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Vol. 10: No. 12
September 15, 2022
Rebuilding and Reaching Out in Neon
OPC Disaster Response Team from Ohio
by Trish Duggan, OPC Disaster Response Communications Coordinator
It’s been fifty days since six-and-a-half feet ravaged the church building of Neon Reformed OPC. Even though much has been accomplished, there is still much more to do. The Lord hears your prayers and is strengthening the community in Neon, even in this disaster! The church building has been mucked out, power-washed, sanitized, dried and now has drywall installed. In the six weeks since the flood, nearly one hundred volunteers from eleven states have already come to serve. We understand that more than 60% of the churches of the Presbytery of the Southeast have participated in the volunteer effort! The Lord has been very gracious.
The Poignant Plight of the
Asylum Seeker
by Pat Hatch, Refugee and Immigrant Ministry Director,
PCA Mission to North America
Imagine:
You work as a lawyer in a developing country, and your work exposes the fact that government officials are raping civilians in your community. As your work becomes known, you begin to receive death threats. Not long after, you are beaten, causing permanent partial hearing loss. As soon as you are recovered, you begin your work again, undeterred. But then you get a note saying: “We know where you are, and what you are doing. This time, we will not leave you alive.” This time, you know you have to flee.
When you arrive in a nearby country, you find out that your homeland government is still tracking you for reprisal. You flee to yet another country, where you go into hiding. Eventually you manage to escape to the US on a visitor’s visa, and you begin the difficult process of applying for asylum. For two years you sleep on couches, never far from homelessness. In order to survive, you frequently have to beg for food and shelter.
This is the TRUE story of one of the more than 432,000 asylum seekers currently in the US.
Available Now!
The next four audio recordings from the OPC National Diaconal Summit IV have just been released! This round includes the workshops, "Ministry to the Stranger" led by Rev. Deryck Barson, "Disaster Response for the Local Church" led by Mr. Mike Cloy, "Your Diaconate and Your Denomination," led by David Nakhla, and a plenary session "The Ministry that Deacons Need" led by Rev. Ron Pearce. We hope you are benefitting from these episodes. Please like, share, and comment. We like comments!
Meet John West, Deacon, Mid Cities OPC (Bedford, Texas)
By Allison Hill, Administrative Assistant for the
OPC Committee on Diaconal Ministries
What is the role of a deacon? What is his primary responsibility in the church? Most likely, the answers many deacons and church members may generate in response to these questions will contain, if not solely focus on, the notion of “service”—service in the church, for the church. John West, deacon at Mid Cities OPC in Bedford, Texas, would agree. However, he would take it one step further. Calling his fellow deacons to a higher order of service than merely performing the tasks required in the local congregation, West claims that it is the deacon’s duty to “cultivate an environment in the church that is conducive to the entire body serving one another and the outside world.” Deacons are to set the standard of service within the Church.
If you know of any deacons who are not receiving the Mercy Minute, send them this link
and invite them to sign up!
Editor: David P. Nakhla
Administrator, CDM
david.nakhla@opc.org 562-760-7606
Trish Duggan, Communications Coordinator, CDM
trish.duggan@opc.org
Allison Hill, Administrative Assistant, CDM
allison.hill@opc.org
The Mercy Minute, a quarterly newsletter of the Committee on Diaconal Ministries, is intended to keep OPC deacons informed and encouraged in their labors. It may include opportunities for networking or training, describe the work that a local diaconate or presbytery diaconal committee is engaged in, or bring attention to a need in the OPC.
