BGCT annual meeting seeks to ignite hope, beginning with ministry in Amarillo

AMARILLO—Texas Baptists will assemble at the Amarillo Civic Center for his year's Baptist General Convention of Texas annual meeting. But that's simply the launching point for service in multiple ministry points.

The morning of Oct. 25, participants in the annual meeting will lend a helping hand to ministry projects throughout the Amarillo area. Transportation will be provided to and from each location, as will the tools needed for each project unless otherwise indicated.

"Evangelism and missions will be the focus, with a totally new paradigm called Ignite Hope sessions that will not be just business as usual. Through Ignite Hope in the Community ministry projects, Texas Baptists will be able to share the hope of Christ with people throughout the Amarillo area," said Marla Bearden, who is leading the missions outreach efforts.

The projects are open to visitors and messengers of any age.

Individuals are encouraged to register for the projects prior to the annual meeting at www.texasbaptists.org/annualmeeting and click on the "Ignite Hope" link.

Late registration also will be available in the civic center.

The service opportunities are:

• Free lunch for high school students. Iglesia Bautista Fuente Viva will provide lunch to about 700 high school students. Volunteers are needed to help serve food, distribute Gospel CDs and encourage the youth.

• Children's field day. City Church has a privately funded school for children pre–K to 2nd grade. Many of the students are from low-income areas of Amarillo. Volunteers will be needed to help with a field day experience, which includes clowns.

• Bruce Ford Community Center. This center ministers to children in a community made up of primarily of low-income neighborhoods. Volunteers are needed to assist the center with projects that include landscaping, clean up and a variety of duties. About 12 to 15 volunteers are needed.

• Buckner Family Place. Buckner Family Place is a transitional ministry for single mothers and their children who are in transition. The women attend college—mostly Amarillo College—to get an education and improve their lives. There is a need for 12 to 15 volunteers at the complex to assist in light chores, such as painting, landscaping and cleaning.

• Free burger bash. A college campus is the perfect place for a free lunch. Volunteers are needed to help serve lunch, meet students and share Christ at Amarillo College.

• Prayer-walking Amarillo. In groups of two or three, volunteers will prayer-walk areas of Amarillo where a gospel message is greatly needed. Sites will include refugee ministry, children's ministries and multihousing ministries. Sign-up is essential to arrange adequate transportation.

• "A Step Up" of Mission Amarillo. Bring new or nearly new everyday wear shoes for young people at Mission Amarillo. Participants also will help sort shoes at Mission Amarillo. The goal is to collect 1,000 shoes. Receptacles will be in two locations of the civic center to receive shoe donations. Shoes should be under boys and girls size five.

• Books for Amarillo. Join in literacy ministry opportunities to preschoolers and their families, offered through Literacy Connexus and City Church of Amarillo. Read to underprivileged children at a family reading fair and help parents and children begin home libraries from donated books. Or help build and paint bookcases to be given to families at future reading fairs. No experience needed. New and gently used books will be collected at two locations in the civic center.

For those who do not wish to leave the civic center, a prayer experience as well as evangelism and ministry training opportunities will be offered. They are:

• ABBY training. ABBY is a new evangelism computer tool created for Need Him Ministries in partnership with the BGCT. Learn how to use the new free website tool that enables a person to speak to another person about Christ in any language.

• Prayer experience. Pray for the Ignite Hope in the Community participants and events. Intercessors will pray for specific requests from mission sites. There also will be prayer for revival and spiritual awakening.

• Being missional in the context of poverty. How can Christians be productive and effective in building relationships, providing assistance and making disciples of people living in the war zone of poverty? See the importance of loving the poor like Jesus by seeing the people and not their poverty.