LINC Quick Connect Header 

 Dear , 
 

Spring is in the air, in spite of the occasional snow flurry and breakup.  Things are coming to life and new energy seems to flow through everyone and everything.  Love INC is experiencing it as well.  Love INC began a little over two years ago and like most start up businesses or ministries it has taken that time to get its sea legs.  Things are just now coming to a place where people can hit the ground running each day.  Computer programs are online and able to do the jobs they were designed to do.  Volunteers can step right into roles and ministries they are comfortable in and have an impact.  An understanding of Love INC is starting to take hold in the community.

This an exciting time for us and for those who feel called to partner with this ministry.  But what does that mean?  What is the organism that is Love INC?  Christians identify any ministry existing outside our physical church walls as being a parachurch ministry.  So, it is very easy to assume Love INC then, is a parachurch which unites churches of Anchorage in ministering to those in need.  But wait!  It isn't!  In fact, the director would cringe if she heard you say so.  Not because parachurch ministries are bad, but because it defines Love INC in a way that undermines our foundation. 

Parachurch ministries do a wonderful job of supplementing the ministries of the local church.  They exist to minister in the areas which churches are not equipped to minister.  Love INC exists only where churches unite to minister.  Accordingly, Love INC would best be described as an interchurch ministry, a ministry which involves, exists between, or connects churches.  In and of itself, it can do nothing. 

The beauty is that when churches with a passion to transform lives and communities In the Name of Christ join forces with Love INC, a network forms that brings neighbors and churches together with life changing results.  Imagine LoveInc being the mortar holding churches together to form a sanctuary for those in need.    Within this sanctuary, there is food, clothing and shelter.  There is a place for comfort, counsel and support.  These ministries are not the mortar of Love INC, but the churches forming the walls of the sanctuary. 

            The one who cannot get around because he has no gas for his car finds relief at Trailside Church who comes alongside him with gas cards.  The person drowning in debt receives encouragement and guidance through the financial counseling ministry at Anchorage City Church.  The expectant mother receives a crib and layette from Alliance Bible Church.  The woman who has the skill set to get a job that would set her back on her feet can receive clothes that reflect what she has to offer at Abbot Loop's Career Clothing Ministry.  The family who just moved into a new home receives a basket of bathroom essentials as a housewarming gift from St. John United Methodist.  While Love INC did not meet the need, Love INC was able to direct them to the body of believers who could be God's hands and heart to them.

Building A Sanctuary Together -Gap Ministry
How do we know where to send the hurting and the neighbor in need?  The LINC Quick Connect Headeranswer is this: the church down the road, your church, the church of your good friend has committed to partnership with Love INC.  Partnership doesn't just mean that this ministry is a line item in the church budget each year.  Financial support is just one piece of the whole.  The partner church has introduced their body to Love INC through presentations, bulletin updates and invitations to fill out talent surveys to see how congregants can best share their time, gifts, and talents in the context of this ministry.  They commit to pray for Love INC, its other partner churches and the people of the community who call for help. 
 
Each partner church is challenged to take their investment in Love INC a step further.  The church leadership will prayerfully consider the strengths of their body and develop a gap ministry through which they minister to the community.  It is possible that the church has already been reaching out to the community with a particular ministry and would like to turn that ministry into a gap ministry.  Love INC will help them determine how to make their ministry specific in nature. 
 
Once the church has chosen a gap ministry, determined the best means of making it available to neighbors in need and found people to be part of it they are ready to minister.  Since all the people they are helping are referred by Love INC the church knows this person's need is legitimate and that they can help.  The burden of validating the story and exploring ways to meet the need no longer fall to the pastor and office staff.  Love INC does that and opens a wider range of support than a single church could hope to offer.  They know that they are not the only ones helping this neighbor. They are also getting other needs met by other churches in Anchorage. When a need comes in, the church knows that it can help and how. This allows them to focus on meeting that one need completely and blessing the neighbor abundantly.
 
If a church doesn't have a ministry already in mind, Love INC can help them choose one from the list of most frequently needed resources based on the requests that come in to the call center.  Currently, there are gap ministries in full swing and some that are in the launching stages.  There are churches that are exploring and developing the gap ministry possibilities as well.  There is currently a diverse list of gap ministries available for churches to take on.  Some of them require special skills, some unique facilities and some require nothing more than the willing heart of a church family.
 
What if your church does not have a gap ministry?  Where does that leave you?  That can be answered in a variety of ways.  Perhaps your church is ready to become a partner church and start a gap ministry.  Speak with your pastor about that.  Another option is for your church to partner with another church's gap ministry.  Some ministries require more than one church to run effectively.  It is possible too, that your personal skills may be one that the gap ministry of another church would benefit from.  Love INC will refer that church to you and you can partner with them while still doing ministry with your own church.  Another possibility is that your church may have a ministry that they have run for years. Maybe they would like to have their service available for Love INC to utilize and have a relationship as a participating church rather than a partner church.
 
Romans 12 paints a beautiful picture of the potential the Church has for serving Christ.  In verse 5 it says "...so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others."  It goes on to describe the gifts and abilities and how they work together.  This is a wonderful portrayal of the local church body, but it is equally reflective of the larger Body of Christ working together.  When it comes to showing Christ to a hurting world, our joining forces to help them speaks volumes.   When the disillusioned and desperate need it most they find hope, not in someone telling them that Jesus loves them, but in someone shows them Jesus loves them.  Together we have the all we need for a sanctuary for those who need it.  Let's start building.  
Learn more about joining the Love INC office family

Love INC in Anchorage is excited to announce that we will soon be opening the Love INC office one evening a week!  This will increase volunteer opportunities, beyond our current shifts of Monday - Thursday 9am - 12pm and 12:30pm - 3pm. 

In preparation, Love INC in Anchorage invites all volunteers who maybe interested in serving at the call center to join us on May 27th from either 10am - noon or 6:30pm-8:30pm to learn more about serving our neighbors in Anchorage in this specific way.   

Please call 274-5683 for more information and to RSVP for the training.

Current unmet/unusual needs
Your chance to help...
 
Frienship
When neighbors contact the Love INC call center, volunteers assess their situation, verify the need and connect them with local agencies, ministries, and volunteers from partnering churches.  Volunteer response has been great, however, there are needs we are still unable to meet.
 
Below is a list of some immediate needs:
 
  • Love INC in Anchorage website administrator
  • Volunteer skilled at hosting and regularly updating a Love INC in Anchorage Facebook page
  • Governing Board Treasurer
  • Office Volunteers: anytime Monday - Thursday between the hours of 9am - 3pm to help to complete intakes, verify information, or assist with volunteer mobilization. 
Please contact the Love INC office @ 274-5683 to learn more about these opportunities.
QUICK LINKS!
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"And if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like the noonday." Isaiah 58:10

 

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