Pray for East Timor on Sunday, October 6, 2013
Lectionary Selection: Psalm 137
Prayers for East Timor:
Almighty God, the omnipotent and omnipresent, we ask for guidance and grace for our mission partners in Timor Leste – ITPL and its two related foundations – Foundasaun Didache (for the Lisa Dila Vocational High School) and Foundation Social Naroman (engaged in relief and development). We pray for blessings on IPTL’s leadership under Pandetta Moises Antonio Da Silva and the other elected officers who have been serving since 2012. We pray fervently for elected President, Taur Matan Ruak. Guide and bless his administration over these next four-and half years as they attempt to lift their people out of hunger and poverty. Give them strength and sustain thier work to provide stable and sustained educational and health services. Be in the midst of our congregations to spiritually nurture them and bind them to one another. Dear God, ignite those lay leaders from the many diverse congregations to be faithful disciples. We also pray for Amena Lalu Cristovao, who is studying in Milwaukee to become a lab technician. Give her the skills she will need when she returns to serve her home health clinic in Lospalos.
Mission Stewardship Moment from East Timor:
This is a time of great transition in East Timor. It also offers great promise and an opportunity. Churches and educational institutions are facing limited funding and structure but continue to work to meet such deep needs in their communities. Peace has dominated the first year and a half during the administration of the Timor Leste’s first elected Protestant President, Taur Matan Ruak a.k.a. Jose Maria de Vesconcelos. This peace, offers a window of opportunity for our partners. They are working to build stronger Christian communities in the face of being separated geographically. The relief and development ministry is discerning priorities and working to build programs that will set the foundation for sustainable communities. The education ministry seeks to support a strong cohesive Christian ministry.
For most people in East Timor, the eastern half of an island southeast of Indonesia, educational and career opportunities are few. Amena Cristovao, a 24-year-old woman from the rural village of Lospalos, is being sponsored by Global Ministries to become a medical technician. She is working to complete the medical laboratory technician program at Lake Superior College in Duluth, Minnesota. With this Associates Degree, Amena will be one of the most valuable medical lab technicians in all of East Timor.
Since being in the states she has graduated from the Global Language Institute (GLI). Her summer was filled with travel to a Disciples of Christ summer camp and from there to General Synod in Long Beach, California and General Assembly in Orlando, Florida. In August she went to Madison, Wisconsin, for a gathering of Timorese people in the USA before heading back to school. Amena is a remarkable example of working in partnership, not alone but with every one of us supporting her journey to a better tomorrow for East Timor.
(Prayer and Mission Moment by Carlos Madrazo)
Mission Partners in East Timor:
More information on East Timor: http://globalministries.org/sasia/countries/east-timor/
Global Ministries Missionary in East Timor:
Carlos Madrazo, a member of Bethany United Church of Christ, Seattle, Washington, serves the United Church of Christ in the Philippines as an Agricultural Consultant. He works as an adviser on institutional capacity building, resources and sustainable agricultural curriculum development with the UCCP.