Eden Jordanthorpe and Batemore (Sheffield) launched in 2023, and they are already seeing the fruit of walking with their neighbours through their faith journey day in, day out.
When the team met Maggie, she was struggling with trauma from her past. As they got alongside her, they found out about her life, supported her and were able to tell her about Jesus. And one day, as they chatted, Maggie accepted Jesus into her life. Since then, the team have seen a complete transformation in Maggie as God’s brought restoration to her life.
As Maggie grew in her faith, she decided that she wanted to give back to her community. So at Christmas, she decided to hold a Boxing Day meal for those who would otherwise be on their own. The Eden Jordanthorpe and Batemore team got to help Maggie as she served other people, and put on a meal for 20 of her neighbours.
It was a great time for the community but afterwards, the team asked her how she felt it went. Her first comment was, ‘They were all complaining! The gravy wasn’t right or there wasn’t enough dessert choices. It was hard.’
The team came alongside her, encouraging her by reminding her why she put it on, saying, ‘isn’t it great that we can provide a place for people to complain about things at Christmas! If it wasn’t for you, they would have been on their own’. Even though she was initially disappointed at some of the conversations, Maggie could see that they were right and that it was a positive experience because of how much it meant to those who came.
This is just one of many stories where Eden teams have come alongside people as they journey through difficult circumstances, making a commitment to Jesus, and growing in ministry, wanting to serve their community themselves.
