“One of the wonderful results of seizing a divine moment is
that it pulls so many others into theirs.”
~ Erwin McManus
Divine Moment Jennifer Whittington
What is a divine moment? The word divine is to be connected with, coming from or caused by God. A moment is an important or significant instant in time. So, this leads us to conclude that a divine moment is an important instant in time caused by God. Have you ever had one of those? Did you seize the moment for Him? The funny thing is, sometimes we don’t even realize it was a divine moment until years have passed and that moment is a fleeting memory.
I completed my first year of teaching in 1994 at Maplewood Elementary in Ocala, FL. Assembling report card packets brought tears to my eyes, as I was sending my babies on to the 1st grade. I can remember sitting at my desk looking at the completed report cards and the stack of VBS flyers I had cut that afternoon. “Should I? Maybe not, someone could get offended. Oh, well.” I slipped the VBS invitations into the report card jackets and sent them on their way.
Three of my students attended that VBS. One of which, eventually, joined the church with her mother and little brother. To make a long story short: Summer, grew up in our church and recently graduated from Lee University. I had the privilege of escorting her to Honduras in January to teach English at Mercy Christian Academy, the Christian school HTF built a couple of years ago. Talk about a surreal opportunity!
So many thoughts have gone through my mind since that trip. What if I had not put that invitation in Summer’s report card? Would she have grown up in church? Would she have ended up at Lee? Would she be on a mission in Honduras right now? Maybe. God could have used someone else to guide Summer into the life He has planned for her. But, I wouldn’t be reaping the joy and fulfillment of knowing I was a part of His plan!
Ephesians 2:10 says, “For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” Good works doesn’t always mean big works. Good works can be found in the little things, choices you make in an instant - an important instant in time caused by God. That one moment can turn into something miraculous. Seize every moment for Him!
Go and Make Disciples
HTF has been offered an incredible opportunity to distribute discipleship material to over 3,000 home groups and churches in Cuba, using Louie Bustle and Stan Toler’s Each One Win One campaign. Our Cuban leadership is thrilled to get this program up and running to win Cuba for Christ! One of the most exciting components of this campaign is the discipleship curriculum that follows the evangelism. New converts are walked through the vital steps of living a life for Christ.
Pastor Johnson already started the preliminary meetings and training in January and will return in March to continue this effort. Donations of the Jesus Film have been made, as well, to distribute across the island.
HTF is also proud to announce our partnership with The Mailbox Club to distribute 12 weeks of discipleship material to 900 children in Cuba who will be attending our baseball camp. Plans for distribution in Nicaragua will be discussed during Pastor Johnson’s March visit to Pochocuape.
Set the World on Fire
It is our heart’s desire to “Set the World on Fire” for Him! In the last seven months, HTF has had the privilege of speaking in six churches in the U.S., inspiring the congregations to step out of the boat and get personally involved in World Missions. This summer, HTF will lead five churches into the field. To equip the leaders of these teams, Darryl and Jennifer have just completed a Missions Handbook. This resource holds a wealth of information from fundraising to discipleship training to being a servant on the field. Team members will be trained and inspired to do whatever it takes to win the lost!
Upcoming Missions:
March 11 – 16: Pastor Johnson and Darryl will lead a group of men to Pochocuape, Nicaragua. The team will build a work room onto the existing warehouse HTF put up last year. This facility feeds thousands of children every week. While there, Pastor Johnson will also meet with key players to implement children’s discipleship materials at area feeding centers.
March 18 – 21: Pastor Johnson and Jonathan will lead a team to Cuba to donate little league baseball equipment collected through an Upward Sports program in Columbia, SC. This team will make plans for and help organize an upcoming 12-week baseball camp for children. As always, the adult league will be a highlight of the trip. We just received word that this past weekend’s crusade brought 405 salvations – 330 on Friday, the largest harvest yet in one day!
