“By All Means”
By Joni Wilkinson Iowa WMU Coordinator
Iowa Woman’s Missionary Union (WMU) held its 2016 annual meeting on September 30-October 1 at Calvary Baptist Church, Marshalltown. Twenty-nine people representing eleven Iowa Baptist churches attended the event.
Mindy Jamison and her daughter Maggie. Iowa WMU honored Mindy for receiving the 2016 Dellanna West O’Brien Award for Women’s Leadership Development given by the WMU Foundation.
On Friday evening WMU honored Mindy Jamison, Co-Director of the Friendship Baptist Center, Des Moines, for receiving the 2016 Dellanna West O’Brien Award for Women’s Leadership Development. Mindy shared about the Friendship Center ministry and spoke on the theme “By All Means” based on I Corinthians 9:22b-23, NIV. Those attending took an offering to support the Friendship Center ministry.
Emmanuel Mauricio, Iglesia Bautista Hispana Emmanuel, Cedar Rapdis, led the music for the meeting this year. One highlight of the time was singing a worship song in English and Spanish at the same time. Emmanuel also translated for his mother, Ethel Mauricio, NAMB missionary in Cedar Rapids, who spoke from Luke 8:40-50. She gave the invitation that any woman with an ailment or struggle can come to Christ for healing and restoration.
Iowa WMU Officers elected for 2016-17 are left to right, Recording Secretary Deb Speas, Historian Rhonda Mueth, President Karen McGettrick, and Vice-President Wilma Faulkner.
In the business meeting, the group elected officers for the coming year. They are President Karen McGettrick, Grace Church, Des Moines; Vice President Wilma Faulkner, Calvary Baptist Church, Glenwood; Recording Secretary Deb Speas, Van Meter Baptist Church; and Historian Rhonda Mueth, First Grace Baptist, Sheffield.
Iowa WMU seeks to challenge people to be radically involved in the mission of God through their commitment to pray for missionaries, and personally live a missional lifestyle. Connie Thompson, Van Meter Baptist Church, talked about God’s faithfulness to her as she led a mission trip to Peru last summer which included participants from three Metro churches. Sue McRae, First Family Church, Ankeny, shared about her missionary experience when she, her husband Chris and family served in Turkey. She gave insights in how to communicate with missionaries overseas, especially those in high security areas.
The group enjoyed lunch together, and then several ladies helped assemble toiletry kits for House of Compassion, a ministry to the homeless and needy in Marshalltown.
NAMB Missionary Ethel Mauricio, Iglesia Bautista Hispana Emmanuel, Cedar Rapids, was guest speaker at the Iowa WMU Annual Meeting. Her son Emmanuel led worship. They are joined by Patricia Jarien, also from Cedar Rapids.
