With the lead up to Christmas, most people are looking to buy things for their friends and family. Many of these wan their money to be going to benefit groups and people that they care about, from orphans to missionaries to the poor.
So, this month I'm going to let you know of some organisations that you can get presents from that allow you to give gifts AND help bring people to Christ or make a difference in their lives.
Today's organisation is Gospel for Asia. Gospel for Asia is a great organisation, founded by K.P. Yohannan. It works primarily in India and the surrounding countries, and has a big focus on native missionaries and work done by local people. This makes massive sense, as native missionaries are able to contextualise to the local population without compromising the gospel messege.
Anyway, they have a Christmas catalogue, which you can order online, of gifts that you can give to further the advance of the gospel. Categories include animals (from chickens or rabbits to water buffalos!) to gifts for the poor (things like sewing machines or rickshaws, and even wells) to outreach materials like Bibles and New Testaments, to tools that help missionaries go further (like bicyles).
Having ordered in the past from their paper catalogue, you get a card with a photo of the gift selected to give to your friend.
All money goes toward that item - GFA don't take out money to cover admin costs. That is raised seperately, though you can certainly donate towards that.
You can also sponsor a child or a native missionary through GFA.
If you want to give a more tangible gift, then you can buy books, DVDs, and Indian Shoulder Bags. I really like the Indian shoulder bags, and have given them in the past several times, including to non-Christians, as they are not Christian materials. A few of them noticed the label, and asked about it, and it was a good way of explaining the work the GFA does (both evangelical and in terms of helping the poor) and gave me opportunities to present the gospel on some of these occasions. The books are wonderful, and one (Revolution in World Missions) is going to be reviewed in the near future (and I only review books I love!)
Okay, just reading this is making me go out and do some Christmas shopping (for myself - new books!) so there is HEAPS there for anyone to give this Christmas!
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