It won't be anything fancy. I probably won't even have dessert. (Gasp.)
That's because I'll be serving nothing but water and a rice-based mixture that is fed every day to millions of orphans worldwide.
It's part of my plan for Orphan Sunday, which this year is November 6. It's a day set apart for the Church to stop and hear God's heartbeat for the fatherless -- and then ask, "What now, Lord?"
My favorite part about Orphan Sunday is that you can personalize it. Each local Orphan Sunday event or activity is created by local believers in the local church. So events have their own feel. In 2010, events included sermons and Sunday School classes on God’s heart for the orphan, prayer gatherings, fasts and simple meals, student-led fundraisers, foster family recruiting and live concerts.
This year? There are even more resources at your fingertips. On the Christian Alliance for Orphans website, you can find ideas for your children's ministry, your youth group, your small group or Bible study, inserts for your church bulletin, videos that can be played in your church service, posters and and prayer guides.
And a partridge in a pear tree....
Sorry. I know it's a lot. So let me highlight for you my favorite new resource this year -- the Orphan's Table. It's an easy-to-cook package you can share with friends and family -- a meal of protein-rich rice that is daily sustenance for orphans around the globe. Included in the kit is a prayer and discussion guide, and you can also order the DVD "Answer the Cry: Faces of Hope" to show to your guests. And it's all free, although if you can make a donation to cover shipping costs, that would be grace.
I'm going to host an Orphan's Table meal at my house for our family and a few close friends. (Close friends: Be looking for your invite.) I am especially excited about how this might impact the kids in attendance, mine own included. I have to think sitting down to a meal of rice and water and than talking about how God would want us, as a family, to help children without families will make a tangible impact.
But here's the deal: You have to order your Orphan's Table package TODAY for it to make it to your house by November 6. Packages ordered after October 21 will be shipped as soon as possible, but there's no guarantee they will make it to your house by Orphan Sunday. Of course, you can host your own meal to talk about orphans at any time, so if you miss the deadline, I would still urge you to act. But if you can order today, and join with the global Church on November 6 and cry out for orphans? You will be blessed.
If you want to know more about Orphan Sunday, I would love to answer any questions or help you on the road. You can grab the button below. And please, spread the word. I am so grateful for my many blog friends whose hearts beat with God's passion for the orphan.
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