...what does the LORD require of you? To do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God. (Micah 6:8)

YOU'RE INVITED - SAVE THE DATE: 10.10.10

TEAR Fund is proud to invite you to be part of the work of the Micah Challenge coalition. With our Christian partners*, we want to see an end to global poverty – and for New Zealand to pull its weight in the fight to do so.

Micah Challenge is a global coalition of Christians holding governments to account for their promise to halve extreme poverty by 2015 through the Millennium Declaration and the Millennium Development Goals. We are part of a global movement to encourage deeper Christian commitment to the poor, and to speak out to leaders to act with justice.

We want to engage the church and all Christians in New Zealand to be aware of global issues, and to answer the call of Christ towards defending the poor, the fatherless, and the widow; and we want you to join us.

History is filled with significant prophetic movements that have brought about a seismic shift in society as the Christian faith stimulated a commitment to active justice. In recent times, Christians have led the US civil rights movement, campaigned against oppressive communism, spoken out against apartheid, and called for the cancellation of international debt. They have worked towards monumental shifts, affecting moral, social, historical, economic, spiritual and legal dynamics.

10.10.10

In 2000, 189 countries signed the Millennium Declaration to end extreme poverty by 2015. New Zealand was one of those countries. October 10, 2010 marks the two-thirds point towards reaching the Millennium Development Goals and sadly, we still have a very long way to go. 10.10.10 is about keeping leaders accountable for the promises they made; and inspiring Kiwi Christians to stand up for the poor. 

Micah Challenge has prepared a variety of resources to enable Christians and churches in New Zealand and around the globe to mark the 10.10.10 day. The theme is around hands: hands held up in prayer; hands held out in promise, hands held out in support. In Aotearoa New Zealand the Micah Challenge members want to include a particular focus on the Millennium Development Goals relating to child and maternal health issues. The following list shows what the resources are, and has links to more information. Start planning now for your church to be involved on Sunday 10 October!

The Toolkit

This kit will help you and your church in the build up to 10.10.10. It contains a Guide for a 40-day Fast for your church or homegroup; a guide to reflective prayer on the MDGs that gets your congregations’ “hands dirty”; a bible study on advocacy; and intro to the MDGs for you to integrate justice for the poor into your services.

If you would like a toolkit for your church, please email frank@tearfund.org.nz

Online Resources

We have the following resources to equip you on October 10th. They can be downloaded from www.micahchallenge.org.nz

•    The Global Prayer: the joint prayer for justice in the nations is a vital part of our advocacy and demonstrates our dependence on God as we seek his wisdom and rely on his strength and guidance. The prayer for Micah 2010 echoes the themes of Nehemiah who prayed before he embarked on the mighty task of restoring Jerusalem.

•    The Big Promise: this promise resonates with Paul’s heart, “All they asked was that we should continue to remember the poor, the very thing I was eager to do." (Gal. 2:10). 10.10.10 is a day to recommit ourselves to the pursuit of justice, to be mindful of the poor in the way we live and encourage action from our leaders.

•    The Micah Call: sign up to the Micah call to be part of the global campaign and to receive ongoing information from the global campaign team.

You can find all these resources and more on the website www.micahchallenge.org.nz

If you would like to take part, please email frank@tearfund.org.nz so we can offer you and your church the required support to mobilise and inspire your congregation. 

We look forward to walking this journey with you.

* Micah Challenge New Zealand is a coalition of agencies including: World Vision, TEAR Fund, CBM, Vision Network, Leprosy Mission, Laidlaw College, The Salvation Army, SIM, BanzAID, Tranzsend, and the Anglican Diocese Council for Social Justice. To become a member, please contact info@micahchallenge.org.nz