October 2006 Report

Meet Doy, 66. You've read about him in our reports before. Now you can see him face-to-face. Please pray for him. He suffers from arthritis in a hip and from alchoholism. We've also encouraged him to take up residence at a local shelter to fight off the coming cold weather.

RICHARD: UNRESTRAINED

We’ve learned a lot about boldness from Richard, 47. He’s a one-man ministry machine when it comes to telling people about Jesus. Ironically, he’s not a volunteer – he’s one of the people we serve. But he loves to pass out the Bible verses we bring to our outreaches. And instead of singling out those with torn and tattered clothes, he slips the scriptures to absolutely anyone and everyone on 3rd St., including those who are clearly dressed for success in their business-best. We were amazed. And we imagine they were, too.

THE GENEVA CONVENTION

We went outside on Oct. 18 simply to serve sack lunches. Instantly, we found ourselves at an impromptu meeting of epic proportion. Four people – Tanya, Ramona, Dave and Daniel – were gathered around a lady in a wheelchair watching her self-administer a test for hypoglycemia, a condition that can occur when a person hasn’t eaten. Her name? Geneva. She definitely was blessed by the food in our bag.

COMING FROM OKEMAH

How far would you drive to help someone? Before you answer, let’s tell you about Mary. We met her at our outreach on Sept. 13. She didn’t come for the food – she came looking for her son, who lives on the streets. She found him that day – and obviously she found us, too. Since our encounter, Mary has taken off work several times just to volunteer with us. To do so, she drives 65 miles from Okemah.

UNITED, ALRIGHT

Never discount the impact of a divine appointment. That’s how this ministry got started. And something very special happened on April 19 that is still bearing fruit today. Mike Milliken with Samson Companies was seated next to Kelly Swan with Filling The Void on United Flight 521 from Tulsa to Denver. The two of them struck up a conversation and agreed to touch base again – almost every Wednesday. Mike now volunteers all the time and has personally recruited a slew of other Samson people to help, too.

KINDNESS UNDER COVER

More than 50 people gathered early underneath some trees on Oct. 25, seeking shelter from the rain and watching and waiting to see if we’d show up with lunches despite the weather. When we did, our sermon speaker spotted a lady (Traci) near him getting wet. He gave her his umbrella and began to speak. Rather than using it for herself, she huddled close behind him and held it out over his head while he preached. He didn’t even realize it until she incidentally tapped his shoulder. He said it was “so humbling to see that kind of love.”

CANDY CRUSADERS

In addition to sack lunches, we offer the good news of the gospel at each outreach. Our goal is to teach the Bible in practical, creative ways. On Oct. 4, we passed out chocolate M&M’s as we looked at Psalm 119:11. It says, “I have hidden Your word in my heart, that I might not sin against You.” The letters on the candy served as an acronym for how to “hide” God’s word – by Memorizing scripture and Meditating on it.