Monday's Ministry Moments

This weekend was amazing, we listening to a missionary from Romanian share about the work they are doing, held a Nehemiah Project with Chi Alpha of UCA to decorate the inside of the Hope Community Center, held the World Banquet and a Community Lunch.  That was a whole lot to type.  :)

On Friday we got the room set up for the World Banquet.  During the set up for the World Banquet I personally learned how important it is to work together.  There was a song released years ago called "I need you to survive" by Hezekiah Walker this truth was made real in my heart as my sister in Christ.   Daspri took a huge load off my shoulders by carrying a huge load for this event.  She took the day off work to help me.  While I do know that her service to me was really her service to the Lord but we see Christ through one another.  I saw Christ in her this weekend.  I want to say thank you to her for all the hard work.  I would also fall short if I did not thank all the hands and feet that were there on Friday for set up and Saturday for breakdown.  The many staff, volunteers, friends, and family that just offered a helping hand in whatever means necessary.  THANK YOU!

Later that night we listened to a Romanian Missionary share his story and what they are doing there.  It was crazy as Phil and I sat and listened to him.  It was as if I were listening to Phil or myself speak about the City of Hope Outreach.  That time with him confirmed our mission here in Conway. The spirit of the Lord is with us and is doing this type of work in the earth.  We are apart of Kingdom expansion and I am so very grateful!

Saturday came very quickly after the late night on Friday.  Men and women woke up and hit the ground running to serve the community.  We painted the inside of the Hope Community Center (HCC).  We also painted the trim on the outside, put pictures up and on the wall, and organized the office.  It now looks amazing.  Since the upgrade we are better able to serve the community.  This will just help us to function a lot smoother.  A huge thank you goes to Chi Alpha for the work they put in on this project.  Also, Cory Nelson the Nehemiah Project coordinator for CoHO. 

Later that afternoon was the massive labor to bring awareness about the poor in our city and our world.  The World Banquet was a success from my viewpoint.  I believe men and women to include those working for the event were enlightened.  It was a blessing for both Phil and I to share this event with others.  A huge thank you to everyone who made this evening possible.  Special Thanks to Jennifer Mouser for laboring from 6am - 9pm in service to City of Hope Outreach.  You are an amazing woman!

We wrapped this weekend up with a Community Lunch with the Church at Oakwood.  We enjoyed a wonderful day of fellowship, food and fun.  Thank you to Christ Church Conway for supplying the meal and fellowshiping with us.

Thank you to everyone...

It is my prayer that your labor this weekend will prove to serve the King of Kings.  I pray that each one of you will see in each other the what God sees in you.  It is our goal to educate and mobilize believers towards true religion (caring for the poor, orphaned and widow), helping them to focus on their Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and the ends of the earth.

Monday's Ministry

Her name is "Undesirable".  She has been raped by her father over and over.  She has given birth to one of her father's children and one by another man.  She can't keep her children because DHS has found her unfit as a mother.  All the while giving food stamps and government aide to her mother who is fully aware of what is happening between the father and the daughter.  The mother hates the daughter because she stole her husbands affection.  Now the daughter will sleep with anyone.  She has repeatedly slept with a man who she knows has an STD and is married.  Her siblings keep calling her stupid for being with him.  Her response is "Maybe I want to die and this is how I want to do it."  She has been in and out of juvenile jail.  She wears an ankle bracelet.  She was kicked out of school because of her pregnancy.  The administration at the school thinks of her as a whore.  Some days she wants to cry out and tell her story but if she does her mother will beat her within an inch of her life.  So she remains silence, and angry.  The hatred builds and builds. 

Undesirable is young....very young.  She is 16 years old.  By the worlds standard she is ugly.  She is fat, dirty, unkept in every way and uneducated.  She lives in an undesirable part of town, where drug abuse is ramped.  She is unseen and unheard everyday of her life.  She wonders everyday, "Why am I here? If there is a God would He be merciful and kill me, right here, right now?!"  Her exterior is hard and cold.  She will curse you up one way and down another.  She likes to fight people in the outside world because it is the only way she can relate to people.  It is the only way her mother, father and siblings relate to her.  She doesn't think there is anything good about her at all.  Her life is filled with hatred, bitterness and fear.

This Ministry Monday is about our responsibility to minister to "the undesirable".  The person described above is a picture of the many women with whom God has given me the opportunity to minister to.  Allow me to take a few moments to describe what ministry to this type of woman may look like.

The primary goal is to get this person to see, know Christ and find value in the person God created them to be.  However, the direct approach is not to walk up to this person and say.....Do you know Jesus?  or Here are the 10 commandments, how many of these have you broken?   You don't have to convince this person of their sin.  They are already aware of it.  They need to be convinced of God's love inspite of their sin.  Then you need to help them see the Hope that lies in Christ Jesus.  You will have to answer on some level the question of "Why me?"   This is a great work and will take years and years to address the many concerns.  Truth be told often you are not the person who gets to walk with that person in salvation.  In this raw stage you are actually tilling the grow.  Then you may plant a seed or two.  You may even be blessed enough to water.  It is always God who gives the increase and you may not get to see that happen.  That is were you have to be strong in your faith in Christ.

 Here is what I would say.  Offer the hope of Christ and address the immediate need.  Be consistent in their life, even if that means you get cursed out every time.  Prayer, prayer prayer is key.  We need to show this person the love they have never seen before in this life time.  A love not of this world.  Befriend Undesirable, enter into a relationship with her! 

Here is a challenge question: 
Why don't you engage in relationship with "Undesirable"? 
If you do have a relationship with Undesirable, What are the difficulties you experience? What are the joys?

Here are some ways you can help us to continue to minister and love "Undesirable".
This week begins King's Club during the week. 
Tuesday and Thursday @ 2:00pm-4:00pm in Oakwood
Still Match Funds for the Mobile Home....we still need 89 people to donate $35.00 to match funds for the mobile home.  We are also looking for 98 people to donate $15 to move the mobile home from its current location to the mobile home park.

Ministry Monday! Your Family is your FIRST ministry!

This Ministry Monday is very interesting.  There are a lot of AWESOME events on the horizon. I will share them all with you.  But first I have to talk about my most important ministry.  That is my husband and children.  Some of you may have read my "being his crown" post or even the "wednesday in the word" post last week.  Both of those post at the very heart of them were about my family.  So, I thought I give an update on that.  We are doing well!  My husband is all over it in every way.  For that I am thankful.  My kids are being redirected and I am blessed at what I see in them.  The evidence of grace is all our lives is abundant!  It is my heart that we truly keep a healthy balance between ministry inside and outside the home.  Our lives are a witness of Christ all the time everyday, not just my family but yours too.  It is neccessary that our first disciples (children) not be neglected while making disciples of others.  I think we should all be doing both.  Making disciples of our children and others.  This is just a reminder to me that I must wash my children in the word as we go about each and everyday.  We must seek out teachable moments with our children "by the way, as we go about our day."  The same thing goes for making disciples of others.  As we are in the marketplace (Kroger), the mall, at the library....make disciples.  You don't have to go overseas to make disciples.  You can and should start in your home and then with the neighbor etc. etc.  This is a warning to all (myself included).  Don't neglect your family to reach the neighbor across the seas.  That is actually failure and speaks ill of the gospel.  I am not indicating that your family should be perfect before doing anything outside.  I am however pointing out our need to look deeper into the needs of the disciples that God has automatically given us.  For the husband, you have automatic disciples...wife and children.  For the wife...you have automatic disciples...children and holding the husband accountable.  You are his accountablity partner in all things.  Then from there we make disciples of all men (peoples).  

So, I just wanted to give an update on our purposeful, clear direction within our family as we serve first one another, then the many men and women that God places in our path.  

Okay , so now what is happening with the City of Hope Outreach?

1. Continuing to build relationships in and around this city!

2. June 19, 2010 is the next God, Gospel and Poverty Seminar  this is an awesome way to learn about the needs of the poor in your city and how to be a blessing and not another welfare agency.

3. June 21-25, 2010 we are partnered the United Way to help with there Day of Action.  We will assist with and have created service project around the city of Conway for men and women to volunteer with.  We will have people all over downtown Conway holding signs with stats about poverty in our city.  We are super excited about this.

4. I am heading up a group of ladies to attend the True Woman's Conference in Fort Worth Texas in October.  We still have openings so if you would like to come along with us, contact me.  This is an invitation to all women.

5. Community Lunch This Sunday in Oakwood.  Those are always fun to be apart of.  We will gather for worship as usual at 1:00pm and then break bread during the message for an awesome time of biblical fellowship.  Come and join us if you can.

6. King's Club will be meeting twice per week (tues. and thurs.)  beginning in June until early August.  

7. We have CoHO vehicle stickers for sale.  They are $5 each. They look just like the picture at the top of this blog post.  They are all white and super cool.  

If you are interested in participating in any of these activities and need more detail please leave a comment or email me directly at nfletcher9705@gmail.com 

Thanks

Nicolle

Ministry Monday!

This Ministry Monday is all about ministry with children. You know I have three children. My oldest Nicollus is 11, then Najee’ who is 9 and finally Nichelle at 8. They are truly a handful on every level. I think mostly because as I speak with them, it is like I am talking to myself or my husband. They are truly mini we’s!  Today I shared with a MOPS group, practical ways to incorporate your children in ministry. I will begin by saying children are often left out of most parent’s ministry efforts. Somehow I don’t see that as I view scripture. In Deuteronomy the scripture tell us to teach our children by the way, and as we go. That simply put, as you live out the gospel teach your children what you are doing, why you are doing and then give them responsibility so they will do the same.


How have our children learned to serve in this ministry alongside us? I will be the first to note the contribution my children make every single day is huge! There thoughts are often towards the needs of others in a big way. While we still need to work on not fighting for who gets to hold the cell phone or be the first player on the wii, they are miles ahead when it comes to the true need of people at their core.

We have spent and still do spend a lot of time in family devotions. Phil took the whole family through a Greek class, a study through the book of Acts, Saturday Morning discipleship classes, dinner devotions, breakfast devotions, around the fireplace devotions and discussions. We talk about the scriptures often. We look for ways to apply God’s word to our daily lives. Ministry is not something you do when you arrive at a certain place on Sunday or whatever day of the week. It is a lifestyle! It is the air you breath, because of the God we serve!

Ministry in Oakwood…

In the beginning it was Phillip, me, Nicollus, Najee’ and Nichelle. Every Sunday morning beginning in September 2007 our children would wake up and help load my van with speakers and about 20 folding chairs. Then they would unload all the chairs and help set up and organize the space. Nicollus would help Phil with the sound system. And after we worshipped we would do it all over again! What a task for such little people. Once we arrived in the park the kids would pair up with a parent and knock on doors. Nichelle has always been the boldest one! She would often knock on doors like she was the po po (that was hood for police). They all spoke boldly for Christ. It was awesome to see. They would lead songs and see about peoples needs it was great. They were concerned for the children living in the different conditions we allowed them to be exposed to. Nicollus had a boy in his class who lived in the park. The boy’s glasses were broken. It was all my son could do to make sure that kid had a new pair of glasses. My kids would save their clothes. They would pick out cool toys they had and or no longer used and gave them away... often! We spent a lot of time talking about the types of things you give to people. Our rule is if you would be offended that someone gave that you…don’t give it to someone else! We don’t give away trash to anyone! That really made sense to them and they will get on to people if they bring something to us for donation that is trashy.

Nicollus my oldest has lead groups of people through the park to witness. There was a team of college students who had a heart to serve. We take people in groups. We needed someone to lead a group and my son said, “I’ll take them!” So, Phil agreed to let him take the group around. At the end of the day the group came back and said, “Your son did all the work. He talked to people and guided us through conversations.” I was experienced this with my son also. We were talking to some new residents. The conversation ended with Nicollus taking over and telling the older gentleman about the hope of Christ. Again I was blown away! Yet, very thankful.

We had a Sunday early on, and the weather was off and on with rain and thunderstorm. It would rain and thunder then the sun would break forth. So we had a family meeting to vote on whether or not we would meet in the park. Oh, let me add a few details. We meet outside in a trailer park. Okay so now we are voting, I’ll be honest and say I was feelin’ the whole stay at home thing. But, Nichelle said “We need to go because people need to hear the Gospel!” Really?! Who could argue with that? So we went and the day was beautiful for the entire time we were there. Then as soon as we packed up and were all in the car it burst into rain and thunderstorms. God is amazing!

Najee’ was reluctant. She was always asking when are we going back to normal church (she would make the hand motion of a roof while she spoke) with a roof! I think her biggest concern was all the work she had to put in before and after we gathered to worship. Now she is all over it! Her gifts are acts of service. She wants to bake and babysit for people all the time. She is thoughtful in deed. I’d say she has the wannabe momma ministry! 

I have watched my children grow in ways unimaginable for people their age. They have an awareness of things that I have wondered, is that okay? But in the end that awareness is used for the Glory of Christ and the Joy of People. They are disciples.

Today they love to attend tutoring. Nicollus will be representing CoHO at the Universities in the fall. He is seeking to become a tutor as well. He helps to lead with King’s Club and loves to really get to work on the Nehemiah Projects. Najee’ wants to feed the world. She will see someone and wants to feed them or buy them lunch or bake something. She is usually in charge of helping in food serving. She will make sure everyone is feed. While Nichelle fully enjoys participating with the children. She has the heart that will make kids feel loved and welcomed. She attends tutoring just be around the kids. My kids are open and very real with us as parents. They are quick to let us know if they are feeling neglected due to serving others. They are also quick to say, “It is important that you do this or that.” I really love my children. Phil and I tell them all the time how thankful to God we are for them. They are a blessing in our lives and they bring the balance we need in ministry.

Okay and the very last thing that we LOVE, LOVE, LOVE to do is Ding, Dong Bless! We may purchase groceries, clothes, a cooked dinner, toys or something we know the other person has been longing for and we place it at their door, ring the door bell and run away as fast as they can while I’m in the car ready to drive away. It is the most fun ever! You should try it with your kids sometime. But be sure to plan your escape route first! ;)

I could tell fun stories all day. The bottom line is that your kids need to be as important in your ministry as the people you serve and those adults who serve alongside you. Their thoughts need to be considered and you have to give them some responsibility. Finally live a life of real Christ Centered Gospel before them!

Ministry Monday

The article below was published yesterday Sunday April 11, 2010 in the Arkansas Democrat Gazette.  Please read and enjoy!

RIVER VALLEY and OZARK AREA — The first time Gary Harrison, a white man, saw Phillip Fletcher, a black preacher, in the mobile home park in Conway where Harrison lives, a drunk Harrison screamed and cursed at him to leave.

When Fletcher left Harrison’s mobile home after a visit on a recent afternoon, Harrison hugged him, slapping him affectionately on the back - even gave him a quick kiss on the side of his face.

“You’re my brother, man,” Harrison said. “I love you, but don’t tell nobody.”
Fletcher laughed and walked slowly through the trailer park, wearing a backpack and looking like a college student instead of a 37-year-old who made Oakwood Village mobile home park, at 475 E. Robins St., his mission and started City of Hope Outreach.

“Gary and I - that’s after three years,” Fletcher explained. “You can’t do this type of thing looking for immediate results. I come out with a lot of grace looking for God to do something.”

That something has been more than telling people about the Bible. It’s grown into a mission that helps people with food and utility bills, cleans up the park and tutors the children who live there with the help of community, church and college volunteers.

Fletcher got there by taking a wrong turn.

He was working at the Pulaski County Clerk’s Office in Little Rock and fulfilling his final requirements to be an Army chaplain.  One day after work in 2007, he turned right off Harkrider Street instead of left to go home.  “I had this impression on my heart to make a right onto Robins. ... I said, ‘This is where I’m supposed to preach the Gospel,’” he recalled.  “This is a community, Chateau Ghetto, affectionately, if you will,” Fletcher said.

His wife, Nicolle, was a little skeptical when he told her.  “I was like, ‘No, that’s not what we’re doing. That doesn’t make sense to me.’ I thought he’d lost it,” Nicolle Fletcher recalled.

Fletcher kept his paying job - at first.  Fletcher said that as he started the ministry in the mobile home park, Nicolle’s father was retiring and closing his church and had chairs and a sound system for them.  “We got all the stuff we needed and went out there, and nobody showed up,” Fletcher recalled with a chuckle.  “We just set up the stuff, sang some songs - I play the guitar - opened up the Bible and said the message. So we kept coming every Sunday,” he said.  Fletcher’s wife and their three children, ages 11, 9 and 8, participate in the ministry with him.

“We started knocking on doors, ... and people thought it was a strange thing,” he said, but people began to wander to the grassy spot where Fletcher was holding church; some just slowed down in their vehicles with the windows rolled down to listen.  Now as many as 50 people gather at 1 p.m. on Sundays, a combination of Oakwood residents and people from outside the park.  “It’s organized chaos,” Fletcher said, describing the scene. But however he can get the message across - that God loves them and that there’s hope - he’s willing to do it.

It wasn’t just about singing a few hymns and reading out of the Bible, though.  “Over time, what I realized was, we’re out here preaching the Gospel, teaching about the love of Jesus Christ, but seeing all these needs people have in the community. We’re saying this, but you have to demonstrate the love of God as well,” he said.  “For people outside in local churches, we started giving them an awareness of this community. Oakwood is like a city within a city, and you have good and bad parts of a city. One street, ... people own their trailers, keep them clean; the other part has problems: some crime, abuse, mental illness is present there.”

Fletcher said he was in Korea with the Army before he went to Iraq.  “The fear of being in places that don’t look safe, I don’t have that,” he said.

He knocked on Gary Harrison’s trailer door one afternoon, reporter and photographer in tow.  Fletcher said Harrison didn’t like him at first, mainly because he’s black.  “He struggles with some things,” Fletcher said.
Harrison answered the door and told his daughter, whom he was talking to on the phone, he had to go because “my preacher is here.”  Harrison apologized for being drunk.  “Hey, I’ve got some money for you,” he told Fletcher, and Harrison went a couple of steps away into the tiny bedroom and came back with a big Bible.  He opened it and handed Fletcher two $20 bills tucked inside the pages.  “If you’re my friend, you’ll take it,” Harrison said when Fletcher hesitated. Fletcher had “helped him out” with rent.  “I’ve lived a stupid life and I’ve met some stupid people,” Harrison, 59, said. “I’m an ex-criminal. Ex. That was 30, 40 years ago.”  Harrison said he was in prison for 12 years for stealing a car in Michigan.  Harrison said the only reason he agreed to talk to a reporter was because of Fletcher.  “I trust him implicitly,” said Harrison, sitting on a twin bed in the living room, holding a cigarette in one hand, a bottle of whiskey in the other.

Fletcher won Harrison overslowly but surely. One day Harrison requested a song - “What a Friend We Have in Jesus,” he recalled - at a church service, and Fletcher kept talking to Harrison.  “I’ve been racist. He (Fletcher) is a true person. He is a true person, and he has showed me myself, and he has showed me God.
“He has been there for me. I ain’t been busted in a long time.” Harrison said Fletcher has made a difference in the atmosphere in the park.

One woman who lives behind him and used to hate him now speaks to Harrison.  “She comes by and says hello and says, ‘I love you,’” Harrison said.  Harrison said he enjoys coming to Fletcher’s Sunday services, “when I’m not hung over.” “I’ve got a reputation to uphold,” he said. “This is Chateau Ghetto.” Fletcher points out other people he’s gotten to know in the park - this guy is a good handyman and helps with the ministry; the man’s wife knitted caps for people at Christmas.  “People have started to take ownership and are trying to contribute in whatever way they can,” he said.

The turning point came in 2008, he said, when he spent the night in the park in a tent.  “I said, ‘For these people to trust me, I have to spend the night out there.’ During that time, kids came out and they would sit and we would just talk about whatever. Then somebody would say, ‘Hey, are you hungry? We’ll give you a bologna sandwich to eat; that’s all we got,’” Fletcher recalled.  Another resident offered to let Fletcher use his bathroom.  “One guy, Robert, said, “OK, preacher - I hope you make it through the night!’ That was the turning point, because the next morning, it was Sunday, and Robert said, ‘Well, I see you made it through. It wasn’t that bad, was it?’” Fletcher said, “Typically, Christian organizations will go into neighborhoods that are notthe best, and we go in, we do our thing and we leave. God coming into the world, he became one of us, and that’s what I wanted to show them: I want to get to know you; I want to gain your trust. A lot of them, their trust has been violated again and again and again. They become survivors, too.” Fletcher also befriended a couple living near the mobile home park, Emilio and Nancy Marcial. They were raising their granddaughter because the girl’s mother is in prison.  The Department of Human Services took the 10-year-old from the home because of multiple problems, Fletcher said.  There were roaches, for one thing.

Fletcher and the City of Hope Outreach formed the Nehemiah Project, which “is just the project we have about community renewal and improvement in the area - having people clean up their homes, beautify the area around where they live. Like with Emilio and Nancy, getting them into a better living situation.” Students from Central Baptist College, New Life Church and the University of Central Arkansas spent a day moving the couple from the home to an apartment across town and cleaned the home to satisfy the rental requirement.

Emilio, a diabetic, had his legs amputated after an infection.  Fletcher was able to get him an electric wheelchair.  “They gave me a choice - cut ’em off or die in the next two months. I told them I wanted to live for my granddaughter,” Emilio said, looking tearful.  Nancy said, “She is our life.  We’re just waiting for her to come home.” Nancy, who said she struggles with bipolar disorder, told Fletcher that at a court hearing the day before, their grandchild was put into a mental-health facility.  “They’re not telling me how long” she could be in the facility, Nancy said. “She has issues because of her mom and dad, but she’s not mentally ill,” Nancy maintained.  “The courts were pleased with us,” she added.  Fletcher asked the couple what the girl needed and promised to visit her.  Nancy said the City of Hope Outreach made a difference in their lives.  “Oh, Lord, they’ve done everything - moved us out of an old, cold, drafty house and moved us into this beautiful apartment.” She pointed out a photo of the large group of volunteers who helped them move and signed good wishes on the mat in the frame.  Nancy said City of Hope Outreach and Fletcher “basically raised the [quality of] living there, ... and the church, it’s growing. There’s an awareness of God there.” She showed off her granddaughter’s bedroom down the hall, which was decorated in purple and turquoise and Hannah Montana posters.  “She’s going to love it when she comes home,” Nancy said.  There’s another court date in two months.  “Yeah, I still have hope,” Nancy said.

Fletcher quit his full-time job in December to devote himself to the mission.  Will he do it forever?  “For right now, this is where I am,” he said. “I don’t look that far down the road. This is my second family. All of them are.  As long as the Lord wants me to be here, I’m going to give my heart and soul to it.” - tkeith@ arkansasonline.com

This article was published today at 6:53 a.m.
River Valley Ozark, Pages 139 on 04/11/2010

Ministry Monday!

I must begin by saying Happy Easter or really Resurrection Sunday. I know that was earlier this month, but never the less it was and is a celebration that we should consider daily! So now that the craziness of our traditional Easter celebration is done for this year. I would challenge us all to think about how the truth of Jesus' Resurrection affects our daily lives. We need to seek the Savior daily and celebrate His resurrection power everyday! What does that look like for you?


For me it is the simplest and yet most complex concept there is....LOVE! The power of the Resurrection is real to me on a daily basis when I think of the Love of God in Christ Jesus! This truth is the driving passion behind any and all ministry I seek to partake in. It was Love that drove Christ to the Cross and Love that resurrected Jesus from the dead. It was love that caused Christ to reach down into the depths of my soul and call to me to salvation, it is that same love the compels me to leap for joy or burst into song when I think of Christ!

This Love that does not fail and has no end! Love that covers sin! Love; if only we could grasp the depths of this love we would be changed! I seek to walk in and give that same love that was afforded to me on the Cross of Calvary! What do you remember about the Cross and Jesus' Resurrection?

I'm Back Once Again!

I think it is so important to take breaks. It allows for new perspective and fresh insight. So we are back to Ministry Monday's, Titus Twosday's, Women in the Word Wednesday's, and Friday Homemaker Moments (Being His Crown) blog posting. Although I am a day behind! I think I still need a break. :)


It's Monday and lots of ministry has taken place, as well as on the horizon. One ministry in particular stands out to me. My cousin past away while I was on a blog break. It certainly came as a shock but the biggest shock of all was at the funeral. It was then that the whole family gathered to remember and consider our current standing in life, that I realized how important family is. My cousin was not unlike the men and women we minister to in the Oakwood community. He struggled with drugs and alcohol. He lost his mother at a young age and his father never received him. I think that had something to do with his downward spiral. But here is the thing people. While Tony's biological family gathered on one side of the room, there were four to five individuals who stood to speak of my late cousin. There words were unmatched by anything anyone in the family could have uttered. One of them said, "I prayed with Tony almost every other day for the past two years." Then another stood and said, "My name is Pastor Somebody. I am representing (church name) where Tony was in fellowship. Tony was a great man who loved the Lord! He always had a smile on his face and was very encouraging to others. We at (church name) loved Tony and will greatly miss him."

Okay so what just happened? My cousin Tony was a member of a local church, he had prayer partners? Who was this guy they were talking about? Then as my Uncle began to preach I felt sick to my stomach. Realizing he is preaching about a family member that no one really knew in the present. Yes we have memories from the past but his very recent past no one in the family could account for. This led me to two conclusions.

The first being Thankfulness! I am thankful to God that He has people in specific places to reach specific people. When no one in our family could or would reach out to Tony God had a plan for him! So for that I am thankful. I could see how the Lord would use me in ministry the same way He used those men who spoke of my cousin at the funeral. They shared Christ with him. Now I don't know that he was a believer but that is not my place to judge a man's salvation. I can only speak to the fruit and verbal confessions. Since, I have neither of those things to go on I simply don't know. For me that is okay, I fully trust the sovereign will and hand of God.

The second conclusion is we need to redeem the time. Earthly family is important and as much as it depends on us we should seek to love, have relationship with and tell of the goodness of Christ in our lives. It is strange to me how we can almost evangelize the whole world and ignore the ones we see everyday or purpose not to see among our own family. I currently live in the same state with a large portion of my relatives and honestly I don't know a large number of them. At the funeral I was guessing at the names of family, based upon who they looked like. Now for the most part I was right but that was really ridiculous. Family is important! I am speaking specifically of extended family. As you consider ministry this Monday I would challenge you as I have been challenging myself to get to know a family member. Take time to minister to your family if you are able. Call them on the phone or go visit for an hour. Take the time to learn intimate details and share them. Pray with someone in your family that you would not have otherwise thought to.

This Ministry Monday is all about how we can minister the love of Christ to those in our own families. The list of ways to do this is endless. But start with a phone call, dinner, a card game or prayer. Love those you have while they are there, it is not guarantee they or you will take the next breath!

This Week in Ministry for the City of Hope Outreach:

Launched Monday March 29, 2010. Tutoring will take place in the Oakwood Village Mobile Park Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 4p-6p. Volunteers are welcome just send me an email or comment and we can get you connected!

Get Out & Smoothie is this Thursday April 1, 2010 at Tropical Smoothie from 5:00pm-9:00pm. This is a fundraiser event for the trailer that is to be built or purchased and placed in the trailer park. 10% of all purchases between 5p-9p will be donated to the City of Hope Outreach. Please come out and enjoy a smoothie or a healthy dinner sandwich with us.

Please keep us in your prayers.

Ministry Monday

This week’s ministry was a little different then it usually is. I'll start with this...Nichelle wasn't feeling well Sunday morning. We all thought she would get over it because her being the youngest, she tends to have a little lot of drama when it comes to sickness or injury. It is guaranteed that Nichelle will have some sort of accident everyday and play it to the extreme. So we thought today was just another one of those days that began really early with the pain. However, as 12:45pm rolled around Nichelle is still not up to speed. So we are facing the reality that we (Nichelle and I) are not going to worship with the body as a whole this afternoon. My ministry would consist of cleaning vomit from my cell phone, couch, carpet, rug, pillows and Nichelle's clothing. Not the kind of ministry I look forward to but none the less it was for me to do today.


Nichelle wrote me this fabulous letter after she was able to release what was upsetting her tummy. I am writing what she wrote exactly as I received it.

SORRY
I'm sorry I got thro up on your cell phone
and the couch
and the floor
and the carpit
and on the
wait
I don't think there was anything els that I thro up on
but
I'm sorry for it all!

What a sweet girl! I loved getting that letter and then being able to say, "That is fine and you don't have to worry about what you threw up on. I love you." I hugged her and she rested on me. It was great! That was my ministry yesterday.

Within that ministry I learned that I don't have to do everything. If I am not at the worship gathering other people will still come. If I am not there Christ is! My presence doesn't make or break anything that God has planned. So thank you Lord for the straight up reality check!

Saturday we did King's Club and that was really fun. Phil uploaded pictures on Face book. The kids really like it and getting used to us coming on Saturday's just for them.

Ministry Monday

click to find out more about Nehemiah Projects

This is where they began!

This is the beginning of the NEW!

This is the Group of HANDS that made it all POSSIBLE!

Saturday was the big day for Emilio and Nancy!  I have shared parts of their story for the past few weeks on the Monday Ministry post. They were moved from their previous living conditions to the new apartment in order that they may begin a new life and have their granddaughter restored to their custody!  There were a large number of people who worked together to make this happen so I will begin my long list of thanks now....

Chi Alpha Campus Ministries (UCA)

Conway Regional Rehabilitation Center

Conway Celebration Church

Due Amiche's Resturant

Faulkner County Council on Developmental Disabilities

NLC Elevation

NU:U Day Spa & Salon

The Church in Oakwood

The City of Hope Outreach

XII Ministry

Ye Ol' Daisy Flower Shop

We

Thank You

Thank You

Thank You!

As we were gathered before heading to work Phillip admonished the group with these words from the book of Isaiah 58.....Fast not by seeking your own pleasure but by sharing your bread with the hungry. Fast by covering the naked. Fast this day by serving this family with Joy and the Love of Christ! 

Again, A BIG THANK YOU TO EVERYONE!

Upcoming Events:

KING'S CLUB  Saturday February 27, 2010 @ 12:30PM Oakwood Trailer Park

It's Ministry Monday

What is going on? Well, a lot!  Psalm 82:3-4 tells us to, "Give justice to the weak and fatherless; maintain the right of the afflicted and the destitute. Rescue the weak and the needy; deliver them from the hand of the wicked".  This is our work this week.  I have talked about this family we are helping by doing the Nehemiah Project/ Extreme Home Make Over, the Lord is moving in great and mighty ways.  We will see if we can assist in finding them another place to live tomorrow and basically establish them on their feet.  They need all new furniture, and basic household items.  It will be a destruction of the old and a new beginning.  The wife shared with the congregation today about a healing she recieved from the Lord.  She asked me to lay hands on her and pray for healing.  So I did, believing that it would be a pure work of God to heal her body.  She told us that three days after our prayer time she was without pain and has not felt any since.  WOW, our God is awesome!  He hears our cries and answers in our affliction. Praise the Lord!  You can read about their make over story here. If you want to donate to help this family re-establish themselves you may do so here.  Transformation day is February 20, 2010...THIS SATURDAY!  If you would like to help comment on this post and we can get you connected.

Here are a list of things this family will need.

• 
  
  Towels, bath / wash / Hand
• Shower Curtains
• Sheets and comforter (twin and queen)
• Chore Chart
• Dishes (set of 4)
• Silverware
• Pots and pans
• glasses
• curtains
• Cleaning products
• Towels and oven mitts for kitchen
• Trash Cans
• Broom and Mops
• Vacuum Cleaner
• Food
• Ramp
• Dry Erase Board

Here are some pictures of the house they are currently living in.

Ministry Monday

It's Monday and the week has flown by. Last week was jammed packed with ministry opportunities and task. Monday was recovery day; Tuesday I spent time with a family in Oakwood. Wednesday the kids had doctor’s appointments, Thursday, Phil met with Peace Lutheran Church and I worked to created a story board for that. Then the kids and I went to a math and science fair. And, finally on Friday there was Friday Morning coffee and taxes. But, let me tell you a little more about the family from Oakwood.

Her husband is a double amputee and the wife has suffered many injuries. They are trying to get their home in order so they can be reunited with their granddaughter. As I took a walk through the home my heart broke at all that my eyes beheld. I had never seen anything like it before. This family has been connected with the Church in Oakwood for several months. We could not ignore their hurt because of these words in Psalm 82:3-4.

"Give justice to the weak and fatherless; maintain the right of the afflicted and destitute. Rescue the weak and the needy; deliver them from the hand of the wicked."

This family has an income of $1600 monthly and pays $425 in rent and has a gas bill on average of $600. WHY is the bill so high? Well, because there are gaping holes in the floor, the front door, and the windows. They have to borrow money from others to get food. They don't qualify for food stamps because they make too much money, yet not enough to survive. The husband and wife don't even sleep in the same bed. He has a special bed (twin) and the wife sleeps on the couch. That couch was left there by the previous residents and is sloped in many areas. She suffers from ulcers in her abdominal area and has problems with the disk in her neck which causes very painful headaches. If that isn't enough she has also had three eye surgeries and is 70% blind. There a many with this story. The story of, one thing after another. But, these people are right in our midst. What can be done in light of the word that has been resting on my heart?

 

Here is our current direction. We are partnering with Chi Alpha a college ministry of University Central Arkansas (Conway) to serve this family. Chi Alpha does what is called "Not So Extreme Home Makeovers" were they gather about 40-75 students to help serve a family. The City of Hope Outreach has what is called "The Nehemiah Project" based from the book of Nehemiah. We want to help rebuild this area of Conway. Many people have ignored this area, and we are crying out on their behalf. So we are putting together our resources and skill to help change this situation. Not only that but we are working with this family toward empowerment and responsibility.

I have to add this in as a HUGE side note. We talked to them about moving into a trailer that was a whole lot better and a little less then what they are paying now. Her response was, “But we don’t want to leave the church”. I was floored at that statement. She went on to explain that this was the only church they felt at home in. She mentioned how much they are loved and cared for, when they needed hope Phil would show up at their front door.

It is hard to change behaviors without instruction. People need people who will be willing to take time out of their "busy" lives and lovingly train and instruct in everyday basics. We can't assume that everyone has been taught from the same values and skill sets. When a person is struggling and is searching then we need to be there.

 

The next stage is getting people who will help with the basic how to. For instance, how to wash laundry, prepare and clean after dinner, on and on. What need is basically a schedule and training to accomplish the things set before them. I am working on a schedule myself. This is the helpful guide I am using and will help this family with. Anyway, that was a lot and will continue to be a lot as we take the gospel into the lives of men and women.

 

The message of the gospel not only affects your relationship with Christ, but it will affect your love for others, how you live and where you are willing to live. As the gospel is made more and more alive in your heart you will be willing to dig deeper and deeper in the mess of your own life and the lives of others.

 

 

 

UPCOMING EVENTS

• King's Club in Oakwood Saturday February 13, 2010 @ 1:00PM
• Sunday Worship in Oakwood Sunday February 14, 2010 @ 1:00PM
• Community Meeting in Oakwood Friday 19, 2010 @ 4:00PM
• Nehemiah Project/ Not So Extreme Home Make Over in Oakwood Saturday February 20,2010 @ 10:00AM

 

Please be praying about each one of these events and activities. It is our prayer and goal that Christ Name be made known through the PROCLAIMED WORD and the WORD LIVED OUT!

 

 

 

Ministry Monday

This is Ministry Monday! I like these little catchy phrases. My goal is to share a portion of my heart and give updates on what is happening in ministry with "The Church in Oakwood" and "The City of Hope Outreach".

I will begin with this scripture.

Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame and is seated at the right hand of the throne of GOD. Hebrews 12:1-2

Yesterday was a day of endurance. For those of you who don't know we gather for worship outside under the sun and trees in the center of a run down trailer park. Most of the time it is a blast! However, we had experienced snow and below freezing temperature. So the gathering was at best going to be very cold! The sun came out and shined just bright enough to melt the snow on the trees ever so slightly. Slowly and continually melted snow dripped on many heads throughout our gathering time. This to some degree was funny but not 100%. Much of the reason we gather in this location is to build community, love the outcast and be a visible picture of the body of Christ (rich, middle, poor, black, brown, yellow, white, college education, no diploma etc.). The weather was bad and as a result only one of the regular people aside from my family was there. I thought for a minute why are we here? We could have meet inside my house or someone else's for that matter. And then it hit me. Christ is asking me to "run with endurance the race that is set before me, looking to Jesus". Now there were plenty of people there, however only one who was living in the community.

Then I remembered the witness. There was young man taking out his trash. He happens to deal in creative finances if you know what that means. Anyway, he watched us set up chairs, in prep for fellowship and worship. One of the other residents was blasting his music right were we meet. He came to me and said I will turn it down in a few minutes so as not to disturb the church meeting. Side note this was a man who yelled that he couldn’t stand me and did not want his wife to be brainwashed!

All of that opened one more memory...Gary! He said, "I don't understand why you guys just keep coming back? There is nothing and nobody here, except a bunch of drunks, hoes and dealers! Why do you come?” If I were to see only my comfort many of these people would never understand the love of Christ! We keep coming because Christ kept coming to us! He still does! If I were to stop going before God said, I would never understand how to partake in this joy that is spoken of in Hebrews. So, I seek to endure what is hard and unexplainable for the human heart that in looking to Jesus I may be like my Father.

Be encouraged in your walk with the Lord. Run your race with endurance looking to Christ and receive His Joy!

UPDATES:

Community Assessments

We will be going house to house beginning February 2-5 @ 1p-5p taking a survey of residents and needs (physical, emotional, & spiritual)

Valentine Boxes

This Saturday February 6th @ 1p we are helping the children of Marguerite Vann Elementary School put together valentine's boxes for school!

King's Club

Begins February 13th @ 1pm (will continue every other week). King's Club is a one hour Saturday activity for the children. It will help us to establish and develop relationships with the children and their families in Oakwood. If you would like to help with any of the activities listed above please see the website and sign up.

Not So Extreme Home Make Over

February 20th in Oakwood at 9am. We are helping a family be reunited with their granddaughter by bringing their home up to code. The City of Hope Outreach and Chi Alpha partner again to display the Love of Jesus Christ!

If you would like to get involved with any of these activities click on the title and it will direct you to the website and you can sign up.