My Mom tells the
story of the time when our house was the last house on the block, and there were no
street lights on our street. (Since
then, more houses have been built on down the street, and our house is no
longer the last one.) The street was so
dark, and at least twice, thieves broke into our house when we were not there.
My Mom says she
began to pray for the mayor of our city, asking God to touch his heart to put a
street light on our corner. She said
that not many months after she began to pray, the city came out and put up a
street light on our corner.
She tells this
story every year at her Annual Christmas Banquet…she tells the ladies: “I did not set up a road block; I did not go
picketing in front of the mayor's house; I did not gather people and make a
manifestation in the streets. I simply
prayed for Mr. Mariano, and I asked God to touch his heart; and God answered my
prayer! That street light is a constant
reminder for me to pray for what I need, and to pray for the leaders in our
city and in our country.”
The ministry of
the Annual Christmas Banquets began years ago, as a desire that God put in my Mom’s
heart to reach the high-society ladies in our town. Her first Banquet was in 1999, and there were
9 ladies present. 16 years later, it has
grown to over 100 ladies in attendance, and many people being saved. The guests of honor are the current Mayor’s
wife, as well as the wives of former mayors. Every year, mayors’ wives attend
from the surrounding towns and villages, and in recent years, congresswomen,
senators, and other public service ladies have been present. (Each guest of honor receives a Bible.)
Mom has also
started having as guests of honor the wives of the military men and of the policemen
in our area. God has truly used this
ministry to reach out to many ladies in our community.
I ask that you
please pray for us as we work in the next few weeks to prepare everything for
this Annual Christmas Banquet. We love seeing how God provides each need for this amazing ministry.
