Making a Difference
Like most churches, we get approached almost daily by different organisations hoping we can be involved in what they’re passionate about. At West we have decided to take a targeted approach to making a difference in New Plymouth, New Zealand and the world. We have chosen a few things we really believe can change the world, and we support them in a substantial way. We give them money, we pray for them in church services and during the week, and we update people on their latest news in our monthly newsletter.
Here’s what we currently put our energy into:
- Meryl Ashworth is a Kiwi friend who works in education in rural Ethiopia, where she moved several years go, with SIM, an international agency.
- Graeme and Christine are Kiwi friends who work in business and medicine in a major city in South Asia, living there with their two children, making a difference among the poor.
- Juam is a student whose education and board we sponsor in Feni Baptist Hostel in Bangladesh. When he finishes high school there, thanks to our sponsorship, he’ll have gone from one of the poorest of the poor to being in the top 5% most educated people in Bangladesh, and ready to make a difference in this extremely poor country.
- Kingdom Resources West provides budgeting help and interest-free loans to people in New Plymouth. We have a dozen trained budget advisors at West who can work long-term with people who struggle financially. Get in touch (751 2089) if we can help you.
We have a special relationship with Spotswood Primary School over the road. Among other things, we sponsor their annual Citizenship award, throw a Mothers’ Day Brunch at the school for kids’ caregivers instead of our usual Sunday service each year, provide volunteers for their HPP reading programme and pray regularly for what’s going on at the school.
It’s worth saying, too, that we see our Sunday services and church-based activities as times to inspire people to make a difference in their Monday-to-Saturday weeks. We have a map on a wall inside the church where people have put pins in to represent their homes, workplaces and other significant places where they spend time during the week – those are other places we aim to make a real difference.