(John 21:17)
At the end of the Gospel of John, Jesus sits on the shore with Peter after they had enjoyed a breakfast of bread and fish. Just a few days before Peter had denied Jesus three times and abandoned him. So here they meet again. And Jesus asked Peter, “Do you love me?” He asks Peter this three times. And each time Peter assured him, “I do love you.” In response to this assurance, Jesus said to Peter, “Feed my sheep.” As people who love Jesus, we are also called to feed and care for those around us and within our community. Here are some of the ways MCC responds to Jesus’ call to Peter and to all disciples.
“Helping Hands” is a category of donations that is set aside for people who come to the church asking for help. In the past year we have helped a person with a motel room during a cold night and we have helped with rent and utilities. If you want to help our neighbors through your donation just tag it with “helping hands.” Thanks for helping us help others.
We offer a meal after funeral and memorial services to the family and friends of the one who has died. We offer a meal to anyone whether they are members of the church or not. It is our way of serving those who are grieving and offering a space for stories to be shared after the services.
During the school year the church organizes and helps provide snack packs for 60-70 school children who might not have enough to eat during the weekend. We receive donations from the Midwest Food Bank and also buy in bulk from Aldi’s or Walmart to provide a few more substantial items.
The following website has information for different resources in Illinois for those experiencing memory loss.
We Care is based in Morton but serves Tazewell County and provides transportation for those in need.
The Mackinaw Community Center has a food pantry available for all Mackinaw residents.
We take the words of Jesus and put them into action by helping those in need. We share our Christian faith through outreach to those in our church, community, country, and the world.
We are a family church which means we are first and foremost relational. Everyone knows each other's names and we are there for each other through the joys and sorrows of life. We practice incarnation ministry. Just as God sent Jesus into the world to share God's love through teaching, sharing in meals, and laughing and crying with both friends and strangers we also share God's love through our action.
We are a family which means we do not always agree with one another, we have people with various beliefs and values yet we have chosen to gather together. Because we believe God's love is greater than our ideas.