Thursday, August 25, 2011

250 Years Later: What would would William Carey say about 2 Billion Unreached?


I kept reading last week celebrations of the life of William Carey.  At first, I thought ‘WOW!’  I mean how cool is that - the ‘Father of Modern Missions’ was born 250 years ago!  But then it hit me like a ton of bricks.  ‘Oh no, 250 years later and more than 2 billion people have still NEVER heard the name of Jesus Christ!’  I don’t mean they choose not to believe, I mean they have literally never heard His name!  2 billion people living on this earth right now, today, have never even heard the name of Jesus!  What would William Carey say?
I first heard the name of William Carey last spring when I took Perspectives.  If you don’t know Carey, here is your crash course:  Born August 17, 1761, William Carey first met Christ as a teenager.  A transformed man, Carey was soon overcome with a desire to share the Good News with those who had never heard it and so he dedicated his life to missions.  Known today as the ‘Father of Modern Missions,’  Carey moved his family to India where he spent the rest of his life sharing Christ with others in word and deed.  More than a missionary, Carey dedicated considerable time to raising awareness in the Christian community about the unfinished work of the Great Commission, mobilizing others to join him in answering the call, and translating the Bible into other languages.  He went where no one else was going, learned the language of his new home and overcame many obstacles including death of family members and a devastating fire that destroyed much of his translation work.
In celebrating this modern movement that Carey began, I find myself asking what he thinks of where we are today?  Would he be blogging about the fact that despite 250 years of progress in every other area of society and technology, still today over 2 billion souls living on this earth with us who have never heard the name of Christ. Would Carey be heartbroken or outraged that only 3% of Christian workers today are serving among unreached people groups?  What would Carey say to the American Church who give less one cent of every dollar given to missions to reach the unreached! 
According to the Joshua Project, there are 6,926 unreached people groups in the world today - the majority in the 10/40 Window.  That is over 41% of the population of the entire world!  In India alone, where Carey dedicated his life to reaching unreached peoples, still 77 people groups of 113 total are unreached.  That is over 68% of the population of India that remains unreached 250 years after William Carey was born!  What would he say to us if he were here today?
Just a thought, but I’m guessing he would say something like, ‘GO! Go now and go where no one else is going!  Go to the unreached!  If you cannot go, then give generously and pray for others that will go and others that will give!’
And he said to them,‘The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few.  Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.’
Is God calling you to go the unreached or support those who are going?  Visit www.cafe1040.com to see how we can help you get there!

Monday, August 22, 2011

Beautiful Feet!

From our staff in SEA.



22 Beautiful Feet - Headed Out...
It's hard to believe that the Summer semester students have completed the 3 month overseas program and left SE Asia over a week ago.  A couple of days before we left Basetown, the students shared their next steps and five year plans with us (still seeking Him to direct their steps).  I was so encouraged and I can't wait to see some of the ways God is going to use these beautiful people and their beautiful feet (shown above) for His glory.

10For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.  11For the Scripture says, "Everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame."  12For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, bestowing his riches on all who call on him.  13For 'everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved."
14How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed?  And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard?  And how are they to hear without someone preaching?  15And how are they to preach unless they are sent?  As it is written, "How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news."
Romans 10: 10-15 (ESV)

Praying that these 11 will be sent out to share the good news with those who have not heard.  Please join me in praying that God will help keep them focused on the path He showed them while they were here and direct their steps.

Friday, August 19, 2011

Friday Fun!

Here is another entry in our 'Wear It Like You Love It' t-shirt design contest!  Are you working on your entry?  Remember each person can submit two designs!

Email your entry to contest@cafe1040.com - we are looking forward to seeing them all!


Tuesday, August 16, 2011

From desiringGod: Train the Untrained to Reach the Unreached

Occasionally we will use our blog to share with you interesting and thought provoking content from other blogs that we read.  Here is one from earlier today, posted on the desiringGod blog.

In today's post, Train the Untrained to Reach the Unreached, Darren Carlson with Training Leaders International talks about the importance of not just sharing the Gospel but training new leaders deepening their faith and equipping them to share the Gospel as well.

Monday, August 15, 2011

More from our students: Language and Culture

It's not always easy to relocate to a new place where you don't speak the same language as everyone and social standards are different.  Here is what a few of our summer semester students had to say about learning language and adjusting to a different set of cultural norms.

Danielle, on learning a new language:
"The company does a great job of focusing on how we best learn a language as opposed to the lofty goal of fluency in Arabic in three short months.  It has been encouraging to gain confidence in our ability to learn a language so that we are prepared to go anywhere in the world that God send us."

Sarah Beth, on wearing long sleeves:
"Since head coverings and modest dress are the norm for women here, the girls on our team are asked to cover our knees and elbows--and doing that when the temperature gets hotter every day is a bit of a challenge.  However, if dressing that way will help the Muslim people here be more open to talking, then it's a sacrifice I'm willing to make."


Friday, August 12, 2011

Friday Fun!

Every community has at least one - a church that regularly comes up with catchy phrases for their marquee!  Here is one of our favorites!


Thursday, August 11, 2011

Cafe 1040 Students on "Community"

What is 'community?'  Is it your family?  Your neighborhood?  Your church, school or workplace?  Or is it something more?  And are we responsible for creating community?

Read what Cafe 1040 students have learned about community during the past few months:

Ben, on loving his teammates:
"We spend every waking (and sleeping) second together, so it is no small task to continually love each other the way the Book exhorts, the way we show the world we are set apart.  Pray that the Helper would enable us to communally obey the greatest two commandments."


Mike, on 'secret church':
"We gathered in the center room of one of the apartments, closed the doors, took the batteries out of our phones, and had music playing outside the doors to mask any noise.  On the inside we prayed, sang softly to the Lord, and encouraged one another with the Word...Until that night, I totally took community for granted.  I probably still do.  But God is beginning to give me a glimpse of the way His Body is supposed to function."


Brandon, on learning about real community:
"In a village, people gave what they have at every opportunity it seemed.  Everything was everyone's.  Each night at dinner neighbors would wander by and end up at the table with us eating and laughing.  The community resembled what we read about in the Bible and it truly was beautiful."


Tuesday, August 9, 2011

Think it's hot here? Imagine what it's like in the Sahara!

(From a future Cafe 1040 staff member)

August 5, 2011
It's hot.  Temperatures will peak at 101 in [metro Atlanta] for the next few days.  I had dinner with a friend last night who said Dallas was experiencing their 24th day in a row of 100+ heat indexes.

In contrast, the students in our North Africa Program just got back from one of their excursions--a week in the Sahara.  My friend who is one of our Overseas Mentors said temperatures topped 135.  Preheat to 350 and open the oven.  That's the Sahara all day.

Cafe 1040 is a training program for some of the most difficult conditions in which to live and do missions in the world.  Enduring a week in the Sahara informs our students of their own ability to live and function in the harshest of environments.

Their guides are from a people group with a population of over 200,000.

There are zero known Christians in their population.

And there is no church or Christian organization in full-time mission to this people group.

Friday, August 5, 2011

Friday Fun!

Its Friday and in honor of all the new changes to our blog, we are instituting 'Friday Fun!'  For our first FUN post we picked a video from last year's 1st Annual Cafe 1040 Golf Challenge!  ENJOY!



WANT TO GET IN ON THIS FUN!
CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THE 2ND ANNUAL CAFE 1040 GOLF CHALLENGE!

Thursday, August 4, 2011

2nd Annual Cafe 1040 Golf Challenge

Love to golf?  So do we!  And what could be more fun than a morning of golf and learning more about what we do at Cafe 1040!  Nothing, of course!

Final preparations are now underway for our 2nd Annual Golf Challenge!  This is our largest fundraiser and last year was a huge success.  Help us make this year even better.  Here is how you can get in on the fun...

Friday, October 14 @ 9am
Crystal Falls Golf Club
Four Man Scramble
$4,000 Fundraising Goal Per Team

Kickoff Party
Thursday, September 8 @ 6:30pm
Smokejack Grill, Downtown Alpharetta

Golfers and their families are invited to join us at the Kickoff Party!  We'll have great food, share with everyone the vision for Cafe 1040, and share valuable information on reaching your fundraising goal!  (Participation in the Kickoff Party is not a commitment to participate in the golf challenge.)

Interested in corporate sponsorship?  
We are still looking for corporate sponsors at all levels!
  • Challenge Sponsor: $6,000
  • Driving Range Sponsor: $3,000
  • Lunch Sponsor: $1,500
  • Hole Sponsor: $500 per hole
Full tournament,sponsorship and donation details can be found here!

READY TO SIGN UP?  CLICK HERE!

Wednesday, August 3, 2011

"Wear It Like You Love It" T-Shirt Design Contest!




Want to see all your friends wearing a t-shirt you designed???  WELL THIS IS YOUR LUCKY DAY!  Cafe 1040's 'Wear It Like You Love It' t-shirt design contest is underway now!  You could win an iPod Shuffle and the chance to have your design printed our new t-shirts!  You can find all the rules and other relevant information on our Facebook page.