Crisis Response in Haiti

In the aftermath of the devastating 7.2 magnitude earthquake that struck western Haiti on Saturday, August 14, more than 1,200 lives have been lost and over 13,000 homes have been destroyed. For many, this feels similar to the 2010 earthquake that left the country in a constant state of recovery for 11 years.

Thankfully, our team in Port-au-Prince was spared. Within 24 hours, David, our OTB Haiti kitchen director, along with OTB staff and volunteers worked with World Central Kitchen (WCK) to prepare and distribute hot meals to the affected areas. Last Monday and Tuesday, the team was able to provide more than 5000 hot meals for children, families and relief workers. 

Still, it hasn’t been easy. Our kitchen is located over 100 miles away. The trek from Port-au-Prince to Les Cayes takes 4-5 hours now due to traffic jams, mudslides and torrential rain from Tropical Storm Grace. Transportation has been arranged by motorcycle and helicopter, but it’s a short-term solution at best.

A long-term solution is needed.

Our team is now working with strategic partners, including WCK, to develop a field kitchen in Les Cayes, where they can prepare and provide up to 2500 hot meals a day for the relief effort. WCK will provide equipment and personnel for the effort, while our local team will take the lead in mass production of food and providing ingredients. 

The challenge (and cost!) is finding and transporting ingredients to the kitchen, and providing safe transportation and accommodations for our team.

Food being prepared to be sent to those in need.

We now have an opportunity to come alongside these on-the-ground efforts in real-time to provide for the immediate needs of children and families, while also showing the love of Jesus through action. 

To help establish the field kitchen in Les Cayes and support our team, we’ve received a special funding request for $10,000 from our partners. These are short-term funds, which will lead to the preparation and distribution of about 7000-8000 meals (about 4-5 days of food relief).

If you feel God is calling you to support this effort, we ask you to prayerfully respond. You can give using the secure donate button below to help provide relief to children, families and relief workers in the midst of crisis.

Check back on this page as we will continue to provide updates on the Haiti crisis and our team efforts as much as possible. Also, follow us on Instagram and Facebook for updates.

Thank you for your continued prayers and support.

Vita Kids Porridge in Tanzania

Meal Sponsorship to Spark Long-Term Partnership With Bishop Williams Yindi and Unreached Peoples Missions in the Tanzania Bush

In 1991, after a literal mountaintop experience with God, Williams Yindi in Tanzania gave up his comfortable role as a school science teacher to pursue a new calling: ministry in the bush of Tanzania. 

For 30 years, through Unreached Peoples Missions Tanzania (an organization Williams founded with an affiliation to Advancing Native Missions in the USA), Williams has raised up 500 pastors, planted 270 churches throughout the bush, established an orphanage, school and medical center in Itigi, and currently cares for about 250 children. 

Additionally, North Coast Church has partnered with Unreached Peoples Missions Tanzania and a local water well nonprofit organization to build 48 clean water wells, ultimately leading to communities changed for generations to come.

We’re seeing in real time how clean water and healthy children are foundational to the ministry work of Bishop Williams and his team, leading to generations of men, women and children committing their lives to Jesus Christ.

Now, Outside the Bowl has the opportunity to come alongside this vibrant ministry effort to provide healthy, nutritious food resources to amplify the calling of Williams and his team.

Food, Water and the Living Water of Jesus Christ

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, Outside the Bowl and Bishop Williams began discussions about a partnership and providing food resources for the children of Tanzania. 

We arranged for Bishop Williams to see our operations in South Africa. He was thrilled, but the pandemic brought everything to a halt.

Thankfully, with the faithful and generous support of members from North Coast Church and the OTB community, we’re able to rekindle the conversation and bring new food resource options to Williams. 

With thanks and praise to God and His people, we have received the necessary funds to provide Williams and Unreached Peoples Mission Tanzania with a shipping container stocked with 250,000 portions of Vita Kids porridge. 

Just two years ago, shipping the insta-mix porridge anywhere outside South Africa wasn’t an option. That’s changed and OTB Africa is ready to produce and ship to partners anywhere in the world.

While Vita Kids Porridge won’t completely replace the less healthy meals currently being offered by Unreached Peoples Missions in Itigi and the surrounding areas, this once-a-day portion will offer kids about 70 percent of their daily nutritional needs.

This crucial food resource and shipment is a first step in what we believe will be a long-term partnership to provide nutritious and sustainable food resources for kids in Tanzania.

From Meal Sponsorship to Long-Term Partnership

Vita Kids Porridge has revolutionized what Outside the Bowl can offer ministry partners throughout the world. Our partner operation in South Africa now has the facility and know-how to deliver products anywhere in the world on a grand scale. 

We are effectively equipped to combat the growing hunger pandemic that’s been fueled by COVID-19. This recent article from the World Bank gives some indication of the growing concerns our ministry partners are facing. 

This container shipment from South Africa to Tanzania should arrive within the next two months and will provide about one year’s worth of Vita Kids Porridge for the children in Itigi. Additionally, Williams will use the product to share with other potential partners in the immediate area, allowing for new ministry partnership opportunities to be pursued.

Our plan is to coach Bishop Williams and his team, help him steward the food resources to make the most impact for his ministry work, and continue the discussion for a long-term food solution in Tanzania.

For Outside the Bowl, this opportunity is a great representation of what God has called us to do; to come alongside and amplify God’s Kingdom work by providing healthy and nutritious food for children.

Please join us in praying for Bishop Williams and Unreached Peoples Missions Tanzania, for all matters in the production, transportation and stewardship of these resources, and that God would bless this partnership so that more children will come to know Him Jesus Christ personally as their Lord and Savior. 

We praise God for this opportunity to provide healthy, nutritious food resources to amplify the ministry efforts of Williams and Unreached Peoples Mission Tanzania. Thank you for coming alongside this ministry work with your faithful prayers and generous support.

Starving to Serve 2021: Junior High Ministry Fuels International Fight Against Hunger and Malnutrition

On April 16, 2021, following 27 hours without eating anything substantial, about 300 junior high students descended on the North Coast Church campus for an all-night, all-out-fun event called Starving to Serve. 

This annual event has been a major fundraiser for Outside the Bowl for over 10 years. Starving to Serve continues to be one of the best ways students can experience what it’s like to go without food and raise money for kids all around the world experiencing hunger on a daily basis.

This year, following a forced virtual event in 2020, students from all the major North Coast Church junior high ministries raised nearly $65,000. Proceeds from the event supported Outside the Bowl as well as the church-wide Serve Your City campaign to be the hands and feet of Jesus Christ in North County San Diego.

For me, this was the first year I got to experience the event firsthand; I even fasted the entire 27 hours. I’ll be the first to admit that I was hurting most of the day; I didn’t quite have the energy of all those students.

Despite hunger pains, I was pumped up the entire time. These kids worshipped God like I hadn’t seen all year. They knew, without a doubt in their minds, that the brief hunger they experienced wasn’t even close to what kids face in too many countries. And they were so excited that the funds raised were going directly to fight international hunger and malnutrition.  

God used these students and I got to see how this event gave them the opportunity to live out their faith in the Lord.

Starving to Serve to Generate New Church Partnerships

Starving to Serve has become a very special event. Junior High students rally together for a fun, experiential night to fight hunger and malnutrition. Youth Pastors see their students get out of their comfort zones to really be the hands and feet of Jesus. 

Senior church leaders split profits from the event between Outside the Bowl and a local ministry of their choice. Outside the Bowl gains funds and connections to fuel our efforts to amplify ministry work happening throughout God’s Kingdom. 

Starving to Serve is a win-win-win-win. So we want to take Starving to Serve to new churches so they can scale for their own use.

North Coast Church youth pastors have come alongside our team to put together an essential resource kit that other youth leaders can use to scale and run the event. In fact, they believe in this event so much, they’re offering ongoing coaching to other youth leaders.

We could use your help.

We’re looking for Southern CA church contacts, both senior and youth leadership levels, to present Starving to Serve in Summer and Fall 2021. Additionally, we would love the chance to promote in youth ministry networks and conferences.

If we had our choice, every church would have a youth event like this. Starving to Serve is a win for the church, youth leaders, the students, local ministry, and Outside the Bowl.

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