January 2014 Newsletter

January was a very cold and snowy day at the Mission. We woke up to 3” of snow on the ground which meant the spreading of salt to melt the snow and ice. Due to the weather we only had 60 families that came.



One lady made the whole trip worth it all when she brought her slip to receive her food. Upon seeing the box she remarked, “that’s for me?” with tears streaming down her cheeks. Folks, my heart rejoiced, because that’s what it’s all about.

As I pause and reflect on how far we have come in such a short time, it’s hard to believe. We were able to provide beds and mattresses, all the linen and spreads, plus blankets along with household items to a family that lost everything in a fire the previous week. We even gave them two boxes of food. We’ve received so many blessings from helping others, it’s amazing.

We are taking a cooler that was given to us for keeping produce and dairy products as we go this month. We will leave our box truck in WV to use to go after the food from the Food Bank as it had become too much for my truck and trailer traveling over the mountains.

That put us into the situation of needing another vehicle. Since people go with us each time, we are limited to how many we can carry. We decided a van would meet our needs. After discussing this we decided that we needed a passenger van that was also capable of pulling the 16’ trailer. By faith, we have purchased a Ford E-350 15 passenger van with high back seats for more comfort and will also pull the trailer with no problems.

This ministry is based on faith – so what do I mean by Faith? It’s believing that the Lord will guide and provide. We began traveling to WV on faith, purchased our building on faith, began the food ministry on faith, and God has provided everything we have needed. Our building is now debt free. We have purchased this van by that same faith. We have one week for God to provide the funds needed, and that’s as good as money in the bank.

Please join us in prayer on this new step of faith. And as always thank you for your prayers and support.



Mayhew West
www.theshepherdshands@gmail.com