One of the most fun outreach/mission events of the year has been the “Back To School Book Bag/Supplies Give Away”. We partner with our James Island sister church, Emmanuel Baptist Church located on Folly Road. James Island Outreach helps by hosting the event and by getting the word out that the school supplies will be available. Sounds like a winning combination…as it was last year. We gave out over 200 book bags filled with requested school supplies and had enough left over to take some to an under-served school on Johns Island! Yay God.
Now, here comes the momentary wrinkle in a wonderful plan. ChickFilA, that we all love, asked if they could join us on the school supply giveaway this year. Our understanding was that they would provide all 200 book bags and all the supplies! Wow! Let’s order some waffle fries and a sugar free frosted lemonade! The pastors from Emmanuel checked with them regularly and were told everything was good. With less than 9 days to go, they checked one more time, this past Friday, only to be told something had slipped through the cracks and they did not have any supplies. Oh my. With 2 or 3 weeks to go, I had no doubt our JIBC family and friends would be able to pick up this fumble and score big! With our sister church, Emmanuel, in two weeks, we could make this happen. If they took 100 and we took 100, this would be a done deal. And, Emmanuel is providing 200 hotdogs, condiments, and cooking and JIBC is providing drinks, water and chips for 200!
OK, now let’s do all that in 6 days with tropical storm Debby threatening to bring 30 inches of rain to the Holy City between Monday and Thursday with Charleston’s Mayor asking us to not be out on the roads!
I said to my sweet wife, “I just can’t ask them to do that under these conditions”. Her faith response was “Tom, you know our people love a challenge! Go for it.” So, go for it we did. We announced Sunday morning the challenge ahead and before the second service had started, people from the first service had already gone out and started buying! They came in with bags. Our friends Eric, Christen and Isaiah Luh sent a loaded box from Michigan. We will be collecting until Friday afternoon around 3. Then anyone who would like to help pack the bags is invited to the Bag Packing Party at the Church! Supervised kids and supervised adults are welcomed! Whoohoo.
“They love a challenge” she said. I usually don’t like it when she is right and I am wrong. This time I love it. Thank you, babe, for being such a wonderful follower of Christ and ministry partner.
Pastor Tom
