FIA, CIC and More
First, let me give
ya’ll a great big THANK YOU for all you did during the Faith in Action campaign. We
had over 100 people participate in the various service projects we did on
Sunday, March 4th. See Cathy
Warrick’s article in the Church and World
section for more reaction to the day’s activities. And if you missed our Three Church Worship
service that evening – well, all I can say is that you missed a GREAT
service. There was energy, spirit,
music, and the pastors of all three churches preached. Wow!
What an inspiration. We will
certainly do this again.
One of the things that came out of the
Faith in Action campaign was that the
small groups that met weekly were encouraged to come up with their own service
projects. The group that met on Friday
evenings took up the challenge and has decided to put on a Spaghetti Dinner to
raise money for the victims of the Santa Teresa Apartment fire. All the food and materials will be donated by
local merchants so ALL the money raised will go directly to those who need it
most. I hope you will join us on
Saturday evening, April 14th right here at the church. Details will be forthcoming, but rest assured
that the food will be scrumptious, the entertainment amusing, and the event
worthwhile. Bring your appetites!
Well, I’ve covered the church as a
whole and the small groups … now let me get down to the individual level –
me. As some of you may have heard in my
sermon on March 4th, I had the opportunity to visit the Santa Clara County jail in Milpitas about a month ago. I was invited by Chaplain Peggy Bingham (she
was the preacher at our Mission Festival in February). Having participated in prison ministries in
the past – I was intrigued. When I got
there Rev. David Robinson, the Executive Director, gave me a guided tour. I had forgotten what it was like to be in
prison. The bleakness, the empty faces,
the guards barking orders, the absolute lack of privacy, the coldness of it
all. It is down right depressing. But the chaplains and the Chaplaincy program
bring a ray of sunshine to an otherwise bleak existence.
I was immediately drawn back in. This is a population that is mostly
forgotten. It is a population that is
seldom acknowledged in our churches and almost never loved. These are men and women who for the most part
deserve to be where they are – but they are still human beings who rarely are
treated as such.
What can I do? That is the question I asked Rev.
Robinson. There is a glaring need for
volunteers who can love without prejudice – especially from mainline
denominations. The inmates crave reading
material – there really is little else to do – but have few books to read. The Chapel is in desperate need of soft cover
Bibles.
The
Chaplaincy program is looking for volunteers that can come in once a week, in
teams of 2-3 persons, to do Bible study.
They are also looking for musicians, mental health volunteers, Spanish
speaking volunteers, and anyone who is willing to give a little of their time
to reach out and let the inmates that they are not forgotten. And, of course, they are looking for
financial support
One of the things that Rev. Robinson
told me was how amazed the inmates are when volunteers come and spend their
valuable time with THEM. They are blown
away.
Okay … I am getting carried away. I am going to volunteer at the prison. I hope that some of you might like to join
me. I don’t know exactly what our
involvement might be … but I do know that when Jesus calls me to minister to
the “least of these” – that’s what he is talking about. Stay tuned for more information.
God has called us to reach beyond the
walls of this church. Where that may
lead you … I don’t know. But, I do hope
it leads somewhere.
Have a great month, and as always,
I’ll see you on Sunday!
Pastor Tom
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