Newsletter for:
January, 2010
Dear Friends:
A lady saw our announcement about our need for cookies and helpers for our Gospel cookie packages in her church bulletin and called me to sign up to help give the packages out on Christmas Day. She also asked if she could bring some NKJV New Testaments to give out. I told her that we always have a stack of New Testaments on the table to be given out. We talked a little and I said, "You have New King James New Testaments?" She said that she and her friend had been told by God to buy these "Here's Hope" NKJV New Testaments back in late spring or early summer. I told her that these are the very New Testaments that I was asking for in our newsletters back about that time and before and have been praying for. She got very excited to see how God had used her and her friend all these months ago. All they knew was that God told them to buy these for someone who needed them. They had been asking everyone they came across if they needed Bibles and the answer was "No".
This lady called her friend who called me and told me how God called them to buy these Bibles. She told me that between the Love's truck stop and her friend's house is a low hill and there is a grape vineyard on the hill - those of you who know the area as I do know about this hill and vineyard. She told me that she had a dream, at least a few times, that she was on top of that hill in the vineyard. When she looked down towards the truck stop she saw people who were shining golden color. She kept asking God what that dream meant until He gave her the answer. God told her that those people were people who are ripe for harvest and that she was to buy four cases of NKJV New Testaments for someone to give out to these people. These ladies brought us these cases of Bibles. (These ladies asked that their names be withheld so God will receive all the glory.) Please praise the Lord with us for how He is blessing this ministry in so many ways!!!
As it is every year, KGRV 700, our local Christian radio station here in the Roseburg area, was a great help by making announcements and having me on the radio talking about the Gospel cookie packages for the truck drivers. We ended up with 16 area churches helping us this year, that is five more than we have ever had before, plus individuals making cookies and either calling me to pick them up, bringing them by KGRV or bring them by while we were packaging them up. We had such a great response with homemade cookies that we put together 756 Gospel cookie packages. As with every year we had a full schedule of volunteers from churches at both Rice Hill Pilot and Love’s truck stops to give away the Gospel cookie packages on Christmas Day.
Over the past few years I have been interested in how it is almost like Roseburg Christian Fellowship and Wellspring Bible Fellowship are in competition to see which church makes the most cookies and supplies the most volunteers to give them out. This year Roseburg Christian Fellowship came ahead of Wellspring Bible Fellowship by having almost right at twice as many cookies and Wellspirng Bible Fellowship came ahead by a nose with the number of volunteers on Christmas Day. I will try to let you know every year where they are and if any other church gets in this “race”. You can see more pictures on our “Happening” page at www.steeringwheel.org.
Here are a few of the reports written by our volunteers on Christmas Day:
** “Handed out lots of cookies to those coming out the front doors. I had a nice talk with a couple who were hitchhiking. They were blessed to receive the cookies. I gave them a giant $100 bill tract that he thought was really cool. Everybody was blessed to receive the cookies and many were surprised.”
** “We gave out quite a few boxes. We didn’t have many people in the store so Ken went out to the pumps and handed them out. People were really receptive and appreciative. Even the ones who had a frown on their faces left with a smile. THIS is what Christmas is about. Showing God’s love and showing others that He is a kind and loving God.”
** “Good feeling. We gave and got a lot of smiles. Made a lot of people’s day. They were pleasantly surprised and pleased. We wished everyone a Merry Christmas. Less than 10 people refused the cookie boxes. We did not pray with anyone, nor did anyone receive Christ, but we planted a lot of seeds.”
** “Only had a few rejections but over all a great experience. Our kids had a good time and were very blessed.”
I had a very hard time this year deciding which reports to print here as they were all very good, just not enough room to print them all. We are out there for everyone we can reach for the Lord and these volunteers automatically, by the direction of the Holy Spirit, fall into that and reach out to everyone they can with the Gospel. We did have more politely saying “No thanks” because of diabetes. So, next year we are going to really work on having a good number of sugar free Gospel cookie packages for them.
I want to take this opportunity to thank the following churches and ministries for their help this year with the Gospel Cookie packages:
New Hope Church in the Green area
Winston Assembly Of God
Winston Mennonite
Winston Christian Church
Winston Missionary Baptist Church
KGRV 700 AM
Foundation Fellowship
Roseburg Christian Fellowship
Roseburg Alliance Church
Wellspring Bible Fellowship
St. Paul Lutheran
Green Community Missionary Church
Pine Grove Community Church
Church On The Rise
Gateway Faith Center
Faith Baptist
New Hope Fellowship
Radio Bible Class—donated the booklets we put on the packages
The thank you also goes to YOU because without your prayer support and your financial support Steering Wheel Ministries could not continue to reach so many people for the Lord Jesus Christ. The first few months of the year along with the summer months are always the hardest financially for Steering Wheel Ministries—the other months we are working hard to catch up and we often cannot get caught up before the next slump—so please, prayerfully give to the Lord so we can continue to meet the expenses so we can reach these and more men and women for Jesus Christ before it is to late.
In behalf of the drivers, thank you for giving to the Lord.
In Christ's service,
Merwin Rhoades
Chaplain/President
Steering Wheel Ministries
Is recognized by the IRS as a 501[C](3) non-profit Ministry
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