The 2023 Kansas Mennonite Relief Sale Theme is “walking with Jesus,” based on the spirit of John 13:34 … “A new commandment I give you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you are to love one another”
A Note from KMRS Chair, Jim Robb:
Greetings to you as friends and members of the Kansas Mennonite Relief Sale…
Every year a theme is chosen to guide us, inspire us, and help show us the way. As you all know, our KMRS purpose is to raise money for the Mennonite Central Committee so they may help to remedy the many needs present around the world.
On the MCC web site, there are 4 urgent needs mentioned. I present these needs to you as they are presented on the web site. One is the Global Hunger Crisis; responding to the immense hunger and famine around the world. The second is the Crisis in the Ukraine. This is a humanitarian crisis of the highest need. MCC continues to respond with food, clothing, help in a variety of ways. We need to be prepared to pray, donate (money, time, effort) and advocate for peace. The third urgent need is Relief Funds. Money is needed to respond to disasters, natural and manmade, by providing emergency relief supplies. The fourth really urgent need, is one that we can all help with. MCC needs to be able to send out relief kits and emergency kits. We all can help by providing the time and the goods needed to complete the packing of these kits.
As we contemplate the needs for MCC to respond to, we should think of the people that Jesus helped. He met everyone with love, care and concern. He spent time with many types of people in many difficult situations that led the religious leaders of the time to criticize Him. But Jesus exemplified the love of God by loving all.
“Walking with Jesus” defines our activities as we prepare for the sale, hold the sale, and present our offerings to the work of God, through the Mennonite Central Committee. To be his disciples means to follow the teachings of Jesus as we walk through our daily lives knowing that Christ is with us and following his greatest commandment, to love one another and to love those we seek to help. Loving others is the essence of hope. Let us follow John 13:34 “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another.”
My prayers for the sale is that we will be able to work together in the loving spirit of Christ, to reach out to all, to be sensitive to the many needs presented to us, and to let God’s love shine through us to bring hope to the world.