Hope House: Our Necessary Calling

"Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for......" (Hebrews 11:1)

I just returned from a montly board meeting at Hope House.

The name, 'Hope House' is a perfect description of the ministry that is provided for the homeless of Manitowoc County. As I write this, fourteen individuals refer to Hope House as being their home. Three families are on a waiting list.

I am grateful for our church's involvement in Hope House. The Church that is faithful to Jesus Christ cannot turn its back on the poor. There are about ten churches in Manitowoc County that are working together to provide the ministry at Hope House.

Our church provides volunteers for Hope House about once every ten weeks. Some of our volunteers prepare and serve dinner. Some of our volunteers offer to offer to be overnight chaperons at Hope House. And still others contribute to Hope House by offering financial support.

Hope House is a necessary ministry of the church. In the Gospel of Luke, Jesus is recorded as saying, "Blessed are the poor......" In his parable of the Good Samaritan, Jesus commends the compassion of the person who cares for the person who is 'beat up and left half dead' along the road between Jerusalem and Jericho. And in his great message in Matthew 25, Jesus said, "As you have done it onto the least of these, you have done it onto me."

Being part of the church would be easier and less threatening if we were not called to go with Jesus to places where people are struggling to survive. Hope House gives us an opportunity to make our faith more relevant in this world where there is pain, loneliness, and lots of vulnerability. I appreciate our congregation's volunteers who have extended themselves beyond their comfort zones for the sake of Jesus Christ.

What is keeping you from being involved? The next volunteer training session is January 16 at 6:00 p.m. at Hope House in Manitowoc.