God tremendously blesses St. Matthew Lutheran School's outreach project!
"He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation." Mark 16:15
Have you ever had the opportunity to witness a “light bulb moment” when a child suddenly makes a cognitive connection and is able to comprehend a concept? Due to Mrs. Osbron’s maternity leave, I have the great joy of working with Kindergarteners on Friday mornings, and it is so exciting witnessing these emergent readers master various milestones, light up with excitement, and announce, "I GET IT!" when they grasp a new literacy concept. Once a child realizes that they can decode words, it is thrilling to observe their enthusiasm to try and read.
Unfortunately, not everyone in this world has the opportunity to learn how to read. In fact, it is heartbreaking to learn that there are approximately 773 million illiterate adults in the world. Sadly, when people are unable to read, it not only creates many challenges regarding academics and employment, but also the additional hardship of learning the Bible.
World Mission is a non-profit Christian organization founded in 1994 to support projects that take the Gospel into third world countries. Knowing this literacy challenge, World Mission has developed solar-powered MP3 players that have the Bible recorded in the native language of communities where they are distributed. These tools, affectionally known as "Treasures", are designed for oral learners, motivated by the mission that "the more Treasures that are sent, the more people hear the powerful message of the Gospel spoken in their own language", it is estimated that since their initial development, World Mission has placed over 100,000 Treasures in more than 18 countries.
Meanwhile, since 1972, all Lutheran elementary schools in the state of Michigan have partnered together to focus on annually a singular outreach effort, which is known as the “Hearts for Jesus” project. This endeavor usually occurs during the months of February and March. This year, the MI District selected World Mission as the recipient of the 2023 Hearts for Jesus campaign with the hope of placing Treasures into the hands of those who can not read, but are curious and want learn more about the Lord.
Our sixth graders were the leaders for this outreach project. They designed the initial goal for this Treasure project with the hope that each class would raise $50. This goal would allow our school to raise $500 to purchase 10 treasures. Last week was the conclusion of this outreach endeavor, and we are thrilled to announce that God multiplied our goal far more than we expected as the students of St. Matthew raised $3,719, which allows for us to purchase 74 Treasures!
Please join us as now we begin to pray for the recipients of these Treasures and that their hearts would be transformed in powerful ways to grow in faith and love for our Lord.
Thank you for your tremendous support. We "treasure" your partnership in ministry!
In Jesus' Love,
Mrs. Palka