Tag: Compassion

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A Miracle for a Stranger

KatieSDo Miracles Still Happen?

Yes! And you can make it happen.

Meet Katie Schlinger.

On December 20, 2013, Katie Schlinger was in Aiken, South Carolina supporting her brother during his open heart surgery. Katie was attempting to help a stranger when she was brutally attacked and sexually assaulted. She sustained life altering injuries from a vehicle accident while trying to escape her attacker.This is not your everyday story….

Read Katie’s horrifying story on the DailyMail or on Tallahassee News

Katie does not have insurance and so far she’s been treated by three area hospitals (two of which have discharged her because she lacks insurance). GRU, where Katie underwent two spinal surgeries, has already sent Katie a bill for $250,000! Now in her third hospital, a rehab center in Augusta, Katie has less than 10 free days remaining before she will be billed $2,000 per day she receives treatment.

I do not know Katie Schlinger, she is a stranger to me and to our church, New Passion Church, however I am leading us to be a “Good Samaritan” to her and do everything that we can to help her family raise the $250,000 she’s already been billed (their family goal is $100,000; we want to do better than that!). She attempted to be a “Good Samaritan” and evil rose up against her. We believe good always overcomes evil through Christ and that is who we follow. We also want to support her family in any tangible way necessary while she is in our local area. We simply believe this is what we, as a church and as Christians, are called to do. For us, it’s simple obedience.

If you are interested in giving a tax deductible financial gift to Katie, you can do so by following the donation button below, or you can mail a check to PO BOX 1582, Evans, GA 30809 (Please memo the check “Katie Schlinger). New Passion Church is a 501c3 non-profit organization and we are committed to giving 100% of all donations to Katie Schlinger to help provide for her medical bills. Donors can set-up a free online profile or give as a guest. If you would like tax deduction credit, you must provide your full name and mailing address so a financial giving statement can be mailed to you. Thank you for your generosity!

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If you would like to make a donation directly to the family, you can do so through their Go Fund Me Site. Please Note: Donations through Go Fund Me are not tax deductible; Go Fund Me is not affiliated with New Passion Church.

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This post is altered from our church’s original post.

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The Power of Being Present

It has been rare in my life, especially growing up in the church, that I have met genuine Christ-Followers who I know I can trust and who I know are not a bunch of talk; people who genuinely love Jesus and love people. I count it a privilege every time I get to hangout with my brothers from other mothers, Shane and Drew. I got to do that last night.

Last week, Shane spoke at the Bible study for the substance abuse program I manage. Shane was raw and genuine with the men and he connected with a lot of them on a personal level. Shane had the opportunity to talk with some of the guys after the meeting one-on-one as well. As early as the next day some of the men were asking when Shane was going to return to speak for them again. This group is made up of non-believers, Christians and followers of other faiths (i.e. Islam). These men are not worried about style or appearance or professionalism; things that a lot of us get caught up with in the modern, American church; these men care about being cared about and about others being real with them. Shane made an eternal impact for some of these men because he chose to be present and he preached Jesus.

Last night, Shane and Drew took some time out of their day to play flag football with these same men. We all had a blast, especially since our team destroyed our opponents. Shane tweeted this following the game, “Felt more like a Christ follower tonight playing flag-football than in a long time. #Jesusandfishermen” We didn’t sit down with the men and have a Bible study and we didn’t preach them a message, we simply chose to be present. It is my hope that through our presence these men know that they are loved and cared for, that they are no less of a person than the guy who seemingly has it all together. We laughed with them, we high-fived them, we cheered for them and bragged on them. We communicated through our actions that no matter what they have done, they were still important enough to play football with. Isn’t that how God responds to us? No matter what we we have done, God stepped into our field and put us on his team through his Son, Jesus.

Shane has already shared that message and I can’t wait until Drew gets to share that same message with these men as well. Some would criticize us for not sharing the gospel on the spot, but that’s okay, because we lived it and we have an open door to keep living it and in those moments we speak it, these men will be hungry to listen because they know we love them and our words are supported with loving actions. Drew’s testimony is awesome and I know he is going to reveal Jesus in a powerful way. Drew has already opened the door for these men to hear him out because he made a choice to be present. That’s just one of the reasons I am thankful for my buddies, Shane and Drew, because I can trust them (except for Drew, I don’t trust him around my family and that’s why he has never met them) and they genuinely love Jesus and other people.

Join the Conversation…How can you impact people’s lives eternally by choosing to be present? When is the last time you chose to be present in someone’s life and it led to a great eternal impact as a result of your influence?

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Depends and Bifocals

Well. It’s almost here. At 9:35 p.m. tomorrow (and not a second earlier) I will turn the big 30! I guess I need to carve out some time Friday morning to go get sized for my new life of Depends. I probably need to go by Eye Glass World or somewhere like that to treat myself to a brand new pair of bifocals too. We’re going to Sconyers BBQ on Friday night for my birthday, so I really can’t delay getting these things done if I want to read the menu, and only God knows what will happen with my bladder and digestive system as of 9:35 p.m. tomorrow, so I definitely CANNOT delay with the Depends, those will be top priority. I would hate to have an embarrassing episode, but then again, I will be a rookie goldy oldie so I guess it’s expected.

I wonder if 30 among the elderly is like being a freshmen in high school. I fear being hazed by the older, older people. I guess I’ll have to keep a close eye on my dentures and walker so no one hides them. You know how our memory gets lost with everything else, I’ll never find them if they get a hold of them.

While my memory is still flickering slightly better than it will be at 9:35 p.m. tomorrow night. I must remind you, because I know everyone reading this is ringing their hands right now and are nervous that you have not bought be a birthday gift. So, you are thinking that you are going to have to go battle the Christmas traffic or the long lines to get me the very best gift in the world. But, do not be afraid! That seems to sound familiar. Although I know you were going to lavish me with wonderful gifts, I must decline. I am asking you to celebrate the 30 wonderful years God has blessed me with by blessing those in Africa who do not have clean water. Many children will not live to see this ripe old age of 30 because they don’t have usable water. Will you go give a gift of any size to this effort? Instead of going out and buying that pack of Depends for me, you may want to give the equivalent amount (approx. $13) towards my campaign, or if you are really feeling generous you can give $1 per year I’ve been alive, that will provide 1.5 people water for the next 20 years!  The direct link to the gift giving site is: http://mycharitywater.org/nickcarnes

P.S. Billy Wilson says he and Seree went to the Apple Store to buy me an iPad for my birthday when he pulled up my blog in the store and saw that I was  asking for water instead. So, they put the iPad back. Do me a favor and please go to Billy’s Facebok page, his Twitter, and/or his Email and help remind him and Seree to donate the equivalent amount of money for an iPad in a water donation to my campaign, since they were feeling so generous this Birthday season!

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Help Metro Ministries Win a New Roof!!!

I would like to introduce you to a church and ministry in the inner-city of West Baltimore. Their name is Charm City Church and their pastor is Mike Kemper. You won’t find him on Facebook or Twitter but the church does have a website (charmcitychurch.org). The church cannot support Mike full-time so he works a full-time job during the week, like me to pay the bills. There is one thing special about this church, their people love people and they are doing all they can to bring revolutionary compassion to those most people in society would consider unlovable, dirty, broken, addicts, unwanted……..I have known Mike and his family for years, they have been great friends to our family. He doesn’t just talk the talk, he walks the walk and he walks the talk. He has a genuine love for the people of his hometown. He is driven by the gospel of Jesus to see their lives changed.

They have an amazing ministry called MetroKidz, led by Colleen Smith, where they weekly minister, mentor, and educate around 120 kids from one of the darkest and most crime-ridden areas of Baltimore City. I’ve personally visited their church and taken a missions trip to this area. I can’t describe it in a blog post, but I walked away about three years ago when Nicki and I went to visit and made a promise at that time that when we launched New Passion, Charm City Church would be part of our missions support. We’ve been able to do that over the last several months at $50 a month and because of the faithful giving of New Passion’s people, beginning in 2011, we are going to be able to increase that to $100 a month.

But, all of us have the opportunity to help them right now and it will cost you nothing!!! Go to this link (right now): http://greenroofgiveaway.com/nominees/nominee-detail/?nominee_id=32 and vote for their ministry to win a new roof (up to a $30,000 value) for their building. You can vote everyday until the contest is over and I hope you will do that! It is easy and free…so why are you still reading this? Go! You can find out more about their ministry and watch a video while you are there voting….Go, Go, Go!

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Ten Turkey Thursday

one27-turkey-project

Update: We raised all of the money to feed 30 families this Thanksgiving! Thank you all for your support and compassion for the people of Grovetown!

If you can read this, you can help! New Passion is working with United We Care for our annual ONE:27 Turkey Project to provide 30 complete Thanksgiving meals for families who are in desperate financial need in the city of Grovetown. The bottom line is this, without our help, these families will not enjoy a Thanksgiving meal this year. For $20, you provide an entire family a whole turkey and all of the fixin’s. So far, New Passion has raised enough support for 20 25 of the 30 meals, and we are only providing a portion of the need. So far United We Care has approved 44 families for assistance. Can we just knock this out today?!

Ten Turkey Thursday. Will you donate a tax-deductible $20 to provide a meal for a family in need? (If you can’t give $20, give what you can, it will all go towards the meals) Will you also help spread the word through your family and friends and through your social media networks? Please don’t just post the link…ask your friends to get involved and give!

Can we wrap up these final 10 5 meals? I don’t know, you tell me by giving below…. 🙂

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