Pat Laster

Hearts for Missions: A Legacy of Love Pat Laster

"Love your neighbor as yourself" is one of Jesus' most profound commands and is one of many scriptures that led First Grapevine, a United Methodist Church in Texas, to remarkable fields of love and caring both in their backyard and as far away as Kenya, Costa Rica, and Latvia. Hearts for Missions encourages all denominations to follow this command while sharing inspirational stories that inspire and guide others in this ministry.

This collection of stories shares distinctive ways to grow missions through building relationships while sharing God's love. In these accounts, parishioners tell how one church's mission teams built relationships while falling in love with neighbors locally and worldwide. From the early stages, the village concept evolved, and it serves as a foundation from which these ministries materialize the mission to become Christ's representatives in the world.

In memory of Rev. Dr. Ken Diehm whose life and commitment to missions inspired this book. Throughout these pages, church members celebrate the myriad ways Ken taught them to discover new relationships, love, and joy in unexpected places and to share that joy and love with neighbors in their own backyards and in faraway lands.