Feeding the hungry shows the love of Christ

Hundreds of people packed the Jackson Civic Center on April 8 to fill "MannaPack" boxes in a Feed My Starving Children event.

Feed My Starving Children is a not-for-profit Christian organization where children and adults hand-pack meals to be delivered to malnourished children. Over the United States, hundreds of thousands of volunteers have packed tens of millions of meals.

Feed My Starving Children is not new to the area. An event has been held at the Cape Girardeau Osage Centre for a number of years in the late fall. The event in Jackson is new. It's always an uplifting sight to see the photos of people giving of their time to help feed the starving. And the volunteers always do it with joy in their hearts and smiles on their faces. A special thanks to all who partake in this event, whether in Cape Girardeau or Jackson.

Another philanthropic event to help feed the hungry closer to home took place on April 16 when The Apostolic Promise Church put on a block party. Hundreds attended and enjoyed food and games. The event was to raise funds and bring attention to the food bank. The SEMO Food Bank truck was on hand with enough free meals for 300 families, but the church has its own food bank and delivers meals to seniors who qualify, as well as single mothers and their children.

All told 500 people attended the block party, and 100 people volunteered.

Pastor Timothy Lee said he was pleased with the turnout.

"We're big on outreach here," Lee said. "We have several ministries in our church, and we can provide transportation for people, too.

"I like for people who need help to know we're here as a resource."

These examples -- plus many others locally -- of Christians helping the poor and the hungry need to be lifted up as examples of putting Christ's example into action. We're extremely grateful to have people willing to show charity and love in communities near and far.