Sunday morning, we ministered at one of our supporting churches in Moncure, North Carolina. It was great to see two of our longtime friends, Pastor Matt and Becky Garrett. Matt and Becky were members of our home church (Rock Church of Tarboro, N.C.) over thirty years ago. It was at Rock that Prit and I were commissioned to go to Haiti as missionaries.  Although the years have led us in separate directions, we have remained close friends with the Garretts and always look forward to our reunions.

Moncure Baptist Church had their commissioning service Sunday and we were delighted to be a part of it. They prayed for seven young people who were preparing to go on a mission trip to Elizabethtown, N.C. They will be working there with children’s Bible clubs, doing minor construction work and various other activities, and sharing their faith. Future trips will take mission groups to Kentucky to minister to the poorest of that state and also to Pennsylvania. Moncure isn’t stopping there, however. The church’s members have a global perspective and are strategizing to make an impact beyond their borders. Matt shared with us his passion for their church’s goal to contact an unreached tribe in the jungles of Colombia by partnering with a missionary who has lived in that country for many years. Our hearts were moved as we listened, knowing that this is something near and dear to his heart. In fact, the Garretts already have a large stake in the nation of Colombia. Their only daughter, Emily, has been serving as a missionary in Bogotá for several years.

Interestingly, Moncure is a French phrase that means “My Cure.” It would seem that this church is, in a sense, becoming a place from which healing comes as they take the Good News of Jesus Christ to the lost. We salute Moncure Baptist Church for their role in fulfilling the Great Commission!