Newark Lutheran Church

This past Sunday Jacinda, Stella and I traveled to a very special place, Newark, IL.  Newark is the town where both my parents grew up, where they got married, where my dad was ordained, where my grandparents (Williamson) still live, where many of my cousins live and where I visited many times in my youth.  I remember going to Vacation Bible School at Newark Lutheran Church and Fourth of July "tractor pulls" downtown (kids pulling weights on little toy tractors).  My Grandma Sue worked at the Newark library and one year my sister, my cousins, and I got to ride in the town 4th of July parade (the theme was Wheel of Fortune and I was Pat Sajak).

This weekend we had the opportunity to share about Blessman Ministries with the congregation of Newark Lutheran.  They were very welcoming and very excited about the ministry.  God is doing great things in their congregation.  It is always exciting to be with Christians who are excited about worshiping God and sharing the good news of the salvation of Jesus Christ.  

Newark Lutheran Church

Last week, when we were at Flanagan we experienced similar excitement.  The congregation of St. John Evangelical Lutheran church welcomed us warmly and was excited about the work and ministry of Blessman Ministries.  

I gave a similar message at each.  You can check it out here: Faith To Move Mountains.  The text I chose was from Matthew 17.  At the beginning of the chapter Jesus climbs a mountain with Peter, James and John and is transfigured to reveal his glory as the Son of God and Elijah and Moses appear with him on the mountain.  The issue, however, arises when we think we can climb that mountain and attain the glory of God on our own.  We are the "unbelieving and perverse generation" that sits at the bottom of the mountain thinking we can attain glory through our own efforts without God (Matt. 17:17).  But what we need is a God that comes down from that glory on high to live with us and save us down at the bottom.  Hey that sounds like a holiday that is coming up in a couple of months!  

Throughout this whole process of raising funds to join Blessman Ministries in South Africa we have relied upon Jesus Christ to guide us and provide for us.  We are excited to be able to join Newark Lutheran, St. John's, Emanuel Lutheran (Lodi, CA), Christ Lutheran Church (West Covina, CA), and Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church (Valley Springs, CA) in what God is doing in South Africa.  We also are thankful for and excited about all the individuals who have supported us already.  We are excited about all the opportunities still ahead and know that as long as we have even a grain of faith in Jesus Christ and trust that he is with us here in our everyday lives that mountains will be moved.  

Please check out Doc's newest blog post about the Lethabo Sewing Center and other BMI ministries in South Africa here: President's Blog.  And follow Blessman Ministries, Inc. on facebook at https://www.facebook.com/BlessmanMinistries  

Lethabo Sewing Center. A BMI Microenterprise.

God's blessings and thank you for your continued support and prayers,

Matt