Update on Friends

Well this week's blog, I thought I would give an update on some of our FCC friends...

1. Luke Mann is safely on his short term mission trip to Ireland. You can actually read about their work and keep up with his team by going the their Mission 2008 Blog at www.TnTTeams.org. There will be pictures and regular updates on Luke's trip. Please pray for him.
2. This past week I was able to chat with Ricky Nyhoff (China) and Callie Fleming (Korea). It was so good to hear that they are doing well. Ricky was no where near the earthquake and China and is safe. They are both coming home this summer and we will be able to hear about their work on Sunday morning this summer. Ricky will be going back in August for another year of teaching in China. Please continue to pray for these two as well as Nick Centanni (Korea).
3. Steven Curtis Chapman lost his five year old adopted daughter to a tragic accident this week. Although I don't personally know Steven, he's been my friend and encourager for along time with his music. I hurt for him and his family, but am so grateful that there are outlets to express support, and build the Kingdom! I wanted to share this site with you and you can do as the Lord leads you: http://members.shaohannahshope.org/site/PageServer

May you stay focused on the Kingdom: holding the ropes for others, and looking for ways to get involved yourself.

Have a great weekend!

Pastor Mike

Cyclones and Earthquakes

Can you make a difference? It is overwhelming to think about nearly 100,000 dead in Myanmar due to a cyclone and 18,000 dead in China due to an earthquake. That's a lot of people!! More are displaced and in need of medical attention and their are new opportunities for sharing the gospel. I was reading a secular source about how US aid is finally beginning to get through:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24590824

and then, it was good to read about Franklin Graham's effort through Samaritan's Purse. You can get a report and see pictures at:

http://www.samaritanspurse.org/

Then I read about what Southern Baptists are doing at this site:

http://www.baptistglobalresponse.com/main/

When we are overwhelmed by the world's needs we tend to shut down because we just really don't believe we can make a difference, or we get cynical because we aren't sure the help will actually get there (a legitimate concern). I'm reminded of an old story and I found a version of it on the internet:

Two men were walking toward each other on an otherwise deserted beach. One man was in his early 20s, the other obviously much older. The smooth damp sand was littered with starfish, washed onto the land during high tide. They were stranded there when the tide ebbed. Thousands of starfish were doomed to die in the warm morning sun. The younger man watched the older man pick up starfish one at a time and toss them back into the ocean, giving them a chance to survive. The young man thought, “Why is he doing that? How foolish. He can’t save them all.” As they came near one another, the younger one felt compelled to point out to the older man the futility in his action. “You know,” he said, “you can’t save them all. Most of them will die here on the sand. What you are doing really won’t make any difference.” The older man studied the young man for a moment. Then he bent down, picked up a starfish and tossed it into the water. He smiled at the young man and said, “It made a difference to that one.” Then he walked on, picking up starfish and tossing them back into the sea.

We can make a difference with one, two or more! If you would like to give to Myanmar relief you can give to one of the agencies listed in this blog or give through our church and we will do our best to give in the best channel possible to help as many people as possible. If you give through FCC, make sure you indicate "Myanmar Relief" on the check.

We can make a difference!

Luke Mann's Opportunity

I recently received a letter from one of our students about a summer missions opportunity. Here's Luke Mann's letter.

"Dear FCC,

Well, I'm back at Emmaus finishing up a Bachelor's degree in Biblical studies. Also this year, I am attending Northeast Iowa Community College for an Asociate of Arts in Business. This is the first year of a cooperative effort between the two colleges. It's a bit more work commuting and such, but ultimately, I think it will be worth it.

This summer, I have an opportunity to go to Ireland fo ra missions trip. I would be arriving May 19th and returning June 12th. We will meet at an estate on the coast and complete 3-4 days of training. Then, we will break up into teams of 8 and spend 14 plus days in different cities doing door-to-door witnessing, street evangelism, kid's clubs, and work with the local assemblies. The last few days are going to be spent touring a few famous spots around Dublin.

Please consider teaming with me through the support of both prayer and finances. Please pray that the hearts of the Irish people we come into contact with will be malleable, pray that as a team we will have unity, and that as individuals we will have the necessary courage. The cost of the trip will be around $1400 plus the cost of a plane ticket. If you want to help financially, checks can be made out to me and mailed to:

Luke Mann
c/0 Emmaus Bible College
2570 Asbury Road
Dubuque, IA 52201

Funds must be postmarked by April 19th at the lates. Thanks so much for your support in this adventure with the Gospel!

Sincerely,

Luke Mann"

Luke if you are reading this--we expect a few pictures!! :)

God continues to give us mission opportunities. Don't forget that the deadline for registration for the Chilton Builders trip to Carlinville, is March 30. The deadline for the June trip to El Salvador is April 6. There are more details in my previous blog.

For the Kingdom!

Pastor Mike

Comings and Goings

It seems like someone is either coming or going...actually it is more correct to say someone is coming and someone is going...

They New Orleans team came back this past Friday/Saturday and they had a great trip...Karen Ward returns from El Salvador tomorrow (March 14)...our students left for a spring break mission trip this week...everybody is coming and going! I love it! Our next two scheduled church mission trips are:

• El Salvador - June 3-10. We will be doing a church-wide retreat/revival as well as evangelism in the community and building relationships with our church partners in Antiguo Cuscatlan....April 6 is the deadline for signing up for this trip. The approximate cost of this trip is $1000 and we will begin training in April. Please let me know ASAP if you are interested. So far we have 4 or 5 who have expressed going.
• Chilton Baptist Builders - June 15-20. We will be going to Carlinville, Illinois to work with the Baptist church there...folks from all over the country join this group and there could be as many as 100 raise this church building! By the way...this is Alana Beasley's mom's church! They would like to have the $100 registration fee by March 30! I have copies of the application in the office.

There is a chance that Rolando and Alexandra from El Salvador will be here in April to visit us! I've very excited and will keep you posted!

Please be praying for our Easter service and for our John 3:16 emphasis...that God will draw more souls into the Kingdom...

For the Kingdom!

Pastor Mike

New Orleans, El Salvador, John 3:16

As always, there is a lot going on in the way of missions this week...

• New Orleans. We have a team of 15 down in New Orleans helping rebuild FBC, Chalmette from the Katrina disaster...isn't amazing how long ago Katrina hit, yet the work continues. It takes commitment to see the job done, and it is my hope that we can stay with Chalmette, until the building is done...then we can plan some outreach trips for the church. I talked with the project coordinator down there and our team has been painting beds, running electrical and plumbing, finishing some siding up high, and putting some finishing touches on the church's annex. They are working hard! Please remember to pray for them this week.

• El Salvador. Karen Ward is in El Salvador and will return March 14. This will be an extremely difficult trip for Karen as she will be packing up her things and saying 'see you later' to our brothers and sisters in Christ in El Salvador. Her official missionary position is closing there because of family obligations, but her ministry through our church and even with El Salvador will continue...and our partnership with Antiguo Cuscatlan is continuing...our next trip is scheduled for June 3-10. If you are interested in going please let me know. Take some extra time this week to pray for Karen Ward please.

• John 3:16. I'm excited about spending 4 weeks beginning on Easter to share the good news about the most famous verse in the Bible. We will start off the empasis with a special prayer service on 3.16 (March 16), we will have evangelistic booklets for our friends, invitations for Easter, and have over 24 to 36 testimonies shared those four weeks in 8:00 worship, 10:30 worship, youth Sunday School, and in children's church. I am really excited to hear many of our folks how Christ has changed their lives. Please start praying for this outreach emphasis...I'll be sharing more later.

For the Kingdom!

Pastor Mike

Here I am, send me

Well, I drove to work and was listening to KHis radio and heard my favorite artist...Keith Green. They played the song: Here I am, send me...Here is a portion of the lyrics:

Oh Lord, there's just so much to be done.
Oh Lord, so many souls to be won,
Oh Lord, this world is falling apart,
Dying for love from a broken heart.

Here am I, send me, though there's really not that much I can do.
What I have seems so small, but I want to give it all to you.

There is so much to be done, and what we have to offer seems small...but He wants it. He wants to use it for a lost and dying world! What is going on in missions this week...there is so much to be done:

• The chainsaw crews are back and they will probably be back next week! They have helped clear debris from over 70 homes. They need help 'dragging.' If you are interested come to the church each morning around 8:00 am.

• We have a mission team going to New Orleans to do construction work on FBC, Chalmette, on Sunday. Here is the roster of folks that you can pray for: Scott and Mary Bechtold - FCC; Dan Dickerson - Millersville; Guy Foster -Clarkton; Ron and Jo Ann Hahs; Travis, Melissa, and Zach Hoehne - FCC; Wayne Kiester - Millersville; Mark and Billie Kiester - FCC; Mel Riehn - Millersville; Jaunita Van Dyke - Bethany; Charlene Williams - FCC. Here is Chalmette's website: http://www.fbcchalmette.org/

• Please pray for Karen Ward as she travels to El Salvador March 3-14, as she brings closure to her missionary experience there.

• One of our very own FCC students has been in China. If you would like to get missionary updates from Ricky Nyhoff in China, send him an e-mail at rnyhoff@gmail.com and he will add you to his list!

Next week I hope to write about our John 3:16 experience for Easter...For the Kingdom!

Mike

Chainsaw Ministry

Hey FCC,

What a week!! Our building has been the hub of chainsaw ministry! Disaster chainsaw teams have been in and out of our church ministering in Cape, Jackson, and Fruitland. Here is a summary of the work they have done so far:

"Cape Girardeau County requested help from The Southern Baptist to help coordinateall chainsaw work in the effected areas. A hotline was set up through the CapeGirardeau County EOC for people to call requesting help with debris. The hotline,operated (by Southern Baptist) on Saturday, Februay 16th (8am - 5pm), Sunday,February 17th (1-5pm), and Monday, February 18th (8am - 5pm). Chainsaw crews began working on Monday, February 18th (with the exception of theLynwood Unit who had already responded and completed 22 jobs by then). Volunteer workers list for hotline and chainsaw units: (This list does not includethe Lynwood group.)

Saturday, February 16th = 5 workers
Sunday, February 17th = 11
Monday, February 18th = 15
Tuesday, February 19th = 20
Wednesday, February 20th = 23
Total volunteer days = 74
Total jobs cleared 2/15 - 2/20 (counting Lynwood's group) = 64
Work order requests 201 (and still some coming in)
Jobs completed by others = 17
The chainsaw units responding are Mt Salem / Wyaconda Association, JeffersonAssociation, Lynwood Baptist."

Wow! That's a lot of work for three days...I know of one salvation and I've been given a name of someone who is searching that I will be visiting tomorrow. All because of a chainsaw and folks willing to serve! The chainsaw crews will be back next week and they need folks to 'drag' limbs! If you would like to help 'drag,' just show up at FCC at 7:00 am.

Let's keep being used of God to spread the Good News of His love!