“So don’t worry about these things, saying, ‘What will we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear?’ These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your Heavenly Father already knows all your needs.” (Matthew 6:31-32, NLT)
When there is an outstanding list of needs, whether big or small, it is all too easy to spiral into what-if’s and worries. Thankfully, there is not a single need the Father does not know about or care for. History has shown us over and over again that He will faithfully work behind the scenes to provide, advocate, and mobilize people for His Kingdom work. At 111Project, we get the joy of witnessing story after story of God using the Church to help children and families in crisis. Many times, when we see a need posted on CarePortal and fulfilled, we come to see the ways the Father had been mobilizing obedient men and women to take steps that contributed to fulfilling that family’s need, long before the request reached CarePortal!
On February 22nd, we saw an example of this take place in real-time at a Pottawatomie Community Gathering. Central Oklahoma Regional Manager, Misty Seale, prepared to lead the monthly Community Gathering for Pottawatomie County and printed out a list of agenda items to go over with the attendees, including a review of all open CarePortal requests in the County. There were four open requests at that time: two different clothing requests, a crib/crib mattress need, and a request for a washer.
Before Misty could even get to the point in the agenda dedicated to reviewing the open requests, Kay Hawkins, Point Person at Life.Church Shawnee, fulfilled one of the clothing requests. Shortly after, Meredith Bailey, Point Person at University Baptist Church, met the second clothing request. The group began to dialogue about the crib/crib mattress request when Jamie and Aaron Hembree, Point Persons at Heritage Church, met the need. Within minutes, three out of four open requests in Pottawatamie County were met. All that was left was the CarePortal request for a washer. As the attendees problem-solved for this need, Danny Napier, Pastor and Point Person at Rock Creek Baptist Church, exclaimed to the group that he had a used washer he had been wanting to donate! From there, Judy Sherrin, Point Person at New Hope Baptist Church, volunteered her truck to both pick up and deliver the washer to the family in need. In only ten minutes, Pottawatomie County had zero open CarePortal requests, thanks to the collaboration and mobilization of these men and women.
Little did anyone know, the Father had already provided for these four families’ needs. He made arrangements for their provision long before they were scheduled to be discussed in person at this Community Gathering. Despite how easy it is to worry about our own needs and the pressing needs of others, this story reminds us that we do not have to, because our Heavenly Father truly does know all that we need and is faithful to work behind the scenes for the good of His children.
Do you want to help us change the landscape of child welfare in Oklahoma? Everyone can do something! Whether you are an individual, a family, or a church body, you can enroll in CarePortal and begin meeting requests in your area. The process is simple, quick, and completely free of cost to you. Click the links below to learn more about becoming a CarePortal responder or how your church can partner with 111Project! Also, be sure to check out our Events page to see if there are any Info Meetings, Community Gatherings, or County Launches happening near you.
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