Watch until the clouds open and the moon shines

More than three years ago, at a deacon meeting in the church where our husband and wife pastored, the chairman said unceremoniously: “We don’t want pastors to spend their time on ministries that have no contribution to the church and are meaningless, especially You cannot use the church budget to spend money on people in the restaurant industry.” I was excited at the time and mustered up the courage to answer: “What do we care about, are those people useful to the church? Or are their souls as valuable as ours?”

Protracted War of Resistance

At present, many church leaders interpret ministries based on the "interests" to the church. Some churches even use the high "return rate" to determine whether it is worth the investment. Of course, there are also pastors who pity and care for the lost souls and are willing to rescue them, but they are unable to do so. The gospel ministry in the catering industry is a ministry that cannot see results in the short term. I call it a ministry that requires "long-term resistance."

Before we were called, my husband and I had run a restaurant for twelve years, and we knew very well the boring and boring life in it. Many of the current generation of service providers have left their hometowns and come to the United States alone. In addition to carrying heavy debts, they also face the challenge of changing majors and constantly learning new skills. Many difficult problems arise in their lives. In a strange environment and a strange language, all the beautiful dreams in the past were shattered in the exhausted days.

I used to be a restaurant worker in the past, so I can understand their hard work and mood. After many days of prayer, we started a restaurant fellowship. There were no co-workers except us and my wife. And we know that this ministry is difficult to convince with words in the deacon meeting, but must be proved by "achievements".

Thanks to God’s guidance, after more than three years of hard work, finally, over the past six months, we have begun to “harvest”. Now, every Wednesday and Sunday evening, we lead Bible studies in two different places. We abandon the method of casting a net and focus on personal growth. The meeting time is fixed, and the total number of people in the two places is only more than thirty. However, the attendance is stable. They are familiar with hymns and biblical truths. What is even more thankful to God is that they have also begun to donate money seriously.

At first, when we decided to join the meal ministry, we did not expect that we would not only lead Bible studies, but also help them face issues such as identity, health, family, marriage, raising children, etc. After going through these days, I personally have a little bit of experience, that is, before joining the meal blessing ministry, you must first be mentally prepared for a "long-term resistance war" and endure it to the end, so that you can wait for the moment of harvest.

Want love, help, teach

There is another point of experience that Savage revealed and proposed to share with colleagues who hold the same vision:

First, love them. If they don't feel fully accepted and cared for, they won't be interested in the gospel. People today do not just listen to what we say, but watch what we do. In the beginning, we often brought gospel tracts from "The Bugle Monthly", "CITIC Monthly", "Feiyang Association", etc. to restaurants to see them and care about their health, family, and work. Gradually, we became friends. .

Second, help them. This is very time-consuming and labor-intensive, but only after going through this process can we gain their trust and have the opportunity to preach the gospel to them. Such as: transporting people to and from doctors, helping to read bills, translating letters from the immigration office, contacting lawyers, etc., and even rushing to deliver medicines and groceries when someone has a cold, toothache, stomach cramps or childbirth, etc. We are nannies and Like mom.

Finally, teach them. In fact, when we love, care for, and help them from the bottom of our hearts, they are usually convinced. At this time, it is not so difficult for them to listen to the gospel. At this time, we will teach them the basic truths and the Bible-based ways of living in the world, thus making us teachers for them to know the true God. thank God! God’s thoughts are higher than our thoughts. When we are willing to put our whole heart into it, we will surely see God make a way.

When church leaders saw the changes in the lives of these people, they were willing to donate. Even if they could not come to the church to participate in the service, they would always do their best without any hesitation when needed. When the fruit grows, the church leaders will naturally gain confidence and will definitely modify their initial prejudices and be willing to participate in this ministry.

Cheers to the harvest

Restaurant friends, Thanksgiving is the only day off a year. Last Thanksgiving, we rented a tour bus and took everyone on a trip to the Grand Canyon. In addition to personal sermons, everyone sang hymns along the way, listened to short messages, watched video testimonials, and made delicious home-cooked lunches. Everyone was enjoying themselves. Those who hid at home playing mahjong and didn't want to go, later heard about it and regretted it. On Thanksgiving this year, we held the first special restaurant fellowship meeting in the church. Four brothers and sisters were baptized, worshiped with songs, broke bread and received the Holy Communion. Then we gathered around the table to enjoy hot pot, and everyone was very happy.

Nowadays, whenever there is a special event in the church, just make a phone call and the restaurant owner will immediately deliver delicious and larger meals, which is more than enough for the church. All kinds of beautiful testimonies are enough to convince church leaders to cooperate with us and participate in service together. Although the brothers and sisters had no time to help, they could not stop praying to support us. We often bring up our needs in prayer meetings. We have many co-workers in the spirit and we do not feel lonely.

In the past three years or so, I have been walking on the path of meal blessing ministry, and I am full of God’s grace. I have nothing to boast about. When we are willing to obey God’s leading, even if there are many difficulties in the process, if it is from God, He will protect us and take care of us to the end. As for what model and method should be adopted, it actually varies from person to person and from place to place. However, the principle is the same: first pray and seek God’s guidance, obey God’s guidance, and be completely surrendered.

Colleagues who are interested in joining the gospel ministry in the catering industry must not be discouraged. When the time comes, there will be fruits, harvests, and joy!

Author profile

Pastor Pan Wenhou, from Taiwan, believed in the Lord in 1984 and was called by God in 1992. In 1995, when her husband Wang Shoucheng was called at a mission conference organized by the Christian Messengers Association, the couple resolutely put down their stable careers. The next year, they both went to study at the Singapore Theological Seminary. Pastor Pan and Pastor Wang currently pastor the Christian Mandarin Church in Tucson, Arizona.