Change the World

Change the World | May 19-20, 2012

What if one weekend all around the world, 11 million United Methodists focused on finding sustainable solutions to fighting malaria?

A few years ago, Rev. Mike Slaughter began to lead his congregation in an effort to make a difference in their community. Oddly, there’s not much malaria in Pennsylvania where Mike pastors. Mike leads the congregation at Ginghamsburg United Methodist Church. But there are some folks living together in Christ. And Mike realized that there were opportunities to build that local community while tackling some global issues.

Their efforts have blossomed into a denomination-wide mission blitz with just a few objectives for this year:

Fight Malaria Globally
Create Community Locally
Last but not least, Change the World

Now, that last one sounds like no small thing. And it certainly is one of the more challenging objectives I’ve ever seen. But Change the World is much more than a slogan or a bumper sticker. Change the World becomes a goal that requires a great number of people. It requires a realization that there are problems too big for just one person, or even a small group of folks to solve.

In fact, to Change the World, it might take more than all of us put together. It might become a partnership in ministry with God.

The United Methodist Church, in partnership with www.imaginenomalaria.org, is calling upon every local church to participate in a local ministry that will benefit the fight against malaria. Or you can simply make a difference in your community. Changing the world can happen right where you are.

The best way to get started is to decide to get started. Then, head over to http://rethinkchurch.org/changetheworld. From there, the plan will come together as you share the information.

Decide on a project: It doesn’t have to be a massive drain on your resources. This doesn’t have to be a huge effort. It can be something you put together in just a few days. You can pick from this list or come up with one of your own!
Gather your team: Recruit your neighbors. Call your friends. Ask around at church, but don’t limit yourself to “church folks.”
Do a little advertising: Put the word out on Facebook. Tweet away on Twitter. Email your friends and ask for forwards.
SHOW UP: Get the project done. Make it your best effort. Really put something into it.
HAVE FUN: You can do a good job AND have a blast.
Send your proceeds: If you opted to do a fund-raiser, please make sure you get the money to the right place.
SHARE YOUR STORY!! Post your story on Facebook. Share it at one of the Facebook pages listed below. Email your pastor.

The important thing is that you don’t lose sight of the main objectives. And, no matter how small your efforts may seem, remember that we are here to Change the World.