Offer Them Christ…

By Laura Meengs, INM Field Coordinator

Famous last words indeed!  This simple statement, spoken by John Wesley as he sent Thomas Coke on his way to America, continues to echo through our very beings and helps to define our Wesleyan heritage.

On Easter Sunday, just a few short weeks ago, we celebrated the one perfect sacrifice – the one perfect offering – of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ as “the lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world!”

And we paused to offer the individuals gathered in our sanctuaries an opportunity to accept and know Christ as their personal savior.

So, are we done?  What is next?  How can we continue to preach the good news to our congregations and communities and “offer them Christ?”

What about demonstrating a real-world, relevant way that your church is living out the Gospel?  Imagine No Malaria offers just such an opportunity.

This weekend, the churches of the Western Pennsylvania Annual Conference will celebrate a conference-wide Sunday to Save Lives - one day to stand in solidarity with our brothers and sisters across the connection against a killer: malaria.

Why not consider having a Sunday to Save Lives in your congregation?  Leading up to your chosen Sunday, use the resources available on this site to introduce Imagine No Malaria to your church and community, then take a special offering in support of this life-saving ministry.  Perhaps you could enhance this effort with a house party or two or by encouraging those in your congregation with a monthly pledge. A gift of just $28 per month over three years will provide enough support to save 100 lives!

As new creations in Christ, we too are called to offer hope and healing.  Our actions can help to save the lives of hundreds of thousands of women and children suffering and dying from a preventable and treatable killer – malaria.

To “Offer Them Christ” means to preach the good news, proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed and to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.  Consider how your worship, praise and actions can carry out this calling – perhaps through Imagine No Malaria.