Yesterday was a huge day for us at the SCM. To start out, MMOG is now an official 501c3 org! We received confirmation yesterday. Tim and I cannot express how grateful we are to all of you who have prayed for us, removed obstacles for us, and participated in this ministry to build community. I don't speak for God, but I have to believe he is smiling.
This past Saturday we hit the RESET button in a way. Given the perfect storm of Tim being out of town and the literal storm named Ian threatening to wash us out, I called an audible and decided to go back to where we started: canvassing the streets. I knew that if the rain was hard enough we couldn't set up but I also knew many neighbors would hunker down. I was reminded of something that I learned a while back: in Matthew 28 Jesus tells us to "GO..." As a son of God and as an organization, we should always heed the call to go; we don't know what's out there or whether we'll be welcomed and it is scary sometimes - but this is exact reason to do it; it's the rich fun adventurous stuff that my faith is made of. So the modified plan would be to take backpacks to wherever our neighbors were.
A small group of us met at The Hub to fill 50 backpacks with food and supplies. The backpacks were donated by our good friends at Freedom Communities. You probably don't remember, but before the SCM formalized into what it is today, it was about 40 of you helping Tim and I meet needs all over the city - so you may have helped perform demolition, paint, or clean their facility about a year ago. I urge you to check out their site to see all the amazing things God does with a handful of volunteers over there. I'm amazed by the stories Mark told me.
We were grateful that Emmanuel and Earl from Hope Vibes decided to brave the weather with us and bring the truck, because while our love is the light of Christ, the truck is the embodiment of this love and the physical beacon that notifies the community that "we are here for you."
Before one hour had passed we actually gave out half the bags just by staying at the corner! By the next hour only a few remained so Steve and I took them and drove around to meet neighbors and show some love. All were open-hearted and most wanted a hug and/or a handshake. My heart was moved by how warmly the neighborhood welcomed us though we were clearly outsiders. Most often I find those we're there to serve have the most Jesus-like perspective whether they know it or not.
Two memories I'll take with me for a while: Alex (pic above) charmed the sisters into buying him some warm clothes - he's looking quite fly 2) Chad demonstrating how to properly operate the "table of three hands." We've been wondering how to manage this beast and now the mystery is solved. If you need a laugh, please click here and you can thank Chad later. I apologize ahead of time for my boisterous laughing in the background!
The SCM doesn't happen without your support - if your group would like to host a weekend or if you know of a business owner who might like to join us to offer their services or products, contact us and we'll get back with you ASAP.
Feeling left out? Don't! Meet us at the Street Corner on October 15th. See you there!
1 Comments
Oct 3, 2022, 8:34:06 PM
Chad - Kudos to Alex for sharing his food with those who showed up late. A great example of a good friend.