Therefore if there is any encouragement in Christ, if there is any consolation of love, if there is any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and compassion, make my joy complete by being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose. Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others. Philippians 2:1-4 (NAS)
for your generous support of the MARY HILL DAVIS OFFERING for the WEEK OF PRAYER FOR TEXAS MISSIONS‰ a total of $3,049,773.91.
Together we are intent on 1 purpose, sharing the love of God state wide.
A Word from TAMIKO
The Word of God tells us that we are to “give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” (1 Thessalonians 5:18, ESV). So, with gratitude in my heart, I thank you for the many ways you have partnered with WMU of Texas to impact our state since our last report.
We believe in the restoration of brokenness through hope in Christ. It is through this lens that we see the needs of all people and serve faithfully. Furthermore, making disciples who make disciples is our mission and as we pray for missions, God continues to provide the opportunities and the resources to serve those in need.
Starting in 1910, the Mary Hill Davis Offering® was established to empower state missions efforts for Texas Baptists. The life and legacy of Mary Hill Davis reaches to the furthest corners of Texas as the yearly offering supports the mission work of ministries across the state. From preparing denominational leaders for service to ensuring church starters are engaged in the geographical areas most requiring evangelism, the Mary Hill Davis Offering for Texas Missions provides an intergenerational, cross-cultural blessing to many people groups.
Correspondingly, the ongoing response of volunteers to the devastation of Hurricane Harvey demonstrates a commitment to engaging in missions. You have given your time, your talents, and your financial gifts so that physical needs of multiple communities might be filled. Not only were family needs met by your sacrificial giving, but countless souls were saved as individuals came to know Jesus Christ. Likewise, through ministries such as CWJC®/CMJCSM and Thrive 2:7, thousands of volunteer hours were given to help individuals develop spiritually towards a missional lifestyle and to provide life skills training for successful season-of-life transitions. The work continues.
Corrie ten Boom said, “I have held many things in my hands, and I have lost them all; but whatever I have placed in God’s hands, that, I still possess.” It is my prayer that whatever assignment God gives to the hands of WMU of Texas, we can complete it with faithful stewardship, dedication, and the love of Christ. May God be glorified in who we are and what we do.
In His Name,
Tamiko C. Jones WMU of Texas Executive Director-Treasurer
WMU of Texas Welcomes New Executive DirectorTreasurer
The Board of Directors of WMU of Texas unanimously elected Tamiko C. Jones to serve as the new executive director-treasurer on October 6, 2017. She is the first African American to hold the top leadership position of the organization that was founded in 1880.
The search committee was impressed with Jones’ business background and church staff experience. Barbara Springer, chair of the committee, said, “As we ranked candidates throughout the process, she stayed in the No. 1 position almost from day one to the end.”
Jones comes to WMU of Texas with a wealth of experience. For 15 years she worked as an electrical engineer and manager with Nokia Siemens Networks and Motorola. God had other plans for her life and led her to serve on the staff of Bethlehem Baptist Church in Mansfield, Texas. Her responsibilities over the years included counseling, curriculum development, social media, young adults, women’s ministry, and missions.
She has also served on various Texas Baptist committees plus involvement with WMU of Texas as a conference leader, chair of the African American Advisory Council, Legacy Promotions Team member, and WMU of Texas Annual Meeting planning team member and host of general sessions for the past several years.
Michael Evans, pastor at Bethlehem Baptist Church, said of Jones, “It is obvious she is a person called to ministry, as demonstrated by her life and by her love for God’s people.”
Jones succeeds Sandy Wisdom-Martin, who left WMU of Texas in 2016 to serve as executive director-treasurer of national WMU, and Carolyn Porterfield who served as interim executive director-treasurer.
We are indebted to Ken Camp’s Baptist Standard article of October 6, 2017 for some of the content of this article.
Hurricane Harvey unleashed its fury on Texas and other states in a big way. Damage was estimated at $125 billion. Eighty-eight people lost their lives. Homes, businesses, and churches were destroyed or damaged. The storm and its aftermath were almost beyond comprehension.
Within hours of the storm hitting the Texas coast, WMU of Texas joined hands and hearts with others to minister to people who had lost much. People in the larger WMU family began asking how they could help. New Mexico, North Carolina, and Virginia WMU sent gift cards.
Others also donated cards and money. Associational staff members and Texas Baptist staff personally presented gifts to those who had lost so much. Over $12,700 was given and 252 gift cards shared.
One pastor’s wife sent this thank you note: I’m a pastor’s wife in a small church. About 60% of our town was flooded on August 30, 2017. Our home was one of the many that had damage. God has been so good and faithful to us. Thank you for being faithful to Him. Your gift will help us
After the Storm Suds OF LOVE
In October of 2017, WMU of Texas partnered with the Buckner Family Hope Center at Bachman Lake in Dallas to serve families with our Suds of Love mobile laundry unit. While stationed on the grounds of an elementary school, the laundry unit was used to wash laundry, at no cost, for families assisted by the Family Hope Center and the school. Several WMU of Texas and Buckner International staff members served as volunteers and were the launders that day, providing dignity and service to each person seeking help. Through this one day of service, other elementary schools in the
get closer to our goal of returning to our home.
Collegiate ministries, which depend on local churches to provide meals for outreach programs, were also impacted. Your generosity sustained BSM programs in Beaumont, Houston, Corpus Christi, and Beeville. Different leaders shared that many students who come for free meals do not know Christ. After receiving a second gift Darin Ford in Beaumont wrote, Thank you so much for your generous gift to the Lamar Baptist Student Ministry. I appreciate you blessing us with your kindness again. Often times, recovery takes so much longer than anyone could imagine. Thanks for your continued concern for us.
The WMU Foundation HEART fund grant helped First Cambodian Church of Aldine in Houston begin repairs on their flooded building. Pastor Savann Kruoch told his people that God would provide for their needs, and the check from the WMU Foundation was testimony of God’s provision.
area have requested similar resources for the families in need they encounter on their campuses. As we continue to develop volunteer teams for Suds of Love, our prayer is that 2018 is a banner year for our use of the laundry unit in blessing families in need.
Photo courtsey of Buckner International
Missions JAMboree
is a one-day event focused on mission action and awareness for children in 1st -6 the grade. In 2017, over 80 participants attended at Coastal Bend Fellowship in Kingsville. They experienced worship led by Ledy Cancino and the CBF band, heard from Go Now Missionary Crystal Porter about her experience in China, learned about missions in Norway, were challenged in their spiritual walks by Pastor Noe Treviño, and donated items to the peanut better and jelly ministry of Texas A&M-Kingsville BSM. It was a great day of fun and missions.
Missions Camps
Bunk beds, missions activities, zip lines, and camp fires are just a few things you can experience at missions camp. In 2017, over 26 directors lead their teams to host missions camps all over our great state.
WMU of Texas visited the Heart of Texas camp in Brownwood and hosted a WorldCraftsSM “camptivity”.
We shared about the importance of fair trade and how WMU of Texas promotes the ministry of WorldCrafts. Campers made bracelets as a reminder to pray for artisans around the world.
Encourage your church to take your children to missions camp in 2018. To find a camp near you, go to www.wmutx.org/ missionscamp.
Pads, Beads, and Partners
The Pad Project continues in partnership with missions personnel, churches, and the Baylor School of Nursing.
The generosity of Vietnamese women is amazing. Using their sewing skills and serving in Jesus’ name, they have made thousands of pads for the Pad Project.
A new partner was the Baylor School of Nursing. Pads, pad holders, underwear, and cycle beads were sent to South Asia with a team of six nurses and two instructors. The team came to the WMU of Texas office and worked with our staff to create over 40 cycle beads which help women track their monthly cycles.
Love in Action
Vietnamese women from across Texas gathered in Plano in September for their annual time of worshipping together, growing in their faith, and serving others. The group continues to be heavily committed to the Pad Project by making reusable menstrual pads that are sent to South Asia.
This year the group took on a new challenge by making t-shirt book bags for Literacy ConneXus. The bags are given to children who participate in summer lunch and reading programs called, What’s for Lunch? Over 100 bags were made to bless children. These women are very good about expressing their love for God through their actions.
CWJC/CMJC
Christian Women’s Job Corps® celebrated its 20th Anniversary. The theme was Impacting Lives . . Transforming Generations. Over the past twenty years more than 40,000
were served through Texas Christian Women’s Job Corps ministries. Men and women across Texas served a total of 1.2 million volunteer hours empowering women to find HOPE through Christian Women’s Job Corps.
The Texas Baptist Missions Foundation awarded a grant to WMU of Texas to pilot life and job skills education and mentoring programs targeting teen men and women. Thrive 2:7 invests in the lives of young people through a holistic, Christ-centered education and mentoring program. In 2017, eight young women graduated from Thrive 2:7 at Kimball High School in Dallas. Four young women who are homeschool students graduated from Thrive 2:7 in Nacogdoches. The graduates of Thrive in Nacogdoches received a total of $492.00 in a savings match.
Partners in Ministry
On July 12, 2017, Sisters Who Care partnered with African American Ministries sponsoring a luncheon during the African American Fellowship Conference at Colonial Hills Baptist Church in Tyler. Over 100 women from Texas Baptist churches attended the SWC Luncheon as we shared the life and legacy of Mary Hill Davis, and why we give to the Texas missions offering named in her memory.
Our special guests were representatives from the Texas Baptists Missions Team, which co-sponsored the luncheon. Staff shared about their ministry and missions experiences plus extending an invitation to the women to participate in a vision/ mission trip to the Rio Grande Valley, which was partially funded through the Mary Hill Davis Offering.
The spoken word was delivered by the African American Advisory Council Chair for SWC, Rev. Tamiko Jones. She challenged the women with a message from the book of Nehemiah entitled, “Sister, Do You Care?” She ended her message encouraging the women to be like Nehemiah, and pray, plan, and act as we engage in missions in our churches, communities, and world.
Celebrating 100 Years
Hispanic WMU of the Hispanic Baptist Convention celebrated 100 years of missions awareness, support, and involvement in 2017. WMU of Texas congratulates our sisters for their dedication and commitment to growing God’s kingdom.
President Shirley McDonald and interim executive directortreasurer Carolyn Porterfield presented an inscribed crystal vase filled with flowers to Bea Mesquias, executive director of Hispanic WMU at their celebration banquet in San Antonio.
The WMU of Texas booth in the exhibit area at the Hispanic Baptist Convention centered on making disciples who make disciples. Participants enjoyed having their pictures made with the “I am Texas Missions” poster and Mary Hill Davis.
assembly is held every five years and had not been hosted in Canada since 1972. WMU of Texas was well represented and involved in the program.
New Dreams
The North American Baptist Women’s Union, one of the continental unions of the Women’s Department of the Baptist World Alliance, held its assembly in Toronto, Canada October 19-22. The
New Dreams was the perfect theme as different generations were challenged to embrace the new things God is doing in our day. Building relationships, mentoring others, and combating human trafficking were major themes of the assembly. The assembly also approved a name change. The new name is Baptist Women of North America.
“Every great dream begins with a dreamer.”
Harriet Tubman
ACROSS TEXAS
Texans endured a terrible hurricane in 2017 but Texas Baptists still gave from their hearts to WorldCraftsSM. Churches north, south, east, and west invested $47,818.86 in the lives of our artisan groups through WorldCraft Markets.
WMU of Texas traveled with Singing Women of Texas in June and set up markets in San Marcos, San Antonio, Midland, and Abilene. It was a wonderful partnership. By the end of the year, we had completed 35 markets with only two markets canceled due to the hurricane.
These were the top products purchased.
Thank you so much for seeing the need to treat people fairly and purchasing WorldCraft products.
Human Trafficking Panel, left to right Kerri Johnson, Ellyn Jo Walker, Brenda Troy, Katarina McLeod, Lauren Bethell
House Number
SEVEN
Luis and Norma Medina-Camara were living in small travel trailer where their seven-year old son, Luis, Jr. did not feel safe. Through involvement with the Buckner Family Hope Center in Peñitas, Texas the family qualified for a small home built where they would feel safe.
In October 2017, two teams from WMU of Texas arrived to come alongside the family as they worked to build their new home. This is the seventh house WMU of Texas has built since 2011.
Thanks to generous gifts to the Mary Hill Davis Offering® funds were available to purchase the building materials.
ELEVEN
CONDENSED STATEMENT OF INCOME AND EXPENDITURES 12/31/17 (Unaudited)
INCOME
$6,780,504
EXPENSES
Mary Hill Davis Expenditures (BGCT & TX Baptists Institutions) $2,149,605
Other Expenditures (WMU Budget & Allocated Distributions) 1,170,695
$3,320,300
BALANCE SHEET ASSETS
$4,324,010
$4,324,010
Shirley McDonald
President
238 County Road 129 Stephenville, TX 76401
Home:
254-968-0605
Cell:
254-485-8272 smmcdonald@ centurylink.net
Charlotte Watson Vice President 814 Sheppard Road Georgetown, TX 78628
