Oh boy what an adventure! So…the original plan is that we were going to have a group of NLCers head out to the busiest intersection in Fort Myers, to hand out 3500 sodas that were donated by Pepsi. We printed out little business size invite cards to let people know we’re here to serve them, and invite them to church.
The first group went perfectly according to plan. They passed out lots of sodas to thirsty shoppers, and were greeted with smiles. 
The second, well, hit a few bumps in the road. About five minutes after arriving we had a huge accident in our intersection (not our fault), and were forced to leave when all the fire men showed up. I thought Wal-Mart would be a swell place to go next, but the managers didn’t seem to agree. So, after handing out a few sodas, the manager asked us to leave. We started throwing out ideas, and decided on Pine Manor. This is a very low income international community, known for it’s drugs, illegal immigrants, and high crime rate…EXACTLY where we wanted to be!! ;-)
We loaded up, and headed to the place the Lord lead us through our crazy circumstances. We passed out the 1000’s of remaining sodas. People brought five-gallon buckets, plastic bags, and small boxes to fill up with the free stuff! All of them were so grateful and excited that we cared enough about them and their community to do something small that would brighten their day. They thought they were just forgotten.
This was just the beginning of what I know will be a lasting relationship with these beautiful people. The people of NLC saw a need, and God placed a new desire in their hearts to meet it! I can’t wait to see how this community will change, as we begin to show God’s unconditional love to the people there!
