Two brothers at Lexington Gardens not only dress alike, they share alike. These brothers are 4 years apart and they are the best of friends and completely look out for each other. They are kind, gentle (unless you are being mean to little brother), smart, they play well with other kids and with adults. Their favorite place to be at Lexington Gardens is in the community garden and they’re hard workers! Their names are “Alvin” (technically Alvin Jr. and “Little Alvin” (Alvin III). These two are well-behaved, well-adjusted kids that can cause you to doubt your own parenting skills. Yes, certainly some George Foreman comparisons can be made. What is also certain is that “the Alvin brothers” come from a family in poverty who are doing their best pouring good things into their kid’s lives.
Alvin Jr. was captivated this week by the message of hope and God’s love during VBS. He walked and stood just a few feet away from the youth leader as he shared his message of hope so as to not miss one word of it. The Gospel was brought to life in front of his eyes and through the story of a simple ball. He will remember this story as the Gospel was pressed into his heart.
And it was not only the “easy” kids that were impacted. Yesterday, our most difficult child (7 years old) was mesmerized hearing the Gospel. He stayed. He listened. He asked to hear the message again. He was… different.
The Alvin brothers and even the difficult kids remind us that there is hope in extreme poverty. God is here. God cares. He is moving in the lives of the poor and He is moving in Lexington Gardens. Hope is not lost–it is there to be found when we put ourselves out on a limb, out of our comfort zone, for the sake of the Gospel. Who will climb out on the limb with us?
With the exception of one “local” (Brentwood) church, all of our summer ministry partners came from Michigan, Texas, Arkansas, Ohio, Indiana, New Jersey, Georgia and Florida. We are thankful for these groups and their blessings on this community but we need YOU. Project Connect Nashville is not a replacement for the local Church. We are the connectors. Our groups have all but run out for the summer (one exception is a group coming from Wisconsin over the weekend of the 31st). There is still time to GET CONNECTED! For more pictures of the summer Backyard Bible Camps and more visit our Facebook page (don’t forget to “like” us).
