Great response in church today

[RevCheesehead]

Passed out flyers on how to put together flood buckets and health kits. In my little church, we had 11 people - but EVERY ONE OF THEM took a stack of flyers to pass around town. EVERY ONE OF THEM took an empty bucket.

In my other church, they're older and a bit more passive - but, in our special offering for UMCOR alone, 47 people gave $4,000.

I am giving thanks for the generous hearts of these people - and know that we weren't the only ones to see this kind of love in action.

I have the flyer in Word format, and will be glad to e-mail it to anyone who wants it (then you can adapt it for your own area). PM me with your e-mail address, and I'll send it along to you.

[gkhouston]

1. glad to hear it

You should see what it's like here in Houston. Lots of the area churches are getting together to make up hygiene kits for the displaced residents of LA and the store shelves are starting to look positively bare of certain items. We put together 500 kits at church today and expect to do more on Tuesday and a lot of people are going for the volunteer training to serve food at the Dome and the Convention Center. (Many denominations, not just Christian ones, are banding together to provide food and volunteers to serve it, for the month of September and possibly beyond that.) And for the folk who like to slam on mega churches? One of the big movers and shakers in the "feed em" effort here is Ed Young, the pastor of Second Baptist, the grand-daddy of the Houston mega churches.

[Muffstser]

2. I was really disappointed in our church today.

The associate pastor was there, and not once...ONE TIME...did he mention Katrina. I know they did a major prayer service on Friday night, but this really made me angry. I walked out right after communion.

For a cathedral in a major city, there's no excuse for this. Needless to say, my dollars won't be going to them for relief efforts. (Half will go to the Humane Society, and half to a local charity that's buying teddy bears and toys for the children who are evacuated.)

And Rev? GOOD FOR YOU. You inspired your congregation to do what our government can't...and WON'T...do.

[RevCheesehead]

3. I am in shock...

Not ONCE??? Holy fucking apathy, Batman!!!

Well, if he (and I presume it was a "he") didn't see fit, it just goes to show you that he ain't that close to Jesus... BECAUSE JESUS IS WITH THE SUFFERING PEOPLE OF THIS DAMNED STORM AND THE GREATER SUFFERING CAUSED BY THIS ADMINISTRATION!!!!!!.

:rant:

God is watching us - and is very disappointed in a lot of people who think they know him/her.

[gkhouston]

5. you've *got* to be kidding me

our senior minister held us after the benediction and made a deeply heartfelt plea for a special donation for the hurricane victims. It's not a huge church, and I'd guess that pretty much everyone has already made all sorts of donations elsewhere -- money, food, diapers, toiletries, you name it -- and he still got $20K out of us, and nobody was grumbling about it, either. If you'd been there, you would have given him your socks and thanked him for the opportunity. ;-)

Maybe they mentioned Katrina after communion, but I rather doubt it. It was something that was alluded to more than once during the service, and not in a way that I felt was exploitative. Whatever happened to "I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, a stranger and you welcomed me"? :grr:

[Catchawave]

4. That's wonderful Rev !

Now that's my kind of "churching" :grouphug: