"Would you like to join us for a Bible discussion? There's free food ..."

LANCASTER, Pa. — Five hundred fifty Lancaster Mennonite High School (LM) students were challenged to go 48 hours without using their smartphones or social media. Smartphone addiction is becoming an increasing concern for 21st-century society, especially for adolescents.

CHEPILAT, Kenya — In 2015, Eastern Mennonite Missions (EMM) gave a $250 grant to Kenyan pastor and entrepreneur, Kefa Moirore, to fund his business, Loafstar Bakery. “The amount has multiplied like the ‘loaves of bread and fish’ in the Bible,” said Moirore, allowing him to acquire a plot of land worth 1 million Kenyan shillings (about $10,000).

I have a confession to make — I LOVE to fix things. I mean I have it bad, and if you have known me for long, you know this about me, because it has become such a core piece of who I am. As soon as I hear of a need, immediately I am brainstorming and asking, "What can I do? Let's fix this!"

LANCASTER, Pa. — Before moving to Lancaster County 18 years ago, Donna Becker had little exposure to Mennonites. In fact, she was not aware that she had ever met a Mennonite until she began studies with Eastern Mennonite Seminary in 2015. Becker spent most of her life in the Baltimore area, in the Lutheran and United Church of Christ traditions.

ATTAPEU, Laos and KERALA, India — Two devastating and unrelated flooding incidents in Asia have resulted in high numbers of death and displacement. In August 2018, Eastern Mennonite Missions (EMM) sent $9,500 toward relief efforts.

Before Mary and I went to Vietnam, I was profoundly moved by reading Dietrich Bonhoeffer's The Cost of Discipleship. Bonhoeffer, a German theologian and pastor, hanged in a Nazi concentration camp in 1945, had written: "When Christ calls a man, He bids him come and die."

FOZ DO IGUAÇU, Brazil — A first-ever interfaith dialogue gathering for evangelical Christians and Sunni Muslims in the Brazilian city of Foz do Iguaçu was held on July 17. The Centro Cultural Beneficente Islâmico de Foz do Iguaçu and the Eastern Mennonite Missions (EMM) Christian-Muslim Relations Team (CMRT) co-sponsored the gathering with the theme, “Peace: Connecting personal experience with Peace on Earth.”

SEMARANG, Indonesia — A trip to Indonesia changed the way that 29 students see the world. From June 26 to July 14, the Chamber Choir of the Mennonite Children’s Choir of Lancaster (MCCL) participated in a GO! Summer mission assignment with Eastern Mennonite Missions (EMM).

Many people have never heard of this country, or if they have, they know little about it. The government has guaranteed this cloak of secrecy over the last 60-plus years of military junta ruling by keeping much of the country closed, with severe and swift consequences for anyone they even suspect of questioning their laws or legitimacy. Secret police are located everywhere, spying on their own citizens and making those they feel may be a threat disappear, temporarily or permanently.

LANCASTER, Pa. — “Discipleship sessions were a big area of focus,” said Eastern Mennonite Missions (EMM) Kingdom Team Director Krista Martin when asked to highlight what is new for the program this year. The curriculum is based on EMM’s mission statement, providing instruction for Kingdom Team staff to help teach the program participants.

WILLOW STREET, Pa. — It’s all about the international food — at least according to Luke Charles, 35, of Millersville, Pa., who has not missed Eastern Mennonite Missions’ (EMM’s) Global Fair for 19 of the event’s 23 years.

I was recently asked, "What does church planting look like?" I have been privileged to be part of two church planting efforts, one in Ohio Mennonite Conference and one in LMC: a fellowship of Anabaptist churches.

LANCASTER, Pa. — Lancaster educators know refugee resettlement isn’t just about offering a new home, but also helping refugees navigate the years of readjustment ahead of them. That’s why four local organizations are partnering to hold the third year of the Leap into Language summer program for middle school students from refugee and immigrant backgrounds.

WILLOW STREET, Pa. — The sight of alpacas, the sound of bongo drums, and the scent of curry: on July 7 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., Eastern Mennonite Missions’ (EMM’s) Global Fair will once again bring international flavor and culture to the Hans Herr House in Willow Street, Pa.

It began September 4, 1944. A little girl was born to an unwed mother. This little girl would go on to experience pain, shame, and rejection throughout her early years. She was socially awkward and always felt left out. You see, during this period of her life, it was a disgrace to have a child out of wedlock. Her mother hid her for over 14 years before anyone got a chance to meet her. Not sure of her place or purpose in life, she began dreaming of being important — or rather, being noticed.

NAIROBI, Kenya — “For a global organization to effectively do its work, it has to connect with the globe,” says Nelson Okanya, president of Eastern Mennonite Missions (EMM). With its first-ever overseas Board meeting in East Africa from April 18–25, 2018, EMM made new strides in engaging the world.

KAMPALA, Uganda — “How many of you can say you have a friendship that has lasted 40 years?” For four days, professor, university founder, and former ambassador Badru Kateregga asked audiences this question as he toured Uganda with longtime friend and colleague David Shenk, an Eastern Mennonite Missions (EMM) worker.

BROMSGROVE, England — Participants at the Anabaptist Theology Forum applauded when former Mennonite Mission Network (MMN) worker Eleanor Kreider walked into the conference room in Barnes Close near Birmingham, England. Some considered her a spiritual mentor or close friend; others had never met her, but had been influenced in some way by the years Kreider and her husband Alan had lived in the U.K.