Filling Boxes and Hearts
I remember a time when I felt probably the most in need in my life. It was my first year of college. I had just wrecked my dream car, a 1981 Malibu low-rider with custom paint and interior. The car was totaled but somehow I escaped serious injury. I was in between jobs and low on cash. My spiritual life was struggling as well. I was living at home during college, so my dad was able to take me to school. As he was dropping me off one day when I was feeling particularly low, he stopped me as I was stepping out of the car and handed me a crisp $20 bill. That may not seem like much now, but it felt like the keys to Ft. Knox to me at the time.
James 1:27 says, “Pure and undefiled religion is this, to minister to orphans and widows in their distress.” I wasn’t a widow or an orphan, but my dad’s generosity ministered to me at a time I needed it most. More than the money, it spoke love to me when I needed it.
This Sunday our church has an opportunity to minister to a number of families in need. Every year we collect food to fill boxes to hand out to people in our church and in our community. We ask that you bring items Sunday (see below for details) that we will collect at the end of the service. Last year I was able to help deliver a couple of the boxes to those who didn’t have a car to pick it up at the church. As we handed a box to a single mother with two little kids, I prayed that it would minister to her in her time of need, that she would not feel alone in her sufferings. You never know how one small gesture of kindness may be the turning point someone needs in life.
Thank you Valley View for being such a kind, loving, and generous church. God is using you to reach the South End of Louisville for Christ!