Being There For Those in Need, Even to the Ends of the Earth

Before Jesus was taken up into Heaven, He appeared to His friends many times over a period of forty days, speaking about the Kingdom of God. In Acts 1, we see that the apostles gathered around Jesus during a shared meal, asking if He will restore the kingdom to Israel. Jesus replies: “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

What a beautiful charge to those who were witnesses of the Lord’s ministry here on earth but who were also witnesses that were chosen by Him to reach people locally, in neighboring lands, and in places far away — even to the ends of the earth. Two thousand years later, as followers of Jesus Christ, we are still witnesses for Jesus, serving with hope and humility as we join together to respond to the needs and difficulties around us.

One example of taking these verses to heart is happening in one of our own GLC churches in their attitude towards caring for others during this time of Covid. The church has decided to disburse their benevolence funds to those who are hurting and in need even though giving to the church has suffered over the last several months. They chose to use Acts 1:8 as a model for mission giving during this season. They have earmarked benevolence funds for:

• Those in their church community who are in need
• For their local community by giving to a local medical clinic
• For a sister Covenant church in Detroit that has a feeding program (City Covenant Church)
• For a sister Covenant church in Louisville, KY that is giving out medical supplies and testing for Covid-19 as well as giving out food for children in the community (Grace Community Covenant Church)
• For an orphanage in Haiti
• For World Vision for clean water

I have had the opportunity to converse with many pastors over the months of the pandemic, all desperate to continue sharing the hope of Jesus in these dreary days. One individual said it like this: “[As a church], we are substantially behind on our giving and income for the year, but that does not remove the passion nor the call to be responsive to [the Church’s] needs.”

How do we know who needs help?

Sometimes knowing the need is even more difficult than helping meet the need. The Great Lakes Conference is here to help you make those connections. Let us help you find opportunities to BETTER serve the Kingdom by working together as the Body of Christ. The most poor and destitute have not gone away, and even during this tumultuous season, we are called to give. One pastor said it this way: This is not a one-sided thing. We are giving [financial help,] but we are learning from those who are on the front lines. Our faith is being raised to a new understanding, and we need these partner organizations every bit as much as they need our giving. What a beautiful summary of the Body of Christ working together!

One place of need.

One outreach need has been identified at Grace Community Covenant Church in Louisville, KY. Through prayer and reflection, Pastor William Mack and his team have decided to raise approximately $50k for three specific purposes: to provide a Drive-Thru health Clinic which offers COVID-19, Hepatitis C and STD testing FREE of charge to their neighbors; to give families in need access to COVID-19 Support Kits, which will include necessities like hand sanitizer, vitamins, a pulse oximeter and healthcare literature; and to provide much needed Weekend Meal Boxes to at least 100 children each week until the end of the school year. In order to reach this lofty goal, they are humbly asking for prayerful partnership from sister churches.

Please, reach out if you are in need — and reach out if you want to partner with another church to meet their needs. We are here to help. Also, whether it is your Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria or the ends of the earth, please prayerfully consider this opportunity to partner with Grace Community Covenant Church for Kingdom purposes.

You can do so by mailing a check to: Grace Community Covenant Church, 2718 Lytle Street, Louisville, KY, 40212 or by giving online through the church’s website HERE.