We usually discourage one another from looking back or dwelling too much upon things in the past. We talk about staying focused, holding our heads up and fixing our eyes on the finish line. Our faith in God helps us keep our eyes on the finish line, but it can also be encouraging to look back and see how God has answered our prayers. We asked some of the authors of our cover stories from the past year to look back and see how God has been working since they wrote their articles.

"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God" (2 Corinthians 1:3-4).

 

 

 

One year has come and gone since New Life Church and The Well united together in mission in order to bring the love of Jesus to our community of Mount Vernon, Washington. Throughout this year we have seen how God directed our ministry and it has been an amazing time. In Matthew we read, "Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?' The King will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me'" (Matthew 25:37-40).

This past year we have seen:

• The hungry fed
• Strangers welcomed and housed
• Clothing provided
• And the thirsty given a drink - though it was coffee more often than water

Community Meals
Our first attempt at coming together in mission was the Thanksgiving Community Meal over a year ago. In the end fifty people were served (half of whom were church members scheduled to help with the meal) and eight people were helped with clothing, shoes and blankets. Most importantly, the love of Jesus was shared with our community. Throughout this past year we have continued to provide meals near the end of each month. The community meals have grown from one night a month to two nights - in October we served 70 people each night. These meals have been run in conjunction with Reverie Community Meals, a restaurant ministry begun by a couple from our church. Together we are serving 1000-1200 meals a month.

As the meals located at the church have matured we have noticed a growing sense of connection and community within the church neighborhood. Initially people came to the meals individually, now families and neighbors come together and stay to visit. Most amazingly, we as a church are actually getting to know our neighbors and our neighbors are getting to know us.

Cold Weather Shelter
Last year we were thrust into the ministry of a cold weather shelter. When the temperature hits 25 degrees Fahrenheit or colder we open our doors to provide a warm and safe shelter, meals and clothing to those in need. Last year we were open for 21 days with 12-18 guests a night. In November we held our orientation and training session for volunteers for the shelter's coming season. We don't know what the weather will bring but God has put together a solid leadership team, an abundance of supplies, and trained volunteers from a wide range of churches in our community. If you want to keep up on what is happening go to: www.shelterfromthecold.ning.com. One of the lasting results of this ministry is that we have developed relationships with homeless people - they now have faces and names. Our community meals and clothing closet have enabled us to stay in contact with many of the homeless throughout the year.

Clothing Closet
In conjunction with the community meals and cold weather shelter we developed a clothing closet. It is now open every Monday, after church each Sunday and during any event held at the church. It is exciting to see bags of clothing, dry socks, hats and gloves leaving the building in the hands of those who needed them. At any of our community events one of the first things I am asked is, "Will the clothing closet be open?"

Community Events
In June we held the first of two big community events, a Spring Fling in the church parking lot. It was a great day of games, food, music and fellowship with our neighbors. Nearly 300 people showed up that day. For Halloween we put on a Monster Mash, which is basically the Spring Fling held in the church building. Just under 400 people participated and the only complaint we had from parents was that their kids loved it and wouldn't leave!

Helping Hands Foundation
Our newest ministry kicked off in November. The Helping Hands Foundation is a ministry to seniors. Money is an issue, so we needed to raise some funds to help get this ministry underway. Cookies were baked and we manned the local interstate highway rest stop for 84 hours one weekend providing coffee and snacks to travelers who in turn made donations to Helping Hands. Our goal, as this ministry develops, is to reach out to one of the most neglected groups in the community and the church, by sharing the love of Jesus with seniors.

A lot has happened in the past year. A year ago when we took invitations for the Thanksgiving Community Meal to our neighbors, we found that most people didn't know where the church - only blocks away - was located. Now when we go out to invite our neighbors, they know who we are and encourage us to "keep up the good work."

Note: Pastor Mark of the partnering church in these ministries has stepped down due to family health issues. Please pray for him and his family as they look to the Lord for healing and guidance. Please also pray for these ministries, that God will continue to bless the work during this time of transition.

 

Rev. Keith Luna is pastor of New Life @ The Well LBC in Mount Vernon, WA

 

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