Editor’s Note: This story comes from a minister (and camp director!) at First Christian Church in Adel, Iowa. Look for more stories in future issues of the DT Express or on our Shared Spirit page — and, please submit your own stories

Author: Tony Thurston

Lisa and I just returned from our annual stint as Directors for JYF Camp #4 in Newton that ran from July 11—17. It was a Powerful, Rewarding, and Tiring experience again this year. Since 1998 we have directed this camp for 3rd thru 5th graders and we have enjoyed every minute of it. It seems that most of us who are involved with kids, either raising them or shepherding them, find that it isn’t very often that we get the opportunity to do “big picture” thinking with them. There just never seems to be enough time. We offer bits and pieces and snippets to them in our children’s sermons and Sunday School lessons and some short sit-downs with our children. But many times the kids are distracted and we’re lucky if we can just get one point across to them.

But church camp is different. While they are here the kids are removed from the T.V., PlayStations, and school activities, and they can focus and learn in a more leisure and fun atmosphere. At camp learning takes place through fun activities and relationships. This year we had 80 kids and 16 counselors together in a beautiful and fun camp setting. It was powerful and rewarding.

The theme for camp this year was “God is Bigger”, and we encouraged the kids to expand their concept of how they understand God. We based it on the old story about the six blind men who tried to describe an elephant that wandered into the village. One man felt a leg and said that and elephant was like a tree trunk. Another felt the nose and said an elephant was like a big snake. Another felt an ear and described an elephant like a large fan. And so on. The point of the story, of course, is that because the men could not see the whole elephant, they could not experience what an elephant was really like. Maybe if they sat down together and discussed their own experiences with the elephant, and combined them, they would have a more complete accounting of the creature called an elephant.

We all have our own experiences and descriptions of what we think God is like, and so do our children. But GOD IS BIGGER than all those human descriptions we have come up with to describe Him (Is God a “Him”?). At camp we tried to get the kids to think of God as a rock that we can build our life upon, a loving parent that we can listen and talk to, and a friend and companion that can walk with us through the green pastures and the dark valleys, and other ways we can look at and experience God.

Think about how you would describe your experiences with God, and talk to your kids about them. Maybe you might find that “GOD IS BIGGER,” and you will enlarge your understanding of God.

Submitted by: Nancy Brookhardt

At Broadway Christian Church in Council Bluffs, IA we have a potluck meal, available to any and all every Wednesday night. It began in 2004 with 20-30 in attendance and we just served soup and crackers, but we got tired of making soup, so now there’s a great variety of foods. Some are made by our members, some by folks who were our guests and have become an integral part of our church. Some is pre-made foods from the local food bank or grocery stores.

The meal is advertised by setting a wooden sign on the church lawn. Folks from all walks of life come. Some are employed, some are not. Some have homes, some do not. Some have much, some do not. Some need a meal. Some enjoy good health, some have permanent physical and mental restrictions that require them to have full-time caregivers. Some need company. Some need a place to belong and a way to serve others. Of the 80-100 people who come each Wednesday, only about 15-20 are the folks who also come to Sunday morning worship.

This past month we have baptized two people who attend on Wednesday night and will be baptizing two more in the near future.

What we discovered is that this is not “Soup Supper”, but rather this is Wednesday Night Church. We pray, we gather around the table for fellowship, we break bread together. We have a Bible study following the meal. We began kid’s activities last fall.

The other amazing thing is that no matter how many people come, we always seem to have enough food. God provides and there is enough (the parable of the fish and loaves)!

From Dennis C Duvall

This past Sunday 04/25 this note was passed to Pastor Mike Armstrong. Today Sunday April 25, 2010 for the month of May the Disciples Men’s Group, the Disciples Women and the Duvall family have combined to purchase (37) $ 10.00 gift meat certificates for the Sacred Heart Food Pantry 14th & Brady Davenport, Iowa.

For the year of 2010 to-date (86) of these $ 10.00 gift meat certificates, will have been given to the food pantry. Last year a record (96) of these certificates were given out. As you can see we are excited, that we are on course for another record year by far.

Thanks to the Disciples Women, Disciples Men, and all the known and anonymous individual donors

A Little Background

Many years ago Nancy, my wife and I were giving a gift at our anniversary, which is Thanksgiving time. Years married x our 3 children. One year we ask our pastor (at the time Fred Marsh) what else we could to help. He directed us to the local food pantry which at the time was at The Sacred Heart Cathedral, thus the name Sacred Heart Food Pantry. It seems there was a niche that was not being filled. They had very little freezer space especially during the holidays. The idea: gift meat certificates redeemable at local grocery stores was a need. At the time there we no plastic gift cards, only paper, and the food pantry could stamp the cards “meat only”, and the cards took very little space at the food pantry.

Originally we used the Eagles just north of the church on East Locust, and we only bought a few at Thanksgiving. Later we included Christmas. A few years went by at we moved up to a quarterly basis, About this time Eagles, Hy-Vee and Fareway switched to plastic gift certificates and they would not designate meat only items. A change had to be made. We visited Ye Ole Smokehouse at Marquette & West Locust, a ma & pa type business. We made the switch. By this time we were up to $ 7.00 per certificate and purchased 6 every other month. A year went by and one day the business, they informed us that the owner (St. Ambrose University) would not renew their lease. The search was on to find a replacement. In our minds we still needed the old paper type certificates, because we did not want the recipients to be able to purchase tobacco, liquor, or pet products. We wanted to stay with the original thought of supplying meat products and still taking up no space in the pantries freezer.

In November of 2008 a new home was found to purchase these gift certificates Golick’s Meat Shop corner of East High & Bride, just to the S.W. corner of Genesis East Hospital here in Davenport. During that time the Duvall family had moved to 6 $ 7.00 every month, then 8 $ 8.00 certificates monthly. Last year 2009 the family moved to (8) $ 10.00 certificates sometime during the fall of the year. Just prior to the Thanksgiving Holiday 2009 word got out in a bigger way that this mission excited. Only a few in the congregation new of its existence prior to that. Since Thanksgiving 2009, the Disciples Women and Disciples Men Groups have each promised and are delivering in their promise of (50) $ 10.00 gift certificates each. Many individuals have purchased 1, 2, or more certificates. I have had anonymous gifts, which were left at the church office or other places.

From a humble beginning this mission, which was quite small in its beginnings may top more than (110) $ 10.00 gift Meat Certificates in 2010. I am grateful that the needy and hunger of Davenport, Iowa benefit, if only in a small way of our Gift Meat Certificates.

Respectfully

Dennis Duvall
Member
First Christian Church, Davenport, Iowa

[Editor's Note: This story comes from a member of First Christian Church in Davenport, IA.  If you want to read more stories like this, visit our Shared Spirit page -- and, please submit your own stories]

[Editor's Note: This story comes from a member of First Christian Church in Des Moines, IA. It was shared through the "Come Sample Simply Stories" event on March 20, 2010. Look for more stories from that event to show up on our Shared Spirit page -- and, please submit your own stories]

Author: Terri Holmgren, windyhillt@aol.com
In December, just a few days before Christmas, an 84 year old man from our church was a victim of an attempted carjacking.  He was knocked down, from behind, on his way out of a local grocery store.  He refused to get in the car with the attacker.  His attacker drove off, went a couple of miles, pulled over, and shot himself in the chest, committing suicide.

The attacker was 37 years old and left a wife and a couple of small children.  Our church member immediately opened up a fund to help his attacker’s family.  Less than a week later, he was in church, making a request for our members to help fill the fund for this man’s family.  He started the fund with $500.00 out of his own pocket.  That is a lot of money fro someone who is 84 years old.  Our fund resulted in nearly $6000 for his family.

Our church member said, “I feel sorry for him. He must have had reasons for going through all of this. My line of thought is that he probably was a decent person and he needed some money, fast.”

This man is a perfect example of our church’s ministry philosophy.  If someone needs help and we can help them, we do.  We endeavor to find a way to love them the way Jesus told us to.