Friday, May 12, 2017

May 2017 Newsletter

Quest Sports Camp Update


We will be hosting Quest Sports Camp at the Vista Grande Community Center June 5th-8th, 8am-3pm each day. This outreach event is for children who have completed grades K-5th; cost is $15 per child. The camp  focuses on teaching children basketball and soccer skills, drills and games, as well as introducing them to archery. The camp also includes Bible lessons, skits, and songs.
Since we are hosting this outreach, we need as many volunteers as possible! This is the third year we have offered Quest and last year we had over 60 children attend! There are currently 27 children pre-registered and more are expected! 
There are many different areas that need volunteers in order to make Quest a success. If you are available to volunteer during the week, the most obvious need is for people willing to help the children with basketball, soccer, and archery. Even if you don’t have skills in those sports, we can still use your help watching the children and helping them move from one activity to the next. If you are able to volunteer during the week and are more of a behind-the-scenes person, we will also need help with registration and handing out snacks and water bottles throughout the day.
If you are unable to volunteer during the week of Quest, we still need your help! Most importantly, we would appreciate your commitment to praying for the kids attending Quest and the volunteers working with them. We are also in great need of snack and water bottle donations! Requested snacks include fruit snacks, cheese sticks, granola bars, and individual bags of crackers. Please be sure that the snacks do not contain nuts. As for water bottles, the 8oz bottles worked well for the kids and reduced waste because the kids were more likely to finish their waters. You can also make monetary donations for snacks and water. Please annotate “Quest” on your check or envelope before placing in the Agape Box.
If you are interested in volunteering for Quest, please contact Gayle DeRose at deyellowrose@hotmail.com or 505-449-8705. If you are interested in making snack/water donations, please contact Cyndi Leavitt at leavitt.cynthia @gmail.com or 916-747-3516.



Mozambique Mission Trip

Jake Flaming and I chose Mozambique because, from our understanding and research, there are still entire groups of people living there who don't know Jesus and have had no access to the Gospel. Our trip is planned for May 23rd through June 9th. 
We will be based in the capital city of Maputo and be helping with a mission point about an hour outside of Maputo. We will also be traveling to share the Gospel with an unreached and unengaged people group about 5 hours away from Maputo. We have also been asked to teach a discipleship class with the local church. 
Currently, we still need $2800 to cover our trip. Please prayerfully consider supporting us monetarily to help us reach our goal. Donations can be given to Jake or myself. 
We ask that you please pray that we are sensitive to the Holy Spirit's prompting to share the Gospel and that we are able to communicate it clearly to those who have never heard the name of Jesus. Pray that we maintain the great team unity that we have and that we be filled with a supernatural energy to be urgent with our opportunities to share Jesus.
-Michael Harding



The Forgotten Initiative Update

The Forgotten Initiative is pleased to announce that 37 families received the gospel message this Valentines/Easter! Thank you to those who invested in these gifts and those who prayed that the message would sink in deep to impact these families for eternity!
Currently we are cleaning the toy room monthly. If you would like to donate your time, cleaning takes place once a month on Thursday mornings. You can choose the Thursday and it takes about 1-2 hours to complete. Youth and children are welcome to serve in this way! Please let Cyndi Leavitt or myself know if you would like to help with this project. Also, donations are welcome to cover costs of about 4-8 birthday and discharge parties each month. Cupcake baking is appreciated too!  Cupcakes are often needed short-notice. Monetary donations are needed to cover the costs of age-appropriate Christian books/Bibles and special drinks/food. Checks can be made to The Forgotten Initiative with "Albuquerque" in the Memo line and given to me.
Please continue to pray for the families and children we serve. The children at The BAIR Foundation have gone through very extreme situations to be placed in treatment foster care. The neglect and abuse is long-lasting and needs the touch of the Great Physician for healing. Please pray for the workers that they will be able to help these children in effective ways and not burn out. 
-Jen Bartz



“Follow the Son” Bible Clubs Update

 Only through the power of God and following His plan could such an incredible evangelical opportunity open up in the public schools. A retired school teacher, Gail Salazar, is passionate about sharing Jesus with children. And that passion and obedience led to over 720 children hearing the Gospel of Jesus Christ this year. Her passion spread through the hearts of many volunteers who participated in over 15 schools hosting Bible clubs. Some schools are supportive and want us there, others are hesitant but God does what He does and there we are, loving them!
There are 5 of us from Vista Grande Church who participate and either lead a club or volunteer as helpers. It’s heart warming and an honor to help lead a child in a simple prayer wanting Jesus to be their Savior. These are children who have never heard the name of Jesus except maybe as a swear word. And then, we get to disciple them, answer their questions and help solidify their faith on a weekly basis. They feel the love of Jesus through the commitment of every volunteer, through the smiles, but mostly through hearing the word, memorizing the word, and singing praises to Jesus!
This year, “Follow the Son” was able to start clubs in Kennedy Middle School and add a second club to Roosevelt Middle School’s lunch hour. This is an open field of children who are asking the hard questions, are skeptical but curious, are resistant but seeking. Most have never heard the Gospel of Jesus Christ. When one such as this makes a commitment to Jesus and repents, it’s heartwarming to know their lives will never be the same. They will not have to face the hardship of adolescence alone. The Holy Spirit is there to guide them and help them overcome loneliness and insecurity. And then they come, weekly, learning more about this Jesus and His unconditional love!
-Gayle DeRose



Feed the Kids Update

God certainly works all the details and this one is another of those jaw-dropping “What!” moments. A former Moriarty Elementary School (MES) student is now a senior at UNM and as their Communications senior project they had to choose something to do as a service project. She suggested the Feed the Kids program at MES. She knew there was already a  program established and they chose a food drive that ranged from CA to NM — (This is an online class so participation was a wider range than local.).
This week they delivered over 500 food items to the school. We were impressed with their interest in all the details of how FTK works as well as their continued hope to keep serving wherever they are. God is good — ALL the time!
-Sheryl Stewart



May Calendar Event Details

 · May 1—Leavitt LIFE Group, 6pm-8pm @ Leavitt home
· May 3, 10, 17, 24, 31—Prayer Meeting/Dinner, 5:30pm-6:15pm prayer and 6:15pm-6:55pm dinner @ VGC
· May 3, 10, 17, 24 — “Epic” Men’s Study, 7pm-8:30pm @ VGC
· May 4, 11, 18, 25—Worship Practice, 6pm-7pm @ VGC
· May 6—Men’s Breakfast, 8am-10am @ VGC, please RSVP with Mike Harding (mharding2@liberty. edu)
· May 7, 14, 21, 28—8:30am Service @ VGC, coffee fellowship @ 8am
· May 7, 14, 21, 28— 10:30am Service @ VGC, coffee fellowship @ 10am
· May 7, 14, 21, 28—Youth Service, 5pm-7pm @ VGC
· May 10, 24—Feed the Kids, 10am-12pm @ First Baptist Tijeras
· May 13—Memorial for Tito Manzanares, 11am @ First Baptist Tijeras
· May 20—Vista Sisters Breakfast, 9:30am-11:30am @ VGC, please RSVP with Sheryl Stewart (sheryl@barryhess.com) or Christie Lord (crickandchas@    yahoo.com)
· May 25—Storehouse Mobile Pantry, 2:15pm-5pm @ A Montoya Elementary School, volunteers needed, contact Sheryl Stewart for details

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