Saturday, June 25th, will mark the 11th anniversary of the Care Mission. We will celebrate the occasion with our 11th Annual Day of Praise. Each year we use our anniversary to reflect on what our God has done through the Care Mission. It is our Day of Praise. This year it will be held on June 25th, the actual date of our anniversary. We will open the Care Mission at 10:00 AM for an open house, snacks, fellowship, and shopping. We will conclude at 2:00 PM after a time of prayer, praise and worship. All are invited.
Each of our eleven years has had its own set of victories and challenges, delightful highs and heartbreaking lows. The only thing consistent has been God. He has remained faithful. With every anniversary came pause to praise, recharge and refocus. None more so than this year’s mile marker. As we enter our twelfth year we do so knowing it will be the most different than any year that has preceded. Perhaps the year our faith will be the most sternly tested.
When we close our doors on this Day of Praise we will also close the door on our thrift store. For eleven years the Care Mission Thrift Store has been a point of fellowship, a valuable clothing source for many, and a provider of financial support for our food pantry. Most years thrift store sales accounted for approx. 20% of our overall financial contributions. It has been a blessing for us and for our community without question.
So why close the store now? The short answer is because God said it is time. We have stated all along that we trust and rely on God for 100% of our support. God has used a variety of avenues of revenue over the years to keep our doors open. And we must continue to place our trust in the Lord for every cent we receive. That is not to say that we should become reckless or practice poor stewardship and then call on God for more. Certainly not. Much prayer and fasting came before our decision. It has been carefully measured.
God has blessed our food pantry, which is the center most part of our ministry. A ministry that we feel speaks the Gospel of Christ through our actions first and our words only when needed. Our food pantry continues to grow in a way that only God could create. So much so that there is no longer room for both a thrift store and a food pantry to operate within the same building. Should we stop the growth of our food pantry to allow the thrift store to operate? Or should we close the thrift store to provide room for a more robust food pantry while relying on the Lord to replace whatever financial loss should occur? We have chosen the latter.
We pray that you who have been faithful to support this ministry will continue to do so as we enter a new chapter in our walk with Christ. May it all be to His glory.
Our 2016 Board of Directors has been set. Remaining on the Board are Chairman Hope Spears, Pastor Chris Spears, Denny Cook, Ken Hooper, Deon and Kendra. Coming onto the Board are Thomas Milligan, Makayla Spears, and Theresa Dorsey as the Board’s Secretary. Thomas has volunteered at the mission for the past 3 years. Makayla, a senior at Lafayette High School, is the daughter of Chris and Hope so she has been involved with the mission for the past 8 years. And Theresa began volunteering at the mission last year. More information concerning our newest board members will be posted on our website. Leaving the Board were Steve Trevil, James Walker, and Jennifer Walker. We want to thank them for their service. Please keep our Board in your prayers.
Big praise report! We had the opportunity to purchase USDA foods from the Atlanta Food Bank at greatly reduced cost, some items free. The problem was we needed storage space. God had the solution; Whitney Maldonado and Northern Georgia Logistics, a division of Ohio Logistics. Whitney and NGL have not only donated storage space, they also provided a truck, trailer, and driver at no charge. So, we were able to receive four times as much product. Ain’t God good? Pray for their blessings.
Another big praise report! Again this year the Lafayette Post Office chose our food pantry to receive the non-perishable food items they collected during their “Stamp Out Hunger” food drive. In 2014 they collected 6,500 lbs., in 2015 8,500 lbs. This year, 14,000 lbs.! Amazing. We greatly appreciate all those who gave in the 30728 zip code and all the mail carriers and workers who gave the extra effort. Please keep them in your prayers.
And another big praise report! Our food pantry received a $7,000.00 grant from the North Georgia Electric Corporation through their “Round-Up Program”. We want to thank NGEC and their customers for this blessing. The funds are being used to increase food assistance given to families with children while they’re out of school. Please keep the men and women of NGEC in your prayers.
Please mark your calendar for Saturday, June 25th. Join us for our 11th Annual Day of Praise as we honor God for all He has done and is doing through and for the Care Mission. We begin at 10:00 AM with an open house, snacks, fellowship, shopping, praise and worship with Drama Team Impact, and prayer. We expect to be done around 2:00 PM, but you never know with God.
And Saturday, June 25th will be the final day for our thrift store. Everything must go!
We will be closed June 27th through July 5th as we remodel and reorganize our food pantry and waiting area. The food pantry will reopen at noon on Wednesday, July 6th. Please keep us in your prayers.
Prayer request; Volunteers Melissa Milligan, Bobbie Cross, and John Kirk, our Board Members, our supporters, our volunteers, and those we serve.
Food for thought…
1 Kings 17 tells how God had Prophet Elijah hide by a brook. There the brook provided Elijah with water and God ordered ravens to bring him bread and meat twice a day. But, in time God allowed the brook to dry up. God then sent Elijah to a widow that God had commanded to feed him. Because she was obedient her jar of flour was not used up and her jug of oil did not run dry. Elijah, the widow, and her son had plenty to eat even during the midst of a famine.
We went to our Board and explained to them that we felt God was telling us it was time to close the thrift store part of the Care Mission in order to better focus on the food pantry. Our friend, pastor, and board member, Chris Spears shared this story about Elijah. His point being that God moved Elijah from the brook to a better situation, a widow’s home with the wherewithal to provide better than brook water and raven scraps. But, it required that Elijah trust the Lord and move from his spot. We believe the thrift store has been our brook and we are so grateful for all it has provided. We don’t know what, who, or who all God will use as our widow. But of this we are certain; it’s time to move from the brook.
Be Blessed,
Deon and Kendra