At the January '08 OSLC Ladies Guild meeting it was decided to give financial support to a foreign missionary.

THE MAY FAMILY IN BURKINA FASO AND TOGO

This is our family; James and Tiina
Maggie is 5 1/2, Tristan is 4, Sarai is 2 1/2, and Sofia is 1 year old.

---

At the moment we are living in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso first to learn French
and then to begin learning the tribal language Gulmancema.  I have been sent by
the Board for Mission Services to share the Gospel and plant churches among the
people who speak Gulmancema.  This includes eastern Burkina Faso, northeast
Togo, northwest Benin, and western Niger.

 You may read Rev. James May's newsletter here

God Bless the LWML!

From its beginnings, the Lutheran Women's Missionary League has been about providing resources for expanding the mission of Jesus Christ. But this wonderful organization has been about much more than providing funds for mission professionals to do the mission work! In the process of funding mission efforts, thousands of faithful LCMS Women have grown in faith, hope and love. Literally hundreds of thousands of women (current membership is some 250,000!) have been strengthened in faith along life's journey. And this has meant that right in the midst of all the challenges women face in today's post-modern world, the LWML has been a blessing and a catalyst in assisting Lutheran women in loving their families, faithfully managing the many hats they often juggle, directing women to Christ's words of forgiveness when they fall short, and encouraging women in faith for the day ahead. I have seen this reality with my own eyes! Serving as a parish pastor for over a decade before taking on the leadership of LCMS World Relief and Human Care, I attended and assisted at many, many LWML meetings. I particularly remember one Bible study from the LWML Quarterly that asked the ladies to name the one person who was most influential in their spiritual lives. Most said that their confirmation pastor, or some other pastor who had touched their lives in a special time, was the most important person of spiritual influence in their lives. That was one of the most significant moments of enlightenment for me as a young pastor. I came to realize more than ever how precious was the vocation I had to serve these dear women. And I was and continued to be deeply humbled and sustained by the way these dear ladies loved and treasured their pastor and their church, and more than that, how dedicated they were to caring for those beyond their own congregations. Dorothy, Bernice, Martha, Elaine, Connie... I see them all now as I write... Some of them young women balancing home, family, job... Others full partners in the family farming operation... Some elderly, retired and now in glory with Jesus. Not too long ago I had the great privilege, along with my friend Bob Roegner and others, of serving as an advisor to the national LWML Grant Committee as it gathered here in St. Louis to prepare the grant prospects for the upcoming gathering in Oklahoma... Here were the leading women of the LWML from all over the U.S. It didn't take long: the names and faces were different, but here were the same wonderful and precious gifts of God I had come to know so well as a parish pastor. Competent, compassionate, seeking input, willing to make decisions, wanting above all to serve Jesus and his "little ones" with the Gospel. And now I have the opportunity to travel the world and see first hand just what the LWML grants (mites!) are accomplishing, often in partnership with LCMS World Relief. I'm humbled in the face of God's graciousness, and strengthened all over again... God bless you, women of the LWML! Pastor Matthew Harrison, Executive Director LCMS Human Care and World Relief I John 3:16ff.