December 2005
Mosaic is the monthly news bulletin of Rosedale Mennonite Missions and is distributed through CMC churches. Because this publication may contain information about workers and ministries in sensitive locations, the entire content is not available online.
Major Expansion Projected in 2006
As we wrap up 2005 and look ahead to next year, we are filled with gratitude for God’s financial provision in the past year and a sense of excitement for where He will lead us in 2006.

In October, RMM’s Regional Directors (RD’s) came to Rosedale for a budget/planning summit with the Mission Leadership Team. We were excited to see a marked increase in the number of potential missionaries preparing for service with RMM in 2006. One couple is preparing to go to Thailand, another to Morocco, and two more couples are seriously considering ministry in south Spain. Several others are on tap to enter the field as interns or longer term workers in Turkey and Thailand. God is answering our prayers that He “send laborers into the harvest!”

We knew that this expansion would have budget implications. And sure enough, the price tag came out to more than $2.4 million—$300,000 more than 2005’s budget! But as we prayed and talked about it, we sensed that God had led us to these plans. As we concluded our meeting, there was a sense of awe in the room—a “we don’t know what to do, but our eyes are on you” anticipation of God’s work. (See 2 Chronicles 20:12)

On the very day that the RD’s were presenting their proposals and we were getting a picture of this significant increase, we got a call from a donor who had given us a wonderful gift of $100,000 for the Missions Day offering. “Are the bank account numbers still the same?” he wondered. In late October, an additional $90,000 was wired to our account!

God has been faithful this year – and we believe that He will continue to provide through His people as He expands CMC’s missions efforts in the coming year. We invite you to consider a year-end financial contribution to help RMM finish strong and ramp up for the $300,000 increase needed in 2006. You can become a part of this move of God to send new workers to the field in 2006. Thanks for your partnership!
 
New Post-Tsunami Churches in Thailand
The 30-mile coast between Thaimuang and Takuapa, Thailand, was devastated by the December 2004 tsunami. Khao Lak, which everyone heard of in the weeks following the catastrophe, is in this region. Hundreds of volunteers assisted the locals and the Thai army with reconstruction. Many of these volunteers who invested their time and money were Christians, and their living witness caused many to think about Jesus. Over 20 new churches have started in this area since the flood, mostly small house churches led by nationals who take good care of the people's needs. "Christians have never been so involved in any region in Thailand," commented one pastor. While many people come to the churches because of their physical needs, they are also brooding about the basic questions of life. Hardly anyone has not lost family, friends and neighbours. In one of the churches, a 27-year-old woman who lost her husband and both children told how the book of Romans comforted her, enabling her to sleep again. In that church, 19 people have been baptised in the past month. [DMG/FRIDAY FAX 20 Oct.’05]
 
More than just a “Nice Day”
An RMM worker in Southeast Asia writes in the December issue of Brotherhood Beacon about the challenge of hoping in the promises of God in a place where Jesus is not known.

But the biggest thing is, they just don’t get it. They think [Christmas] is just a nice thing, a nice special day to remember a nice special event, on the same level as Independence Day, or Canada Day, or Labor Day, or Valentines Day (which, by the way, gets much more press here than Christmas does, oh, so frustrating). Sometimes I just want to grab people by the collar and shake them and shout, “Don’t you get it? It is not a ‘nice’ day. This is the day when the LORD OF THE UNIVERSE incarnated Himself. It points unwaveringly and flint-faced toward the Cross. The whole reason for this day is our sin, and that is just not nice.”

Read the rest of this article – including the author’s hopeful conclusion that God is working in his city – in the December issue of Brotherhood Beacon.
 
Visit www.send-me.org for pictures from the 2005 REACH Commissioning Service.

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