As we approach the Christmas season, we’re making plans for this year’s fiestas, a youth worker’s convention, and next year’s 20th anniversary. You’ll surely be hearing more, but here’s a quick update:
Youth Workers Convention
Faith Ministry will be exhibiting at the National Youth Workers Convention in Nashville Nov. 21-24 (http://nywc.com). If your church’s youth workers will be there, be sure to have them stop by our booth. A friend of the ministry has provided the funding so we can exhibit, and we’re going to have a nice booth. We want to invite the estimated 4,000 youth workers who will be there to join us in Reynosa and Miguel Alemán for what we all know is a life-changing experience in service with our brothers and sisters in Mexico.
Christmas Plans
We’ll again this year be holding Christmas fiestas in our churches at Reynosa and Miguel Alemán, and we’ll also be visiting many families in the colonies to take them food and blankets. If you or your church would like to contribute, we’ll purchase candy and toys for the fiestas and blankets and food to supplement a fantastic gift of packages donated by Meals of Hope. Each year, hundreds of children attend the fiestas, and this year, we’re hoping to visit 250 to 300 families. Contact David Rodriguez, our director, if you’d like to participate at (956) 631-3567.
Also, again this year we’ll be providing a way for you to buy meaningful Christmas gifts for your loved ones. With the alternative gift program, you can, for example, buy a shovel for $14 to benefit Faith Ministry’s work. We’ll send your loved one a card acknowledging the gift (printed or electronic). Just go here: http://fs17.formsite.com/kenm875/form20/index.html.
Anniversary
Even as we celebrated 19 years of service in October, we began looking to 2014 when we’ll mark 20 years. We’re gathering stories and statistics and planning for a get-together in October. Watch for details!
Giving Thanks
As Thanksgiving nears, this is a great time to take stock of how God has worked among his people along the border of Mexico. Faith Ministry has weathered some hard times and difficult challenges. Most of all, we are grateful that God works even through us, (somewhat) normal people from varied walks of life, across regions of two countries. What a blessing!