Mission Services Jan 2014 eNews – the Good, the GREAT and the not so good

the Good, GREAT,

& not so good news

as we begin 2014

January 23, 2014

Greetings!

Let’s start with the “not so good” news...

In early December 2013, the office of Mission Services was hit by thieves. Shortly after Thanksgiving, we came to the office knowing we needed to kick a few things into gear. When we entered the building, we were surprised to find three computers, two special monitors, the TV we use in our convention display, microphone equipment we had on hand to be used in new programming for the missions network, and even three hidden back up drives for the computers had all been stolen.

The police forensics investigator determined that the perpetrators (we know there were several involved from some who saw what was happening but thought it was office personnel) had acquired a key for entry and wore gloves leaving no fingerprint evidence. None of the equipment has appeared in any local pawn shops nor on Craigslist that we have been able to determine.

We are crawling out of the “hole” this created. Two of the computers have been replaced. Our financial records were backed up online. Many of our individual mailing lists were also on other servers. It appears that most of our graphic design files and our central database that linked the individual mailing lists have been lost for good. Pray for us and bear with us as we adjust publishing schedules and a few other things in this process. We know we will have expenses the insurance company will not cover, and some they will only cover well after we spend money to replace items. If you can help us in this area, we will be forever grateful.

Now, onto the Good news….

I was privileged to be invited to speak for Chapel at Johnson University (Tennessee campus) on January 16. The LONG passage from Matthew 5 that is famous for Jesus saying “You have heard it said…but I say…” was my assignment. This was not one of my favorites as a young man, but it has certainly become one. Chapel services are streamed live, and we received several complimentary “tweets” during and afterward. If you would like to listen to the message, it is now available on the missions network. The link is http://bit.ly/1m96Ond.

Finally, the GREAT news…

The growth of the missions network continues at an impressive rate that is beyond our fondest expectation. We originally thought there would be a natural interest in video and audio reports, messages and workshops devoted to missions. When we began making current newsletters and historical information available, we were less certain. Last week we were informed that the “documents” we have online are in the top 2% of documents read online around the world.

YOU make this possible. Over the past 12 months individuals have turned to Mission Services & the missions network MORE than 3.2 million times. We cannot thank you enough. There is a new service planned for the very near future. Pray as we complete the planning and preparation stage and as we enter implementation. May God continue to use your generosity and our partnership to spread His glory through the nations.

Praying for more to be His,