Showing posts with label Helping Others. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Helping Others. Show all posts

Sunday, September 17, 2023

We Gave Each Other Something That Day

Many years ago on a bus, I sat down beside a 40-ish, clean-cut, well-spoken man who offered me his neatly folded newspaper. 

I brightly replied, “Thank you. I need this today!” I am a woman of color and he was white. This is only significant in that I am always grateful for cross-cultural friendliness where ever I find it because there is so much hatred and prejudice still being practiced and promoted.

After I accepted the paper with a smile, he replied, “I picked it up at TCC.”

“Do you want some change for it,” I offered.

“No,” he replied. “They set them out for free.” After a pause, he humorously said, “I can always use a little change. No just kidding.”

I laughed and said, “We can all use a little change, sometimes. You take classes at TCC,” I inquired, assuming that he was enrolled in some MBA-type program or something.

“No, I stay at the Union Mission,” he quietly replied.

“Oh,” I said, thinking how sad but restful his spirit seemed.

“I work two part-time jobs,” I confessed. “They are both minimum wage and it’s difficult to get on my feet.”

“It’s hard for everyone isn’t it?” he empathized.

I began to dig in my purse for change, because not only have I had a desire to help others from my teenaged years but also because I’ve been in various types of financial and employment struggles. I have empathy for others who are struggling.

He said quickly and quietly, “Oh, you don’t have to do that,” as he waved his hand from side to side.

“But will you accept it anyway,” I quietly pleaded.

“Yes,” he said with purpose.
I grabbed as much change as my hand could hold.
The bus was slowing for my stop and I grasped as much change as my fingers could touch. It felt like a lot of quarters and I was glad. 

As I warmly placed them in his open hand, I felt his spirit soar as he looked down at his palm. He seemed so happy about that handful of change and I felt the angels singing.

When he said “God bless you,” I really felt the blessings of God being bestowed upon me. I just felt it, and spoke the same blessing to him.
I really needed the newspaper that morning.
 As I got up, I said, “See you around.”

“Certainly,” he said, or something like that.

As I walked to the McDonald’s to get my cup of coffee, I was happy to have the paper to read. I reflected on how much I seemed to have in the eyes of that man. I actually had not just one job but two compared to his none. They were both retail and didn’t even make up 35 hours a week but how blessed I must have seemed to him.

Suddenly, I thought I probably don't have enough for the cup of coffee I was so looking forward to. I had given him a lot of my change and was not thinking about my coffee. When I got inside, I found that I still had enough change for the coffee and then some. I had not even considered the amount that I was giving him when I dug into my purse. I just wanted him to have it. In doing so, I was provided for.

Amazingly, I still had enough change to buy my coffee.
My situation must really have seemed almost like paradise to him. To be finished with the job search process. To be done with standing in line with five-hundred and fifty other people for a handful of positions. To have the interviews behind me. To actually have some funds coming in. To have already received a paycheck. He had a bed for an extended but limited period of time in a residential shelter. There are so many others who don't even have that.

Just think about all of the others who don't have a bed in a shelter. Think about those who want a better life but can't get into the right position at the right time to make it work. Think about the mentally-challenged who would not hurt anyone but who are wandering the streets without anyone to assist them because not enough people are helping. Think about all of those who fall through the cracks, because not enough people are helping. Think about the elderly on the streets.

Think about those who are hungry and want something to eat but no one gives them a dollar because they decide that the person just wants a drink of wine. Think about those who were cheated and mistreated and are now living homeless as a result of it. Think about the veterans who are homeless and the mothers with children who don't have anywhere to sleep at night. Think about the children who are absolutely alone on the streets everywhere in the world...


Remember those who are struggling and who are less fortunate than you. The numbers are exploding and most of them don't want to be homeless and jobless. Reach out today. Help someone. If you can help one person one time in your life, you have done a lot.
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All Images From: Pixabay.com . You can thank the volunteer image authors for any of these free images that you use by donating to them any amount that you want. All image are free for your use, without attribution.

For Email and Feed Subscribers: Video of Phil Collins performing Just Another Day included with this post. To see it please click the Draw Nigh To Hope link in your message to visit the blog.


Monday, March 27, 2023

Our Prayers For Others

When we pray consistently for someone, God will often give us something that he wants us to do for that person. If so, it will be something that is consistent with how he wants to answer our prayer. It may be something that we'd never think of doing for that person. 

It may be something that we are reluctant to do. It may be something that is difficult or it may be fairly easy. It may be something that aligns with what we are already doing in our lives or it may cause us to stretch a little. It may be something that will obviously bless us in our journey, or maybe not obviously. 

When we pray for someone, though we may know some things about them, we don't know the extent of their needs. We don't know what it will take for God to answer our prayers for them and for his will to be done in their lives. Just be prepared to obey the Holy Spirit's surprising request and prompting. When God uses us in his plans for people that we pray for, we can be assured that it will not only bless them but us as well. 

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Monday, January 10, 2022

How ChurchCom Enables Impoverished Communities

Though the ChurchCom ministry is based in northern UK, its purpose and procedures can inspire ministries in other countries.

Joseph Bevan, founder of ChurchCom, has an extensive background in community development and engagement. Previously, he achieved success in a number of inner city areas of deprivation within the area of Birmingham, England.


 

One important position in which he served was as a youth and community worker and lecturer.

 

 


 

The initial vision of ChurchCom came from a government-funded role of community liaison within one of the United Kingdom's most challenged urban neighborhoods.


ChurchCom Website

Churchcom is a northern UK, non-profit organization managed by a group of community enablers. These committed ministry workers have broad backgrounds in spurring communities to engender success.

Their focus is to alleviate social poverty within specific areas of the United Kingdom. The vision of Churchcom is all about community, establishing socioeconomic hubs to bridge church with community, cutting red tape and empowering local volunteers.

They work with all community members, regardless of a faith-based or no-faith personal focus. The goal is to develop opportunities for individuals from all backgrounds to advance and succeed. 



ChurchCom Youtube Channel

A range of evangelistic preaching, teaching, worship, praise and charity-related missions, along with sharing practical evangelism skills.

Please Support & Partner with Us

Prayer is one of the most important ways you can do this.

If you would like to donate to our ministry, use the info below:

Sort Code: 30-62-61
Account No: 69068568
Name: ChurchCom munity

Feel free to get in touch:

josephbevan@live.co.uk
07852238244

All donations are used for evangelism and outreach.


 

ChurchCom Facebook Page

A vehicle of community change to tackle a variety of social evils. Includes daily devotions.


Christian Products & Services: Buy & Sell Facebook Group

A group for buying and selling Christian-themed products & services, such as books, crafts, music, etc. Come and promote your Christian creativity!


 

ChurchCom is a model of good practice for establishing socioeconomic hubs aiming to bridge church with community. 

Then Jesus came to them and said, All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age. Matthew 28:18-20

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Monday, May 24, 2021

To Do Good And Share With Others

 

Whoever Gives To The Poor Will Not Want

Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom.

Luke 6:38

Whoever gives to the poor will not want, but he who hides his eyes will get many a curse.

Proverbs 28:27

She opens her hand to the poor and reaches out her hands to the needy.

Proverbs 31:20

If you pour yourself out for the hungry and satisfy the desire of the afflicted, then shall your light rise in the darkness and your gloom be as the noonday.

Isaiah 58:10

Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.

Philippians 2:4

Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God.

Hebrews 13:16

You Have To Do What Is In Your Heart And What Is Between You And God
I had gotten to a place where I could tithe again and the savings had grown to a few hundred dollars because I was deducting it from my income but accumulating it. In the past, I've tithed to any local church where I was heavily involved. I've done it the traditional way, giving hundreds of dollars, over time, off the top and faithfully to churches, even though I could not financially afford to.

I have also given to various TV and online ministries through which I enjoy learning, even though they operate with millions of dollars and always feel like they need to grow more. During the times that I struggled financially, barely being able to pay bills and often not being able to pay them at all, my tithing fell by the wayside. In my heart, I always carried a desire to begin a tithing program again.

In this new, retirement-era of my life, I talked to God about it often and chose to wait until I got to a point where my leftover funds after bill paying were 10% of my income. Some Christians would say that I am doing it backwards and that I should have been taking the 10% off first, like I used to. I don't believe that I should take bill money and give it away. My heart does not condemn me in this. I talk to God about it all of the time. You have to do according to what is in your heart. That is between you and God.

Maybe God Wants Us To Give Away Our Vacation Money Sometimes

I believe that we are to be good stewards of our money and manage our financial affairs with the utmost care. That means paying bills on time, not over spending and not living beyond our means. That means not giving away money that should go towards bills and then expecting God to make it up when the bills are due. I know this is totally against what some teach and preach. It is hard to think like this. You don't have to. This is for those who are of the same mind and did not think there was anyone else who understood.

Last week, Joyce Meyer said something to this effect, that God does not necessarily want you to give money that you won't miss. Maybe he wants you to give away your vacation money sometimes. It's the second part of what she said that illustrates my belief about tithing and giving. If a person donates their vacation money, that means that their bills are paid. They wouldn't be able to save for vacation if their bills were not paid first. To give away money that you have earmarked for yourself is truly a holy sacrifice.

Each Of Us Must Give As We Have Decided In Our Hearts
I understand that tithing and donating are different. The only real difference, however, is the amount and the order. Tithing is generally a set % and giving is anything beyond that amount. Some Christians don't bother with a tithed %. They are happy to give whatever amount they want to give. The Bible teaches, "Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver." 2 Corinthians 9:7  Whether it is tithed or donated, giving is giving. Whether it is given before or after our life needs are taken care of, it is giving that is honored by God.

I distribute my tithes how and where I see fit and I give a little above the 10% that I choose to honor. I don't feel that I need to give my funds to any one place or any certain place. As long as it is not used on myself, I consider that I've given it for the work of God, because it is given to the needs of others. I've always had a heart for homeless people and those who are struggling financially. I don't hand out on the street anymore, because it has become so dangerous. God wants us to be generous, not foolhardy and unaware.

Give With A Heart That Is Comfortable With The Giving
I didn't want my tithes to continue accumulating because it becomes more challenging to not spend them. I began to ask God to show me people online to give to because I am retired and spend most of my day online doing many creative things. I wanted to be led to people in need, struggling, homeless, hopeless and unhappy. I'd always been impressed by GoFundMe campaigns, so I started looking there. I am happy to say that so far I've given to 7+ campaigns. I searched in certain states and cities, which narrowed the number of campaigns I found that I wanted to give to. 

Though I may give to some of them a 2nd time, I can expand my search area to find more suitable causes to which to give. In addition to homeless, ministries and churches, I also searched for struggling single mothers raising a son. I struggled so much raising my son and working and so many times I wished someone would reach out and help me with just $5. I promised myself that if I ever got to the position that I would reach out and help others.

Find Persons And Causes To Give To
I am thrilled to be giving at GoFundMe! It's a dream come true. I like using my tithes and giving in this way because I'm giving directly to the person. There are too many times when people can't get the immediate financial help that they need from organizations and funds. I prefer to give direct, personal help, for the most part. I divide my funds out and decide who gets what, as the Holy Spirit leads. Here are some of the campaigns that I've given to:

  • A homeless woman who obtained a tiny shed house and put it on the land of a kind person who offered her the space for free and the city is going to condemn her house if she does not come up with hundreds of $$$ to install utilities on the undeveloped plot.
  • A homeless man who wants to buy a fixer upper home and who recently was able to get a mobile home fairly cheap because a tree had fallen on it and has been doing his best to keep dry.
  • A homeless woman who is living in her car.
  • A non-profit, mobile services organization that reaches out to provide hair cuts, manicures, personal products and other to senior citizens, homeless, low income persons and veteran communities, also aiding churches, schools and small businesses.  
  • A man and his fiance who want to buy 3 buildings to house at-risk homeless and runaway children and who have been helping people living on the streets and under bridges for several years now.
  • A young lady who is collecting $250 to get food, socks, gloves and beanies hats for the homeless and who wants to do this because "growing up me and my brothers didn't have much but we always had a roof over our heads....as i got older i realized how blessed we were to have a place to call home that was warm....and when i look around it saddens me how so many people are walking around in this weather without even that."
  • A man, when going to the barber shop, noticed a homeless man sitting outside in the freezing weather who looked like he hadn't eaten in days and, who gave him warm clothes, a hotel room and food.
  • A woman with her son trying to get on her feet after being stabbed in the neck and chest when leaving work from an upscale, 4-star hotel and who was so traumatized that she lost everything and lost all friends when she became homeless, who has been painting houses and stands outside Home Depot or Lowe's trying to get work but is not often picked.

God gives us a lot of flexibility in this life, flexibility that too many Christians don't take advantage of. Don't feel bound, constricted and secretly miserable about what you feel you have to do. Don't allow other Christians to impose their fears and restrictions upon you. Study, pray and learn about the freedoms in Christ Jesus that are available to you today.

I'm so grateful to God that he has led me to a place where I can regularly give to the needs of others in the way that I've always wanted to. It has made a tremendous difference in my life and I'm not doing it to be blessed. I'm doing it because it's the right thing to do and because I finally can. I always pray that the Lord will increase to the recipient what I give to them and I plan to consistently increase my giving, in Jesus' name.



Sunday, September 2, 2018

CHILDREN'S RIGHTS: How ChildHelp Makes A Difference






I've added a new link to help children. Here is info about this compassionate organization and it has been added to my page here: Children's Rights. 

The organization says:


Helping victims of child abuse is more than just a desire, it is our lifetime commitment. This commitment began when our founders, two young Hollywood actresses, encountered 11 homeless orphans abroad, and all of their lives were forever changed.




Co-founders of Childhelp USA, Sara O’Meara and Yvonne Fedderson, were abroad in 1959 when they came across 11 orphans in Japan and decided to help the orphans by providing food and shelter. When Sara and Yvonne returned to the United States, they decided to open up an orphanage. From there, their agency continued to grow into a national organization assisting over nine million children since its inception.









Sunday, March 18, 2018

New Resource Link On Children's Rights Page


A nice lady named Jackie sent me info about the vpnMentor.com article The Ultimate Parent Guide For Protecting Your Kid on the Internet. She said, " I liked the way they summarized each section with actionable items for the parent/teacher."

I added the link to my Children's Rights page at her request, where I also shared my impression of this crucial resource.




Wednesday, January 10, 2018

Charity From The Heart & Soul



Today I decided to read my old favorite scripture passage, I Corin 13. I think it is one of the most beautiful passages in the Bible. It opens like a great play or an outstanding opera, a magnificent pronouncement that swiftly reprimands and then immediately elevates. I can't read it without feeling lofty and so uplifted and inspired, with a new desire to feel and exude God's type of love towards self and others.

Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing. And though I give all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profits me nothing.

Charity suffers long, and is kind; charity envies not; charity vaunts not itself, is not puffed up, does not behave itself unseemly, seeks not her own, is not easily provoked, thinks no evil; rejoices not in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes in all things, endures all things. Charity never fails: but where there are prophecies, they shall fail; where there are tongues, they shall cease; where there is knowledge, it shall vanish away.

We think of charity as the cutesy little song "Have faith, hope and charity. That's the way you live successfully. How do I know the Bible tells me so, the Bible tells me so!" Then we learn that charity means love. Maybe that is why organizations that help those in need are called charities. How can you reach out and give to others of yourself, your time and your money without having love for the recipients?


The Merriam-Webster online dictionary  shows the well-known meanings of charity:
  • generosity and helpfulness especially toward the needy or suffering,
  • aid given to those in need,
  • benevolent goodwill toward or love of humanity.
The definition shown there that I think is most significant, and upon which the others are able to operate, is this:
  • lenient judgment of others.
In order to reach out and give to others we begin by choosing to think favorably upon their situations, their behaviors and their lives. We develop a considerate and forgiving spirit towards any offenses from them. We choose to believe that no matter who they are, what they are or how they arrived at where they are, they are worthy of our ministrations. They may not have taken our routes in life or think and believe like us, but they are worthy of our charity.

We should do better at remembering ourselves, as well. Often we strive to learn to love others unconditionally, but forget about ourselves. We should remember that true, pure, God-centered love is an outpouring of what is inside and a reflection of how we feel about ourselves. That other well-known saying that most of us have grown up on is charity begins at home.

Our first home is our heart and soul, that inner dwelling from which all thoughts and actions originate. We are worthy of our own charity, first of all. When we work with God to turn charity inwards, what we give will be untainted by unreliable, fleshly origins. It will be pure, true and long-lasting, and overflow and spill over to all in our paths, like rivers of living waters.

If you would like to give to yourself the greatest charity that exists, which is to be sure that you are Saved, say this simple prayer:

Jesus, I believe that you are the Son of God, and the only Savior. Come into my heart, and save me. I was born in sin and you died for me so that I can know God and not be blamed anymore. Thank you for my new life. Show me the way to understand and turn away from bad things. I don't have to fear death anymore, and thank you for Eternal Life. Amen 







Sources:
Bible scriptures: KJV paraphrased (old English endings on words have been dropped)
Word definitions:  Merriam-Webster online dictionary


Sunday, October 29, 2017

God Wants Us To Have Friends




Remember someone today who may be without a friend. Pray that he or she may open up to help and loving care from someone whom God sends.

Friends as so important and like love, hard to come by. 



Many times we feel that we just don't have time to cultivate friendships, but it is not God's will that we be alone.



God can provide friendships that adapt to our lives, and that compliment each other. God can move us to a place where we can be a blessing to someone, and vice versa. 



Pray always for those who are lonely, suffering and who need friends. 




2nd/3rd/4th Pic: Pixabay.com

Wednesday, June 14, 2017

Remember To Pray For Those In Prison



Was watching a program on the Justice Network, and thinking so many prisons, so many people in prisons everywhere, always a chance for work related to prisons. It is unfortunate, but he truth is that jobs in the prison industry have a bright future. Bright future jobs are industries where job stability and growth are guaranteed, because of the increasing need of the products and services.

Behind that thought, I began to think about the brutality of prison life, and how depending on where the prisoner is sent, he/she will be treated like a
human being, or like an animal. Then I thought of the many prisoners who are incarcerated for crimes that they did not commit. I can only imagine how it must feel to live in such a horrible, unjust situation.

I am asking you to remember prisoners when you pray. Pray for those who have committed crimes, and especially those who did not. Don't forget about the incarcerated, when you petition God.


 

Friday, December 23, 2016

Sister Betty Jo On Receiving & Giving Blessings

"So the blessings that you receive, let me tell you they are all from God, and with no strings attached."


 Receive Your Blessings, And Give Them As Well

Praise the Lord everyone!! You are a blessing whether you know it are not. There are many who do not know that they are blessings to people. They didn’t even think they could be. This title came to me in a positive way, Receive Your Blessings, And Give Them As Well. I don’t know about you, but I’m thankful and grateful for (all) my blessings; and knowing that the blessings that I have received during my journey, have been a teaching given from Jesus Christ Himself.

When I sit and think about John 3:16, For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life, I realize that I have read that scripture just as I have read many others, over and over again. This time, I went so deep into it that I said to myself, This God has done something that no other would have done for me.

He gave me a blessing, and I didn’t even know that was what it was. I asked myself why would He do such? Did He not know that I didn’t love Him, or how I was living, and how I cared only to please others? The answers to these questions that I was asking were a mystery. He came back with the answer in John 3:17, For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him.

He wanted me to know that I was blessed by a gift called Salvation. And He wanted me to take this Word of blessing, and give it to others. Whether they accepted the blessing or rejected it was not to concern me. You still keep sharing it, is what He said.

So the blessings that you receive, let me tell you they are all from God, and with no strings attached.

He does what he does because He Loves us (all). You may hate Him…He still Loves you…You may use His name in vain…He still Loves you…You may be ashamed to speak of Him to your friends…He still Loves you. You may try to stop Him, but you can’t…He still Loves You.

His blessings are still spreading, and spreading. And those who are receiving them, are spreading and spreading them to people who do not know that they are to become blessings also. That man, that woman, that boy and girl do not yet know that they are to become blessings in return. Praise the LORD!!

So, receive your blessings, and give them as well. Those of you who have testimonies of what Jesus Christ has done in your life, tell It! Keep it real! Don’t allow the devil to stop you…his a liar, deceitful, and a hater. There is no love in him.

Jesus Christ Is Agape, A Blessing!



Sister Betty Jo is a strong woman of God who loves sharing her relationship with The Father, and what Christ has done for her. She lives in TX, and enjoys spending time with her daughter and granddaughters. She is a crafter and folk art painter, and likes cooking, especially trying new recipes.

This is what she has to say about her relationship with the Lord,

" My Life Has Not Been The Same since I Was Diagnosed With Lupus Some Years Ago. My Life Has Changed Quite A Bit, But Lupus Does Not Define Who I Am. I'm Blessed To Have Jesus Christ as my Savior. Also Loved One's & Friends Are My Blessings.

I Am A Bible Believing Christian. I don't like religion. I'm in love with Jesus Christ, whom I have a relationship with. I will Follow Jesus Christ, and not man. He will direct my feet into the right path. It isn't about how good I think I am, or what I think I can do for Him. I cannot work my way to Heaven, nor pay Him to take me. I'm blessed through SURRENDERING my all to Him. He has forgiven me of my nasty Sins.  

I am in a Intimate Relationship with a man who gave His life for me. He loved me that much that He laid His life on a cross that was put together by man. My life has not been the same after I gave Him my heart, and my life. That is True and Honest Love.


No matter what I looked like, or the life-style that I was living that wasn't pleasing to Him, He still accepted me with open arms. He said to me at that moment..."your sins have been forgiven." That was a Promise that He has kept ever since. Halleujah!! My first and Only Love!! His name by the way is Jesus Christ. Amen!! Don't Give Up! Push On! Amen!! "

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Draw Nigh To  Hope