Below are some pictures from the Fort 4 The Fatherless Pastors Leadership Luncheon held on September 2, 2010, in Fort Wayne.

When Stephanie Fast speaks about orphans, we should listen.  Stephanie is a former Korean orphan who understand all too well the difficulties of surviving without the protection of mother and father.  At the Fort 4 The Fatherless campaign kick-off event, Stephanie shared a glimpse into what her life was like:

Stephanie Fast clip from Loving Shepherd Ministries on Vimeo.

May we not forget what life is like for so many children around the world.

Sincerely,

The F4TF Team

As the Fort 4 the Fatherless Campaign continues, we want to keep the ultimate purpose of the campaign close to our hearts. Certainly as we plan and create more initiatives, it is easy for us to forget the individual faces of those we are advocating for. May Stephanie’s prayer be the prayer of our hearts as we continue, both with F4TF and beyond.

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Please join us as we offer our voices to the 143,000,000 children who can’t stand up for themselves. We’ve got some exciting initiatives coming to mobilize Fort Wayne.’s churches. If you were at the kick off event, you’ll be hearing from us.  If you weren’t and would like to get involved, email us at info@fort4thefatherless.org and let us know.

God’s on the move, and we want you to be a part of it!

For His Children,

The F4TF Team

Hello All,

People are asking us what their church would be doing if their pastor signed the Pledge to Orphans.  Good question.  The answer is: Whatever God calls your church to do! The Pledge calls Fort Wayne and great Fort Wayne area churches to pray for orphans, preach about orphans, and come up with some sort of plan for orphans, whatever that may be.  The video below, taken at the F4TF Campaign kick-off event explains it well.

Sincerely,

The F4TF Team

F4TF from Loving Shepherd Ministries on Vimeo.

The Fort 4 The Fatherless campaign officially kicked off with an exciting event in Fort Wayne. On Friday, May 21, 2010, several hundred people representing 27 different churches turned out to hear Stephanie Fast talk about God’s profound heart for the fatherless. Stephanie poignantly testified that in spite of life’s difficult circumstances, God has a plan and destiny for ALL of His creation, including orphans.

Denny Meyer and his daughters opened the evening with a song about God’s great love and concluded the evening with a prayer song called “We are An Offering.”  At the night’s end, more than 50 people committed to promoting the campaign in Fort Wayne and the surrounding area.  The campaign gained a huge amount of momentum on Friday night! Now the task is to translate that momentum into action on behalf of the fatherless. We’ve got about 5 months until November 7, 2010 – the day we want pastors all across Fort Wayne to sign the pledge to orphans.  God has blessed the campaign thus far. We are excited to see where He’ll take it form here.

Sincerely,

The F4TF Team

Hello!

On Monday, Joe Gerber spoke with Melissa Montana of Star 88.3 about the Fort 4 The Fatherless campaign.  Click on the link below and then scroll to the show titled “Fort 4 The Fatherless.”  Thanks for checking it out!

http://www.star883.com/archive/audio

Sincerely,

The F4TF Team

Hello All!

The News Sentinel ran an article about the Fort 4 The Fatherless campaign in Wednesday’s edition.  Check out the article here:

http://www.newssentinel.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100519/NEWS01/5190303

See you on Friday!

The F4TF Team

On May 21 from 7 – 8:30PM, Stephanie Fast will be speaking in Fort Wayne. Stephanie has shared her incredible and stirring testimony of life as an abandoned Korean orphan with thousands of people around the world, including 2 US Presidents, and with millions more via radio. Her story has inspired and encouraged many people to recognize God’s goodness in spite of life’s difficulties. The event is free, but you need to register at www.fort4thefatherless.org. Feel free to invite friends, family, and neighbors. It will be an amazing evening that you won’t want to miss! The event is being held at Emmanuel Community Church (12222 U.S. 24, Fort Wayne, IN 46814-7472). Below is a little about Stephanie:

Abandoned at the age of four to wander the war-torn Korean countryside, Stephanie Fast has a remarkable story of survival. She was persecuted and tortured because of her bi-racial ethnicity. Abused on the city streets and finally discarded and left to die in a garbage dump, Stephanie was miraculously rescued by a World Vision nurse.

A few years later, a childless missionary couple visited a World Vision orphanage and met Stephanie, who was covered with boils and dirt, lice infected, worm ridden and cross-eyed from malnutrition. Stephanie was so dead emotionally that she rejected compassionate love. However, this missionary couple heard God speak to their hearts, “She is the one for you…” The Merwins obeyed and adopted Stephanie.

Despite the rich, healing love her adoptive parents poured into her , Stephanie’s past tormented her throughout her teens. A deeply personal encounter with Jesus Christ enabled her to exchange her pain with Him at the cross, and see her identity and purpose in the light of God’s love.

Miracles happen. Stephanie’s story proves that the God of the universe intervenes in the lives of individuals. Using her story, Stephanie touches on the depths of sin , shame , guilt and lack of trust that inhibit our ability to receive the supernatural gift of God’s love. When we choose to establish ourselves in Christ, all things become new. We see ourselves as His treasure and ultimately extend that value to those around us – including the “least of these.”

Click HERE to register for the event.

Senior Pastor Ron Williams of Pathway Community Church has committed to signing the Pledge to Orphans on November 7.  Thanks to all the good folks at Pathway Community Church!

The F4TF Team

Our dedicated volunteers have almost finished calling every church in Allen County!  We have thus far sent out over 100 invitation packets to our campaign kick-off event.  Thanks to all the churches who have expressed interest.

The F4TF Team