FPC-Midland Belize Blog: April 2017

Wednesday, April 12, 2017

WAW Wednesday ... "4.12.17 The Beauty of the Cross"

"The Word at Work is a ministry that mobilizes churches and individuals to answer God's call to minister to those in need," writes Rev. Tim Tam, Director of the Amarillo, Texas-based ministry. "Through our relationships, God reveals needs and opportunities for service. As we come along side the poor, new friendships develop and doors for ministry open. As we serve, God provides the resources to supply for the needs he reveals."

WAW Wednesday: "4.12.17 The Beauty of the Cross"

Hello Friends,

During Tim Tam's sabbatical, countless friends and partners have inquired about Tim -- how is he? will he be back? WHEN will he be back? Kenny sent me this photo of our long-time friend, Frank Lizama (in photo, below), today and as I forwarded it to Tim I was reminded of how precious these relationships and friendships are -- not only to us, but to God. We were created for them, and He is so pleased when we have healthy relationships with Him - with others - with creation - and with ourselves!

Recently (ironically?) my husband, Mike, and I purchased one of Frank's "Y" Crosses. Frank says he designed it prayerfully as he contemplated the question, "Why did Christ have to die for me?"

During this Holy Week, I'm asking myself that question. It's weighty.

There's need in the world.
     Poverty because of broken relationships.
          In Jesus' obedience on the Cross we are offered redemption.
               And we love as He loved in response - as best we can through our words and our actions.

The beauty of Christ crucified is the Resurrection.

The beauty of alleviating poverty is
     redemption
          restoration
               love

As we celebrate Easter, I'm praying we each remember and proclaim the beauty of the work of the Cross.

That in our gratitude for the gift of His grace we'll be obedient to His call to serve.

May the examples of our brothers and sisters spur us on to the good works which God has prepared for us to do.

May the Holy Spirit ignite in each of us the gifts he's shared --

May His Word come to life in us.

May His work on the cross spur us on to be the Word at work.

Happy, Easter, friends,

Mollie
The Word at Work

EDITOR'S NOTE: Speaking from my own first-hand experience - working side-by-side with Tim, Kenny and our brothers and sisters in Belize - won't you give thoughtful, prayerful consideration to supporting the efforts of Tim, the Word At Work staff and their partners? Please please fill out this Commitment Card and return it to their office!

Also, remember that you can follow The Word At Work on their Facebook page!

Wednesday, April 5, 2017

WAW Wednesday ... "4.5.17 #wearethewordatwork"

WAW Wednesday: "4.5.17 #wearethewordatwork"

Hello Friends,

Growing up, April Fools' Day was a lot of fun - it was a day to dream up the most fantastic stories possible and attempt to sway friends and family to believe them - and as the youngest and only daughter, my brothers may or may not have found me to be quite gullible!

Since October we've been looking forward to April 1 when Tim Tam returns to TWAW - and we've laughed several times at the irony of the date!

Rest assured, friends, Tim's return is not an elaborate April Fools' prank! Here he is now:

Six months of sabbatical has flown by.

But wow, what a sabbatical!!!!!!!

I don't believe I've ever felt this great, or felt this close to God, or felt this much love for my wife and kids. The plan now it's to come back out of orbit slowly and carefully so I don't burn up on reentry. I was able to meet with Mollie this afternoon and begin to catch up on all the wonderful things that have happened with TWAW in my absence.

All in all, this last six months was a wonderful gift from God for me personally and yet another great gift was to see how TWAW was able to flourish in my absence because God has blessed us with such capable and competent staff.

These are merely my first few words. I'll be sharing more soon and even making occasional appearances as I re-acclimate. This afternoon Mollie was a bit frightened by my appearance and has suggested that like Moses when he came down from the mountain I wear a veil till my glowing aura dies down (recent photo below).

tt

On Thursday, March 30, our beloved sister (and amazing trip coordinator / administrator) Jo Cole, and her husband, Chad, suffered a profound loss as their 18-week-old daughter Zoey was born too soon. We ask that you cover the Cole's and their 3-year-old son, Asher, in prayer for comfort and peace and a special measure of the awareness of the hope of the Resurrection that we'll celebrate in just a couple of weeks. Jo continues to heal at home.

Pastor Phillipa (Exodus Ministries) was in an automobile accident Monday - she was a bit banged up, but walked away whole! Keep praying over Phillipa and all of the Herrera family (Leonie, Stanley, their mother) as they recover from attacks on their health.

Dallan is healing slowly but surely. Pray for encouragement for Dallan - for friends to come around him and keep his spirits up - and praise God for making all the connections a year ago that led to his life-saving surgery. We praise God for the funding He has provided and trust for His provision for what's left owing.

We truly had an incredible March with teams in Belize! Praise God for how he uses us as his hands and feet! Pray for the relationships that began or were renewed - that they would bring glory to God and continue to reveal glimpses of the kingdom to us!

Our summer trip board is full of teams! We're grateful so many will join us in Belize - please pray for our staff as we discern leadership assignments and make preparation.

Finally, we're excited for Tim Tam to return - pray we don't overwhelm him with all the good stuff we have to share! We're grateful he's had this time and we can't wait to hear what God has revealed to him during sabbatical!

Gratefully,

Mollie and the Staff
The Word at Work