The BAM School
Stop Slavery has always had as part of it’s charter to Launch Christ Centered Entrepreneurs. We have run discipleship schools including discipleship schools centered around business in the past but we are just about to launch our very first school in the states. One other thing that is unique about this school is that we have full scholarships to offer some students. You can find out more at www.TheBAMSchool.com. The school begins on Oct 4th with the goal of helping each student have their own business that helps them further the Kingdom.
www.TheBAMSchool.com to learn more
To Give By Donating Stock
You can often save a bunch of money on taxes by donating stock rather than selling a stock and donating the proceeds. If you would ike to donate by Stock you can do so by clicking here and donating the stock through the cocatalyst site. It should say donate to stop slavery and look like the picture below when you get there. Again click here to donate by stock. Thanks so much for your partnership with us. Please follow up your donation with an email to buddy@stopslavery.org so that we make sure the gift goes to the project or missionary that you intend.
Jen’s Commencement Address to Jack’s Class 2021
Jennifer Rupp Rathmell‘s short commencement address for Jack’s drive-through graduation for the GIS class of 2021. Click on the link or video to be taken straight to where she starts. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZyqP-HcfnpQ
Jen’s Commencement Address to Adrianne’s Class
Click on the picture above to hear Jen’s Address to Adrianne’s Senior Class.
Drink Cart for Nan
Nan’s Story
AT FIRST… She was lured from her Northern Thai village home and promised a job serving food in a Karaoke bar in Southern Thailand. Instead, she was forced into prostitution. She was 16 years old. Two of her traffickers were eventually convicted of their crimes.
THEN… She married a violent man who inflicted emotional and physical abuse, even while she was pregnant with their daughter. When the beatings continued and included harm to her infant daughter, Nan escaped. She did not realize at the time that the was pregnant with a second child.
NOW… She is a single mother, struggling to care for her two children (2-year old daughter and 7-month old son) as well as her ailing mother and teenage sister.
HER PLAN… Nan would like to support her family with a beverage-vending business. This would require a motorbike with a sidecar attachment and supplies. The total cost is approximately $2000-$2500 USD ($1000 for a used motorbike $1500 for a new motorbike, and $1000 for the cart and supplies). Nan feels she can be successful with such a business, as she has some experience helping a friend with a similar business. She also feels that she can deliver her daughter to nursery school on the motorbike, and keep her son with her while she works. We already have $200 given to help Nan.
If you would like to donate to this project go to www.stopslavery.org/donate and Select Nan Drink Cart Fund.
Statement of Faith
Stop Slavery Statement of Faith
The Bible
The Bible is the inspired word of God. The 66 books which constitute the Bible are entirely reliable and truthful, and the Bible stands as the central authority over our lives, our faith and the direction of our church.
We are committed to standard formulations of biblical inspiration such as the “Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy, and Hermeneutics.” (2 Timothy 3:16; Matthew 5:18)
The Trinity
Three persons eternally share the Divine Nature. The Bible refers to these persons as the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. God is both self-existent and personal. (John 14:10, 26; 15:26)
Jesus Christ
Jesus Christ, the Son, is fully God and fully human. He lived a sinless life, died for the sins of humankind, was resurrected bodily on the third day, ascended into heaven and is coming again as King and Judge.
Jesus Christ is the only provision that God has given for people to be reconciled to Him. Jesus’ life on earth also serves as the model for the Christian life. (John 14:6; Acts 4:12)
Holy Spirit
The Holy Spirit is God. He indwells us at the moment we place our faith in Christ. He empowers us to live an effective Christian life by affirming our salvation, encouraging us and giving us the strength to live a life that is pleasing to God. The Holy Spirit also endows each believer with a unique spiritual ability to serve the church and the world. (John 14:16; Ephesians 1:19-20; 1 Corinthians 12)
Salvation
Salvation is reconciliation with God through the atoning work of Jesus Christ. God offers us salvation by His grace alone and we receive it as a gift through personal faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ. This right standing before God must be received and cannot be earned. God freely offers salvation to all people, and our salvation is secure. (Ephesians 2:8,9; Romans 8:38,39; Ephesians 1:13; 2:4)
Humanity
Human beings are created in the image of God. As such, we are unique among all of God’s creation. We have turned against God and this has resulted in spiritual death for all humankind. Humanity lives in a state of alienation and profound need which can only be satisfied by reconciliation with God through Christ. Without this reconciliation, all people stand under God’s righteous judgment.
Humanity, although fallen, maintains the image of God and is, therefore, still dignified and unique. God continues to love us and reach out to us, even though we are hostile to Him. Believers in Jesus Christ receive a new nature that becomes the foundation for a process of transformation. (John 3:16; 2 Corinthians 5:17)
The Church
The church is composed of all those throughout history who place saving faith in Jesus Christ. The church is not an institution, but a people. God wants all Christians to live out their spiritual lives in a corporate context. This context of Christian love relationships is a crucial feature of our witness for Christ as it reflects God’s character to the world.
The church is God’s chosen instrument through which the message of salvation is spread to all people. This mission is the central purpose for the church. We are to carry the good news locally and worldwide and demonstrate the gospel by relevant social action and lives marked by love and sacrifice with Jesus as our primary model. (John 13:34, 35; 1 Corinthians 12:12-26; Matthew 28:19)
Satan
Satan is the personal, spiritual adversary of God and God’s followers. Satan actively opposes the work of the church and the spiritual vitality of Christians. We therefore take seriously, but in a balanced way, the reality of personal, spiritual opposition. Satan is doomed to final defeat and judgment when Christ returns. (Ephesians 6:12; Revelation 20)
Second Coming
This age will conclude with the personal, bodily return of Christ. At that time, He will complete God’s plan to reestablish His just and righteous rule over all humanity. (Matthew 24:29-31; Revelation 20)
The Afterlife
At the final judgment, God will assign all people their eternal destinies-either life or judgment. Those who have responded to Jesus Christ with saving faith will receive the eternal life they have already been promised (John 5:24), while others will live under eternal judgment.
Therefore
Therefore, because eternal issues are at stake, there is an urgency to communicate the gospel. We believe in doing something about it—that we should “walk worthy of the calling” to which we have been called. – (Eph. 4:1; Titus 2:11-14; Mark 16:15; Acts 1:8).
Siem Reap Church Project
Here is a video of a church building project we did in Cambodia. The work was hard, but fruitful. We loved having the team from Koza Baptist Church come in and help build this church building for the widow.
Clean Water
We have had a partnership with a small village outside of Siem Reap for a couple of years. Last year I delivered Shoe Boxes of love there and as I was leaving the village saw this guy struggling to ride a bike with no tires and thought,
“Wouldn’t it be like Jesus to get every kid in this village a bike.” So we partnered with a couple of others and what started out as a dream to give 50 kids in one village a bike resulted in 122 kids in two villages and two orphanages receiving new bikes.
When I visited this village a few months after my students had delivered the bikes our orphanage director was introducing us to people in the village and he remarked that many of them would get sick because their pump water wasn’t clean. That was a fallacy I had fallen victim to before. I keep assuming that because the water is coming out of the ground from a pump that it is clean and that isn’t always the case.
Our director asked us if we could get them a $25 water filter so that they could have clean water in the village. I wish I had known that 2 years ago when we started coming to this village. Perhaps in the future we will be able to offer something a little more permanent that doesn’t require them to go through the additional step of running the water through a filter before drinking it.
Water is something we totally take for granted in the west. Our house in South East Asia often goes without water. We have 3 water tanks to try to avert the problem but inevitably we run out of water. Generally we have drinking water because we get that delivered weekly. Last time I was back in the United States I remember thinking, “Wow, Americans have so much good water they can use it to wash cars and water the lawn.” I have lived my whole life virtually not even thinking about water but after 3 + years of making sure that bad water doesn’t get into my mouth in the shower or wondering about ice at a restaurant and going about 4 months in the last two years without water in our house to do the dishes, take showers and most importantly, flush toilets, I no longer take it for granted.
Anyway, just wanted to share with you a tiny little project of Stop Slavery and bringing a water filter to a village in Cambodia. Thanks for all of you who are a part of our support team. If you aren’t already you should go to the Donate page and choose 1000 Heroes and become one of the 1000 Heroes we are looking to have join us in 2014.