Tag Archive - Cheryl Read

Read All About It

June 1, 2010 in Family, missional with 0 Comments

I want to introduce you to Cheryl Read.

Cheryl is a cousin to my wife Amy. Cheryl and her husband, Chris, live in Northeast Texas and have four (4) sons. Her family is an excellent example of a family who are living on mission for Jesus right in the middle of suburban U.S.A. . They are not a perfect family and she will probably kill me for posting this, but they are an ordinary family that is seeking to live out the call of Christ in their community.

It all began with a trip to Ghana several years ago. Cheryl was following what she knew was obedience to a command to go. Upon returning from Ghana she started returning yearly with people and supplies that would not only help people physically but also spiritually. She has since helped begin an organization that is active working in Ghana. If I remember correctly she has been active in Ghana for over seven years.

Cheryl also is active in a refugee ministry in the inner city of Dallas. I am so challenged in my walk by her family. The Read’s have not made being on mission a segment of their life that is lived out each summer in another country.  They are active in their Jerusalem each week.

I encourage you to go and check Cheryl’s blog and follow along with her as see seeks to be salt and light in the world she has been placed to lived and the world she chooses to go to.

Operation Christmas Child

November 12, 2008 in LifePoint Church with 12 Comments

We just finished packing boxes for Operation Christmas Child (Samaritan’s Purse) at church. Last year we packed 400 boxes and this year we are hoping to do the same amount. I wanted to post a blog from Amy’s cousin, Cheryl.

She has a great story that I would encourage you to read.

The Power of a Simple Gift

Three years ago, on a mission trip to Tamale, in Northern Ghana, I was literally dropped off at the doorstep of World Vision. Formal introductions were made and then an incredible discovery! At that very time, World Vision was partnering with Operation Christmas Child (Samaritan’s Purse) to deliver almost 2,000 shoe boxes to children in rural African villages and I was invited to join them! It was one of the most incredible experiences of my life.
There were 3 truckloads just like this that went to each village.

This little girl was too shy and afraid to ask for a box from the white woman who visited her village, so the headmaster of the school encouraged her.


Operation Christmas Child holds a very dear place in my heart because not only do they show God’s love by giving gifts to children in desperate situations all over the world, they share the Good News of Jesus with every child that receives a box. They do this in different ways, but the most effective way is by giving them a small, culturally relevant booklet in their heart language called The Good News.


World Vision staff, along with my dear friend, Grace Brew, directed the program.

The line became longer and longer…..and there were never enough shoe boxes!! I remember looking up and seeing the line and then looking down and seeing the empty cardboard box in front of me. It is a moment frozen in time. I will never ever get that image out of my mind.

These children patiently waited in line for over 3 hours
Two years ago, I visited a remote mud-hut village and saw firsthand the impact the booklets had on children. They had received shoe boxes several years before and a young man from the village had started a Good News Club. I sat in amazement during one of their study sessions and listened to the children recite verses, quote OT prophets, and tell of Christ’s love and provision in their village and their life. This in the midst of a predominantly Muslim culture!

It only takes a small amount of time and money to fill a shoebox, but the impact can be eternal.