Weekly Report for Newton

The group from this week.

Amidst the poverty here in Newton Texas a mighty witness is evident in the formation of new homes. The Newton team was blessed with six faithful, strong men from Indiana, enabling roof trusses to be hoisted up and erected atop the S home. As the hammers “ring hope” we are in awe of what happens when we are obedient to His call. Seeing the progress we eagerly anticipate the windows, doors and siding which have been ordered and will arrive soon for the next volunteer team to continue the build. 

Guests at the Newton Project this week included Paul and Julie, videographers from MDS. With lots of opportunity for photos, they spent time at both builds (RV and Newton) as well as with Pastor Joe of the Methodist church. Jerry Grosh, Director, Field Operations offered encouragement and was a great asset to our Project Director helping him with some client processing. Our cooks served up another great feast to our ever increasing numbers. I think their motto is, “no one leaves unsatisfied”, even Jerry, who was presented a cake decorated with the MDS logo.

Devotions are always a highlight each morning. We are reminded to keep God in our head, our understanding, in our eyes, in our mouth, in our speaking; in our heart and our thoughts. If we can always focus on God, we will continue to shine His light in this dark world.

Together with a representative of one of our funding sources we visited an elderly couple to gather information in hopes of blessing them with a new home. In our minds, we think they should be jumping for joy. But there are emotional considerations and many attachments to their home even as it is falling down around them. Next time you step into the shower, imagine no hot water. Many here in Newton live this life daily.

Meeting people here we sense strong family values and dependence on faith. Small community churches come together dressed in Sunday best to sing praises and hear the message from the Word. The congregation welcomed us with warm hugs and invitations to lunches – they are always willing to share whatever they have.

As our work week closes, both Newton projects are quickly turning into homes. The walls are up, the roofs are built and shingling has started.

Some of our long-termers took some weekend time and drove to Pass Christian to a MDS camp, overnighted and enjoyed some time in New Orleans. Others went to Smithpoint, a small fishing community about two hours away that was recently devastated by Hurricane Ike. MDS and other Christian organizations are volunteering at Smithpoint to muck out houses and rebuild homes – again the need is great.

Classic signs of fall approaching in Texas are evident with red and gold leaves and decorative displays of pumpkins and haystacks silhouetted in the morning mist. The days turn to sun and warmth, followed by crisp evenings punctuated with brilliant stars. The fall harvest is celebrated at many local churches with children dressed in costumes enjoying games and all the candy they could eat for that day.

Other signs are approaching reminding us of the world outside our encampment and the homes we are building. Yikes, Christmas decorations were going up in Newton on October 30!

So ends another week here in Newton. 

We are In His Service:
Newton Project
Alec Dutt, Project Director