The Bible makes it very clear in James 1:27, “This is pure and undefiled religion in the sight of God our Father, to visit orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world”. We had the opportunity on Saturday, June 18 to put part of this verse into practice. One of our faithful church widows (Mary Columbus) was in desperate need of a new front porch. Her existing porch was in terrible shape and very unsafe – plywood had been placed over holes throughout the porch in hopes of keeping Mary and others from falling through. Mary shared how she has been praying and dreaming for many years that God would provide a way for her to have a new, safe front porch. Well, God allow us to play a part in making Mary’s dream come true – 14 TRBC members teamed up with Rebuilding Together Lynchburg to put a brand new porch on Mary’s home. I was so impressed with the spirit and attitudes of all who participated in this project especially on a hot June day where temperatures reached the 90’s. All of us left that day physically drained yet spiritually filled as we were able to worship God together by giving of our time, talent and treasure to minister to one of our own “a widow in distress”. If you would like to receive a blessing by being a blessing I challenge you to check out our blog to find all the many ministry opportunities that are available to you and your family.

 TRBC / Gleaning for the World / American Red Cross / Virginia Defense Force are joining together to show support to the 400 members of our Virginia National Guard’s 1/116^th. Infantry Battalion Division that are deployed in Iraq.

June 20th – July 4th TRBC will be collecting food, household products and baby items to help meet the needs of our military families. We have provided a specific items list below – only bring in listed items – THANK YOU!

1). FOODS:

~ Canned Vegetables, Meats, Fish & Fruit / Non-perishable Packaged Meals / Mac & Cheese / Rice & Noodles / Peanut Butter & Jelly / Snacks, Cookies & Crackers / Microwave Popcorn / Condiments / Etc.

2. HOUSEHOLD ITEMS:

~ Paper Towels, Toilet Paper, Facial Tissues & Napkins / Window Cleaner / General Household Cleaners / Dish Washing Detergent, Laundry Detergent, Bleach, & Fabric Softeners / Soap, Shampoo & Sponges.

3. BABY NEEDS:

~ Diapers (all sizes) / Baby Wipes, Baby Lotion, Baby Shampoo & Baby Powder/ Baby Formula / Baby Foods – Vegetables, Fruits & Meats.

4. OTHERS:

~ Cash donations to purchase in bulk items needed for the commissary.

~ Gift Cards to local chain Grocery & Super Stores in $25 / $50 denominations.

~ Encouragement/Prayer Cards

** IMPORTANT; Donations along with cards of encouragement & prayer may be dropped off in our collection bins at TRBC .

** Only donate the specific items listed – THANK YOU!

This past Sunday was a special blessing as we took a team from TRBC to visit one of our area church plants – Bedrock Community Church. We were so encouraged to see what God is doing through this young church. In less than 2 years BCC is making an incredible impact on their community and beyond. It would be hard to list all that has taken place in such a short time – but here is a abbreviated “blessing list”. Gas Buy-downs / free car washes / delivered school supplies / teacher appreciation week / mission trips and much, much more. Lead pastor Jongie Tate brought a challenging message from (Gal. 1: 20-29) as they continue their series entitled “JOY”. The service concluded with a dedication prayer over their mission team headed to Alaska in July. A special offering was taken to help with $7000 still needed for the trip – as I write this article I received an email that that debt has now shrunk to $4000 as $3000 came in Sunday through the sacrificial giving of the people at BCC – praise God! I would challenge you to take a Sunday and go visit BCC and if you know of anyone in the Bedford area that is not attending church or looking for a great church please refer them to Bedrock Community Church. To find out more about BCC click on our “Church Planting” tab you will find Jongie and his family with a link to their church website.

On June 5th 2010, the faith in motion class from TRBC led by Jimmy Clark teamed up with Rebuilding Together led by Harry Sowers. We installed a handicap ramp for Gary DuPriest, a member of TRBC.  Joy was the word of the day for all involved. Seeing Gary excited about finally getting a ramp brought joy to the hearts of those involved.  A neighbor even came by to check out the commotion. It’s great to see the light of Christ shining throughout the neighborhood by way of helping someone in need.  My son Wesley even enjoyed helping,    ”Dad I didn’t think I would like to come but that was cool today, I’m glad I came”.  Looking for a project for your ABC to do, check out teaming up with Rebuilding Together, you will get just as much out of it as the person you’re helping.

Mark Campbell

Lynchburg “Day of Caring” is an annual event sponsored by the United Way of Central Virginia. Over 1300 volunteers participated this year from all over the area; businesses, churches, nonprofit organizations and many others joined together for a day of giving back to our community. Serving projects ranged from landscaping, city clean-up, building wheel chair ramps, painting, washing vehicles and much, much more. LU food services (Sodexo) provided lunch for all the workers and TRBC teamed up with God’s Pit Crew for the second consecutive year to provide a truck load of FREE Gatorade to over 32 schools and organizations throughout our community. By the end of the day we had distributed 1440 cases which adds up to 34560 bottles of Gatorade. Another great opportunity to partner with our local organizations for the purpose of serving our community.

Tim Grandstaff – TRBC Missions