Why do churches always condemn instead of helping?

Some people are like me. They go to church to try to find a way to keep their sorry sinning self out of hell. They pick the church they imagine will give them the best chance of avoiding that eventuality.

But some people just want a warm coat, a warm meal, and a warm place to sleep. Folks without jobs, clothes, food, and a place to live sometimes find it a little difficult to focus on spiritual things. Especially in the middle of a Michigan winter. Those people should show up at Cornerstone Evangelical Presbyterian Church for an event on Jan. 30 called Livingston County Community Connect.

To the best of my knowledge this event will feature no hell fire or brimstone. No one will agressively interrogate those who attend about the eternal destiny of their immortal soul. No one will even be taking up an offering.

Instead, people in need will receive practical help with stuff like housing, health care, legal matters, food, and clothing. Just like they did last year, and the year before that. They were able to get help because of the members of Cornerstone Church, 2/42 Church, the Knights of Columbus, and hundreds of other local folks.

In 2008, 297 people from Brighton, Howell, Fowlerville, Pinckney, and Hartland, and the surrounding area were helped. Of those, 74 were children. More people will need help this year.

2/42 Community Church is conducting a clothing drive for this event. They hope the event will be a demonstration of God’s love in a practical way.

The United Way is sponsoring this event, which will serve hundreds of local families. They need friendly people to be hosts, set up, and provide other general assistance. Call Donna Gehringer at (810) 494-3000, email her at dgehringer@lcunitedway.org, or click here. 

As for me, I’m going to go clean out my closet for that clothing drive. To try to keep my sorry sinning self out of hell.