Giving Back

Feb 12, 2023 | by The Fellowship

The opportunity to participate in ServeFest each year has The Fellowship’s congregation spreading out like an army to be the hands and feet of Christ to our greater community.  It is the one Sunday each year where worship services are not held, but instead we give honor and praise to our Lord by serving those who need a helping hand or Christian service organizations that can benefit from a fresh infusion of eager volunteers.

The project my LIFE Group got assigned involved painting and repair work on the house of a godly women, Ms. P., who has lost most of her eyesight due to long-term health problems.  Before the Sunday designated for ServeFest, we visited the site a couple of times with a to-do list in hand and saw a few additional things that needed tending to.  One item was a sewer drain issue that we dealt with during the week before ServeFest. The plumber who opened the drain (and gave us a significant discount) has a leading role in this story. 

This project was covered in prayer by Ms. P., our LIFE Group, and by many individuals in our church.  It took three workdays to complete all the items on the list.  The Lord graciously provided everything that was needed.  He sent a great team of people, just the right number each day, to do the work.  These generous and loving servants brought their hearts, joyful attitudes, and the skills and tools that were needed to get the job done.  Thank you, Jesus, for providing so many timely answers to our prayers. The End? No! There is more to this story.

On Christmas Eve, just after noon as my family and I were driving to Austin to celebrate the Lord’s birthday with our relatives, I received a call from Ms. P's fiancé that a pipe was leaking in their ceiling. They had no choice but to shut off the water. This was during that cold snap that brought several days of very hard freezes.

I thought about how they would have to spend Christmas and who knows how many days without water.  My worldly brain kicked in as I wondered, "Why are they calling me?  What can I do about this?"  Nothing, of course!  But God can!

Pulling off the highway, we started to pray.  A thought came to me to call the plumber who had cleared the sewer drain line.  They remembered our project and were genuinely concerned.  Expressing a desire to help, they regretfully told me of being swamped with repairs of frozen pipes. But they promised to let me know if one of their plumbers became available. Their suggestion was to call around. I tried several plumbers in Katy and West Houston.  Some actually answered the phone on Christmas Eve!  But none of them could help for several days.  There was nothing we could do but pray some more.

I felt prompted to call our ServeFest plumber back.  Miraculously, they now said it might be possible to get out there that evening and would keep me posted!  About 8:30 p.m., I received by text an invoice for the repair. Though a pretty large bill, it was not too bad considering they were working on Christmas Eve.  At the bottom of the invoice, it said: “Discount -- minus the entire amount.”

I was so amazed and called them to express my appreciation. Their reply was that the Lord had blessed them so much, and they try to give back as much as they can.

During the repair, they also found another issue in the attic.  The water heater was leaking which could cause a huge issue at any time.  As if their generosity was not enough already, they replaced the water heater at no charge the week after Christmas. 

God is so great!  He is unbelievably generous and His Spirit alive in His people inspires extraordinary selfless giving.

C. H.

Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think,
according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and
in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.
Ephesians 3:20-21