Saturday Deed & Truth moved our 17th family of 2020 and turned their house into a home. I was “moved to tears and full of joy” was the line that stuck with me. Although the family was super thrilled that quote didn’t come from them but a volunteer who helped them move in.
Jason, Samantha, and their son Nathaniel were overwhelmed by the love and kindness of our Deed & Truth team and they were deeply appreciative. But the sentiment that lingers for me was from a first-time team member who walked away so inspired by the experience.
“It’s hard to explain the feeling when you give of your time to serve others. While I tend to think that I am the one giving the gift, it turns out that it is a gift for me, from God. It is extremely powerful to watch Him in action in a tangible way and be moved to tears and full of joy in the same moment. It is a life-changing experience for everyone and I am grateful to be a part of the journey for this family.”
The wisest human to walk the planet put it this way, “When you refresh others you too will be refreshed.” – King Solomon (Proverbs 11:25)
Last weekend a group of friends helped turn an empty apartment into a beautiful home for a family who had been experiencing homelessness. They had lost their jobs, fell victim to hopelessness, and turned to drugs for relief. That landed them as a family of three sleeping in a truck parked on the side of the road. One night a flashlight woke them up and the policemen informed them they couldn’t stay there but that they knew of a place they could go if they wanted help. They ended up at the Orange County Rescue Mission in a recovery program.
Jason and Samantha found hope. They soon married, joined the program, recently graduated and both found employment. Samantha works at a recovery program herself and Jason has a job he really loves in construction as a glazer. Nate loves attention as well as dinosaurs and dragons. When asked if he liked to be called Nate or Nathaniel, he replied, “Neither, I like to be called Dragon Warrior!”
The Davis family was greatly refreshed. But so were the first time volunteers. We have a mutual friend who knew of our ministry and wanted to rally her friends to be a part of it. She recruited a group of women from her women’s bible study and they started collecting used furniture. Eventually they got some of the husbands to provide the muscle for the move in and it all came together so beautifully as you can see by the photos below.
This is a story of life-change. Life change for this precious family that were once homeless but now have a beautiful home. But also life change for some volunteers who had a heart to help the hurting but just didn’t know where to start. Deed and Truth provides a bridge to connect the hurting with the resourced. God does the healing and the process brings refreshing for everyone involved.
Do you have a heart to help the overlooked and under-resourced? Do you have some friends who feel the same way? We can offer you this same experience. We can offer your group an opportunity to care for the hurting in a powerful and practical way.
Deed and Truth is looking to partner with teams of people who will come along side a family and help them turn their house into a home. We vet the families through the rescue missions and help graduates of their Christian Recovery Programs transition into more independent living. We also provide opportunity to stay connected with these families to supply a more complete support system when they need it most.
Please pray for Jason, Samantha, and little Nate. Pray for beautiful things to happen in this beautiful space they now call “home”. And if you’d like more info contact Betty at betty@deedandtruth.org for help on forming a team of your own. Then get ready to be “moved to tears and full of joy!”