TAKE THAT – Polar Vortex!
TAKE THAT – Polar Vortex!
I’ve lived in Minnesota most of my life and somehow there seems to be a new bizarre weather reality every other month.
This Month – POLAR VORTEX – I’m still not sure exactly what caused the reality that we hit -60 windchill early this month. The best I can understand is that the North Pole thought we wouldn’t mind if they flushed their icy near-unlivable conditions down through North America as if it were a toilet.
I for SURE don’t believe in Santa anymore after this post-Christmas devastation. Here you go boys and girls, gifts from the North Pole – as well a near death experience while walking from your house to your car.
The city took action and canceled school for two days. Clearly, to save lives.
But there were other lives at risk that are often overlooked: The significant amount of homeless men, women and children in Minneapolis.
Elim Church and their ministry to the homeless and highly mobile in our city, “Hope Avenue”, have been making sure this community of people know that they aren’t over looked and that the God of the Universe sees them and loves them.
My friend, Pastor Becky Hanson, has been leading the Northeast Minneapolis community in loving and supporting this group of people for years. They are fed every week and included in the Elim worship service if they’d like to join. They are offered clothes, AA groups, Bible studies and showers week in and week out.
When the Polar Vortex hit, Pastor Becky and her church took action.
They got permission from the city and police to set up a temporary shelter for those whose shelters would not remain open during the day as well as who were overflow from other locations over night.
The church in Northeast Minneapolis had been partnering to love the community in the name of Jesus for over three years now. When Pastor Becky sent an email to other pastors in the community it was passed on right away.
Within 12 hours, various congregations and hundreds of people were aware of the need to pray for this effort, bring supplies, and to come supervise the shelter for a shift.
Indeed, the temporary shelter changed the lives of the many individuals in need of a warm place for a few days. More than that, it changed the lives of those who responded to what God was doing though Elim.
One volunteer from my congregation, Tom, expressed this reality:
Hope Avenue, opened a new door to a passion of mine, today I did the hardest thing I’ve ever done in my life, bring a van full of homeless souls back out on the streets. The looks on their faces and just hanging with them just broke my heart, but I know they know the streets better than I do. A few of them were talking about their plans and goals but not all of them seemed to have that hope. If everyone saw what I saw the last few days… let me put it this way, everyone needs to see it!
Loving our community in the name of Jesus doesn’t just bring change in our community. Perhaps more importantly, it changes us.
TAKE THAT Polar Vortex!
TAKE THAT – Polar Vortex!
I’ve lived in Minnesota most of my life and somehow there seems to be a new bizarre weather reality every other month.
This Month – POLAR VORTEX – I’m still not sure exactly what caused the reality that we hit -60 windchill early this month. The best I can understand is that the North Pole thought we wouldn’t mind if they flushed their icy near-unlivable conditions down through North America as if it were a toilet.
I for SURE don’t believe in Santa anymore after this post-Christmas devastation. Here you go boys and girls, gifts from the North Pole – as well a near death experience while walking from your house to your car.
The city took action and canceled school for two days. Clearly, to save lives.
But there were other lives at risk that are often overlooked: The significant amount of homeless men, women and children in Minneapolis.
Elim Church and their ministry to the homeless and highly mobile in our city, “Hope Avenue”, have been making sure this community of people know that they aren’t over looked and that the God of the Universe sees them and loves them.
My friend, Pastor Becky Hanson, has been leading the Northeast Minneapolis community in loving and supporting this group of people for years. They are fed every week and included in the Elim worship service if they’d like to join. They are offered clothes, AA groups, Bible studies and showers week in and week out.
When the Polar Vortex hit, Pastor Becky and her church took action.
They got permission from the city and police to set up a temporary shelter for those whose shelters would not remain open during the day as well as who were overflow from other locations over night.
The church in Northeast Minneapolis had been partnering to love the community in the name of Jesus for over three years now. When Pastor Becky sent an email to other pastors in the community it was passed on right away.
Within 12 hours, various congregations and hundreds of people were aware of the need to pray for this effort, bring supplies, and to come supervise the shelter for a shift.
Indeed, the temporary shelter changed the lives of the many individuals in need of a warm place for a few days. More than that, it changed the lives of those who responded to what God was doing though Elim.
One volunteer from my congregation, Tom, expressed this reality:
Hope Avenue, opened a new door to a passion of mine, today I did the hardest thing I’ve ever done in my life, bring a van full of homeless souls back out on the streets. The looks on their faces and just hanging with them just broke my heart, but I know they know the streets better than I do. A few of them were talking about their plans and goals but not all of them seemed to have that hope. If everyone saw what I saw the last few days… let me put it this way, everyone needs to see it!
Loving our community in the name of Jesus doesn’t just bring change in our community. Perhaps more importantly, it changes us.