Clay Pots ~ Good Picnic

Last Sunday was a great day. We were really busy that day and came home exhausted, but we were praising God because it really was a lot of fun serving alongside Christians from all over the city, meeting new people, building on new relationships, and investing more time in solid relationships. I was particularly encouraged that two Hispanic families in particular whom we have been working to build a relationship with showed up, ate, and spent some time mingling with people there. It was hot, but it was perfect weather for a picnic and we are thanking God for the great weather that he gave all of us.

We were all encouraged with the diverse crowd that came... there were hundreds of people there from all walks of life... there were churches and aid organizations, rich and poor, homeless and congressmen, Hispanics, white Caucasians, and African Americans. It was encouraging to see all the people mingling and talking, laughing, and sharing the love of Christ. 'Feed My Sheep' did a great job in providing and cooking the food. The water and lemonade were flowing, the watermelons were sliced and diced and devoured, and the barbecued hamburgers and hot dogs were a real treat to all those who came. Local bakeries and businesses and people donated tons of deserts and cookies, which was also a huge hit. I don't think anyone went away hungry. Overall, the picnic was a great success in that Christians from all over the city came together to manifest the love of Christ to those who were there... with no strings attached.

Be praying for those relationships that were established or built upon during that time... that God would use them to draw people unto himself.

Thank you for your prayers and for all of you who came down to help out.
His Clay Pots,
Jason, Kellie, Micah, Sophia, and Malachi Knapp

Volunteers Needed

James Place, Elmbrook, New Beginnings, Hope Center, La Vina del Senor, and other churches and agencies are hosting a huge community picnic for the downtown Waukesha/Hispanic community in order to display the love of Christ; and we as Clay Pots are helping as well! We need volunteers! So would you be willing to volunteer? Bring food? Or just come, mingle, and smile?

Details:
When: Sunday July 18th 12:30-4pm (Come any time!)

Where: Frame Park in Waukesha.

Food: Bring cookies, bars, or watermelon to share. Bring your own chairs & blankets.

What: There will be Children's activities, volleyball, ultimate frisbee, playground, music & more!

How: Volunteers are needed to help with activities, set up, tear down, and Spanish speakers.

If you would like to volunteer to help, you can sign up at www.elmbrook.org/events/concerts.asp. Look for the Community Picnic and click the 'Volunteer' tab. You will see a list of who is needed yet.

See you there!
Clay Pots,
Jason, Kellie, Micah, Sophia, & Malachi Knapp

Clay Pots ~ Three + One

Have you ever moved to a new city or state? Wow, what a transition time. You feel alone, out of sorts, a bit lost, you don't know where everything is or where the good stores and the good deals are. You feel that you waste time and money, and sometimes you sit and wonder if you will ever fit in in this new place. And yet you speak the language and know the culture for the most part. What if you had to move to another country where you knew very little of the language and had few or no friends there to greet you?

I have had the privilege to begin building relationships with three Hispanic ministers here in Waukesha. Each of them arrived from their home countries to the Waukesha area in the past 3 years and each are here to minister to the Hispanic community. As a foursome, we have been meeting together once a week for prayer and fellowship. God has knit our hearts together in a wonderful way through prayer. We pray for our families, for our community, for the gospel to go forth, for area churches, and for the growth of the Hispanic church here in Waukesha. Without fail, every time we get done, these men thank each other for coming and say to one another how much of an encouragement this is to them. They have testified to the fact that they felt alone in this town, but how this meeting has encouraged them greatly to continue on because others are here for the same purpose.

I, personally, do not think that it is coincidence that three men from three different countries arrived in the last three years to head up a Hispanic ministry for three different churches in the city of Waukesha. God is doing something here and we are praying that he uses us to encourage and empower these men to see his kingdom expand. Thank you for making this possible for us.

Pray:
That God would bind our hearts together in love and unity to serve his purposes.
That God would continue to open doors to new relationships with unbelievers.
That God would stir the hearts of the unsaved community with a desire to hear His word.
That I would continue to learn Spanish quickly.

His Clay Pots,
Jason, Kellie, Micah, Sophia, and Malachi Knapp

Clay Pots ~ Sojourner

Malachi's first fish. "I will make you fishers of men."

When Jason came to me about making Clay Pots into a ministry to reach the sojourner and 'stranger' in the United States I actually had hoped that something would change his mind. I was pretty sure we had put in our time as church planters and we were entitled to a normal and average life. As far as I was concerned it was time to "play it safe". Little did I know that God was about to change my mind!

Unless you haven't gone to a store, restaurant, or outside your own back yard in a while, it is pretty hard to ignore the fact that you don't just hear "English" being spoken everywhere you go. In fact, there are many places I go to that I feel that I am the outsider. It got me thinking. Both our ancestors came from Germany and Ireland. At one time, Jason's ancestors spoke only German and they came to the States for a better life for their family. As I thought about this, I couldn't help but sympathize with them and what they went through as they moved and adjusted to a strange and unknown land which was so unlike their own. I know what it's like, I've done it myself.

I wonder who the people were that reached out to them? Who surrounded them with acceptance, love, and help? I assume that there were people who did. I know that as their descendant I am considered an "all American" but they were not and they went through much heartache and struggle in leaving their country and being strangers and sojourners in a foreign land so I, their descendant, could have all of this. I do know there were German/English speaking churches for them to attend where they could feel safe and grow in their faith. This is a key element since Jason's heritage contains Christians as far back as he can figure; they handed it down to their children praying that their children would do the same. So, I think we know what we are meant to do with our freedom as Christians and as Americans: we are to be the ones reaching out and sharing the gospel to immigrants, strangers, and foreigners because someone did it for our families first.

If you are questioning whether to support the Clay Pots ministry I would encourage you to seek out your past, your history, and your heritage. Ask yourself who reached out to your family when they came to this country? Was there a church that spoke their language so that they could attend and feel safe and loved as strangers in a foreign land? This is the job of the church and our cities need that again. They need churches speaking their heart language and Christians reaching out and helping them settle. I ask that you support Clay Pots so that we can encourage and empower churches to reach out to Hispanics in our own town... and then, and because our God is a very big God, we wont stop there but keep on going to more nationalities. Send people to our webpage. Pray for us. Reach out to your cities.

"You shall not oppress a sojourner. You know the heart of a sojourner, for you were sojourners in the land of Egypt." Exodus 23:9

His Clay Pots,
Kellie for Jason, Micah, Sophia, & Malachi Knapp

www.claypots.org


You can send checks to:
Clay Pots
S53 W24079 Glendale Rd.
Waukesha, WI. 53189
(You will be sent a tax deductible receipt)