SANGER—At First Baptist Church in Sanger, hope began with children.
The children in the church recently kicked off the congregation’s involvement in Texas Hope 2010 by leading its Sanger Cares Day and raising money for the hungry through the Texas Baptist Offering for World Hunger.
The children traversed the town collecting and earning coins to put in 75 Texas-shaped banks. On Sanger Cares Day, they sang songs and read Scripture during First Baptist Church’s worship service. Then, they placed the banks on the altar.
Jeff Dooley, the church’s minister of education, said the congregation was inspired by the children’s efforts to help people in need. The children raised more than $600 for the offering, encouraging adults in the church to care for people around them.
“If we can do this with change, we can do so much more with our feet and our arms,” he said. The congregation is looking for ways to share the gospel with the 6,000 people who live near Sanger.
Emphasis on increasing gifts to the Texas Baptist Offering for World Hunger is part of Texas Hope 2010, a Baptist General Convention of Texas initiative encouraging believers to pray for people around them, care for those in need and share the gospel with every Texan by Easter 2010.
“Our children are taking the lead in this 2010 vision,” Dooley said. “It really was a teaching tool for our congregation.”
The exercise in faith helped children understand how blessed they are, he said. While they have plenty to eat, more than one Texas child in five does not know where the next meal is coming from. Collecting money for the offering provided an opportunity for children to help others.
“The kids showed the congregation how easy it is to get involved in missions,” Dooley said.
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Texas-shaped banks are available through the BGCT for $1 each, Dooley noted. He encouraged each church to consider using them repeatedly as a way to help young people become involved in missions work and minister to people around the world searching for spiritual and physical nourishment.
“I think every church needs to do this,” he said. “The banks are really good tools.”
For more information about Texas Hope 2010, visit www.texashope2010.com. For more information about the Texas Baptist Offering for World Hunger, visit www.bgct.org/worldhunger. To support either effort, visit www.bgct.org/give.
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