The Courageous Leadership Award | AIDS
World Vision honors churches strategically impacting the AIDS pandemic
About The 2007 Award
The Courageous Leadership Award for 2007 will be in the category of AIDS work. As explained by Bill Hybels, founding pastor of Willow Creek Community Church and Chairman of the Board for Willow Creek Association, “Because of living at this time in human history, God will ask us about how our church responded to the greatest humanitarian crisis of our day: the AIDS pandemic.”
The Willow Creek Association and World Vision have partnered to create the Courageous Leadership Award in AIDS to honor churches that are strategically engaging the AIDS pandemic.
The
award in 2007 will be given to three churches, domestic or
international, that demonstrate outstanding involvement and
effectiveness in the fight against AIDS. Sponsored by World
Vision, a total of $100,000 will be awarded, with $60,000 going
to the winning church and $20,000 going to each of the two
runners up. Dividing the $100,000 between three
churches will allow more churches to be recognized for their
work on this important issue. The award will be presented at
the 2007 Leadership Summit by the Willow Creek Association
and World Vision. Click
here to find out more about this event.
The extent of the AIDS pandemic defies description. No church can solve this crisis alone, but every church can do something. To read more about the catastrophic effects of this pandemic, click here.
Meeting the Monumental Need
How is your church involved in alleviating the human suffering related to the AIDS crisis? It’s our belief that every church must join those who are already doing this difficult and challenging work. AIDS has been called “the leprosy of our day” and it demands an active response from those who are called to be followers of Jesus Christ. If we truly wish to represent Christ in the world today, we must seek out those who are poor and sick and forgotten, offering both eternal hope and practical help.
So how do you strategically and intentionally involve your church in this time of monumental need? Great leaders use the resources at their disposal. The AIDS pandemic is the greatest need our world faces at this moment in history. How could your church do a better job of connecting the needs of the poor and diseased in the hardest-hit, most under-resourced areas of the world, with the resources you have right in front of you? What could you do?
Answering these questions for your specific church may begin by educating and inspiring your congregation. Many churches have not yet gotten involved simply because they don’t know enough about the AIDS pandemic to choose a place to begin. Click here to view resources and possible next steps for your congregation.
Don’t wait. Every day, every moment is an opportunity to do something significant to make a difference in the life of real people—loved by God—who are suffering because of AIDS. If your church is already actively addressing the AIDS crisis, click here to apply for the Courageous Leadership Award in AIDS.
