Have I told you lately how cool God is?  Well, God is so cool!!
Follow me on this one:
Yesterday (Thursday) my sweet neighbor, Donna, sent me a text asking if I would like to have a Silpada Jewelry catalogue party. “Catalogue party” was the ticket for me.  Finding a day to have a “party”, in the month of December, in my home was a bit out of the question.  So I agreed.
Today, I had taken the day off work so I could prepare for another party that was scheduled at my home. First thing I usually do each morning is read God’s word then journal.  But this morning, I read the “Walking in the Word” scriptures and just pondered on some verses.
All morning my mind was thinking about various people who I’m currently admiring, and they have no clue that I’m doing so. People who have a desire to do something or a concern for a specific cause and they actually do something about it.
To help the cleaning process speed along, I was listening and singing along to Colbie Caillet’s new Christmas cd and Steven Curtis Chapman’s cd.  A couple of songs resonated in my head from both artists. Both songs had to deal with taking care of those less fortunate.  That theme tied in perfectly with one of the people I was thinking about…Rebecca.
Then, Donna stopped by to deliver the catalogues to me.  Before she left she said that 10% of the profit will go to a cause of my choosing. (She’s such a sweetheart.) At first my mind raced with so many wonderful causes.  Then, it was as if God tapped me on the shoulder and reminded me of…Rebecca.
Rebecca is a young mother at my church who felt God guiding her to do something.  She acted upon His guiding and has started this ministry called “Church at the Park”. (Please see her testimony below. She is such a genuine lady.)
Perfect!  I’ll “kill two birds with one stone”.  Friends can shop for great jewelry for gifts for Christmas, birthdays, or self, and money will be raised to donate to help feed the homeless.
I believe God didn’t want me to journal first thing this morning so He could give me a testimony through His word.
One of the verses I kept pondering on was Proverbs 29:7, “Good people want to do what is right for the poor.”  God sent me Donna to help raise a little money to assist Rebecca “do what is right for the poor”.  Donna and Rebecca are “good people”.
Will you help me “kill two birds with one stone”?  Here’s a link to Donna’s Silpada website (http://mysilpada.com/sites/donna.scarcella/private/content/home.jsf ) so you can purchase something for someone or yourself, and ten percent of your purchase will be going towards Rebecca’s “Church at the Park” ministry.  We may raise $10 or $100. (There are lots of great items for under $50.  One of my favorites is a bracelet that I NEVER take off.  It is item B2439 for $18)
Pray first, shop, and let’s see how much we can give to a great cause.
 
Rebecca’s Testimony about Church at the Park Ministry
Q:  How did you and PCFBC get started in this ministry?
A:  I’ve always enjoyed serving others but since becoming a Mom to two small children, it’s been a challenge for me to focus on anything but them. It’s not practical for me to leave the country to go on a mission trip for a week or more so I struggled with finding where God was calling me to “go”. I began to pray about this very thing. At the start of the summer God began exposing me more to the homeless in our community. My daughter and I began making “blessing bags”, which are Ziplocs filled with items such as toiletries, gift cards, bottled water and New Testament Bibles. The Lord kept revealing to me in my “Walking in the Word” daily scripture readings about how important the poor are in His eyes. I would notice small things like picking up the newspaper and seeing headlines about the homeless. He was molding my heart to follow after Him and to model the love of Christ. I completed my first semester of Got Fruit or FAITH over the summer. This was completely out of my comfort zone but I was so blessed by my experience sharing the gospel with others. God was again speaking to me saying, yes, it’s great going to people’s homes and sharing my word with them, but what about the ones without a home, without an official address? I began to keep the Got Fruit tracts in my car so that when the Spirit led me, I would be able to share the Gospel with the homeless when I handed out the blessing bags. I’ve found that people on the streets are so receptive to the Gospel. They are looking for comfort, comfort only a Savior can provide. The spirit was able to use me to bring two homeless to Christ in the past two months. They desperately need to hear the word. As the weeks went by my prayer was for Him to reveal a way that I could effectively serve the homeless on a larger scale. I began working with a ministry at another church called “Restoring Hope Global”, it was such a great experience cooking and serving the homeless a warm meal. I went for a few weeks with this other church but He was asking me to do something more. I heard Him consistently say “there’s more…you….your church”. So as stubborn as I am I just kept going along with my own business and I came to Tessera (a Wednesday night young adult rally) one night to hear Jessica M. speak on her call to go to NYC. Her testimony inspired and encouraged me. I am not one who likes to ask for things but I stopped Barry (our mission’s minister) on the way out and proposed an idea for our church to possibly join in on this opportunity to feed the homeless. That’s how the Lord has started this journey and I can’t wait to see how he sees it through!
 
Q:  What are the practical details of this new ministry, Church at the Park?
A:  The ministry will begin the evening of Monday, September 17^th. We will be serving a meal at 5:00 at the Veterans Memorial Park behind the Library. Typically we will be serving between 25 and 35 people. It will run every other Monday evening. There will be praise and worship music graciously provided by Pete B. Someone will also share the Gospel each night of the ministry. I’ve been told there will be nursery care provided, most likely from 3:00-6:00 those evenings, so that we have time to cook and serve the meal.
 
Q:  How can others in our church help serve within this ministry?
A:  Right now we need hands to help prepare the meals. At first, until we get funding to purchase our own food, we will be using Restoring Hope Global’s food pantry and Transforming Life Church’s kitchen to assemble our meals. We will also need financial offerings in order to start up our own “food bank” to prepare the meals from. I am going to be starting a sign-up sheet for the Monday nights we will be serving through the end of this year.
 
Q:  Anything else you would like to share about the homeless in Plant City?
A:  I want to share a little bit of my heart with you out of the book of James chapter 2 verse 15-16. It says, “Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to him, “Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.” Jesus speaks passionately about the needy all throughout scripture. He has a heart for those who are poor and humble in spirit. As I’ve sat and talked to some of the homeless at these meals my compassion for them grows deeper. Come experience the humbling act of serving others as above ourselves. You don’t have to leave your “home” to serve, there are people right here, in our own “Jerusalem” who need to be fed and have their souls fed by the Holy Spirit. I want to encourage you to follow after what Jesus spoke about most in the Gospel. I pray that Jesus will not only give our church a heart for the needy, but also to take action in providing for their physical and spiritual needs and to be a part of a revival in Plant City, our very own “Jerusalem”, for the Glory of Christ!
 
Q:  How would you encourage someone who is being called by God to take action in an area of ministry?
A:  When you hear God speak to you, no matter what form that communication may take, first stop and pray over it. He will make it apparent over time. He may not give you an instruction manual, but He is faithful to provide the next “step” and will open doors you never thought possible! I struggled with the fact that He was asking me to do this. I kept wondering, why not someone else? I am just an accountant and Mom who has never been hungry a day in her life. I struggled with feeling unworthy and overwhelmed with the task at hand. He has revealed to me that all believers have gifts to serve with, in order to glorify Him. (Read 1 Peter 4:10-11) He gives these gifts in order for others to see Him through you. In your weakness, He is strong, rely on Him to give you the tools you need to follow Him and make an impact for His kingdom.
Thank you, Rebecca, for sharing your heart and for listening to and obeying God.