Leader leaves missional mark on agency
NEWTON, Kansas (Mennonite Mission Network) — After many years of ministry, something was not working for pastor and church planter Marvin Lorenzana. Searching for inspiration, he turned to the example of the 16th-century Anabaptists. “I kept repeating mistakes that hindered me from being faithful to what I read in the New Testament about how the […]
Inauguration thoughts
As I write on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, two days before the inauguration of the 46th president of the United States, I am overwhelmed by the anxious times we are in, as citizens of the United States. We are in a season of pandemic. COVID-19, yes. But it is more than that. Our political and […]
Epiphany amid eclipse
Writer’s Note: Be advised that the below blog addresses suicide. If this is a sensitive topic for you, and you choose to read the blog, please engage the needed emotional support. I wish to thank all the supportive people — in professional, church, and personal circles — who have helped my family cope with our […]
Virtual hymn connects voices around the world
Work on this video started when six-year-old Aliyah Wigginton-Bravo in Ecuador, told her parents Peter Wigginton and Delicia Bravo that she thought it would be fun to ask Mission Network people in different countries to make a video together. Peter coordinated the project with Josh Garber in Spain working on the audio. Mission Network workers […]
Pandemic realities shift direction of partnership
NEWTON, Kansas (Mennonite Mission Network and Mosaic Conference) — Pandemic realities are shifting how Mennonite Mission Network is partnering with others. This shift includes sharing $15,000 with Mosaic Mennonite Conference to support its youth and young adult leadership development. Mosaic Conference is using the support — the majority of a $20,000 grant Mission Network received […]
SOOP couple reaps the blessings of Plans B and C
DIVIDE, Colorado (Mennonite Mission Network) — "People plan, and God laughs," quoted Matt Lehman Wiens, when asked about the six-month sabbatical he and his wife, Dr. Ruth Lehman Wiens, had planned for this year. After Ruth Lehman Wiens finished her family medicine residency in June, the couple had intended to serve at Iona Abbey in […]
Holiday Cheer Over Pandemic
This webinar originally streamed on Dec. 15, 2020. Do not allow despair to fuel anxiety and stress, over these joyous holiday seasons — God is still with you! During this time of the year, traditionally, we prepare ourselves to gather together for the Thanksgiving and Christmas holiday seasons to experience the joy of family and friends. This year will require us […]
What a difference a decade makes!
NEWTON, Kansas (Mennonite Mission Network) — As Hildi Amstutz spoke with a seminary student during a graduation ceremony at Centro Evangélica Mennonita de Teología Asunción (CEMTA)in Asunción, Paraguay, he shared his passion for the silent retreats that he had once considered unimportant. In that moment, she realized that 15 years of quiet persistence had […]
Creating a to-be list
Since 1991, Hildi Amstutz has served as a Mennonite Mission Network associate — along with her husband, C. Paul Amstutz — in Paraguay. Here is a personal reflection regarding her senior care ministry. In my senior care ministry, I am discovering this agonizing cry of aging people: "I don’t have any say in anything anymore!" […]
Signs following — Missional Meditations
Looking at the scriptures with an eye toward mission. Joe Sawatzky shares a Missional Meditation entitled, "Signs following," based on the Revised Common Lectionary for December 20, the fourth Sunday in Advent. Mary’s faith to bear Jesus was strengthened by signs on earth that confirmed the announcement from heaven. Psalm 89:1-4, 19-26 2 Samuel 7:1-11, 16 Luke 1:26-38 […]
Ready. Set. Go.
Are you mad, sad, or feeling bad? What’s causing you stress during this holiday season? As part of The Hope Series Prayer, Church Relations representative Karla Minter shares a tip to deal with our current despair, with three simple steps: Ready. Set. Go. This was initially streamed on December 14, 2020.
Celebrating Qom Bible translator
NEWTON, Kansas (Mennonite Mission Network) — When he was in his early 20s, the late Orlando Sánchez believed that what his Indigenous people in the Argentine province of Chaco needed most was a translation of the Bible in their language, Qom (previously known as Toba). He spent the rest of his life working towards that […]