Getting Involved
Dear Pastor:
It’s 9 a.m. Monday morning, and your day is already booked – two committee meetings, a hospital visit, a counseling session, the choir director’s new music plans and the leaky toilet in the Sunday School wing. Not to mention a sermon to write . . .and then the phone rings. It’s a needy member of the community, calling for help with rent/a utility bill/medical situation/a place to stay. What do you do?
You want to help, to show them God’s love, and fulfill His commands to reach out to the poor. But, you just don’t know…
…is what they are asking for really the best way to help them?
…are they truly in need, or are they taking advantage of you and your church?
…can you and your congregation meet all of their specific needs? What if you can’t?
Please allow us to introduce Love In the Name of Christ of Clackamas County. Our network of almost 50 churches is one of 130 national Love INC affiliates, successfully helping churches in local communities across the country help the poor and the needy since Love INC was founded nearly 30 years ago. Our mission is to mobilize the church to transform lives and communities in the name of Christ.
Love INC offers a powerful, proven model of linking churches together to reach out to the poor in the name of Christ. Needs are verified. Resources are maximized instead of duplicated. Churches and individuals are freed to help the poor and needy as they are led and gifted.
Pastors and phone staff in our network of churches refer calls from the poor or needy to the Love INC clearinghouse, where trained volunteers take the callers through a respectful and thorough intake of their situation. Every need is verified, and callers with verified needs are linked with appropriate resources and specific ministries in our network of churches, as well as the many local state and county resources to which we refer people.
In addition, Love INC helps churches connect their members with specific, manageable ways to really be the hands and feet of Christ. Every congregation has individuals who may not yet be fully engaged in ministry or outreach, for reasons of time, interest or perceived ability. But we help Love INC partner churches match member’s interests with client needs. They are able to serve Christ and grow in their faith, even an hour at a time, by delivering a sack of groceries to a single parent, or driving an elderly person to the doctor’s office, or sitting with a baby so a new mom can get a rest.
We would be honored to have the opportunity to further introduce Love INC to you and your church. Someone will contact you soon to see if we might set up an appointment. In the meantime, please do not hesitate to contact our Volunteer/Outreach Coordinator Jean Cochran by e-mail at jean@clackamasloveinc.org
Also, if we can be of assistance to anyone in the community or in your congregation, please have them call the Love INC clearinghouse at 503-650-0153, Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday from 12-3 p.m. Thank you.
In Christ,
Chair, Board of Directors
Executive Director