Department NEWS

Janet Griffith and Geri Seidel serving up macaroni and cheese casserole in the kitchen.

TEAMWORK AT THE RED DEER SOUP KITCHEN

Submitted by Red Deer Seventh-day Adventist Church

"As the dew and the still showers fall upon the withering plants, so let words fall gently when seeking to win men from error. God's plan is first to reach the heart. We are to speak the truth in love, trusting in Him to give it power for the reforming of life. The Holy Spirit will apply to the soul the word that is spoken in love" (Ellen G. White, The Ministry of Healing, p. 157).

The assembly line to create the best hot meal handout in the city! Bert Frost on mac and cheese, Ron Griffith on salads and buns, and Wayne Rachal on dessert and cutlery, plus bottled water for each order too.

Teamwork is the name of the game at the Red Deer Soup Kitchen. Central Alberta Adventist churches support the ministry and outreach at the downtown kitchen on 49th Street. A rotation of teams from the various churches pitch in to donate items, make hot meals, sandwiches, salads, and desserts for over 100 people who stop by to pick up a bag lunch or two. The first Sabbath of September and the following Thursday were organized and managed by the Sylvan Lake Adventist Church. It was the first time for Pastor Tyler, and he took to his station at the doorway to meet and greet and hand out the generous meal in a bag. Other helpers worked in the production line to prepare each meal and package it, while still others worked on the upper level in preparation and clean up.

Since this ministry is close to my heart, I want to draw attention to a chapter in a recent book I have written and published, Learning to Live Lightly: The ABCs of How To Get There. It is available on Amazon Kindle and will be available in paperback by the end of September. Proceeds from the book will be donated to the soup kitchen, so be sure to order several copies and pass them around. The chapter to which I am referring is titled “Darby and the Soup Kitchen.” We do our best, but sometimes the end of the story is not so good. We appreciate our communities' efforts and financial support as we keep in mind the needy among us. We want to offer God's love and mercy and demonstrate the spiritual world's reality right here at home.

Pastor Tyler Rosengren, greeting clients at the window handing out hot lunch.

There is a great controversy going on, and we are in the middle of it

By our love and service for His needy children we prove the genuineness of our love for Him. To neglect them is to declare ourselves false disciples, strangers to Christ and His love (Ellen G. White, The Ministry of Healing, p. 205).

Jane Holmes, author of the book Learning to Live Lightly