By Neva Zorn
Coming from a small church does not mean that there are small blessings. On the contrary.
Our congregation, Wilderness Baptist Church, in Spotsylvania is a small church with a big heart. We are 200 years-plus and have seen many miracles in our time. With a congregation of approximately 75 active members and many who are senior citizens, it is a blessing when our youth leaders have more then five young people to shepherd.
Recently a small blessing has turned into a big miracle right before our eyes.
This miracle came about last April when another member and I took our Acteen group (comprised of eight girls) to Eagle Eyrie Baptist Conference Center near Lynchburg for a weekend retreat.
It was at this conference that we learned of a mission to help children in India go back to school. These children are victims of the tsunami. We were told that each child is required to have two uniforms and all books and supplies before being permitted to return to the classroom. This can be done at a cost of $25 per child.
Our girls decided that this would be a good mission project and set a goal of sending 10 children back to school by fall.
We started the project by telling our congregation about the wonderful weekend we had enjoyed and thanking them for their generosity in sending us. We then told them about this incredible opportunity we had to help children in another part of the world return to their lives and learning. We asked for their prayers and their change. A large jar was placed on our back table and we reminded the congregation every couple of weeks that our mission was still in progress.
Over the next three months the girls collected almost $500 from the generosity of people donating their spare change each Sunday.
Then the most wonderful thing happened. The Vacation Bible School offerings were donated to our cause. We are blessed to report that we will send a check in the amount of $1,025.
This will permit 41 students to return to school and deepens our faith in God and his wondrous ways. Who else could take a small group like ours and bring about a big miracle?
But the story doesn't stop here. Our congregation voted to match the dollars raised and the girls will now be sending $2,050 to the Back-to-School Buddies Fund, making it possible for 82 children to return to school.
Since that time, our own country has sustained a major disaster. We will now make it our goal to help the families in the Gulf area affected by Hurricane Katrina. Please pray for us and our efforts and praise God for his wonderful faithfulness.
Special to the Herald
Neva Zorn is a member of Wilderness Baptist Church in Spotsylvania.