TOO EARLY TO THINK ABOUT CHRISTMAS?
Not at Seeds of Hope! For the past two months chaplains in NJ Prisons have been distributing applications to inmates to apply for ANGEL TREE gifts for their children at home. YOU can be an instrument of God's love this Christmas for one of these children by taking an Angel Tree "angel" off of the tree in your church lobby and buy a gift for them. Unlike most of us, their will be many children in Camden and surrounding towns that won't have gifts this Christmas without your help.
IT STARTS WITH A GIFT...
The inmates fill them out with the names of their children and return them to the Chaplain. The Chaplain then returns the completed applications to the national office of Angel Tree--the Angels are then assigned to churches around the country based on where the children reside.
Churches then contact the children's caregivers for gift ideas...put the names of the children on paper angels and hang them on a Christmas tree...each tag has a child's name, age and two gift requests-one a clothing gift and the other a "fun" gift.
That is when the fun begins...churches all over New Jersey (and around the country for that matter) put Angel Trees up in their churches with all of the Angel Tree tags on them. This takes place at the end of November and early December.
Those who select a child or two from the Angel Trees purchase gifts and either deliver them personally or we will collect them from you and deliver them on behalf of the incarcerated parent...Of course, the real reason that the gifts are being purchased and delivered is because of the desire that Jesus Christ has placed in our hearts to reach out to these innocent victims of crime and to deliver the Gospel message and the reason for the hope that we have.
If you've never been there, you won't believe it! That is the day that a coalition of suburban and urban churches-working together as the body of Christ-deliver gifts & the Gospel message to hundreds of children in Camden with incarcerated parents.
Last year--with our large group of volunteers--we delivered gifts to 400 children between 10 a.m. and 12:30pm. If you are interested in helping deliver or providing gifts, please contact Brenda at brenda@seedsofhopeministries.org or 856-520-0867
We open with worship, prayer and fellowship (and a little breakfast) at 10:00 a.m. and then, in groups of 2, 3 or 4, we head out into the city to serve the "least of these" by delivering gifts and the Gospel message to the children and their caregivers.
This is an awesome way for your church to touch the lives of those who have an incarcerated parent. E-mail us to learn how you can get involved.
Angel Tree 2013
Why Angel Tree?
When I was an inmate in prison, I did not participate in Angel Tree. By God's grace, my family and our local church family at Sovereign Grace Church in Marlton stepped into the gap to support my wife and children financially and spiritually during my absence. As an inmate at Allenwood FPC, I did have the opportunity to help other inmates complete their Angel Tree applications so that these men could provide their children with a gift at Christmas. I have come to learn that Angel Tree is much more than just a gift. Delivered by volunteers from local churches on behalf of the incarcerated parent, it helps maintain and in some cases begins a relationship between parent and child. Our God is a God of reconciliation and restoration. The ministry of Angel Tree is one of the instruments that the Lord uses to maintain families and, in many cases, to reconcile families and restore broken relationships.
Within the ministry here at South Jersey Aftercare, we have seen the devastating effects of "father absence". The vast majority of men in prison today did not have a good, or any, relationship with their natural fathers. You would be surprised at how many men in prison have never seen their fathers or have only seen them a few times during the course of a lifetime. It is actually very painful to hear the stories. For this reason, the Lord burdened a few individuals here at South Jersey Aftercare concerning fatherhood. Since 2006 we have been facilitating Christian fatherhood groups in prisons and halfway houses. The idea, of course, is that we would like to be the instruments of God's grace in helping to keep families together…helping to keep dads connected to their children.
Even though it "starts with a gift", Angel Tree is much more than that. Not only are the gifts delivered on behalf of the incarcerated father or mother, but the delivering individual or family is actually encouraged to pray with and/or share the gospel with the children and the children's caregiver. You have no idea what this means to the children and the caregiver. Brenda and I have had numerous opportunities over the years to pray with the children and their caregivers and have also been able to share the gospel with them. Very cool…because that is their only real hope…just like it is our only real hope.
And this year, two of the residents in our transitional homes will be able to participate on the "delivery side" of Angel Tree for the first time. One of them participated in Angel Tree in the past as an inmate by sending gifts to his children while incarcerated and the other did not because his children were older. Both of the men, however, are looking forward to being a blessing to the children who have a family member incarcerated. We have had other men over the last 14 years who have had the opportunity to experience Angel Tree from the inside as a participant sending gifts to their children and then on the outside as a “deliverer” to the children of incarcerated men and women. They all have been blessed to have been able to serve the Lord by serving others following their release.
So please consider being the hands and feet of Jesus this year to a child with an incarcerated mom or dad. The children—in situations like this—are the innocent victims of the crimes that their parent committed. And sure, some of the incarcerated parents are basically just trying to get a gift to their child by whoever will buy it and deliver it. But God has a much bigger and better plan…one that involves the greatest gift of all—Jesus Christ. This year, at our church, we are ensuring that each child receives an age-appropriate bible along with the gifts delivered on behalf of the mom or dad. Who knows what the Lord will do with the delivery of the gifts, the prayer and gospel sharing that may take place and the bible left behind? There are thousands of stories over the years of children and their incarcerated parent coming to know the Lord through the ministry of Angel Tree.
This year that miracle could come through you.
Bill Antinore
Angel Tree 2014
856-963-0312
"Let my heart be broken with the things that break the heart of God"
"But may all who seek you rejoice and be glad in you, may those who love your salvation say continually, "Great is The Lord." As for me ,I am poor and needy but The Lord takes thought of me.You are my help and my deliver, do not delay, O my God."Ps.40:16-17
