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It’s
hard for me to talk about this without getting choked up,” said the
Rev. Rick Kirchoff, senior pastor of
Germantown (Tenn.) United Methodist Church, as he answered questions
about the publication and sale of his book, Perceptions:
A Collection of Favorites.
Kirchoff
was reacting to what he hopes the profits from the sale of the book
will soon be able to accomplish in the lives of thousands of
impoverished Africans.
“We’re going to use the money to buy
water treatment systems for the people living in the
Kibera Slums in Kenya,” he said.
The Nairobi
shantytown of more than one million people, a third of whom are
HIV-positive, has scant electricity and no clean water. Drinking
water, according to Allavida, a merger
of Charity Know How and
Alliance magazine, is
“pumped through plastic pipes alongside sewage trenches. These
trenches carry refuse and human waste to the river... The plastic
pipes are brittle and exposed, often breaking, repaired by being
jammed or taped back together, often without being cleaned, creating
a suitable habitat for waterborne diseases like cholera and
typhoid.”
Many of the residents of the most
populated informal settlement in East Africa die from these
waterborne diseases and parasites.
Kirchoff
said that each water treatment system costs $825.00 and includes a
pump, chlorination unit and filter. Powered by a car battery, the
system chlorinates and filters 55 gallons of water per minute. One
system cleans enough water every day to meet the needs of 2,000
people.
“Depending on
the sales of the book, we should make at least $10,000 which will
allow us to buy ten or so units,” he said. “I’ve been signing and
personalizing copies every day.” Over half the 2500 books printed
have already been sold.
Friendly and
non-preachy, Perceptions: A Collection of Favorites offers
100 devotionals that Kirchoff compiled
from 60-second radio spots he narrated on local radio stations over
the last two years. The $10 book can be purchased at the church, or
at Cokesbury, Borders, Davis-Kidd and
other local businesses. Mail orders are $12.00, including shipping.
Kirchoff
continues to write and broadcast Perceptions every week,
Monday through Friday, between 7:30 and 8:00 A.M.
on three
Memphis stations–94.1, Rock 103
and KIX 106. The drive-time messages reach thousands as they head to
work.
“A significant
number of people have joined Germantown United Methodist Church
after listening to the radio spots,”
Kirchoff said. “One of those new members is now attending
seminary part-time.” •
Editor’s
note: For information, contact Donna Thurmond, 901-754-7216.
Yada
Sisterhood draws hundreds of women to Northside
Methodist
Kellye
Cash Sheppard: “Don’t worry, rejoice in the Lord always!”
“The Best Sister”
gets the best seat in the house.
Lisa
Clements gets everything started.
Over 300 women from
West Tennessee, some United Methodists, many not, crowd into the
Northside UMC gym every third Thursday
of the month for upbeat messages that inspire them in their walk
with the Lord.
By Cathy
Farmer
If
you don’t arrive early for the Yada
Sisterhood, you can expect to park your car a goodly distance away.
The parking lot
at Northside United Methodist in
Jackson, Tenn. is crowded every third Thursday of the month as
hundreds of women–some members of the congregation, many not–flock
to the church for an evening devoted to an upbeat message about
God’s love.
Lisa Clements,
mistress of ceremonies and one of the organizers of the wildly
successful women’s gathering, said, “We’re not about denominations
or any of that stuff! We’re here to minister to the women of the
city. All we ask is, ‘Bring a dish,
bring a friend, but just show up!’”
On November 17,
the Yada Sisterhood celebrated its first
birthday. Present that evening were over 300 women, some from as far
away as Wisconsin and Kentucky, others from Millington, Jackson,
Dresden, Milan and other towns in West Tennessee.
The theme for
the evening was “Don’t Worry, Be Happy!” The speaker was
Kellye Cash Sheppard, former Miss
Tennessee and Miss America.
On every table
were bottles of bubbles with happy faces, refrigerator magnets
imprinted with the Yada Sisterhood’s
website address and meeting times, and baskets for prayer requests.
“We have a
prayer team of 12 ladies who pray every month over the requests you
drop in the baskets,” Clements explained.
Dozens of door
prizes were given away to much applause,
and two special “Best Sisters” were installed in easy chairs up
front.
“You know
something? I couldn’t find ‘Don’t worry, be happy’ in the Bible,”
Kellye Cash Sheppard said as she began
her message to the chuckling, receptive women. “But God does
say do not be anxious. We don’t rejoice
because everything’s going right, but because the Lord is good.” The
women were soon on their feet, applauding Sheppard’s singing and
witness. It was a real happening! •
Go to
www.yadasisterhood.com.
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December
23, 2005
