September 12, 2007

Dear Friends and Family,

Fall greetings from Jerusalem! Our regular newsletter will be coming out later this month, but we have a special concern we wanted to share with you today.

Many of you have heard about the exciting program the Presbyterian Church is undertaking in October, called Mission Challenge ’07.

The church will be sending 48 missionaries out to 144 presbyteries (80 percent of our presbyteries) to share about life and work in the mission field. This adds up to sharing in approximately 700 churches during an exciting month of education and advocacy about what how Presbyterians are serving in God’s name around the world.

This event offers the opportunity for those who haven’t previously become involved to select a missionary (or two) to get involved with. With a greater funding base, PC(USA) can continue to work in where the church already has missionaries and also send others to the other places with dire needs.

Mission Challenge ’07 reminds us that the harvest is great, but the laborers are few. Please join with PC(USA) to work together in combating hunger, poverty, and injustice in the world of those without a voice.

During the first week of October, a box will arrive in every PC(USA) church with bulletin inserts that include a call to action as well as an invitation to participate in mission life by praying faithfully and giving generously. There will also be a DVD featuring our new director, Hunter Farrell, who will talk about the life of missionaries.

The Church cannot send a missionary to every congregation during Mission Challenge ’07, but you can participate by using the DVD and bulletin inserts. For more information, see the Mission Challenge '07 Web site.

Thank you so much for you prayers and support!

Grace and Peace,

The 2007 Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, p. 170