A year ago I met a pastor, his wife and their two daughters from Okara, Punjab (Pakistan) and my heart will be forever changed.  I have never seen the grace of God cover a family in such a tangible way–it’s like they were wearing grace like a blanket over them.  Some of the conditions the villagers live in and the poverty they see and experience is heartbreaking.  Pastor Moazzam and his wife Salina have done outreaches to help the people in their region with some basic needs.  They have no fear because they know who their protector is and they are confident in him.  They have built their lives on the Rock of Jesus Christ and they will not be swayed.  They have become “living stones” as they place their lives upon this foundation.

I wonder if this was on their hearts long before I met them as they named their church Living Stones Ministry.  As the master builder, God places his living stones just where he wants them to be.  As living stones, we are connected to one another in the body of Christ.  The spiritual house God’s building is designed for his glory, and we, the living stones, are called to glorify the Lord in all we do.

Out of love for the least of these, Living Stones Church organized a Christian school in Okara, Punjab. The Living Stones School gives little ones a chance in a culture and political environment that suppresses Christian education.  Living Stones School has taken up the task of writing their own Christian curriculum as the national school curriculum seeks to indoctrinate the children in radical Islam.

In April 2021, Living Stones School opened its second school which is located in Amri Nagar, Punjab.  Here they take a bus into the slums and pick up the children and bring them to school.  This is where my heartstrings were really touched—the children.

I asked Moazzam what we as Harvest House Ministry could do to help these children they are bringing to school from the slums.  Pastor Moazzam said that the children have a hard time concentrating because when they get to school, they have not been fed and are hungry.  He said that if they just had a little bit of bread and milk in their tummies, then maybe they could concentrate better.

And that was the moment that the “Lunch Box Program” was birthed in my heart and became a priority for Harvest House Ministries.  We purchased bowls, spoons, a cook stove, and the fuel to get the program up and running.   I soon found out that it doesn’t take much to make a difference in the life of one of these children.  It only costs $ .65 to feed a child for the day.  They attend school six days a week so it costs $3.90 to feed a child for the entire week at school.   Three dollars and ninety cents!  My favorite specialty coffee drink is $4.95.  Wow—when I realized I could feed a child for over a week for the price of what I was spending on one coffee, I decided to do something about it.

There are 175 students currently enrolled.  So it only takes $113.75 to feed the entire school for a day.  If your heart is touched by these children and you want to help support the Lunch Box Program to join us in giving “a little bit of bread and milk” to these little ones.

CLICK HERE To go to the LUNCH BOX PROGRAM

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