Papa Gary

"Papa" Gary Welch, Mukaluka, Uganda '08

It is with great sadness that I announce a shift in our Mission Team Line-up.  Dr. Gary Welch, a veteran team member and the man responsible for bringing this work to Cypress Creek Church, was badly injured in a motorcycle accident last week and will not be able to join us this year.  It was a close call - I mean real close - since he was thrown from the bike and landed flat on his back just inches away from a sawed off metal pipe coming out of the ground.  We're so happy he eluded death, but know that it will be a hard for him to recover from a broken back.  Our prayers are with you Gary!

Gary has participated in 11 African mission trips.  I get the details confused, but I think he first attended with a church in Houston, then somewhere along the line got his brother involved, who then over time got his church in Colorado Springs involved, then Gary managed to get some guys from our church to attend a trip, which eventually led to our church becoming involved and so on...and so on...Gary has been a man of great influence.

Such is the way of it.  When God works something into a person's life it's usually not just for that person alone but also to benefit that person's circle of influence and ultimately to bring glory to God.  Think of it, this one man has been part of opening Christian churches in 11 different areas of Africa.

That means he has walked the trails in 11 different regions, visited with probably hundreds of people over the years, shared the gospel with hundreds of people, entered prisons and schools all over Africa, entered countless homes, encountered countless orphans and widows, etc.  Gary has seen young men from earlier trips first receive the Lord, then grow in the Lord, enter Bible school and now work as servants for the Lord.

Gary has been a faithful benefactor of these trips, offering not only his time, but his resources as well.  Not only has he helped build up the people of these 11 different regions, but he has oftentimes helped build the physical building as well.  Whenever Morris and Aidah make their yearly visit to the states, it is Gary and his lovely wife Brenda who invite them into their home and share life with them.  The Welch family is a generous family.

As a team member, Gary has encouraged and counseled many, many people as they take their first steps of faith into the mission field.  What I enjoy so much about Gary is that he is not only a very wise man, he also happens to be a very fun man to be around.  They call him "Papa" in Africa and let me tell you, the name fits in more ways than one.

However, if you were to ask Gary to describe himself, he'd probably tell you that he is just a man.  I would agree.  Gary is just a man who said "yes" to what God called him to do and through him, God has done some awesome things!

It is the same for every member of our team.  We're just people.  We're not perfect people with stellar spiritual profiles.  We come from all walks of life and bring to the table our own set of insecurities and flaws.  The one thing we have in common is that for now, we have said "yes" to something we believe God has called us to do.  [Please, my friends, pray for our team!  We need God's protection and provision to get this work done.]

For all of you reading this blog, you too are just a person - one person - but our God is an AWESOME God!  Do you know that God has big plans for you?  Do you know that your life has influence in the world?  Do you know that God loves you?  Do you know that God loves the word "yes"?

For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart."- Jeremiah 29:11-13

Papa Gary, thank you for all you have done and for touching so many lives, my own included.  We're going to miss you this year.

- Julie