Redeemer Mission News & Stories

A Special Mission Trip to Oaxaca

 Have you thought about participating in a mission trip to Mexico but have not found enough interest from the membership of your church to make up an entire mission team? Or for some other reason have you not been able to come to Mexico to experience what God is doing?

This November we are thinking of offering a mission trip for individuals to join together and make up a mission team to Oaxaca. You can make a difference in the life of the Covenant Church in Oaxaca.

The objective of the mission trip would be pre-school and grade school health screening. This would include vision testing, hemoglobin testing, height and weight and physical exams. Nutrition talks and dental hygiene are also a possibility. There might even be the opportunity to do some adult health screening in marginalized areas of Oaxaca.

We need a few doctors, nurses, and dentists, but we are also willing to teach group participants how to do some of the screenings and to do other things needed for this type of mission trip, including taking photos, filling out forms, guiding children from screening area to screening area, entering data into the computer, etc.

This trip would be a very practical way to help meet the needs of the community while planting the seeds of the Gospel. You would be working together with Mexican Christians on this project. Approximate cost for this trip is $800, which includes hotel, food, transportation while in Mexico, water, sightseeing, donation to the ministry project, etc. The only costs not covered are your flights from the U.S. to Oaxaca and back. There is a maximum of 9 people for this mission trip.

 There will also be the opportunity to participate in worship services at local Covenant churches and to learn more about what Covenant missionaries are doing in Oaxaca, as well as time to sightsee and to explore Mexican history and culture. Covenant missionaries will accompany the mission group at all times. No Spanish is necessary. Translators will be provided. Contact me if you are interested or have questions at joellen.reaves@covchurch.org

Thank You for your continued support!

All support gifts are tax deductible. Support gifts (regular or one-time gifts) should be sent to:

Department of World Mission

Attn: Missionary Support

8303 W. Higgins Road

Chicago, IL 60631

Please make checks out to the Evangelical Covenant Church and include a note that the check is “For support of JO ELLEN REAVES.”

You shall go to all to whom I send you, and you shall speak whatever I command you. Jeremiah 1:7b

 Prayer Corner

  “Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.”  Romans 12:12

Praises

For a great visit to the U.S. to visit my grandchildren.

For safe presidential elections in Mexico.

For our summer intern, Jana Wipf, who has been a great asset to the Oaxaca mission team.

Concerns

For the national youth camp that will be held in Oaxaca in mid-July and for the two volunteers

coming from Ashtabula, Ohio, to help at the camp.

For elections in the national church (The Covenant Church of Mexico) this August. A new executive committee will be elected.

For the Mexico mission team, as we elect a new country coordinator at the annual missionary

retreat in July.

Contact Information

The easiest way to contact me is through e-mail. Ministry/mission e-mail should be sent to:

joellen.reaves@covchurch.org

My personal e-mail remains: joellenreaves@yahoo.com

My regular mailing address is:

Calle Zaachila #109

Fracc. San Jose la Noria

68120 Oaxaca de Juarez

OAXACA, Mexico

I would love to hear from you! My blog site for photos, short stories, etc. is: http://joellensjournal.blogspot.com.

Friday mornings at 9:00 a.m. from May to October you will find these Redeemer women and others at the Laura Dester Shelter gardening with and listening to  children.  Gardening is therapy for the children at the shelter.  Here is a story from a counselor at the Shelter. 

“Everyone at Laura Dester loved Michael. Not because he was always well behaved, but because he had a charming smile and at times, an equally charming personality. Other times, Michael was anxious, angry, and aggressive. Most of the residents avoided him because he was often physically aggressive, hitting other residents and destroying property. It was only in the garden that Michael became gentle and peaceful. He handled each flower delicately and with a gentle hand. The staff soon learned that the best way to sooth Michael was to take him to the garden. 

Michael learned many things at the garden. He never tore a flower from its vine; he never stepped on a plant. Michael found something to care for in the garden despite the lack of care he had been given. During watermelon season, Michael decided to assign each melon to a different cottage by using a marker to label them. This was his way of giving to his peers. He went to the garden daily to check on the watermelons and noted the growth of each one.

Michael is no longer at Laura Dester, but there are many Michaels in Tulsa. There will be others this spring and summer who will be calmed by tending the Laura Dester Children’s Center garden. The garden provides signs of new life, tenderness, and growth in an otherwise stormy life.”

At the Tulsa Public Schools Partners in Education reception May 9, the Tulsa Chamber awarded Redeemer with the “Outstanding Faith Based Partner” Award for our partnership with Mark Twain Elementary. Way to go Redeemer! You all have made this possible and the list is long for the ways God is using us in this West Tulsa Community. Some of these include; 75 mentors, 5th and 6th grade science enrichment, Beautiful Day, class birthday parties, Dream Builders Camp, Literacy Night dinners, Angel Tree, Trunk or Treat, Thanksgiving baskets to needy families, teacher appreciation, Santa pictures, uniform closet, and more! Thank you Redeemer for three great years at Mark Twain.

This Sunday help provide children’s clothing for Ugandan Orphanage, Blessing of Joy. All sizes of children’s clothes are needed. Solomon Mutebi, founder of BOJ and Redeemer attender, will be traveling to Uganda May 11 and will take the clothes with him. You can go online to www.blessingsofjoy.com to find out more about this organization.

And as always bring your food items, paper goods, and personal hygiene donations for the Bixby Outreach Center. Gently used spring and summer clothing are also appreciated. Thank you for your continuous support and generous donations. Lets fill a trunk full this Sunday!!

A letter by Redeemer member Carrie Storm on behalf of the Mark Twain Teacher Appreciation Team.

This past year I have had the opportunity to see God intertwine paths in my life that I had not seen initial connections between. It’s been a joy! Let me share:

Through a series of events and conversations, I met this amazing teacher at Mark Twain Elementary who loves on her kindergarten class every day. Having a daughter in kindergarten myself, it was easy to make a “mom” connection with this teacher and class. Having had a career in public education, I also have a heart for knowing the countless “extra” hours that teachers devote to their class family and I never want to miss a chance to say thanks to teachers.

I became involved with the Teacher-Staff Appreciation Committee with the PTA at my daughter’s school this year, and after spending time working with other moms to recognize and show our appreciation to the staff that works with our kids, it got me thinking: who does this at Mark Twain? I didn’t assume (nor do I now) that families didn’t care or appreciate the Mark Twain Staff, however I felt that I had a unique opportunity to simply connect two “education families” for the purpose of encouragement.

After approaching my school’s PTA about funding a project for the Mark Twain Staff (to which our executive board was enthusiastically supportive of- thanks!) I went on my well-worn path to Sam’s and stocked up on a few treats for the Mark Twain Staff to receive throughout the second semester of school in their boxes with little cheerleader notes attached. For example: “The Mark Twain Staff is the perfect “mix” of love, fun and determination” attached to bags of snack mix; “Mark Twain Elementary is so ‘bear-y’ lucky to have you on its staff” attached to bags of gummy bears. Simple. Silly. Easy. Fun. On behalf of the staff of Jenks Southeast Elementary Staff, some little treats and notes randomly dropped in mailboxes about 15 minutes away I hope has been just the extra kick that these well deserving group of staff members at Mark Twain have needed to get through a tough day.

I didn’t know that a kindergartener, a birthday party, a series of emails, a PTA committee, two elementary schools and one church would all overlap together like they have, but I’m thrilled they have and blessed to have seen it happen!

A letter from Janelle Barnett, 3rd Grade Mark Twain Elementary Teacher.

I don’t know who the wonderful soul (or souls) are responsible for placing these encouraging notes and little treats in our mailboxes but I would like them to know that I feel lifted up and encouraged each and every time I have found such a surprise. Especially on a day like today after assessing some of my students then sitting with tears in my eyes looking at assessments that do not indicate “growth” but each and every student has progressed changed in so many ways. I didn’t go into teaching to have anybody pat me on the back or cheer me on at all times but I appreciate the words of encouragement that comes during those times when teachers are not always able to witness for themselves the impact that they have in students’ lives.  Thanks again.

Janelle Barnett-MS 3rd Grade

Help provide a way for North Tulsa kids to attend Young Life Camp this summer by getting your car washed. Join us this Sunday, May 6 from 11:00 a.m.-2:00 p.m. The car wash area will be on the North side of the Sanctuary.

Here is an update from North Tulsa YL director, Ryan Jackson.
 
“Spring time in Young Life Club can be a hit or miss situation but we really have been blessed to have an amazing Spring! We have had an number of new a faces from McLain, Hale and Booker T Washington. We started a new wrinkle to our weekly gather after club called Real Talk, RT is a optional homogeneous 30 min session after Club, where leaders and kids spend time talking about the talk or and life situations. It has been a really rich time and has allowed leaders to build relationships with kids they may have never naturally connected with. I’m so excited to inform you that North Tulsa Young Life has purchased 12 passenger van, and has quickly put it to work, it has helped us efficiently transportation more kids to and from club and weekly activities. Unfortunately one of those events was the funeral of one of our Leaders Jade
Middleton in Dallas, TX.
 
Jade was an amazing energetic leader who heart for her girls was a direct reflection of her time with God, She passed away of Resurrection Sunday due a car accident and was laid to rest on Friday April the 13th, with a van full of girls and two leaders I was blessed to drive the group there and back but the beautiful part is that on the way back to Tulsa I was able to talk to the van full of girls asking questions and getting their real responses and sharing with the what
the differences are in what the world sees in them and what God sees long story short about 10 outside of Tulsa I was able to say a prayer in which four of the girls in the van give their lives to Christ!!! There is so much going on with North Tulsa right now but I just wanted to give you a glimpse. Please be praying for us as we continue to work to raise funds to successfully get 25 to 30 kids to camp this summer as we need to raise at least 13,000 to make this happen.
We are hoping to have Car Washes like the one this Sunday at Redeemer as well as searching for other ways to help raise the needed funds.”