October 12th is the 186th Homecoming at Holly Springs Baptist Church. Wow! 186 Years! Jesus, Jennifer, and I would like to be there with you all as you come together to celebrate this special day. And to see friends that you may not have seen for quite some time. I have so many great memories of growing up going to H.S.B.C. I thank God for the great blessing of having me grow up there, and then raise my own children there.
October 12th also marks the four month anniversary of Jesus, Jennifer, and I serving as missionaries to Honduras. Our time here has been so amazing. Jesus and Jennifer are doing great in school. They were excited as they got on the bus today because it is Wednesday. The medical brigades work at Churches on Mon., Tues., Thurs., and Fri., but on Wed. they go out to see the facilities at Rancho Ebenezer. The kids there challenge them to a game of soccer, and Jesus and Jennifer really enjoy that. Plus they get out of school early on Wed. They get Home around 1:30, instead of the normal time, 5:00.
In my spare time this month, I have been involved in a project much more involved than just installing a floor. We were going to put a concrete floor in a Home, but when we went to measure and see what materials were needed, we found out that the house had fallen down during a heavy storm. The lady that lives there had just stacked everything that had been her Home back together, and was living there with her four small children. Tin and boards were leaned up to form two sides, a plastic tarp was the back wall, tin was laid to form a roof, and the front of the house is just open. So it was decided that we would build her a Home. WGO donated money to purchase the materials for a concrete floor, and enough money was pooled together to purchase wood, tin, nails, and other materials to get started. We had planned to have a Birthday Party for one of the children, Samuel, who turned six on Oct. 3rd, and we were glad that we were able to get the roof installed the day before. It is the rainy season here now, so we ended up working in the rain. But at least now the family has a place where they can stay dry. The mothers name is Maria, and the children are Maria Fernanda (3), Samuel (6), Geny (9), and Glenda (10). We have worked in Homes that were in very poor condition before, but this was by far, the one that was in the most need.
The last Photos posted at http://roymorton.blogspot.com/ are of us working on the house, and of Samuel’s birthday party. I took a lot of photos of the party. It was amazing to me to see so many kids wading across the river to come to the party. I loved to see them helping one another, holding hands, older ones carrying younger ones on their backs. Some making several trips to be sure all of the younger ones got across safely. I didn’t notice it at the party, but when I got Home later and was looking at the photos, I saw several ladies/mothers, sitting on the other side of the river eating birthday cake. They were waiting there for the party to finish, and some of the kids had waded back across the river to carry them some cake and even some drink too. That is so typical of the Honduran people in the poorer neighborhoods where we work. No matter how little they have, they are always willing to share with others, and to help you in whatever way they can. They are far richer in the truly important things in life, than the average person today is. It reminds me so much of life growing up in Holly Springs. It was a really close community where everybody knew everybody. And people didn’t hesitate to reach out to help one another. People took time with one another. I thank God that he let me grow up there when I did.
As I to prepared to write this update, I began to read some scriptures. As I read each one, I felt I should include them here. The following verses in Ephesians were some that I read later on, but I feel God wanted them here first. I think they are especially appropriate as many who may not normally come to H.S.B.C., come back together for Homecoming.
Ephesians 4:1-7
Therefore I, a prisoner for serving the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of your calling, for you have been called by God. Be humble and be patient with each other, making allowance for each other’s faults because of your love. Always keep yourselves united in the Holy Spirit, and bind yourselves together with peace.
We are all one body, we have the same spirit, and we have all been called to the same glorious future. There is only one Lord, one faith, one baptism, and there is only one God and Father who is over us all and in us all and living through us all.
Ephesians 4:16
Under his direction the whole body (the church) is fitted 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 3:14-21
When I think of the wisdom and scope of Gods plan, I fall to my knees and pray to the Father, the creator of everything in heaven and on earth. I pray that from His glorious unlimited resources He will give you mighty inner strength through his Holy Spirit. And I pray that Christ will be more and more at home in your hearts as you trust in him. May your roots go down deep into the soil of God’s marvelous love. And may you have the power to understand, as all of God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love really is. May you experience the love of Christ, though it is so great you will never fully understand it. Then you will be filled with the fullness of life and power that comes from God.
Now glory be to God! By his mighty power at work within us, he is able to accomplish infinitely more than we would ever dare to ask or hope. May he be given glory in the church and in Christ Jesus forever and ever through endless ages. Amen.
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
"Sense Of Urgency"
Luke 9:23-25
Then He said to the crowd, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must put aside your selfish ambition, shoulder your cross daily, and follow me. If you try to keep your life for yourself, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for me, you will find true life. And how do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose or forfeit your own soul in the process?”
John 12:25-26
“Those who love their life in this world will lose it. Those who despise their life in this world will keep it for eternal life. All those who want to be my disciples must come and follow me, because my servants must be where I am. And if they follow me, the Father will honor them.”
Mathew 28:18-20
Jesus came and told His disciples, “I have been given complete authority in heaven and earth. Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
Seeing God at work daily all around us is such an awesome experience, and I thank God for this wonderful opportunity to serve here in His name. If you have read our previous posts, you know that when we came to Honduras we only planned to stay nine days. Gods plan was different than ours and we ended up staying with a commitment to serve here for at least four years. Normally, prospective missionaries go back to the U.S. and work for six to nine months raising support, before they come back to begin their time of service. WGO requires that missionaries have a minimum of 80% of their projected budget, in either money on hand, or at least in monthly commitments, before they begin service. (Signed commitment forms, filled out and sent to the Humble, TX. Office.) In our case, 80% equals $2,288. At this point, we have less than half of that in monthly commitments. Our first month, August, we met our budget. Our second month, September, we didn’t start the month out good, but by the time it was over we ended up within $130. of our budget. For Oct. we are $1,074. short of making our budget. I know we are where God wants us to be. I heard His Call, and we came. We are serving in a ministry that God is using to spread the news of Jesus Christ, and to help people in great need. I am accustomed to living on less, and I feel right at home here with the Honduran people. Yes, we have more than enough money to live here. But our budget includes just over $1,000. every month to be set aside for insurance, taxes, tithe, plane tickets home once a year, Jesus and Jennifer’s school cost, and other expenses that add up very quickly. God has provided for our needs, and I know that He will continue to do so. We truly “live on faith”. But WGO is concerned that we do not have enough funds committed to us on a monthly basis. I understand that they want to be sure we have enough to not only survive here. They want to feel that we can have the things we need, food, medical care, pay our bills, save for a trip home every year, some day get a vehicle, etc. To satisfy WGO’s financial requirements, we need to get supporters to commit to make monthly donations. At this point, we need at least $1,200. more in monthly commitments. I know God called us here. I also know He has called people to support our service here. We answered our call, now we need the ones He has called to keep us here, to answer their call. If it takes you as long as it took me to answer my call to go into the mission field (years), we are going to have a really tough time here. I pray that you won’t wait so long like I did. Any amount that you would feel comfortable committing to would be great. I am sure that if God is calling you, you already know what the amount is. The best way to make a monthly commitment is to copy and fill out the form below. And send it to the Humble, TX. address.
As I have said before, asking for support is the hardest part about serving. I love my work. I feel so alive, so fulfilled when I am out on a brigade. But for us to be here, I have to ask.
Thank you all for the hard work, your prayers, your calls, emails, encouragement and support that you have done for us. It has been amazing to see and hear how you all have come together to stand with us. This is truly a team effort. All of you are just as big a part of this as we are. Without your support, we could not be here. When you look at the photos we post, when you see those beautiful, sweet smiles on the children's faces, and some of the many different things God does here through us, know that you help make it all possible. Because you help us be here, serving in Gods name.
God Bless You All, Thank You.
___________________________________________________
I (we) would like to join WGO's monthly draft for contributions.
Name _______________________________
Address _______________________________
_______________________________
_______________________________
Designated Funds for Roy Morton $___________
Total Amount of Monthly Deduction $___________
Signature _______________________________
Please enclose a voided check with your request and mail to:
World Gospel Outreach
Attn: Roy Morton Family Fund
P.O. Box 14348
Humble, TX. 77347
___________________________________________________
One time donations can be made by making out a check to
"World Gospel Outreach, and send it to:
World Gospel Outreach
Attn: Roy Morton Family Fund
P.O. Box 14348
Humble, TX., 77347
Be sure to write "Roy Morton Family Fund" in the "For" section of your check.
___________________________________________________
On line donations can be made at http://www.wgoreach.org/
-Click on donations
-The next question is "Designated Ministry"
Find and click on my name, "Roy Morton"
-Next, enter the amount of your donation.
-Next is "Automatic Monthly Charge". Please consider making this a
monthly donation. If you click "Yes", the donation amount will be
automatically charged to you once every month until you cancel it. (If you
are making a monthly commitment, it would be best to fill out the above
form and mail it in to the Humble, TX. address. That way your donation
can be taken directly from your checking account, and will avoid any
handling charges/fees.)
-Fill out your name, address, and financial information. Write any
comments that you would like, and click on "Submit".
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment