Global Missions
“Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms.”
1 Peter 4:10
1 Peter 4:10
Samaritan's Purse Operation Christmas Child Processing Center
Charlotte, NC, December 4
Thank you to our Snyder Volunteers who helped us process shoeboxes in Charlotte at the Samaritan's Purse Operation Christmas Child Processing Center.
While there, we processed shoeboxes for Burundi, Colombia, and New Guinea. Burundi is located in East Central Africa, where one of our volunteers, Dwight, served as a Physician with a Medical Mission Team for Five years!
That day, we heard Izabella's story. Interestingly, Izabella came to Snyder in 2010 to speak about how a Shoebox impacted her life. Izabella grew up in communist Romania in a family of scarcity. One day she and her brother found a Bible hidden under the floorboards in their home. They secretly began reading it, which was an offense resulting in death in Romania. Later, they began to attend a secret church where the pastor taught them to pray. She fervently began to pray for snow but night after night there was no snow. She told the pastor that prayer did not work, he assured her God always answers, and sometimes in ways we cannot imagine. Eventually, the communist dictator was overthrown and Romania was free. One day, at Church she saw trucks loaded with colorful boxes, OCC ShoeBoxes. She was given a box and when she opened it, there was a snow-globe inside! A young boy ran up to her and said "shake it", so she did and there was her snow! To this day, she still has her snow-globe. Through a simple ShoeBox, she learned of Jesus, accepted Him as a her Savior, eventually moved to USA, went to college, became a teacher in a Christian school, got married, became a mother, and now works with Samaritan's Purse as the Speakers Bureau Manager for Operation Christmas Child. God works in mysterious ways and often ways we cannot comprehend. Izabella's story is a testimony of God's faithfulness and goodness!
Thank you to everyone who donated boxes filled with gifts of love and joy! And thank you to our volunteers who worked hard, laughed, prayed throughout the day and served in Jesus' Name. Processing Day is my most favorite day of the year!
Thank you,
Diane Alabaster, Snyder OCC Project leader
While there, we processed shoeboxes for Burundi, Colombia, and New Guinea. Burundi is located in East Central Africa, where one of our volunteers, Dwight, served as a Physician with a Medical Mission Team for Five years!
That day, we heard Izabella's story. Interestingly, Izabella came to Snyder in 2010 to speak about how a Shoebox impacted her life. Izabella grew up in communist Romania in a family of scarcity. One day she and her brother found a Bible hidden under the floorboards in their home. They secretly began reading it, which was an offense resulting in death in Romania. Later, they began to attend a secret church where the pastor taught them to pray. She fervently began to pray for snow but night after night there was no snow. She told the pastor that prayer did not work, he assured her God always answers, and sometimes in ways we cannot imagine. Eventually, the communist dictator was overthrown and Romania was free. One day, at Church she saw trucks loaded with colorful boxes, OCC ShoeBoxes. She was given a box and when she opened it, there was a snow-globe inside! A young boy ran up to her and said "shake it", so she did and there was her snow! To this day, she still has her snow-globe. Through a simple ShoeBox, she learned of Jesus, accepted Him as a her Savior, eventually moved to USA, went to college, became a teacher in a Christian school, got married, became a mother, and now works with Samaritan's Purse as the Speakers Bureau Manager for Operation Christmas Child. God works in mysterious ways and often ways we cannot comprehend. Izabella's story is a testimony of God's faithfulness and goodness!
Thank you to everyone who donated boxes filled with gifts of love and joy! And thank you to our volunteers who worked hard, laughed, prayed throughout the day and served in Jesus' Name. Processing Day is my most favorite day of the year!
Thank you,
Diane Alabaster, Snyder OCC Project leader
