Last time we talked about some of the reasons why overseas programs don’t work.  Lest we stay too negative, let’s remember that lots of overseas programs do work.  They are effective and are bringing real change to the lives of the neediest around the world.
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I recently saw a lecture by Paul Farmer at Virginia Tech. For those of you who don’t know, Dr. Farmer runs Partners in Health and has been working for many, many years in Haiti. His story was told in the book Mountains Beyond Mountains.

In response to a question he gave an extended answer about why our missions programs sometimes don’t work.
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The danger of critiquing something like the Hope for Haiti Now telethon is that people will conclude I am saying it was a bad idea and that we shouldn’t give financially to the poor and needy.
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“Constantly bearing in mind your work of faith…” (1 Thessalonians 1:3).

In John 6:28-29 Jesus was asked “What shall we do to work the works of God?” He answered “This is the work of God, that you believe …” My initial reaction to hearing that was “Sweet. No hard work.  All I gotta do is just believe … easy.”
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Description:

WMS is a syndrome that sometimes attacks missionaries, primarily those from Western culture, specifically those of American or United Kingdom decent. If left untreated, WMS could result in burn-out, severe discouragement, or spiritual death.
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My wife Lisa didn’t start crying until she read about the collapse of the Hotel Montana, where she and my daughter Nasim had stayed on their trip.  She could see the faces of the staff, including the bellboy she over-tipped every morning. She could see the face of Micherline, our formerly sponsored girl, and the time Lisa had to coax her into the hotel’s pool because she had never swam before.
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