How Storehouse Impacted my Life

I would like to share with you what it really feels like to be touched by God's love through the work of Challenge Church.

I am a man of 41 years of age who found himself in a difficult position just a few years ago. I had to, at very short notice, give up work to care for my baby son. This was at a time when my marriage was ending and there was much bitterness and tension in the air and I had never felt more alone. I did not have my mother to turn to as she had passed some years ago and I had no sister to look to for help or support. Because I was not a local man my family, and many of my friends were back in London and unfortunately the old story of 'out of sight and out of mind' came into play. The only point of contact I had was a family centre in Hereford who really kept me going during what really were desperately lonely times.

At some point Challenge Church had obviously approached the Centre with the sole purpose of offering whatever support they could. I wasn't really even aware of this and being proud and I guess really useless at asking for help I would never have pushed my self forward in any case.

Well at this time (and by then my son was about 2.5 years old), things were very challenging for me. I was practically bankrupt, the bills were ever mounting, and things were generally not looking terribly promising for me.

And then one day I had a knock at the door . . .there stood a couple before me with goodness knows how many bags of groceries. I now know them to be Martin and Gillian but at that time they were complete strangers. They smiled warmly at me, something I had missed for a long time. They handed the bags to me with minimal ceremony or fuss, wished me well and went on their way.

I was, to put it bluntly, gob-smacked! I think I uttered a few unintelligible words of thanks but I did not really comprehend what was going on. Through this gift from 'strangers' I was able to fill empty shelves. I discovered later that my friends at the family centre had recommended me for this help from Challenge Church, who I still hadn't heard of.

What really mattered to me though was not just the gift of food that I was so grateful for, but the realisation that there were people who cared about me even though they didn't know me. I spent many hours mulling over this simple act of giving and how awkward I had felt about receiving it. From a lonely and empty feeling of 'being left behind' I felt genuinely happy and comforted to know that love, of a truly spiritual kind, still existed and manifested itself through Martin and Gillian's 'surprise' visit and of course all of the people who were a part of that simple yet deeply generous loving act of giving.

I will never forget that gift and I hope and pray that no-one reading this will ever underestimate the effect this 'simple' act has had on my life.

I am happy to say that my son and I are very happy and healthy and are looking forward to the future with eyes and hearts wide open. I pray that Challenge Church will never be complacent about the impact they can and do have on people's lives, and that these kinds of projects are carried on with the same honesty and generosity that my son and I were fortunate enough to experience. God bless Challenge Church.

Keith Baldwin