HCLM BLOG

Thursday night I was picking up the leftovers from Panera across the street from church. I really didn’t want to. It was a long day. I had just finished a meeting and wanted to go home. Esteban, our student ministry intern who also works there while going to school, texted me and asked me if I could do it. He had arranged for us to be the recipient of those gifts starting tonight. There I ran into one of the workers and through our conversation said that she was looking for a church to go to. Even I can walk through a door that is open that wide. In the course of our conversation, she shared that she had to drop out of school to care for her ailing mother. She works on Sunday mornings but was looking for a place to belong; I imagine looking for hope and support. I thought Esteban’s team would be perfect. I invited her. I knew she needed to finish her closing responsibilities but I didn’t want to end our conversation using a Christianize phrase, “I’ll pray for you.” Then I thought of another team, led by Michelle Bergman. Once a month, on the first Thursday, they break from their routine of praying through our prayer list to hold a prayer service so we can specifically pray for healing. I got over my fear of rejection and also invited her and her mom to come on November 4. She had tears in her eyes. I hope she comes. More importantly, I hope in those few moments, that she felt as if God was connecting with her.