aaronbarkermusic.com » discipleship

Fighting Hunger with the Foodmachine

Sun, 06 Nov 2011 06:13:34 +0000

James 2:14-17 What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him? Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to him, “Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. (NIV)

Over the past 2 1/2 years we have seen some of the most abject poverty in the world. Children living in homes built over sewage water. Shacks filled with layers of boys and girls who can hardly move for lack of space. Little tummies bloated with the pain of emptiness—empty of both spiritual life and physical food. As a father, I know how difficult it is for my children to give me focused attention when they want a snack, let alone if they hadn’t had a square meal in days. How can a child hear the truth about Jesus over the rumbling of their empty stomachs?

We have taken our teams into homes and communities, sharing the simple message of the love of Christ. We have laughed with them, cried with them, and prayed with them. Each time we say goodbye our hearts are bursting as we see the planted seeds bearing fruit that will remain. We connect them with our local hosts and continue to invest in those relationships to sustain the long-term work that God is doing in each location but long to do more to sustain the hope that is deposited through truth.

Hunger and malnutrition are massive needs that we feel a burden to address. We must walk out the YWAM value of bringing “The Two-handed Gospel” by expressing truth and offering practical mercy. We can’t address physical needs with just kind words and a hug. Physical needs require a physical solution just as spiritual needs require a spiritual solution. What if we could leave something behind in each location that could provide for a massive need?

YWAM is partnering with people who are creating “The Foodmachine,” a sustainable tool to fight hunger and malnutrition that can be constructed in developing nations to provide food for families and communities that are struggling to survive. Watch the following video to find out more about this innovative tool to fight hunger in our world.

Every summer YWAM sends teams around the world with the Gospel. This year we are excited to send them with tools to meet the practical needs they encounter. We will send teams out trained to build “Foodmachines” in the local communities in partnership with local missionaries and residents. While providing food locally, it will serve as a model that can be duplicated in appropriate surrounding communities.

Jesus was moved with compassion towards the people he met as he walked the streets of Jerusalem. He healed lepers, opened blind eyes, and fed the hungry. As he calls us into the nations, we are to do the same by including a strong mercy emphasis in our Discipleship Training School programs. Meeting the practical needs of our world will also open doors for the Gospel to continue to go to the ends of the earth!

Join us as we continue to raise up the next generation to give their lives away for Christ in missions, and join us as we fight hunger and malnutrition in our world. You can be a part of this through your prayers, your financial giving, your friendship, and your commitment to go! We are excited to see how God moves in the nations in this next year. Hungry hearts and hungry bodies will be filled by the love of our incredible Savior!

Barker Video Update 2011

Sun, 23 Oct 2011 04:57:50 +0000

A mission challenge from the Barkers from YWAM – crown media on Vimeo.

Call2All DTS Says Goodbye to Bangkok

Mon, 12 Jul 2010 14:35:43 +0000

Well, our team finished the last day of ministry here in Bangkok today. What a wonderful two weeks! Just remembering all that we have experienced is amazing. We spent a day touring a Buddhist temple and some tourist attractions, we spent many days with King’s Kids doing fun discipleship programs, and also many hours working on service projects in the slum. We spent hours across the street doing evangelism at the university. We met many non-Christians, many Christians, and loved learning from both. We were able to share the Gospel with hundreds of people in this community. We preached on street corners, at bus stops, and on the campus. We visited a church, preached, worshiped, performed, and testified at another. We laughed tons, prayed tons, worshiped tons, and even danced a bit!

Through all of this and more we have fallen in love with this nation. Two weeks has hardly been enough to satisfy my longing to spend more time in this beautiful country. Today as I looked ahead to the Call2All DTS in April of 2011 I started thinking of spending a few months here for outreach. I believe God is preparing this land for a great harvest and I for one would love to be a part of it. I certainly think that having a ministry on the largest university in the world is fairly strategic!

My prayer is that we have been a blessing to the ministry here with YWAM Thailand. I know they have been an incredible blessing to us. I believe the fruit we have seen over our short time is being passed on to very capable hands and I believe the seeds we’ve sown will be watered and harvested. I believe the water we’ve poured on the soil is soon to produce a great harvest that the team here is so ready for! I would encourage as many as possible to come join this family here in Thailand to work the field in this nation. I believe you will love every minute! I definitely have!