Easter Outreach Launch
Ministry Update
This is the time of year when we prepare to launch our Easter Outreach Project. Easter Outreach seeks to Celebrate Easter and Work Together to Make a Difference. The campaign is designed to display the love of God to the world. The resurrection of Jesus matters for the whole world and people should know the signs of God’s love through his people the Church.
This year we are looking to serve 40,000 meals – that’s 10,000 boxes of food for four given to families throughout the region. We will also give away 500 pairs of sneakers to people experiencing homelessness through Samaritan's Feet and donate $20,000 to South Sudan for clean water efforts through Water Is Basic. All of this work gets done through the efforts of over 80 church and nonprofit partners.
Serving as the director of Easter Outreach since 2012 and leading the collaborative efforts has involved pulling people together and asking them to sacrifice in significant ways through leading, serving, and giving. I challenge churches to work together even when it may be easier to do it ourselves. All of these things happened because we believe in the Gospel of Jesus. We believe that it matters and makes a difference. We believe that Christianity is not just meant to be experienced in your head, but it is lived out of a changed heart.
The thing I love more than anything else about Easter Outreach is it allows me to see the larger view of the Church in Philadelphia. There is such a diversity in the way churches live out the Gospel of Jesus. I see churches that normally stick to themselves working together despite the theological, cultural, and racial differences of others. To me, this is a clear picture of what God’s kingdom will look like.
To learn more about Easter Outreach, visit our website or watch our Launch video!
Personal Note
Over the last two weeks, I have learned two major things. First, there is more need in this region than I realized. From the deep poverty overarching everything, to the opioid crisis, homelessness, education needs, affordable housing needs, the list goes on and on.
The other thing I am realizing is that people care about this, but don’t really know how to get involved. One thing you know about me is that I love a challenge and I love to solve problems. I am really getting excited to start thinking of ways to do more of this work across the region.
Prayer Requests
I am so appreciative of those of you who have been praying for me through this time of transition and uncertainty. Your kind support has been so encouraging to me and my family. We are excited and nervous, but have faith that God will accomplish great things through the work He is planning. Please continue to pray for us as we have some exciting stuff coming up:
Pray for the Launch of Easter Outreach and the impact it will have across the region. Specifically, pray for the different churches and non-profits that are involved: that they will be blessed by the partnership with other churches and denominations.
Pray for one of the new projects I am working in regards to providing additional support in the are of addiction recovery- a topic that is very close to my heart.
Continue to pray for me to reach my fundraising goals. We are well on the path to reaching our goals but are hoping for additional month-to-month support so we can improve the sustainability of my new position and plan for the future.
In Christ,
Vito
