God's Timing - always On Time!

"Make me know Your ways, O Lord; teach me Your paths. Lead me in Your truth and teach me, for You are the God of my salvation. For You I wait all the day."

His ways are so worth waiting for. We've seen evidence of this truth in recent days. But waiting - that is a real challenge for me. Just yesterday, as the classes for Conversational English were to begin, and the Summer Stories from the Porch began, we were challenged with the need for perseverance and patience. Please pray for the women who are in fear of stepping out in faith to learn how to negotiate life challenges in the U.S. Language barriers are so overwhelming, and cultural norms that keep women from pursuing education are so strong. We are learning - and I have so much yet to learn - to allow God to use our hearts, hands,and voices, to demonstrate His hope and lovingkindness to a people group whose ways we just do not yet totally understand.

To help understand, and to assist us and other ministries reaching the
Mixtecans, Oscar Gonzales and a team of 8 will be traveling to Montgomery, Alabama, from Cuarenevaca, Moreles, Mexico, in July, for outreach evangelism specifically to help build bridges with the parents of the Mixtec children that are so active in ministries in several of our churches! (Two of the girls who attended Summer Stories from the Porch yesterday are going to GA camp at WorldSong this summer, thanks to the generosity of the church that they are attending - what a praise!)

The Mexico Mission Team coming in July has been provided a home in which to stay, thanks to Ridgecrest Baptist Church. What we wish to do is to provide them with the ability to shop for food and necessities and also to dine out as their schedule allows. They will be working with at least five different churches and ministries that are making inroads to ministry to the Mixtec people group, so trying to schedule meals at a central location would not only be difficult for the providers, but also hard for the team who will be traveling neighborhood to neighborhood.

Therefore, Connie Pouncey has agreed to be the "point person" to receive donations of gift cards or cash in order to provide for these needs during their stay. Gift cards to WalMart, Winn-Dixie, or Target, or restaurant gift cards would be most helpful in making their stay enjoyable and their work here productive, alleviating the financial stress and the time stress of when to eat where and how to pay for it! You may call Connie at (334)301-1475 if you have questions, and you may send your gifts to her at 9339 Preston Place, Montgomery, Alabama 36117. You may also drop them by Forest Park Ministry Center on Mondays or Wednesdays or mail them to the center at 2026 East Fourth Street, Montgomery, Alabama 36106. Thanks for your assistance in furthering His kingdom work!

Construction is about to begin at the center! Later today, we will be meeting with a contractor who is offering to do the demolition of the existing carport, and in July, the MissionServe team will be here to frame in the new multipurpose receiving/ storage/classroom! Thanks to all who have generously given for this project; we still are in need of funds to complete the interior - please prayerfully consider how you might be able to assist!

A praise about how Christ's hope has changed lives! We have new believers among the May visitors to the center, and a recent guest who has been so moved that he is now volunteering and such a huge help! Cooking classes at Southlawn Commons apartment complex are underway for the children who live there, and volunteers report eleven excited children who came, participated, and went home the first day armed with information, motivation, and encouragement to make healthy food choices. Pray for Ashley and her volunteers who are giving their Wednesdays this summer to help these precious children.

Finally, continue to pray for the guests who come to the center for food, for clothing assistance, and for financial assistance, and for the volunteer missionaries who offer not just the physical sustenance, but hope in Christ to each person that crosses the threshold of the center.

God's blessings to each of you.

Showers of God's Grace

"The Lord sustains all who fall and raises up all who are bowed down. The eyes of all look to You, and You give them their food in due time. You open Your hand and satisfy the desire of every living thing. The Lord is near to all who call upon Him."
Psalm 145:14-16, 18.

I wish all of you could have been there. The moment was so sweet; we stood together, holding hands, and I prayed for the new mom and her baby, for her example to be godly, and for a hedge of protection around her family. As I said "Amen" the tiny voice of her four-year-old son continued, "Thank you Jesus, for my new little sister, and for my mom. AMEN." Out of the mouths of babes....may he grow to be a man after God's own heart.
There are so many opportunities to see God's hand work in the lives of guests and volunteer missionaries alike at Forest Park Ministry Center. The work is not easy; stories that we hear are heartwrenching. But through it all, God's hand covers all, meets the need, and provides His Hope for hurting and lost people.

This month, the numbers of families seeking assistance rose dramatically. It is a sobering reminder that "the poor are always with us." The work will never cease, until Christ returns! So here are some current stats, and then following, read about the ways that new ministry will be accomplished this summer!

Number of families assisted in April: 139 - 32% were new guests of the center.
This represented 335 family members helped.

There were THREE professions of faith - Praise the Lord! - Please pray for them as they begin their new life in Christ, to follow through with public profession and plugging into a church for discipleship and spiritual growth.

3,536 pounds of food distributed to the families.

Please pray for "Danielle" who so sincerely shared with me (during a home visit to see her and her newborn baby) about her desire for her child to attend finish school. She only finished 9th grade, and truly regrets it. But she is working, and is trying to juggle motherhood, work, and GED classes. Pray for her to look to the Only Source, Jesus Christ, as Her Lord and guide in life.

"Danielle's" story is all too familiar. Choices made early that you regret, but you live with the consequences, sometimes for the rest of your life. Pray for cycle of generational poverty to stop with this generation.

This summer, there are at least four new ministry opportunities:
1. Ashley Loomis, a busy home-school Mom from Heritage, has a heart for teaching children healthy and safe ways to prepare food. Many children in the Southlawn Commons and Sherwood Apartment complexes have to prepare their own dinner, because Mom is out of the home in the evening, often working late shifts. Ashley is teaching cooking classes on Wednesdays for kids at the Molina Center (located inside Southlawn Commons), beginning in June. Pray for her and her volunteers as they reach children in this creative way. If you feel led to help with this ministry, email or call and let us know, so we can plug you in!

2. Ann Bush, Mom and career woman, and passionate about teaching Conversational English to Mixtec Moms in the Forest Park neighborhood, will begin classes for these Moms in June at the center on Thursdays. Please pray for Ann and her assistant Evelyn in this incredible opportunity to reach those marginalized in our society because of language barriers.

3. Stories from the Porch is a weekly story hour with related activites for Forest Park neighborhood children. Each Thursday afternoon this summer, children will gather in the front yard of Forest Park Ministry Center to hear a story that shares the truth of Christ's love, and to have activities that reinforce His truth. Pray for the youth from Eastern Hills and Heritage and other churches who will participate in reaching these children each week.

4. In July, MissionServe will send a construction team to the ministry center to construct the multipurpose room (the enclosure of the carport area). We are so excited about having this addition to our facility in the future for classes and groups at the center, as well as for receiving donations during service days.

Speaking of MissionServe, PLEASE consider participating in the MissionServe Banquet in November. You will be treated to a wonderful meal, testimonies and information about MissionServe, and you will be supporting a ministry that is already reaching out to this ministry!!!!! More details to follow.....

Have a blessed May. Mother's Day is this weekend, and I'm reminded of what a blessing it is to have a godly mom who has been an example of being God's vessel. Thanks, Mom, and thank you, God, for my mom. Blessings to all of you.

Generation to Generation

What a wonder to see my son holding his newborn son! It stirs an emotion in me that reminds me of God's goodness and the miracle of His creation. A new grandchild, two weeks old yesterday, and he is just adorable! He is a reminder of how God has such a perfect design for His grace and goodness to extend from generation to generation.

God's grace and goodness from generation to generation - a passionate desire of those who minister through Forest Park to see in the lives of guests of the center and their families. Please allow me to share some hopeful stories with you.

"Amy" is a young student at a local school where our volunteers tutor. Her family has recently experienced a tragedy in the near death of her father. Thankfully, he will recover; but for weeks, we could not put our finger on what was causing such a gloomy disposition in this ordinarily happy and jubilant child. Prayer for her and her family prior to entering the school and showing her specific concern about what she needed to concentrate on and learn - in other words, just knowing someone cares about her - is showing results. Today, she smiled and even asked to work on a new area that needs improvement!

C. is just one of many mothers who are desperately praying for their children to resist the temptation of the streets. Even for Christian families, the pressures that are present in the everyday lives of children and adults alike are intense, and for children in poverty, the presence of criminal activity in stressed neighborhoods is a constant concern for their parents. Pray for parents like C who are striving to show their children Christ's way, and to break the cycle of unhealthy and sinful choices.

Here's more hope: a local group of concerned Christians is cooperatively working on a community garden in Montgomery - on the corner of Holt and Emerson Streets. This will be a valuable tool to both demonstrate and encourage growing and eating healthy foods, and also to foster cooperation among people in a constructive project. And when they ask, "Why would you do this for us?", the answer is, "Because Christ's love compels us to."

And COMPLETE - an awesome experience that I was so blessed to be a part of, showed me that there are young women in the youth generation that have a passion for Christ and sharing His love with others. Thank you, girls, for allowing me to be blessed by you during COMPLETE.

This summer, Forest Park Ministry Center will be abuzz with activity in addition to the twice weekly food and clothing assistance. Each week, "Summer Stories from the Porch" will feature a great story told and fun related activities for the children in the neighborhood. Also each week, Mixtec Moms who want to learn Conversational English will have classes being taught by church members who have been trained specifically for that purpose. In addition, a Mission Serve team is coming to the center in July to construct the addition to the center so direly needed! God is so good, and we are relying on Him to provide the materials needed - we have enough for phase I, and are looking now to raise funds for the interior phase.

A summary of the work in March 2010: 109 guests of the center, representing 252 family members, but only 17% new guests. One guest had a very dire need, and thanks to two of our MBA churches, her family was able to have a funeral for their infant that passed away unexpectedly. Nearly 1.5 tons of food was distributed, and even more importantly, prayers were lifted on behalf of those who visited. It was a great time in the Lord, and April is looking great, too! Keep praying for these families, and for Christ's hope of Abundant Life to be realized in the hearts and minds of families everywhere.

Finally, please put on your calendars a fundraiser for MissionServe. The date is November 9, and you will receive a wonderful dinner, information and testimony about this incredible organization. MissionServe is the group coming to Forest Park Ministry Center to construct the addition to the center, along with members of MBA churches. The event on November 9 will be at Mt. Hebron West Baptist Church in Elmore County. Hope to see you there!