May 2008
Dear Readers,
Thank you for taking the time to read this newsletter, & for the interest you are showing in the work of Highway Ministries in India.I have just returned from almost 2 weeks in South Island NZ, visiting family & also attending part of New Life Churches of NZ Pastors' Conference in Christchurch, which was very uplifting.
It was also great to spend time with family & friends in Nelson.
An invitation was issued to Nelson district sponsors of Highway Ministries, & also to family & friends to attend an Information Meeting where I outlined origins, history & vision of Highway Ministries & Grace Children's Home. Linda Fulton also shared her experiences of the two visits she has made to India. A yummy afternoon tea was served & great fellowship for all who attended (approx 45 people).
At Grace Home all the children have completed the annual end of school year exams. Now the holidays have come, & many children who have families will have gone home for the whole month of May, & remaining children can relax & enjoy more playtime.
Our Highway Ministries Pastors are faithfully serving the Lord in all their Churches & outreaches. These Pastors are very diligent in prayers with regular fastings. On average they will spend 6 to 7 hours daily in prayer & Bible study, seeking to know the will of the Lord & His power for their ministries. No wonder that the anointing of the Holy Spirit is mighty upon their lives, & miracles are happening in the lives of those to whom they minister.
CURRENT NEEDS of HIGHWAY MINISTRIES
SPONSORS are needed for 8 Pastors @ NZD $35 per month
BICYCLES are needed for 4 village Pastors @NZD $100 each
MICROPHONES & AMPLIFIERS required for 3 village Churches @$200.
DRUMS for 2 Churches @ NZD $50 each
MOTORCYCLE required for Ps Ezra Indian Director @NZD $1350
RAILPET CHURCH needs to be rebuilt - cost NZD $2,500
NEEDS OF GRACE CHILDREN'S HOME
KITCHEN upgrade $120 NZD
FENCE for buffalo paddock $120 NZD
Purchase of one acre RICE FIELD $10,000 NZD
If any are keen to contribute to any of the needs above, you may deposit directly into the Highway Ministries Bank Account 030196 0221867 25 at any Westpac Branch, or by online banking, or as per the Donations page on this website. Every gift, small or large makes a difference. If you donate directly into the Bank Account, please email me to inform me of the intended designation of your gift.
God's richest blessings be upon you all. In Christ's great love, Gina.
Dear Partners & Supporters February 2008
Well I must confess I have been very slack in keeping the website newsletter up to date.
This does not mean that I have been inactive all this time - only that I have preferred to send reports to specific sponsors by post & email.
However, things in my life are changing, so I will find it more appropriate from now on to keep people informed by means of this newsletter.
Last year I spent 4 weeks in January 2007 with my family in India & very much enjoyed having more one-on-one time with all the Grace Home children. Usually I am kept very busy with preaching ministry in our Highway Ministries network towns & villages, but I made a special request last year to have more time with the children. I came back to NZ feeling that my 'cup of love' was filled to overflowing, such is the love of God that flows through their precious souls!!
For the past four years I have served God as a Children, Youth & Family Worker for two Presbyterian congregations in the Waihi area of North Island NZ. I resigned mid-year & finished my employment at end of 2007. I believe it is now time for me to step out into fulltime international itinerant evangelistic ministry. This will be a major leap of faith for me, but God has confirmed that this is His direction for me, & I feel a bit like Abraham -- stepping out on a great adventure with the Lord!!
I have recently returned from India, having taken a team of four women with me, from January 18th to February 20th. It was a first visit for most of the women, but they all adjusted extremely well to the culture & conditions of India.
Team members were :
Linda Fulton from Nelson (who also came with me in 2006)
Amy Svedlund 21 from Huntly,
Sarah Welch 21 from Huntly
Nyra Wilkins from Waihi
Dear Readers,
Thank you for taking the time to read this newsletter, & for the interest you are showing in the work of Highway Ministries in India.I have just returned from almost 2 weeks in South Island NZ, visiting family & also attending part of New Life Churches of NZ Pastors' Conference in Christchurch, which was very uplifting.
It was also great to spend time with family & friends in Nelson.
An invitation was issued to Nelson district sponsors of Highway Ministries, & also to family & friends to attend an Information Meeting where I outlined origins, history & vision of Highway Ministries & Grace Children's Home. Linda Fulton also shared her experiences of the two visits she has made to India. A yummy afternoon tea was served & great fellowship for all who attended (approx 45 people).
At Grace Home all the children have completed the annual end of school year exams. Now the holidays have come, & many children who have families will have gone home for the whole month of May, & remaining children can relax & enjoy more playtime.
Our Highway Ministries Pastors are faithfully serving the Lord in all their Churches & outreaches. These Pastors are very diligent in prayers with regular fastings. On average they will spend 6 to 7 hours daily in prayer & Bible study, seeking to know the will of the Lord & His power for their ministries. No wonder that the anointing of the Holy Spirit is mighty upon their lives, & miracles are happening in the lives of those to whom they minister.
CURRENT NEEDS of HIGHWAY MINISTRIES
SPONSORS are needed for 8 Pastors @ NZD $35 per month
BICYCLES are needed for 4 village Pastors @NZD $100 each
MICROPHONES & AMPLIFIERS required for 3 village Churches @$200.
DRUMS for 2 Churches @ NZD $50 each
MOTORCYCLE required for Ps Ezra Indian Director @NZD $1350
RAILPET CHURCH needs to be rebuilt - cost NZD $2,500
NEEDS OF GRACE CHILDREN'S HOME
KITCHEN upgrade $120 NZD
FENCE for buffalo paddock $120 NZD
Purchase of one acre RICE FIELD $10,000 NZD
If any are keen to contribute to any of the needs above, you may deposit directly into the Highway Ministries Bank Account 030196 0221867 25 at any Westpac Branch, or by online banking, or as per the Donations page on this website. Every gift, small or large makes a difference. If you donate directly into the Bank Account, please email me to inform me of the intended designation of your gift.
God's richest blessings be upon you all. In Christ's great love, Gina.
Dear Partners & Supporters February 2008
Well I must confess I have been very slack in keeping the website newsletter up to date.
This does not mean that I have been inactive all this time - only that I have preferred to send reports to specific sponsors by post & email.
However, things in my life are changing, so I will find it more appropriate from now on to keep people informed by means of this newsletter.
Last year I spent 4 weeks in January 2007 with my family in India & very much enjoyed having more one-on-one time with all the Grace Home children. Usually I am kept very busy with preaching ministry in our Highway Ministries network towns & villages, but I made a special request last year to have more time with the children. I came back to NZ feeling that my 'cup of love' was filled to overflowing, such is the love of God that flows through their precious souls!!
For the past four years I have served God as a Children, Youth & Family Worker for two Presbyterian congregations in the Waihi area of North Island NZ. I resigned mid-year & finished my employment at end of 2007. I believe it is now time for me to step out into fulltime international itinerant evangelistic ministry. This will be a major leap of faith for me, but God has confirmed that this is His direction for me, & I feel a bit like Abraham -- stepping out on a great adventure with the Lord!!
I have recently returned from India, having taken a team of four women with me, from January 18th to February 20th. It was a first visit for most of the women, but they all adjusted extremely well to the culture & conditions of India.
Team members were :
Linda Fulton from Nelson (who also came with me in 2006)
Amy Svedlund 21 from Huntly,
Sarah Welch 21 from Huntly
Nyra Wilkins from Waihi
These women all played an active part in teaching new skills to the Grace Children, including tailoring lessons, handcrafts, games, English language, songs, drama, Bible lessons, etc.
They also were a blessing on our outreach ministry to the villages & took part in Church services, so there were opportunities for their spiritual growth also.
Grace Home family has grown to 32 children. Our first child, Moses is now 21 years & has been attending Bible College in Hyderabad for the past year. He's a lovely young man, & plans to return to Grace Home to assist Ps Ezra after he graduates.
Many of the children are now teenagers & are all beautiful obedient children, radiant with the love of Christ. The little ones also play so happily together, & it is very rare to see any disputes amongst the children.
The health & happiness of all the Grace Family is a great testament to the loving care provided by Ps Ch Ezra, & his wife Vani, & their daughters Keziah 16 & Tabitha 15. We are also very thankful to have a dear widow woman named Matama to help with food preparation & care of the children.
Another great addition to the Grace Family is an after-school tutor named Jeyamani. Currently children are preparing for exams, so Jeyamani arrives every morning before school to give extra tuition, & again after school she devotes many hours to upskilling our children's education.
During the annual school holiday break in May last year some of the children returned home & remained with families. who are now in a better situation to provide for their children. However their places in Grace Home were soon taken by admission of nine new very needy children.
I am very happy to report that currently we have full sponsorship of all children. In fact there are several sponsors waiting for new children to be admitted to Grace Home.
While in India I read an anonymous statement that really meant a lot to me, so I'll share it with you here:
"I screamed at God for all the starving children in the world! But then I realised that all the starving children in the world were actually God screaming at me"!!!
All of you who are sponsoring children can take heart that you are responding to God's promptings to care for the poor & needy of this world. When you see the transformation of each child's life after they have been in Grace Home for just a few weeks, it really proves that sponsorship of needy children truly is a great blessing for everyone involved - for the donors as well as the recipients!!
We have been very blessed with a generous gift of a Digital Camera from a couple in Australia, so I have many new photos for our webmaster to put on the Highway Ministries website in the near future, Keep a look out for the updating, especially of the children's latest photos in a few weeks. We at Highway Ministries are beginning a new sponsorship programme for families who have HIV infection, which is becoming a serious problem in India. Currently we have one child with HIV whose parents both died with AIDS. Thankfully his older sister is not infected, but both children live with their elderly Grandmother, who has no means of income, so they are receiving some monthly support. We also have a new family where the mother has HIV & she needs help for her teenaged daughter's education & food, so they are now also in our support programme.
I will write a further report in a few days on the wonderful work of our Highway Ministries Pastors. Meanwhile, may God pour out His abundance of blessings upon every sponsor & every visitor to this website.
In Christ's wonderful love,
Regina.
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