World Hunger Sunday to be emphasized Oct. 12

NASHVILLE (BP) – With World Hunger Sunday approaching (Oct. 12), churches and other groups that want to engage the global hunger crisis have a variety of resources available.

Global Hunger Relief, the new cooperative initiative of Southern Baptist hunger ministries, offers a range of resources at www.globalhungerrelief.com. Visitors will find a range of free promotional resources – from bulletin inserts and coloring pages for children to videos and the long-popular soup can labels. Art files useful in creating customized promotional items also are available.

The GHR website also promotes a Hunger Happens Everywhere campaign (www.helpghr.org/now) that aids churches in engaging hunger needs both globally and locally through the North American Mission Board’s LoveLoud backpack program (www.namb.net/backpacks) and a focus on Syria (www.gobgr.org/syria), promoted in partnership with the International Mission Board and Baptist Global Response.

Several national GHR partners also offer resources on their websites:

• The Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission (www.erlc.com/hunger) offers two resources:
• a video from ERLC President Russell Moore that illustrates the biblical admonition to “love your neighbor as yourself” with an anecdote from the popular TV show “Parks and Recreation” and
• an issue analysis by Daniel J. Hurst on biblical principles under-girding the Christian responsibility to care for the hungry.

• NAMB (www.namb.net/hunger-relief) provides helpful items like fundraising ideas, testimonials about the impact of hunger giving and background material for sermon preparation. Visitors also will find practical resources like Beginning a Hunger Ministry and a one-hour witnessing workshop for hunger ministry volunteers.

• The IMB website (www.imb.org) has hundreds of resources on world hunger. Visitors can download bulletin inserts and videos, photos and stories from all over the world. One new item is a simple packet that helps churches add a global hunger emphasis to their fall festival or Trunk or Treat events. IMB’s world hunger brochure also is available at www.imbresources.org.

• The Baptist Global Response website hosts a dedicated GHR page at www.gobgr.org/hunger. Visitors will find tabs for news updates and prayer points, as well as resources. BGR offers brief video updates about how hunger funds have changed lives, as well as practical program ideas that run the gamut from a progressive hunger meal to a “Run for Their Lives” 5K race.

• Woman’s Missionary Union (www.wmustore.com) headlines their anti-hunger campaign with the fall issue of Missions Leader, which includes a two-page feature with information, ideas and activities to help churches promote a World Hunger Sunday offering. WMU’s World Hunger 101, a two-hour, church-wide event, explains how to consolidate a full understanding of hunger-related issues and offers age-level session plans with promotion and hunger project ideas.

  The WMU store also offers the popular bread banks and a World Hunger badge children can earn in missions education groups.

Global Hunger Relief follows the unique “dollar in, dollar out” path blazed by its predecessor, the World Hunger Fund. Southern Baptists are able to direct 100 percent of each donation to hunger causes because church gifts through the Cooperative Program provide administrative and implementing infrastructure for hunger relief projects.

Donations are channeled through GHR, which uses 100 percent of gifts to meet hunger needs. For more information visit www.globalhungerrelief.com.