Encouraging churches

Script:
Hello, Andrew Terry here for The Refuge Homeless Shelter of Lapeer.

These videos that I do will be your news regarding The Refuge. We will talk about needs, talk about events, and highlight some good things that we see happening in our community.

I hope to do these videos once a week, and plan on doing it live every Wednesday.

This is an avenue that has not been used before by The Refuge. But, I pray it will be used as a tool to raise more awareness of The Refuge in our community. So, please do like, comment, and share these videos as much as possible.

One question I have for you, is, were you listening to WMPC, 1230 am Tuesday morning? If you were, you might have heard my wife, Tabitha on the radio talking about The Refuge. She did a great job, and the host Greg was gracious and very professional.

One thing to note, Tabitha did get our phone number incorrect. The phone number for The Refuge is 810-356-9880. There you can reach me, the manager, Tabitha, The Refuge Church Coordinator, Wade Jenkins, the manage for the Gather Place, and Laurie, who will be assisting in volunteer recruitment.

The season for The Refuge begins November 18, and our board is working hard to make that day a reality. Currently we have 16 churches that has said they will partner with us this coming season and host The Refuge at their church. To get us through to the end of March we have 19 weeks to fill. We need churches to step up and host.

If your church is not hosting, find out why. Many churches have legitimate reasons for not hosting. One is they don't have the facilities. Another, they don't have the volunteers.
One why you still can help, is, if you have the facilities but no volunteers, we can help you connect with other churches who have volunteers. If you have the people and no facility, we can help you plug into another church that has the facilities.

The mission of The Refuge equip the churches of Lapeer County to provide shelter for the homeless, and promote the gospel of Jesus Christ. We want the churches to come together and present the body of Jesus Christ as one, being the hands and feet of Jesus as one.

Let me read to you a passage from one of my favorite passages in the Bible, Eph. 4:1-5

"As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. 2 Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. 3 Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. 4 There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism;"

Will the church have humility to admit they need help helping the homeless in Lapeer county?

Will the church have gentleness, patience to work with other churches to see the homeless have shelter in the coming season?

Will the churches be eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit to help those in need?

I encourage you to get involved with The Refuge, and encourage your church to host this coming season. Go to our website, www.therefugelapeer.org and take a look at our resources and see how your church can get involved. You can also message us on Facebook, or call Tabitha at 810-356-9880, ext 2.

The question of the week is: What would you do if a person who looks "homeless" comes to your door asking for money? Look for the post on our Facebook page and join the conversation.
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This is Andrew, signing off – Seek justice, love mercy and walk humbly with your God.