Twenty-some years after the Hope/Zion Food bank began providing food to needy clients in Oshawa, things are still being tweaked to make it as good as it can be. The latest “tweak” happened last week when Pastor Dan Zylstra came up with the idea of providing a worship service before the doors open at 11 a.m.
“I was having a bit of a tough time sleeping last week,” Dan explained. “I was thinking about being missional, about how we want to build relationships so that it’s not the volunteers and them, but ‘us’”.
“I was especially concerned with winter coming on,” Dan continued, explaining that the line up often begins two hours before the doors open because of bus schedules or wanting a good spot in the line. “And then it hit me. Why not offer a worship service so that people can come out of the cold and build relationships with God, each other, the volunteers and me? That was Wednesday night. The next morning I thought, Let’s do this. So I put up a sign and invited people in and three people came, two men and a woman.”
Pastor Dan received musical help from Glenda, a flautist and member of Zion CRC. They sang Christmas songs, listened to the Christmas story and listened to the clients as they shared their personal concerns and struggles.
For Marie, who has led this ministry for most of these years, this was an exciting development. She has always hoped that the food bank would do more than just provide food. “Imagine,” she said, “our clients will now be touched by the Word of God and have a stronger sense of fellowship.”
Now Marie is hoping and praying for one more exciting development at the Food Bank – a successor to replace her as Food Bank Director when she retires at the end of December.
As for the three clients’ place in the line, the numbers given out as clients enter the church kept their spots secure.
- Pastor Peter
“I was having a bit of a tough time sleeping last week,” Dan explained. “I was thinking about being missional, about how we want to build relationships so that it’s not the volunteers and them, but ‘us’”.
“I was especially concerned with winter coming on,” Dan continued, explaining that the line up often begins two hours before the doors open because of bus schedules or wanting a good spot in the line. “And then it hit me. Why not offer a worship service so that people can come out of the cold and build relationships with God, each other, the volunteers and me? That was Wednesday night. The next morning I thought, Let’s do this. So I put up a sign and invited people in and three people came, two men and a woman.”
Pastor Dan received musical help from Glenda, a flautist and member of Zion CRC. They sang Christmas songs, listened to the Christmas story and listened to the clients as they shared their personal concerns and struggles.
For Marie, who has led this ministry for most of these years, this was an exciting development. She has always hoped that the food bank would do more than just provide food. “Imagine,” she said, “our clients will now be touched by the Word of God and have a stronger sense of fellowship.”
Now Marie is hoping and praying for one more exciting development at the Food Bank – a successor to replace her as Food Bank Director when she retires at the end of December.
As for the three clients’ place in the line, the numbers given out as clients enter the church kept their spots secure.
- Pastor Peter
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