…Donna (one of the women in our group) has started making a list of her neighbors who need help on projects around their homes. One of those people was a woman who has gotten to the point where she can no longer bend over to do work on the ground, her husband has passed, and she has no family in the area to help. Additionally, the City has been pestering her about some of the peeling paint on her home.
So we went over to brush and repaint her foundation wall.
Almost 20 of us showed up (including kids) and we got about half the job done (you can see pictures below). There weren't quite enough tools to go around, so several people ended up hanging out with our neighbor while we worked.
Our plan was to order pizza and head back down the block to Donna's house, but instead we were told we had to come inside and eat. (This is typical Italian hospitality, and our host is proudly Sicilian…) So inside we went!
It was a wonderful blessing to me to watch our small group love each other, and love this woman. Over the course of the evening people engaged with our host, asking her about her life, chatting with her, encouraging her, loving her…
…at one point she said to me, "this is like a godsend… wait a minute, this IS a Godsend!"
Several of us were able to pray for her, blessing her home and her life. We are headed back next Wednesday to finish the job!
I was struck by how naturally our small group community was able to serve together, love together, and minister together. There wasn't anything forced or awkward about the way we were present with our neighbor.
I left with a full heart.
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