West Texas Missioner: October 2023

Tuesday, October 31, 2023

From ServLife International ... "LAST DAY to have your donation matched"

ServLife International is a movement defined by values of God’s kingdom, not programs built around human efforts and activities. The reign and rule of God should be made apparent to every person on the planet, despite their religion, race or socioeconomic status. We believe that issues of justice are inseparable from the good news that Jesus Christ came to proclaim. ServLife exists to take the gospel of Christ and the hope of a better, more just, world to the lives of people we touch. This happens through individual contributions of time, creativity, resources and dreams.

LAST DAY to have your donation matched

YOU and others like you have made all the difference in Sonu’s life and other kids like him. We are so grateful for your support, and if you haven’t given yet during this campaign, please consider a gift today and help us exceed our goal of $100,000!

Your generous donation will support the Pastor Mangal, Sonu, Pradeep, and others like them.Your generous donation will support the Pastor Mangal, Sonu, Pradeep, and others like them.

Adam J. Nevins
Executive Director

• ServLife International, Inc.
P.O. Box 20596
Indianapolis, IN 46220
USA

• CLICK HERE to learn more about extreme poverty and how we can partner together to empower families and children ...

• CLICK HERE to give a gift to help families and our partners in India and Nepal ...

Join Our Mission

ServLife International propels reconciliation and justice by building global community to plant churches, care for children and fight poverty. Compelled by the message, life and love of Jesus Christ, we seek to care for the spiritual, physical, social, and economic areas of life in northern India and Nepal. Learn more about our latest news, featured stories, and how to get involved at servlife.org


Support a Pastor Our church planters spread the love of Christ in some of the most difficult environments in the world. • Support Them ...	Sponsor a Child For only $30 per month you can help give a child food, education, care and, most importantly, hope. • Sponsor Now ...	Fight Poverty The HOPE Fund, our micro-finance program, provides start-up funds for a small business, paving a way out of poverty for families in need. • Learn More ...

Adam J. Nevins
Executive Director
ServLife International, Inc.
P.O. Box 20596
Indianapolis, IN 46220
USA

From @mmm_water ... 2023 Well Season: Daily Devotional

September 1 - October 31 is Marion Medical Mission Well Season for 2023. The season will include daily devotionals - one for each day the U.S. volunteers are overseas, sharing the love of Jesus by providing safe, clean, sustainable sources of drinking water to the extreme poor in sub-Saharan Africa. Marion Medical Mission is one of our mission partners at Grace Presbyterian Church of Midland, Texas, and we STRONGLY encourage you to read these devotions to learn more about - and pray for! - their mission.

October 31, 2023

SHEEP AND GOATS
Tom Logan
MMM Co-founder and President

"He will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, and he will put the sheep at his right hand and the goats at the left.” - Matthew 25:32-33

As Jesus tells us, the sheep and the goats are separated not on the basis of their goodness or badness but based on what they did or did not do. They were separated by who had fed the hungry, who had given the thirsty something to drink, who had clothed the naked, who had cared for the sick and visited those in prison.

The cost of a well for an entire village is $450. This is a higher quality and better well, than the one we built in the 1990s for $500 (think about that for a moment).

A Marion Medical Mission well represents self-help. The villagers do what they can. They make the brick, and provide the stone, sand, and unskilled labor. A Marion Medical Mission well is one that uses the talents of the Africans. A Marion Medical Mission well is one the extreme rural poor know how to maintain and one they can afford to maintain. The impact of this self-help program has been dramatic. Its importance can’t be over emphasized. Self-help is a means for people to get up off their knees. Self-help frees people.

We want to follow Jesus; we want our Master Christ to live in us. Yet, we want to do it in a rational, logical, reasonable way where everything is in its proper place and order. The two don’t readily mix; they don’t completely match; the two don’t and won’t always work together and when they don’t, that’s when the Master’s light shines brightest. And we need to make sure we let it shine.

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In the News ... "First Love Outreach achieves goals"

Courtesy Photo

• Life Unlimited Church program loves the underappreciated

By Bob Campbell, Reporter
• Odessa American

ODESSA, TEXAS - There’s not enough love in the world and the leaders of First Love Outreach are taking the initiative to address that problem.

Held back for a long time by COVID, Tammy Argo, Tim Mayfield and a host of volunteers from Life Unlimited Church have resumed visiting law enforcement officers, firefighters, nursing homes and apartment complexes with stuffed animals, drinks, food and most essentially hugs and other expressions of recognition and admiration.

“The first responders have been very receptive,” said Argo, who may be reached at 362-1911. “We have visited the ladies at Mission Messiah and we’ve been to the High Sky Children’s Ranch.

“Showing appreciation to people is very needed in this day and age. All some people need is a hug and a pat on the back. You’re showing God’s love to them and doing what he tells us to do. We have also fed the homeless.

“We came up with the name because we just desire to love on people who need to know that there are people in the world who care about them.”

Argo said the program is financed by the congregation of Life Unlimited Church at 4224 Northeast Loop 338 and other supporters.

“We tell the congregation what we plan on doing and then report back on what we have done and how it was received,” she said ...

• Read the rest of this OA report ...

C.S. Lewis Daily - Today's Reading

Presented by Bible Gateway

Today's Reading

Some time ago Matthew Arnold prophesied that poetry would come to replace religion; and the personal heretics have made this true in a sense which he probably did not foresee. Poetry has, naturally enough, not yet attempted the salvation of souls or the enlightenment of the understanding; but the cult of poetry is taking on some secondary religious characteristics – notably the worship of saints and the traffic in relics. Every teacher of English has had pupils to whom the study of literature principally meant a series of acts of devotion to various dead men who wrote poetry. We have biographies of Keats and even (I believe) of D.H. Lawrence which are almost exercises in hagiography. We have even had such tangled trinities as “Christ, Shakespeare, and Keats” proposed to us. If we have also our “debunking” biographies, that is but the reverse side of the same medal: blasphemy is the child of religion.

• From The Personal Heresy

Today in the PC-USA Mission Yearbook

The Mission Yearbook for Prayer and Study is a daily devotional with 365 inspiring mission stories that come from next door and all across the globe. It inspires thousands of Presbyterians daily as they uphold the mission of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) in intercessory prayer.

Photo by Hannah Busing via Unsplash

Today in the Mission Yearbook: October 31, 2023

MATTHEW 25 WEBINAR - A recent Matthew 25 webinar provided inspiration and information about using effective strategies for eradicating systemic poverty, including banding together to build power. ...

• CLICK HERE to read more.

Monday, October 30, 2023

From Austin Seminary: "Plan to attend MidWinter Lectures, January 22-24!"

Plan to attend MidWinter Lectures, January 22-24!

Now in its 80th year, Austin Seminary's MidWinter Lectures offer theological food for thought within the context of exploration, homecoming, and celebration.

The lecture series, which includes presentations, worship services, meals, and conversations, runs from Monday afternoon, January 22, until noon on Wednesday, January 24. Learn about the speakers and preacher who have been invited this year.

The Reverend Dr. Emilie M. Townes is a preeminent scholar in the field of womanist theology and ethics and a leader in theological thought and education.

The Reverend Dr. Cláudio Carvalhaes will bring the full range of his enthusiasms and expertise to the lecture topic, "Two Ways of Being in the World: To Rise and To Land."

Dr. Cheryl Bear-Bartnerson is a theologian, singer-songwriter, and a founding member of the National Association of Indigenous Theological Studies.

Anchoring the lectures is worship in Shelton Chapel, led by The Reverend Dr. Chris Currie, senior pastor of St. Charles Avenue Presbyterian Church in New Orleans.

So, mark your calendar, book your transportation, and join us January 22-24, 2024!

• Read all about what is planned here.

• Register for MidWinters here.

For the glory of God and to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ,Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary is a seminary in the Presbyterian-Reformed tradition whose mission is to educate and equip individuals for the ordained Christian ministry and other forms of Christian service and leadership; to employ its resources in the service of the church; to promote and engage in critical theological thought and research; and to be a winsome and exemplary community of God's people.

Please know that Austin Seminary’s dedicated, diverse, and loving community of faith is not complete without you. Did you know?

   • Students in our masters-degree programs receive up to 85% need-based tuition aid.
   • Historically, more than 80% of our graduates are called to congregational ministry.
   • Our students come from more than a dozen denominations.
   • Our alumni serve in ministry in forty-eight U.S. states as well as in twenty different countries across the world.

Your gift to Austin Seminary contributes to scholarships, housing, computer equipment, library materials, and other resources needed by seminarians as they fulfill their calls to Christian service and leadership.

Your support underwrites the finest theological faculty and an administration committed to upholding the highest standards possible with respect to the unique vocation of ministry.

Every gift is significant and is appreciated. They are put to work right away and make a real impact. Please send your gift today.

• CLICK HERE to learn how you can support the mission of Austin Seminary

From @mmm_water ... 2023 Well Season: Daily Devotional

September 1 - October 31 is Marion Medical Mission Well Season for 2023. The season will include daily devotionals - one for each day the U.S. volunteers are overseas, sharing the love of Jesus by providing safe, clean, sustainable sources of drinking water to the extreme poor in sub-Saharan Africa. Marion Medical Mission is one of our mission partners at Grace Presbyterian Church of Midland, Texas, and we STRONGLY encourage you to read these devotions to learn more about - and pray for! - their mission.

October 23, 2022

FIND GRACE TO HELP
Wayne Peterson
Volunteer, Illinois

"Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” - Hebrews 4:16

I became aware of MMM best through friends from our church making a mission trip to Malawi in 2017. The more I learned, the more special this whole mission appeared. Just the way it got started is interesting and meaningful. To correct the source of something wrong: the lack of good drinking water.

Then their Malawi trip was shared and it clearly showed people in need. The time was now – “In time of need.” So the next year I applied and did the process with interview, vaccinations, supplies, and prayer. Church and family were a support. It was a great experience to see the process of getting protected wells to these needy villages. Somehow I couldn’t quite believe how those folks were living with the little spots of water, not cleaned, shared by cattle and all. So the need!

For me it was kind of fun to drive one of those Toyota pickups, having grown up on a farm with uneven land and all. But being in Zambia it seemed mostly less hilly – God making it easier on my near 80-year-old body. There was mercy and grace from God to do this help.

But another part of this was seeing the native Africans at work; they knew just what to do and I learned that my duty there was not really digging wells, or even doing the well installation, but being a connection of Christians from America with those needy people in remote villages. And then they could continue to do installations during the pandemic which is significant to the operation. It reminds me of giving one a fish is food for a day, but teaching one to fish is good for life. In thinking about it some more, they are probably more efficient driving, knowing the territory, and if nothing else not so crowded in the pickup cab with one less person!

The need continues for some outside support, especially for purchasing certain things for the wells, as well as supporting the local workers. Those workers are well trained and devoted to the task.

Application Question: How might I find the grace to help others?

Prayer: Lord, we pray for mercy and grace for the local workers and for support for the mission; may it continue to grow. Amen

In the News ... "Kick for Kenya 1K/5K/10K"

• All proceeds benefit Midland-based Kenya Widows and Orphans Ministry

MIDLAND, TEXAS - Kick for Kenya 1K/5K/10K has been scheduled for Saturday, November 11, at GCR Church of Christ, 3500 W. Golf Course Road, Midland.

KWO Ministries is proud to welcome you to one of the premier running events in the Permian Basin. Over the last nine years, Kick for Kenya has become one of the largest and longest-running charity races in the area, featuring a 10K-5K-1K format.

The 1K Kids Fun Run will begin at 8:45 a.m. and 5K/10K run will begin at 9 a.m.

All proceeds of this event will go towards KWO (Kenya Widows and Orphans) Ministry. Founded in Midland, their mission is to redeem the lives of Kenyan widows and orphans. KWO is a non-profit ministry that serves 16 orphanages, provides feeding stations, and funds educational opportunities, all while sharing the message of God’s love in Kenya.

To sign up, visit runsignup.com

For more information, visit Tkwoministries.org/kick-for-kenya.

C.S. Lewis Daily - Today's Reading

Presented by Bible Gateway

Today's Reading

“Son of Adam,” said Aslan, “you have sown well. And you, Narnians, let it be your first care to guard this Tree, for it is your Shield. The Witch of whom I told you has fled far away into the North of the world; she will live on there, growing stronger in dark Magic. But while that tree flourishes she will never come down into Narnia. She dare not come within a hundred miles of the Tree, for its smell, which is joy and life and health to you, is death and horror and despair to her.”

. . . Aslan suddenly swung round his head . . . and fixed his large eyes on the children. “What is it, children?” he said, for he caught them in the very act of whispering and nudging one another.

“Oh—Aslan, sir,” said Digory, turning red, “I forgot to tell you. The Witch has already eaten one of those apples, one of the same kind that Tree grew from.” He hadn’t really said all he was thinking, but Polly at once said it for him. (Digory was always much more afraid than she of looking a fool.)

“So we thought, Aslan,” she said, “that there must be some mistake, and she can’t really mind the smell of those apples.”

“Why do you think that, Daughter of Eve?” asked the Lion.

“Well, she ate one.”

“Child,” he replied, “that is why all the rest are now a horror to her. That is what happens to those who pluck and eat fruits at the wrong time and in the wrong way. The fruit is good, but they loathe it ever after.”

“Oh, I see,” said Polly. “And I suppose because she took it in the wrong way it won’t work for her. I mean it won’t make her always young and all that?”

“Alas,” said Aslan, shaking his head. “It will. Things always work ac- cording to their nature. She has won her heart’s desire; she has unwearying strength and endless days like a goddess. But length of days with an evil heart is only length of misery and already she begins to know it. All get what they want; they do not always like it.”

• From The Magician's Nephew
• Compiled in A Year with Aslan

Today in the PC-USA Mission Yearbook

Contributed Photo

Today in the Mission Yearbook: October 30, 2023

FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH NEAR ELY, IOWA, SETS ITS MISSIONAL SIGHTS ON UKRAINE - The lines of 164 years of Czech history at First Presbyterian Church Near Ely, Iowa recently blurred with current-day Ukraine, and the result was unexpectedly amazing.

How did such a thing happen at a small country church, where traditional mission activities have included monthly collections for the food pantry; “Tractorcade,” an annual group tractor ride across Iowa’s countryside; and instructional “Kolach Kamps,” where the kitchen becomes the classroom and bakers learn to craft the perfect kolach ...

• CLICK HERE to read more.

Sunday, October 29, 2023

From @mmm_water ... 2023 Well Season: Daily Devotional

• The man walking in the road as we drove by, yelling out “God bless you.”
• The women at a well singing a new song I’d never heard in the 13 years I’ve come to Malawi, “May God bless you with wisdom to take care of others, so we have peace within our community.”
• The end of an installation when the headman gave us blessings, “For you, your family, and your country.”
• The man who said, “Since the world has begun, a well has never been put in this village.”
• An elder who followed us to two wells that were within walking distance. As we left the village each time, he caught our attention and said, “God must love you.”
• The large village with so many happy dancing women and children.
• Bringing water to hundreds of people.
• One young women who caught the attention of both my partner and me. Neither of us had ever seen a reaction like hers – not just total surprise and awe at the pristine water gushing from the pipe, it was bewilderment, almost as if we had pulled a rabbit out of our hats.
• And a t-shirt that read, “Life is simple. Are you happy? If yes, keep going. If no, change something.”

My trip was shortened but filled with so many blessings.

Application Question: Dear Lord, thank You for the blessings that You have shown me. Help me to remember to count these blessings every day. We pray in Your name. Amen

Prayer: Loving God, we give thanks and rejoice in the hard work, fun, and fellowship that our installers, field officers, volunteers, and all those unknown to us played in making our day a wonderful experience. May we find gladness and satisfaction in all of our successes and challenges. May this experience of teamwork and sacrifice strengthen our bond and deepen our commitment to our mission to serve our brothers and sisters. Grant to all of us rest and renewal so that we may continue to serve You faithfully and without ceasing. We ask this in the name of Your Son, Jesus. Amen

C.S. Lewis Daily - Today's Reading

Presented by Bible Gateway

Today's Reading

On the Fall

The doctrine of the Fall (both of man and of some “gods,” “eldils” or “angels”) is the only satisfactory explanation. Evil begins, in a universe where all was good, from free will, which was permitted because it makes possible the greatest good of all. The corruption of the first sinner consists not in choosing some evil thing (there are no evil things for him to choose) but in preferring a lesser good (himself) before a greater (God). The Fall is, in fact, Pride. The possibility of this wrong preference is inherent in the v. fact of having, or being, a self at all. But though freedom is real it is not infinite. Every choice reduces a little one’s freedom to choose the next time. There therefore comes a time when the creature is fully built, irrevocably attached either to God or to itself. This irrevocableness is what we call Heaven or Hell. Every conscious agent is finally committed in the long run: i.e., it rises above freedom into willed, but henceforth unalterable, union with God, or else sinks below freedom into the black fire of self-imprisonment. That is why the universe (as even the physicists now admit) has a real history, a fifth act with a finale in which the good characters “live happily ever after” and the bad ones are cast out. At least that is how I see it.

• From The Collected Letters of C.S. Lewis
• Compiled in Words to Live By

Today in the PC-USA Mission Yearbook

Provided Photo

Today in the Mission Yearbook: October 29, 2023

REFORMATION SUNDAY - Forty years ago, the Dutch Reformed Mission Church (DRMC) in South Africa adopted Belydenis van Belhar — the Confession of Belhar — in its first reading. Belhar was an outgrowth of the DRMC’s effort to grapple with the church’s participation in and defense of apartheid and touches prominently on themes of unity, reconciliation and justice. The DRMC adopted Belhar in its final form in 1986.

Although the Confession of Belhar is inextricably connected to its South African context, its message extends far beyond ...

• CLICK HERE to read more.

Saturday, October 28, 2023

From @mmm_water ... 2023 Well Season: Daily Devotional

September 1 - October 31 is Marion Medical Mission Well Season for 2023. The season will include daily devotionals - one for each day the U.S. volunteers are overseas, sharing the love of Jesus by providing safe, clean, sustainable sources of drinking water to the extreme poor in sub-Saharan Africa. Marion Medical Mission is one of our mission partners at Grace Presbyterian Church of Midland, Texas, and we STRONGLY encourage you to read these devotions to learn more about - and pray for! - their mission.

October 28, 2023

OUR IMPACT
Slade Exley
Volunteer, Mississippi

"Owe no one anything except to love one another. Love does no harm to a neighbor” - Romans 13:8,10
friend recently read this devotional from Moments With God by David Jeremiah. “A young, deaf girl in Tanzania heard about Jesus and the Good News of the Gospel from a church planting team visiting her school. Because she accepted Christ, her Muslim family rejected her and kicked her out of her home. A deaf church responded to her need and cared for her. They also helped her family by paying the medical expenses when her father became ill. Because of the love of the church and the testimony of his daughter, the father also came to Christ. The testimony from one team of church planters changed the life of this young girl. The sacrificial giving of one church changed the life of the father. and who knows how many lives will ultimately be changed – one life at a time – from the testimony of their lives.”

This story particularly struck me, not just because I served in Tanzania last well season, but more importantly, it illustrates the potential that MMM has every time we install a well in an African village. The words we speak to the villagers – that the well is being provided through the love of Jesus Christ – sends a message that Christ loves them. Our demonstration of sacrifice as it relates to our time and comforts shows our personal love to the villagers. “We may never know how God will use our witness in the lives of people we encounter or in their response to the Gospel. But we know that when we walk with Him, obey His word, and follow His will, He will use our words and actions to draw people to Himself” (Moments with God).

We are so blessed to have this opportunity to impact the lives of thousands of villagers through the gift of clean water, but we may never witness or know the many other blessings and impacts these acts of kindness will have on each person in each village. Praise God for this opportunity to serve him and have an impact on others.

Application: As you go about your day, look for a way to impact the life of one person for Christ.

Prayer: Gracious God, help us to show your love through our words, actions and deeds today as we visit each well to perform Your work. Amen

C.S. Lewis Daily - Today's Reading

Presented by Bible Gateway

Today's Reading

Though Christian charity sounds a very cold thing to people whose heads are full of sentimentality, and though it is quite distinct from affection, yet it leads to affection. The difference between a Christian and a worldly man is not that the worldly man has only affections or ‘likings’ and the Christian has only ‘charity’. The worldly man treats certain people kindly because he ‘likes’ them: the Christian, trying to treat every one kindly, finds himself liking more and more people as he goes on—including people he could not even have imagined him- self liking at the beginning.

This same spiritual law works terribly in the opposite direction. The Germans, perhaps, at first ill-treated the Jews because they hated them: afterwards they hated them much more because they had ill-treated them. The more cruel you are, the more you will hate; and the more you hate, the more cruel you will become — and so on in a vicious circle for ever.

Good and evil both increase at compound interest. That is why the little decisions you and I make every day are of such infinite importance. The smallest good act today is the capture of a strategic point from which, a few months later, you may be able to go on to victories you never dreamed of. An apparently trivial indulgence in lust or anger today is the loss of a ridge or railway line or bridgehead from which the enemy may launch an attack otherwise impossible.

• From Mere Christianity
• Compiled in A Year with C.S. Lewis

Today in the PC-USA Mission Yearbook

Photo courtesy of Ferncliff Camp and Conference Center

Today in the Mission Yearbook: October 28, 2023

REGISTRATION OPEN FOR PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH CAMP & CONFERENCE ASSOCIATION GATHERING - “Building Bridges-Connecting Communities” is the theme for this year’s Presbyterian Church Camp and Conference Association and Campfire Collective Annual Conference to take place at Ferncliff Camp and Conference Center in Arkansas from November 12–17.

Registration is now open ...

• CLICK HERE to read more.

Friday, October 27, 2023

From @FWMission ... Friday Story: “Anh and Her “Best Friend””

Founded in 2001, Free Wheelchair Mission is an international nonprofit organization dedicated to providing wheelchairs for the impoverished disabled in developing nations. Headquartered in Irvine, California, FWM works around the world in partnership with a vast network of humanitarian, faith-based and government organizations, sending wheelchairs to hundreds of thousands of disabled people, providing not only the gift of mobility, but of dignity, independence, and hope.

FWM Photos

Friday Story: “Anh and Her “Best Friend”"

Anh is a seventh grader in Vietnam whose intelligence, friendly nature, and athletic prowess earned her the admiration of both teachers and friends alike.

Her dream of becoming a professional athlete seemed within reach when she was recruited to represent her entire province in sports.

But life had different plans ...

• Read the rest of this story ...

From @mmm_water ... 2023 Well Season: Daily Devotional

September 1 - October 31 is Marion Medical Mission Well Season for 2023. The season will include daily devotionals - one for each day the U.S. volunteers are overseas, sharing the love of Jesus by providing safe, clean, sustainable sources of drinking water to the extreme poor in sub-Saharan Africa. Marion Medical Mission is one of our mission partners at Grace Presbyterian Church of Midland, Texas, and we STRONGLY encourage you to read these devotions to learn more about - and pray for! - their mission.

October 27, 2023

I AM BECAUSE WE ARE
Dan Selock
Volunteer, Illinois

"He makes the whole body fit together perfectly. As each part does its own special work, it helps the other parts grow, so that the whole body is healthy and growing and full of love." - Ephesians 4:13

I have learned much about the essence of being human through Tom and Jocelyn Logan. The wells installed by MMM have enabled over five million villagers to have safe drinking water. Only a small number of them have ever had safe drinking water, “since the beginning of mankind,” according to one of the village elders my wife, Susie, and I met in Malawi in 2016.

The wells belong to the villagers; we were only there to assist. Only together, Africans and Americans, were we able to be who God created us to be. Only together did safe drinking water become available to thousands of villagers. Together, people of color and white people actualized a dream, became friends and established relationships, and served one another. Together, we sang songs and praised God for His goodness. The verses to one song are, “Who will enter into Heaven? Our Father is there. Only the holy will enter. You are holy. Enter into Heaven. Our Father is there.” Susie and I felt we had entered into Heaven for those moments of the song. Gestures of love from God’s children are powerful. The people of Malawi have such open and warm hearts.

Our experience in Malawi illustrates how people who are different can effectively come together and achieve a dream. In the United States the “American Dream” is at stake. The only way people of color and white people can actualize that dream is to become friends, establish relationships, and work together, as we did in Africa. The time for such an encounter is now; it is long past due. And, if we do not succeed today, what kind of world will our children and grandchildren inhabit tomorrow?

Application Question: How will I reach out to build relationships with people who are different from me? How can I demonstrate Ubuntu?

Prayer: Ubuntu; I am who I am because of who we all are. Many of us know very little about people who are different. Only through relationship building can we learn who we all are and, as a consequence, learn who each one of us are. I am because we are. Amen

In the News ... "'H-E-B Feast of Sharing' coming to Midland November 3"

• Information about event, and volunteer opportunities

Staff Report
• H-E-B Newsroom

MIDLAND, TEXAS - The holiday season is around the corner, and H-E-B is excited to welcome back our neighbors as we prepare to celebrate at our annual H-E-B Feast of Sharing dinners.

The Midland event has been set:

Friday, November 3
4 pm – 8 pm
The Midland County Horseshoe Pavillion
2514 Arena Trail, Midland TX 79701

This year, H-E-B’s Mobile Kitchens will serve traditional Texas-style meals at all its dinner locations in the state. Each event is filled with music, activities for the family, and a variety of free services such as health and wellness screenings and flu shots. Some gatherings will even get a visit from Santa! In select cities, H-E-B Partners (employees) and other volunteers will deliver holiday meals to homebound seniors and others who are unable to attend the event. In Houston, H-E-B will hold a Feast of Sharing drive-thru meal distribution with plans to give out more than 20,000 meals.

H-E-B Feast of Sharing is a series of festive gatherings that serve more than 340,000 meals served at 34 dinners throughout Texas and Mexico. Filled with food, music, and good cheer, these free holiday feasts are open to the public and bring together family, friends and neighbors. Launched in 1989, H-E-B Feast of Sharing gives the company an opportunity to give thanks to its loyal customers and invites everyone to our holiday dinner table. In the more than three decades H-E-B has held the celebrations, more than 375,000 volunteers have helped serve nearly four million meals.

Additionally, as part of this year’s Feast of Sharing, H-E-B’s Hunger Relief team and Operation Appreciation program will extend their support by sending holiday care packages to more than 1,000 H-E-B Partners and U.S. military servicemembers currently serving in the U.S. Armed Forces.

This initiative is an important part of H-E-B’s Hunger Relief Program, which works year-round to prevent hunger. Last year, H-E-B’s Hunger Relief Program donated 34 million pounds of food to families in need. Since 1982, the year the program was founded, H-E-B has donated more than 1 billion pounds of food to 5,500 non-profit organizations in Texas and Mexico.

• Sign-up To Volunteer Through West Texas Food Bank

C.S. Lewis Daily - Today's Reading

Presented by Bible Gateway

Today's Reading

The Naturalists have been engaged in thinking about Nature. They have not attended to the fact that they were thinking. The moment one attends to this it is obvious that one’s own thinking cannot be merely a natural event, and that therefore something other than Nature exists. The Supernatural is not remote and abstruse: it is a matter of daily and hourly experience, as intimate as breathing.

• From Miracles
• Compiled in A Mind Awake

Today in the PC-USA Mission Yearbook

Photo by Jacob Bentzinger via Unsplash

Today in the Mission Yearbook: October 27, 2023

NEW YORK PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH CONTINUES DISCUSSION ON MORAL INJURY - Dr. Rita Nakashima Brock, an author and scholar and the senior vice president for moral injury programs at Volunteers of America, continued her discussion on moral injury at New York Avenue Presbyterian Church in Washington, D.C., by emphasizing the church’s role in moral injury recovery through ritual ...

• CLICK HERE to read more.

Thursday, October 26, 2023

From ServLife International ... "Prayer request for my trip"

Prayer request for my trip

I’m at the Indianapolis airport about to leave on my 29th trip to India and Nepal! It's been almost a year since my last trip, and I'm eager to visit with our partners, pastors, children and families.

I'll get to travel to west Nepal and visit some families in the microfinance program and some pastors in the field. I'll go to the school in India, and visit the kids in the orphanages in Kathmandu. Near the beginning of my trip I'll visit the pastor training school, and will be there for their graduation on November 19 before I head to the airport to go home.

I would really appreciate your prayers during my trip. Here are a few specific prayer requests:

    • For my family while I’m gone
    • That ServLife would hit our fundraising goal of $100,000 by the end of October (we are very close!)
    • For the 14 Pastor Training students concluding their training in November
    • For the Pastor Training Graduation Ceremony on Nov. 19
    • That our staff in India and Nepal would be encouraged by my visit
    • That I would be faithful in daily Bible reading and prayer
    • That I would be faithful in daily Bible reading and prayer
    • That I would be sensitive to the Holy Spirit in every situation
    • For good health and endurance

I am so grateful for your prayers and support. May God have His way in every way.

Thank you,

From Adam Nevins
Executive Director
ServLife International, Inc.

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ServLife International propels reconciliation and justice by building global community to plant churches, care for children and fight poverty. Compelled by the message, life and love of Jesus Christ, we seek to care for the spiritual, physical, social, and economic areas of life in northern India and Nepal. Learn more about our latest news, featured stories, and how to get involved at servlife.org


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P.O. Box 20596
Indianapolis, IN 46220
USA