VERNON–School supplies, haircuts and the gospel?
For Live Oak Baptist Church in Vernon, helping families prepare for the school year means more than meeting physical needs, it also means meeting spiritual needs.
The church hosted its 10th annual back-to-school bash in August with more than 300 community residents in attendance and 40 volunteers.
“To see the kingdom impact each year is overwhelming,” said Johnathan Taylor, pastor, Eastside Baptist Church in Vernon, which partnered with Live Oak in the community outreach event. Live Oak Baptist Church holds a special place in Taylor’s heart because it is the church where he grew up and where he and his wife were married.
“It is an honor to have a small part in such a great outreach where each person is provided with physical needs and presented with the gospel of our Lord Jesus,” he said.
To School Bash at Live Oak Baptist Church, Vernon.
In addition to receiving school supplies, families in attendance receive clothing, vision and dental screenings and school physicals. Children are able to get haircuts for a fresh back-to- school look, and no one leaves hungry as lunch is provided and bags of food are given to take home.
The community outreach event is an opportunity for church volunteers not only to supply families with all the things they need for a new school year, but also to share the gospel, pray with them and live out God’s love.
At the annual community outreach event, volunteers from Shiloh Baptist Church in Chipley were able to share the gospel as practice for upcoming mission trips to Guatemala and the Amazon.
“It is a wonderful event, and every volunteer shared how much it blessed them,” said Tim Brigham, pastor of Shiloh Baptist Church.
One couple from Shiloh shared that they felt nervous as they are preparing for their first mission trip and that volunteering at the back-to-school bash helped them see God at work. The first family whom the Shiloh couple met and prayed with had a prayer need identical to something they themselves had just experienced. It was a time for the Shiloh couple to grow their faith and trust in God as they helped others and prepared themselves for international missions work, they said.
In addition to Eastside Baptist Church and Shiloh Baptist Church, Live Oak partnered with Unity Baptist Church in Vernon and Shepherd’s Gate Church to conduct the bash. Community services and businesses set up games, activities and waterslides and provided free ice cream for a fun-filled community event.