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Pastor Carr/ BOC Update

BOC

Hope in the Mountains

August 2020

 

Dear Friends,

 

It’s so hard to believe that we are now wrapping up August and heading into September!!  What a year 2020 has been.  We are so grateful for each of you who pray for, encourage, give, and support our ministry here in these wonderful mountains!!  Without your generous hearts and God’s provisions through those hearts, we would not be able to do what we do.  THANK YOU!!!

 

First, let me share with y’all our new prayer card, which I have enclosed in this prayer letter!!  It’s a picture taken by one of our own church family outside at the front of our building.  Did I marry up or what??  So, when I say that Leslie and I thank you, this is the “Leslie” I am talking about (for those who may not have had the privilege of previously meeting her).  Please put this in your Bible or on your refrigerator and pray for us.  If you know someone who may be interested in joining our support team, please feel free to give them this card because instructions on how to give are on the back of the picture.  Or if you just want more cards to give to others, please just let me know and we will be sure to get them to you!!  Again, THANK YOU for your friendship, partnership, and support!!

 

During this Covid-19 season, Leslie and I are trying to stay in touch the best we can with all of our team.  One thing we have started to do this month is putting together “Mission Videos” for partnering churches through Dropbox!!  We are just now starting this and if you think your church would be blessed by a video from us, please let me know.  I will be glad to send one to you to share with whomever you are led to share it with.  Remember, we’re new at this, so it probably won’t be “professional” quality, but you should get a good feel as to who we are and our heartfelt gratitude 

for each of you!!

 

Here are some highlights of the ministry this month:

1 - Bruce Learning Center continues to grow and be blessed as it just started to produce hot lunches 

for the children who are attending!!

2 - Our FIGHT NIGHT men, along with some incredible help from a team from North Harford Baptist 

Church / Harford County has been working on winterizing all of our Sunday School rooms 

this month to retire our coal furnace before the coming winter sets in!!

3 - Two of our ordained deacons have started ministry training through Samford University this month 

and are working towards a certificate in Pastoral Ministry through its Ministry Training Institute!!

4 - Three men from our FIGHT NIGHT group have agreed to start a year of training to become ordained deacons starting in September.  This will be our SECOND class of deacon trainees since we have planted here at BOC!!

5 - We started a “Who’s Your One” strategy this month and TEN of our folks were able to reach their 

“ONE” with a box of food for the entire family, thanks to a generous grant from our local 

Chick-Fil-A!!  We have been so blessed by our friends and family at Chick-Fil-A!!!!

6 - We hosted a community clothing distribution on the last Saturday of this month and served 20+ 

families at this time!!

7 - Our Bruce Outreach Academy Homeschool Umbrella ministry has grown immensely from last year, as we have now multiplied to 60 to 70 students enrolled in our current ministry!!  What a blessing to minister to so many families and their children as we try to impact this community through the raising up of young men and women who love the Lord!!!



Here are some personal highlights this month:

1 - My wife, Leslie, completed several online college courses to prepare herself for licensing as a 

teacher at Bruce Learning Center!!  I am so proud of her accomplishments as she has entered back into the workforce and expanded her influence in ministry, both at the same time through BLC!!

2 - Our daughter, JoJo, continues to faithfully serve the Lord at the Well House near Birmingham, AL.  

The focus of this ministry is the rescue and healing of women who were trapped in the human trafficking nightmare!!  Thank you to those who have been praying for our girl!!

 

Prayer Requests at this time:

1 - Please pray for me as I travel to Alabama and meet with some of our pastors and partnering 

churches throughout the state (if allowed depending on Covid-19 conditions) next month 

(October).

2 - Please pray for our mission partnerships and as we seek the Lord’s direction in our future 

ministries together after this really difficult Spring and Summer with the Covid-19 shutdown / 

restrictions.

3 - Please pray for the provision of the carpeting necessary to cover the floors in our winterized 

Sunday School rooms!!  The cost is $900/room and though the work currently has been done and completely funded by our BOC Family, this is where we run into a brick wall.  So, please pray for God’s provision in this area!!

 

Thank You to Mission Teams:

1 - Thank you to our friends from North Harford Baptist Church (Jarrettsville, MD), who came this 

month to help us work on the winterizing of several of our Sunday School classrooms!!

2 - Thank you to our friends from Severna Park Baptist Church (Severna Park, MD), who came and 

provided clothing donations for our clothing ministry as well as 70 back-to-school backpacks filled with school supplies for our Bruce Outreach Academy homeschool umbrella ministry!!

3 - Thank you to our friends from Faith Baptist Church (Glen Burnie, MD), who donated $4,900 

towards our “Cycle Breaking Apartments” ministry AND sent several quilts from their quilting ministry to bless those in our local nursing home!!

4 - We will share more about our Christmas Ministry this year in the months ahead, but we want to 

thank Elmore Baptist Association (Wetumpka, AL) for committing to bring Christmas 

backpacks again this year, Faith Baptist Church (Glen Burnie, MD) for committing to come 

and produce a party or some other appropriate event to distribute the backpacks, Central Park Baptist Church (Decatur, AL) for committing to fund $2,000 worth of Christmas gifts for needy families in our area, and Severna Park Baptist Church (Severna Park, MD) and Gap Hill 

Baptist Church (Six Mile, SC) for praying about adding additional items for distribution this 

year.  This would be a HUGE injection of energy and love into our church and our community!!

 

I think that’s about it for August!!  Again, THANK YOU for all you do to make this happen here in our Mountains!!  Please never underestimate how much we mean it when we say THANK YOU!!!  Please let us know how we can encourage you and pray for you - it would truly be our honor to do so!!  Leslie and I both pray for our God to richly bless you, your family, and your ministry for the sake of the Kingdom of God!!  We love y’all!!!

 

Your Partners in the Harvest



Steffan and Leslie Carr