Feed My Sheep

If you love me, feed my sheep…

A neighbour of ours is always dropping off goodies/baking for our kids. It’s so sweet (figuratively AND literally!). I was chatting with her husband one day and mentioned to him just how appreciated her generosity is to our kids, and how kind to go out of her way to bless them with treats. He told me a story about how she went to church when she was a little girl and the preacher was teaching from the book of John about Peter. 

Do you remember the story? Peter had denied Jesus 3 times, just as Jesus had predicted. When Peter had his moment of repentance, Jesus replied 3 times with the question, “Do you love me?” and after Peter replied, “of course I do!”Jesus then said, “feed my sheep.” Well, that day when our neighbour was sitting in the pew listening to the preacher, he happened to look directly into that little girl’s eyes as he exclaimed, “If you love me, feed my sheep.” In that moment as a small child she took it as a direct mission from God to feed His sheep. Ever since then, every opportunity she has to provide food for anyone, she will take it. Even as a non-believer that message still rings true to her to this day, and our family is often the beneficiary of that mission! It’s amazing to see how the words of Christ penetrated that little girl’s heart and impacted her for a lifetime. 

Last week, Pastor Mike talked about food insecurity in our Valley and how our CPC food bank is overflowing with food. I wanted to take a moment to share a little more on the topic as there are many others in our community who, like my neighbour, are taking the mission of loving and caring for those in need very seriously…and doing a fabulous job at that! 

Our very own CPC’ers Chad and Tanya Hooker are the presidents and co-founders of Bread of Life Food Share in Black Creek and now Campbell River. Their services provide fresh and non-perishable groceries to any and all who may have long term or temporary food needs. And they do it in such a beautiful and dignifying way. They seek to remove the stigma surrounding food insecurity by providing a shopping experience where people can come in and shop just like any other  grocery store, with no judgment and receive high quality fresh foods that so many other programs aren’t able to provide. The amount of people that they are able to help in our region is staggering! 

Another way they are making an impact is through their food share program in several churches on a weekly/bi-weekly basis. Have you ever seen a table in our front lobby on Sundays that has a bunch of food spread out? Yup, that’s the food share! The food they share in our very own church on Sundays is for ALL. The whole purpose of it is to safely provide an opportunity for anyone to grab a loaf of bread or yogurt container without any stigma attached. You may have seen the table and wondered why it’s there… well, it’s there for you! So, next time you see the table set up, help yourself. You may or may not have a serious need. Maybe a sandwich or deli salad would just make your Sunday lunch prep just that much simpler - help yourself! In doing so, you’re actually helping remove any worry from the person next to you, who may have a very real need, that people may wonder about them if they go to the table. 

Make sure to meet Chad and Tanya, it’s hard to miss their smiling faces there each week. If you’d like to give towards their program or get involved in volunteering you can visit their Facebook page: Bread of Life Food Share (black creek) or of course, chat with them on a Sunday. And, if you are in need of help, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us at the office. As Mike said, we have food available for you and other resources to help. 

Much love and many blessings, 
Pastor Laura