimmy Wambua for 19 years....and this is the 1st time that they had met. Because of Mark's support, Jimmy is not only alive but he is studying at Moody Bible Institute and is planning on being a pastor...he also sponsors a child in Haiti on his own. It is an incredible story.

(Jimmy starts sharing his story at the 3:45 mark in the video)

Will you sponsor a child?

You won't regret it.

::New TCS Blog::

My life is slowly becoming consumed with social networking and blogs.  You can now also find me on twitter as @brentdore.

The Student Ministry at TCBC now has a new blog at www.trinitychapelstudents.wordpress.com.  It is going to have lots of articles, media, and resources in the coming months.  Check it out.

That's all for now.  See you soon.

Brent

::Theology and Students::

It blows my mind to think that I have been working with TCS (Trinity Chapel Students) for close to a year now.  I am in the midst of evaluating the past year and there will be a review blog posted in the future but suffice it to say that I have been amazed at what God has done in my life, in this ministry, and in the lives of the students.

Tonight's Life*Group caused me to really reflect on how far this aspect of our ministry has come from where we started.  It was only last semester that the students wanted to get rid of our small groups and just "hang out"... they have really grown.  We have been working through some key doctrine issues with them {Trinity, Sovereignty, Grace, Mercy} and tonight we discussed the Righteousness of God.  Their thoughts, observations from scripture, and questions blew me away...it is truly incredible to see the faithfulness of God at work.

There will be more to come over the next few weeks on lessons learned and mistakes made but I just want to say tonight that we worship a very big God.  We worship an incredibly righteous, holy, and gracious God and it blows my mind.  I constantly underestimate Him...and He constantly reminds me that I am missing it.  That's all for now.  See you out there.

B

::My Journey in Belize::

Belize is a one of a kind place.  Every time that I go there, I learn something new about God and about myself.  I was in Belize from March 14th to the 21st and it was incredible.  This trip was unlike any other trip that I have been on to Belize.

The biggest difference was that I was not planning on going this year.  Julie and I just bought a new house (...updates on this coming soon) and I thought that this was a good time to sit out the trip.  But God had other plans.  Following Ben Connelly's car wreck, there was a spot available and Julie encouraged me to go to Belize.  So, after talking to Julie, Ben and Ted I jumped in on the trip.  I was unsure and had no idea what my purpose was going to be on the trip but I felt like I needed to be on this trip.  

When we landed in Belize, I quickly realized why I was on this trip.  Richard Smith, our host at My Refuge Christian Ministries, told Matt Hudson and me that there were 15 youth workers coming to a youth worker training session that I thought was canceled.  So, I started developing a training session for youth workers in Belize that I was going to present in 48 hours.  

Meeting the youth workers was an incredible experience.  Their passion and desire to see the young people in Belize come to know Christ in powerful ways was incredible.  Their commitment to the country blew me away.  It was an honor and a privilege to hear their stories of God's glory and life-changing power in Belize.  I will never forget about their joy, and excitement about reaching the youth of Belize.

We are developing a partnership for years to come with the youth workers.  There will be future training, and encouragement as we work to equip people to minister to youth.  Honestly, I feel like I learned more from them than they learn from me.  It is a joy to know that the Body of Christ is growing everywhere.

This year's trip to Belize was all about seeing God's sovereignty and plan.  I saw how God has been preparing me for this year on the previous trips.  I saw how God has been slowly developing a passionate heart for Belize that exploded on this trip.   It has been an incredible experience.

Belize has dramatically changed my life and I look forward to future trips to Belize.  I can not wait to go back soon.  And, Julie is going to be joining me next year...very exciting.

That's all I have for now.  Be back soon.

B