The Feed

Stories of Feeding God's Children Hungry in Body & Spirit

Joy in the Risen Christ

Joy in the Risen Christ

This post is part of a series of reflections from Feed My Starving Children employees about what it is like to work at a faith-filled organization during a time of crisis. Sara Peterson is Director of Retail Operations for FMSC MarketPlace™. She has been with FMSC for 10 years. Prior to her current role, she has served as Team Leader, Retail Inventory Specialist and Eagan Site Manager.

What is it like to work at FMSC right now?

When I was in high school, my mother battled cancer. One day I came home to a handwritten sign taped up on my wall that read, “Never let anything so fill you with sorrow that you forget the joy of the risen Christ.” This quote from Mother Theresa has stayed with me and is a reminder for me again right now.

Our organization is filled with sorrow over the losses that come with this global crisis. We have lost our sense of normalcy, rhythm and daily routines. Volunteers can no longer package food — that precious activity of people serving together. We are doing everything possible to make sure we can still provide food to our partners and the people that they serve. What would they do without the food? If we’re unable to sell goods through the MarketPlace, what will the artisans do without that income? Friends and neighbors are losing their jobs. People around the world are losing loved ones. People are losing their lives. We all feel uncertainty, fear and sorrow.

But we never forget the joy of the risen Christ.

The joy we have is deep and it comes from God. It comes from the hope we have in Him as we trust Him with the current situation. We are reminded of this as we receive powerful messages like these daily from our partners.

"So sad but we still have hope that the Lord is in control and is way ahead of us. I am comforted to be reminded that He is our provider — He is the provider! Not me! Not us! I am not the answer. We are not the answer. He is the answer. He is ABLE!! He will continue to carry them and all of the artisans worldwide into His loving care, His provision, and His plan." —Marcia

"Our God is the same yesterday, today and forever. If He did it before He can and will do it again. He protected the children of Israel in Egypt when the plagues hit and He preserved their lives. He is the same God who protected the three Hebrew boys when they were thrown into the fiery furnace that had been heated seven times more than normal. He is the same God who protected Daniel in the lion’s den." —Esther

If you have FAITH, you will have HOPE. HOPE brings JOY, which leads to His perfect PEACE. PEACE brings HAPPINESS which leads to COMFORT and BLESSING. Let us all move forward with GRACE and give PRAISE in all things! Please feel free to share our message of HOPE with a frightened world." —Janine

Our partners remind us to trust. Many of them live in realities similar to this or much worse, and have for a long time. While we tend to live with a false sense of self security, our partners tend to live with vulnerability, trusting daily in our God and Savior to provide.

In this trust, we are creating a new daily rhythm. We gather daily via Zoom for organization wide prayer. We peek inside the homes of our coworkers and wave to each other. We see kids, dogs and coffee cups. We remind each other to mute. And we pray.

So what is it like to work at FMSC right now? It is sorrowful. But we live in expectant hope and joy of the risen Christ. And this joy keeps us moving forward.

“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him.” —Romans 15:13

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