International Missions

ELCA Ministries International

World Hunger (www.elca.org/hunger)

ELCA World Hunger improves the lives of people in need in the United States and around the world by providing immediate relief for people affected by chronic hunger and poverty; assisting whole communities through long-term, sustainable development to help alleviate chronic hunger and poverty; advocating for justice by changing laws and systems; and educating members of the ELCA in awareness of issues relating to hunger, poverty and justice.

Lutheran World Relief (www.lwr.org)

Every day in 35 countries, Lutheran World Relief works to combat the causes of poverty and the dignity it robs from people’s lives. We advocate for Fair Trade that helps farming families and artisans earn a better income. We teach people to better care for themselves their communities and the environment. We teach people how to be less vulnerable to natural disasters. We advocate with and for them for policy change that more fairly represents them. We counsel them after manmade and natural disasters, and help them recover with material aid. We do all of this exclusively with partners from the communities we serve. Our partners help us remain incredibly efficient and effective. Our partners let us help people help themselves…for a day when they won’t need us at all.

ELCA Missionaries (www.elca.org/missionarysponsorship)

Currently we financially support two Missionary families, the Grow-Hanson family in Senegal, and the Fonner family in Kuala Lumpur.

Stand with Africa (www.elca.org/hunger)

Stand With Africa efforts assist communities and churches in Africa in their work to overcome HIV/AIDS, banish hunger, and build peace. Stand With Africa donations given through the ELCA are allocated to Lutheran World Relief, the Lutheran World Federation, and ELCA companion churches in Africa. No administrative costs are taken from these funds.

Bread for the World (www.bread.org)

Through Bread for the World’s 2006 Offering of Letters, people of faith and conscience are joining together to urge our leaders to fulfill their promises to the world’s hungry and poor people. The ONE Campaign aims to help Americans raise their voice against the emergency of AIDS, extreme poverty and hunger.

International Ministries (non-ELCA)

Food For The Poor (www.foodforthepoor.org)

Food For The Poor is a Christian relief and development agency dedicated to sharing the love of Christ by helping the poor. By working through a well-established network of clergy, we deliver aid where it is needed most. Founded in 1982, Food For The Poor aids the poor in the Caribbean and Latin America. Our ministry provides lifesaving nutrition to malnourished children, builds houses for families in need of shelter, supports orphanages and homes for the elderly, provides medical care and supplies in hospitals and clinics, drills wells for the thirsty, educates children, provides skills training for the unemployed and much more. We share the love of Jesus Christ by aiding our poorest brothers and sisters.

Lutheran Bible Translators (lbt.gospelcom.net)

Founded in 1964, Lutheran Bible Translators is an independent mission organization dedicated to helping bring people to faith in Jesus Christ by making the Word of God available to those who do not yet have it in the language of their hearts. In the world today there are over 6,800 languages. Over 4,500, or 66%, still have no portion of Scripture. LBT believes that no language or cultural barrier should prevent people from having access to God’s Word. That is why LBT works with Lutheran church bodies and Bible translation organizations worldwide– so that every person has the opportunity to read, hear, and understand God’s Good News in the language of their hearts. LBT recruits Lutherans to become missionaries to serve as Bible translation advisors and consultants, or as specialists in literacy, literature development, language survey and vernacular media. Support workers are recruited and sent to carry out specialized tasks such as tutoring missionary children or using computers to strengthen the language programs.

Operation Christmas Child (www.samaritanspurse.org/occ)

Whether they are refugees of civil war, survivors of a natural disaster, or victims of extreme poverty, children around the world need to know that they are precious to God. That’s the motivation behind Operation Christmas Child, the unique project of Samaritan’s Purse that enables caring people to share God’s love with hurting girls and boys in the far corners of the globe. Take an ordinary shoe box, fill it with toys and other presents, and you have an extraordinary gift for a child in need of joy and hope. Most important, these shoe boxes provide opportunities for local believers to tell children about Jesus Christ through Gospel literature and evangelism programs. “Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift” (2 Corinthians 9:15, NIV).

World Vision’s 30-Hour Famine (www.30hourfamine.org)

Youth group members raise money through donors and sponsors to help the millions of starving and hurting children in some of the world’s poorest countries, offering them a hope they could not otherwise have. The groups then go 30 hours without food, so that they can have a real taste of what hunger is like. During this time they engage in different activities, from community service projects to volunteer work to study, depending on how each group plans their own event. Afterwards the money raised is sent in to World Vision, and we put it to work in areas like Kenya, Sudan, and here in the United States.