(Pastor’s note: I am excited to share with you what we hope will be a regular spot where we can share with you “Stories of Faith.” These are places where we believe we are seeing God at work, His fruit. Initially, we hope to share you these stories on a monthly basis. As we move forward, these stories will vary in content, and they will seek to connect with various people within the church and our community. I want to thank Barb Wilson for getting us started with this “Story of Faith”.)
The Storyteller Tells a Story of Faith…
Did you ever think of Jesus as homeless? At first blush, it’s disturbing to think our Lord was homeless as an adult, but that was His plan. During His 3-year ministry, He traveled from place-to-place relying on the kindness of others to fulfill His basic needs. He knew that God would take care of Him, but there was always uncertainty about where He would lay his head to sleep or what He was having for dinner.
We have grown accustomed to relying on ourselves for such matters, but what would you do if we couldn’t rely on ourselves? Could we count on friends, and possibly kind-hearted strangers if needed?
When it was made known that there would not be a place for the homeless guests of Carlisle C.A.R.E.S. to have breakfast on Easter Sunday morning, a group from the church discussed what they could do to help. With just a few words to a few people, donations and offers of help came in. And they kept coming and coming. To the homeless people who came to Carlisle C.A.R.E.S. early Easter morning, they were met with warm pancakes and sausage, orange juice and coffee, and homemade muffins. Imagine their delight when they saw the food laid out before them when they expected nothing at all that morning.
But Jesus said we cannot live on bread alone, and breakfast was not all they received that day. In order to feed their souls as well as their bodies, an Easter Sunrise service was held. There was singing and fellowship along with a short message of hope. Not hope for temporal riches on earth, but hope for eternal life in heaven with Jesus where no one needs to be concerned about where they will lay their head or if they would have food to eat.
Trish Prosser, who led the singing for the service said of the event, “I would say that 10 years ago, even 5 years, I would never have helped. It was a way for me to go outside my box. I enjoyed myself and liked being part of the group showing love to the less fortunate. I would definitely help out again if we do it.”
So many people helped that morning – whether serving, donating food items, singing, or spending time with people who are used to being invisible. Thank you all. The guests who attended thanked us for being there that morning and for the good food, the Easter service, and most of all, for thinking of them on such a special day.