Outreach

West Coast Life Church hosts Orphan for a Night

West Coast Life Church in Murrieta, California has decided to partner with Go International and support the cause of orphans on September 24th by holding an Orphan For A Night. Check out some of the photos from the people that have committed to Take the Pledge at West Coast Life Church.

If you're in the Temecula/Murrieta area and are interested in attending Orphan For A Night, contact West Coast Life Church at (951) 696-2229; www.westcoastlife.tv.

Go Internship's Fifth Annual: Go Weekend 2010!

Fall is around the corner and the time for new beginnings has quickly approached us once again. Five years ago this month, the Go Internship started with a handful of ambitious individuals chasing God’s heart and plan for their lives. Now, a new group of young and expectant interns arrive to place their hands in the new year’s work and make their mark in the lives of those around the globe. Starting off this year, we carry on the beloved yearly tradition of the Go Weekend- continuing for it’s fifth and quite possibly; it’s most creative time yet. This fun-packed and thought-provoking voyage is merely the beginning of things to come.

A Note From Brown

PURE.

Today, TOMS Shoes is telling people to not wear shoes as a reminder to those who have none. To me this is a great excuse to run around barefoot and laugh at other’s stubby toes or hobbit feet. However, after the day is over the humor doesn’t cover the stench from a group of dirty feet or the pain from the gravel and asphalt. TOMS point is proven as we are left reflecting on the thousands of children whose feet are left naked all the time.

This got me thinking. How many needs are there around the world that go unnoticed? I went barefoot for a day to raise awareness for kids without shoes, but what about those without shelter? What about those going without food or without water? Oh wait, they can have water, it just will have a little mud in it, or maybe some bugs. As I learned more and more about these facts my heart broke! Some time ago I found out that a huge cause of death for infants in the San Blas Islands takes place when they are weaned from their mother’s milk to water. As a result, many mothers give the children coffee, because their water is just that bad! But instead this causes stunted growth and mal-nutrition. Fresh water is a prominent need, however awareness for this need isn’t present.

GO just recently hosted an event called Pure to raise awareness for the water projects we’ll be constructing this summer in Panama. Various artists from around the states created pieces highlighting water, justice, and people, which were sold to support the building of water purification systems. It was such a cool way to get the message across to Tulsa and give people an opportunity to help with what we’re doing.

Recently I’ve focused so much on planning the trip I almost forgot to be excited for it! The TOMS day and the PURE art show reminded me of what I’m going to be a part of in less than eight weeks! As I work hard at fundraising and say no to Starbucks or the cute shoes in the window, I know it will all be worth it when I’m running barefoot in the sand with all the little kids on the San Blas Islands!


-Brown

Go Weekend: The Love Rally

The Love Rally:

"All you need is love, love, love, love is all you need." The Beatles wrote these lyrics for their generation back in the mid 60's. The band members of the Beatles realized that love was an essential in life. That it was something everyone needed and longed for. Today more than ever, I believe people need to be reminded of the true message of God's love. Instead of us defining who is worthy, or what kind of lifestyle deserves the love of God, let's look at what God's word has to say about it. It says in Romans 5:6-8, "When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners. Now, most people would not be willing to die for an upright person, though someone might perhaps be willing to die for a person who is especially good. But God demonstrated his great love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us." Christ didn't die for people who already loved him. He died for sinners...people whose lives were bound up and dictated by sinful desires that were contrary to God's will. He came to cure the sick, not the healthy. It seems this true message of love has been forgotten and buried in the pile of political stigmas we've placed on different people, as we judge whether or not they are worthy of love.

We saw that there was a need for people to understand not just love, but the love of God. With the need now identified, the interns and staff of Go International filled a busy street corner in Kansas City and began the very first LOVE RALLY to protest for love. There were thirty-one individuals standing on one of the busiest street corners of the city, as we each held a variety signs to declare one message, the message of love! The signs read: "God loves Republicans," "God loves Democrats," "God loves Prostitutes," "God loves Addicts," "God loves Homosexuals," "God loves Obama," "God loves Bush," and "God loves People"!! As we waved these signs in the air, the energy on the street corner was contagious. Cars rushed by honking their horns, rolling down their windows, and shouting, "LOVE" as they passed! Within a few minutes of standing on the street corner, Kansas City had begun to catch onto the movement of Love.

It wasn't too long before a group of girls came up to some of our interns and asked what it was we were doing. Quickly, the interns expressed the vision of the Love Rally, explaining that we wanted to share the Love of God with Kansas City and show people that everyone, no matter who they are, what their "label" is, what they have done, or where they live, that they are loved by God and by us. The girls suddenly were no longer strangers to Go International, but our friends as they took on our vision, or rather God's vision, as their own. So there we stood on the street corner that day united as one body, all-coming together to protest for love. We all came from different backgrounds, different races, with different life goals, but we had the common desire to share love. The smiles, the cheers, the volume, and the presence of love that day was something that cannot be captured by any photo. However, I do believe that particular day in Kansas City will resonate in the hearts of the individuals that we encountered. A songwriter once wrote, "Love conquers it all, crosses all boundaries and breaks down the walls." I believe this was accomplished that day in Kansas City. Walls of bitterness, rejection, of the fear of being alone and not being loved were all torn down. For some, seeing Go International standing on the corner was the answer that they needed that day, for some it may have brought them hope which was once lost. This day was a mark in history for many people's lives- for the interns, staff members, for the girls that came along side and protested for love with us, and even for the strangers that passed by us. Jesus challenges us to be love to those that we encounter, so I ask you to accept that challenge too. That doesn't mean you need to hold signs that say, "God loves you”, and you don’t even need to be in a foreign city. All you need is a desire to share love and the will to act.

Written by Go Intern: Lindsey Clark

Go Weekend: Perspective

Perspective:

On Friday, September 11, 2009, I arrived outside the “Go” offices ready for a road trip squeezed in with a bunch of strangers for a four and a half hour drive. Not knowing what to expect, I was a little nervous. The road trip wasn’t bad. I normally sleep on road trips, but not this one. We actually played fun, “getting-to-know-you” games, which made the time go by pretty fast. Four and half hours later, we arrived in Kansas City at our hotel. I’m thinking we’ll go in and unwind, but that wasn’t the case. We walked into our assigned rooms and had a “challenge” card waiting for us, letting us know we have 15 minutes to get our swim wear on and go to the pool. Here was the catch; we also had to wear goggles that had been painted over so we could just barely see out of them! First thoughts: I was being “hazed” for a sorority. It almost felt like a mean joke for the pure entertainment of second years, staff, and other on-lookers. Fortunately there was a method to the madness and it turned out to be a very unique and, in the end, fun, team building challenge leading to the revealing of the first core value.

We had 10 minutes to find the one key of 150 keys that were scattered at the bottom of the pool, which unlocked the chest that revealed the whole of this exercise. In the first 10 minutes, we failed to find the one key and the keys we found were thrown back into the pool to be searched through again! As one could imagine I was pretty discouraged at this point, but we really came together as a team. Great ideas were thrown out there, implemented and then the impossible came to pass… we found the key in 6 minutes that unlocked the chest revealing the first core value… perspective. It was a victorious moment that we shared as a team. Turns out we were the first group to ever perform this exercise which was pretty exciting because what seemed impossible, we deemed possible!

Written by Go Intern: Kelly Drury



Go Weekend: Self-Discipline

Self- Discipline:

The warm wind blew softly past my face. I heard the sound of grass crunching beneath my feet. It had only been a few minutes since they had let us out of the car; the hand gripped tighter pulling me further into the unknown… I was blindfolded. No one spoke, I only heard soft breathing from the others around me. Where were they leading us? We came to a stop; no one talked, but I heard the thousands of questions racing through everyone’s mind because they were the same as my own. A voice spoke, he told us remove our blindfolds and remain silent out of respect for the dead. My hands began to untie the orange bandana that was blinding my eyes. I blinked once or twice and found myself surrounded by tombstones. They had brought us to a cemetery. They directed us to a very large grave in the middle. I saw the city lights from a distance and the half covered moon as I took my seat on the soft, wet grass. We sat there, waiting, wondering and even with our sight returned we still had no idea why we were brought to this place of forgotten dreams. Our leaders began to speak telling us about how short life is and how any second it can end. They spoke of the people now marked with a tombstone; about how their story was over and how they had already had their chance to live, to make an impact… or not.

Still listening, my eyes gazed over the many graves surrounding me. Questions still raced through my mind, but questions of a different sort, questions about these people buried so deep in the ground- were their dreams buried with them? Who were these people, what were their joys, what made them smile, who made them smile? How did they shape their world and how did they make it better. How many never got the chance? What stopped them? Fear, discouragement, doubt; what stopped them from doing what their heart desired? Are there doctors lying here, musicians, storytellers or perhaps housewives, fathers or good husbands? How many became that doctor, storyteller or husband and how many ran with full speed ahead? What dreams lay in the darkness because fear crept in and stole what they held so dear? I stared once again toward the city lights and now wondered about those people… Are they going to live out their dreams or shall they be buried with all that they could have been beneath the ground? I wept inside for those whose story had been written and wept for those who were afraid to start writing it. The night came to a close as we rose back up and made our way to the cars. I took one last look at the tombstones sitting there, unmoving, unfeeling, just there. I didn’t just want to be there, just something to take up space, I wanted more, more than a half-written story, more than a tombstone, more than just hoping my dreams and desires would someday come to pass. I wanted more than a field of forgotten dreams.

Written by Go Intern: Caleb Hutton

Pure

Go International is hosting its first Charity Art exhibit; entitled: Pure. This exhibit is benefiting Go Internationals summer humanitarian project for the Kuna Yala Tribe in the San Blas Islands. Right now, 1.1 billion people on the planet don’t have access to clean drinking water.  That’s one in six of us.  Can you imagine living your whole life without ever drinking a glass of clean water?  For the Kunas, unclean water isn’t just a statistic, but a daily reality.  The San Blas community has a plentiful supply of water, but no way to get it clean.  As a result, early infant death and widespread disease among the Kunas is rampant. Last summer, Go International installed a fresh water purification system which provided clean water for three islands, home to about 3,000 of the Kuna people. This summer, Go International will return to the islands and install additional fresh water systems in the islands with the greatest need.

You have an opportunity to help make a lasting change in the lives of the Kuna Tribe. All proceeds from the “Pure” exhibit will go directly towards the cause. Come out and show your support and join us for a night devoted to art and justice.

Cover charge: Donation. Loose Leaf Co. 328 East 1st St Tulsa, Ok 74120

Read more about Project Panama 2010 at: www.gomissions.tv