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March really snuck up on us this year, but that doesn't mean we are going to let it pass by unnoticed. NEXT SUNDAY, March 10 is the Global Day of Prayer for Burma and we have some exciting (although slightly last minute) things planned.
We would love to raise awareness about what's happening in the country of Burma in order to get people praying for it because many of the kids that we care for in Thailand are Burmese refugees who have escaped to Thailand for safety. Many have lost parents, homes, and entire villages in the ongoing civil war. They have been separated from loved ones and are unable to return home because of the dangers.
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Educate yourself on Burma (Myanmar)
- The country was renamed, Myanmar, by the military group that took control over 2 decades ago. Many people still refer to it as Burma in opposition of these forces.
- Going on for 60+ years now, the civil war in Burma is the longest ongoing civil war in the world.
- Since the latest military coup in 2021, the attacks on the Burmese people have increased and intensified, leading to a humanitarian crisis that has caused much death and destruction.
- The ruling military in Burma regularly issues attacks on its own people, primarily targeting civilians , hospitals, and schools, in an attempt to squash any rebellion efforts to regain democracy.
- Its estimated that close to 8,000 civilians may have been killed since the coup in 2021, in addition to thousands who have been falsely imprisoned.
- While over 2 million Burmese citizens are currently displaced from their homes within the country, another 500,000 are living as refugees in neighboring countries (including about 100,000 currently living in Thailand)
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Join us for Dinner and a Movie on March 10
On March 10, in honor of the Global Day of Prayer for Burma, we will be hosting a dinner and a movie at Cornerstone Church in Brighton. The featured award-winning film, Free Burma Rangers, documents the war in that country (as well as Iraq) through the eyes of an incredible missionary family, who for the past 20+ years has put themselves in harms way to provide help and show love to innocent citizens caught up in the fighting. This is truly one of the most incredible and inspiring films that we have ever seen, a true story with real documentary style footage from the front lines, that will have you in awe of the lengths that one family has taken to live out God's command about love others. Its an unforgettable film, full of courage, faithfulness, and compassion.
In addition to showing the movie, we will be sharing a little about our recent trip to Thailand, and the Burmese refugees that we had the honor of meeting while we were there. We hope you will join us. It will be an evening you don't want to miss.
Watch the 2 minute trailer below and then reserve you FREE seats today!
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Order a "Spring Forward' Brunch
In addition to the Global Day of Prayer for Burma, March 10 also happens to begin Daylight Savings. Thanks to our team at Whisk and Ivy, we will be offering heat and eat "Spring Ahead" brunches that serve 8 people to benefit the work we do with the Burmese refugees in Thailand and help support our next missions trip there in May. Why not celebrate the hour of lost sleep by inviting a few friends over for brunch next Sunday OR keep the food for your self and you won't have to worry about cooking breakfast all week long.
Each meal kit can be custom created to meet your likes and will come ready to eat and can. The meals can be picked up at Cornerstone Church or delivered to your home the morning of March 9. Best of all 100% of the proceeds (after food costs) will go toward helping Burmese children.
Menu selections include deep dish quiche, frittata, potatoes, french toast souffle, salads, candied maple bacon and more.
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Time to Refrigerate the Transit
As many of you know, we were able to purchase a transit last fall to help transport our food. It has been an invaluable addition to the Connecting Tables ministry and allowed us to salvage literally hundreds of pounds of fresh food each week, turning it into well balanced and ready to eat meals, and then delivering the meals to free meal fridges around the county.
Legally, we must be able to keep the back of the truck below 40 degrees in order to safely carry food, so now that the weather is going to be warming up, its time to add insulation and refrigeration at the whopping cost of $22,000. We put a $2,000 deposit down last week for the materials to be ordered. Please pray that we are able to raise the rest of money before the temperatures rise, so that we are able to complete the job without interruption to our ministry.
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Back to Thailand in May
Although it seems like we just returned from our first team missions trip to Thailand, we are already planning another one at the end of May. We currently have 6 people going, but we can take up to 8. Please join us in prayer regarding those final 2 spaces. If it is Gods will that we go with a team of 6, that is what we will do. But, if there are others who we should be asking, we need for God to quickly provide us with their names.
Although not mandatory, we would ideally love to have 2 people (perhaps college kids or retirees) that would join us for the 2 weeks in May and then stay in Mae Sot for a few additional weeks helping teach english to the Burmese refugee kids up there. That has been one of their biggest requests, but so far one that we haven't been unable to fulfill.
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Reaching the Community
Our pay what you can ComeUnity Dinners every Wednesday might are more than just about providing health delicious food. They are also about creating a place of community, acceptance, and love.
This is Arlene, a community member and regular attender of our weekly dinners. Arlene has been attending our meals since COVID, when they were offered to-go style out of the parking lot. Several months ago, she shared with us that she had been diagnosed with cancer. We immediately stopped serving food so that we could pray for her. The next week, when she came to pick up her meal, we surprised her with a card, a cozy blanket, and a Jesus Calling book just to let her know we cared. 2 weeks ago, Arlene came through the line with a pen and paper wanting to know where we got the book from. She has been so blessed by reading it (and said she feels like Jesus is really speaking to her through it) that now she wants to purchase another copy that she can gift to someone else.
What a blessing to see Arlene wanting to pay it forward and join us in our mission to feed hope, faith, and love to the hungry and hurting world around us.m
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Save the Date!
Our second annual Tinsel & Tidings Gala will be held on Sunday, December 15. More details to follow in the coming months.
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God has really been at work the past two months opening doors, answering prayers, and pushing our ministry moving forward. We are starting to suspect that 2024 is going to be a big year for The Ivy Table. We have been asked to do several speaking engagements, each giving us the opportunity to share our mission with a whole new group of people. We have been approached by half a dozen locations about planting free meal fridges on their sites. We have met with mentors, walked through potential properties with owner/realtors, and with the help of a very talented grant writer, we will be submitting our first grant application on Monday.
God is good and faithful and active at work in growing our ministry. Thank you for partnering with us as we try to follow His lead and serve His people.
Blessings,
Jessica, Barb, and Sandy
Founders and Directors
The Ivy Table
Feeding Hope, Faith, and Love
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