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I love reading stories about church that have a genuine impact on the communities they serve.
Rather than children’s musicals and ice cream socials disguised as “community outreach,” these churches actually leave their buildings and venture into the hurting and dark world.
Their members are empowered and they see they’re making a real difference. In turn, that motivates them to invest more of themselves into serving their communities.
This article, from Episcopal News Service, describes the efforts of a church in Wichita, Texas.
For 25 years, church members have served meals to hungry people on Sandwich Saturdays.
Then, last year, one of their members who works as a nurse practitioner started bringing a medical trailer to aid people who came for food.
Shirley Orr, St. John’s senior warden, said these partnerships reflect the fact that “we are an urban church serving an urban population.” She said the church wanted to be a better neighbor to the community around it. Those efforts have “radically transformed the congregation,” she said.
That prompted a more intentional effort to serve those who rely on the shelters and soup kitchens in the neighborhoods around the church. Orr said, “Our hope is that people see that we have a social justice mission and are trying to be the hands of Jesus in the world.”
The members of St. John’s Episcopal Church in Wichita, Texas, are true #impactChristians.
The full story can be found at Episcopal News Service.
