Nov-dec 2007

November/December 2007

Vol. 1, Issue 4

Family Updat e

Prayer Requests We greatly value your prayers on our behalf for the following: That the Lord would continue to direct our future steps in our last 1½ years at Covenant Seminary. For the rest of our financial support to come in. For safety in travels over the Christmas break and refreshing times with family and friends. For continued strength and endurance for Kelli in the midst of her pregnancy.

As many of you know, it was an extraordinarily difficult fall for our entire family. It was with great joy that we learned that Kelli is pregnant. We had been praying for this for sometime. From the very beginning, one of our That those we serve would prayers was that Kelli would not struggle with morning sickness to the same come to know Christ. degree that she did when she was pregnant with Maia. However, as Kelli entered into the fifth week of the pregnancy, our worst fears began to be confirmed. It would be another 2½ months before Kelli would begin to feel like herself again. We can honestly say that this has been one of the most difficult times in our lives. But God was gracious to us. Both my (cont’d, p.2)

Book R ecom mendati on “Jay, one of our church members, recently shared with me: ‘I was a Christian for twenty-two years. But instead of being a twenty-two year-old Christian, I was a one-year-old Christian twenty-two times! I just kept doing the same things over and over and over again.’…Our problem revolves around misapplied biblical truths that not only damage our closest relationships but also obstruct God’s work of profoundly transforming us deep beneath the iceberg of our lives.” –Emotionally Healthy Spirituality by Peter Scazzero 8563 Gulf Dr., St. Louis Mo 63130 314.423.3551 www.mattandkelliseilback.com All donations should be made payable to Crossroads Presbyterian Church with Support for Matt Seilback in the memo line. Send donations to: Crossroads Presbyterian Fellowship, 2640 Oakview Terrace, Maplewood MO 63143

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(cont’d from p. 1) mom and Kelli’s mom were able to come and help out for a span of a month and a half. We felt lifted up by your prayers and are so grateful for all the notes and e-mails of encouragement that you sent our way. Kelli’s sickness is now regulated by her medications and she is able to function now in a mostly normal day-to-day manner. God gave me the grace to finish my semester and our entire family is looking forward to a break and some time with our families back on the east coast. Through the recent challenges of life, the teachings of professors at school and the community of our church, God continues to teach us much about his faithful love for his people. We pray that you also will experience his powerful grace in your life this Christmas season. And as you enter into 2008, may you encounter his love in life altering ways.

Ministry Updat e This November, the Servant Ministry Team that I have been working with helped to put together a conference—titled Plotting Hope—to discuss how to better serve the needs of the hurting in the Maplewood/Richmond Heights area of St. Louis. On the first night of the conference we held a roundtable discussion with the Mayor of Maplewood, the assistant superintendent of the MRH schools and several other key community leaders. The following day, Professor Greg Perry, of Covenant Seminary, gave two talks on the motives for serving others. As I continue my work with the SMT, we hope to carry on the dialog that has started with our community in order to discover the best ways that we can help those around us who are hurting. For the time being, we continue to do what we can to aid people meet their overdue rent bills and to help faciliate change in their lives when they are out of work or in need of other forms of support (whether those needs be physical, financial, emotional or spiritual).

Fund raising

Video

To date, we have raised nearly 77% of our support. However, in order to continue our work through the end of the 2008-2009 school year, we still need to raise another $5,991. If you have not yet had an opportunity to make a donation towards our work at Crossroads Church, would you please consider us in your year-end giving?

Watch the new Seilback Family Christmas special, O Christmas Tree @ www.mattandkelliseilback.com. Click on the link at the top of the page titled, Videos.

8563 Gulf Dr., St. Louis Mo 63130 314.423.3551 www.mattandkelliseilback.com All donations should be made payable to Crossroads Presbyterian Church with Support for Matt Seilback in the memo line. Send donations to: Crossroads Presbyterian Fellowship, 2640 Oakview Terrace, Maplewood MO 63143

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