Night Shelter

On Thanksgiving day we will gather to serve the homeless an awesome Thanksgiving meal. It's amazing to see everyone sacrifice their day to serve others. I'm supper excited about this. There is still so much to do and many needs still unmet. We are short a few turkeys and hams. If you are unable to attend the meal you can still be part by providing a ham or turkey. You may drop them off at the ARC. If you would like to help cook there are opportunities prior to Thanksgiving day. Please contact Roxanne Ancy...she is the one leading the charge and doing a great job. Thank you Roxanne!!

Reminder: Highway Cleanup This Saturday!!

Servants needed to help care for God's earth. Join Jim Uttley and OutreachTeam for 90 minutes as we clean up part of Wilshire Blvd. This is our church's committment to our community.

Meet on Saturday, November 7th @ 9:00 am at sanctuary parking lot, and help us demonstrate the love and grace of Jesus Christ. Wear sturdy shoes and work gloves. Tools for picking up trash and safety vests are provided.

Holiday Friends

Hello all!!!

It is that time of year again!! You may have already received a letter from the harvest house regarding Holiday Friends. St. Matthew is again in charge of recruiting volunteers for the guide positions and working with the children in Parent Gifts. If you are interested in serving this year in either position please get back to me or come and see me this weekend. I will have a table set up at each service. You will be able to get information and turn in your volunteer applications at this time. I look forward to serving with each and every one of you this year. This is a wonderful experience and truly heartwarming to be a part of!!

Thank you!!

Charity Blalock

Thanksgiving at the Shelter

We will be serving 800 men and women on Thanksgiving Day! We want the plate to be bountiful, so the more donated the better!

Opportunities To Serve Day of Thanksgiving

4:00-6:30pm

Serve In These Areas
Safe Haven
Patriot House
Lowden & Schutts
Main Shelter
(Responsible for Set Up, Serving Meal and Drinks, Cleaning Up)

Crafts for kids in the area (40 children)
Music Group for the Main Shelter


Opportunities and Needs Prior to Event

Smoked Turkeys and Hams
Uncooked Turkeys and Hams
Homemade Pies
(Pumpkin w/ whipped cream, Apple, Mincemeat, Chocolate Meringue)
Homemade Cake
(Apple Cake, Spice Cake, Chocolate Cake)
Homemade Yeast Rolls
(Total needed 1600)
Plastic table clothes, pumpkins & gourds
(16 - 6ft tables)

Help Prepare the Meal
Tuesday, the 24th – 12:00pm
Wednesday, the 25th - 9:00am
Thursday, the 26th 9:00am -2:30pm


Please contact Roxanne Ancy for more info. 817.295.0565 - roxanne.ancy@att.net - text @ 817.688.4986.

Help Wanted. No experience necessarry.
Servants needed to help care for God's earth. Join Jim Uttley and OutreachTeam for 90 minutes as we clean up part of Wilshire Blvd. This is our church's committment to our community.

Meet on Saturday, November 7th @ 9:00 am at sanctuary parking lot, and help us demonstrate the love and grace of Jesus Christ. Wear sturdy shoes and work gloves. Tools for picking up trash and safety vests are provided.

Harvest Run TShirts

The Harvest Run T-Shirts will be on sale this weekend for $5. All the proceeds will go to Holiday Friends. If you would like more info about Holiday Friends or want to learn how you can participate this year please email Charity Blalock at blalockc3@sbcglobal.net.

The water stations are completed. Thousands now have clean drinking water. God is awesome!! The boy’s bathroom is almost completed. (probably finished now). While in Gunchire we (Me, Roger, Blake Petty & Alemayhu Sima) had an opportunity to worship again with our friends. Wow, God moves in amazing ways. Once again I was humbled to my core. Thank you, Lord for not allowing language to be a barrier. Two cultures, two languages, in a village in the middle of nowhere in Ethiopia we praised our God in mighty way.

Please continue to pray for the work that God is doing through St. Matthew in Gunchire. Pray for the local church and their leaders. Pray that all the work we are doing in this village is a reflection of God’s love.

Africa - The Journey Continues

As I traveled to Africa I was filled with much joy in my heart. On our 20 hour flight I had a great deal of time to reflect, to pray and to listen to God. His love feels my soul. Africa has taught me so much about myself, about other people and about God's love for me, my family, my friends, the lost, the broken, the world. It’s amazing what happens when we are obedient and when we seek Him with a desperate heart. There is no darkness, just indescribable hope. Thank you, Jesus for your overwhelming love.

Lord humble me
Lord humble me
Strip away my pride
my arrogance
my ungrateful heart
Lord strip me down to the
core
Purify my heart
Burn away all the selfishness
in my heart
Remind me Lord that I do
not belong to the world,
I Am Yours

A Community in Need

Greeting Friends,
I just learned that our friends at Harvest House are in need. Their food pantry is almost empty. Below is a copy of their needs list.

Canned meat
Pasta
Cereal
Peanut Butter
Jelly
Canned Vegetables
Canned Fruit
Baby Formula
Baby Food


You can drop items off at the St. Matthew or you may take them directly to Harvest House.

Mission Africa

All the water station have been completed!! God is so amazing. Now thousands of people are able to drink clean water. Work on the boys bathrooms at the junior high will begin in the next few weeks.

Mexico Recap

Many of you have been asking about the little boy named Eddy that you heard Gianna Vesta talk about on Mission weekend. The Mexico planning team has been working hard gathering information, researching orphanages, exploring avenues in which to help children such as Eddy get a birth certificate so that they can attend school. We are not quite sure as of yet the direction God is leading us, so please join us in prayer as we continue to journey through this process.

We have a work trip scheduled for the weekend of October 10th. If you are interested in joining us please let me know and I will add you to the list.

Our Last Day in Mexico

I will dance I will sing to be mad for my King
Nothing Lord is hindering this passion in my soul

David Crowder - Undignified


What an amazing week. We finished building Guadalupe's house yesterday morning and for lunch she prepared a big meal for our team. It was awesome. We learned that she did not have a bed so when we go back to our camp site last night the guys stayed up and built her a bed frame. Wow, was she shocked this morning when we arrived to dedicate her house. You could see the joy in her heart, not that we brought her a bed, but that she could see that our team cared deeply for her. It's amazing what happens when we love, sincerely love one another.

Tonight I am filled with mixed emotions. We are all so ready to be home with our family and friends, but we are a little sad. The people of Rio Bravo are amazing. Our hearts have been touched by so many wonderful people. Humbled is the only word that I have. Our friends in Rio Bravo have taught us so much about ourselves and what it means to tear down our walls and be real with each other, to accept each other,encourage and help each other, to forgive each other, and to love each other. We came to Mexico to build a home and we leave reminded that God is the builder of all things!

Mexico - Work Day #2

Today was a good day. We are almost finished with building the house. We have to put the tin on the roof, hang a door, put the windows in, build a latter for the loft and finish a few little odds and ends.

The best part of the day was when the kids from the neighborhood came over and a few members from the team stopped what they were doing and began spending time with them. They had so much fun playing games and making crafts. You don't have to speak the same language you just have to love.

Mexico - Day 2

These are a couple of pictures from our workday yesterday.

Mexico - Day 2

In his heart a man plans his course,
but the Lord determines his steps.
Proverbs 16:9

Humbled are the only words I have on this day. The site where we are building the house is not the only thing I can see changing before my eyes, but the hearts of our team are exploding in God's transforming love. God is so good!!

As we traveled across the border this morning we were ready to get to our work site and begin the dreaded block move from the ground to the slab. Once that task was completed we began mixing the concrete, laying the bricks, cutting and painting the boards for the doors and gables. Our team worked like a fine oiled machine. We are also beginning to get to know our family. The Mother has a daughter and a brand new grandbaby who is probably only a couple of weeks old. His name is Santiago and he's a tiny little bundle of joy who brings smiles to our whole team.

We have another big day tomorrow so please pray that we all get the rest that we need.

Peace and Love

Mimi

Mexico - Week 2

It's a new day and a new journey. It's the night before we depart across the border, worship has just ended and my heart is overwhelmed. It's amazing to see God work so powerfully through the servants who have been called to serve together on this mission. He has perfectly designed every movement. Why do we continue to doubt the power, faith, love, and grace of God. May we completely surrender.

Please to pray for our team as we continue to prepare ourselves for the mission God has called us to.

Love well my friends!!

Mimi

Our First Day Across the Border

For the love of God is living and active
Hebrews 4:12

Wow, God is so good!! What an amazing day. It was so good to see and be with our friends in Mexico. They were especially excited to see us because not many teams have come this summer.

We have two work teams and wow they are amazing. Both work sites got the the blocks 10 high and the corners poured. For those of you who have been before you know that's a very good thing. Tomorrow we will be framing the roof, preparing and painting the windows and doors among other things. I hope to have some pictures up by tomorrow night so check back.

Thoughts from our team:

It was amazing to see the teams come together, they were perfectly designed by God.
Gia Staley

Seeing the kids smile was heartwarming.
Chelcie Schreiner

The mother we are building the 12x 18 house for could not keep from smiling as she watched her new home appearing before her eyes.
Greg Vesta

Playing soccer with the kids was so cool. We didn't speak the same language, but it didn't.
Carter Vesta

Live a life of Love

Day 1

Today was a good day!! Worship was awesome this evening. Are hearts are prepared for tomorrow. We are excited about tomorrow morning. Tomorrow we begin building the houses, but more importantly we will meet the families.

We should have much to report tomorrow when we return back to our camp site.

Hey it's Jordan Staley, this is my first time on the mission trip, and I'm already very excited and anxious to get started. I'm going to be a Junior at Burleson High School and I think this is a great opportunity to tell kids about at school and bring them to Christ. The first was long and tiring but we made it here safe. The kids in my van were very nice and fun to be around. Once we got here we all just kinda hung out and then all went out to eat. The kids wanted to go to Chili's so that was our dinner while the adults dined at Mac Grill. It was delicious. We are now about to get ready for bed and get ourselves prepared for an adventurous week. We can't wait.

Thanks so much for your prayers and keep us all in mind.

Jordan Staley

We made it safely to our destination. We are all very tired from the drive. I'm excited about tomorrow, we will be preparing ourselves for our workday on Monday. Monday is the hardest day because we must get all the bricks stacked. It's going to be very hot, heat index has been over 110. We will be able to get plenty of rest tomorrow to ready ourselves for the week.

Please continue to pray for our team.

God is good!!

Mimi

Journey to Mexico

Praise the Lord, O my soul.
I will praise the Lord all my life;
I will sing praise to my God as long as I live.
Psalm 146

It's the night before we embark on our nine hour journey to the valley and my heart is full. I am eager to once again be reunited with our friends south of the border. The need is great since many groups are not traveling to Mexico this year. I am anxious to be there so that our team may bring some encouragement,hope,and smiles to our friends. It is my prayer that we will be building more than just homes for families, but an eternal impact in the name of Christ.

Please pray for our team to have humble spirits and opens hearts for what God has planned for each of us.

I will try to keep this updated daily if possible.

Peace,
Mimi

Welcome

Welcome to the St. Matthew CPC blog spot.