Nearly 600 teen girls gathered at Eastmont Baptist Church, Montgomery, in Montgomery Baptist Association March 9–10 for a weekend of dynamic worship, missionary speakers and relevant missions, ministry and life conferences at COMPLETE, an annual event sponsored by Alabama Woman’s Missionary Union (WMU).
COMPLETE, a gathering for girls in grades 7–12, is based on Colossians 2:10, and the event centers around the wholeness that comes only through Christ.
During worship sessions, missionary testimonies and missions and ministry conferences, girls learned that no car, clothes, relationship, title, job or amount of money can complete them.
During worship sessions, speaker Cindy Townsend encouraged girls to know Christ intimately, to love Him passionately and to serve Him purposefully.
Ashley Thaba, former International Mission Board (IMB) missionary to Botswana, encouraged participants to step out on faith and follow God wherever His call may lead.
Laura, a missionary in Africa, helped to personalize missions even more for the girls through a videotaped message followed by a live telephone question-and-answer time.
“I’m a senior and this was my last COMPLETE. I will say that this has honestly been my most meaningful one ever,” said Emilie Mosley of Lakeside Baptist Church, Birmingham, in Birmingham Baptist Association. “When Cindy and Ashley spoke, God really spoke to me and it was amazing.”
Twelve participants made professions of faith in Jesus Christ, one made a decision for baptism and four made recommitments to follow Christ.
During the March 10 morning worship session, an offering was collected for the IMB’s MANNA (Ministering Aid to Needy Nations Abroad) project in Africa. Participants could choose what need they wanted their offering to help meet — for instance, supplying seed packets in Nigeria, infant cereal in Malawi or clean drinking water tanks in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
In total, more than $3,000 was given at COMPLETE through the MANNA offering, a record offering for COMPLETE.
“It is amazing to see such generosity among teen girls,” said Faith McDonald, Alabama WMU student consultant. “When we understand how much our offering can help and realize just $1.75 can provide five days of food for a family in Nigeria or $120 can provide a 1,000-liter water tank, our hearts are moved to give in a big way.”
Girls and their leaders also participated in conferences throughout the weekend on topics including purity, being real in a plastic world, impacting their community for Christ and finding their part in God’s plan.
Many participants took part in a global prayer walk during which they wrote prayers for Tibetans on a block wall and wrote prayers on pingpong balls for the people of China as that country prepares to host the 2008 Olympics.
“God challenged me in the Bible study and worship times,” said Ruth Edge, a leader from Belmor Baptist Church, Mooresville, in Limestone Baptist Association.
“What an awesome time in the Lord we had.”
In 2008, COMPLETE will be held March 7–8 at First Baptist Church, Trussville, in Birmingham Association, in conjunction with Renew, Alabama WMU’s women’s event. (Alabama WMU)
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