Dear Mentor,
People around the world are persevering through a season in which their daily lives have been turned upside down. Many reports indicate this new world of social distancing will continue into the foreseeable future. The opportunity to flex our perseverance muscles will remain before us for a while.
The challenges ahead are great, but rather than becoming apathetic or angry, we should continue to ask God for perseverance and endurance. We can expect failures and setbacks, but each one is an opportunity to try again.
In Romans 5, the apostle Paul offered a reminder that suffering can produce perseverance, character and hope. How comforting it is to know that our loving God is with us in difficult times, helping us find the strength we need to press on.
“Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us” (Romans 5:3–5).
A tip for your next letters: Write to your students about perseverance and what it means to you, being mindful that they may or may not know the meaning of this word. Share how you are persevering through this time and encourage them to exercise perseverance in their lives. Try to be sensitive to the fact that their circumstances might be much more difficult than yours.
“Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer” (Romans 12:12).
Serving alongside you,
Douglas Cupery
Church Mobilization Director
Crossroads Prison Ministries
NEWS & NOTES
International prayer gathering: Recently, we held an international prayer gathering via Zoom with many of our extension center leaders. We heard similar stories from all the represented countries. The pandemic has closed prisons to visitors, and social distancing is being practiced everywhere. Please continue to pray for our extension centers. Many of the international teams carry out the Crossroads program with students in person, which is not an option for them right now. Pray for patience and creativity to find new ways to reach people with the hope of the Gospel.
Just for Mentors schedule: We have decided to decrease the frequency of these Just for Mentors emails. We will send one more in May during the week of the 18th. We will then resume sending them once per month.
Upcoming Zoom calls: You are welcome to participate in any of the upcoming mentor gatherings via Zoom! We will send a reminder email shortly before each call.
Tuesday, May 12, at 3:00 p.m. (ET)
Wednesday, May 13, at 8:00 p.m. (ET)
Wednesday, May 27, at 3:00 p.m. (ET)
Wednesday, May 27, at 8:00 p.m. (ET)
Please use the following link, meeting ID and password for all Zoom calls.
Link: Zoom Link
Meeting ID: 841 8295 6475
Password: 329410