Sunday, March 29, 2009

The blessings of Hope




With only about a month to go, our team has entered the final push. For me and many of my teammates, we were still in need of about $500 to finish the cost of our trip. Thinking through different ideas to get to our goal of $2600, we came up with the idea of doing a bake sale. Immediately I thought of Hope Fellowship, my parents home church.

As a team our goal has always been that if we have a fundraiser, we need to make sure it gives back the the community in some way. What better way to do this than a bake sale. We raise money and you get some yummy treats. With the help of my parents, pastor's Paul and Scott along with many others, I took on this project to raise the rest that we needed.

Last Sunday (March 22nd) we came to Hope with presentation ready and the hope that the Lord would provide. I appreciated so much the fact that Hope allowed me to explain to the congregation not only about our trip and what we are planning on doing, but also the crisis that is happening within the sex industry in Athens.

After taking orders we headed home to see what the week ahead of baking would look like for us. Starting Wednesday, the smell of breads, cakes, cookies, pies and much more filled the house. I was SO thankful for the help of my parents, I couldn't have done it without them. And besides, if you know my family at all, you know my dad's home made pies are going to be worth it :). A week later (March 29th), was our delivery day. Bake goods after bake goods, we filled the foyer with goodies.

As I walked away from church that day, I was overwhelmed by the generosity of the congregation. Not only did Hope buy their worth of bake goods that would provide for the rest of my trip, but much more. Our team has been so overwhelming blessed by this church and their hospitality and willingness to give. Hope is a huge part of our team now and a huge part of the ministry of Athens Greece.

Thanks to all of you at Hope! You will never know how the Lord has used you for our team!



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