Well, it has happened!
If you text a $10 donation to “Imagine No Malaria” between now and December 26th – simply text “MALARIA” to 27722 – you will receive a confirmation text and then a thank you text that includes a link to a picture of a burning candle.
I will be making one of those text donations on Christmas Eve during our worship service at First United Methodist Church and then I will be sharing the light of this “candle” as a present to the Christ child who came into the world to “heal the sick…” It is my small way of showing Jesus I am following him in the revolutionary movement to end malaria by 2015! It is a disease that can be defeated if we join him. (Granted, I have to borrow a phone for this one since I have already hit the monthly limit for donations via text! But that doesn’t matter…what matter is my gift to Jesus!)
My invitation to you is twofold but simple – share this light as you worship on Christmas Eve. (Just make the donation at an appropriate time in worship and share your “light” for all to see!) Maybe someone will ask you why and you can share the message with them…maybe others will join you as you share beforehand what you are going to do. Maybe, God will show up in the midst of this and light the world with these candles that show healing.
Also, if you can, please share this message with as many people as possible, however you wish (share on Facebook, send out as an email, tweet a link…I don’t care) prior to your Christmas Eve worship services. This blog is read by fewer than 100 people but those 100 know another 100 and so forth. Light has a tendency to spread and this is one time I hope and pray it will spread long and far.
My hope for First UMC Princeton is that we would light enough cell phone candles (27) to join the Holston Conference in their memorial of those killed in Newtown. We cannot do anything to bring back the lives lost their but we can stop another killer – Malaria!
Finally, I would like to thank the people at “Imagine No Malaria,” “mGive” and “United Methodist Communications” as well as a colleague in our Conference, Adam Cunningham, for helping to make this happen. These folks are true warriors in the battle against malaria and this shows that they are committed to seeing this disease eliminated by 2015. My prayers and my work is with them!
Not Quite Home 