“Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to your name give glory, for the sake of your steadfast love and faithfulness.”
The first verse of Psalm 115 was on our minds and hearts as God’s Appalachian Partnership celebrated 25 years of dedicated ministry here in the mountains of eastern Kentucky during a weekend-long celebration June 21-23. Partners from across the nation joined together to celebrate GAP’s past, present, and future ministry.
Friday evening began looking back at the last 25 years of ministry and seeing the hand of God at work in numerous ways while enjoying delicious desserts. Angie and Lynn Wagoner, the co-founders of GAP shared stories of God’s miraculous provision and mighty hand of direction through the years. God’s steadfast love and faithfulness were reoccurring themes as they shared. Kasie Osborne who grew up in the area and was a member of the GAP Youth Services as a teen, shared how God used GAP and the Wagoners to eternally change her life. She is now serving the Lord faithfully in TN. We also heard from two different partnering churches: Smoke Rise Baptist Church in Stone Mountain, GA and Lawndale Baptist Church in Greenville, NC. Both shared how their partnership with GAP has impacted their church and what it means to their body of believers. We are grateful for both partners but for the many other individual and church partners that enable us, the staff at GAP, to minister as God has called us to.
Saturday afternoon may have been my favorite session of all. It was a luncheon not only for our partners in ministry but also for about 40 GAP families who we invited. Everyone enjoyed a wonderful lunch prepared by one of our partnering churches, Dallasburg Baptist Church in Owenton, KY. Dallasburg outdid themselves with delicious food and sacrificial service. We were also blessed to enjoy wonderful music by the talented group Ol’Elkhorn Pickers Club from Frankfort, KY. And that was just the beginning. The best part of the session was a panel discission with 5 of our GAP families. Each of them shared how God is presently using GAP to make a difference in their lives. They had told me how nervous they were to speak in front of such a large crowd but once they began, warmth and loved filled the room and all nerves seemed to disappear. I am so proud of every one of them! Their stories were full of laughter and tears while acknowledging ultimately it is only God who is our strength for each day.
After lunch and saying goodbye to our GAP families, partners were invited to visit each of our different building locations and to participate in a small hands-on mission project at each one. For many people, it was the first time they could see our new Dental Clinic. It was set to open this spring but with a major construction project going on next door we have delayed until our new Distribution/Office Building is complete. Partners also visited Servant’s Heart Lodge, the Warehouse, and Distribution Building.
The evening ended with a catered meal at Fitzpatrick Baptist Church and staff sharing about the direction God is leading GAP into the future. With a clear purpose, mission, and vision, I outlined GAP’s three-year ministry goals we have set that guides us into the next few years. We are excited about starting new ministries and casting new vision for older ones as we follow the Lord’s leading. We also shared about GAP’s new distribution/office building that is currently being built. A permanent home for GAP, a vision of GAP’s cofounders, that is now becoming a reality. All praise be to our God!
The weekend celebration concluded with a Sunday morning worship service lead by Ben Branon and Seth Carter. Ben is the Worship Leader at partnering church Wake Cross Roads Baptist Church in Raleigh, NC, and Seth is the pastor of a local partnering church in Paintsville, KY, First Baptist Church. The worship and message were a wonderful ending to a great weekend celebration of God’s steadfast love and faithfulness.
If you have ever served at GAP, prayed and/or financially partnered with us, or received services at GAP, God has allowed you to become a part of a special family, “the GAP family”. I described the weekend as a big family reunion and it was like that in many ways. It was great to see ones we had not seen in a long time, meet new family we have not met, and we missed many that were not able to join us but have played a vital part in GAP throughout the last 25 years! We laughed, cried, talked about old times, and looked forward to what the Lord has to come. Even if you could not attend, on behalf of the board of directors and the staff, thank you for your faithful partnership in ministry! We celebrate what the Lord has done in and through you.