Kansas Nebraska Convention of Southern Baptists (KNCSB)

Christmas party brings hope to stricken community

Lake Shore Estates is a mobile-home community in the West Memphis area of Arkansas. New Hope Baptist Mission is serving this area, which is one of the poorest in the Mississippi Delta region. Two Kansas churches ministered there in the summer of 2008. One of those churches sent Christmas presents for New Hope’s Christmas Spree in December. The event resulted in six professions of faith. (KNCSB file photo)

By John Rech
Pastor, New Hope Baptist Mission
Marion, Ark.
New Hope Baptist Mission ministers to Lake Shore Estates in Marion, Ark., in the West Memphis area. This mobile-home community is one of the poorest areas in the Mississippi Delta region.

A big thank you goes to all of you that helped make the 2008 Christmas Spree at New Hope possible. This was the biggest Christmas celebration ever in Lakeshore! Here is why:
 

• 52 volunteers helped minister to 57 families.
 
• The volunteers distributed and wrapped 460 children’s gifts worth a total of $9,500 for 205 different children.
 
• They transported 89 children to First Baptist Church in Marion for the birthday party for Jesus.
 
• The volunteers also distributed 65 Wal-Mart gift cards, sang His praises through a cantata or ate a few of the 800 home-made Christmas cookies!
 
• The Christmas Spree resulted in six professions of faith, and three people joined the church.

Help came from farther and wider this year. Our new helpers, Cat and Darrel Plummer, drove 11 hours from First Southern Baptist Church, Topeka, Kan. They borrowed Allen Petri’s van and stuffed it with 159 wrapped boxes labeled for children by age and gender. This was a follow-up trip for First Southern, Topeka. They first came to do some repair work at New Hope and conduct a Vacation Bible School last summer.

Well, our children stole some hearts, so they felt led to return and contribute care packages for the children they had ministered to this summer. The big shoeboxes had loads of practical gifts like socks, underwear and T-shirts, toothpaste and a toy.

I had two mothers and a grandmother tell me when they figured out what was inside the packages, they opened them at home right away. A woman named Lynne said, “My son had none of that. He had no underwear or socks, but I sent him to school anyway. Now I feel better about sending him to school.” She and her kindergarten-age son were in church Sunday morning and Sunday evening. She will be making New Hope her new church home.

We are now booking 2009 mission teams. During spring break, we will be receiving a team of high-school seniors from Heritage Christian High School in Topeka, Kan. First Southern, Topeka, is planning a return trip this early summer. First Southern Baptist, Lawrence, Kan., was here last summer.

Feel free to have interested mission group leaders contact me for more information: Pastor John Rech at (901) 246-9787 or .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) Consider the invitation open.