Sunday April 13th we held our first of many community outreach events on the Klove Hope Center property. After a week of working together on the building, our team as well as leadership and members of Detox church and other local partners gathered together for something new, exciting and maybe a little bit risky. We gathered before the event as a group and prayed. For the community to be open to us, for real life change to begin and for those in our new neighborhood to come to know Christ. God showed up in a big way and answered all of those prayers and so much more. By day’s end we had fed, clothed, prayed with and loved on more than 100 of our newest neighbors. Wether beckoned to the property by the smells of food on the grills, the sounds of music and laughter, the tugging of the Holy Spirit or simple curiosity, the people showed up more than we could have ever expected. While some teams worked to hand out clothes or supply bags to neighbors in need, other teams bonded with the children over crafts and game, and still other teams lead evangelism through prayer and the sharing of the Gospel. One of our team, a 14 year old named Faith was able to share her testimony and the Hope and love of Christ with a neighbor who simply drove by to see what was going on. Any doubts we had at the beginning of the day on how we would be welcomed were so quickly washed away. One traveler shared it was an “If you build it, They will come” sort of day. However we tend to think it is more of a if you follow Him, He will provide type of event. That is what Hope is built on and what we will continue to do at the Klove Hope Center.
