Brothers and sisters,
It’s that time of year again. Super Bowl Sunday is quickly approaching! When I watch stuff on YouTube, I’m getting ads that say, “See the full version February 9th during the Super Bowl!” So, understand, that means I’m getting a commercial that advertises an upcoming commercial! And, of course, the matchup for the Big Game has been set—a rematch of Super Bowl LVII, the Philadelphia Eagles vs. the Kansas City Chiefs with the Chiefs chasing three Super Bowl wins in a row, a feat never accomplished in NFL history.
However, earlier that day, our church will be pursuing its own kind of repeat. On Sunday, February 9th, immediately following worship, we will be hosting our second consecutive Souper Bowl of Caring luncheon! Kathryn and others in our church have been planning this event for a while now and it sounds like it’s going to be a wonderful time! We’ve already got lots of different kinds of soups coming—chilis, chowders, and even a vegetarian option! We’ve got sandwiches coming, too, as well as a variety of desserts. All this will be happening in our Fellowship Hall. Everyone is invited—if you come to worship, if you don’t come to worship, if you brought something, if you didn’t bring something, family, friends—again, everyone!
We are not charging anything for lunch, but we will be accepting monetary donations (cash, check, or card) and all donations will be split between two organizations we’ve partnered with in the past: Urban Ministries of Durham and Baptists on Mission. Just in case you’re not familiar with what all they’re doing, let me tell you a little bit about each one.
Urban Ministries has a mission statement on their website that reads, “Urban Ministries of Durham connects with the community to end homelessness and fight poverty by offering food, shelter and a future to neighbors in need.” The list of ways they help our community is impressive. They provide shelter. They have a clothing closet. They have a food pantry. They provide three meals a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year to folks in need. And, having gone with volunteers to deliver food for our ACC Tournament Food Drive (more details on that in the weeks to come), I can honestly tell you that they do connect with the people they serve. They are a wonderful resource for our neighbors in need and a great partner in ministry.
Baptists on Mission continues to do good, long, difficult work in the western part of our state. Hurricane Helene may have hit four months ago, but the recovery effort is still ongoing. There are still folks out in western North Carolina who are without the basics—water, shelter, electricity. Volunteers have poured in from all over the state, but the geography of the mountains makes it such that everything is just a little bit more difficult than you’d think. That being said, Baptists on Mission is committed to staying and helping the people for as long as it takes. So, it makes sense to do what we can to continue to support their efforts.
So, on February 9th, come eat soup, sandwiches, and desserts. Fellowship with your brothers and sisters here at Hope Valley. And consider making a donation to help our neighbors here in Durham and in western North Carolina! Also, go Eagles!
Grace and peace,
Pastor Ben