The Children of Karansi

The children at Karansi Lutheran Parish are like the children in all of Africa.  Many of us have a deep love for these children. The disciple John wrote in John 3:17, “If a rich person sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against his brother, how can he claim he loves God?” 

The children at Karansi live in poverty.  I still have the image in my head of the 2011 Sheridan team leaving Pastor Joshua Laiser’s home and the children running along side of us as we walked to the van.  The children were wearing rags. Like the children at Mudio, they have never worn new clothes. Many times I have visited the churches and schools, and the thought comes to me, “Is this child malnourished?”  At Karansi the children do not eat three meals a day.

Along the roads in Tanzania, you will see children in their school uniforms walking to school. Since the children at Karansi live a long distance from the school, many will be living in a dormitory. Can you imagine being six or seven years old and living in a dorm?          

And each time I leave the Sunday school classroom, after bringing school supplies, the teacher looks at me with her eyes, begging for help. Pastor Joshua Laiser is a leader in helping his Maasai people build a primary school. Most of these children have never been in school. I have great admiration for him as he recently completed high school!  The Karansi School will have all classes taught in English. This will give the children a chance to be successful when they enter secondary school. Learning a second language is not easy.

In spite of all the hardships, the children have smiles on their faces and enthusiastically sing Jesus Loves Me….in English.

In Christian love,

Linda Gapp

Click here for more information about the 2013 Vision Trip to Tanzania.
Click here to see pictures of the building of the school.

WIll anyone notice?

Today I took a "field trip" with Pastor Rhonda to Tabitha. We were invited by Chan Tyrell, Director of the Tabitha Foundation, to come meet with him and Deb, the Director of Volunteers. As we started out on a tour of the updated facility, I wondered what my role was to be and how God woud use a Children's Music Director for a tour of an Elder Care facility.  As we walked, Chan threw out facts and numbers. Intermixed with his sale's pitch was his passionate and humorous personality. He greeted every person we met as a long lost friend and seemed to know most by name… from the employees to the residents to the patients. Our tour was very informative and was filled with things that I had never considered.

At one point we were walking through one of the homes, and we came across a living area where two men were sitting in wheelchairs. A nurse was reading to them. As we wandered through the living room, I slowed down to eavesdrop. The nurse had asked rather loudly, so I guess I wasn't really eavesdropping, "What did Luke say about that?" One of the men exclaimed, "Paul! Paul and Barnabas were the ones…" I didn't hear the rest of the conversation, because at that moment I knew they were having Bible Study… together… she wasn't just reading to them, they were having a biblical discussion! I kept thinking "Gosh, when I get to that point will I remember the Bible? Will someone take the time to sit with me and read scripture? Will anyone notice that I can still grow in the Word? Will anyone care?"

Our purpose for visiting Tabitha today was to consider how Sheridan can be a better partner to this ELCA organization… Chan's purpose for inviting us was to better tell their story. Click here to see ways that you can be involved in this amazing ministry. And, I think I know where God wants me to take our next group of young musicians!

Blessings!
Julie Anderson, Children's Music Director

Mercy...

I met Paul last Thursday night when Barnabas Project was open for shopping and community gathering time. It was a gorgeous night, with mild temperatures throughout the evening. Folks filed in and out during our open hours and Paul was one of the first to arrive. Paul did some shopping and then paused to chat a while. I asked how his day had been.

"Today has been hard," Paul said.

"How so?" I asked.

"Well, I'm homeless and I was kicked out of the city mission this week," Paul explained as he gazed outward.

I could tell it troubled him and even sensed grief in his soul as he told his story. "I'm sorry to hear that." I replied, and silence followed. We both looked at the ground.

I remembered the words of Becca Stevens, founder of Thistle Farms and her work with women from the streets, living lives of addiction and prostitution. Becca says that sometimes we just need some mercy when we are hurting.

Who was giving Paul mercy?

"Paul," I said, "would you like some coffee?"

"You have coffee?" Paul replied.

"Yes," I replied. "Help yourself to a cup." And I pointed to the coffee and cookies.

Paul almost sprinted over to the pot of coffee goodness! After he'd poured himself a cup, he returned to his seat by me. He had the biggest smile on his face as he sipped away.

Mercy is goodness, I thought to myself. Paul finished his coffee and went on his way.

You'd think the story would end there, but it doesn't.

On Saturday morning, on my way back to Barnabas, I saw Paul walking on the street near downtown. I recognized him from behind and then looking in my rear view mirror, I saw his face. Indeed, it was Paul.

Sometimes I think coffee with a friend is the third sacrament. A sacrament is God's word combined with a physical element. A cup of coffee, and a bit of shared mercy helped me get to know Paul. It was almost sacramental. Like how you feel when you receive communion. Sins are forgiven, there is a rest in the journey, love is restored and we see each other as beloved children of God.

Pray for the Barnabas project, pray for Paul, and experience mercy.

Peace,
Pastor Rhonda

Welcome

Welcome to the Sheridan Lutheran Blog! Why start a blog? Should we do it just because it seems to be the thing that everyone is doing? Of course we thought there was a better reason… Here at Sheridan, we like to tell stories. And what better way to tell and retell stories of our faith community than here, on a blog, written down where it can be passed from family to family and looked back on for future generations. Our hope is that all ministries will have a voice. From people experiencing Mission trips to those who helped found our Sheridan roots… from highlights in our Children's Ministry to moments from our Local Outreach partners.  If you have a passion for a Sheridan ministry and think you have a story to tell, contact one of the pastors. Feel free to subscribe to the news feed, share it with your friends on facebook or twitter, leave a comment here and submit ideas. Help us tell the story of Sheridan's great desire to LOVE Deeply, GROW Spiritually and SHARE Abundantly.