By Tommy Weigel
You never know what a day at Next Chapter Ministries may bring. I say that often because ministry is unpredictable. At times the unpredictability can be heart-wrenching, and at time it can be joyous. I would like to share a story from the "joyous bag".
A few weeks ago, late in the afternoon, I was alone in our main office in Discipleship Home II working on some paperwork when the phone rang. I answered with the usual, "Next Chapter Ministries, this is Tommy" and was greeted by a sweet woman inquiring about the Women's Ministry. Because of my primary area of ministry is with the men at Next Chapter, phone calls regarding other areas of ministry can sometimes be brief. I shared details about some of the highlights and frequent studies that she could attend pertaining to the Women's Ministry. I then encouraged her to reach out to Roxy and passed along contact information. My well of knowledge was running dry and I said, "I hope Roxy can be of help to you and hope you are able to be involved in the Women's Ministry however you can!" As I think back, my pace and tone may have implied haste, which led this soft spoken woman to stop me in my tracks. "Now you just wait, Tom. You may be in ministry, but I can minister too!" Straight into prayer she went, praying for the staff, NCM as a whole, that God would bless our current volunteers and donors, that God would draw more passionate volunteers and donors to accomplish the work, and that this would all be for God's glory. I was in a small state of shock. Not because I have never had someone pray for me or NCM over the phone before, but because she had a passion to not just be a recipient, but a participant. We see this truth in 1 Peter 2:9 "But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light." If we have been called out of darkness into God's marvelous light we have a new identity and a new calling. I am so grateful for the opportunity that I have at NCM to serve individuals who have been impacted by crime, but I love when I see any participants begin to walk in their new identity in Christ and proclaim the excellencies of God with their whole life.
Enjoying time with Jeremy on a sunny day