WEA Family Challenge New Update May 2024

Dear friends, Greetings in Jesus Name from WEA Family challenge! As we are progressing into 2024, the world is changing into an AI world. Ask ChatGpt and there flows all our answers within seconds. There are a lot of promise for the future about the speed, perfection, and precision in every field. But it is also bundled with a lot of fear about fakeness and untruth that are replacing real and true life. It will change the way our future generation will interact with each other, may be even as mere virtual avatars than humans.A scary reality awaits as there are fears if the AI world will even take over humans. This advancement is making human interactions a non-necessity. Interestingly AI powered spouses are replacing real marriage, where even spousal intimacy is catered to. These changes are making human beings to operate in silos rather than in a real and thriving relationship as God ordained. But as I reflect on these changes and realities, I see that the world that is truly moving towards a very difficult time, as we read in 2 Timothy 3:1-5. It says, “that in the last days there will be very difficult times. For people will love only themselves and their money. They will be boastful and proud, scoffing at God, disobedient to their parents, and ungrateful. They will consider nothing sacred. They will be unloving and unforgiving; they will slander others and have no self-control. They will be cruel and hate what is good. They will betray their friends, be reckless, be puffed up with pride, and love pleasure rather than God. They will act religious, but they will reject the power that could make them godly.” Though these realities have been in play from the time of Paul, but the “very difficult times” are ever more visible now than in the past.  However, I also believe that these changes will also speed up the work of God and the gospel to facilitate our Lord’s coming. As WEA family challenge, we truly want to bring back the age-old foundations that the Lord ordained to rebuild, restore the families of this world. We are blessed with several tools today to help our families thrive as per God’s purpose, and we will be featuring one family ministry link and their resource in every newsletter. In this newsletter, we would like to share about the Visionary family ministries, based in Chicago,US. For any family ministries that would like to be part of the WEA family challenge network, please fill this google form for us to contact you soon. Hoping to stay in touch through this newsletter every quarter, In His Mission, PC Mathew Global Director WEA – Family challenge Highlights of the quarter: 40 days of Praying for families in the season of lent: The first quarter of the 2024, has been spent in prayer for families through the 40 days of the Lenten season. Meditating on Isaiah 58, helped us to make a podcast distributed through the WEA website ,which was followed daily by meeting for prayer at 4:30 PM IST. We had nearly 60participants meeting for prayer when we started the prayer, but it reduced to around half its number by the end of the 40 days. But many of them consistently met to seek God for the various issues facing families and it was led by many leaders across the globe. Few of us are continuing to meet every Friday at 4:30PM IST to pray for the needs of families in the world. AEA family challenge retreat and planningmeet at Kuching: Dr. P C Mathew and Mrs. Ciby Mathew joined the AEA family challenge team to pray and to seek God for the direction at East Malaysia in Kuching arranged by Pastor Matthew Ling. The planning was focused on how family discipleship can be made a priority for the Asian churches. Ms.Gwen Derozario led the discussion. Global Advisory team working on 10 godly truths on Family Discipleship: Initiated by Pastor Matthew Ling, the global advisory board of family challenge, is working on a free book to be distributed on the 10 key truths on family discipleship that every church should keep as their belief and their lifestyle, to cultivate a culture of family discipleship in every church. This will be a PDF book translated into many languages to be used by any church who want to see a change in each families fulfilling their role to build one another, their church and foster in the Kingdom of God. The team consists of family ministry leaders across the globe. Family Ministry training of Latin Evangelical Alliance: The family ministry training of LEA that started in September has reached its end of the first phase. This is a two-year practical training consistently attended by 75 leaders from 12 nations. Mr.Daniel Cuaquira the regional facilitator for family commission is leading this training with the help and initiation of Past. Matthew Ling from Kuching. We praise God as they have crossed 14 sessions of the 20 sessions on influencing the Latin American churches in family discipleship. Forming a network of global familyministries: To share global resources to the Church and community, its important to form a global network of all family ministries who are working across the globe who are rebuilding and restoring families. With a desire to have as many people in the WEA family ministries network , a google form is made available to fill in your details which can be compiled to make available your services and resources to the rest of the world . If you want to bless the world with your resources and trainings, please fill in your details by clicking this link below. https://forms.gle/vUQem2FkSzc2Kw729 Upcoming event: WEA and Lausanne Children and family ministries network are working together to build missional families as a pre-event for the Lausanne Conference in Seoul: (Dates: June 20th – Aug1st 2024, every Wednesday at 6:30 pm IST). This is to ensure Christian families take up discipleship at home seriously and be a missional agent in the community. Please join this webinar as there will be more details posted soon. Family ministry highlight of this quarter:Visionary family Ministry Visionary Family Ministries exists to help families around the world follow Jesus. We would love to partner with your church and community to equip parents, encourage couples, and strengthen families. Here are three free resources to share with your church family: E-book: Why Every Church Needs Family Ministry. E-book: Living For Christ at Home: A Devotional for Teens Weekly Podcast: Family Vision Access these resources at www.VisionaryFam.com/WEA Over two billion Christians in the world today are represented by three world church bodies. The World Evangelical Alliance (WEA) is one of those, serving more than 600 million evangelicals belonging to churches that are part of 143 national Evangelical Alliances in 9 regions. Launched in London in 1846, the WEA unites evangelicals across denominations for prayer, evangelism, mission, theological education, religious freedom, human rights advocacy, relief, and engagement in a wide range of social issues. It speaks with one voice to United Nations, governments, and media in public or through behind-the-scenes diplomacy on issues of common concern to the Church. For more information, visit worldea.org WEA has been a charter member of the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability since 1980. 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