Background: Atlanta is the capital and most populous city in the State of Georgia, Atlanta is considered to be a top business city and is a primary transportation hub of the Southeastern United States – via highway, railroad, and air. Atlanta has the country’s fourth-largest concentration of Fortune 500 companies and more than 75 percent of Fortune 1000 companies have business operations in the metropolitan area.

Atlanta is the county seat of Fulton County and the location of the seat of government of the State of Georgia. A small portion of the City of Atlanta corporate limits extends eastwards into DeKalb County. Residents of Atlanta and its surroundings are known as “Atlantans”.

Climate: Atlanta has a humid subtropical climate, with hot, humid summers and mild, but occasionally cold winters by the standards of the southern United States.

Population:

Male: 45.6%
Female: 50.9%

Age Structure:

Under 5 years: 6.8%
18 years and over: 74.3%
65 years and over: 12.4%

Religions: Protestant Christian faiths are well represented in Atlanta, the city historically being a major center for traditional Southern denominations such as the Southern Baptist Convention, the United Methodist Church, and the Presbyterian Church

About 10 percent of all metropolitan Atlanta residents are Catholic.

Languages: English

Challenges for Prayer: The Pilgrim Fathers were determined to establish a land in which they were free to exercise their Christian faith. On that foundation has developed one of the largest and most dynamic Christian movements in history. In the USA are 19% of the Protestants in the world, 21.5% of the Evangelicals and 35% of all the world’s foreign missionaries. Evangelistic vitality, generosity and vision have been major factors in the surge of gospel progress. Pray that this may be maintained.

Young people present one of the major areas of spiritual battle today. The bitter fruits of humanistic philosophies are now being harvested in disorientation, spiritual vulnerability, moral decay, rejection of authority, widespread drug abuse and mindless violence. God raised up such organizations as OM, YWAM, CCCI, Teen Challenge and others to combat this confusion and make a mighty impact on the world. Now God is also raising up a new generation of movements for this century – pray for such as Youth Quake and Teen Mania. Pray for the youth. The next generation could be America’s most traumatized ever if there is not a decisive work of God’s Spirit.

The variety and effort expended to evangelize the majority of US residents who do not regularly go to church means that few are unreached, but there are some groups which need input from missions agencies.

a) The 5.4 million Jews are an influential but declining minority, even with the recent immigration of 70,000 fSU Jews. It is the largest concentration of Jews in the world. New York is estimated to be 10% Jewish. A growing receptivity and response to the gospel has been evident since 1970, and more Jews are being won to Christ in the USA than anywhere else since New Testament times. There are estimated to be between 30,000 and 100,000 Messianic Jews. Of these, about 15-20,000 have retained their cultural distinctives and meet in Messianic congregations. An estimated 600-1,100 come to Christ each year. There are more than 48 agencies and 325 full-time workers committed to Jewish evangelism – one of the most dynamic and innovative is Jews for Jesus. Pray for the maturation of the work after the euphoria of the 1970s.

b) The sects pose a challenge. Most of the more aggressively missionary sects such as Christian Science, Mormonism, Jehovah’s Witnesses and Scientology originated in the USA. There are reckoned to be 2,500 such sects and exotic cults. Specific efforts to reach such people must be made. Some successes have been seen among both Mormons and Jehovah’s Witnesses.

c) International students number over 600,000 and come from over 180 countries; 56% from Asia (China 50,000; Taiwan 37,000; South Asia 44,000); 30% are Muslim. Many come from lands unreceptive to missions and with few Christians. Over 37 agencies and many local congregations are involved in ministry to them, with remarkable response. The Association of Christian Ministries to Internationals is an umbrella body linking ministries such as ISI (with 163 staff), IVCF(IFES), CCCI, Navigators and others. Pray for conversions and a discipling ministry that will enable these students to be effective witnesses when they return home.

Bennett holds a Bachelor’s degree in Engineering Science from the Calabar Institute of Technology, Nigeria and currently pursuing a Master of Arts degree in Missions from Liberty University Theological Seminary in Lynchburg, VA.

Bennett is also a certified Microsoft Systems Engineer (MCSE) and Oracle Database Administrator (OCP). Bennett began a rewarding career in Engineering and then transitioned to the Information Technology field. He has served in different leadership capacities such as Project Engineer with Communications International, Inc., Norcross – Georgia where he designed the communications facilities for Kuwaiti oil firm (ref: front page of the Atlanta Journal and Constitution of Wednesday, February 26, 1992); Engineering Manager with Cable Concrete Structures, Stone Mountain – Georgia; and Network Administrator with Synavant, Inc., Atlanta – Georgia.

He founded the Family Heritage Foundation in 2002 to help at-risk and underprivileged children and their families in the City of Clarkston in Dekalb County Georgia. He is currently the Executive Director of Family Heritage Foundation. In 2008, Bennett received the Citizen of the Year Award by Chi Gamma Gamma Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc. for his service to the community.

 

Coming Soon!

Schedule:
• 15 July –Depart for Atlanta
• 16 July –Train for mission in Atlanta
• 17-19 July –Minister in Atlanta
• 20 July –Spend the day touring Atlanta
• 21 July –Depart for home and change the world

Required Items
• One sleeping bag and pillow
• One large duffle bag
• Bible, notebook, and pen
• Flashlight and batteries
• Battery operated alarm clock
• Nalgene or Wide mouth water bottle

Clothing
• 5-6 shirts, with no political, secular music/movie messages.
• Tennis shoes and inexpensive Flip Flops for showers
• 3-4 pairs of pants or modest shorts
• 2 Pairs of dark, nice jeans without holes for ministry. You will be wearing these a lot so make sure they are decent (not too tight, low, baggy, etc.) and can get dirty.
• Pajamas, undergarments, and socks enough for your whole trip
• Hat and sunglasses

Toiletries
• Personal Items: shampoo, soap, chap stick, vitamins, toothbrush, etc.
• 1-2 towel(s), wet wipes, and washcloth
• Sunscreen (at least SPF 30)
• Anti-diarrhea medicine (preferably tablets), Kaopectate or pill equivalent
• 2 packages of anti-bacterial hand wipes and antibacterial hand sanitizer
• Band aids, cold medicine, Aspirin/Tylenol
• Bug Spray
• Anti-itch Cream

Food
• 1 plastic jar of Peanut Butter (28oz)
• 1 squeeze bottle of Jelly (22oz)
*Due to airline regulations, your PB & J must be packed in your checked baggage, but make sure it’s easily accessible because it will be collected upon registration.
*All Team Leaders, Country Assistances’ and Nannies are also required to bring 1 jar of peanut butter and one squeeze bottle of jelly.

Optional Miscellaneous Items
• Air mattress
• Spending money (suggested $50 US per week)
• Camera and film
• IPod or MP3 player (absolutely no secular music!)
• Books for travel time (books by secular authors are NOT permitted)
• Raincoat or poncho
• Optional: Powdered drink mix (Gatorade), candy, gum, granola bars, etc.

Additional Items:
If you have any extra bibles or New Testaments at home that you would like to bring to give away, it is highly encouraged.

Theft is always a possibility when you travel. Please don’t bring anything that you can’t afford to lose. We recommend that you label items with your full name. Make sure that all your luggage meets standard flight check in codes (No more than 50 lbs.) and that it can be easily carried by yourself!

There might be times at your housing complex that will require you to pack up all your belongings and place them to the side. Please keep this in mind when you decide how many items you are bringing with you.

Please note that personal cell phones will be collected and held by GE leadership until designated talk times and/or until the end of the trip.

G Trip: Lisa Howard
Lisa Howard graduated from Oral Roberts University with a Bachelors Degree in Elementary Education and an emphasis in Christian schools. She is currently furthering her education in ministry. Lisa loves the Lord and has been serving him for many years now. Through ministry in small groups, mentorship, being a youth pastor, and a Sunday school teacher she is able to share that love with those around her and God is using her to impact many people. She has been married to Mark Howard for 30 years and they have three children. In many ways Lisa has expressed her love for Christ through missions and she has been on 19 mission trips with Global Expeditions. Lisa is a blessing to everyone she meets and we are very glad to have her leading this trip.