November Newsletter - Lufkin

​Cool nights, warm days. Cold nights, cool days. That was the October weather around here.
 
EMPLOYMENT REPORT:

• New jobs-4
• Day jobs-1
• Still working-1

Praise the Lord!
 
Thanksgiving Day 2020

In years past we have provided a Thanksgiving devotion and meal for the three communities where GODTEL operates homeless shelters but this is a different sort of year. We still plan to have a traditional Thanksgiving service and meal for our residents, but will not invite the general public to join us. We will miss the fellowship of the many helpful volunteers, who in past years, have chosen to spend this special day with the homeless. Our prayer is that they will be blessed however they spend the day this year.

Kelli and her two children checked in the end of the month. The small pop up camper trailer she and her children were living in caught fire and burned up. She and her children got out just in time. Everything was gone-just a pile of ashes was all that was left.

The sheriff’s department found her and the children sleeping on a picnic table. A call was made to us and they arrived by a chauffer driven deputy’s carriage. After a few days rest and meals in their bellies the business of life started again. Kelli got her son enrolled in school. It took a little longer to enroll her daughter in school. Now both children board their buses in the morning and return home in the afternoon.

Kelli has been using her mornings to replace her birth certificate and picture ID. We made a call to Trent Ashby’s office. His office has been most helpful. It will take awhile to get her back “on track”. In the meantime, Kelli attends the two Bible studies a day that tell her about God and His love for her and her children. Pray for Kelli, Eli and Alona.

We continue to wash hands, covering our mouths when coughing and sneezing, distancing ourselves and sanitizing tables, chairs and door knobs. Christi has started making masks again.

We recently have been given an big tub of pecans. If a resident is not working he or she is drafted into the “shell game”. Not really. We have several different styles of nutcrackers and so the pecans are loosing their winter coats. We hear loud popping noises as the nut crackers show off their strength as they remove the shells one at a time.

Those pecans that are not eaten while shelling will be used to make pecan pies, cookies and breads of all kinds.  Yum! My mouth is already watering.

November 16, 2020 at 6:30 pm the four men who completed the fall session of the Christian Men’s Job Corps will graduate from The Fieldhouse. The ceremony will take place at Denman Avenue Baptist Church. Way to go-Terry, Anthony, Jonathan and Quinton! We pray that these men will take the lessons they have learned and be shining lights in their neighborhoods.

We received the latest Mosaic Center newsletter. This edition highlighted our Christi. Christi started her Lufkin adventure at the Seasons of Hope Center. After graduating from Seasons of Hope Christi landed on our doorstep.  She heard about The Mosaic Center, applied and was accepted in their next session. She committed and completed and graduated from the Christian Women’s Job Corps. Then a year or two later she began her ministry of mentoring at the Center. She prays and encourages the women and shares her story of God’s work in her life-which is still going on.

We are thankful for Christi and Dolores, who is our faithful cook. She has been serving the Lord at GODTEL for 11 years. We are thankful for Dolores and Warren, who is our go-to guy. He started out helping at bed check and supervising chores and yard work. He still does those jobs when needed. He has added Bible study and checking in residents and doing maintenance around the place. We are thankful for Warren and Crystal who does our laundry. She, too, has long days of hot labour.

GODTEL Lufkin has been here for 37 years. Martin and I have been here as directors for 31 years. You have been a part of us this whole time. We thank YOU for your support. We have met so many of our brothers and sisters in the Lord. We have a big family!

Our children graduated from Lufkin High School. They each have graduated from Lamar University. We have four grandchildren. God has blessed us tremendously. There have been a lot of changes through the years. I praise God that He never changes. God is faithful and never leaves or forsakes us.

In this Thanksgiving season we want to remind you that we are truly thankful for you. Whether you give of your time and talents or are prayer warriors on our behalf or give financially-thank you. Several local businesses donate food items. The Spud, Shipley’s Donuts, Brookshire Bros. and many others, through the years, have blessed us and continue to this day. When we start a thank you list it seems like you can never end it. And here we sit…

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!
Because we serve a Living God,
Martin and Mary Baker