Week: July 2 – July 8 | Gleanings for the Hungry

Just this week!

582,000 pounds of peaches processed and drying in the field

19,163 pounds of dried peaches packed up and ready to ship

40,214 pounds of dried peaches sent to Children’s Hunger Fund

A big thank you to all of our volunteers who made this week a success! Bible Fellowship Vancouver (Surrey, BC), East Olds Baptist Church (Libby, Montana), the Paul family, the Timonin family, the Pekary family, and all of our short and long term volunteers, staff, Summer Staff, and backpackers from Mexico, Malaysia, Japan, Columbia, France, and Peru!

Thank You! We love each and every one of you!

LOVE FEAST SPEAKER: RICK ALONZO

Every Friday night during the summer we have a special dinner called Love Feast, where we decorate the tables and celebrate our volunteers. After dinner we listen to a guest speaker.

This week we heard from Rick Alonzo, who shared his testimony through three paintings:

First Painting: A boat in the storm with Jesus calming the waters

“When we go through hardships, we panic,” Rick said.

“The disciples went and woke him, saying, ‘Master, Master, we’re going to drown!’ He got up and rebuked the wind and the raging waters; the storm subsided, and all was calm.” Luke 8:24

Second Painting: An eagle soaring above the storm

“They didn’t understand who this man was, Jesus, the all-powerful who can calm the storm. This is why I painted the eagle flying through the storm,” Rick said. “The storm is still there, but the eagle flies above the storm.”

“Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!” Mark 4:41

Third Painting: Jesus’ face looking down from the cross

“My message is this,” Rick said. “What you believe about Jesus Christ is going to affect your entire life. … If you are seeking the Lord, I promise you this: you will find him.”

“And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:7

When Rick lived in the Philippines as a child, he experienced what it’s like to have no food to eat.

“Sometimes I would starve three to four days in the Philippines. But my parents would pray. My dad stroked my head and said, ‘I want you not to forget God.’ [My dad] said this because he knew I would face difficult times. Now, what my father did for me, I do for my son.”

Rick didn’t want to go to church as a kid because he was afraid of the statue of Jesus on the cross, the eyes of the statue always looking down at him. But now he paints that man on the cross as a part of his ministry to this “visually-minded generation.”

“I used to think I had to be clean to come to God,” Rick said. “But God says, ‘No, you come to me just as you are and I do the rest.’”

“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans 5:8

SHARE THE LOVE

Saturday mornings we have an open mic for our volunteers to share what God did in their hearts and lives during their time here at Gleanings:

“You can really feel the sweet love of Jesus here.”
“The Lord is teaching me just have peace and don’t worry too much about the things that have passed, or the things that are coming. Focus on what’s in front of you now.”
“He reminded me that I need to be defined by what he says about me and not by what other people say.”
“We might live our whole lives not knowing how we’ve impacted someone.”
“All of the sudden I just had this overwhelming peace.”
“I cried the moment I came through the gate [because of] the overwhelming presence of the Lord.”
“You are world changers—you are heroes. Every single day that you are here, you are heroes.”
“When I see what God has done in this place, Gleanings, my heart is filled with so much hope for the world.”
“It is so much fun—the joy of accomplishing something together.”
“Thank you for not just serving Gleanings, but for serving God, and serving the poor.”