....on the lookout for an Interim Blogger.

Wow.
And....just like like that...4 new people show up tonight to help. Awesome. They couldn't have been any nicer or more helpful. One of them saw it in the Kingdom News and the other 3 were invited by Anna Tolan. Hope they come back.

Twig and his helpers did a great job outside on the Barbecue Chicken. The Kitchen crew had their hands full with the rest of the meal. John Liverman had his hands full trying to get a large hunk of stew thawed (he eventually won). We also made sandwiches and bagged them so we could give everybody one for to take as they left.
Menu:
Barbecue chicken
Brunswick stew
Peas and corn
Bread
Dessert
Tea and Water

Helpers
John
Ellen
Henry
Tom
Theresa
Bryan
Twig
Ryan
Pruden
Craig
Eric
Candace
Katie Norris
Danielle Biongiornio
and the new folks... Jessica
Irene
Courtney
Roxanne
The new folks jumped right in and we finished with plenty of time to spare and were outside early. The weather was nice. it didn't get much chillier as the night went on, either.


If first impressions really are a big deal, then I'm in trouble. Here's why....Jessica walks up to me and Twig outside. I figured she was going to ask us about the other program going on that night because, 1. I didn't recognize her and 2. she was dressed nice.
But she says "Are y'all with the Homeless feeding program? I'm here to help." or something to that effect.
We say yeah, that's us, blah blah ..and she's says "There's some other folks inside here to help ,too."
Well, I thought she meant they were with her and so I say come on, let's go in the kitchen and get started.
Then, as we're walking in and get near the kitchen, I see three women in the hall near the kitchen and one of them has a baby in a stroller. I assumed she was here for the other program going on the Baby Fast Program that Annie Peterson runs.
Jessica doesn't acknowledge knowing them as we come up, so I assume it's not the ones she was talking about. I say hey to them and they say they were looking for Anna. I see baby, hear Anna, and and say Oh, You mean Annie? She's out here. And I send them off to look for Annie.
They show up a little later and say "We're here to help feed the homeless."
So I just figured Annie had invited them, and they'd said hey to her and were ready to work. Right.... as in 2 + 2 = 5.

It wasn't until later as we were going to the LEC to get tables and stuff that I figured it out. I asked one of them how they had heard about us and what we did. She said they worked at the Police Dept. and had talked to ANNA and been invited. Then the light bulb started to flicker and I realized they were friends with Anna Tolan not Annie Peterson, and one of them had just simply brought their baby in a stroller. My bad.

Then I started laughing about them being taken to Annie and how the whole "Why did Gary send us here" exchange went. I'm lucky they didn't think I was a clueless and just bail. Great 1st impression on my part.
Sorry, Ladies.

It's funny how random thoughts collide and connect over days and in different conversations. Someone asked how long we'd been doing this and it's been over 4 years now . That got me thinking about what we'd done and where we'd come from and how we'd gotten to what we do today, and I realized we've been doing this over a year longer than Jesus' public ministry lasted. I just dwelt on that for awhile. What he did and how he went about it. Were we doing the same things? Could we be more Christ-like as we went about exercising our faith in this area?

And then I thought about a question that was asked at an FCA meeting I was at the night before.
"If there's nothing you can do to lose your salvation, what's to keep someone from accepting Christ and receiving salvation, and then just living a sinful life from then on?"

We talked about it and some answers were given, but it has rolled around in my mind ever since and I would give a much shorter answer now.
My answer?

"Nothing."
Nothing. There's no performance clause in the fine print. There's no obligation to meet. Someone could wipe their feet on the Grace of God for the rest of their life, and God would still keep his promise. It's expected that we will grow and try to live as christ would want us to, but if we don't, there's nothing that says we lose what God has given to us. It goes against the grain of the way most people think and behave, but i believe that's the way it is. There was nothing keeping Adam and Eve from eating the fruit of the tree .....and they did. God allows that much free will.

But Jesus said he came to give us Life and give it to us better than we can get it for ourselves. So someone who accepts and then puts it away just for fire insurance later..... misses out on that. Plus, there's also that verse that says God will not be mocked, so....

I guess the burden is on us as we make disciples to invest ourselves enough so that that kind of thinking doesn't take hold in someone.

Anyway...I'm not sure what any of that's got to do with barbecue chicken.
Pray for us as summer gets closer. I might be out of town alot so I might be......