A Story To Tell

So much happened over our first mission/vision trip that I don't know where to start.  We were blessed with safe travels, places to sleep, food to eat, car to drive, and work to join.  More importantly, God allowed us to hear stories of how He has transformed lives.  Here are a few examples of God at work in the lives of people in the mission field that follows crisis.

NEW JERSEY UPDATE

HOMEOWNER
The team served at Ms. Rosie's home which was completely devastated by Sandy (pic below).  Rosie shared her story of the storm and her life since then.  Through these difficult trials, she has recently started attending Beacon Church and learning more about God and the hope of Christ.  The team's presence at Ms. Rosie's home encouraged her that she was not forgotten and that someday she'd be restored to her home.

VOLUNTEER
Mark and I also had the pleasure of hearing the testimony of one of the volunteers serving in NJ.  He told us how he had come to point of crisis in his own life due to drugs, alcohol, etc.  He said he literally heard the voice of God calling out to him and he had to find out who was speaking to Him.  Thankfully God had put believers in his life who pointed him to Jesus and to the cross.  He surrendered his life only a few years ago to the Lord and is fired up to share his new addiction of Jesus Christ to anyone he meets! 

NEW YORK UPDATE

HOMEOWNER
In New York, we had a team come from Utah and immediately they formed friendships with their homeowners, Ms. Anna and Ms. Lily (pic below).  After an all day rain on Wednesday, Anna's basement had flooded and Ms. Lily was sure that her basement had flooded as well.  Turns out Lily's basement didn't flood which inspired her to go out and help those who were.  Lily was no longer just a recipient of help but now she was a giver too!

 

VOLUNTEER
Mark and I also had the chance to share the love of Christ with a volunteer who came to serve in New York who was there but didn't know why.  She wasn't a believer but felt this was something she needed to do.  After spending a week serving alongside our staff and volunteers, God began to open her eyes to His truth and love.  This past Sunday, she committed her life to following Jesus Christ.  She has told me that "The whole trip was such an amazing experience. God wanted me there for a reason and now I know why."  PRAISE THE LORD!!

COMMUNITY MEMBER
We had the chance to meet a man named Aiman who has started a relief center where his house once stood.  He started where he was with what he had!  Praise the LORD for his obedience!  You can read more of his story on our Crisis Response Blog!

I hope these stories encourage your hearts and remind you that God is at work everywhere!  He's in the huge life changing moments and in the small day-to-day moments!  Take some time this week to see where He's at work and praise Him for it!

"From the rising of the sun to the place where it sets, 

The name of the LORD is to be praised."

Psalm 113:3

The Mannings First Mission & Vision Trip

Mark and I will be headed up to New Jersey and New York starting this Wednesday April 24th and will return Saturday May 3rd to serve in the wake of Hurricane Sandy.  Yes two years later, there are still homeowners waiting to get back in their homes.

I'm calling this the Mannings first mission & vision trip for a number of reasons:

1) We will be serving alongside Crisis Response who is partnering with Beacon EFC of NJ and Salem EFC of Staten Island; Mark as a jobsite supervisor to the volunteer teams and I will be serving the volunteer coordinators, Jen & Kat, as their assistant and helping anyway I can.

2) This will be a cross-cultural experience for Mark and I as he's a midwest country boy and I'm a southern city girl. We're looking forward to seeing how big God is and how He is at work in these places.

3) Mark and I have decided to pursue the long term application process with ReachGlobal!  This trip up to the northeast will continue to give us vision for how Mark and I can serve as a married couple with ReachGlobal Crisis Response.

4) Mark and I will get to share with Bethlehem Church in NJ on Sunday April 27th.  Please pray for us as we share in both services, with the mission council, and with the youth group how God is at work in the ministry and in our lives.  Please pray that God would speak through us to encourage this church body of how their partnership has been vital to furthering God's Kingdom purposes.

You can stay tuned on how things are going on the blog.  If you are in the area, give us a call or email!  We'd love to see you! 

God bless yall!
Mark & Katie :)

PRAY. GIVE. GO. NEWSLETTER.
Thank you for praying for us as we head out on this pioneer trip!  Click give if you'd like to give towards our travel expenses.  Click go if you'd like more info on how you and your church can come serve with Crisis Response.  Click newsletter to sign up for our newsletter.

Happy Resurrection Sunday from Mark & Katie Manning!

Spring Break..well that went fast!

Well we have had our two weeks of college spring break teams and I must say, that went by FAST!  Thank you to all the students who came to serve from Greenville College, Dordt College, University of Northwestern - St Paul, Southwest Baptist University, and John Brown University.  We praise God for you and we are now praying for you as you continue to grow in your walk back on campus!

Southwest Baptist and John Brown University (notice the 3 jumping in the back! haha!)

Here are some praises and prayer requests from the month of March:

Praise: Getting to work alongside some awesome students who wanted to serve God and serve the community

Prayer: For these students back at home and in school to still LIVE ON MISSION for God no matter where they are

Abbie and Sarah used to serve with their youth group now they are serving in college! Love them!

Praise: Being reunited with college students who have come before.  My girl Stacie has come every spring break since she was a freshman and now she's a senior!  They sure do grow up fast!

Prayer: For all the graduating seniors as they embark on the next chapter of their lives.  Pray for God's direction and guidance as they step out into the "real world."

Erica and Stacie have been here before!  Stacie is graduating this year! We pray our paths cross again soon!

Praise: We have two new summer interns accepted into the program!  Please welcome Andy and Jamie!!  There are also two guys Nathan and Jordan who will serve with us for part of the summer! Praise the LORD!

Prayer: For the interns who are now in the support raising phase.  Please pray that God would raise up their ministry partners!

Praise: Mark had a great time serving with the teams!  He really enjoys working alongside them, training them how to do construction, going on prayer walks, and talking with homeowners!

Mark and I with the Northwestern team!  Yeah I think we all got along great! :)

Prayer: For my Mark, as he seeks God's will for how to use his skills and gifts to serve the LORD!

Praise: For the relationships built with the students who had never been here before.  I love seeing "newbys" come and get a feel for the people of New Orleans and all that God is doing here!  They are awesome!

Greenville and Dordt colleges united after a week of serving together! Love the CommUNITY! :)

Prayer: For me!! I now need to follow up with some of these interested interns to see if God is guiding them to serve with us in the future! 

Thank you for taking the time to read this blog! Thank you for taking the time to praise God for all He's done and all that He will do!

Why I like Share Time...

Every Thursday night, we gather the teams together after dinner and we simply ask them to share with the group something they were encouraged by this week, reminded of, or challenged by.  Being on staff with Crisis Response, it can be wearisome to see fewer houses being rebuilt, fewer people coming to Christ, and fewer volunteers coming than before.  So for me personally, I like share time because it reminds me that God is ALWAYS at work and He has us here for a reason!  It reminds me that we're still here serving because there is still a great need in this city for the Gospel to transform people's lives and for them to be physically restored to their homes.  We're still here because God is continuing to use a storm to transform the lives of those coming to serve!

Here are a few examples of what was said last night in share time by our volunteers:

1) thankfulness for the unity among the different volunteer teams.  Everyone is from all over with different backgrounds and experiences and yet because of Christ we are one!

Greenville and Dordt Colleges united!

2) thankfulness for team members and how they were able to be a family

3) reminded to be thankful for what they do have

4) enjoyed going on prayer walks because usually when I go on a walk, I'm only thinking about myself and my own problems...it was nice to go on a prayer walk where I was looking out for others and asking God what to pray for in the community

taking time to meet neighbors on a prayer walk with the Northwestern team

5) hope when we reach George's age (love ya George) we are still humbly serving the Lord like he does!

6) It's amazing to see what God can do when we surrender our lives to Him

team bonding with the Vine Church and Greenville College

7) I'd never been a mission trip before so I had no idea what to expect.  I've seen God work in so many different ways this week I'm just blown away!

I hope and pray we can all take time out each day to give thanks to the LORD for all He's done!  A team member shared how on a prayer walk, a deacon shared with him how we're called not just to tithe our treasure but our time as well.  He said 10% of our day is 2.4 hours and he hopes he can remember to always give not just his finances but his time as well to the LORD!

All the way from Washington

Mark and I were blessed by the "came the farthest" couple at our New Orleans Wedding Reception.  Amanda and Kye were all the way from Seattle WA!  What makes this couple great is not just that they came all the way from Washington state but that I hadn't seen Amanda since March 2008!

I first met Amanda at Rock of Ages Missionary Baptist Church in New Orleans when our teams were partnered together during our one week mission trip in 2008.  (Yes this is the trip where I felt God's call to come serve in New Orleans after graduating from college.)  Amanda and I stayed in touch once returning from New Orleans that year and she has been a faithful supporter of God's work through me from day one! She told me how she prays for me every time she sends her monthly support!  It just made me want to cry because I know without the generosity and prayers of God's people I couldn't be here and I'm SO THANKFUL for Amanda and her partnership with me in God's Kingdom work!

During her visit, we were able to show her Rock of Ages (from the outside at least) and show her various parts of New Orleans.  Kye is from Texas so he saw the impacts of Katrina when everyone had to evacuate.  It was great to share life with this couple and again, I'm completely amazed that God would allow Amanda and Kye to visit.  His timing is always perfect!  Amanda and Kye are recently engaged so we got to talk about all the fun wedding planning details too!  I know God will continue to bless them as they seek Him and His will for their lives. 

I want to thank all of my ministry partners who pray for me and give of their treasure so that I can live out my calling here in New Orleans!  My heart is filled with gratitude and love for each one of you!  Thank you for your partnership in seeing God's Kingdom expanded in the wake of crisis!