Brian and Suzy Newman-the Isaac-Ishmail Initiative

   

30 December 2011 Dear Friends, I stood staring into the vastness of the western Sahara Desert wondering how people live in such a wasteland, with no water or vegetation.        For the preceeding week in late September a group of us had met with 16 Muslim imams in a refugee camp in western Algeria, just north of Al-Queda controlled land. It is truly a wasteland, and provided a reminder to me about religious systems such as Islam which ultimately lead people away from God rather than toward Him.        Brian has launched the Isaac-Ishmael Initiatve because of the simple fact that Jews and Muslims alike are lost in the desert without Jesus. It feels that we are embarcing a divine moment.        The year 2011 has been one of developing vision, creating partnerships, and obtaining funding. This is a unique "divine moment" and I believe 2012 is now on the launching pad. In February we will hold a gathering in southern France with 10 of us to make plans for outreach fo immigrants in Europe; In June we partner in a week-long training called Sahara Challenge in Minneapolis; In the summer we hope to partner with Serve the City and have a mission team go to Lebanon. You can find more information about the vision of the Isaac-Ishmael Initiative at our new website, which officially launches today. Click HERE. Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen. ~ Eph. 3:20-21 With Grace, in Christ, Brian and Susy

Christ's Body Ministries--Falling Through the Cracks

     Lynn worked as an Optician for 30 years until his first bout with congestive heart problems made retirement mandatory.  He still felt secure in his apartment covered by Medicare, with his monthly Social Security check and a small Air Force veterans pension.  But gradually the prescription copays (he now takes 22 pills daily) ate up his savings and then his rent.  Once he lost his apartment then the only housing option left was cheap motel rooms which still cost $30/night.  Within a few weeks, Lynn, for the first time in his life, was one day away from being homeless.  As he tells in his soft southern voice, "I finally had to swallow my pride."  He went to Pastor Miriam at his church, Trinity United Methodist, for help.  Fortunately Miriam knows us and our respite care program.  She called Deb and thankfully we had one open bed for him.
     Lynn has been at Christ's Body for two weeks, and wanted everyone to know how grateful he is.  He said, "Everyone here is so kind.  Deb has been very helpful and with her help I have gotten more help and more things done in two weeks than in the months before."  Specifically Deb signed Lynn up for a Medicare program that covers drug costs for low income patients.  She also has started the process for him to get Veteran's disability help and placed him on Colorado Coalition for the Homeless low-income housing program.  Lynn had no idea that such programs even existed, let alone how to apply for them.  Beyond the practical help, Lynn told me, "Deb has God in everything she does and you don't often see that in social workers."
     What a blessing it is when we can show someone like Lynn that God is real and cares.  Many times people fall through the cracks of man's social safety net.  We are grateful to our government for the help they do provide.  This help however is often very hard to access, especially when sick, without a caring hardworking advocate like Deb Butte.
     Lynn now hopes to be able to get his own place in the next weeks.  I told him we were pleased to have him as our guest and there was no hurry.  He replied, "Oh no, as soon as I can, I want to move out because there is someone else out there who needs this bed as bad as I did."
     Thank you for supporting Christ's Body.  You make it possible for us to be the arms of God catching those falling through the cracks.                    -John Moorhead

Caleb Home from India for Christmas

Caleb will be in Idaho Springs, CO for Christmas.  He arrives December 17 and stays until January 16.  On January 1,2012 he is the guest speaker at First Baptist Church of Idaho Springs at 9:30 a.m. Located at 100 Colorado Blvd. on the west end of town.  Take exit 239 off of I-70 and follow it to the church.  Caleb is looking forward to getting to see many of you. You can call him at 303-567-2711.  January 5 - 10 he will be in San Diego to visit Aunts, Uncles, & cousins.

The pictures below: National Costume Day at Woodstock School, Caleb on the summit (20,773 ft.), Camp before heading to the summit of Banderpunch in the Indian Himalayas. The highest peak in the picture.

Caleb wishes you a Merry Christmas and Wonderful New Year.

Crutches for Africa opportunity!

Black Friday

Solutions

November 25-December 25

For one month only, Crutches4Africa is offering all of our subscribers buy-one-get-one-free opportunity exclusively through our secure link  That's right, you can give the gift of mobility for a mere $3 and we will match it by sending a pair of crutches, cane, or walker, at our expense.

Partners

Whether your corporation is small, medium or large, we need people who will connect with us as partners.

You can have a link to us, we will link to you and use your logo in our "Partners" promotional materials.

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MOBILITY IS A BASIC HUMAN NEED

HOTC Fall Banquet

Hands of The Carpenter in hosting their Fall Banquet, "The Art of Hope" Saturday, November 12that the Denver Art Museum. This is going to be a wonderful evening to raise support and awareness for single parents and widows and their families.   Please go to www.ehands.org  to register, or call Juli  at 303-526-4488 for more information.

Caleb Holman--article from the Woodstock Tiger newspaper

While going through his future college options, young Mr. Caleb Holman was told by many of his teachers that he would not make it. They told him it would be a waste of time to go.

However, his civics teacher, Mr. Bob Ormac, encouraged him to apply. “He saw what I could do, not what I couldn’t. He said I was gifted in law and politics and taught me how to play to my strengths,” Mr. Holman said. He then applied to and ultimately graduated from the University of Northern Colorado with a degree in Philosophy of Public Policy and Ethics, as well as a minor in Political Science.

For Mr. Holman, earning a degree was a challenge, as he suffers from dyslexia and also from Wagner’s disease.  These conditions prevent from reading and forming words. The skills that one takes for granted are everlasting troubles for him.

However, he has liberated himself from such problems through the usage of auditory technologies. A combination of three programs – Dragon Naturally Speaking, Read and Write Gold, and Open Book – helps Mr. Holman completely read and understand texts. Dragon Naturally Speaking translates his spoken words into text and vice-versa; this software is the substitute to typing and reading. Read and Write Gold and Open Book enable him to scan books into his laptop and skim through them at will.

He recalls the moment he first bought himself a scanner and was able to read independently. With tears in his eyes, he said, “It was the first time I could step inside a library without the help of my mother. I stayed up all night and all morning, reading everything I could. I was surrounded by books stacked five feet high.

“Although my dyslexia did not go away, the significance of reading changed for me. I was able to understand the meaning behind the funny little shapes called letters. Imagine you were gifted wings and could fly like everyone else around you, how would you feel?”

Currently, he works as a dorm parent at Clifton Hostel, runs the woodshop and is also the head of the Water Safety Team. He spends a majority of his day at the swimming pool, cautiously encircling it to ensure everyone’s safety, and if there is any unsafe behavior he instantly breaks up it up with a shrill whistle. When matters get out of control, Mr. Holman actually pounces on top of students and momentarily drowns them into the pool to teach them a lesson. He inherited such discipline from formerly working as a firefighter and also being a member of several rescue squads. He said, “My previous experiences have given me a huge toolbox to choose from. I am quite an expert at saving lives.”

Mr. Tim Raby, Hostel supervisor, believes that Mr. Holman is a vital dorm staff member. He said, “Firstly, he is a very dedicated dorm parent and he is very professional. This job is very people-oriented, and Mr. Caleb is extremely dedicated to his students. He has also introduced and taken initiative for many programs such as the woodshop, swim team, outdoor club, unit meals, pool safety and lifeguard training. He is a valuable member of the Hostel team.”

Growing up with a unique condition, Mr. Holman was subjected to judgment and did not receive much help. He remarked that he was often discouraged by those around him. He said, “My own teachers would say things like ‘Why waste the morning with Caleb? He can’t even write. He’ll definitely fail.’ They had no idea how powerful words actually are.”

With this in mind Mr. Holman always makes sure not to judge too quickly. He said, “If a student is slacking off, I am not pissed, I am curious. I always ask the question ‘Why?’ before a student is judged or labeled. I do my best to help them out because I know how it feels.”

Martin Softing, a Grade 11 student, said, “Some people think differently of Mr. Caleb, but once you get to know him, he is a really cool guy. I always talk to him about my personal problems and he always helps me by encouraging me to study.” Mr. Holman can usually be seen roaming about the dorm and helping students.

“I felt like I was a second-class citizen. I felt like I needed to prove to the world that I had a right to live,” Mr. Holman said. “The Wright brothers were told they could not fly, Gandhi was told he cannot have an independent India, Einstein was told that he could not go to college and yet they did. In the same way they told me I cannot read, I cannot go abroad, I cannot survive in the real world.”

However, now he does read, he is working abroad in India and is living in the real world. He said, “The definition of the word ‘cannot’ changed for me. Cannot is not an impossibility, it means that to survive one must be creative in order to reach their goal.”

Mr. Holman has many plans set aside for the future. He said, “I hope to have the Water Safety Program fully set up so that it can be run without my assistance. I will also work on getting a Master’s Degree in Counseling. Finally I hope to, one day, have a family.” As he sets to achieve these dreams, the only difference is that, this time there is no one to tell him that he cannot.

Brian and Suzy Newman

The Western Sahara Desert is a desolate wasteland, dotted with Bedouins and camels. Near the borders of western Algeria, Morocco, and Mauritania an astonishing dialog is happening between Christians and Muslims.        In September I spent a week participating in this dialog - between an American delegation and 16 imams (Muslim clerics) from Algeria. It was inspiring, humbling, hopeful, and complex. It was also physically exhausting as we stayed in a refugee camp.        Here is what I came away with from my time in the desert: * There are some mind-blowing, incredible signs of Jesus' Kingdom coming in the Muslim world and among its leaders. Suffice it to say, the Holy Spirit is at work; * There is also a deep mistrust of western culture and religion and a few people on the radical fringe of Islam wish hardm to non-Muslims; * The Muslim world is rapidly secularizing, just as the West has been secularizing for many year. This offers opportunities for the gospel in ways that it could not in previous times.        There is great concern among leaders in Algeria that so many people from their country have emigrated to wetern Europe over the past generation. There is "brain drain" from the country. As I listened to the imams talk about this, I thought of our work in Europe and found it so ironic that this reality (people moving to Europe) is an open door for the Gospel to people who have previously lived in closed countries.        We are planning several key events for 2012 for the Isaac-Ishmael Initiative. First up is a Summit on Islam we will hold in Grasse, France in February. We will update you on this in the next month or two.        Thank you for your support and encouragement, and for a vision for the Kingdom of God coming to people and places who are otherwise far from Jesus. With Grace, in Christ, Brian and Susy