I had planned on spending the morning at Christian HELP answering phones to learn what needs were in our community at this time. God had another plan for me.
I arrived at Christian HELP at 9:15am - just in time for their morning gathering round the little table in the kitchen to pray. We lifted each other up in prayer and the clients that would be coming in for various needs. As I made my way to the front desk to man the phones, Kristy Owens, our Director of Operations asked if I would be willing to do some Employment Counseling with the clients as we were short staffed. When something unexpected happens I am keenly aware that God may have something to show me and I jumped at the chance.
I only saw four clients today but what a cross-section of our community.
My first client was a lovely young lady who was attending college to get her degree but was looking for a part-time job to help her with her basic bills. We did a job search and I found two leads for her to walk away with and she was able to get some groceries from our pantry.
My next client was an elderly couple (65+). They had both been out of work for a year and his unemployment checks had once again stopped and they were hungry and scared. They had no family, only each other. We did a job search and found some leads but my hope for them was small. Who is going to hire someone that age? The husband looked frail and was asking for mechanical leads. He had his resume with him and was so earnest about finding something. Our volunteer who assists with resumes was there so I asked him to help my client as well. We prayed and they received bags of food to put in their car. Later I spoke to Kristy saying I felt we were not able to help them and she explained to me that we were. Christian HELP is independent and we have the discretion to serve those who we feel are in need. The groceries that we were able to give this couple was a dire need that we were filling and one we are able to continue to fill, the other need was just spending time with them, listening to them and praying with them. There are not many places out there where this couple can go and receive that much needed attention.
My third client was a lady who was able to help herself but was not doing so. She had been seeing us for over a year and was not following up on the job leads we were giving her. I had to explain to her that we were not helping her move forward and that she needed to seek out other agencies that may be a better fit for her.
Lastly I had a well dressed, educated women who came in for the first time. She had been out of work for 4 months and was feeling a little discouraged. Her experience was good and we were able to find very promising leads for her - it was rewarding to see her leave feeling more encouraged.
I love things to be black and white. I love to know if you are looking for a job we help you - if you are not we don't. Well guess what.....life is gray......there are people out there who don't fall into certain categories. This does not mean they do not deserve to be helped. I am totally against enabling people to be dependant but seeing this need this morning helped me to understand that God has us here for many reasons, not just one and we need to let him guide us to show where He wants to use us.
I also realized our logo - Christian HELP (Hope, Encourage, Love & Prayer) was right on the mark and being carried out every day!
Jackie Normand
Ministry Development Director
Thank You
Thank your to all our donors who make this Ministry possible. Please feel free to visit us to see God's work in action.
