Volunteers that Minister

Last night we served 115 meals with the assistance of 14 volunteers. We were blessed again to have the youth from Brookwood Church come and serve. We appreciate their leader’s concern that their youth develop a desire to help the less fortunate. Many of us may take for granted our homes and families until we realize there are some that have neither. If we just spend time loving on those who don’t have those things, it will change them and us.

Another group of volunteers that come consistently each week are students from the Evangelical Institute of Greenville. They provide the music and also minister the Gospel to the homeless. They truly have a heart for the less fortunate. When Paul can not attend we can always depend on these students to continue the work of the ministry. Last Tuesday night one of the students, Lincoln, brought the message from Romans 6:10-18. It was a powerful message on sin and the need to totally surrender our lives to God through Jesus Christ. That is a message for everyone, homeless and volunteers.

Clearly, our numbers have been increasing over the last few weeks. Just 3 weeks ago we were only serving about 40 meals and now it is almost 3 times that amount. Many have theories about why the numbers vary so much, but I honestly can not figure it out. I know we constantly see new faces along with some of the regulars that come and go. Regardless, we are pleased to serve anyone and everyone. Please pray that God will always provide the resources to help these folks and that God will change their lives for eternity.
~Marc

Are You Poor?

Hello FFLM Friends,
First of all I would like to say thank you to all of the people that are faithful followers of the Lords work here at Food For Life. We couldn't do what we do with out your support. It takes all types of support. We value those that are faithful givers and those that serve food and drink along with those that minister. What ever form your giving, all are giving from the heart. As a caring body of Christ like disciple makers, this is what we are called to do. We give of ourselves because of the way God has given to us. He gave his life as a ransom for many.

This week it was my pleasure to continue to teach out of James 1;5 if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach. Last week we focused on the fact that God is a good and God gives good gifts. Say that five times real fast! God doesn't hold back His goodness. In fact, He gives it liberally and without reproach. Our focus this week was on the word "ask". Does a person without need ask for something he already has? No, Jesus said in Matthew 5:3 Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of God. Only those who are spiritually bankrupt are in need. In the world if you go to the bank for a loan you must have good credit and a bank account with money in it. In other words you can't be in need. My dad likes to say "the bank only hands out umbrellas when the sun is shining". In the Kingdom of God those that are in need of a gift from God are prime candidates. We must ask, that is what we do to receive from God. Imagine that! We ask! It doesn't matter if we are already walking out the Gospel of Christ or in need of the Gospel of Christ, Just ask with a contrite heart, and receive!

This week we served 110 plates of food, with the help of 12 faithful volunteers. Please pray for Micheal. It is a man we have been ministering to for years. The doctors gave him some bad news this week They told him he has cancer, and it is terminal. Micheal has made many professions of faith, and we are praying that he will surrender and persevere to the end!

~Chef Paul

Tuesday Give Away

Last Tuesday night was extra special for some fortunate folks. One of our wonderful supporters purchased 25 backpacks and stuffed them with all the necessities for life on the street. There was much anticipation during the drawing and the winners were more than willing to have their picture made. Thanks to those who made the evening an extra special time for every one.

Paul continued to teach from James on wisdom. He related that the real wisdom is the Gospel which is Christ crucified on the cross for the lost. Without this particular wisdom, we have no hope in this life or the life to come. This revelation gives us wisdom in dealing with the difficulties of life and we can truly say “count it all joy when we fall into various trials” because we know that either He will take us through or take us home. Either way, there is joy.

We made a big pot of coffee this week but most preferred either water or tea. One homeless mentioned to me that he could not drink much coffee when there is a full moon. I knew that the moon had an effect on the oceans but I didn’t know it spices up the caffeine. However, we did not have any problem serving 40 meals with the assistance of 14 volunteers.
~Marc

God's Wisdom

What is wisdom? Does wisdom from God differ from the wisdom of this world? Last Tuesday night we were fortunate to have Jason (Paul’s brother) bring the message from the book of James. He continued to teach on verses 5 through 8 about wisdom. From the world’s point of view, knowledge and wisdom are closely related. However, knowledge and wisdom from God is very different. Real wisdom is more than the knowledge of God’s word. Jason gave an example of a friend that had lots of theological knowledge, but lived a life that did not reflect the wisdom of God which was evident by his life style. So how do we get God’s wisdom? In James, it simply says to ask God. But Jason pointed out in verse 5 that there are conditions. First we have to ask in faith not doubting the goodness of God. Also, God will freely give us wisdom in order to represent Him to the world. And finally, as someone pointed out in our discussion, God gives wisdom to develop a relationship with us. Wisdom must be used to glorify God and not for our selfish desires.

Every week, we see new faces. This week as we arrived, there was a lady dressed in western clothes in a motorized wheel chair waiting to get in. She rode in and found an electrical outlet to recharge her chair. After I brought in the food, I was surprised to find her walking around in the kitchen talking to the other volunteers. I guess the chair was her mode of transportation.

Another group of new faces were from Seacoast Church in Greenville. They were especially helpful washing all of the pots and pans. Most volunteers don’t gravitate to this job but they were willing to serve regardless of the task. They assisted 14 other volunteers to serve 68 hot meals on a very cold night. The numbers were down this week because most had probably found a warm place and were not willing to venture out in the cold.
~Marc