CONNIE: Stepping Out in Faith and Service by Connie Sikkema Isaiah 58:10 - And if you spend yourselves on behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like the noonday. My name is Connie and I was a bigot. I confess that I had a prejudice against Mexican people. I was a minority in my high school in Arizona. I was cornered under the bleachers at a football game by three Mexican boys. I was not hurt because someone came by. Maybe nothing would have happened anyway, but the cancer of hate and bigotry began in my life. I also told people that as a military brat I had lived in 14 states and Florida was the only one I hated. Guess what? God has a sense of humor and He sent me to Florida to work with the Mexican migrants. He knew that this was the only way to heal my heart of that ugly bigotry. What began with two families in 1988 has become a ministry of service and hope to the "families of the fields" here in Florida. In Luke 5:4, Jesus told Simon, Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch. Simon questioned his reasoning, but when he did as Jesus said the rewards were great. We need to trust God and step out of the shallow water in faith and service. Don't argue; just do it. As a result of that first visit to a migrant camp, Messiah Migrant Ministries grew from serving two families to serving and helping thousands each year. At our back-to-school outreach in July, each child receives new shoes, socks, undies and a back pack filled with school supplies. Each child is offered a physical exam and a haircut. More than 500 children respond. Thanksgiving brings the traditional food items plus many ethnic favorites for more that 150 families. At Christmas we provide gifts for each child, a bag of personal hygiene items, Bibles and tracts, and five large food bags. We supply gifts to more that 2000 children. Each family also receives a new blanket. The joy of Jesus is the emphasis of the day. Palm Sunday is a festive day filled with family picnics, field games, piñata fun, and an egg hunt for the kids while the adults attend first aid classes and Bingo. At the end of the day we meet to hear the resurrection story, distribute large bags of food and Easter baskets for each child. We also distribute a Spanish version of the Gospel. At the 2000 LWML convention in San Jose, California, Messiah Migrant Ministry was awarded a mission grant of $40,000 to purchase a new truck. Each week we distribute clothing, household items, furniture and food at our Mission House of Hope at Hope Lutheran Church in Plant City. We share God's Word and prayers with our migrant friends each week. We also go to camps to share with those who cannot come to us. We load that beautiful white truck and away we go! Our prayer is that by sharing these gifts the parents will be motivated to keep the children in school. This is the only way the cycle of poverty can be broken. Our vision for the future of this ministry is to have a facility in the migrant community that can serve as both a worship and distribution center. We continue to pray that God will send us an Hispanic pastor to further meet the spiritual needs of our migrant friends. Connie Sikkema is director of Messiah Migrant Ministry, Messiah Lutheran Church, Tampa, Florida.