February 2012
February 28, 2012
by Simona Lombardo
translated/edited by Eva Eberly
Along the course of my life I committed many errors, often in good faith, as I lived to fulfill my personal needs according to worldly models. I didn’t realize that those errors had a specific name: SIN. Being completely unaware of the importance of marriage in God’s eyes and ignorant of His precious teachings, my marriage at a very young age soon proved to be a tragic mistake. After escaping that trap of anguish, I began pursuing what I still hadn’t found: love, understanding, acceptance, security. But this feverish search …
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February 26, 2012
by Carol Rhodes
Dayton Mennonite Church
Down a street in the Central American town of Orange Walk, Belize, sits a garbage can. It’s painted bright yellow with flowers and the words “Jesus said, I am the way, the truth and the life.” This is the home of Nancy Marshall, joint mission worker with VMM and EMM. She devotes her time to pastoring Jesus Deaf Church and volunteering in special education classrooms at St. Peter’s School. On the second day of my visit Nancy was busy organizing and planning a New Year’s Eve party to be held …
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February 24, 2012
by Aaron Kauffman
Anabaptist Missional Project leadership team
Virginia Mennonite Missions recently granted Approved Ministry status to the Anabaptist Missional Project (AMP). A VMMissions Approved Ministry is a ministry that we do not directly administrate or control but is related to, or is like, the work that we do. VMMissions lends counsel and support to such ministries, including the receipting of financial contributions. The leadership team of AMP provided the following description of the group. Background: In the fall of 2009, a small group of friends and acquaintances (ages 25-40) gathered in Harrisonburg, Virginia, for a weekend …
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February 22, 2012
by VMM Admin
KINGSTON, JAMAICA— Pastor Morris Baker died in Kingston on February 15, 2012, after a five-month illness. He served as pastor of the Alpine Mennonite Church, Red Hills since 1995. He was appointed president of the Jamaica Mennonite Church in March 2011, and served in various capacities in JMC prior to that time. In 2006, he and his wife, Elaine, were the JMC delegates to Virginia Mennonite Conference assembly. Pastor Baker is remembered as a well-respected member of the community where he grew up and where he provided persons with various …
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February 22, 2012
by Gloria Lehman
Connections Editor
Mennonite Women USA invited responses to this question for the November/ December issue of Timbrel: How do our global sisters enrich our own lives as well as enrich the life of the church? I immediately knew that this is a question I can answer. I have the unusual privilege to visit church sisters in the Caribbean region several times a year. Talking with the women in their settings is heart-warming, and sometimes heart-rending. Sis. Babes in Trinidad explains how to cook local foods, patiently demonstrating making roti or pelau. While …
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February 20, 2012
by Harry Kraus
Serving in East Africa with VMM and Africa Inland Mission
My patient was a young man with right leg swelling of several weeks’ duration. He had a large abscess in his thigh that pressed on the large vein nearby, causing it to clot off. Clots of this nature are dangerous, because they can break loose and travel to the heart and lungs, which can be fatal. The patient needed anticoagulation medicine to prevent the clot from getting bigger. But a problem intervened. He vomited blood. I looked in his stomach with a scope and found a large ulcer and evidence …
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February 18, 2012
by Earl Martin
Shalom Mennonite Church
North Korea has burst into our awareness again recently with the death of their president, Kim Jong-il. The world has watched as his young son, Kim Jong-un, is being elevated into leadership. This is a good time for us to be reminded that God’s Spirit is alive and present with the people of North Korea through these turbulent times. I visited North Korea just 10 days before their president’s death. I joined five other volunteer builders from the Georgia-based Fuller Center for Housing. The intent of our mission was to …
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February 16, 2012
by Gloria Lehman
VMM Caribbean Regional Assistant
On December 31, all of Orange Walk, a tiny village in northern Belize, was preparing for welcoming in the New Year. Lots of people were shopping for food and drinks. The intermittent showers made us wonder if there really would be fireworks put off at midnight. At 8 p.m., Nancy Marshall’s house became “the place to be” to celebrate the arrival of 2012. Young people arrived and enjoyed the food that Nancy had prepared-fresh tortilla chips with cheese dip, vegetables and pizza. Then the fun began with a game of …
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February 14, 2012
by Gloria Lehman
VMM Caribbean Regional Assistant
The poinsettia plants and Christmas bushes filled with white flowers bloom profusely along the roadsides, in gardens of well-kept homes and on the rough mountainsides. It’s Christmas time in Jamaica! There are fewer decorated houses and shorter celebrations on this Caribbean island, but the spirit of Christmas is wide spread. Everyone loves to give and receive gifts during this season. At the end of November, the teachers begin planning for the Christmas program at the Maranatha School for the Deaf. It is important to hold a good program so that …
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