Help Feed The Homeless

A Devotional by Margot Cioccio

Proverbs 21:13
If a man shuts his ears to the cry of the poor, he too will cry out and not be answered.

If you have been following this blog for any length of time you will already know I am very involved in helping the homeless each week.  Just about every week we serve a quality meal to the homeless at our church that is as good as any I would feed my own family or often what I would serve if we were having company. We are a little struggling inner city church. Many of the people in our service are very poor and unable to give a financial offering and give by taking the time to vacuum or empty trash or pull weeds as their offering. In our Sunday service we have in attendance about 75 people most weeks. In the afternoon we serve a meal and have between 150 and 200 homeless and poor folks who come to our meals each week. Some times we are able to do other things like provide socks, or backpacks, sometimes a length of plastic. We have groups from other churches and organizations who come in to help cook and serve and most of our donations come from people like you who want to help but have no opportunity in their own churches. If you would like to send a donation to help feed the homeless I've put a button on my site on the top left side or follow this link to make a donation to help First Covenant Church feed and help the homeless. https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=E2R88A48KP6YQ
Also here is a link to our web site: http://www.fccspokane.org/

Here's one of my favorite video take one stories about how a bit of plastic sheet helped some folks.    (If you are following by e-mail you need to click the post title to come back to the Devotional site to see it. Its a good one so don't miss it. )


Proverbs 28:27
He who gives to the poor will lack nothing, but he who closes his eyes to them receives many curses.

I am often surprised at how such little things as a new pair of socks or a piece of plastic, or a listening ear can mean so much to someone with so little. I know that it is hard for some people to get past the idea that these people made their mistakes and now are having to pay the consequences. That is so counter to how Jesus operates. You made your mistakes and have reaped the consequences yet if you call out to Jesus he comes and meets you right where you are today. He helps you take your broken messed up life and turn it around for his glory. He shows us un deserved favor, and mercy that we have done nothing to earn. He calls us to be his agents of mercy and justice in the world. He did not leave us here just to have goose bump services, he left us here to be salt, that preserves and light that drives away the darkness. Our little corner of the world should, as we grow up in him and exhibit is character and model how his kingdom works, begin to be transformed.
 
So here's a small thing that you could do today no matter where you are in the world. If you have a facebook page or would create a facebook page you could vote in a poll for your favorite charity. Parker Toyota has a facebook poll and will be giving away $8000 dollars to the first place winner as well as prizes for 2-4th places.  We have made it to the top 10 and last I checked we were in 6th place. Winning any of the cash prizes would help us feed a lot of folks. Please spread the word.

So here's what you do. 
Click this link to go to Parker Toyota page. 
https://www.facebook.com/#!/parkertoyota
Scroll down the page to find the poll.
Click see more to find First Covenant Church on the list.
Click the button to vote. You should see your profile photo show up on that line when you vote.
Then if you could ask your facebook friends or post a note on your facebook or twitter asking your friends to vote  for First Covenant that would be really awesome 

You can be anywhere in the world and still vote - so thank you for helping us by voting and by spreading the word to feed the homeless.

Helping our homeless friends be able to vote.

Sunday at our meal we had a table full of laptops and I helped homeless folks vote for First Covenant Church on the Parker Toyota facebook poll. Some had facebook pages and others we helped to set them up so they could vote.

Prayer:
Lord, help us remember that you call us to "go", to reach out to others, to be your hands and feet. To bring your light and justice into the world we live in. Help us to stop being couch potatoes for Jesus and to be about making a difference in the lives of so many who need to see your love in action.