Walking with a new friend!

All your collections are a BLESSING! Each and every wheelchair. Each and every walker……

This is a testimonial I received today from Chris Mooney from Bethel Ministries International.

“While working with Bold City Church last week in Coban we visited this wonderful little lady she had received a walker from Bethel. The tag on the side shows it came from Mission: Mobility! She is only able to walk using this walker! Her story is a hard one to take in. Her back is destroyed afters years of being beat up by her husband. She is a widow now for 15 years ..12 years ago she found a new friend. His name… JESUS! He walks with her each day. He will never leave her nor forsake her!”

Jacksonville……

Wow….what a weekend!

Our Jacksonville (JAX) volunteer group has done an amazing job at collections!   They have been really going after it since September!

It was time to schedule a shipment!

I have been in contact with our friends in JAX for a couple of years now.  They have a couple groups who are veterans of Bethel mission trips.   The Bold City Church  was my first contact….Pastor Jason Masters, specifically.   2 years ago when we first “met”, he was a young pastor who recently was promoted to lead pastor from youth pastor of a tiny church of around 70 people.  Jason had some wheelchairs they had collected and stored in his grandma’s barn.  We arranged pickup of those to go to Brad in Louisville.   I recall praying with Jason on several occasions.  Praying for his new mission as pastor.  I knew one day I wanted to meet him…..

Later that year I started following his friends Harry and Shelly Divido on Facebook.   They were newbie Bethel mission trippers in 2014…..but soon to be veterans!   They have a ministry in JAX called Light of the World Ministries.  (On Facebook they are known as “Street Pastor” and “Light of the World Ministries”.  I encourage you o follow them on Facebook).  Over the last 2 years I have watched their ministry and how it serves the homeless and needy in JAX.   I knew one day I wanted to meet them and experience their ministry.     In 2015 we started communicating about collecting equipment.   They have become the primary Jacksonville face of Mission: Mobility.   And what a BLESSING they are!

So my expectation of meeting my friends would come to be.  The container was scheduled for Monday  April 4.   My schedule allowed me to travel down to aid in inventory and loading of the container.   A bonus, my daughter Taylor, from Ohio was able to join me in the adventure.

 

My goals for the trip were to help with the container, yes.  But I was very excited to finally meet my friends.

Harry and Shelly met us at the airport.   It was weird….it was like seeing family again.  And we had never met before.  They are family…..brothers and sisters in Christ!

Well, our initial intent was to spend Friday afternoon doing their inventory.  Well, they had it all done!   Wow!  We did go to their storage container and made our game plan for Monday.   I forgot to mention,  I brought them a little something.  A wheelchair to add to their load!  FYI,  you can check a wheelchair as checked luggage….for NO charge.  (Even if it is not for your mobility needs).  That was a fun surprise for them!

 

Saturday…..we had the wonderful opportunity to experience their ministry.

On Saturday mornings they have “church on the street”.  At these weekly events, they are joined by volunteers.  They provide eggs and donuts and coffee,   a message and prayer to the homeless at Jacksonville Beach.  Truly something I had never experienced before.

It was a very powerful experience.

We had lunch, then went to their weekly afternoon ministry.  The Apartment Outreach.   We traveled to a very poor section of JAX to a subsidized housing complex.   The kids came running!   Wow!   What a ministry!   Many regular volunteers come to love on the kiddos, who probably don’t get a lot of attention, and frankly,  live in some horribly dysfunctional  situations.   We played games, had snacks and then broke into age groups for Bible time.   Again, this entire concept was  totally out of my wheelhouse, but what a blast!    These kids truly loved this ministry!   In many ways, it reminded me of playing with the kiddos in Guatemala.

Walking to our hotel room after the event, I especially appreciated a statement from Taylor that was spot on… “Wow, dad.  I thought we were coming to just do inventory and load the container…..this has turned out to be an awesome MISSION TRIP!”  Right on Tay!

Sunday…..I finally had the opportunity to meet Jason.  We went to Bold City Church.   Remember how I said 2 years ago he took the reigns of a church of 70.  Well, Easter Sunday, they had over 1,000 in attendance!   We went to the morning service (another pastor preached), then we went lunch with him.  Again, meeting him was like meeting an old friend, a brother!   Between church and lunch we attended a “class” he presented.  He told of the growth and vision of Bold City Church.  It is evident that the Holy Spirit is leading Jason and his leadership team in their vision!   I am anxious to continue watching the growth!    Sunday evening, we returned to church for the youth service Jason did preach at.  Spot on!   Great service!  The crescendo being a baptism of 20 people!  Very powerful!

Monday morning..

Container time.

Our crew was a diverse one!  We had loyal Light of the World volunteers, 2 homeless guys from Saturday, and folks from Bold city church.   Oh, yeah,  one guy who Street Pastor had never met before, but followed their ministry on Facebook……specifically scheduled a trip to Jacksonville to help load the container and meet Harry and Shelly!  How cool!  By the way, he came from the Houston Texas area!

It was great!   A diverse group united in a common cause…..to SERVE!

Harry was a man on a mission.  He was an amazing packer!   He packed so neatly and efficiently, he got the whole load stowed, with room to spare!    I learned a good lesson from this first time container-packer!  Thanks Harry!

In a little over an hour, we loaded 160 wheelchairs, 105 walkers, 80 sets of crutches, canes and a bunch of boxes of wheelchair parts, clothes and 200 donated backpacks!   We also had 4 donated solar panels for the home builds.

A great load of BLESSINGS.

We closed the doors of the container.  But before letting it leave, in Mission: Mobility tradition, we prayed over the container.  Prayers for a quick and uneventful journey.  A prayer that there are no customs delays or charges.  And that the equipment is a tremendous blessing to those who receive it, and their families.   Not just blessings of mobility and independence, but that they see and understand that these chairs didn’t come from a bunch of folks in Florida….they came from a blessing from the Lord!

Harry added his own twist to the blessing….he blessed the container seal with anointing oil!

Thank you to everyone who made this possible!   Thank you Jason, Harry and Shelly for making us feel so welcome.

Until we meet again……

Rick

God is Good!

New Mission: Mobility Video

 

We would like to thank Brad Clay from Final Descent Outdoors for capturing and creating this amazing video from our January 2016 trip to Guatemala.  This video captures the Spirit at work in the lives of the disabled through Bethel Ministries International.

Greetings from the west side of Kentucky,

As another year begins, we start it off with gathering new and old members to form three teams that will be once again blessed to serve alongside Bethel Ministries International in Guatemala. Our teams usually go in June or July, so this is when we also start our fundraising. There is no better way to start off the year right than by gathering a group of people, who are not all familiar with one another, that will share the love of Christ in many ways with one another, donors, family, friends, and the wonderful people of Guatemala. There are so many aspects in being able to do a short term mission trip, and every one of those is just an avenue to share how God is working in your life.

For some of us, who have served with Mooney family, one week just doesn’t seem like enough time. Their love, compassion, and energy witnessed firsthand is something that stays with you and changes everyone for the better. After returning back to the states, we look for something to stay connected and help them. This is why Mission Mobility is so important to not only BMI, but to us as well. Of course, the most important need that MM fulfills is the gift of mobility. It also allows us to help BMI, even though we are thousands of miles away. It helps us stay connected to those we served with on our mission trip. We also connect with others from different cities and states that have served. MM gives a purpose to those who just want to help. For volunteers who want to be able to an impact globally and in their own community, MM is a great ministry to be a part of.

God has opened many doors for us here in our area. We have been able to make some really good contacts with local hospitals and medical equipment companies that have been generous enough to include MM at the top of their donation lists. One hospital has three non-profits that they donate to, and that list is in this order: 1. MM 2. Habitat for Humanity 3. Salvation Army. The donations are increasing little by little. The more these places see us around and see who the chairs are going to, we believe we will continue to be shown favor. We have been able to take several trips to see Brad in Louisville with trucks and trailers full of wheelchairs, and we’ve even caught Rick passing through and loaded his truck.

This past Christmas, we were honored to have Saul and Hannah Chopen from BMI, and their children Joshua and Havilah, visit us for a few days. While visiting in Madisonville, we were giving them a tour of the local hospital warehouse, where we receive and store our donations. As we were walking Hannah noticed there was a hyperbaric chamber stored amongst many other equipment and office items that were to be donations. She informed us that BMI has plans for the near future to open a pressure sore clinic. The clinic is a tremendous need in Guatemala due to the fact that so many people suffer or pass away from pressure sores. The hyperbaric chamber would be able to help speed the process of recovery of the pressure sores and help save many lives. If she hadn’t informed us of all this, we wouldn’t have known that it was a need, let alone what a hyperbaric chamber was. We are happy to say, MM now has a hyperbaric chamber, and when BMI is ready for it, with God’s guidance, we will figure out a way to get it to the new clinic.

We would like to encourage those who volunteer with MM to keep up the good work. We are blessed to be a part of this ministry and look forward to continuing serving alongside you. For those who have donated, thank you for giving someone a chance for a new life. With Him, all things are possible.

Faithfully,

Murray/Madisonville, KY Mission Mobility Volunteers

We were so blessed to be in Guatemala the week of January 31 – February 6, 2016.  A team of 8 men from 6 states served in Guatemala, building houses, installing stoves and distributing 50 wheelchairs.  You can read more about the wheelchair distribution here.

I had a good surprise today! God is always throwing fun curve-balls in this game, just to keep it interesting!

We received an unexpected monetary donation today.   Totally out of the blue…from a total stranger…a guy in Maine! Cool! His donation included a phone number, email and a note saying he had 2 wheelchairs he wanted to donate! Wow!
First thought through my mind (After “COOL”) was, “HOW FAR AWAY IS MAINE?” Google says 1434 miles!

MARK 10:27: With God, ALL things are possible!

Pennsylvania Container 12/08/2014

We have much to be thankful this Holiday season.   One such blessing is that Mission: Mobility has shipped it’s 4th container for 2014!    2 from Iowa, 1 from Louisville, and today from Pennsylvania.

Our group in West Springfield, Pa (NW ) is led by Debbie Hills.    Darren Brown from our group in  Lancaster, Pa (SW)  took a crew up to help with the loading.

The following is from Debbie……

 

Good Afternoon Everyone,

AMEN to that Debbie!    Many thanks to you and all those who had a part in this collection and loading effort.  We ask for prayers for this load to reach Guatemala quickly and without complications.  We pray that this equipment helps to TRANSFORM the lives of those that receive it.    A transformation both physically and SPIRITUALLY!

Jaden

This past spring, I was truly humbled and blessed!  Annette and I went to pick up a donated wheelchair ,a  mom had  answered a call for equipment I put out on Facebook.

Meet Jaden.

Jaden is seven years old – a first grader. He was born with Spina Bifida. Jaden’s mom said they wanted to donate his old equipment, but he had a hard time letting go of it, because it had been such a big part of his life, and he was quite attached. So, I suggested she and Jaden look at the BMI website (www.bethelministriesinternational.com) . This would allow Jaden to see ‘who’ his chair might help, and also see the children in Guatemala that have already been helped.…. And Jaden watched.

When we arrived, we were introduced to Jaden… a bright, energetic and engaging young man. He showed us his current wheelchair, and all the neat things he could do in it. He was fast, and agile, and independent, and free. His personality was like sunshine… and he shared this with me…..”I looked at the website….it looks like they really need this stuff”  “I think they are really going to like the Spiderman sticker on the back!”. What a special little guy!!

Bottom line in meeting Jaden…..

I have been humbled when serving at a distribution in Guatemala.   I have also now been really humbled collecting equipment for distribution!

Jaden’s bright spirit and attitude was truly inspiring! The huge blessing was that it took our collection efforts to such a PERSONAL level!  Until now,  MOST of the chairs we have collected have been from Hospitals and Nursing homes, or friends that indirectly acquired them. Quite often we collected several at a time.  I now realized that we have literally collected hundreds of chairs, almost Anonymously.   That evening we were blessed  by truly sharing the mission with an awesome little 7 year old boy who PERSONALLY donated his chair! And we were the ones that were truly blessed!    A few months later,   some Guatemalan Child was blessed by Jaden’s equipment!   (I will bet he/she also thought the Spiderman sticker was pretty cool!)

Thanks Jaden!

Proverbs 22:9. Blessed are those who are generous

 

 

 

If you are like me, when you hear the name Dori, you immediately think of the Disney movie where the little fish said, “Hi, my name is Dori!”.  Well, this has nothing to do with Disney…or a fish.

The other day, I stopped at a gas station to get a Gatorade and bottle of water.  I was wearing my Mission Mobility t-shirt that says, “Got wheelchairs?”  Well, it had the desired effect.  I heard a woman ask, “What does your t-shirt mean?”  I turned around and saw a woman pointing at my shirt.  I introduced myself, and she said her name was Dori.  When I explained that I collected wheelchairs for Guatemala, she enthusiastically said, “I can help!  I’m a dumpster diver!!!”  She asked if I had a card.  She said she had another friend who dumpster dives all the time and finds wheelchairs and walkers, and always wonders if there is a better thing to do with them than throw them away.  I gave her one of my Mission Mobility cards I had made and she was excited.

As I was leaving the store, she came up to me and told me here story of how she got to Louisville.  Emotionally, it was a hard story to hear, as she has had a very difficult life.  I felt like I was in Guatemala hearing one of the many family stories we hear when we visit.  I asked her if she wanted my new bottle of water.  She said she definitely would love it since she was really thirsty.

As I walked away, she said, “Hey, do you ever contact scrap yards?  They probably get a lot of wheelchairs.”  That was a great idea.  Actually, I have been told that by Rick Fulton.  Must be good advice…Dori agreed with him! 🙂

Even in the midst of her difficult life, Dori was trying to find a way to help other people.  I am thankful God brought her into my path.  It all happened because I was wearing a t-shirt that asked a simple question…”Got wheelchairs?”  Maybe we should wear these every day!!!

Dios te Bendiga,

Brad

You never know……………

Last weekend in Louisville,  it was great seeing old friends,  meeting new friends, and loading a container of wheelchairs.  It was a fun (but busy) weekend!

When we finished loading, we said our goodbyes and headed back to Iowa.  (still wearing our “got wheelchairs” and “Mission: Mobilty” t-shirts).

It was late,  we were tired and need a break to eat.  So,  we stopped by Long John Silvers in Hannibal, Missouri for a healthy, nutritious meal!?

It was great…Annette’s “got wheelchairs”  shirt initiated a conversation!   The reader (the night manager)  wanted to know what it meant.    Exactly  Brad’s vision:   the shirt’s question engaging the reader!

As we left the establishment,  walking in the dark to our car in the parking lot,  the drive-up window swung open and the night manager leaned out and said….”HEY, I KNOW A GUY WHO HAS 3 WHEELCHAIRS and my buddy runs a home healthcare business”.    We walked up to the drive-up (as he leaned out) and visited more about the ministry.  He was happy to receive a handful of brochures.  He wanted to hand them out to the local churches and other places.

Nice work on the shirt idea Brad!

Will this materialize into some equipment that will Bless someone in Guatemala?

You never know……(But God does!)

 

PS.    If you would like to join us in spreading the word about Mission: Mobility,   we have brochures,  shirts and hats available.

Contact us if you are interested.   email:   wheelchair@onhispath.com

shirts

hats