Global Update
VIDEO TRANSCRIPT
Benjamin Kreps:
Welcome to the Mark Prater podcast where our aim is to connect our global family of churches with our Executive Director, Mark. As you know, and we all know, we're walking through very difficult days, this pandemic crisis. And there are many challenges. We've tried to address some of them recently, but there are challenges happening globally with people we’re in partnership with that are much more acute and severe. Can you share some of what's going on globally and then how we're connecting resources with needs with global partners?
Mark Prater:
Yeah, I'd love to. Right now, Sovereign Grace is working with pastors and churches in 32 different nations around the world. And so, what a global pandemic does is highlights our relationships with those pastors in churches because in those different nations, they're facing real needs, different needs, but real needs. And I think partnership is even more meaningful to them. And to us right now, that we get to participate in something God's doing globally. Just to start with I'm so grateful that we're doing ministry together.
Benjamin Kreps:
Yeah. I mean here we certainly have challenges and there are economic difficulties globally though. People are literally facing starvation. So could you share a couple of things that have been happening when it comes to us being able to provide resources?
Mark Prater:
Yeah. And this is a really through a lot of hard work that Dave Taylor is doing as our Director of Emerging Nations, making us aware of these needs. The churches in the Philippines where we've got a church in Bohol led by Pete Valdez and a church in Cebu city, led by Cornelio Nebo and their relationship with Jeffrey Jo, whose got a large church in Manila and then he cares for about 20 churches. All of them are facing issues of getting food to the members of their churches. So the pandemic has really shut everything down in the Philippines. People can't get out to get food. Most of them live day to day with getting food. So, the Sydney church sent money to the Philippines and they were able to buy rice, primarily for those churches. And then Dave reached out to Eric Turbedsky, Sovereign Grace Church of Orange, just sent over $5,900 to the Philippines to help them. And then we're working within our Emerging Nations team. And the guys that are on point in the Philippines, Lynn Baird and Dave York, are going to their regions to see if they would like to participate.
Benjamin Kreps:
Yeah, that's wonderful. I mean our region has had the opportunity to provide some help for Liberia. I'm involved with Dyonah Thomas in Liberia. Sadly, our trip this year was canceled because of the pandemic and the shutdown, but they're facing very significant issues as well. But our region had privilege of being able to provide some resources for them for food as well.
Mark Prater:
Yeah. Didn't you just tell me wired over about $5,000 from your region this week? Right.
Benjamin Kreps:
We did. And their situation, like other countries, is one where the government is about to have a complete lockdown, I think for 21 days where you can't leave your house for any reason whatsoever. So there was a real urgency and need to purchase food and to distribute food to folks because they were going to be in their homes for weeks unable to go and obtain food. Email I got from Dave Taylor were just pictures of them getting their first shipment of food in to provide for the people in those communities. That one was from Dave Taylor's church, actually donating and Dyonah communicated just the tears of joy and gratefulness for that help. So it really is a time that we have a great privilege to be a blessing and to participate in blessing people globally, not just at home. It's a real privilege.
Mark Prater:
It is. I just heard from Rich Richardson yesterday. He's been interacting with Carlos Contreras and Carlos is doing a great job of caring for the churches in Mexico and in Costa Rica. It appears there are three churches in Mexico that are already feeling the impact economically and financially. For example, the church in Durango. Carlos is, is working with Rich and we're going to try to find some ways to support them. May involve some of the regions in the States, like the West or the South Central region. We have good relationships with our brothers in Mexico. And again, that just highlights our partnership. We build relationally, not just within our nation, but across nations where we can serve each other during a time like this.
Benjamin Kreps:
Yeah. It's crazy times, but there's also expansion, I think, within Sovereign Grace in our capacity and our desire to be blessing, not just here at home, but, but globally as well. And to have people experience our love and care. So, great. Anything else you want to add?
Mark Prater:
Yeah, I just want to mention that we're doing a day of prayer tomorrow as a denomination. It's a day of prayer for the nations. [Ben Kreps: It might not be tomorrow by the time the podcast goes up.] Yeah, that's true. I forgot about that. So, Friday, April 24th we are, and if you don't pray that day, let me just say after you get this, when you get this podcast, that'll be after April 24th, take some time to pray. There are a few things that are listed in the blog post that you can pray for, including some of the nations we just mentioned, Liberia and the Philippines, in particular.
Benjamin Kreps:
Great. Thanks Mark, and thank everyone for watching this podcast and I will see you soon. Right here.