For years and years, I “talked the talk,” but didn’t “walk the walk.” I encouraged the people around me to get those outside of the church to participate in projects we sponsored that were designed to help others in the community – with food, clothing, gifts, and more. However, I was guilty of never actually doing that myself.
Over the past few months, I have been privileged to have walked 
the walk. I invited my Toastmasters Club (a training group for public speaking) to join me in collecting food for The Narrow Door – who provides food for many in the Coachella Valley. Yes, I got creative in my asking, by tying this activity to a PR project that everyone in Toastmasters had to complete at some point. The results, though, were amazing. The club jumped on board, and we collected over 100 pounds of food. Everyone expressed the joy at being able to help others in need.
The past few weeks, we have been able to distribute blankets, socks and other personal items at our Wednesday Night Dinner and Bible Study to the guests who predominately live outdoors because one of my friends worked with her fellow gym members to collect these items. Giving away blankets and socks was especially intense for me because we meet outside for these dinners and I whine because I’m cold. When I look around the group and realize a good portion of them don’t have a nice warm, safe place to sleep that night, and these items will provide a little break from the cold, I am humbled.
These are just two examples of Christians and non-Christians working together to bring food and comfort to those in need. It opens the door for us to share the love of Christ with not only those receiving but also with those giving the gifts.
Now that I’ve walked the walk – I feel better about asking you to do the same. Step into the caring opportunities that your church and para-church ministries organize, by including people outside of these circles to participate. Since we all like to feel useful, and in turn, we need others to care about us, these events open doors to talk about a living faith while having fun. How are you walking the walk?
