Lenten Almsgiving: Serving Our Neighbors
Dear Hope Church,
Last week I wrote about connecting the Lenten practice of fasting with our offering, and Hope’s outreach and care for the city. This Sunday, we’d like to extend an invitation to participate in this through several ways:
- Help the Hope Kids outreach project with supplies for Manna Bags to serve the homeless in our city. Here’s an Amazon wishlist for needed supplies.
- Bring supplies to donate to Sunnyside Ministries, which serves our neighbors in need by providing food, clothing, and other financial and housing services. Here’s a list of accepted donations, but we have heard specifically that they are in need of sheets and blankets and a collection bin for these is by the office.
- Bring a monetary offering and use the Mercy Fund envelope provided in the worship hall on the racks under the seats. Money designated to the Mercy Fund will go towards supplying these two ministries for the next two weeks.
- Join us in prayer for these and other ministries that we are partnering with, to “pour yourself out for the hungry and satisfy the desire of the afflicted.” Here’s a collect from author and theologian David Taylor, “For the Welfare of Our Cities:”
O Lord, you who charge us to seek the welfare of the city, strengthen us, we pray, to work for the good of our neighbor, the health of the institutions that sustain our society, and the vitality of organizations that contribute to the well-being of all people, so that the engines of culture in our country might become a reflection of your life-giving kingdom and lead to the flourishing of all peoples. We pray this in the name of Jesus, the One who does all things well. Amen.
Wilson