~ Pizza Miracle ~

Not long ago, one of the teachers at Friendship House told me a story that I think conveys the message about the impact this ministry is having in the community. Katie Poitevint, known as "Miss Katie" to the five and six year-old boys that she teaches, was treating a few of her students to pizza at a local restaurant. It is not required for the teachers to do this type of thing, but many of them go "above and beyond" to mentor, establish relationships, and provide godly role models to their students by taking them to community events and spending time with them outside of the classroom.

Katie and her boys blessed the food as it was served and were engaged in lively conversation--is there any other kind with 5 and 6 year-old boys? When Katie went to the register to pay for their meal, the server told her there was no charge. Upon inquiring why, she was told that another patron had taken care of the bill. Katie went back to the table and used this as an opportunity to explain to the boys how God honors us when we honor Him. She said they praised God and thanked Him for the blessing they had received and asked His blessing upon whoever had paid for their food.

In the gospels, we are told that Jesus took a small lunch of 5 loaves and 2 fish and used it to bring honor to God by providing food for over 5,000 people. Praise God! He is using followers of Jesus, like Katie, to bring glory to Him by their willingness to serve and to give God all the credit. A simple act of service brought blessing to not only Katie and her boys, the one who paid for her meal, the server(s) who observed, and no doubt others who were watching. God is using Friendship House to show our community that Jesus is real!

From the Front Lines

As a national speaker, I get the opportunity to work with a lot of organizations, but NONE have touched my heart and inspired me the way that the Friendship House has done. I have had the pleasure of partnering with Friendship House for the past several years, and have witnessed first hand the tremendous impact they are having on the lives of young people in their community.

Josh and his fellow co-laborers don't just teach curriculum and serve box lunches to "those kids". Rather, they love on each one as a precious child of God and faithfully model an authentic faith before them.

I and my entire family are honored to call the folks at Friendship House our friends, and look forward to serving alongside them in the future. An individual or organization seeking to be used by God would benefit greatly from doing the same.

~David Mahan of Frontline Youth Communications

Jesus Clothes

The summer program at Friendship House came to a close at the end of July. God's hand was evident in so many ways. Groups went to the beach each week, youth groups from places as close as Donaldsonville and as far away as Athens, Georgia came to give of their time to minister to the kids, scripture was memorized, lessons taught, games played, hot lunches served, hearts changed.

The scripture theme for the summer was the Armor of God from Ephesians chapter 6. I had the priviledge to see how this message impacted one little boy named Caleb. I was on the playground helping the younger children in the swings, when nearby I noticed two boys pushing each other back-and-forth as boys will do. I watched to see if the pushing would turn from good-natured rough-housing into something more serious, and unfortunately it did. One of the boys starting kicking at the other boy, whom I recognized as Caleb. Caleb just stood there and said, "Stop it". The perpetrator of the kicking added insult to injury by taunting Caleb with jeers of "You're not strong", and "Fight back." I went over to correct the situation and when Caleb saw me, he started to cry. I scolded the boy who was kicking, and then turned to Caleb. I praised him for not retaliating, and told him "Caleb, it takes a really strong man to hold back, and not fight back."

Caleb's reply was perhaps the best paraphrase of Ephesians Chapter 6 to ever come out of the mouth of a 5 year old. He simply said, "that's 'cause I've got my Jesus clothes on". Caleb may or may not have been able to give a rundown on the helmet of salvation, the breastplate of righteousness, or the shoes of the gospel of peace, but he did know that wearing your "Jesus clothes" makes a difference in how you act.

What a valuable lesson for all of the boys and girls of Friendship House to take back to school with them this year. Praise God!