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So, what’s the big deal? You hear people promoting financial stewardship and budgeting classes… why does that apply to you? You are making ends meet, got a little savings, give to the church – why bother with all that? Is it really worth it? Let me tell you a true story…

Steve and Marie were your typical young couple living the American dream. They’d worked hard in school and both had good jobs. They had a car loan, an old owned vehicle, a few student loans, and were one year into a 30-year mortgage on their “fixer upper” house. They would describe themselves as “frugal”, but they could never resist a good deal…especially if they “needed” it for the house. Now they had a baby boy and Marie had stopped working to stay home. Being on one income was way more tight than they’d expected. Marie was the one who kept the check book, and the generous amount she put into savings at the beginning of the month was consistently being taken out at by the end – plus some. Their savings was dwindling and she was getting stressed. They had always regularly tithed to the church, but sometimes that was getting skipped to make ends meet.

Steve, ever the answer man, checked Dr. Google for help. He signed them up for a one-day class by True North Financial Ministries. Marie, who was not fond of change and was not thrilled to add budgeting to her duties, reluctantly went along. By the end of the day, they were both hooked. She and Steve went home, and within a month had a working budget.

Fast forward 12 years and 2 more kids. The car and student loans are paid off, and there is only 4 more years left on the mortgage. They’ve bought 3 vehicles with cash since they started budgeting, plus they are tithing 10% and giving beyond that. Their dreams are being funded AND they are content, closer to each other, and closer to the Lord than ever.

So, what happened? Did you spot the change? Was this an excellent example of human perseverance or was it something else? What you didn’t see in this story was what was going on in their hearts over those 12 years. With a big kick-start at the class and then gradual transformation, Steve and Marie’s hearts started lining up with God’s plans for them.

They realized that they (and we) are not owners but stewards of God’s resources. Thus, we GET to prayerfully and carefully use His money, talents, and time for His glory and His plans. And when we trust him, we get to see his faithfulness over and over!

Do you have a dream – something that God has laid on your heart to do? Likely money has at least a little part in that. Want to not only live for God on Sunday, but really trust God in in all parts of your life? Submit your spending to Him! You will never regret it!

Visit our Life Resources page to learn about True North Ministries and all the resources available through MCC to support you and your family.

I know our Lord knows, I know He is at work, and I have watched Him work in electrifying ways. But sadly, at times, I forget. Yet, He is so good to remind me again and again. Have you been there too?

As I see our Food Pantry ministry ebb and flow I try to remember when it flourished and how the Lord used this ministry to serve one woman in two distinct roles. I will call her Jance.

Jance had been blessed by the Food Pantry for years; she would come and I would take her downstairs and load her up with groceries. Sometimes she was jolly, sometimes cantankerous. But early one summer day she showed up and said she wanted to manage it. She knew that it needed some oversight and I was grateful.

The transition from partaker to dispenser was touching; she patiently sat through training, absorbing every word. Her pen ran out of ink as she took notes, she prayed, and asked really good questions.

The next week, she showed up at my desk and announced “I am going to be here on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 1 – 4. That’s when the Food Pantry will be open. I need copies of the intake forms, and I am going to make some calls. Does the phone downstairs work?”

I was stunned. “Yes, the phone works. But it’s pretty hit and miss when people come for food,” I warned, “I would hate for you to sit there.”

“Don’t worry, I have been praying. I know the Lord will send me people. Now, I need to make some calls. Is it open?”  I nodded and handed her the forms and a clip board. She cadged a few cookies and skipped off.

I prayed too. It was rare to get more than one family a month for the Food Pantry. But I forgot that we have a Lord that hears and desires to have His children serve.

At the end of the first day, Jance returned my clip board and handed me two neatly filled intake forms. “I had the best time!  This one was a couple on bikes that are heading to Canada. We had to pick kind of carefully. The other one was a single mother. I really like doing this! I like to hear their stories. I get to tell them about Jesus.”

I was stunned; two random families in one day? Wow! And she had seized the opportunity for the gospel too!

Jance blossomed that summer. She made connections with farmers for fresh vegetables, with a duck owner for fresh eggs, and most of all, she was enveloped in being a blessing to other people.

The Lord didn’t forget her prayers; that was the busiest summer that the Food Pantry was in use.

But the biggest change wasn’t in the Food Pantry, it was in Jance! Instead of holding back and being sometimes befuddled, she was lucid and engaged. Instead of being isolated, she prayed with and for people. She remembered their names; and she was smiling.

Like so many things, it was for a season, and like all seasons, the leaves began to crisp, the faux-sunflowers began to crumble, and the mornings began to frost. Jance’s health declined with the waning warmth. She finally agreed to a co-leader, and then had to step away completely.

But I will never forget the year that God used the Food Pantry to transformation Jance’s heart, attitude and life!

We have had other volunteers since then, and they use some of Jance’s policies but right now, there is no one to manage and oversee the pantry. And the Lord no longer brings a lot of people to it. I find that I pray for those days, for another person to be called and blessed by this ministry. Would you be the one?

In the Spring of 2016, Ellen felt like God was calling her to contribute something to the MCC family that had been her church home for just a year. 

Although she had attended both Catholic and Lutheran churches, she considered herself a new Christian.  After years as a nurse, always on-call, she didn’t feel like she was able to commit a huge amount of time to ministry, but she knew that she wanted to serve somehow.

And like He often does, God opened a door!

Ellen heard about the need for a volunteer at the Farmer’s Market held in MCC’s parking lot. She thought, “I love Mountain Christian Church, and like talking about tomatoes, so I thought it would be a good fit!”

She was a little nervous on her first day volunteering. She asked Pastor Frank, “Do I have to sing? Do I have to dance? What should I do? I’m not sure if I’m ready to be a witness for Christ yet!” Luckily, Frank’s response was that she just needed to be herself!

Isn’t that what God calls us to do; to be genuine, honest and available? As we allow relationships to grow, we find that by being available, we have the chance to share the Gospel.  

You see, the Farmer’s Market ministry isn’t about tomatoes, farmers or selling honey. It’s about building relationships, it’s about building community, and most importantly -- it’s about allowing God to use you when the time is right!

Each week before serving at the Farmer’s Market, Ellen lifts this prayer up to God, “Guide my hands, Lord. Lead me to those you want me to speak to. Holy Spirit, open my eyes and my ears that I would be aware of how you might use me today.”

What would happen if we each lifted up that prayer every day? Imagine the ways that God would use us; if we only made ourselves available.

In the end, Ellen said that it was the Farmer’s Market Ministry that has grown her as a Christian……not the other way around!

It’s easy to enter into a new endeavor thinking we are going to completely rework it, rebuild it, or change it; and then before you know it, it transforms you! That’s God’s work in us.

Look for Ellen, and other MCC volunteers, at the Cedar Crest Farmer's Market beginning June 7th in the MCC parking lot!

 When a fellow church member asked me several years ago to volunteer at Care Net Pregnancy Center as a counselor, my first response was “No … I can’t possibly counsel a pregnant teen … I have never even been pregnant … How can I possibly help?” 

My hesitance was reversed when I learned that Care Net provided training for volunteers.  I then realized that if Care Net was willing to take a chance on me, I would be willing to serve.

You see, my serving through Care Net has brought me full circle. I can look back now and see how God has transformed me throughout my walk with Him. How God used my past experiences to shape how I now serve Him.

When I was 17, with no gospel foundation, I took a friend for a pregnancy test.  She was not in a stable relationship, she was young, and she was afraid. But after she tested positive, I, in all my youthful wisdom, I “counseled” my friend to have an abortion. 

By God’s grace, she absolutely could not.  And now, 35 years later, I’ve witnessed my friend’s devotion as a single parent and I am blessed to know her beautiful daughter.

I stand in awe of God’s plan for my friend and for me, knowing this could have been a very different story. 

Care Net has thousands of stories about women and children whom they have loved, served, counseled and stood alongside.  Stories like Jenny’s:

“Jenny” was 15 when she came to Care Net for a pregnancy test.  The test was positive.  While a CN Advocate talked with Jenny about her plans to continue school through the pregnancy, Jenny’s mother arrived at the clinic unexpectedly.  The Advocate assisted Jenny in sharing the news with her mother. 

Despite the mother’s ‘worst nightmare’ fears, our Advocate was able to describe what Jenny and her baby’s future could look like: “In three years, Jenny will be walking across the graduation stage with your 3-year-old grandchild to pick up her diploma; can you picture that?”  After a moment’s pause, Jenny’s mother slowly smiled and said “Yes. I can.” Today, Jenny is continuing her education and continues to benefit from Care Net counseling and resources.  As Jenny’s Advocate told her mother, “Your daughter is NOT going to let this stop her from achieving her goals and dreams; God has a plan and a future for this child.”   

My story is full circle.  From a naïve 17-year-old, full of false wisdom, to a dedicated servant of the Lord, assisting young women to make Godly decisions in the place I was least prepared to.  How has God used YOU where you least expected it? 

For more information about Care Net and volunteer training, please go to http://carenetabq.org/