Prayer Mail

Dear Friends,

This is our public prayer mail of Easter Sunday, 20 March 2016. In case you are wondering about the time that I am sending this, I just came back from an Easter Vigil, and somewhere on another side of the world, the sun is rising on Easter Day.

Happy Easter!  Feliz Pascua!

This week:

This week has been filled with many items, including: preparing for my next trip to Belize, consulting matters pertaining to people in the ordination process in Belize, the distance learning program in Belize, Holy Week services in Albany and in Connecticut, and my mother on Palm Sunday deciding this was a good week to start the ball rolling on a move.

Your prayers are requested for the following:

A) For the distance learning and ordination programs in Belize, and my upcoming mission trip in late April.

B) Our ability to keep all the balls up in the air at the same time. 

C) For the Holy Spirit's continued guidance throughout 2016, and plans ahead. April and May are particularly busy between the SAMS retreat and New Wineskins conference, the upcoming mission trip in Belize, various clergy related matters in both Albany and Connecticut, the ongoing ministries in Belize, and the next phase of the ministry associated with Belize.

D) For safe and timely travel. 

E) For relatives and friends who face challenges and/or opportunities, including my mother's potential move over the next few months; I begin working on that on Monday. In response to recent questions: Hannah is on the mend, though the mend is taking some time. 

Thank you for praying. I pray for you every day.  

God bless you. 

Shaw, and on behalf of Julie.

from our mission outpost in Manchester, CT

Prayer Mail

Dear Friends,

This is our public prayer mail of Sunday, 20 March 2016. Happy Palm Sunday! Spring and Holy Week are upon us as we look to the Day of Resurrection! 

This week:

1) Been putting together various proposals and ideas for the Bishop of Belize with regards to the ongoing ministry in Belize, and also been taking more of an interest in creating liturgical art.

2 ) In late April, we will be launching the distance learning Christian Ethics/Moral Theology course.  

3) Mtr. Julie and I plan to be at the Chrism Mass at the Cathedral in the Diocese of Albany.

All this is to make the vision of God real in the lives of people in Belize.  

Stateside: parish opportunities continue. All are making room for what needs to be done on the mission field.  

Your prayers are requested for the following:

A) For the courses, students, academic, and ordination programs in Belize.

B) For whomever the Holy Spirit may be raising up for ordination and Lay Leadership in Belize, and my upcoming mission trip in late April. 

C) For the Holy Spirit's continued guidance throughout 2016, and plans ahead. 

D) For safe and timely travel. 

E) For relatives and friends who face challenges and/or opportunities.  

Thank you for praying. I pray for you every day.  

God bless you. 

Shaw, and on behalf of Julie.

Manchester, CT

Prayer Mail March 13

Dear Friends,

This is our public prayer mail of Sunday, 13 March 2016. The time change has arrived in the U.S. Belize time does not change. In effect, as we do every year, we have moved our relationship with Belize from Central Time to Mountain Time.

Have a happy St. Patrick's Day!

This week:

1) I now have my upgrade for visa entry, and have made reservations for my 13th trip to Belize, in late April and early May.

2 )The Parish Development and Stewardship distance-learning course continues, and is examination week. Next month, in Easter Season, we will be launching the Christian Ethics/Moral Theology course.  

3) I have begun upgrading courses to take into account lectionary changes in the Province of the West Indies over the past few months, as well as turning course notes and other materials into seminary "note-books", that would cover every subject in a parish-friendly, and ordinand friendly, resource. That is the goal. 

Like the courses themselves, all my part would be gratis for the recipients, thanks to your support. 

All this is to make the Kingdom of God real in the lives of people in Belize. The positive consequences of our actions through the movement of the Holy Spirit, as a kind of ripple effect of what Jesus is doing, is sometimes way beyond what I could have imagined.

4) There are other projects in the works as well, and my part in the ordination process in Belize continues for several people.

Stateside: parish opportunities continue. All are making room for what needs to be done on the mission field. In fact, I believe a side benefit helps people think in terms of being missionaries. 

Your prayers are requested for the following:

A) For the courses, students, and academic project.

B) For my various ongoing ministries with Belize, including ministry to people in the ordination process, for whomever the Holy Spirit may be raising up for ordination and Lay Leadership, and my upcoming mission trip. 

C) For the Holy Spirit's continued guidance throughout 2016, and plans ahead. 

D) For safe and timely travel. 

E) For relatives and friends who face challenges.  

Thank you for praying. I pray for you every day.  

God bless you. 

Shaw, and on behalf of Julie.

Newsletter

Mudge Making a Difference Newsletter. Leap Year Day 2016. Central Belize. 

Photo copyright Fr. Shaw Mudge, 2015-16. 

Ultreya! 

God continues to lead us in new and more profound directions on this mission adventure. More mission experiences to come! And thank you to everyone who is journeying with us. We continue to look forward to your friendship and support in the days and months ahead. Our unique journey together continues among the Vanguard for Christ! We meet really great people along the way, whether in Peru, in Belize, in East Africa, and in the U.S. We minister alongside awesome bishops, lay people, priests, and deacons. That would include you as our partners! 

Onward! And it is with special enthusiasm that I thank my fellow missionaries, Rev. Julie and Lydia, for all their hard work amid the successes and challenging circumstances that come our way. And the thought came to me, today, that in the midst of all the challenges and accomplishments of missionary life, that learning from each experience is like earning a scout merit badge. As I think ahead about my Christian walk: what might I consider a mission merit badge? Could one type be: “touched many lives today on that occasion” merit badge, and another be “survived the temptations in the desert that time” merit badge, and so on? Interesting thoughts. I am excited about this interpretation of what I do. If I learn from our successes and our challenges, each experience is a merit badge for Jesus! 

Ultreya! God bless you all, and thank you for your support, in Jesus’ Name, 

Fr. Shaw, and on behalf of Mtr. Julie.