Since 1997 New Song Church has been serving meals to our
community. The idea has grown from one meal a week to eleven meals a week and
distributing fresh produce to all who want it. We now feed a small crowd at
breakfast and lunches and up to 180 people for our Friday supper.
When I give people a tour of our Ford City campus and tell
them about what we’re doing they always ask, “How do you fund what you’re doing?” The answer often surprises
them. We have a congregation of mostly low-income earners that fund the efforts
of the church. We get some donations from outside, but the biggest part comes
from those who attend the church.
That is miraculous when you consider that our giving usually
falls behind the budget we need. We are not rich enough to pay our own way. If
it were not for God providing from other sources, we would not be able to do
very much. God is faithful to provide us with an abundance of food and manpower
from many sources.
Food is a great way to gather people and build community. I
wonder how many of us who eat the food give thought to whom is giving it? The
church helps deliver it, but it’s really God giving us daily bread. We are not
begging God—He chooses to meet the need out of His compassionate heart.
I am reminded of Jesus’ miraculous provision of food for the
crowd. He and the disciples gave something that did not originate with them.
They took the small donation of the loaves and fish and fed thousands. Did you
ever think about the fact that Jesus and the disciples were not able to meet
the needs of the many based on their bank accounts or skill sets? The meeting
of needs had more to do with what God wanted than with their ideas or
resources. It’s still that way.
The food miracle still has much to say to us today. What can
we learn about the heart of God by the way He responds to human need? What
happens to people who have had a taste of God’s provision?
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