Embracing Diversity in Relationships

Key attitudes to assist in embracing diversity as a lifestyle

1. An Open Mind--when we close our minds, we become deeply ethnocentric---viewing others different than us culturally as inherently inferior or not as valuable.
2. A Humble Heart--fallen and sinful humanity is defined as “prideful” and cultural bigotry is one example of this sinful reality---we simply reject others as inferior to ourselves. It takes a humble heart to consistently be open to significant relationship with people unlike us!
3. A Listening Ear-- to be open to others we have to make every effort to listen carefully to people unlike ourselves--- listening for what is being said, what isn’t being said….and what needs to be said is a skill learned progressively by people who open the door to building new and purposefully challenging relationships.
4. Faith in a loving God--- the greatest opponent of healthy relationships is fear. The New Testament letter 1 John chapter 4:18, 19  instructs us, “There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love. We love because he first loved us.”

I’ve been blessed to be involved in the lives of international students attending the University of South Alabama. The vision of the ministry of Friends of Internationals is to “Make Friends around the World” by providing a family like atmosphere for students living in Mobile, Alabama. What a huge opportunity to build significant relationships with people from nearly 100 nations!

But opportunity to build relationship  and actually doing it are two different things. Proximity to people different different than us is not relationship until and unless we pursue diversity with all of our heart.

Segregation ---separation of races---is rooted in fear and pride. We seldom move in the direction of people different than us without some key character traits and behaviors that help us lay the building blocks and build the bridges over the very real chasm of cultural differences. We tend to spend our time with people similar to us. We back away from varying styles of dress, food, entertainment and other deeper issues of belief, values and ways of ordering family and society.

Building a culture of Honor in a diverse society

“What you honor you get more of….”~ Charles Simpson

Honor; high respect, as for worth, merit, or rank

Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor. ~Romans 12:10

One of the key ways that we seek to build significant friendships to build trust and respect for one another in the area of culture….we seek to build bridges of honor.

We seek to experience the food, music, dress and anything significant in a specific culture in presentations of celebration in a prepared home environment. We seek to allow others to define and tell us ‘who they are’ in an open and embracing atmosphere of honor. We believe that God has placed specific treasures within every defined people on the planet….and we believe that ultimately we are all enriched when we uncover, share and celebrate these ethnic specific treasures!

Tell us who you are so we can love you more fully and completely

What would you like us to know about you?

A. Show us who you are in the context of celebration--Food, Dress, Music/Dance, Art, Cultural Tradition related to weddings and other celebrations that are central to important life passages

B. Tell us who you are in midst of sorrow and difficulty

C. Tell us who you are in the area of belief, values and family

D. Tell us who you are in the area of dreams and hopes for the future

Loving People in an Age of Terror

Following the horrific terror attacks in Paris, France there was a strong political response within my home state of Alabama. From the Governor on down there was a lot of talk about restricting refugee settlement, especially of people coming from the war torn nation of Syria. When I initially heard of this response, I knew that I needed to learn more and get involved in the conversation. For over a decade my wife and I have been involved in serving the refugee community in the city of Mobile.  Beginning in the mid 1970's following the Vietnamese war, Mobile became a refuge for those displaced by years of war in S. E. Asia. Since our arrival to Mobile in 1998, we have connected with refugees from war torn nations around the globe and seen just how much help they need after relocating to a new country. Try to imagine leaving everything you own and know to begin life anew after experiencing the trauma of war! Just learning a new language and culture would be hard enough. But try to imagine starting all over not by choice but by the force of war! I felt it vital that I connect with Alabama congressman Bradley Byrne who made public his concern about Syrian refugees as a potential security threat. I contacted his office and after a few weeks, we arranged to have a luncheon meeting in his Mobile office. Prior to serving in political office Bradley had as a private attorney done some pro Bono work for refugees in Mobile. He assured me he was not against having refugees relocate to Mobile... his major concern was the fast tracking of Syrian refugees to the front of the line without proper vetting. We listened to one another and felt it was a good first start for us to both understand the needs from both a humanitarian and security perspective. I invited Jeri Stroade the director of "Dwell Mobile" and board member Salah Taher who came to Mobile as an Iraqi refugee to the meeting along with my wife Mary who volunteers frequently in the service of refugees. It's not always easy to love people in a world of serious conflict and danger. I do believe with God's help we can learn to live within the tension of competing interests. God asks us to trust him and he also gives us the wisdom and discernment to know how to make difficult choices. As for me and my house we will make every effort to serve people with God's love in these difficult and challenging days. Please join me in praying for governmental leaders to do their jobs with both excellence and wisdom. Also pray for the love of people not to wax cold in an age of terror.

Back to the Future

                                                                                                             

                                                     

Dear friends and family;

 What a joy it was to celebrate the graduation from college of our youngest child Gabriella on December 12th! Gabby finished her undergraduate degree in English and we were blessed to have both Mary’s mom and some great friends in attendance. As Gabby moves into a new phase in life, we are amazed at the brevity of life! Seventeen years ago I walked with Gabby onto the campus of the University of South Alabama and heard her ask me, “Daddy when will I get to go to college!” I assured her it would be a long time before that happened…..and now it’s over! The brevity of life assures us that living with humility and wisdom is so very important. When we arrived to Mobile in July of 1998, I had no idea that we would still be actively involved in doing what we initially came to do at that time--- loving and ministering to international students.

 We had a great meeting with Brenda Hinson the director of international student services at the University of South Alabama this past month. She is excited to have Mary and I working full time again with Friends of Internationals. The timing of the Lord is always correct as she informed us that USA is expecting a record enrollment for the spring semester. We are expecting 200 new students from Kuwait alone! We are being given a lot of favor from the University as we are planning on hosting our welcome dinner on campus. Due to the large numbers of new students, our use of the Wesley Center is now inadequate. In the past a hindrance from using on campus facilities has been the cost of catering but Brenda thinks she can get a food waiver and allow us to have a ‘potluck’ dinner. We will also request donations from local international restaurants who are in many cases owned by friends of ours! Please be praying for continued favor with the international students services staff on the campus. We are grateful for a good relationship with the university over our entire 17 years of ministry.

In order to help us build a new foundation for our involvement in the ministry of Friends of Internationals we called many who have been involved in the ministry over the years to a special Friday night prayer meeting. With so much going on in the world internationally including a recent terror attack on American soil, we felt it vital to seek the Lord together for wisdom and to hear His plans for us. We don’t want to do ministry based upon our own good ideas. Sometimes we just need to ‘wait on the Lord’ and let the Holy Spirit to speak to all of us in a special time of prayer. We would love to have you praying with us for wisdom and God’s strategy for reaching international students and refugees in 2016 and beyond!

Since we have stepped down from leadership of All Nations Community Church we are now partnering with a local missionary agency in Mobile to help with administrative and spiritual oversight. Jim has known the President of IGO for over a decade and has taught in their missions training school. It is with great excitement and anticipation that we begin a new partnership with this missions agency! Our financial support and newsletters will now be coming through this organization. You can give online at www.igoministries.org or by ordinary mail. Thank you for your continued support!

Love in Christ;

Jim and Mary

To Support the ministry of Jim and Mary Mather donations can be made to IGO with a memo for their support.

International Gospel Outreach

P.O. Box 1008

Semmes, Al 36575

New Hope for the City of Mobile

On Tuesday, August 27th, Mobile, Alabama will be electing a new leader the city desperately needs. It's been said that everything rises and falls on leadership. Our current Mayor Sam Jones is finishing his second term in office. 8 years is a long time to effect change. In his 8 years in office we've seen numerous serious mismanagement which Mobilians would be wise not to forget when they vote.
1. Ladd Pebbles stadium financial mismanagement . (City owned property)
2. Bay Bears stadium which is a city property received no rent payments for years from the privately owned Bay Bears Company.
3. The city owes over $20 million dollars on a cruise  terminal with no cruise ship. Carnival cruise lines pulled out suddenly and was not under contract leaving the city with massive debt.
4. Over the last 8 years the Mayor has had only one singular vision....increase the sales tax to 10 percent. At one point the council agreed to a 'temporary' tax that when it expired had the Mayor a week later insisting we could not survive without a reinstatement of this 'temporary tax'. We again now have the 10 percent tax in place after numerous votes, threats and scare tactics were employed including threatening the public safety by both the Mayor and one Council Member (Fred Richardson) who predicted Mobile was 'going down in flames' unless the tax was passed.
5. In 8 years time and even with increased revenue from the sales tax our public safety employees who were threatened with lay offs have received no significant increase in their pay or benefits. The Mobile police department is paid less than any other department in the region....thus leading to a continuous exodus of experienced and talented officers out of the area.
6. Over the 8 years the Mayor has been in office his communication with both the public and city council has been very controlled and difficult. As council members and concerned citizens seek for answers concerning budgetary issues they have met with delay and in some cases denial of their requests.
7. Even in the management of his own campaign fund the Mayor had numerous discrepancies that caused him to refile his reports and pay back funds which had been inappropriately used for personal or inappropriate items.

All of the things mentioned in this blog show a pattern of mismanagement and a lack of strong leadership skills. We've given Mayor Jones eight years in office and it's my firm conviction that we need someone with a stronger commitment to good management and visionary leadership to take Mobile forward. Sandy Stimpson has decades of business and management experience and he is committed to assisting small businesses to get the same attention that has been paid to the big businesses recently arriving to our city. Sandy also wants to make government more accessible to the people and on day one will remove the door to the office of the Mayor as a symbol of transparency and accountability. Sandy is committed to making Mobile a safe city by working hard to ensure our public safety workers receive the pay they deserve and the equipment they need to serve the public well. The quality of life in Mobile is impacted by the quality of leadership that it receives. Now is the time for Mobile to embrace a proven leader with a clear vision for Mobile. Elect Sandy Stimpson on Tuesday, August 27th and bring new hope to Mobile, Alabama!

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It's Time for Change in Mobile!

In August, 2013 the city of Mobile will have the opportunity to elect a new Mayor. During the last several years while our national economy has teetered our own local economy has suffered as well. Our current Mayor Sam Jones pushed hard over the last two years to enact a 25 percent increase in the sales tax in the city. We were led to believe that the 10 percent sales tax would be a panacea for our city budget. Despite the University of South Alabama economist Dr. Semoon Chang warning us otherwise, the Mayor and council after much bickering, debate and repeated votes approved the tax in the fall of 2012. Now several months later the evidence is in that the sales tax increase has produced declining revenue. In tough times, people make every effort to save money. By increasing our cities sales tax to one of the highest in the nation, our city has priced itself out of the market of choice.
For several years I've followed the budgetary and leadership issues confronting our city. Our police and firemen are underpaid. Our city projects and property are poorly managed and cared for. We carry significant debt from years of failed public-private partnerships like the cruise ship debacle and the current maritime museum. Our Police pension fund is underfunded by $120 million dollars and counting. And now though we have unprecedented opportunity with the arrival of Airbus and related suppliers, we have to ask the question if our current Mayor is up to the task of leadership over the next 4 years. I have come to the conclusion that it is time for a change in the Mayor's office. I hope that you will join me in voting for Sandy Stimpson who is running for Mayor. Sandy is a life long Mobilian with a strong history of success in private business and management. He has successfully navigated downturns in the economy and offers us a new face and a new vision to lead Mobile into the future. See his website www.sandyformayor.com for details! I firmly believe it's time for a change in the city of Mobile. Join me in welcoming that change and hope for a bright and prosperous future in Mobile!

Unseen Hand

Help me God, to really see
The beauty that is mystery
The unseen hand, the hidden heart
That reaches down to pierce the dark

When trouble comes, I'm not alone
I feel his hand reaching out to heal my pain
The warm embrace comes just in time
To take away darkness and shame

Too many times, I've run away
I've hidden all my secret shame
But love's long reach has found me still
                                                  I'm not alone when darkness reigns

When darkness comes, I'm holding on
To Father's hand which never leaves
The warmness calms my inner chill

I won't let go, He loves me still

Unseen Hand

Help me God, to really see
The beauty that is mystery
The unseen hand, the hidden heart
That reaches down to pierce the dark

When trouble comes, I'm not alone
I feel his hand reaching out to heal my pain
The warm embrace comes just in time
To take away darkness and shame

Too many times, I've run away
I've hidden all my secret shame
But love's long reach has found me still
                                                  I'm not alone when darkness reigns

When darkness comes, I'm holding on
To Father's hand which never leaves
The warmness calms my inner chill

I won't let go, He loves me still