Spring 2008 Report

Kathyline found comfort from Filling The Void.
See her story below.

TRADING PLACES

Filling The Void has been out on the streets every week this year. Our volunteers have already distributed 2,475 sack lunches. Kathyline, pictured above, hasn’t received a single one.

Last year was a little different. She used to come out to the clock where we serve – all for the company and the encouragement.

“I called it my church. I came to hear the sermons before they gave out the lunches,” says Kathyline.

“The subjects really hit home. It was like God touching us. I just needed to hear something. I couldn’t wait to get there,” she said.

Kathyline found courage, and then she came across a job offer that she couldn’t refuse, even though it keeps her away from our weekly Wednesday outreach.

In essence, she’s gone from being in our crowd where we prayed with her to serving a crowd during the lunch rush at the downtown Arby’s – the same location where we purchase our sandwiches.

Call it irony. Call it divine intervention. Call it a path of progress for a friend of our ministry who is now contemplating the pursuit of an associate’s degree at Wright Business College.

What we’ve learned from Kathyline is that what we do isn’t ever about a handout – it’s about extending a hand of love and friendship. God can use that – such a simple act – to lift up a life.

FILLING THE VOID: PART TWO

Our Denver outreach is officially off the ground and running. April showers – snow, not rain – gave way to crystal clear skies and 40-degree temperatures for our April 17 outreach in the Mile High City. Watch our next issue for more details!

SOMETHING SPECIAL FOR SEPTEMBER?

16,587 – that’s how many lunches we’ve passed out since we started more than four years ago. At our current pace, we should eclipse the 20,000-mark sometime in September.

READY, SET, STUFF!

The youth group and the young at heart at Tulsa’s Central Church keep setting new speed records when it comes to assembling our sack lunches. On March 30, they filled more than 1,500 bags in almost an hour flat.

"UNCLE" SAM – AS IN WALTON

Our friends at the Wal-Mart Foundation always make our day. We just received another $1,500 grant from corporate headquarters, courtesy of the kindness of a local store manager who puts in a good word for us when he gets charitable funds for community causes.

PUTTING IT ALL IN PERSPECTIVE

The body of a 20-year-old homeless man was recovered by Tulsa police in a southside creek on March 18, according to a local media report. We continually pray that those we serve can find victory instead of being a victim of life on the streets.