Praises to Our Jehovah-jireh; God Is Our Provision

God never fails to amaze me; frankly, I pray that I never become so blasé that I am not amazed and overwhelmed at His grace and goodness. It’s times of panic and uncertainty that He reminds me of His provision. Just recently, I was about to release an “all points bulletin” to everyone concerning our layette ministry. During the latter part of 2010 and in early 2011, we were depleting our layette supplies. We were running out of many basics! In the process of making an assessment of the specific needs, I received a phone call from one of our supporting churches; the women in the church had hosted a baby shower the previous Sunday after church, and the gifts were bountiful! They did not know of our dire need – I had not yet communicated it to anyone, but God did. Now the shelves are well-stocked, and new moms and their babies will be blessed by these gifts.
“Tiara”, one of the most recent new moms, invited me to her home recently to visit. Armed with a beautiful layette, I arrived to meet her, her precious two week old infant, her foster mom and foster sister who she considered her only close family. We had a lovely visit, took pictures, talked about the future and about her plans; it was encouraging to hear of her desire to make a better life and provide a better example for her children, and especially that she was planning to reconnect with the church and strengthen her relationship with Christ. When she and I were alone, we were praying together, and as we completed our prayer, she began weeping. Through her tears, she asked if I could give her some advice.
In the month previous to the birth of her child, she had not been able to work very many hours because of complications with the pregnancy, and now her power bill payments had fallen behind. With a two week old baby and in the midst of brutally cold weather, she was in danger of losing electrical service. Her family had just paid some on the bill for her, but it was not enough to keep the service on. I felt so helpless; we had already depleted the utility assistance funds through the center for that month.
So we called the power company, and I talked with the customer service representative. We learned that the payment made by the family member had not gone through and what would be further necessary to maintain service. Then we prayed again like never before, claiming God’s promise that He already knows the needs and He has an answer. I left Tiara with hope but no concrete answer as to how this was to be reconciled.
The next day, an unexpected benevolence resource surfaced, so with Tiara’s plight still on my heart, I called the power company again to see if we could settle enough to maintain service. To my delight, the family’s payment had not only finally gone through, but it was a much larger amount than we had previously thought; no longer was there a danger of discontinuing electrical service for Tiara and her baby. Praise the Lord! Later that day, we discovered a phenomenal buy on corn flour needed for our Mixtecan families to make tortillas, and the new resource was put to great use. God already new exactly how that would happen!
Over the course of just a few weeks, layette needs, financial needs, food needs specific to other cultures and diets, and spiritual needs – all are being met in God’s timing and in His ways. I ask especially for your prayers for all of our volunteer missionaries at the center. Many are stepping out of their comfort zones to invest themselves in the lives of those they meet at the center. Invitations to church, offering transportation, witnessing and answering questions, and praying with people are all ways that they show Christ’s love to these new friends. Watching God reveal Himself through their words and actions touches my heart and humbles me to follow such examples, too! Many of our missionary volunteers are older and wiser and have followed Christ’s leading for their entire lives; I am humbled to work alongside such godly examples. “Remember those who led you, who spoke the word of God to you; and considering the result of their conduct, imitate their faith” (Hebrews 13:7). Thank you, friends, for your partnership in Kingdom work.

2010 Ends With Praises for What God Has Done!

In the process of preparation for this blog post, I found and reviewed the goals set in January 2010 for Forest Park Ministry Center. The following goals were met and accomplished. To God be the glory! These include:
• Enrichment for Volunteer Missionaries:
• Sharing Christ – encountering people at various stages in their spiritual walk.
• Working with guests with mental illness – rep from NAMI to speak at an in-service. This was realized this December – a true blessing to all who attended!
• More volunteer missionaries for specific areas:
• Substitutes for when others are out
• Younger ones to step in when necessary
 Begin to mentor / coach using KALEO tool
• Readers for schools
• Southlawn Commons - cooking classes during the summer.
• Funds raised for the renovation, and then the completion of it.
• Finish work in the food pantry
• Carport enclosure
 Set up classroom setting for classes and support groups; room is complete and in use!
• Summer Stories from the Porch
• ESL Classes for Mixtecan parents (concurrently with SSFTP)
• Backyard Bible Clubs
• Both ESL and Backyard Bible Clubs were conducted with the help of supporting churches and with the assistance of team members from Reye de Reyes Baptist Church.
It is nothing short of God’s intervention and grace that, in these tough economic times, His people have seen fit to contribute toward these ministries and enable us to achieve so many of our goals. As we look forward to 2011 and establishing more Kingdom goals, please pray with us to be not only open to whatever God desires, but to be resourceful and creative with the gifts that He provides for missions and ministry. Thank you for your participation in the ministry!

Recently, “Angela” walked in with a somber expression and head hanging low. She was in need of food assistance, but something much heavier weighed on her heart. Just ten days prior, her youngest daughter, once a vibrant 28 year old, had succumbed to a severe illness that took her life, and the family had no financial means to memorialize her or bury her. Prayer, kind words, and a promise to at least ask if anyone could help, lifted her spirits somewhat, and when a few days later, friends and family and two FPMC donors contributed enough for a modest funeral, this family was able to bury their loved one. Thanks to the kindness of God’s people, one monumental burden was relieved from this family.

Time and time again, we see God’s hand move in such incredible ways. In December, the 2nd Annual Ministry Centers Toy Sale hosted nearly 200 parents who were able to select and “purchase” toys for 1,000 children who would not have had gifts from their parents otherwise. What a God-thing!

2010 Statistics That You May Want To Know:
>1,374 guest visits to Forest Park Ministry Center, representing 3,198 family members;
>9 professions of faith and one rededication of his life to Christ;
>MANY new moms reached in home visits through the layette ministry;
>Character reading to K, 1st, 2nd, & 3rd graders in two MPS schools;
>32,042 pounds of food distributed to families in need;
>75+ families helped with utility assistance;
>1200+ Goodwill gift certificates distributed so that guests may shop for needed clothing;
>70 full turkey dinners distributed to families during the holidays.

Seed Planting Requires Patience!

“It is a trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, among whom I am foremost of all. Yet for this reason I found mercy, so that in me as the foremost, Jesus Christ might demonstrate His perfect patience as an example for those who would believe in Him for eternal life” 1Timothy 1:15-16.

Remember last month when I shared with you about a young man who wanted nothing to do with “the Jesus thing”? Heartbreaking – and this month, we experienced it again – only this time, one of our volunteers received this response from a young mother that she was witnessing to. Times like these, and other times when we cannot understand people and their motives (or their hurts!) should draw us closer to the Lord to seek His wisdom and guidance. That’s what we’re doing at FPMC, and that’s what we ask you to do as you pray for the Kingdom work through the center. Last night, Dr. Kevin Ezell, newly appointed President of the North American Mission Board, spoke at the MBA Annual Celebration, and this statement spoke volumes to me: “Helping hurting people will hurt.” When upon reaching out to someone in Christ’s name, if you receive barbs instead of warm fuzzies, it isn’t a personal jab at you – it is an outward expression of someone’s hurt. A powerful reminder of scriptural truth – “pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous” Matthew 5:44b-45. We simply do not know God’s timing, and we may just be planting a seed that He will provide water and light for. So have faith, and don’t give up!

Our new classroom is almost complete – painting going on as I write this today. And thanks to generous donors, we have both vinyl tile for the entry area and beautiful high traffic carpet for the remainder of the room. Even the bulletin boards and the white board are being furnished. God is good! NOW, DOES ANYONE FEEL A CALLING TO HELP INSTALL FLOOR COVERING? (about 100 SF of vinyl tile, and a 12x 20 piece of carpet!) Once complete, we will immediately begin to use the room for classroom space on some days, receiving and sorting donations on other days, and use it also for volunteer training space.

In the month of October, we received 121 guests of the center, helping a total of 266 family members, and one accepted Christ. HALLELUJAH! Again, we distributed over 1 ½ tons of food and over $600.00 in gift certificates to shop for clothing at the local Goodwill Retail Stores. In November, we anticipate those numbers rising, and we also anticipate the distribution of several dozen Thanksgiving meals and turkeys in addition to the regular food assistance. If you, your church, or your Bible study class would like to assist with this, please contact Donna at 269-5726 or at forestparkministry@yahoo.com.

Finally, don’t forget to place Saturday, December 11 on your calendar, and to pray for the families who will be invited to come and shop. It is our 2nd Annual Ministry Center Toy Sale, to be held at Heritage Baptist Church. Already, preparations are in full swing, and we are receiving donations of new toys. This is a tremendous blessing to all who are involved – be blessed by participating this year!

As we approach the time of year for our traditional Thanksgiving celebrations, I am reminded once again, “I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, always offering prayer with joy in my every prayer for you all, in view of your participation in the gospel from the first day until now.” Thank you for your prayers and support as we all desire to be the hands and feet of Christ and His salt and light to a dark world.