Mission MB Church is mission minded
Mission USA news story
Mission (Texas) MB Church, located just a few miles north of the Rio Grande, continues to look for ways to present the gospel. Arturo Williams Velez, a member of the Mission congregation, recently began a ministry in the 7-Mile Line neighborhood that holds promise. Meeting under a red and white open-air tent, the ministry focuses on meeting the people of the surrounding area. When a worship service begins and the amplifier is turned on, nearby neighbors can’t help but notice.
This past Thanksgiving a group of students from Rio Grande Bible Institute, together with Mission MB’s youth group, held a carnival for kids of the area and worship services for people of the neighborhood. During this outreach event, two teenage girls and a family of three made decisions to be Jesus-followers. This outdoor ministry could struggle during the colder winter months, so organizers request prayer that momentum will not be lost.
Don Morris, Mission USA director, has been involved with leadership training sessions for pastors and leaders from the Latin America MB (LAMB) District Conference, including Rafael Nunez, the Mission MB Church pastor who is still learning English. “We like the new partnerships forming with U.S. Conference,” says Nunez.
Grace Bible Church from Gettysburg, SD, is also a ministry partner with the church, sending volunteers from time to time to assist Mission MB in their outreach efforts and possible future expansion. In December the Mission church, with assistance from MB Foundation, purchased a nice tract of land with a parsonage about three miles north of their current property and plan to develop the property, build a new church and then sell their current church and parsonage.
Eidse takes on new role
Mission USA news story
Six years ago, Rebecca Eidse couldn’t shake the feeling that she and her husband, Chris, were supposed to move their young family from Winnipeg, Man., to North Carolina for long-term ministry. Having never been to North Carolina, Rebecca wondered if she was hearing God correctly.
But as the calling intensified for both Rebecca and Chris, they determined to get to North Carolina however they could. In just a short time God paved the way, providing avenues for them to journey south and to connect with the North Carolina District MB Conference as the district’s youth director.
Fast-forward six years. Following a very fruitful ministry as the district’s youth director and also as the part-time associate pastor at Bushtown MB Church, the Eidse family began feeling that restlessness once again. After a positive assessment as potential church planters under the guidance of Mission USA, God led Chris and Rebecca to consider becoming the lead pastoral couple at Boone MB Church. Located near the bustling Appalachian State University neighborhood, this multi-ethnic church was a magnet for the searching couple. “It fits us perfectly,” says Chris.
Mission USA, the church planting and renewal ministry of U.S. Mennonite Brethren, has entered into a partnership with Boone MB Church to subsidize staff costs and assistance with new outreach initiatives.
“Chris is all about reaching people for Jesus,” says Terry Hunt, long-time NC district leader and pastor of The Life Center in Lenoir, NC. “With Chris at the helm in Boone, all kinds of great things are possible,” Hunt says.
This article is part of the CL Archives. Articles published between August 2017 and July 2008 were posted on a previous website and are archived here for your convenience. We have also posted occasional articles published prior to 2008 as part of the archive. To report a problem with the archived article, please contact the CL editor at editor@usmb.org.
