jeff_r_ward The most joyful boy I’ve seen…#wmhaiti http://twitpic.com/2o581d
jeff_r_ward MOH’s new Village of Hope, which will house over 200 orphans. Amazing facility and model. #wmhaiti http://twitpic.com/2o3l8e
jeff_r_ward Touring MOH’s school. At 1300 and moving to 3K kids soon. #wmhaiti http://twitpic.com/2o2va3
jeff_r_ward MOH Hospital – making up beds for the amputee soccer team who is arriving. #wmhaiti http://twitpic.com/2o3iwa
jeff_r_ward Col 4:2-4/Eph 6:18-20 what prayer should look like-all times, w/thanks, in the Spirit, watchful/alert, open doors, bold declaration #wmhaiti
jeff_r_ward At the MOH Haiti 1 warehouse which cranks out 50K meals per day thru Christian schools all over Haiti. #wmhaiti http://twitpic.com/2o2di5
jeff_r_ward Hung with kids and now @ the edge of Cite Soleil. Reminded of things I chase which will be rubble. #wmhaiti http://twitpic.com/2nvada
Watermark Team Lands in Haiti-9/11/10
Greetings from Haiti,
We had a great trip down to Haiti. This is much easier traveling than to Africa. As we made our way from PAP to the Mission of Hope the devastation from the earthquake is unbelievable. There are destroyed buildings and homes everywhere.
We arrived Mission of Hope around sunset and were reminded of God’s goodness that we see in His creation. Last night we got to hear stories from the Moh staff of the days and weeks after the quake. How incredible to meet 20 year olds who are serving sacrificially in really tough conditions because they have trusted God and answered the call.
Today we get to worship in the Haitian church and go see PAP up close this afternoon. Please continue your prayers for us and those we’ll be serving.
-Rick Howard
To pray with and for this team, click the following link to the Haiti Prayer Calendar-Fall 2010 .
Back-To-School Cookout at Vickery Kids Club!
Great things are happening at Kids Club! On Tuesday, August 17th, a Back-To-School Cookout was held at the Ivanhoe Apartments in Vickery. This event was to launch the Kids Club and celebrate the new school year through a cookout, handing out school supplies and fellowship.
There were at least 100 kids and their families that were served. The night was fast and furious but all it went well. It was a huge launching point for the ministry and goes a long way in building trust in that community. We handed out 50 backpacks with supplies. Each pack had an encouraging note inside and a flyer telling families about Kids Club. We all walked away believing that it went well and that seeds of trust were built in new lives.
This last Tuesday, we had our first official Kids Club time and had between 30-40 kids. Each week we share the gospel and teach them about what God has to say to us through His Word….so it was fun to see some new ears hearing about their God this week. Pray the new and old kids continue to come ready to listen and engage with each other and the Lord. Only He knows what’s ahead. We can’t wait to see what God does in their hearts this year.
-Charla Dixon
Twitter Weekly Updates for 2010-08-29
- “@marcustoussaint: Reading "Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger" and "Hope Lives" is going to 'ruin' my life.”//yes it will wreck you! #
- Folks coming to Christ through Connecting Point today…come join our "Testimony Team" and be part of one of these stories! #
- Folks coming to Christ through Connecting Point
today…come join our "Testimony Team" and be part of one of these
stories! # - Mercy Street kids hit up Pine Cove! Click to watch video
Last week, Mercy Street
Staff and 120 excited kids from… http://fb.me/yh6qELHV # - Mercy Street kids hit Pine Cove! http://fb.me/w48FPawb #
- Craigslist and Trafficking? Even several states' Attorneys General are cracking down. http://ow.ly/2utDe #
- Great to hang with other churches today and learn more about this evil of human trafficking and how the church can engage it head on! #
- I am learning that God cares more about the person I am than the work I produce. What we call the journey God calls the destination. Denison #
- Great to hear from @mercystdallas this morning. So excited about new ways for our folks to mentor kids and be blessed in return! #
- Mentoring a kid through Mercy Street has been the single most transforming thing for our family this year. Jump in with us in October! #
- Hope Lives Week 4 – Prayer: 1) changes outcomes, 2) is a command, 3) matters to God, & 4) changes us. Nehemiah was on to it! #
- Convinced again that the best way to disciple others is through love, humility, and personal example, rather than condemnation. #
- You're heard the human trafficking stats but "a million" is just a number until you meet the one…so meet Lillia http://t.co/gmgKKS8 #
Mercy Street kids hit Pine Cove!
Last week, Mercy Street Staff and 120 excited kids from our community, loaded up on three giant buses, and traveled the now familiar route to Pine Cove Outback in Columbus, Texas. The partnership that was started with the camp executives back in 2008 has naturally trickled down to the counselors and our kids who look forward to this week all summer. With pillows, sleeping bags and clothes that in a week will all smell like lake water, the kids prepared to be challenged physically, mentally, and spiritually and to see things they simply don’t get to see living day to day in the heart of the inner city.
This year, along with the 4th -8th graders, we took 11 high school kids who we’ve seen the Lord mature over the years as Counselors In Training. It was a sight to behold. They quickly rose to the call of leadership as the younger kids looked to them for help on both the zip line and relationships with their cabin-mates. They were amazing and we loved the privilege of seeing these 11 become what Mercy Street is all about; being used by the Lord to help kids become the agents of change in their own community.
The examples these teens were to the younger kids was astounding and they instilled hope in everyone for the next generation of leaders being raised up in West Dallas. They became rock-stars in the best sense of the term and were, possibly for the first time, held up among their peers for standing against the voices in our community that scream from all sides to live your life for you and you alone. We pray they, that all the kids, will take hold of the beautiful lessons from Matthew 5 that encourage us to stand up in our ‘sit down’ world – to be cities on a hill – and that persecution that comes because of Him is indeed a blessing.
Deep in the heart of the property at Pine Cove, when the sun has set, we looked up at the sky with our campers and showed them the stars that literally fill the night. We pray they will understand that, just because we can’t see all those stars easily in the skies of West Dallas, it doesn’t mean they’re not there . Much like the Lord, we must see Him with eyes of faith, believing He is an ever present help and hope and his mercies are without end. Thank you for all your help preparing these kids for camp. You are pouring your lives into children we pray are becoming a royal priesthood – the light of the world.
from Mercy Street staff
Twitter Weekly Updates for 2010-08-22
- whew…getting ready for Connecting Point and sermon #3 tonight. New respect for pastors who do this every week! #
- Got a letter from President and Laura Bush today… Wondered whether it was real. http://twitpic.com/2fqpcx #
- Debriefed with Uganda team leadership. So excited about what they did and future opportunities with the new trade school. More to come! #
- Hot button topic of the day? A biblical response to immigration – here is World Relief weighing in at http://usat.me/39744602 #
- Temp just went down 40 degrees…found one of my Christmas CDs under the car seat! Can listen to this music year round. #
- Will be good to spend some time with the http://www.rightnow.org folks this morning. #
- Just got tix to Kirk Franklin show to benefit Central Dallas Ministries…c'mon and join us! #
- “@suzpeeps: It takes 10 minutes to watch, but a litfetime to grasp!… http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AhfUzodLRvk”//one of my favorites! #
Cleaning up De Zavala Elementary, 2nd Saturday style!
This past weekend, the 2nd Saturday crew rolled out, got out their scrub brushes, and helped get De Zavala Elementary School squeaky clean for kids in West Dallas. Beyond just making the school nicer for teachers and staff, principals there tell us that just having the kids walk into a clean and organized learning environment raises academic scores substantially. Way to go!
This coming Saturday, there are even more opportunities to get these schools ready, as we clean our new partner school, CF Carr Elementary, this coming Saturday morning. For more information on how you can help, please email sschweinfurth@watermark.org. And, watch the Watermark News this Sunday and/or grab an “Impact…Education” card at the Welcome Center for details on all of the upcoming opportunities!