God Moments

Moments of Grace for Mission Central

Foreword

When given the privilege of recording these "moments of grace," I couldn't help feeling awe at God's gifts. We feel his presence and pray, hoping we go in the direction he leads us. His loving hand has been nudging and guiding us since Mission Central's conception. We are constantly evolving, our prayers are, "that we go where he leads us." Mission Central's conception was a miracle, and as time goes by we at Mission Central are in awe by the "God Moments." The stories you are about to read are our best effort to record some of Gods miracles.

God moment 1: (Psalm 23:3)

God had a hand in the creation of Mission Central. Bishop Irons had a vision of a warehouse used for missions. He presented his ideas to the 2001 Central Pennsylvania Annual Conference. The Conference attendees honored his ideas and assigned a 32-member task force representing the United Methodist Church to construct a plan for: a warehouse, to search for land to build, to set a timeline for construction, and to submit an estimated price for the entire package. They met every Wednesday evening to pray for guidance for the mission warehouse project. Once a month they would meet to perfect the plans for Mission Central. There was an architect on the task force; he drew a plan for the warehouse. The taskforce estimated costs, the size of the warehouse, estimated the amount of floor space they would need, and the amount of time involved to build the warehouse. They even had land selected near the conference office building. The projected size would be 24.5 thousand square feet. The cost was estimated at 3.5 million dollars. The time frame for completion was 2004, and the task force wanted to have one million dollars in hand before they started the project. The warehouse was to be used for "Mission Outreach, Disaster Response, and Mission Education."
God had another plan...

A few weeks before the 2002 Central Pennsylvania annual conference Bishop Irons had to take a detour to get to his office. The bridge was blocked, so he had to take an alternate route to his office. The Conference Building is located on Mulberry Drive in Mechanicsburg. He had to take Pleasant View Drive to get to his office. On the way to his office, Bishop Irons passed a warehouse for lease. He phoned the Realtor; the warehouse's former tenant was a printing company. He asked the Realtor if his task force could look at the building and proceeded to tell the Realtor of the plans for Mission Central. The Realtor permitted the task force to tour the building.
When the taskforce toured Mission Central they entered the building through the glass door at the parking area. They entered into the kitchen/snack area and they were amazed! The kitchen /snack area was the same size they had on their plan! The task force proceeded to the warehouse area and was amazed again; there was a workroom exactly the size of the workroom on their plan, the warehouse had the same number of overhead doors they had on their plan, including the door with a ramp for pick-up trucks and vans. The taskforce liked the entrance area where the offices were located. A representative of the taskforce talked to the owners, he asked if they would consider selling the warehouse. The owners discussed selling the warehouse and agreed to sell because they liked the idea of a warehouse for missions. The selling price was 2.5 million dollars exactly one million less than the projected plan. The warehouse was 48,000 square feet. Almost double the size of the warehouse on the original plan. It would be ready for use immediately!

But God didn't stop there...

The owners were Christian men; they wanted to tithe ten percent of the purchase price. The tithe, $245,000, would bring the purchase price to two million. Another company owned the shelving in the warehouse and they donated the shelving. The shelving was worth fifty thousand dollars! The PA Conference gave $200,000 grant toward the project, enough to obtain a mortgage!

The Taskforce presented the two ideas at the 2002 Annual Conference. At Annual Conference all agreed to move ahead with purchasing the warehouse on Pleasant View Drive instead of going ahead with constructing a building. Purchasing the warehouse saved them $1,550,000. They were also years ahead of schedule.

Mission Central opened its doors in June 28, 2002 with a lot of prayers and anticipation. We started with a few ideas and God has led the way for us.

God has continually been sharing "moments of grace," since we first opened the doors of Mission Central.

 

God moment 2: (Romans 6:23)

When we prepare "Health Kits," for UMCOR we use toothpaste that has an expiration date of at least six months from the current date. The toothpaste that we use for health kits was mistakenly given to another mission, they picked up the wrong toothpaste, and they were supposed to pick up the toothpaste with a current expiration date! So we were out of toothpaste for health kits. A few days later we received a donation of two full pallets of toothpaste. Wow, that's at least 3000 lbs. of toothpaste, just when we needed it the most!

 

God moment 3: (James 1:17)

Every Saturday we clean the main hall for the Mechanicsburg Orthodox Mission Church. They rent our hall Saturday evening and Sunday mornings for church services. We clean the work area and wipe the tables and use the vacuum cleaners. We had three used vacuum cleaners that didn't work very well. They smelled like burnt rubber when we ran them and they didn't pick up dirt like they should have. Sometimes the volunteers and our staff would get frustrated when we used them. On one particular Saturday I was frustrated with the vacuum cleaner. When I put the vacuum cleaner in the utility room I uttered a frustrated prayer.... "Lord please let someone donate a vacuum cleaner!" I am sure I was not the first person to utter that prayer.
Five days later, when I arrived at work, there were three different vacuum cleaners in the utility closet. One was an airport vacuum cleaner donated by a church, one was new, and we had another vacuum donated. God answers prayers.

 

God moment 4: (Romans 1:20)

Bobbi's bones are one of the first "God moments." Six months after Mission Central opened Harry received a call from a nurse at Pinnacle Health. She worked in a clinic at the hospital. The clinic specialized in bone reconstruction. The clinic was closing and she was told to get rid of the bones. If she couldn't find anyone to take them she was to dispose them. The bone is cut in 2" pieces in vials and is blood typed. They are used to transplant existing bone. She had a box of vials left. In monetary value they are very expensive; in helping people with bone issues they are priceless!
Harry didn't know what he would do with the bones; the bones were dated good thru 2007. He accepted the bones not knowing what he was going to do with them.
A contact at the conference office told Harry about a student going to Ludhiana Medical College in India and perhaps Ludhiana College could use the bones.
Harry contacted the student, her name was Bobbi Jones, and she told him she was going to Ludhiana Medical College in three weeks. She asked if Mission Central had any medical supplies that she could take along to the college. Ludhiana Medical College is located in India. Harry put the box of bones at the conference office and labeled it Bobbi's Bones. He promptly forgot about the bones.
Two months later he received a call from a Doctor from Ludhiana, India. He just used one of the vials of bones. He called to thank us.
He worked at a clinic in India and he told us a man would be able to walk because he had those bones. God always has a purpose for unasked for gifts, sometimes we just have to have faith and wait.

God moment 5: (Matthew 18:2)

Taylor was a middle school student who had a vision to help Katrina victims. Taylor heard a speaker talk about Mission Central's disaster response efforts at her church. She thought it would be a good idea to collect health kits for Mission Central to use for Katrina disaster outreach. Taylor discussed the idea with the speaker and her student council officers. They decided to open the health kit effort to the middle school homerooms. A pizza party was the reward for the homeroom that collected the most kits. The youth at Taylor's middle school produced 176 health kits for Mission Central. They also contributed supplies for kits.
A Guidance Counselor at Taylor's school asked Taylor to fill out an application for the Prudential Spirit of Community Awards. The award was created by Prudential to recognize students in middle and high school who have participated in community service. Taylor was picked as the 2006 Pennsylvania reward recipient for Middle School. Taylor was inspired to do more for missions; she developed at that time "Taylor's W.O.R.D. which stands for Wanting Others to Read Daily. She requested people donate gently used and new books to take along to Washington DC, when she received her award. Taylor collected 9,304 books to deliver to the Heart of America foundation; they distribute books to public and religious schools located in the Washington DC area. Taylor learned to love being the hands and feet of God in mission work. She is currently working on project K. A.R.E.N.
Volunteers at Mission Central sorted and packed and put Taylor's WORD labels in all the books. Mission Central received a donation of materials associated with books. Such as individual book lights, book bags, and lanyards with "library," printed on them. Mission Central received the donation at the same time Taylor was packing the books to send to Washington DC. "God's timing...

God moment 6: (Colossians 1:24)

Karen Adams grew up in Mechanicsburg PA. As an adult Karen lived in New Orleans. When hurricane Katrina threatened, Karen packed her car and headed to Mechanicsburg to be with her family. Karen started her life over in Pennsylvania; she lost everything she left behind in New Orleans when Katrina struck. Karen couldn't forget the people she left in New Orleans. Karen asked her church to help her do something for New Orleans. One of the church members was President of the board of managers of Mission Central. The president of the board was Sue Higgins. Sue told Karen about the work in missions at Mission Central. Karen started working on Project K.A.R.E.N. with her church and Mission Central. K.A.R.E.N. stands for Kenner Area Rebuilding Effort Network. Karen faith has helped her to complete three Mission trip efforts for Katrina victims.

God Moment 7: (Luke 18:16-17)

One morning a little girl came to our front door dragging a large black trash bag. Behind her was a little boy only half her size also dragging a black plastic bag. A woman was walking behind them carrying two smaller bags.
As they entered, the woman said her daughter had seen a story in the news about us collecting health kits for tsunami victims. Her daughter decided on her own, instead of asking for gifts for her 7th birthday party, she would ask each child invited to bring some items for health kits and they would make health kits at her birthday party.
The bags contained 76 complete health kits! Their mother shared that she had never seen kids have so much fun at a party. She asked for a picture of the delivery of the health kits. So we posed for a picture in front of the Mission Central display. When asked to sign in so we would know where the kits came from, the mother indicated they didn't want any credit, so if it was OK, her daughter would just leave her first name.
Thank you Rosalie, for reminding us what it truly means to be the hands and feet of God in service! Happy Birthday!

 

God Moment 8: (Matthew 25:36)

Volunteers were sorting new children's clothing. The clothing arrived at 7:30AM. We sorted the clothes into 150 boxes by 2PM, at that time Harry received a call from a church who had needs for children's clothing to distribute at an outreach event. God answers needs.

 

God Moment 9: (Luke 3:11)

Someone called Mission Central early one morning saying she had just moved and understood Mission Central sometimes had furniture for people in need. She needed a sofa. Unfortunately at the time Mission Central didn't have a sofa to offer her. Within one hour, Mission Central received a call from a person asking if we could use an almost new sofa. The two parties were connected and the sofa was given to the woman. Our Lord provides.

 

God Moment 10: (Matthew 7:7)

A family called Mission Central to see if they would accept a donated sleep apnea machine they had after a family member had died. Not knowing what we would do with the machine, Mission Central accepted it, and within two days it was in reuse by an Amish man who needed the machine.

 

God Moment 11: (I Corinthians 12:25-28)
On July 8, 2005, personal care items and "Love Kits" (made by youth at Mission Central that morning), were sent America's Heart in Jacksonville, FL. The Love Kits were sent to shelter sites in anticipation of people leaving their homes for the arrival of a hurricane. Praise God, Mission Central could respond within a few hours of the requesting call for the LOVE KITS.

 

God Moment 12: (1 Chronicles 16:12)

Nick was very busy, he had a lot of volunteers to guide and the phones were ringing constantly. Pat, a weekly volunteer started taking calls to help Nick. She was on phone duty for about an hour. In that time there was only one phone call.
The Western New York Conference phoned. They had 10 boxes of school kits to be delivered, but they needed someone to pick them up.
Pat was going to Rochester NY that weekend. She told the Western New York Conference she would pick up the kits. God can make it happen!

 

God Moment 13: (Luke 2:52)

A few months after Mission Central opened. A man stopped by, and said to Harry, "I have your suitcases, I saw your ad for suitcases," (there was no ad). The man insisted the suitcases were for Mission Central. Harry said "OK we will take them." The man had a lot of suitcases; he just kept bringing them into the warehouse. Harry didn't know what he was going to do with all the suitcases.
A short time after we received the suitcases, someone came to the warehouse asking for 30 suitcases. Missionaries usually are allowed two suitcases when they go to their mission destination. They usually pack one with their own personal items and the other suitcase is used to pack supplies needed for their mission. We have collected suitcases since that time for missions. God always knows what we need before we do.

God Moment 14: (Hebrews 2:4)

We received a newspaper sheet reader. A sheet reader magnifies print to allow people with poor eyesight to read documents easily. One hour after the sheet reader was given to Mission Central; a man came in and requested a sheet reader for one of the members of his church. We didn't have an opportunity to place the sheet reader in the appropriate area or even remove it from the cart where it was originally placed.

God Moment 15: (Galatians 3:5)

We received a call from an "abused women's" shelter. They requested a 30 inch gas stove, a washer, and a dryer. We didn't have those items in stock. The next day we received a call from people who were remodeling their kitchen; they donated a 30 inch gas stove to Mission Central. The next week we received a washer and dryer! We have made some new friends at the shelter. It all works together for the glory of God. We at Mission Central are very proud d to be a part of that thought process.

God Moment 16: (Matthew 11:21)

The camping program for the United Methodist Conference needed music stands. They contacted Harry to determine if Mission Central had any music stands. We didn't. The next day someone donated four music stands. I want someone to tell me that God doesn't watch over all of us. This is truly Gods hands and feet at work.

God Moment 17: (Luke 22:17)

An attorney from New York phoned Mission Central, and stated that he had a client who needed to do community service. The client was a truck driver who had to provide 100 hours of service. He asked if we had any work that might satisfy his needs. Truck driver? This was music to our ears!

The driver offered to deliver a truckload of material for the Rosebud Mission in South Dakota. This special task used 70 hours of his required service time. The Sioux Indians of South Dakota certainly appreciated the delivery plus the service of Mission Central, plus the efforts of the Rosebud Mission.

The driver then offered an additional trip where he might be the most useful. This time, Mission Central had a need to deliver material directly to Gulfport, Mississippi. The driver completed the delivery most graciously and far exceeded his requirement of 100 hours.

God works his miracles through all of us, including drivers. We at Mission Central are open to his guidance.

 

God Moment 18: (Acts 20:35)

On Mother's Day 2006, we received a call for Flood Buckets for the Boston area. We tried to find a commercial carrier to take the 600 flood buckets to Boston and failed. On the Monday after Mothers Day a gentlemen delivered five pallets of new books to Mission Central. The books were his donation to Mission Central.
He had heard of our need for a truck and driver and offered to do the job himself. The gentlemen owned a distribution center. He used his truck and personally delivered the 600 flood buckets to Boston, leaving the warehouse two hours after he delivered the books to Mission Central. God has saints everywhere!

 

God Moment 19: (Galatians 6:6)

When hurricane Katrina struck we were inundated with supplies for the hurricane victims. Mission Central was rapidly finding storage space to be a problem. The material needed to be sorted and warehouse cataloged before we could send them to the Gulf Coast.

The husband of one of our regular volunteer's owns a warehouse in Dillsburg, PA. Dillsburg is about eight miles from Mission Central. He had 15,000 square feet of storage space available for our temporary use. We sent half of our Haiti's supplies and half of our Red Bird Mission's supplies from Mission Central to the warehouse in Dillsburg. Church members helped to box those items. Four truckloads of materials were stored in Dillsburg! God can make the impossible possible!

 

God Moment 20: (Romans 8:28)

Jamaican Outreach is a ministry of St. Joseph's Catholic Church. Volunteers for Jamaican outreach collect supplies, box and store them at Mission Central. They send the supplies to Miami, FL, then on to Jamaica.
America's Heart is a mission in Jacksonville, FL. They send food and medical supplies to people around the world through Bethesda Mission. Bethesda Mission from Mechanicsburg sends "America's Heart" supplies once a month.
Jamaican outreach had a requirement to ship their supplies to Miami, (six pallets of supplies). Bethesda Mission of Mechanicsburg shipped the supplies to Jacksonville free of charge. Jamaican Outreach only had to pay for shipping from Jacksonville to Miami. This was a big saving in costs for shipping. Bethesda Mission has done this shipping once a year for the past three years. Another great example of how our mission's efforts work together.

 

God Moment 21: (1 Corinthians 13:4)

Love Kits were developed to use the non-standard items we couldn't use for UMCOR Health Kits. We initially made them as a method to teach children and youth about missions. Adults love to make these kits also. The Love Kits stay in the United States, so we don't have follow international guidelines when we pack the Love Kits. Other kits may go through "Customs." Love Kits stay in the US and are not subjected to those limitations. Part of the kit is a handmade card made using construction paper. Volunteers put a design on the front with a message about God inside the card. The designer has the option to use their first name inside the card. You would think the children would love making the cards, but it is the adults who get more joy out of making the cards. The children enjoy putting the kits together. As you can imagine the person who receives the kit is very touched by the card, it's like getting a hug. These kits are handed out to the homeless, flood victims, and generally to people in need. These Love Kits were developed by recycling items that did not meet the criteria for other Mission Central initiatives. America's Heart was the first mission to receive Love Kits for homeless shelters all over Florida. Love Kits are a Mission Central Kit. This is a heart warming initiative that helps our friends and neighbors.

God Moment 22: (Psalms 5:2)

Bethesda Mission is the first mission that requested warehouse space in the Mission Central building. Two months after Mission Central opened; Bethesda Mission contacted us and requested warehouse space. Bethesda wanted to operate Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. These days were the days opposite the days Mission Central was operating. By renting space to Bethesda Mission, we were able to have a fully operational warehouse five days a week. Bethesda also had a forklift, and at that time Mission Central didn't have a forklift! Bethesda is the only Mission that rents space at Mission Central. Currently, they use 10,000 square feet of the warehouse. Mission Central rents to Bethesda "below market price" for warehouse utilization. Bethesda was the first Mission where we started to work together on tasks a and materials for many missions. Today, we work with all that contact us where possible! Two months after we opened we became ecumenical. We are very fortunate to see God's people working together. God has a plan!

 

God Moment 23: (Luke 22:17)

Mission Central sponsored a mural contest for the youth of the United Methodist Church when we initially opened our doors. The youth were asked to design a mural representing missions. They had to incorporate into the design: Mission Outreach, Mission Education, and Disaster Response. All of the groups who submitted a design were welcomed to paint their mural in the warehouse. One youth group used a goat in their design, and as you can imagine, the design was beautiful. We asked them to change the goat to a V.I.M. symbol. The youth group changed their design as we requested, and each person who worked on the mural signed it at the top. If you look carefully at the signatures, you will see a little goat saying, "baa!" The mural is in our Kitchen/Snack Room. The same youth group designed a second mural, and that mural is in the workroom. If you look carefully in the lower left corner, you will see the same little goat saying "baa!"

 

God Moment 24: (Matthew 15:36)

Mission Central has a volunteer who started coming with her church group. They would come once a month. When Hurricane Katrina struck, we needed lots of help p. Rhoda, our favorite volunteer, started coming in two or three days a week! Currently, Rhoda is here almost every day, and is a huge asset to all of us at Mission Central. Rhoda does a lot of the sorting, and she knows the warehouse as well as any of us. Volunteers like Rhoda are a blessing to us at Mission Central. She lives Matthew 25, and we are proud to have her on our team.

 

God Moment 25: (Numbers 34:18)

In 2004 Pastor Jim Rudy asked our Executive Director for enough work area to assemble and repair personal computers. He wanted to have ample space to work on the computers once a month. That was a small beginning since he had only four computers to rebuild. He now uses 2000 square feet of space. His computer ministry works 3 days a week at Mission Central; Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. The computer ministry is incorporated and Jim Rudy is the Executive Director. The ministry has evolved from serving our conference to now sending computers all over the world! The computer ministry has been very successful, and they too have many volunteers supporting their efforts. God leads us, we will follow.

 

God Moment 26: (Acts 3:10)

Mission Central received a call from the Catholic Social Services of New Jersey. They were looking for two baby scales, (like is used in a doctor's office). We had a scale and Bethesda Mission had a scale. We called the Catholic Social Services, told them we had the scales. The Catholic Social Services explained that a small problem did exist. The scales had to be in New Jersey in two days! Harry was going to New Jersey for a family visit. He made the connection with the Catholic Social Services and delivered the scales. The Catholic Social Services delivered them to a Presbyterian Church, who sent them in a container to Afghanistan. The scales were claimed in Afghanistan by a Baptist medical team. The scales were used by the Baptist Medical team to teach families "first aid for babies."

We called the scales the "Ecumenical Baby Scales."

God Moment 27: (Acts 2:7)

When we started Mission Central, we said we wouldn't collect or receive clothing. But as in all things, God doesn't think as we do. A Girl Scout troop collected clothing to send to Russia. They sorted, boxed, and inventoried all the good clothing they received. Then they learned of the expense to send the clothing to Russia. They called Harry, and asked if Mission Central could use the clothing. Under the circumstances, Harry agreed and the Scouts delivered the clothing to Mission Central.
The inventory sheet for the clothing was lost. Volunteers at Mission Central re-inventoried the clothing. Mission Central received a call two days after the clothing was finished being inventoried. Bella Ruse, Russia requested 150 boxes of clothing. The clothing was going to an orphanage. How amazing can this initiative be? The clothing was shipped to where the Girl Scouts originally wanted the clothing to go! All things are possible with God.

God Moment 28: (Proverbs 16:18)
As a recorder of God's moments, it was a while before I could mention this moment to anyone. "Why" you might ask? Because I was given a correction I will never forget. Given the privilege of recording God's moments, I became possessive of them. I would record the facts, write about the miracles and pass them on to someone who is an experienced writer, to correct or proof-read each moment. All of the editing transpired via email. A few times I was lazy and sent the document just as an email and not as a "Word Attachment." The editor was rightfully annoyed with me, because he would have to reformat the whole document every time I sent them. So he decided to send the edited document back the same way, so I would know when I received the document how much work it took to reformat it.
So I was plugging away at reformatting the document, not a happy camper I might add! When I came to "God Moment" 27, the last line read: "This is not a (my first name in red) operation!"
I knew the editor did not write that last line. I went back to the original email he sent. The email said "the clothing went where the Girl Scouts originally wanted it to go."
I was so upset about receiving this correction from God; I couldn't talk about it for a few days. Finally, I told someone about it. After I shared my story, I realized how blessed I was to be corrected by God, and be able to share the moment. This isn't my document, its God's document.
 

God Moment 29: (Matthew 6:27)
A volunteer, who comes to Mission Central often to work, inquired about an electric wheelchair. The volunteer needed a chair for a member of his church. Mission Central rarely receives any wheelchairs, let alone a good quality electric wheelchair. However, Bethesda Mission had just received a good quality electric wheelchair as a donation. We inquired about the chair knowing it was inventoried in the Bethesda area. The staff of Bethesda Mission quickly donated the chair when they learned of the need.
That's not just good timing, it is God at work for all of us. God certainly put a smile on the face of the volunteer worker and his home church friend.
 

God Moment 30: (Matthew 6-33)
The Cerebral Palsy Association donated a custom built child's wheelchair to Mission Central. The wheelchair was worth thousands of dollars. Mission Central's Executive Director's wife, a speech therapist at a public school, was working with a new student who has Cerebral Palsy. The student didn't have a suitable wheelchair for his special needs. The same week we received the wheelchair, we at Mission Central learned of this young man's predicament. Once again, God touched our lives when satisfying our special needs. His timing is impeccable. The young man now has the wheelchair, and his quality of life has been considerably increased. God has his own plans on life's difficulties. We simply need to a sk.

God Moments 31: Project Karen II (1 Corinthians 13:13)
Karen Adams had a dream of helping her friends from New Orleans. She was uncertain of all of their needs, and uncertain of her ability to assist them. Her thoughts of all of those people that were left behind continued to disturb her. Karen wanted to transport supplies to those friends that were in need. Karen's profession was administrative in nature, so building or repairing was not her forte. Karen approached the UMVIM team to inquire about what could be done to assist her friends. She was asked to lead a team of volunteers to assist the rebuilding efforts since she knew the people, the area, and the political world in the New Orleans area.
Karen had the same reaction that most people would have. "I can't do that, I just want to get the needed materials to my friends." Karen insisted that she was not a builder. However, the VIM team explained that all of the necessary leadership skills to complete the task were clearly demonstrated. The VIM team explained that we can give you the tools and materials and God will provide the rest. Karen reluctantly said "yes" to the request. It was really a matter of determination that was pushing Karen to "do something." Karen planned, designed, solicited, inquired, and spoke to dozens of people. Her efforts were well rewarded with a tremendous effort for her friends. It took a lot of time and a lot of work, but God answered her prayers.
No, Karen is not a builder or better to say was not a builder, but she built the most wonderful team of spiritual leaders, and delivered bundles of love in New Orleans. Her efforts will never be forgotten.
Project Karen is an overwhelming success. The love of Jesus has no geographical boundaries.
 

God Moment 32: (1 Corinthians 12:4)
God sometimes gives us gifts that we don't have a clue as to how they will be used. About six months ago a linens manufacturer closed their business. They contacted Mission Central. The manufacturer had a lot of small and medium plastic zippered pouches that were used to process their pillowcases and sheets. We placed the pouches on pallets and they sat in the center of the warehouse for months.
The first week of December an inspiration came to us and we decided to make candy kits. We used the small pouches, and put three different packets of candy in them along with a small construction paper card that read "Merry Christmas." When the word spread that we had the candy kits available, we had a rush of orders from fifteen different outreach ministries! We had orders by December 11 for well over 3000 candy kits. By December 16th we had orders and had delivered 4275 candy kits. On December 22, 2006 we gave the last of the candy kits away. The total number of candy kits distributed was 7250! Thirty-three separate ministries were served.
The blessing of thinking of what joy these candy kits would give the people receiving them, gave all of the volunteers and staff of Mission Central the spirit of Christmas. Giving is receiving!
 

God Moment 33: (Exodus 35:21)
We received two pallets of new toys in December. There are so many needs all year around for children. At Christmas it is hard to think of children going without something special to celebrate our Savior's birth! Soon after we received the toys, we noticed an article in the newspaper about the Salvation Army needing toys for children for outreach at Christmas. We contacted the Salvation Army in York, PA. They were very grateful for the toys. When we contacted them it was two days before their distribution date for Christmas and they didn't have enough toys! We also supplied them with Christmas Candy Kits. God supplies needs.

God Moment 34: (Proverbs 30:8)
Kings Kettle Outreach ministry phoned Mission Central and inquired if we had a crib. Kings Kettle Ministry was trying to help some grandparents whose children had a house fire, and needed a crib. At the time Mission Central wasn't able to supply a crib. The next day we received a crib and we were able to give it to the family in need.
 

God Moment 35: (Ruth 3:11)
Bishop Bass of the Milestone Ministerium came to Mission Central to pick up a podium he requested. When he stopped in the Bishop inquired if we had any folding chairs he could have for the ministry. He was having a tent revival that evening and needed the chairs. We had just received folding chairs a week prior to when the Bishop stopped by. When they looked at the chairs and counted them, they were the exact number of chairs they needed.

God Moment 36: (Psalms 103:6)
For our 5th year anniversary at Mission Central, we decided to plant a Peace Pole. The Peace Pole was going to be planted in the middle of a garden, outside of the Mission Central Building. We requested donations from individuals and businesses, for supplies for the garden. We had two local companies to contact for landscape mulch. We decided to contact the company who had a Mechanicsburg address. When we contacted the company and made our request, the person we talked to was one of the owners of the business. While talking to her, she knew of Mission Central. She visited us with her mission group of her church, and took our tour. She belongs to a local Presbyterian Church. When we told her of our request for mulch, she immediately said she would donate the needed mulch. God is so good; he see's our needs before we anticipate them!

God Moment 37: (Romans 6:23)
God Moment 37 show how God's gifts are most times unexpected, thus making them so precious. A couple came to "New Digs," a mission outreach housed at Mission Central, that supplies needy people with household necessities such as; furniture, pots and pans, and kitchen items. A young couple happened to be looking for a single bed for their son. Mission Central had just received a truckload of supplies from the Altoona Hub. One of the items just happened to be a single bed. It came exactly when this young couple needed it. The next week Mission Central was receiving new mattresses. The couple was informed about the mattresses and returned to make a selection that would complete their original request. God's timing far exceeds our wildest imagination or expectation.
 

God Moment 38: (Jeremiah 27:6)
A volunteer for Bethesda Mission, at the warehouse, asked Mission Central to collect rags and bedding items for animal shelters. One Saturday he had a drop off for these supplies at Mission Central. He collected over seven hundred pounds of blankets and supplies for the animal shelter. He now has a drop off site at Mission Central warehouse for this purpose. The Altoona Hub sent three big bags of used towels and bedding along with a shipment of supplies for Mission Central not realizing the volunteer started the mission outreach at the warehouse for those types of items. This material is t he type that would not meet the criteria for normal use. The towels and bedding came right after the need was made known, all the way from Altoona! Nothing goes to waste at Mission Central.
 

God Moment 39: (1 Samuel 1:11)
Our Hubs have been experiencing "God Moments" also! One of the Hubs located in the State College District wrote an article for their newsletter requesting another used sewing machine to make UMCOR school bags. The Hub newsletters always prove fruitful! The next morning there was a brand new sewing machine given to the Hub, by one of their regular volunteers. The volunteer said, "We need to get this sewing done!" Thank God for supplying us with generous volunteers.

God Moment 40: (Matthew: 5:3-10)
Bethesda Mission asked Mission Central to have our volunteers assemble kits for their street ministry. The street ministry goes out into the streets of Harrisburg and gives blankets and supplies to the homeless people in the city who do not go to the shelters. The kits are comprised of hotel sized soaps, shampoo, toothpaste, toothbrush, and hand cream. Mission Central decided to add hats and combs to the kits. The hats would help to keep the people warm. We didn't have as many hats as we had the other supplies for the kits. Just as the volunteers were running out of hats, when they were assembling the kits, two women from the Eastern PA Conference dropped off two large bags of knitted hats, scarves, and gloves. Their shut-ins from First UMC, in Mt. Carmel made the knitted items. So we had plenty of knitted items to put in the kits to help keep the homeless people warm. The timing was so perfect that no person could deny a God Moment had taken place.

God Moment 41: (Matthew 25:40)
Dedicated to the Glory of God.
In honor of Harry Overholtzer, Executive Director of Mission Central, (June 2002 to June 2008)
Life's lessons are sometimes grasped when you know a friend is departing to another place. At this point, we grasp the unique personality that is dear to us. Our friend's unique talents are seared into our heart and "God" has taught us a lesson from them.
Harry, your faith, integrity, and love, have given Mission Central the stamina to carry on and face new horizons. Your courage to face life's trials gives us the strength to look to tomorrow with hope, love, and faith in keeping Mission Central a house for "God's miracles." Thank you, from your friends at Mission Central.

God Moment 42: Matthew 10:42
When God opens our eyes we seem to be amazed and thrilled by things that happen to aid a ministry.
The vacuum cleaners at Mission Central get used hard. The vacuum cleaners usually don't function to full capacity and maintenance of them is hard to track since they are used by different people. This can be frustrating for staff and volunteers alike.
One of our volunteer groups had been working on sorting clothing. When it was the time to finish their work, they asked if they should vacuum the area where they were working. When they started cleaning, they noticed the vacuum cleaners didn't work to full capacity.
One of the volunteers in the group asked if he could take the vacuum cleaner home with him. He wanted to determine if he could fix it, before he retired he was a vacuum cleaner repairman. Since that time he has maintained and repaired two of our vacuum cleaners. He is making it part of his ministry. His church group comes to the warehouse to volunteer every month and when they are there, he will maintain our vacuum cleaners.
Help like this is so vital to our ministry. Every job done here is important, such as cleaning the bathrooms, loading and unloading trucks, verifying kits, sewing and cutting material, clerical aid, answering telephones, sorting supplies, and sweeping and mopping the floors.
We have a volunteer who mows our grass. We have a few volunteers that come and work at the warehouse more than one day a week. These volunteers also fill in and help with work the staff at Mission Central do. We also have a volunteer group called the Speakers Bureau; they volunteer to speak about Mission Central to different groups such as: Churches and Civic Organizations when a speaker is requested.
We like other missions are always in need of funds. Without our volunteers, we would not be able to function. When you think of missionaries, most people think of people in foreign countries serving needs.
The staff at Mission Central sees and meets missionaries every day, in their service they work to keep Mission Central running smoothly, they are our volunteers. Without their help and financial aid we would not be able to be a Mission that helps other missions worldwide. God has truly blessed us with our family of volunteers. Our volunteers truly are the hands and feet of God in service.

God Moment 43
Maine Flooding in April 2008

God uses Mission efforts to bless Mission Central, the people we are trying to aid and we usually get a "moment of grace," that was unexpected.
That was what happened when we made arrangements to ship 856 UMCOR Flood Buckets to Caribou, Maine to assist with the Fort Kent floods in April 2008. The driver was hired through a local broker we commonly employ for shipping. We were surprised when we learned he was originally from Caribou, Maine. He was delighted to be able to visit his 85 year old mother who was very ill. Another part of the God Moment is the destination of the delivery of the Flood Buckets was only two blocks from where the driver's sister's home was located!

 

God Moment 44
Summer 2008

At Mission Central we have a dock door with a ramp. The purpose of this door is to allow pickup trucks and vans to back up to the warehouse and load or unload supplies.
In the Spring of 2008 an unknown driver backed into the door causing major damage. It had to be replaced at a cost of approximately $2000.00.
In July we had a few rainstorms with heavy downpours, causing our roof to leak and the water shorted out the mechanism to raise and lower the door.
We contacted the company who installed the new door. They gave us an estimate of $1400.00 to repair the door.
A week later a group from Lee Memorial UMC in Norwich, Connecticut, came to Mission Central as a work group. There happened to be a retired electrician with the group. He checked the door mechanism and told us all it needed was a $10.00 part.
He returned to Maine. He located the part, and sent it to us with detailed instructions on how to fix the door. Bob Shriener, who works with the Computer Ministry and maintains the office equipment for Mission Central, installed the part and the door is as good as new!

God Moment 45 Psalm 25:5
The Hope Kit

One part of our Mission effort at the warehouse is to try to meet people's needs.
One of the ways we meet needs is with local Mission Central kits. "Local" means any outreach that could use the various kits for a ministry.
The kits are made from non standard materials we receive. Better to say the materials are non standard for UMCOR relief kits. Mission Central receives lots of different materials. Some are in support UMCOR, and some are meant for other ministries. We use the term of non standard to mean anything that does not meet the UMCOR requirements.
We have five different kinds of Mission Central Kits. They are the Love Kit (used to aid homeless or people in shelters), The Kids Activity Kit (used to nurture children), the Candy Kit (used to send a message of love), and the Friendship Kit (used for shut-ins and people in assisted living situations).
Our newest kit is called the Hope Kit. This kit was the end result of our staff's desire to aid the prison ministry. Getting permission to produce a kit for prison was a real challenge. We had been trying to create this mission kit for one and half years. Each time we were a step closer to our goal, we would reach another door that just wouldn't open.
God's timing is perfect. A gentleman came to Mission Central and requested five paperback N.I.V. bibles. This was such a specific request it made us curious as to how the Bibles would be used. The man said "for the prison ministry." This reply encouraged the staff member to tell him about the kit Mission Central wanted to produce and the problems we were having trying to get through the proper channels to get the relief kit processed.
The man explained to the staff member that his wife was at the Central PA Conference office for a meeting for the prison ministry. While they were talking the man's cell phone rang. His wife's meeting was cancelled. He told his wife about his conversation with the Mission Central staff member. His wife asked to meet with the staff member. They talked about a kit and the woman said she would present the idea to her leaders at the Yokefellow Prison ministry.
The prison is Located in Williamsport near one of our Mission Central Hubs.
A few weeks later she supplied Mission Central with a needs list and an order for approximately 1,300 kits (the population of the prison in Muncy, Pennsylvania).
The kits contain a paperback book, a tablet, a pencil, hand lotion, shampoo, and soap. Along with a picture of a butterfly, we incorporated a note that read:
The Hope Kit
Just as a caterpillar turns into a beautiful butterfly, our faith, love and hope is our prayer for your future. From your friends at Mission Central.
Shipping the kits was our next concern. When our Executive Director heard where the kits were going she offered to deliver the kits. She was visiting a friend near the area where the kits were to be delivered. From the time we received permission to produce the kit to the time the ministry received the kits was only three weeks!
We are always amazed and blessed when God's timing helps our ministry.

 

God Moment 46
Mission Central Kits Jeremiah 17:7

September - October 2008

 

We make Mission Central Kits to use the non-standard materials we receive for outreach ministry. We designed two new kits; one was to be used for homeless people living on the streets, the other kit was for babies. We wanted someone other than staff to name the kits, so we had a contest. We advertised for names on QuikLINK and on our website. We had many people who entered the contest. When it was time to pick the winning names, we listed the names entered anonymously so the judges did not know who entered the name. The judges were two regular volunteers and a board member of Mission Central. The homeless kit's name is "Warm Heart and Hands Kit," the name was submitted by a Missionary from Peru. The baby kit's name is "Baby Blessings Kit," and the name was submitted by a seminary student from Ohio.

 

 

God Moment 47 Matthew 6:4

"Warm Heart and Hands Kit"
October 2008

The staff at Mission Central gets blessed in many ways. One of the ways we were blessed was the Warm Hearts and Hands Kit. The idea behind this kit was to have a kit specifically for homeless living on the street. The first group to request the need for the kit was "My Brother's Keeper," a shelter in Camden, NJ. When we asked how many kits they need, they replied they needed 300 kits. We had one week to fill the request, as they were coming to pickup supplies in the next week.
On Monday, the week "My Brothers Keeper" was to come to pick up supplies, we received a phone call from Mt. Carmel UMC. Mt. Carmel Church had flood buckets and handmade quilts to donate to Mission Central. We shared with Mt Carmel Church that we would be grateful for the supplies.
On Wednesday of the same week we had two shipments going out of the warehouse. One was a tractor trailer load of UMCOR relief kits going to the main UMCOR ware house in Louisiana. The second shipment was to Camden NJ, for "My Brothers Keeper." When we were loading both shipments, the delivery from the Mt. Carmel UMC arrived.
They had Flood Buckets that we loaded onto the truck going to Louisiana. They also had bedrolls that were homemade and included a pair of gloves, a scarf, and a knit hat. The label on the quilt said "My Brothers Keeper, (the name of the Quilters Group)." This happens to be the same name as the shelter that was receiving the materials that we were loading. We had volunteers box the bedrolls immediately, including a handmade card. We sent the bedrolls along with the rest of the supplies we gave to the shelter in Camden NJ. Both shipments received goods from the Mt. Carmel UMC delivery, and left the warehouse the same hour they were delivered. Only God is that efficient.

 

 

God Moment 48: Luke 12:8
November 2008

Mission Central sometimes receives items that are hard to re-distribute to ministries. One of the items that are hard to re-distribute is Dental Equipment. We received 6 full operatories of Dental Equipment from a Dentist. The equipment took a lot of our precious floor space. We phoned our medical contacts to see if they knew of a ministry who could use the equipment.
A week later the Computer Ministry introduced us to Douglas Yeboah-Awusi, President of the mission "Africa's Hope." Douglas' ministry aids Ghana. We offered the Dental Equipment to "Africa's Hope. They were very blessed to receive the equipment.
The blessing for Mission Central was two-fold. We also made a new medical contact with "Cure International," who has Tech-support to aid us with distributing hard to move equipment. God shows his "witness" many ways.

God Moment 49: 2 Corinthians 9:7
Prom Gowns Fall 2008
A formal-wear shop has donated 400 new prom gowns to Mission Central. The gowns were a pleasure for the staff and volunteers to receive. The staff thought the gowns would be fun for some of the teenage ladies to pack. We were right; the young ladies had a wonderful time packing the gowns.
The gowns went to five different ministries. The ministries receiving the gowns were Elizabeth Chapel UMC (West Virginia Appalachians), Daybreak Ministries (Wellsboro, PA), Northern Tier Helping Hands (Wellsboro, PA), Redbird Ministry (Kentucky Appalachians), and Haiti Outreach.
The last ministry to receive the gowns was Haiti Outreach. Our contact for Haiti Outreach shared with us the gowns would be a real blessing. In Haiti, people don't get married unless they have a nice gown to wear. Sometimes they wait years until they can afford suitable attire. They live together unmarried until they can afford to purchase nice clothes to wear to the wedding. When we heard about the custom of Haiti, we were sure God sent those gowns just for the women of Haiti.

God Moment 50 Ephesians 3: 14 - 19

On February 4, 2009, we were working with some volunteers to put together 105 activity kits for Guatemalan children. We were searching through supplies to find items that would be appropriate to include for Spanish speaking children. These children would also be receiving a school kit, so we did not have to include any school supplies. We found some stickers, a Sudoku book, and a few other craft items, but really did not feel we had enough to make a nice kit. There was one bag with nice small balls, but we knew there were not enough balls to make 105 kits.

Before we finished deciding how to fill out the kits, a group came to volunteer. A lady in the group brought clothing to donate and also some other supplies to give to Mission Central. In the supplies she brought were two bags of new small toys that a friend had sent along for us. The toys were from McDonalds's Happy Meals and were perfect for our activity kits. Not knowing how many toys were there, we started making the kits to allow the volunteers to get busy working. A count of the first box of completed kits came to 50. In the second box we found 30 toys. Then we switched over to the balls, again not knowing how many there were. We used those that were available. Then we had another count and in that box were 25 more kits, equaling EXACTLY the 105 kits we needed.

Coincidence???? No! Once again, God was simply providing the supplies to fill the needs. PRAISE GOD!!!

York Hub God Moments

I think that God has been with the York Hub at Fourth UMC even years before its inception.  I quit my job in September of 2007.  I told Mitch I needed 2 months to recover, but I knew that I wanted to do something in missions.  I thought that it was going to be as a volunteer at Mission Central.  God must have been laughing, because it wasn't his timing.

2 months later, almost to the day, Mitch came home from Ad Council and told me about Angel FoodMinistries.  That has been a wonderful ministry for Fourth Church as we help York in this struggling economy. 

Then came the elevator and re-structuring and re-thinking of our church with all of the delays.  It was done with God's timing, too.

York still didn't have a hub and we had this wonderful facility.  We could be trained and ready after Christmas for an Openhouse on January 24th.  We thought we would gradually get the word out.  Once again, God laughed.

 Before the Openhouse came the devastating earthquake in Haiti and we were open and running full speed ahead.

We've had newspaper coverage and Health Kit items from as far away as Bel Air Maryland.  We've had volunteers and donations from schools and other denominations.  Men, women and children are coming to volunteer from over the York District and having a wonderful time.  God is now smiling, I hope.

I can't tell you how many times we have run out of 1 or 2 items for the Health kits and in the door comes a delivery with exactly what we need.

OK Lord how are we going to get all of this stuff to Mechanicsburg.   He sent us Haiti Outreach Ministries with a box truck and Joni Robison and her mini-van.  At this time we have sent almost 2,000 Health kits and some other items to Mission Central.  We've also been able to bless the people that come into our church for Angel Food Ministries with our non-standard items.  Both ministries work together.  Yeah!  God is Good.

Another Look at God Moments
 
I arrived at Mission Central in January 2010 just glad I would have some extra money coming in.  It was a plus that everyone I met was friendly and appreciative of any help I could give.  It was a huge bonus when I read about the many "God Moments" that have occurred in the life of Mission Central.  I have always believed in God moments and had experienced many - in the past.
            Actually, I am employed by Experience Works, Inc., a state and federally funded organization that places older (55 yrs. +), unemployed persons in area nonprofits, thereby helping both the nonprofit by providing staff it cannot afford to hire and the worker who acquires new experience, skills and contacts which hopefully lead to a permanent position.  And thus, I came to Mission Central.
            This last year and a half has not been easy.  It has been a study in loss:  losing my health, my job and my father.  I had not lost my faith in God and knew He hadn't lost me; but a definite sense of bewilderment at having lost those familiar life anchors had come over me and seemed to have come to stay.  My God moments seemed to be nonexistent.
            However, as I became a small part of the "ship" that is Mission Central, I began to see a big God moment unfold:  in the rough sea of disaster, daily desperations and needs, God had brought together a talented volunteer crew under the command of a results-oriented cadre of officers:  unflappable Eric, hardworking Kathy, creative Norma and enthusiastic Steve.  As I continue here, I am impressed again and again with the far-reaching effect of Mission Central and the people involved at every point along the way.  I began to feel uplifted by the enthusiasm and good-heartedness that infuses Mission Central.
My spirit began to lift and to heal.  I'd been thinking that my God moments were few, but Mission Central and its staff have helped me see that they're occurring all the time and all around me.  I had just been looking inward, backward and down and had not been focused enough on God in whom all things work together.

Susan Hosler
Volunteer Administrative Assistant