Ministry during COVID-19

Writing badge number on gifts

The Holy Spirit continues to move.  We hope answers to frequently asked questions give a sense of how the Lord is working.

Q: Have you seen the Holy Spirit moving during COVID-19?

The Spirit is using COVID-19 to show Christ's faithfulness.  Officers are "critical infrastructure workers" and mandated to continue working shifts while the population stays home.  When we heard the Stay Home, Stay Safe deadline, we started stuffing care packages to get them to the station.  Materials were gathered quickly because the Lord inspires people to pray and give.   Regular, generous financial support allowed us to shop, pack and drop off 217 packets before the midnight deadline.

Q: How can we pray for the work?

Writing badge numbers on gifts

Please pray for hearts to continue being opened to the Gospel.  Thank you messages, testimonies and updates have been coming in texts, emails and calls from cops.  We're using initial responses to pivot toward deeper conversations.  Care packets seem to be serving as icebreakers.  

Please pray that community efforts match officers' needs.  Community members are bringing homemade masks but cops need to know who made the masks and how.  When they don't know, they're cautious, and the gap between community sentiment and officer safety can create tension.  

Q: How are you and your family holding up?

Naudia and I married 39 days after 9/11.  We were unsure but continued planning our lives together.  As COVID-19 unfolds, we are unsure about many things, but we keep going through the uncertainty.

We now have two teenagers and daily lay our lives at the feet of Christ.  He takes our lives and uses them as He pleases.  Our family knows that my life is pointed toward loving them, ministering among first responders and the local community.

Q: What can I do to help?

Take care of yourself and your family.  An excellent COVID-19 self-care resource from Christine Sine is available here.

Take news breaks, find a quiet space and listen daily.  God is always speaking and sheltering at home allows us to hear.  When the Spirit speaks, write it down.  Think about what you write.  Share what you write with a trusted source and get feedback before acting.

You can email me at alex.pickens@reliant.org if you don't have a trusted person in your life.