September 2014 - timothy miller

September 2014
Dear Friends and Supporters,
Good day to all who choose life in Christ Jesus over the death in store for the lost in the world! It is my pleasure to share
the news and happenings both past and future of Old Mother Hubbard’s Cupboard.
I start with an encouragement to check out the page with this month’s statistics. I think it will move you all as you see the
effectiveness of this ministry in both Orrville and Rittman, Ohio. The number of seniors is on the rise as their SS and
pensions are insufficient to carry them through each month. Many of the seniors we serve also care for grandchildren who
have been dumped into their laps for a myriad of reasons. I feel for them as they share their love for the little ones and
grieve over lack of provisions needed to give the children a feeling of normalcy. But I rejoice to see the smiles on their
faces as they leave relieved of some of the burden and oppression which dogs them as they work to do the right thing.
Early this month as I drove through Dalton, Ohio, I noticed a truck which is smaller than the Freightliner we have. I felt
compelled to stop and look at it on my way back. Those of you who know me personally will know that when I pray I
believe that the Lord will answer and if I am anything other than a hypocrite I will respond and act upon the answer I
receive. So as I drive around this 2005 Isuzu MPR HD 16 foot box truck with a GVWR of 14,500, I realize it is the same truck
which hauled the first load we received from Ephrata, Pa. for the Orrville site almost two years ago. I took down the info
and went home. Later, as I sat at the computer as I am right now, I heard that I should humble myself and ask if they
might be willing to gift the truck to the ministry. Like I said I have learned to obey and I messaged the friend who hauled
our first load. A few days later the president of his company messaged me to call. Long story made short, we now have
the Isuzu and have been using it locally every week.
There are issues with both of our trucks which need to be resolved quickly as we have not made a run for over two months.
The Freightliner needs an air conditioner motor/pump (est. $500.00) and a new serpentine belt ($50.00). The Isuzu needs
the rear differential seal replaced and the pinion bearings too (est. $1,500.00). The Isuzu is okay close to home where we
can keep an eye on the oil levels.
We are looking for someone called as a missionary to become a Site Coordinator for Rittman. They will work with some
great volunteers.
Also, we want to thank Brad Miller from Monsanto for the incredible gift of fresh corn which we picked and distributed
through our two sites and shared with the Akron Bible Church, “Baskets of Love”.
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With the help of Nancy Gasser Jordan and Norma Miller, I have been able to get a lot of other things done over the past
couple of weeks; things in the area of communication, lining up the corn, picking and distributing it, many other meetings,
etc. Thank you, ladies!
I will be working on a pamphlet of how individuals and groups can help us function better in their communities. It will be
somewhat of a needs list and only a list. I will not be asking for even one copper from now on. The Lord has made it clear
to me how He wants me to work. If you want to be a help get in touch with me and I will give you the list to pray over.
I do want to encourage those from different churches to come and hang out while we are open. There are so many
opportunities to minister to the needs of our patrons.
Today, I hung the new signs in Orrville. They were
hand painted by Dennis Lipp. Thank you, Dennis!
Washing Feet,
Timothy D. Miller
Executive Director MOMH/OMHC
LOCATION INFORMATION
SITE #1
236 N. Walnut Street, Orrville, Ohio 44667
Site Coordinator: Teresa Reyes 330-234-1470
SITE #2
51 N. Main Street, Rittman, Ohio 44270
Site Coordinator: Timothy D. Miller 330-749-5800
HOURS OF OPERATION
Monday – Wednesday – Friday
10 AM-2 PM
The Ministries of Old Mother Hubbard move as the Spirit leads and new projects take off. Anyone wishing to
be part of God’s work in any way should contact Tim.
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INSIGHT FROM SITE #1
“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. For as the
heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your
thoughts.” Isaiah 55:8-9
Sometimes, we need great faith to accomplish the daily activities of life. Sometimes, God has a different plan than
anything that we consider. Many of our Biblical patriarchs and matriarch had plans and God, in his infinite wisdom,
surprised them.
Imagine Joshua, who was leading the children of Israel, being told by God to march quietly around the enemy’s gates for
six days and then on the seventh day after going around seven times to finally shout? Or how about Abram, later
Abraham, and his wife were quite old when God promised to give them a son? Or Mary, a young engaged Jewish girl,
who was yet a virgin, spoken to by an angel of the Lord and told that she would be the mother of our Lord and Savior,
Jesus Christ? Each of these people was faithfully following God and doing the things that God told them, when suddenly
He interrupted them with a new plan.
Today, as the numbers of people in the pantry continue to rise, we faithfully trust God and are obedient to him. We do
our best to be a blessing to all who come in and to generously distribute what we have available, whether small or great.
We are seeing more and more new families turning up at our doorsteps. Yet, even when I look at some of the lack, I am
happy to hear the comments of those coming who say, “This helps a lot!” and “I don’t know what I would do without
OMHC.” I continue to trust God; He is the God who sees all and knows the needs and has the perfect timing for His
answers and provisions. So, I continue to look, to pray and to wait expectantly for God’s response.
Along with the new families, we also had some new faces coming to serve. Some come for a day or an afternoon; others
made a commitment for a certain period. I thank God for each one who chooses to give of their time. Many hands make
the work easier.
In closing, I can say with confidence that God is faithful. Even when His answers are not in my timing or the way that I
expect, I will still declare His faithfulness.
Teresa G. Reyes
OMHC, Orrville Site Coordinator
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Old Mother Hubbard’s Cupboard
MONTHLY STATISTICS
JULY 2014
CUPBOARD #1 (ORRVILLE)
CUPBOARD #2 (RITTMAN)
213 HOUSEHOLDS
250 HOUSEHOLDS
Seniors
Adults
(ages 18-59)
Children
Seniors
Adults
(ages 18-59)
Children
77
353
222
134
399
254
COMBINED TOTALS
PROVIDED FOOD FOR
463 Total Households
1439 Total Individuals
HOUSEHOLD BREAKDOWN TOTALS
Seniors
Adults
(ages 18-59)
Children
211
752
476
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From The Webmaster/Social Media Department
My friends, it’s been another exciting month here in the social media and web department. I see the Lord is
working in so many good ways. Our new newsletter text to sign up method is drawing a lot of new names and
making our list just that much larger so we can help get the good word out to the many around us. We also
started, as many of you know, “The Verse of the Day” and the performance on these posts is extremely high.
So know from our department, it’s good to have you as part of our conversation! Also, there will be the new
release of our Ministries of Mother Hubbard website this month and it’s looking great so far. We are in the
final stages of testing the site for errors and making a few adjustments to it before we post it. We are sure
everyone will love what we have done to the ole gal! I want to leave you with a verse that is my “life verse”;
Luke 4:18 The Message (MSG)
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He came to Nazareth where he had been reared. As he always did on the Sabbath, he went to the meeting
place. When he stood up to read, he was handed the scroll of the prophet Isaiah. Unrolling the scroll, he found
the place where it was written,
God’s Spirit is on me; he’s chosen me to preach the Message of good news to the poor, Sent me to announce
pardon to prisoners and recovery of sight to the blind, To set the burdened and battered free, to announce,
“This is God’s year to act!”
He rolled up the scroll, handed it back to the assistant, and sat down. Every eye in the place was on him, intent.
Then he started in, “You’ve just heard Scripture make history. It came true just now in this place.”
Blessings!
Greg Streator
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FOOD FOR
THOUGHT
He had been gone for a couple months (which is another story). When my ex went to the fridge what he saw
inside made him explode. Maybe I should say it was what he didn’t see that angered him. A gallon of milk,
some eggs, butter, and the few condiments on the door were all he saw. His anger turned to rage. He ranted
about the lack of help from our church. He shouted about his wife being left to go hungry. Little did he know
that every night he was gone I went to bed with a satisfied tummy. As I often say, my God takes good care of
me. Every day, He provided me a meal. I was never left to want or worry.
I was reminded of this moment when I read my sister’s words...Manna just for today! Those four little words
spoke volumes to me. I was also reminded of how God provided manna from heaven for His people. Enough
for just that day. He was not only feeding their bodies, He was also trying to teach them to depend on and
trust in Him. When we trust Him, when we lean on Him, God gives us just what we need for the day. Whether
it is as He did for me by providing food for my physical body or it is just what your spirit needs right when you
need it, God gives us what we need for the day. He will give you what you need to grow in your relationship
with Him. He will give you the right words to speak. He will give you someone to comfort you when your
heart is breaking. He will give you what you need for the day. And that knowledge is how a Christian gets
through each day, come what may, not worrying about tomorrow or even the next moment. Manna just for
today!
~ Miriam
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THE FINAL WORD
Propagation
(From Seed to Fruit)
The Natural Means for Successful Evangelism
As I was “meditating day and night” I considered what I believe to be some of the earliest and purest methods
of successful evangelism. Throughout both the Old and New Testaments we find a considerable number of
references to seeds, trees, and fruits. I began to look at these a bit more closely and tried to grasp why they
are so important that they are found over and over again. I only use a few of them here but there are many
more to be found if one will take the time to search for them.
Let’s look at the seed for a moment. I am taking the liberty to assume that we all are born again believers and
desire to be righteous. (Scripture quoted from the NKJV.)
Luke 8:11 Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God.
When the Seed of God is planted in us it takes root.
Psalms 1:2 & 3 But his delight is in the law of the LORD (the Word of God), And in His law he meditates day
and night. He shall be like a tree Planted by the rivers of water,
We can see the importance of the Word of God in our growth and maturity, as well as what and who we are.
1 Peter 1:23 having been born again, not of corruptible seed but incorruptible, through the word of God which
lives and abides forever.
1 John 3:9 Whoever has been born of God does not sin, for His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin, because
he has been born of God.
We see that the seed, which is the Word of God, was planted in us and we, being born again, allowing the seed
to mature, have sprouted in purity into a sapling, a tree.
Now we will examine this tree. So far, we discovered that if our redemption is real and we are born again with
the Seed of God (the Word of God) as our foundation and motivation we will spring up from the soil as a tree.
We can be confident of who we are by reading in Isaiah the following:
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Isaiah 61:3 To console those who mourn in Zion, To give them beauty for ashes, The oil of joy for mourning,
The garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; That they may be called trees of righteousness, The planting of
the LORD, that He may be glorified.
Having established that we now are trees of righteousness, in our maturity the Lord will be looking for us to
become fruitful and to bear fruit both in season and out. WHAT? Yes, Jesus looks for fruit even when it is not
the world’s idea of a bearing season.
Matthew 21:19 And seeing a fig tree by the road, He came to it and found nothing on it but leaves, and said to
it, “Let no fruit grow on you ever again.” Immediately the fig tree withered away.
Another place where the unfruitful tree was at risk of being destroyed is found in Luke.
Luke 13:6-9 He also spoke this parable: “A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came
seeking fruit on it and found none. Then he said to the keeper of his vineyard, ‘Look, for three years I have
come seeking fruit on this fig tree and find none. Cut it down; why does it use up the ground?’ But he answered
and said to him, ‘Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around it and fertilize it. ‘And if it bears fruit, well.
But if not, after that you can cut it down.’ ”
We see that there is an end to the patience extended to us and that sometimes the pain we go through is for
helping us to become fruitful and pleasing for the Lord.
Hebrews 12:11 Now no chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful; nevertheless, afterward it
yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.
The fruit is our next study. We assume we are maturing faithfully as trees of righteousness in the vineyard of
the Lord. So just what is the fruit the Lord is looking for? For many years I thought being fruitful was leading
many to the Lord, convincing them and teaching them a prayer. But that always left me disillusioned and
somewhat oppressed until I discovered what I am about to share with you. You see, salvation is from the Lord
alone. Without the seed of God we cannot affect the souls of anyone else. Just how do we effectively plant
this seed in the hearts of those around us? Where do we get the seed to plant? That is the next pondering I
want to share with you who are interested in knowing the ways of our awesome Creator.
Galatians 5:22-25 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering (patience), kindness, goodness,
faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. And those who are Christ’s have crucified
the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit (bear fruit).
We see a list of fruit specifically from the Spirit of God all of which just ooze righteousness!
Ephesians 5:8-11 For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light (for
the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness, and truth), finding out what is acceptable to the Lord.
And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them.
Now we see the righteous fruit of the Spirit which we should be bearing in season and out. How does this
represent the most effective means of evangelization hence propagation? I am going to share a story as an
example. Say a young man or woman lost in the wilderness of life, hungry and thirsty sees a tree with luscious
rich green leaves out in the distance (sort of like when Jesus saw the fig tree while hungry). They crawl
agonizingly toward the tree which is full of promise for them in their situation. Upon getting to the tree they
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relax in its shade. Soon they look up and see fruit hanging from its branches waiting to be picked and they
select the one that looks the most promising to stave off their hunger for now. They eat the flesh of the fruit.
It is juicy and has the nutrients and vitamins they need to replenish momentarily their health. But when they
have eaten the entire flesh of the fruit there remains one vitally important part. A part which has not been
seen since the tree itself was planted. There available to them for their partaking is the SEED OF GOD!
Many people are not planted by rivers of water mentioned in Psalm:1 that would be the meditating upon
God’s Word day and night. Then there are those who planted themselves within the confines of walled-off
orchards where their limbs spread high in worship and praise. Their fruit matures but simply falls to the
ground to rot because they do not understand the purpose for which the Lord planted His seed in them.
Many people have told me that they don’t know what to say and to that I now answer. Let the Holy Spirit deal
with that. Plant yourself in His Word. Consider and chew it over day and night and He will write it upon your
heart for such a time as this.
Here is a way to start straight from the heart of God.
Isaiah 58:7-11 Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, And that you bring to your house the poor who are
cast out; When you see the naked, that you cover him, And not hide yourself from your own flesh? Then your
light shall break forth like the morning, Your healing shall spring forth speedily, And your righteousness shall
go before you; The glory of the LORD shall be your rear guard. Then you shall call, and the LORD will
answer; You shall cry, and He will say, ‘Here I am.’ If you take away the yoke from your midst, The pointing of
the finger, and speaking wickedness, If you extend your soul to the hungry And satisfy the afflicted soul, Then
your light shall dawn in the darkness, And your darkness shall be as the noonday. The LORD will guide you
continually, And satisfy your soul in drought, And strengthen your bones; You shall be like a watered garden,
And like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail.
Washing Feet,
Timothy D Miller
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