Hello Folks!
It’s that time of year again…time to sign up for our Summer Mission trips!
Here’s the breakdown:
WONDER VALLEY RETREAT with Joni and Friends :: March 28 – April 2, 2010
This trip involves spending a week at a summer camp with families who have members with disabilities. You are paired with the member who has the disability and get to accompany them to the camp’s activities.
THAILAND :: Mid June to Early July, 2010
This intense trip to Chiang Mai requires a lot of hard work and compassion. Areas of ministry will include hosting a VBS program and various construction projects.
SOUTH AFRICA:: Late June-Early July, 2010
Details are still in the works, but this trip will include soccer and evangelism ministry and we’ll be partnering with Jabulani Africa Ministries.
COSTA RICA :: July 12th-24, 2010 :: w/ Students International
You will have the opportunity to partner with S.I.‘s full time staff, working in occupational ministry sites serving in areas that you are passionate about or interested in – Education, Construction, Medical, Social Work, etc.
Visit our site for more information and to fill out an application for any of the above trips. If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to ask! And thank you for your desire to serve missionally!
Today is the rollout of Mission Christmas. Something that we believe, as a church, will contribute in a positive way to our work in the downtown community this Christmas season.
Our goal with Mission Christmas is to provide high quality, new and gently used toys and gifts for hard working families in the downtown Fresno neighborhood at an affordable price. We believe that there is dignity for families in purchasing their own Christmas gifts for their children and family.
How does it work? Donate new & gently used toys and clothes, for children of all ages, to Neighborhood Thirft. We will sell them, not give them away, at a discounted price to working parents who can afford them. Those who are unemployed will be able to work at Neighborhood Thrift for vouchers – and with these vouchers they can purchase Christmas gifts at Neighborhood Thrift. Purchase proceeds will be used to provide jobs and training at the store for community residents. Watch this video to see what this could look like…
To learn how you can be a part of Mission Christmas visit the Mission Christmas Website or download this flyer.
Just wanted to update you all and thank you for your support of The Well Missions through our Tri-Tip Fundraiser. We were able to raise over $15,000!!! That is over 1,600lbs of beef! Without your love and support this would not be possible. By supporting you are a part of God’s work throughout this globe! Thanks again. You will be able to hear from the teams as they go out via this Missions Blog, but more on that later!
Have you ever volunteered at a ministry event and wondered, “Is this really making a difference? Does what I’m doing even matter to this person?” Honestly, sometimes I have felt like that. I have been serving in the Target Neighborhood Ministry for almost 3 years now, and have spent many hours playing sports and crafts with the kids at Saturday Sports, handing out flyers in the neighborhood, and helping at other community events. Sometimes I wonder what the people in the neighborhood are really thinking about our presence there. Does it really matter, do they remember The Well and what we have been doing out there, but most importantly, do they feel God’s love through us?
Last Saturday at Saturday Sports I got an answer to that question. A woman named Raquel “Rockie” brought her three kids out to Saturday Sports for the first time. She was asking me questions about the program, and if it was ok to leave her younger son there. I assured her he would be fine, and that we would take good care of him.
She told me that she had lived in the neighborhood, but had to move away when her brother passed away a few months ago. We talked about that for a while and how hard that transition has been for her. Then she said, “You know you guys came to wash my car a couple of years ago when I was living there.” It was then that I realized I had met her before. I said, “Wait, was it a little blue car and did you live in the house around the corner?” She told me that was her, and I was so excited and yelled, “I washed your car!”
Two years ago I had been on a team with some other girls at the first Serve Day that went door to door washing people’s cars. I remember feeling kind of discouraged that day because only two people of all the houses we went to let us wash their cars. I was thinking, why couldn’t I be doing something more meaningful than walking around the neighborhood lugging this heavy hose, just to wash two cars? If only I could take a step back sometimes to see what God can see. He knows the seeds that are being planted and can see the harvest to come. We just have to trust in His perfect plan and pray that He will use us where we can best serve Him.
Rockie went on to tell me that she had recently been to Neighborhood Thrift and bought some of the cards they sell. Carol Young had this great idea to have the kids at Saturday Sports paint and draw pictures that she later prints into cards that are sold at Neighborhood Thrift. Those are the cards that Rockie bought. Now Rockie’s daughter Cecelia was at Saturday Sports painting pictures that would be turned into greeting cards and sold at the Thrift Store.
It was just so amazing to see the connections that God made through 3 different aspects of the Target Neighborhood Ministry; Neighborhood Thrift, Serve Day, and now Saturday Sports. If you don’t think God is changing lives down there, come and see for yourself. Recently we have had over 100 kids come out to Saturday Sports. What stories are going to be told about each of them in the years to come? I pray that they will be stories about life change, and a neighborhood that is on fire for Christ. Allow yourself to be used by God; even in the little things that may seem trivial at the time… I dare you!
- Stephanie Anthony (Target Neighborhood Leader for Susan B. Anthony)
So The Well is now officially a Mega-Church… How are we going to engage in God’s Mission. I encourage you to watch this video of a conversation with two folks that love God’s mission, but see it playing out in different ways. As we The Well engage in mobilizing the people in God’s mission using small groups and the power of small is going to be key to our future. How is your lifegroup going to engage in God’s mission? We need to be all hands on deck for the mission of God because we can’t and shouldn’t do it through programs.
Our very first extended family member, Holly Cannon, is in town! Come hear how God has dislocated her heart for the Middle East and the Muslim people this Monday evening, October 5th, at 6pm in Cafe Edah at the North Campus.
There will be good food to eat, stories, pictures and much more!
Hope to see you there!
Jessie Wilson
Missions Admin
(559) 326-5100 × 223
Be part of The Well’s outreach in Northern Thailand. Pray. Sponsor. Go. Give. A couple dollars a week can change the lives of kids, families and a village in Thailand. See video and details below.
Info: By Sponsoring a child you become part of the regional strategy to bring sustainability to the Hill Tribes of Northern Thailand. Your donation provides hope for today and for eternity. Your child’s life will be transformed by Indigenous Christian staff sharing God’s love through education, medical car, and assistance with food costs.
What is amazing about the ITDP + Well Community Church partnership is that you have the opportunity to visit your child. You can sleep in the hut onf the child’s family you sponsor! Nothing is more interactive or brings your support alive! Take your children to visit your sponsorship child!
Through your sponsorship, families are provided funds and tuaght practical skills in agricutlure and other business that can enable them to be self reliant. The villagers continue to apply what they learn to greatly enhance their quality of life. Example projects include: livestock, fisheries, cash crops, handicrafts, and village store co-ops. Our goal is to train the families so they will become self sustainable. Each child will only require sponsorship for five years. Once the five years of sponsorship are complete, the family should be able to provide for themselves and all their children.
What to Expect: Once you sponsor a child… Expect a packet mailed to you with a photo and information regarding your child. Two updates on (or notes from) your child every year. Quarterly updates about the school and village your child belongs to.
How: You have two options… 1) Online at www.nextlevelmissions.org (Next Level is the American branch of ITDP) or 2) fill out this Application Form and submit.
If you want more information about Child Sponsorship Download Child Sponsorship Brochure or if you want more information about ITDP and their overall work download ITDP/Next Level Brochure.
Contact Information:
Jessie Wilson
The Well Missions Admin
559.326.5100
jessie@thewellcommunity.org
If you have not heard of Ed Stetzer I would encourage you to grab a book, sermon or article. Stetzer knows the culture and is a constant student of the modern church, but offers a fresh perspective on how we engage and what our response should be. As teams launch for this January to Thailand and Columbia we are all going thru his SENT devotional. I have posted this video for you to hear his perspective on missions and how someone in the church can engage. Listen and learn. (this was taken from a recent “NINES” conference offered by Leadership Network)
