Church Plant Update April 1, 2021
Welcome to the Camino de Fe monthly update!
Thank you for your prayers, words of encouragement, and financial support! You have been a part of my ministry in some way and I am thankful to God for you.
The Camino de Fe Church family is so grateful for your partnership in sharing the Good News of Jesus in Bernardsville and Raritan! We are excited for what God has in store for us in 2021 and we hope that you can continue to walk with us on this journey.
LATEST NEWS
Our vision is “to be the hub of the Gospel to the Bilingual/Spanish-speaking communities where life and trust in God happens by offering the tools and resources necessary to help the community be part of, and engaged in, the American way of life.”
This past week we had the opportunity to provide a Vaccine Info-Session with Dr. Jedd Hammond, a community leader, and councilman. The Spanish community is considered a vulnerable population to COVID-19 and it was important for us to keep the community informed so that they can make decisions about their health.
Yesterday, I was approached by Bernard’s Health Department and they have approximately 75 vaccines available for the Spanish-speaking population. There are no pre-requirements to get the vaccine. Camino de Fe will help people register and provide a location for the vaccination event.
Finally, our last bit of news is that Camino de Fe Lutheran Church will be received as a congregation into the LCMS membership! This will take place at our NJ District convention on May 21, 2021. We are working on the details with President Steinbronn and I will keep you informed!
FAMILY UPDATE
As you know, this week is Holy Week and Sophia and Shelby are off from school. This often happens that they are off during the busiest time of the year for me, but we are making the best of it. We visited and hiked our favorite places here in Jersey. Joshua (3), Shelby (8), and Sophia (13)
WORSHIP WITH US
Camino de Fe church re-opened back in October and we have been gathering for Sunday worship in Raritan and Bernardsville. Below is our schedule.
Our weekly small groups which is the heart of our mission – to make disciples that will, in turn, make other disciples – happen:
Wednesdays at 8:00 pm in Bernardsville
Thursdays at 8:00 in Raritan
Our online presence will continue: English Livestream Worship at 8:30 am and Spanish Livestream Worship at 8:30 pm.
Our in-person worship services are:
1st & 3rd Sundays of the Month in Raritan at 5:00 pm
2nd & 4th Sunday of the Month in Bernardsville at 5:00 pm
FOOD PANTRY
As you know the food pantry is still active, but not in the traditional way. We are focusing our efforts on those who are truly in need in the community. We are providing diapers twice a month for about 30 families in the community. Once a month we give out 50 meals for a family of four, and we distribute Shoprite gift cards to about 160 families. One of our recent efforts is to buy groceries for families that have Covid-19 or are quarantining in order to not spread the virus. We provide groceries for 3-4 weeks, and we serve about 10 families weekly. In addition to all this, with the resources that we raised, we are able to help many families with rent or mortgage and utility assistance.
Another family reached out to me in early January because they were infected with Covid. We immediately sent a volunteer to deliver groceries since they were quarantining. A few weeks later, she called me again saying that her son was now infected with Covid and that the whole family needed to quarantine again. We continued to help her until they received negative results and were able to go back to work.
The need continues to be great in our neighborhood as people only work 2 days a week and the seasonal work is over. It is a privilege to continue to support our community and help the underserved. If you can, please continue to donate online. Also, you can contact me if you would like to volunteer or help in other ways.
THANK YOU!
All the work that Camino de Fe Church is doing would not be possible without your prayers, encouragement, and financial support!
Continue to donate to our efforts by clicking here or the button below.