Pastors sometimes are pigeonholed as people who live in the world of thought. For sure, many of us spent years studying the nature of God and existing with a worldview focused on the questions of our creator and the universe He lays out before us. In all honestly, most of the ministry we’re called to is care of the soul and the body of those around us as we walk with them in preparation for eternity with that same glorious God. The day to day work of the pastor is to care for God’s people as He has called us to do. I love to write inspirational pieces on finding connection with God and the church, but the practical part of my call to serve is top of mind right now. The issue of community and national hunger is the very practical consideration on my heart on most days.
Yesterday I preached on several points of good stewardship of God’s gifts, including being stewards of the community. Churches love to talk about stewardship, but the idea may fly right past folks and many people might not even really know what stewardship is. To be a good steward of God’s gifts means to take care of and nurture what we’ve been blessed with. In essence, we are the keepers and protectors of all that is good in this world. Not just nature, but the people around us in our communities. One of the ways of stewarding the community is sharing our food resources in a manner that helps others survive and thrive, especially in times of regional and national insecurity. When the community eats, the community thrives and works toward the future.
If you don’t believe hunger is a real issue, or that it’s caused by some element of character, let me ask you a question? What did you eat yesterday? I had a banana and coffee, some little rice cakes and more coffee, a couple of hamburgers, salad (yeah, more coffee. I’m weak like that). I remember what I ate, precisely because I was able to eat, but not in great detail because it was a function of my normal day. For those suffering hunger, the memory is more acute, because the need for food security is more acute. The parent who makes the choice to go without so that their child can eat definitely remembers what they ate, or didn’t eat. The person who is required to budget their thing food resources definitely remembers what they did to get by. That’s not me preaching, by the way, it’s just a way of noting that times are changing and not always for the good of all Americans.
What do we do? Practical considerations aren’t practical unless they’re transformed to practice. Locally, our congregation has a food pantry (as do many, if not most, of the local churches in Cass County, Michigan). Part of our stewardship of that food ministry is not just opening the doors, but making sure there’s stock behind the doors when people arrive. Dry, shelf stable foods (rice, instant potatoes, pasta, canned goods and baby foods), meat, peanut butter and beans are all needed. In addition, our food pantry (Brother’s Keeper, 60825 Walnut, Vandalia, Michigan) needs and gratefully accepts soap/personal hygiene items, cleaning supplies and paper goods. It all helps and for lots of folks it’s all getting harder to acquire. If not us, consider helping organizations such as Feeding America with financial contributions.
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