Hello out there! It rained again today hooray! Last night I made a big pot of chicken
noodle (rotini) soup. I also whipped up some cheesy biscuits to go with it. Tonight's
dinner? I think leftovers sound great!
I have to share a story from the Sack Lunch Ministry - Y'all know how much this
ministry touches my heart and the hearts of all the volunteers. Serving lunches five
days a week is a blessing. The donations we receive help keep this ministry going.
I was looking through the donation envelopes to get an idea of how many thank you
notes we need to send out. I found four envelopes that each had $1 marked on them.
The donor's name and a written expression of thanksgiving to God was on each
envelope. I know who this person is and out of their modest means they have given
so much. This is someone who comes to get a lunch and seeing this written
expression of thanks just brings me to my knees and I thank God that we are able to
provide lunch to those in need. It makes me think about the story in -
The Book of Mark 12:41-44 - The Widow's Mite - Taking a seat opposite the treasury,
he observed the crowd putting money into the collection box. Many of the wealthy
put in sizable amounts; but one poor widow came and put in two small copper coins
worth a few cents. He called his disciples over and told them: "I want you to
observe that this poor widow contributed more than all the others who donated to
the treasury. They gave from their surplus wealth, but she gave from her want, all
that she had to live on." (Saint Joseph Edition of the New American Bible)
Please understand - We are grateful and thankful for ALL the donations we receive.
But seeing these envelopes and reading the words of thanksgiving just reinforced
what an amazing ministry this is. Tears and tears streamed down my face.
We are blessed with and need the very generous monetary donations we receive. We
are also blessed with gifts of water, bread, chips, fruit, etc. We appreciate all the
gifts so much - we say, "God's blessings are raining down!" Last Friday, after the
lunches were ready and we were just about to open up, Janice said, "Come on, let's
pray." We all gathered around the lunches in a circle and held hands and Janice
thanked our Lord for all the donations and for all the volunteers and for the people
we serve.
I know that I talk about this ministry a lot but that is because the people we meet
are etched into my heart. Some of them, we know their names and others we know
their stories. Some take their lunches and go, and others sit down at the table to eat.
The ones who stay and eat usually like to visit and it is a nice respite from the heat in
the summer and the cold in the winter. We hand out extra water on really hot days
and sometimes we help out with extra food. They always receive a welcoming
"Hello" and a friendly face. We place prayer books and devotionals out for them to
take if they want to. And you know what? They take them! Today a young woman
told me that she had taken one of the booklets last week and had already read it.
She asked if she could two booklets today and of course we said yes!
Well, I guess I have gone on and on about this ministry enough. I share these stories
because I want you to see them through our eyes and to touch your hearts the way it
does ours.
Thank you, God, thank you for my many blessings. Amen.
Have a wonderful week!
Bye for now,
Sharla
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