El Centro + Food Pantry

Another one of my main missions has been my working at El Centro.  El Centro del Inmigrante is an organization that is part of Project Hospitality, but yet its own separate entity.  It is located about 3 blocks away from the main offices of Project Hospitality, in a neighborhood which is mostly populated with Latinos, primarily families of first and second generation immigrants.  Its mission statement is "advancing the rights of all immigrants until they achieve full civic participation in the US."

While most of the clients are Latinos and Spanish-speaking, they offer a variety of services that are open for all immigrants and the public.  These services include, but are not limited to: English classes, afterschool tutoring for students, day-worker program and referrals, food stamp assistance, DACA and Dream Act, Immigration Reform rallies, community events, Single Stop aid, Consulate assistance, GED classes, worker safety programs and a food pantry.

The food pantry has become my project.  Every Thursday, my day begins at noon with lunch and a meeting at our main food pantry location, 514 Bay St.  From there, I go to El Centro to check on the delivery.  You see, almost every week we get a delivery from the Food Bank with donated food - usually it's non-perishables like cans and boxes, but sometimes it includes a large amount of carrots, onions, potatoes, etc.  Usually it's enough to stock us for a pantry on both Thursday and Saturday.  Sometimes it's only enough for a Thursday pantry.  Sometimes, it's not even enough for that.  When that happens, the main food pantry supports us with some of their excess stuff.  Often, we have enough stuff in excess that if for some reason we ever don't get a truck delivery, we can open the food pantry anyway.  Sometimes, it's iffy... sometimes, like before this last week, we are well-stocked.  In the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy, the pantry was always well stocked and there was never a shortage.  However, as relief has been cut back, our food pantries are feeling it.  Anyway, I assess the amount of food we have and if we need more, we either get it from the basement or from the other pantry.  The rest of my afternoon is either spent organizing the basement or organizing the upstairs.  That is, until 5:00p hits.

People have been lining up for food pantry since the morning.  We start passing out food at 5:30p, so at 5, the tables come out, food is put on tables and the volunteers get ready for a busy couple of hours.  The normal pantry is: meat (frozen or canned), rice, pasta, potato, fruit, vegetable (fresh or canned), juice, beans, bread.  Sometimes we have cereal, milk, or pasta sauce... and we really never know until the day we get it.  And based on the normal amount of 150 clients, we try to make it last for everyone.  For an hour and a half, we have a pretty steady group of clients that come through.  At 7p (or if we run out of food before then), we pack it up.  The leftovers get taken downstairs, dated and put on the appropriate shelf.

On Saturday, it's an early morning.  I'll usually get to El Centro around 7:30a to make a list of what we're bringing up for the day and to keep an eye on the line.  At 8a, my volunteers arrive.  We form a line and start hauling boxes and bags out of the basement.  They're never lightweight boxes, of course, so we get a workout.  The set-up is usually the same and on Saturdays we usually serve 60-80 people.  The goal for Saturday is to not bring anything back down to the basement.  Anything that is left over, we bring back down... and on Thursday, the process is repeated.

Here are some pictures for you to enjoy :)

This was my first day - when I organized the entire basement for 4 hours.

One day, we got a lot of carrots.

The next week, we got a lot of watermelons.

A couple weeks later, we got a lot of EVERYTHING.

 including fresh vegetables - carrots, onions, cabbages, potatoes and more onions.

Home For the Fourth

As many of you know, I've been able to travel home twice since I started a little over three months ago.  Once was only a month after I left, for a long weekend over the 4th of July.

The timing ended up being perfect.  It had been a long month of missing Eaic.

As well, one of my friends was here checking out apartments and needed a cheap way to get back to Michigan.  It was last minute, so I rented a car.  Megan and I drove the 13.5 hours it took to cross NJ, PA, OH and MI in order to get back to the city of Grand Rapids that we love so much.  It was good to spend that much time with her, but I would pass on that drive again... always.  I would also not recommend it at night.

At any rate, when we pulled into the city of Grand Rapids on Thursday morning, it was all worth it.  I was able to show up at Eaic's door around 8a and surprise him as he was getting ready to go to the gym.  From there, we spent some time at my parents' house and at the movies.  We went to church on Sunday morning.  We went to all our favorite places, but also spent a good amount of time just being in each others' presence and watching "The Walking Dead."

And... on Monday, we said our good-byes way too early and too quickly... and the long journey back to the island began.
I had set up a meeting with a rideshare on the other side of Michigan, so I stopped there to pick him up so I'd have company and a little gas money.  It's like new-age hitchhiking (shhh... don't tell my mom!)  But again, 13 hours is a looong time to drive alone, so it was good to have company.  All in all, it was a good, short vacation and a fantastic way to spend a long weekend.

And, of course, a couple pictures.

Reunited :)

 Lunch at Olive Garden after church - our favorite :)

Just One Meal

About 2 months ago, I began working on the "Just One Meal" Campaign with Project Hospitality.  This is one of my main missions while I am here.

About a year ago, an Americorps Vista was working on this project and she hadn't gotten very far when the unthinkable happened: Superstorm Sandy struck.  To say that normal projects were set aside would be an understatement.  All progress on this campaign came to a halt... except that churches that had signed up were still committed to providing and serving.

So, what is the Just One Meal campaign?

Well, Project Hospitality has a drop-in center for people who need a place to go during the day.  Most of the clients who use this facility are homeless, and the drop-in center gives them a warm place for cold days and a cool place for warm days.  They can also come for a hot cup of coffee, a shower, a change of clothes and just a place to sit in a chair and rest.  On every day, three meals are served for 50-60 clients.

As you can imagine, this is a huge budget item for Project Hospitality.  In order to cut down on the costs, we're partnering with various faith groups on Staten Island to provide just one meal every month for the drop-in center.  Right now, we have four different religions represented in the meals and there's the opportunity for even more to jump on board.  We have also filled half of our dinner-time meals with church-provided meals, cutting the monthly dinner budget in half.

So, what do the churches do?  They cook or prepare 5-6 trays of food ahead of time and then deliver it.  Our staff takes care of reheating it and serving it.  It is quite a commitment for the smaller churches, but it's a way of serving that doesn't take people out of their comfort zones and is more behind the scenes - especially perfect for churches just getting started with their social action or missions groups.  So good.

Sermon from September 1, 2013 - "This Miserable World"

And... the last sermon was a half sharing time/half sermon time for Home Acres on this past Labor Day.  Enjoy!

·         Description of time, space, Project Hospitality and the continued unknowns

o   3 months exactly I began my life in NYC

o   Staten Island is a trip all in itself – follow the blog?  You know I can’t leave the island (due to tolls) – not at ALL like anything you see in the movies or on TV

o   Project Hospitality is like a giant machine – with all its separate parts, functioning and continuing as separate but united entities

o   3 months and I don’t know if I’ve still adjusted – the other day, I found out all about getting my car licensed, insured and inspected per NYS regulations.  I also found out that Project Hospitality has a mobile food pantry ministry.  It’s amazing to know that I’m a part of something so big that I may never know or understand every part of it.

·         Description of what I’ve experienced in my time here: food pantry, furniture delivery, El Centro, FIA groups

·         Tshirt – salt, light, NYC skyline

During His famous Sermon On the Mount, Jesus not only delivered the Beatitudes but also these words.

·           Matthew 5:13-16

From here on out, keep in mind that when I say “you,” I am also including myself.  As well, this is not going to be a full-on sermon… perhaps just more of a devotion… or a challenge, if you will.  I know that last week, Pastor Darrell spoke about being the light and not remaining hidden.  It is my prayer that God’s words and my voice this week reflect and complement the voice and words of last week.

You are the salt of the earth.

An interesting thing about salt is that it is not used for its own sake.  Salt doesn’t really do much for the world on its own.  It is only good when it is applied to something.  I know there are a few youth ministry games that involve eating strange things, but USUALLY people don’t think of just eating salt.  You put it in water to season your pasta, you shake it onto corn on the cob, you bake a small amount of it (unless you mistake it for sugar) into cookies for some reason, you pour it onto ice to melt so that we don’t slip and fall, we gargle salt water for a sore throat.  Did you know that salt can also be used to clean artificial flowers?  Or to remove red wine from your white carpet?  Or to deodorize your sneakers?  It has a lot of uses when it is applied to something else, but on its own does nothing.  When you mix salt with more salt, nothing happens.   

When Jesus tells us that we are salt, He is telling us not to just sit on our butts and do nothing.

An interesting way of words happens here that many often miss.  Jesus says “you are the salt of the earth.”   

Yeah, yeah, we’ve heard this a hundred times… maybe more… but Jesus isn’t saying “you are the salt of your family” or “you are the salt of your friends.”  No.  The earth.  The earth is in a miserable state.  My Facebook and Twitter feed blew UP about Miley Cyrus last Sunday.  You all know what happened, so I don’t need to expound.  However, did you know that innocent Syrians are getting gassed to death?  Did you know that children are being trained as soldiers in the Congo?  Did you know that there are STILL bombs going off in Baghdad?  We know the news around Grand Rapids, but have you thought about the fact that a man was just recently convicting of human trafficking… not in the Ukraine, not in Africa, but RIGHT HERE?  Did you know that 50 years after the famous “I Have a Dream” speech, in a world that many of us want to believe is free of racism, young black and brown men are being stopped and frisked on a daily basis in New York City – simply because of their skin tone?  The earth is in a miserable state.

And perhaps we can view the fact that if we lose our salt, we are going to just be thrown and trampled as a bit, well… harsh.  But honestly, if we lose our ability to affect the world and change it, what good are we?  We delight in the fact that in the gospel of John, chapter 15, we are told that we are NOT of this world --- and if we’re not of this world and we can no longer have an effect on the misery of the world, let’s ask the tough question: why are we still taking up space?

Perhaps this hit you like “girl, I’m trying – I’m doing what I can and I don’t know what else to do.”  Keep going.  Keep on keepin’ on.  Maybe this hit you like “who are you to tell me that I should be doing something?”  Maybe this is not me you’re angry at, but yourself.  Maybe you have no idea why you’re still here and the thought of it depresses you.  Trust me, I understand.  The world is a miserable place and overwhelmingly so.

Let me share a story.  Teo is a day worker in Staten Island.  He’s one of many.  He’s from Mexico, or Honduras, or Colombia.  He came here illegal and remains here without documents.  He stands on a street corner each and every day, waiting for someone to hire him to haul steel, or to clean their yard, or to paint their home – whatever they are willing to pay him for, he is willing to do.  He has family back home in the Dominican, in Ecuador, in Guatemala and one day he wants them to join him here.  He has to lay low because one wrong move could send him back to his home country and all the dangers, all the struggles, all the hopes and dreams that brought him to the USA would be in vain.  And yet, every morning he stops in at a place called El Centro.  At 7a every morning, someone is always there with a smile, a warm cup of coffee and a simple breakfast roll.  For him, I was salt.  I was salt so much so that one morning, he shared his meager breakfast with me: a red tamale, my favorite kind!  He shared his breakfast, his nourishment for the day, with me as a thank you for being there.  It’s the little things.

So, how can we be salt?  Let’s look to one of the prophets.  Micah 6:8 tells us simply that the Lord requires us to “act justly, love mercy and to walk humbly with our God.”

One of our lectionary passages, which are the “suggested sermon passages” that are preselected years in advance, is Hebrews 13.  Let’s turn there, but keep your fingers in the salt and light passage.  We’ll go back there.

·          

Hebrews 13:1-3, 15-16

When was the last time you invited strangers into your house?  I know for many of you who invited CHAOS into your home last year did it with some hesitation – how many? What do they eat? Do they know how to use forks? I joke, but I know that inviting strangers into our homes is something we don’t always do well.  Do you think Abraham and Sarah regretted inviting the three strangers, who later turned out to be God, into their home? 

Or what about suffering with those who suffer?  Let’s get political here.  Did any of you march with undocumented youth at the recent rally here in Grand Rapids?  Did any of you who don’t receive food stamps write your congressperson and tell them that you don’t want food stamp benefits cut?  Have any of you ever put money into someone’s commissary in prison when you think they’ve been wrongly imprisoned?  Have you struggled with someone and suffered with someone as if you yourself were struggling?

My heart broke when my friend Stuart visited me one day and had told me his wife had passed.  You see, Stuart and Kim were married three weeks ago.  They were going to wait to get married in a church go through all of the counseling required by the pastor who wanted to marry them… and with a swift change of heart, Stuart decided they wanted to get married quicker and so they went to the borough hall and had a small ceremony there.  He didn’t want to wait.  And a short three weeks later, she was gone.  There were a lot of sad points of her death – from drug use to hospital oversights, the blame game was played – but for Stuart, all that mattered was the fact that the love of his life would no longer sleep by his side, would no longer be there to make him smile, would no longer listen to his complaining about the world…  I never met Kim.  The only visual I have of her is the open coffin viewing and the way Stuart broke down at her funeral.  To struggle with someone struggling is one of the greatest ways to do good and sacrifice our own desires for another.  For these times, God is pleased.

Let’s go back to Matthew.  Jesus continues.  You are the light of the world.  Jewish people believe that each person has a bit of God-Light in each of them and when they pass, that light continues in the world around us.  Thus, this exalted comparison comes more alive – you are the God-Light of the WORLD.  Not one nation or one city, but of the whole world.  This God-light is even superior to the rays of the sun that we can see just as the salt of the earth is even superior to the strongest of salts you’ve ever used. 

And, so, what do we do?  The world relies on both of these elements.  And guess what?  It’s a charge to all of us.  It doesn’t say “your pastors are the salt of the earth” or “your missionaries are the light of the world.”  NO.  It also doesn’t say “you are the salt, but if you choose to not accept it, you can give money to those who do and that will exonerate you of all guilt.”  This is your charge.  I don’t know about you, but I’d rather not be thrown out and trampled.  Let’s change this miserable world.

Last Saturday, I had the honor of being a part of the celebration ceremony for Sea To Sea – you know, those bicyclists who rode BICYCLES across the entire freakin’ country.  From LA to NYC – 3, 900 miles.  I can’t hardly ride a bike for 10 miles without wanting God to send His angels to carry me away.  They rode through desert, through rain, through hail, through mountains, through Manhattan… for what? To raise over $5 million to end poverty.  When I posted this on my facebook page, I asked the question – what are YOU doing to end poverty.  Excuse me while I boast on my mommy for a minute.  She responded with this: “working to start a new kids feeding program in Ionia/Montcalm Counties called "I'M KIds Food"!!!!!”  And it had 5 exclamation points.  My mom – who is… well, 30 years older than me has retired from teaching so that she can feed kids.  That is being salt.  That is being light.  Let’s change this miserable world.

*****

Oh of course, as I re-read this, not everything came out exactly as written.  Hallelujah, the Holy Spirit moved!!!

Sermon from May 19, 2013

Many have asked for me to share my sermons publicly, in a way in which they can be re-read and re-heard.  So, here you go.  This was my "last" sermon at Home Acres Reformed Church, given during CHAOS Sunday on May 19, 2013.  Only slightly humorous because I came back about 4 months later to bring another word :)

Final Instructions.

So, first of all, welcome to everyone.  It is an honor to stand before you, to teach a message that God has laid on my heart to those entrusted to my teaching one final time.  It is with mixed emotions I stand here – some sadness (and I will try my best not to cry), some joy (although I will also try not to let that show), some worry and anxiety, as well as excitement for the future, mixed with relief that these weeks have finally come.  My mind has truly been a strange place these last few weeks.  

And yet, I am encouraged by these words from Paul to Timothy.  For Paul, this was the end of a very powerful letter and who knew what the future would hold?  Paul, when he wrote this letter, had already been imprisoned once.  For all Paul knew, the Lord would receive him in glory within hours of sending this letter.  He had no idea that there was to be at least one more that we know of… so what do you say to someone when it might be the last time you see them?

I can tell that for most of us, we have things we would have said to people the last time we saw them.  Words of love… words of forgiveness… for some of us, we have angry words that we’ve held onto…  I’ve personally never been so good at goodbyes.  Paul, however, seems to have them mastered.  In many of his letters, he would take the pen from the writer and write out his final blessing by himself, which was apparently a much larger handwriting style, according to Galatians 6:11.  Most of his final thoughts were personal notes and words or blessings of encouragement – grace and peace, peace and grace.  Some, like 1^st Timothy, were opportunities for a recap.  Let’s take a look at his final instructions to Timothy after the first letter.

11: But you, man of God, flee from all this, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness.

When our story picks up, Paul had just gotten done teaching Timothy about false teachers and the love of money.  How those two go together is another story for another time, but Paul calls Timothy a man of God and tells him to flee from this.  How many of us do or want to call ourselves men or women of God?  It’s okay to raise your hand.

So, let’s recap from what we’ve been taught or what we’ve been teaching these last few years.  Recap #1 - Flee from those things.  Flee from false teachers and the love of money.  You don’t need them.  False teachers are hard to identify, but the love of money has a strong grip on all of us.  If you want to be a man or a woman of God, turn the other way.  It’s okay to have money.  It’s okay to make money.  It’s okay to set money aside for your children to use when they go to college.  But to make money our main pursuit in life is not okay.  Instead, Paul tells us to pursue other things: righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness.

Do you remember the hunt for the Egg of Lasting Life?  Mr. Kraig’s character battled stuffed snakes and inflated alligators only to find a giant egg filled with nothing inside.  This pursuit is like that – it’s not for something physical in any sense of the word.  Righteousness is not something I can hold in the palm of my hand.  I can’t put godliness into my suitcase.  These are private pursuits regarding the way we live our lives in reflection of our Savior.  They are not easy pursuits and they are things on which we can always improve.  I’ve yet to meet anyone that said “I have achieved righteousness” or “I could not pursue love or love others more.”  No, while we try to be gentle, we could probably look back on things we did THIS MORNING that weren’t so gentle.

Verse 12 has 2 commands in it.

First, fight the good fight of faith. 

Recap #2 – You will have trouble, but fight the good fight of faith.  Jesus told us in John 16:33 “in this world you WILL have trouble.”  Jesus knew about it, how much more must Paul have known about trouble?  Trouble leads us to have to fight for our faith or fight to hold on to our faith.  Many of us here today know what it’s like to fight against the Devil.  We’ve experienced that with the loss of loved ones.  We’ve experienced that with addictions.  We’ve experienced that with the inability to find stable work.  We’ve experienced that when the teachers challenge our beliefs in front of the class.  We also know that we will continue to face difficulties.  Paul is urging Timothy to not give up.  Keep fighting.  Don’t give up.  Fight for your faith.  You were chosen.  You are called.  God sent His Son to die for YOU.  If that’s not enough to fight for, I don’t know what is.  Don’t give up.

The second command in verse 12 is to take hold of the eternal life.  When God chose us, He offered us the gift of eternal life.  Why, then, do we spend our lives in search of other stuff?  Why do we chase after money? After success? After fame? After the world’s definition of beauty?  Why do we follow our own “Holy Grails?” 

It’s as if Paul’s reiterating his first command: Don’t give up.  Don’t become weary in your struggle and turn your eyes away from what really matters.  The Devil rarely tempts us with things that other people don’t like… nor does he use things that I like.  I mean, he never really tempted me to do homework instead of my devotions.  He didn’t tempt me to brush my cat’s teeth instead of volunteering at a homeless shelter.  Instead, he uses things that would make us happy – things we like.  He uses money, fame and worldly praise, power, temporary highs, etc. to distract us or even cause us to fall away completely.  Don’t give up.  Keep fighting.

Proverbs 4:26-27 --- Give careful thought to the paths for your feet and be steadfast in all your ways.  Do not turn to the right or the left; keep your foot from evil.

All it takes in one step to go in the wrong direction, or in the right direction.  Remember that when things get hard – all it takes is one step to go in the right direction.  You don’t have to go fast, just keep going.

The next few verses makes the editor in me wish that Paul had stopped to take a breath and realized that periods are his friend.  However, as best I can interpret it, Paul is urging Timothy to remember that command.  Remember to take hold of the eternal life that he was given and to uphold that pursuit to the best of his ability until the returning of Christ.  He points out that God – the One who allowed water to flow from a rock, the One who tore the curtain of the temple, the One who showed up in a whisper, the One who put bones together to form a great army – the God of the Universe, is watching us.  Paul also reminds us that God’s Son, Jesus Christ, gave the good confession before Pontius Pilate.  In three of the gospels, Jesus remains silent in Pilate’s questioning, but for The Gospel according to John there were a greater number of words exchanged.  Jesus responds that His kingdom is not of this world and that He was born and came into this world only to testify to the Truth.  The same Jesus who made this confession before Pilate, had His sight on Timothy and has His sights on us today.  If you ever feel like you’re a “nobody” or that nobody notices you – recap #3: You are in God’s sight.  You are in Jesus’ sight.  You are not alone.

Now, I never went to school for sermon-writing, but someone once told me that a good sermon has 3 points.  I’m sorry, but I’m going outside the box here.  4 recaps are a good number for me.

Recap #4 – place your hope in God, do good, be generous and truly live. 

Verses 17 through 19 say, “Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share.  In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life.”

We have seen the uncertainty of wealth.  There are some in this congregation who lived through the Great Depression.  There are many in this congregation who were hit by the Great Recession starting in 2007, when the unemployment rate peaked at 10% in 2009 and the US GDP dropped by more than 5%.  Many who were putting their hopes in their wealth, or were arrogant in their stability learned what Paul meant when he said that those things are uncertain.  And yes, some of us faced sad reminders in our own lives and the economy rocked our boats… maybe even more than a little.  Some of us, learned what it meant to rely on God in new ways.

Instead, be rich in good deeds.  Be generous.  Share what God has given.  This will not only lay a foundation for the financial future, but also for your faith, for your children’s faiths, for your life.  God has called us to live.  I have a love-hate relationship with the phrase “YOLO.”  I mean, honestly, it’s so 2012, but I can’t help but reference it here.  God has called us to truly live the life to which He has called us.

...

Benediction.

OH hey, and as some of you might be wondering, today is Pentecost, why didn’t you talk about Pentecost?  Well, this is the day the church celebrates the coming of the Holy Spirit.  Honestly, how fitting, because in Acts 1 Jesus’ final words were telling the disciples about the coming Holy Spirit.  And since His final words were instruction telling them that with the power of the Holy Spirit, they would be witnesses to the ends of the earth… so too, will you.  Through the recaps that we talked about, with the Holy Spirit within you, may YOU be witnesses to those you come in contact with each and every day.  Grace be with you.