Fall is in the air and with October comes a hint of the holidays and the near end of another year. As many of you know, Donna and I were blessed to be able to take a week of vacation and go to beautiful Colorado. Confirmation of miracles was on the list as Donna actually got in a kayak for the first time and took a short float trip down the Conejos River with me.

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She would want me to explain how waders hold in air and make you look like a marshmallow man! We had a blast! I spent a few hours nearly every day floating down the river and fishing for trout.

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Patti Mussleman was our gracious host and also introduced us to some of the “regulars” at the Ponderosa Campground where we stayed. It was a great blessing for both of us!

Ross & Jacob have been after me to put out another promotional video for the ministry. It seems that the first one answered some questions but didn’t really explain, in detail, what we do. We are currently asking folks, that we have helped through the ministry, to do interviews and share their stories. Please be praying for this project.

Here is a quote on Facebook, from a ministry sponsor we worked with recently:
“My son, David Lee Watkins III, was removed from life support this morning at 10:30 AM. As a healthy 26 year old, we made the decision to bring in “LifeGift” and donate all organs for the benefit of saving or improving someone’s quality of life. Can you imagine that, right now, someone is getting a call that simply says “We have found an organ for your transplant”. What Joy.
I will be planning a memorial service for the first part of the week and details to follow. I know there are wonderful, colorful hearts out there that are going to want to send flowers. I request that in lieu of flowers, if you are so inclined, please contribute instead to Spring Creek Ministries. #10 Haner Court, Odessa, TX, 79762. Lonnie Hamil began this ministry a few years ago. I’ve supported this ministry and never understood the depth of service they provide to families of the terminally ill. They were by my side during this time and took care of so many things for me so that I could focus on David, to quickly learn and understand his circumstance, care and get wise counsel on David’s behalf.

I was thinking that if David didn’t really understand what we did then others probably felt the same way. So, here are some things we do when ministering to folks:

When words aren’t appropriate we just sit with and hurt with folks.
Help families communicate with medical staff when needed
Help families communicate with each other when tough decisions need to be made.
Encourage and support the terminally ill in moving into palliative (comfort) care, when the time comes, so more quality time can be spent with family.
Assist in funeral planning and how to make the most of available finances.
Coordinate plans with the funeral director, when needed.
Visit, pray with, sing and read to those who are home-bound or in the hospital.
Run errands, transport folks to doctor visits, or health care facilities.
Offer council and support when the time is near for discontinuing life support.
Make home congregations aware of the need for ongoing communication with the homebound and terminally ill.
Offer teaching to churches and civic groups on how to better support long-term illness folks and terminally ill of their respective organizations.
I’m sure this isn’t an exhaustive list but all in all – we just get into the lives of those who are hurting and allow God to use us as He sees fit.
Note: This ministry is not only limited to the Permian Basin but also all around the state, i.e. Lubbock, DFW, San Angelo, Austin, Houston, etc. Our ministry is free of charge to all recipients and no one is turned away because of race or religion.

I pray that the above information will help everyone understand our ministry better. As always – please feel free to contact us and ask any questions that might arise.
Those to be praying for:
David Lee Watkins (26) passed away on Sept 26
Anita Elms – continues to deal with sciatic nerve problems and a lot of pain
Billie Duncan – is in Madison Medical Resort recovering from a car accident
Mary Jo Garner – dealing with hearing issues and has been sick quite a bit
Lee Twins – Kaitlyn is doing well after surgery and Kynadi is dealing with an ongoing ear infection
Lauren Martin – is still dealing with chronic pain after surgery at the Mayo clinic
Roy & Merita – Roy continues to be about the same. The Alzheimer’s keeps him in a steady decline
Tom Reed – Tom is still in Hospice care
Javier Payen – passed away on October 7
Carnell Whitley – her test results from MD Anderson were good.
David Salinas – his back surgery seemed successful but he is still in the hospital in Dallas with excruciating pain
Whitney Norris – 33 year old who recently suffered a stroke

Once again, we thank all of you for supporting this ministry with your prayers and financial donations. We started this ministry in October of 2011 so if you are a contributor that donates on a yearly basis, and started near the beginning, we would appreciate if you would be willing to help again this year.

I feel like a broken record talking about financial support but the fact is it takes money to keep the ministry going. Because of “life” happening to some of our sponsors, we have lost much-needed funds. Over the last year, counting funds lost and funds raised, we are down about 1400.00 per month. This cuts into our operating funds in a huge way. If you know of anyone who might be interested in partnering with us, at Spring Creek Ministries, we would greatly appreciate a referral. The time we use fund raising takes away from the time we can minister to others. I would be glad to visit with any person, business or church that might be interested.

Blessings and Grace to all of you!

Lonnie

Our Info

Phone: 432-557-3029

Email: [email protected]