With more than half a million dollars in donations received and the on-site assessments completed, Church of God Ministries (CGM) calls for individuals and congregations to sign up for work teams to go to Haiti as part of the relief and recovery operations. These teams will provide the labor force to work side by side with the Haitian people to complete the projects identified in phase two of the strategic response plan developed by the Disaster Relief Committee (DRC).

By Sam Collins

We Christians tend to pride ourselves on our devotion to the truth. Nevertheless, sometimes our truthfulness is a bit elastic, like people who write ad copy claiming that someone with the face of a pit bull can be transformed into a Penelope Cruz facsimile simply by glopping on generous quantities of some overpriced beauty goo.

Take the matter of seeking God and the things of God. To hear us talk and testify, one might think that our desire to bask in God’s presence never ebbs or wanes. And I think we are largely sincere in expressing what we wish were the case. But, in reality, we human beings are easily distracted. For that reason, our desire for God can rise and fall like the nausea-inducing deck of a ship at sea.

by Maddie Follis

The third time’s a charm, or so the old saying goes. That is the hope for the third annual Global Communion that will take place at this summer’s North American Convention (NAC) in Anderson, Indiana. The first two Global Communions were great, but this year the organizers hope to engage even more people in this powerful worship service of celebration and Communion; last year, people in thirty-two countries participated.

Hundreds are believed dead following a devastating mudslide that destroyed communities on the slopes of Mount Elgon, in eastern Uganda, on Sunday, February 28. To respond to this immediate need and help alleviate the suffering, Church of God Ministries is sending $5,000 in Disaster Relief Funds to career missionaries Tim and Colleen Stevenson.

By David Miller

Church of God believers in Chile spent several anxious days following Saturday’s devastating earthquake, unable to learn the fate of pastors José y Marcela Cisterna and their 3 children. The family had traveled to Los Angeles, Chile, a small city near the quake’s epicenter, to visit relatives. Due to damage to the country’s telecommunications and transportation systems, contact with both the Cisternas and their extended family was impossible.

Church of God Ministries announces that $5,000 in hunger relief funds will be sent immediately  to Chile in response to the earthquake that hit this South American country on Saturday, February 27. The money will be provided to church leaders there to help respond to the critical need for food and water for the victims of this tragedy.

The earthquake that hit Chile on Saturday, February 27, has claimed at least 708 lives, according to the latest BBC reports. Michelle Bachelet, president of Chile, says the death toll is expected to rise further. Two million people had been affected by the 8.8 quake, one of the most severe ever recorded and the largest to hit Chile in fifty years. Reconstruction of homes, highways and public buildings could cost tens of billions of dollars.

Phil Murphy, former missionary to Haiti, has accepted a six-month assignment from Church of God Ministries (CGM) to serve as the field coordinator for the Church of God disaster relief and recovery operations in Haiti. The disaster relief committee of CGM recognized the critical need for a person with Murphy’s skills and connection to guide the activities on the ground as the relief effort transitions into the second phase.

Church of God Ministries, Inc. now offers free electronic samples of all its curriculum publications for download from the CGM website. This includes all age levels of the Bridges curriculum designed especially for the Church of God, as well as resources from Wesleyan Publishing House and WordAction Publishing that are distributed by Warner Press. To access the download, click here.

The Disaster Relief Assessment Team currently in Haiti has sent an initial report back to Church of God Ministries. The report highlights their visit to the Jacmel region along the southern coastal peninsula of the island, where several Church of God congregations are located. Meanwhile, the church continues a generous outpouring of love and support through contributions to the Disaster Relief Fund totaling $385,000 thus far.