If You Have a Family Camp

An excerpt from...

If You Have a Family Camp

You Can Organize a Fantastic Missionary Day!
By Rachel Elwood, Support Staff
April-June 2013

David Grissom had a problem. He had been attending his beloved Camp Sychar, a family camp located in Mount Vernon, Ohio, since he was 10 years old. After David had gone on his first missions trip to Haiti in 2003, God gave him a passion for missions. But as he looked at the Missionary Day events at Camp Sychar, it was obvious that something was missing.

“It was a total snoozer,” David said, who self-admittedly calls things out for what they truly are. He knew that God had given him an interest in missions and he wanted to transfer that love to others. Overall, Camp Sychar was amazing—filled with godly evangelists, Spirit-filled worship, and great fellowship. But that Missionary Day needed a serious upgrade.

David was invited to join the Camp Sychar board and served as secretary of missions. David realized that the key to getting people excited about missions was through relationships—actually having time to meet and interact with missionaries in a low-key environment.

So he took over the cafeteria, the one building in the camp with air conditioning (this is Ohio in August, after all) and had missionaries set up their display tables, bring along some fun foods from their areas of service, and have an open house. People came for the Nutella fry bread and a respite from the heat and stayed for the conversations with real people doing real missionary service.

Earlier in the day, the teens—over 100 of them—went into the nearby town and handed out fliers advertising a Missions Festival for later that afternoon. After the open house ended, the action moved outside to the dunk tank, games, throw-a-pie-in-someone’s-face, food vendors, handicrafts, and much more. All proceeds, of course, went to missions. The crowning glory of last year’s Missions Festival was when one man who had come after being invited by the teens was so affected by the love he experienced at Camp Sychar that he gave his life to Jesus Christ that day. 

With over 1,000 attendees, Camp Sychar celebrated its 142nd anniversary last year. Over 60 missionaries and ministries are supported by the camp, including many from WGM.

Are you a part of a family camp like Camp Sychar? Is your Missionary Day a “snoozer”? Think about ways you can make this day impactful for all generations. Check out www.campsychar.org to see how one camp makes Missionary Day something special.

Not part of a family camp but have other missions events that you are a part of, such as at church, school, etc.? The Camp Sychar missions day model can be duplicated various places. Take the lead for your event and keep missions day from being a “snoozer.”

Prayer Calendar: June 23 - 30, 2013

The Call's prayer calendar reminder for this week is...

PRAISE God for the incredible impact of Camp Sychar and other family camps, and pray for continued renewal.

Is your Missionary Day a “snoozer”? Think about ways you can make this day impactful for all generations. Check out www.campsychar.org to see how one camp makes Missionary Day something special.

A Miraculous Donation

An excerpt from...

A Miraculous Donation

By Carolyn W. Wade, Kenya
April-June 2013

In 1996, Ken and I were raising support to arrive in Kenya for our first term with World Gospel Mission. We were making steady progress financially, but one day we received notification of a larger-than-ever monetary gift to our ministry.

This couple, new acquaintances of ours, called us one September day in 1996. They informed us that we would receive a check in the mail for a large amount of money. We were astounded! The man had been unexpectedly named in a relative’s will. The couple chose to bless us with this gift that moved us over the top financially. 

Not only did the amount convert into a few hundred dollars of support a month for that first term, but it also met our cash need and secured funds for a vehicle to use in Kenya. Never before and never since has this occurred in our days of ministry.

What a blessing that was to us and how encouraging it was to our families who were also new to a faith mission endeavor. We quickly learned that God would raise up funds from obedient people (not necessarily people we knew well).

Each time we come on homeland ministry assignment (HMA provides missionaries with opportunities to share their call to missions and to challenge believers to become actively involved in missions), this experience reminds us that God did it before and will do it again as we trust Him.

Missionaries (and anyone involved in Christian service), believe that God will raise up people to help you get to the field or keep you ministering to those you have been called to serve. And to all of The Call readers, your gift is never too small or too large. You will have immeasurable impact on sharing Christ around the world.

Many of you have been faithful in your giving throughout your lives. Consider leaving a legacy with your finances that will impact ministry far beyond your time here on earth. If you would like to discuss your estate planning options, contact Mark Moore at 765.661.2803. All discussions will be held at no charge and in complete confidence.

Have a financial gift God has asked you to share? Giving to the WGM missionary staff is a short click away. Visit www.wgm.org/donateonline to share your financial blessings and ensure your gift will change the world for Christ.

A Visit for Silas

An excerpt from...

A Visit for Silas
Using a long weekend to share God’s loveBy Linda Spriegel, Kenya
April-June 2013

“Mom, this weekend when I come home, I would like us to get Silas from the Africa Gospel Church Baby Center and bring him to see his mom.” My daughter Julia was calling from boarding school, planning for the long mid-term weekend coming up. With all three of our teenagers at Rift Valley Academy, my husband, John, and I look forward to these precious times when they visit and the anticipated family games, hikes, talks, and relaxing. But add a 21-month-old to the mix? And there were several hurdles to jump to get the needed permissions and make the arrangements. Yet we knew this was not the first or last time we as a family would be stretched by Julia’s compassionate heart, so we agreed to pray with her and began working on the details.

We had met Jennifer and her son Silas 10 months earlier when Jennifer brought him to Tenwek Hospital. Silas, at 11 months, was a classic picture of malnutrition. At this hospital visit, Jennifer told Dr. Chuck Bemm that she needed to give up her baby and that someone else needed to take care of him or he would die. Knowing Julia’s love for children and her hours of experience volunteering at the nursery, the Bemms asked her to care for Silas while they handled the necessary paperwork. Then Julia and our other daughter, Rebecca, escorted him the three hours to the Baby Center and handed him over to the staff’s loving care.

In the months that followed, Julia visited Silas a couple times, and we were able to show his pictures to his mom, who expressed a desire to see him. When Julia heard that Jennifer was in her last stages of HIV, she wanted to give Jennifer a tangible evidence of God’s care by bringing healthy Silas to see her.

It was a beautiful morning when we drove to Jennifer’s village with Silas to reunite him with his family. His mother and his four siblings who were there were overjoyed to see chubby Silas. As Jennifer shared her gratefulness, she referred to the story of Moses, identifying with his mother who had given up her son and one day he had been mightily used by God. She has the same vision for Silas. When her other children asked if they would get to see Silas again, she said, “He is in God’s hands. We don’t know if he will help our family or someone else’s, but he will be used by God in his future.”

Silas is back at the Baby Center, waiting to be adopted. Sadly, Jennifer passed away in December 2012. Even though she was very sick before she died, her favorite thing to talk about was Jesus, and she knew He had good plans for all her children.

You can offer continued care to Silas and other little ones at the AGC Baby Center through the Great Co-Mission Catalog. By recruiting your friends and family to personally connect with this need, you have the opportunity to change these little lives forever. Learn more about the AGC Baby Center project needs at www.wgm.org/catalog.

June 16-22, 2013 Prayer Calendar

The Call's prayer calendar reminder for this week is...

PRAY for the needs of the children and staff at the Africa Gospel Church Baby Center in Kenya.

To learn more about the AGC Baby Center ministry visit: http://www.wgm.org/agcbabycenter. 

Where Do Your Interests Lie?

An excerpt from...

Where Do Your Interests Lie?

By Debbie McKelvey, Texas-Mexico Border Ministries
April-June 2013

God loves to use the things we’re excited about to build His kingdom.

What captures your attention? Do you enjoy playing soccer or football? Maybe God would like to use your love for sports to donate sports equipment to Taylor Community Center so missionaries like Gerson Tejeda, Tim Benner, and Jorge Vaca can use them to reach kids and adults.

Click Give to donate sports equipment through the Sports for the Savior—Mexico Great Co-Mission Catalog

project.

Do you like to do crafts? Taylor Community Center and Taylor Christian School would love donated craft items. Better yet, McAllen, Texas, has a Michaels arts and crafts store. Gift certificates to Michaels would greatly help Betsy Tejeda, Christina McBride, Kim Benner, and me in doing Bible clubs, ladies teas, etc., at the center.

Many of you are concerned about education. Missionary Marsha Hartley would love to see more funds donated to our student sponsorship program at Taylor Christian School. The director of Taylor Christian School would like to receive funds to help pay our hard-working teachers. As far as education goes, I must warn you that if you even begin to discuss Campbell’s soup labels or Box Tops for Education with Bill and Betsy Tarr, you may not get them to stop talking! 

Provide student sponsorships to Taylor Christian School through the It’s Either the School of Hard Knocks or…—Mexico Great Co-Mission Catalog project.

Do you like to eat? Of course you do! I have a wonderful supporter who sends me fast-food gift certificates to hand out for ministry. The point is, ask God to show you how He can use your interests to reach people for Jesus on the Texas-Mexico border or another mission field where He would like you to make a difference. 

Maybe He wants you to regularly support one of the above-mentioned missionaries or one of our missionaries who lives in Mexico, or to send them goodies they can use. Above all, please pray about whether God would have you personally use your interests by visiting a field.

To support any of the missionaries serving on the Texas-Mexico border, visit the field pages at www.wgm.org/mexico and click on the Connect and partner with those who serve link.

If God would have you visit a field, learn more at www.wgm.org/go.

Prayer Calendar: June 9-15, 2013

The Call's prayer calendar offers this mission's prayer point for this week:

PRAY that Taylor Christian School and Taylor Community Center in McAllen, Texas, will bring hope to their surrounding community.

"God loves to use the things we’re excited about to build His kingdom. When He called Peter and Andrew (Matthew 4:18-19), Jesus didn’t say, “Come, follow me, and I will make you teachers.” He said, “Come, follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” He knew this terminology would capture Peter’s and Andrew’s attention because fishing is what they did for a living." ~Debbie McKelvey, from Where Do Your Interests Lie?

If You Have a Semester

An excerpt from...

If You Have a Semester

By Gabe Bain, Volunteer
April-June 2013

If you are like most Christian college students, you are looking for ways to use your talents to bring glory to God and further His kingdom. 

As a writer, I often found it difficult to discover opportunities to serve God with my writing. As a student journalist, telling the truth can be a great way to use my God-given talents, but sometimes I felt like I wanted something more.

Last April, I learned about an opportunity to become an intern and write for World Gospel Mission. I did not know much about WGM or the internships they provided. I just knew writing, school credit, and missions all sounded great to me. I was able to meet certain graduation requirements, and more importantly, glorify God by telling the story of missionaries around the world.

I sent in my application and left the rest in God’s hands. I was called for an interview and was accepted. The warm environment created by the staff made the three-month experience very enjoyable.

WGM provides many internship opportunities, ranging from writing and graphic design to photography and marketing. You can gain real-world work experience as you serve God with your talents. You will also be blessed by the staff that works here. They demonstrate what a walk with God should look like.

If you have a semester, don’t drag your feet on a great experience and opportunity that could shape your passions and sharpen your talents. A semester of serving and loving with your gifts is waiting for you.

If you have a semester, apply for a WGM internship at www.wgm.org/
internships.

Prayer Calendar: June 2-8, 2013

The Call's prayer calendar offers this missions prayer point for this week:

PRAY that God will raise up college students to serve on the mission field.

"If you have a semester, don’t drag your feet on a great experience and opportunity that could shape your passions and sharpen your talents. A semester of serving and loving with your gifts is waiting for you."  

~Gabe Bains, former writing intern