Dear Friends and Family,
I hope everyone is doing well and enjoyed all the festivities that come with the holiday season. In January, I will start my final semester at Oklahoma State University and will graduate in May with degrees in Physiology and Biology. While studying in Stillwater, I have found a church family at the Stillwater Church of Christ. The members of this congregation and my fellow students that attend the church’s college ministry, the University Center (UC), have walked alongside me in my efforts to grow as a Christian and as a young adult. This congregation has blessed me with the ability to serve through a variety of roles. I have served as a UC intern and a youth group intern, but the role that has truly captured my heart is serving as the international ministry intern.
When Jim Self, the UC and international ministry deacon, approached me in May 2022 about being an intern for the international ministry, I had no idea what I was in-store for. Through this role working under Jim and Mary Jo Self, my eyes have been opened to an entirely new reality. I have had the honor of serving students and families from Mexico, Guatemala, Colombia, Brazil, Spain, Iran, Iraq, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Ethiopia, Russia, India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, China, and South Korea. An even greater honor is becoming their friend. Growing up I didn’t have the opportunity to know very many people from other parts of the world. Now, this element has been one of my favorite parts of this internship! Through these friendships, my view of the other people from around the world has changed greatly as I have learned to see these people not as the subject of a news story but as a person whom Jesus loves. Hours have been spent talking about life and faith amongst our group. Times of joy and times of sadness have been celebrated and mourned, respectively. My global friends have truly become family.
In the fall, I started thinking about how much my life has changed since starting my work with the Stillwater Church of Christ’s International Ministry. With this being my senior year, I started praying for God to show me an opportunity to serve the international community one last time. After much prayer, God answered. Barry Bachman, my college minister, told the UC about the chance to participate in a Let’s Start Talking (LST) project. Let’s Start Talking is an organization that helps people around the globe practice their conversational English through friendship and God’s inspired word. Looking through the different mission sites, I saw Argentina, Croatia, Massachusetts, and Italy, but the one that caught my eye was Brazil. I have been serving students and families from Brazil for almost two years now. My Brazilian friends have welcomed me with open arms, and I can easily say that they are the friendliest, most hospitable people that I have ever met. They all have captured my heart. To me, the decision to serve in Brazil has been a no-brainer.
After graduation in May, I will travel to Brazil where I will be serving in a congregation in Rio de Janeiro for two weeks and be hosted by one of the congregation’s families. During my time in Brazil, I and my other LST teammates will be connecting with readers in these cities identified by the local church. We will read through the gospel of Luke with these readers as an opportunity to help these individuals practice their English and as an opportunity to introduce them to the story of Jesus.
To cover plane fare and basic living expenses, LST is asking that I raise $3,900, with $2,000 of that total due in February. If you wish to donate online, feel free to donate here on my LST webpage at https://lst.app.neoncrm.com/MaggiTucker2024. If you have any questions, feel free to text or call me. I would appreciate any support you are willing to give either through prayer or monetarily. Thank you all for pouring into me over the years, and I ask that you pray that my service glorifies God and shows my readers the love of Christ.
In Christian love,
Maggi Tucker
Let's Start Talking equips Christians to create life-changing conversations across the street and around the world. Taking advantage of the global desire for English as well as the innate desire we all share for connection and community, LST Workers offer English-conversation practice in a comfortable, non-confrontational setting. Scripture forms the basis of each conversation, and friendships surface naturally.
To participate in a mission project this year I have committed to raise funds for LST. This money is used to fund the recruiting, development, and support of all LST team members, as well as travel and project costs. Please give generously today and be a part of my team! And please pray for me and for my teammates that everything we do will bring glory to God.
Let’s Start Talking (LST) is a U.S. tax-exempt 501 (c) (3) organization and has exclusive legal control over contributions. Consistent with its status as a tax-exempt 501 (c)(3) organization Let’s Start Talking does not refund donations. Consistent with IRS guidelines, LST affirms that no goods or services were provided in return for contributions.