Soup and Serve Testimony

Soup and Serve Testimony

I have found it difficult in our modern age to find safe and meaningful ways to serve others with my young kids. That’s why I wanted to share about Soup ‘n Serve, a Women Ministries event hosted this fall. It was an afternoon for women to gather and serve other women! I thought it would be a perfect event to do with my daughters.

Samantha, my 10 year old, and I packed a bag of essentials for women at Hope House and Theodora House. As part of the packing we were encouraged to write a note to the woman who would be receiving it. After the first bag was finished, Samantha jumped in with gusto and took over the entire process for the woman at Theodora House who would receive our bag. In fact I was banned from having anything to do with writing the note! She chose a beautiful verse of encouragement and followed that with these words:

“Please never forget how much God loves you.

He is never far away and will always love and believe in you.”

My friend, Glory, goes to Theodora House faithfully, leading bible studies and got to be a part of the team that delivered the bags to the women. After church she shared with me the rest of the story.

After gathering all the bags, dinner and other donations together, the team prayed and headed out. They set up the dinner and during the meal told the women that they had some goodies for them – which got them excited!

The pink bags had been stashed away until the appropriate time. I wish we could have recorded their reactions to receiving what was in the bags. They were so grateful – they kept thanking us. One lady in particular came up to Glory crying as she showed her the card that was in the bag. She said that the bible verse and the words expressed on the card was something that really touched her heart. And Glory got a glimpse of the handwriting – it was a child’s writing. You see the woman at Theodora House needed the soap and razors, shampoo and brush for her body but her soul needed the note.

God’s timing is amazing – and who he chooses to use is not limited by age, talent or gender. He is limited only by our hearts.

Now, Glory and I don’t know for sure that it was Samantha’s note that made it to that specific woman, but we rejoice that the words of our daughters and the actions of their hands extended the arms of Jesus to a woman in need.

~ Cheryl Meakins ~

Soup and Serve

 Soup and Serve was a great time of fellowship and meeting new people.  Our Women Ministries team put in so much effort to make this happen!  Thanks Gals!  We started the event with time to meet other women.  We enjoyed great soups, breads and desserts for lunch.  Kinsey gave a short devotional about Ruth and Naomi and the value of friendship and mentorship. 

Then we started our service projects!  We heard from the Missions Sewing Circle.  They showed us how to "rip and roll."  We ripped sheets and rolled them into bandages to send to medical clinics in the Congo. 

Hope House shared their heart for the teen mothers in our area.  They are instrumental in providing them support and hope for the future.  What a great way to show the love and heart of Christ.  We made "Mommy Bags" for these teens.  Our girls at this event helped paint the canvas fabric of these bags.  Then they went on a "treasure hunt" to find the right items to fill the bags.  Everything from shampoo to lotion to Children's Tylenol was put in the full bags.  To finish the bag they wrote an encouraging note to the teen mother.

Theodora House is a ministry in Denver that ACC supports.  Women from our church help prepare meals and take them to Theodora House where they spend time talking with homeless women.  Many of these women have been in abusive situations.  Theodora House provides not only shelter and food for these women but also provides help and resources to get them back on their feet.  We filled "Purses of Love" with all types of toiletries and supplies for them.  Here's an example of  one note written by a 10 year old from our church to a women at Theodora House:

"Please never forget how much God loves you.  He is never far away and will always love and believe in you"

It warms my heart!  What a great event!  I love that so many girls and women from our church took the time to serve women going through challenging circumstances!  Check out the pictures:

Our beautiful centerpieces with a verse from Ruth:

 Merry works her magic in the kitchen:

Kathy and Kiesa putting the finishing touches on food and decorations:

Our helpers...maybe future Women Ministries leaders!

The gals from the Missions Sewing Circle display their quilts:

Women Ministries gear:

The items donated by the women in our church that will go into Purses of Love and Mommy Bags.  It took forever to set up.  Glad to have the team to help!

Cards wait for the girls and women to write notes of encouragement for the bags:

Now that the set up is done, time for fellowship, food, and service!

Linda and Kinsey lead us in a time of food and connection before doing a devotional on Ruth and starting the service projects.   

Women writing notes for the Purses of Love:

 Love the finished project:

Painting supplies for the Mommy Bags:

The finished project! We had to wait overnight for them to dry and put the supplies in.  It was worth the wait!  Our girls did a great job!

Rolling bandages to send to the Congo:

The finished product:

Thanks to all the girls and women who came to serve!  We love that we were able to pair a time of food and connection with a service project.  Great way to spend a Sunday afternoon!

Fall into Fellowship

We are thrilled to be supporting another local business for our Fall into Fellowship! 

Join us at 3 Sons for a great time of food, fellowship, and teaching!

Date: October 10th

Time: 1-3 p.m.

Place: 3 Sons - 64th and Indiana

Cost: $14

Buy Tickets in the Family Life Center between services or in the church office during the week!

Learn how to connect with Women Ministries and Small Groups! This is a great way to meet people and deepen friendships!

See you there!

Get Connected!

Getting connected with one another seems to be the theme this fall! Not only did we have a great sermon series on community but we also were able to talk about relationships with one another and with God at our Fall into Fellowship.

Our festive table decorations:

Getting set up for the event!

DiCicco's provided a great atmosphere and amazing food for this event.

Our Chair and Co-Chair, Cheryl and Kinsey, give us the scoop how to get connected with Covenant Women and in our church. In Covenant Women we have upcoming events like Chrismons, Advent Brunch, Triennial, and Break the Chains, just to name a few. In our church there are over 20 small groups, activity groups, and Bible studies for women. We appreciate all the women who lead these groups. They are providing ways for us to be in community with one another and to get connected in our church. Each leader present was able to share about their group!

Cheryl shared a great message on Proverbs 4:23: "Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life." God calls us to guard our hearts, but there is a difference between guarding your heart and being guarded. Cheryl took us through this verse word by word to get a deeper understanding. Here's a piece of the talk that hit home with some of the women.

Past hurts with God and others can cause a break in our community and relationships with one another. Cheryl used the analogy from Proverbs 4:23 that our heart is our well-spring (our stream) to further apply the message to our lives. When you think about sitting by a stream one of the first things that comes to mind is the sound. The sound of a flowing stream is so peaceful.

We will all get rocks in our streams from our hurts and disappointments in life. Yet those hurts (rocks) can be something God can use to form and shape our streams. Those rocks can also be an experience in our lives that God uses to draw us closer to him and to minister to others. God can use rocks to change the course of our stream and thus our lives. While this process can be painful, think about what makes the stream sound so peaceful? The water flowing over the rocks!

God wants to be our water and flow over our hurts, insecurities, and disappointments. When we allow God to flow through those hurts, we can then be available to guard our hearts, yet not be so guarded that no one gets in! We challenge you to allow God to flow over your rocks and make the sound of a peaceful stream. It will never be easy, but it will be a worthwhile journey. It is our hope that we can continue to foster friendships and community with the women in our church and community. You may get a rock or two thrown in your spring along the way, but thankfully that is not the end of the story for our "stream." It is just part of the journey.

Enjoying the food, the speaker, and the chance to meet new faces!

Getting Connected:

A special thanks to all the women who helped with this event! We had several people help set up, clean up, serve cheesecake, showcase our fundraiser, take photos, and the list goes on! We appreciate you! We also appreciate all the women that come to these events. Thank you for making the effort to connect with other women in your life!