Capstone Christmas 2009
Greetings in Christ,
Greetings from warm and sunny Africa. Patty and I extend you
warm greetings as we approach Christmas. We were not able to visit
the US for our regular tour of congregations this year. We missed
seeing you and updating you on the progress of Capstone in the
restoration of street children and their families.
The past year has been tremendous. We have seen
the hand of God working in many families. We had a great Camp in
August with 20 boys and all their families attending. The number of
boys we have restored to their families has just exceeded 100.
We see great things ahead for Capstone as our work
continues to expand. We have been particularly effective in the
Luanda area just north of Kisumu where our outreach continues to
reach more and more children separated from their families. We need
to expand our work there as this is the area where most of the kids
on the streets of Kisumu come from. If we can stop the flow of
children into the streets at the source in rural Luanda, we can be
even more effective.
Can you help us in this work? We would like to give you
the opportunity to stand with us this Christmas and have a special
mission emphasis sometime during the month of December. You are
free to choose. Perhaps an offering on Christmas Eve as the gift of
God’s Son is fresh and vivid in our minds would be a good time to
extend that hand of grace across the ocean to the vulnerable
children of Kenya.
Included in this email are some elements you may be
free to use to highlight the work of Capstone Ministries on a day of
your choosing. If the Christmas season is too busy, and we
certainly understand that, you are free to choose another Sunday,
perhaps Epiphany. Here are some elements of the program that are
included:
~ A special offering on a chosen Sunday or Christmas Eve.
Thrivent will match funds.
~ A display of pictures on the
work of Capstone which are attached. We suggest making a bulletin
board or if you do pre-service photos you could add them to the
sequence.
~ Brochures and newsletters on a table near the display
board. We can send them at your request from our office in
California.
~ A mission prayer for the Sunday of the offering which is
attached
~ A bulletin insert that will highlight some of the boys we
have restored. It is attached
~ A video greeting from Kenya to show on that Sunday. It is
attached. Unfortunately with the slow internet speeds here I had to
reduce the quality and size but I think it should still work for
you. This video features the program on the day we reconciled 8
former street boys. It concludes with a Christmas greeting from
them.
We trust that this small program will enhance our joint
mission to reach out this Christmas to benefit the vulnerable
children of Western Kenya with God’s hand of grace. Change the life
of a child forever! Make this a Capstone Christmas! Feel free to
write to us at
capstoneministries@gmail.com for more information.
Merry Christmas,
Dan and Patty Schmelzer – Capstone Ministries
December 2009 Newsletter (pdf)