Dear Family and Friends,
You probably know the story of William Carey, the “Father of Modern Missions.” William Carey was a shoemaker in England in the mid 1700's. Even though he was not a missionary, his heart broke for missions and the dying people of the world. He kept a map of the world on the wall in front of his work bench and as he made and repaired shoes, he would weep over the world! In a meeting with the missionary society in London, the leaders asked, "Who will go down to the nations and take them the Gospel?" Carey spoke up and said, "I will go...but you must hold the rope for me!"
This story is extra special to me because William Carey eventually sailed to Calcutta. Even though he saw little fruit in the beginning (he won his first convert after seven years), he persisted and by the time he died, his work of translating the Bible into 40 Indian dialects reached millions.
Hold the ropes!
And this week, five of us are going to Calcutta on a kingdom assignment. Would you hold the rope for us? Would you pray for us? Would you ask God to direct our steps and allow us to have maximum impact for His glory alone?
I leave for India tomorrow (arriving there on Friday) and our team will join me on Sunday (Paul Foss, Paul Henning, Paul Ramsey, and Greg Lueck). We will be back in church on December 16th and will have a report for you, probably the following Sunday (Dec 23). I am thrilled to be a part of a church that takes Jesus’ words to go and make disciples of all nations so passionately!
Christmas series
Our Christmas series is titled “The Cast of Christmas: The Supporting Characters of the Christmas Story”. We start off this Sunday with Elder Roger Fair bringing a message on Elizabeth & Zechariah. Our Creative Arts team has worked hard these last several weeks and you will see a creative element in every service leading on to Christmas. Come ready to be blessed and prepare your hearts for celebrating our Savior’s birth.
New Church decision
As you know, our 40 day fast concluded on November 13 as the Elders and Trustees joined in prayer. The season brought a great deal of unity and absolute confidence of God's call to build, to be fiscally responsible by taking into account both affordability and a faith factor. The Trustees, Development Team and Financial Oversight Committee are working hard crunching numbers using different scenarios to nail down the specifics. We will keep you updated as some of these details become clearer in the upcoming weeks. Pray that everything happens in His time and according to His will and please pray for these teams. We do know this - this is God's church and He says "I know the plans I have for you ... plans to give you hope and a future."
Thank you for your overwhelming determination to serve Jesus! There are lives in Maryland, Honduras, India, and Africa that will never be the same because of your involvement, support, and prayers.
Hold the ropes!
Rajendra Pillai
Executive Director
