Pastoral Page

2024 was a big year for our Christmas Hamper initiative at GCA. We had the privilege of blessing over 80 families with overflowing Christmas hampers! These went to four different schools in SW Calgary as well as a low income housing complex in Woodbine.

 

Being in my first year in this job, I was both excited and intimidated to take on this project. I was immediately blown away by the generosity of staff, parents and students who gave so much time, prayer and resources to ensure each hamper family encountered the love of Jesus through these gifts. For that, I want to say a massive THANK YOU and share a story of one of the hampers I got to deliver.

 

Since God’s covenant with Abraham, we have seen that God’s heart for His people has been to bless them, so that they can be a blessing to others (Gen 12). I understand this to be an invitation to a holistic blessing of others - both physically and spiritually. This meant that we wanted to spend as much time praying for these families and hampers as we did planning them.

 

When I finally got to the delivery date of my hampers I had been praying for open doors to connect more deeply with the families, not realizing I would need the Holy Spirit to also help physically open the door. My interactions started with the grandma simply yelling through the door wanting us to leave it there and go away. As I prayed for a softening of hearts, she finally cracked open the door so I could meet them. The tight space and clutter made it difficult to get even one of the four boxes into the home, and she didn’t want to trouble me to come into their home. After a few more minutes getting to know more about her story and her family’s situation she let me carry one of the boxes into their home.

 

I offered some encouragements and she continued to share the hardships her family is going through. As we talked, I could see the Holy Spirit change her posture and countenance on her face. She began to show trust and let me bring the rest of the boxes into her home. We were in no rush, so she invited me in and I had the joy of praying for her. Immediately tears flowed the Holy Spirit ministered to her and Jesus began to reveal the love that He has for her and her family. She sensed the peace of Jesus, had a renewed hope, and gave me a huge hug.

 

When we say yes to an invitation from Jesus, He can quickly take us from yelling with a stranger through a door, to praying with them in their kitchen and starting a friendship. The beauty is that this home is only a couple blocks away from where I live, so we are already seeking to make plans to continue building relationships with this family that simply needs to know that there is a God who loves them.

 

There are plenty of stories to go alongside this, with so many families and schools showing their deep appreciation and gratitude. So once again, thank you. Thank you for praying, giving and helping to share the hope, love, joy and peace of Jesus to those in our communities. If you have any stories you’d like to share from your hamper experience, please let me know!

 

Pastor Josh