LaShondra's mentor, Cathy, characterizes her as tenacious: “After some initial success in passing some of the sections [of the GED test], several sections were proving to be much more difficult challenges, such as math and science. . . . She contemplated giving up after failing some of the tests for a second time. However, she recognized what an incredible opportunity CWJC’s program afforded her.”

CWJC, or Christian Women’s Job Corps, was founded by WMU in 1997. The ministry, which has expanded to include Christian Men’s Job Corps (CMJC), serves thousands of individuals through nearly 200 registered sites in 23 states and 5 countries by utilizing a two-pronged holistic,strengths-based approach of mentoring and discipleship. This all-inclusive method produces a holistic approach to life change, allowing individuals to understand that wholeness is a by-product of daily, personal decisions of behavior modification and thought transformation, outworked through a disciplined relationship with God and people.

Prayer is vital to all we do in WMU. We can’t all go, but we can all pray.

Hold a special prayertime focusing on those serving globally and in the United States. Pray also for those without a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Pray for opportunities to share the gospel.

Recently I had the privilege of meeting a missionary family who served in Brazil for many years through the International Mission Board (IMB) and learning the story of their miracle daughter, Priscila: 

In 1996, we were pregnant with baby number 4. We were just out of language school and living in Niterói, a city of around 500,000. We had planned on having this baby like the previous 3 and doing natural childbirth. We had finally found a doctor who would agree to not do a C-section and had just begun practicing our Lamaze breathing methods. However, God had other plans. Our youngest daughter, Priscila, was not going to come into this world on time but would instead arrive 2 months premature.

Suffering—is it a topic any of us are really comfortable with? I personally don’t like to think about it.

Jesus talked a lot about suffering and in Philippians 3:10, I am reminded “that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and may share His sufferings” (ESV). Really? Participate in suffering? Yet in this verse, suffering speaks to me as an avenue to know Christ better and refine me to be more like Him.

We all experience suffering in varying degrees at one time or another. David Crosby reminds us in his book Your Pain Is Changing You that we can choose how we respond to it. 

On a personal level, my most challenging experience with pain and suffering was my diagnosis and battle with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. It took 6 months to diagnose and a lot of physical pain was experienced. Through God’s grace, I am now in remission.  However, the spiritual battle to stay focused on Christ and relinquish my will to His during the adversity was equally challenging.

It is December, time to trim the tree, decorate the house inside and out, and send Christmas cards. Not to mention shop. Shop for family, friends, co-workers, the pastor’s family, the mail carrier, Sunday School teachers, and school teachers. Then there is the entertaining, baking, Christmas parties, Christmas cantatas, and everything else that we are supposed to do in December. Wow! Are you tired yet?

All these things are so fun and make Christmas special and memorable, but they aren’t what Christmas is all about. Christmas is about the incredible Gift that was given to us all, Jesus. We need to make sure that all our activities are about Him and not just about the holiday.

One great way to help keep the season all about Jesus is to promote the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering^® and the Week of Prayer for International Missions. The more creative you get, the more excited people will get in their giving. Here are a few approaches that really worked for churches in New Mexico: