This Easter, let your faith work wonders
James 2:14 exhorts us to strengthen our faith through deeds, because our work will show the power of our belief. That message is at the heart of what Church Urban Fund (CUF) does, working with supporters to make our communities fairer and kinder places to live.
In the past, Brendan, who was vulnerably housed and hearing voices because of a mental health condition, was laughed at and not believed. Thanks to Lighthouse, a mentoring scheme supported by CUF that walks alongside people facing homelessness, he is being helped to rebuild his life.
Loki coordinates the scheme, which connects people facing real hardship with volunteer mentors who help them face deep-rooted issues, which are so often at the heart of destructive patterns. Loki has first-hand experience of this:
“I’ve experienced mental illness myself, and know how problems like that push you to the edge. Mentors help break the cycle of homelessness by giving people the confidence to address problems that led them there.”
This lived experience, where mentors really understand the battles fought by their mentees, is the key to success. Loki said:
“I paired him with a mentor called Grace, who had experience of hearing voices too. Grace knew what he was going through, so for the first time ever he opened up, and started to process his life’s pain and grief.”
Will you give a donation today, to foster transformational friendships?
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At Easter, we celebrate hope and renewal given to us through the grace of Christ. With your donation today, CUF can support new beginnings for those who are facing hardship, and help community leaders like Loki transform neighbourhoods.
Faith is crucial. So many in our broken society have no-one to turn to in dark times. We see time and time again, how a new friend’s faith can work wonders. With your help, CUF can support more community projects like Lighthouse, which provide that human lifeline.
Every December for the past eight years, a small group of supporters have spent a freezing night under tarpaulins in the churchyard to support CUF’s work with homeless and vulnerably housed men and women. They call themselves the Royston Rough Sleepers and so far, they’ve raised over £40,000. One fundraiser, Andrew, said: “We wanted to act in solidarity with people forced to sleep rough, night after night, because they are down on their luck, or have been forced to flee difficult situations”.
A fellow sleepout volunteer echoed this: “You never know who has experienced homelessness. I once caught a taxi from the station to the churchyard, all ready for the charity sleep out. I got talking to the driver about it. He said he’d been homeless too, and donated the fare. That really hit home.”
At Easter, when we celebrate hope, renewal, and new beginnings given to us through the grace of Christ, it’s good to reflect on how much our faith can achieve.
Too many people are living on the edges of society, so please consider making a donation for CUF’s network of community projects, and help us welcome them in today.
DONATE‘What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but do not have works?’
James 2:14
