PM - Article: Housing in the Name of Christ

Housing in the Name of Christ
By Steve Schwartz

Part one in a three part series on our slogan "Housing, Help and Healing in the Name of Christ."

Maybe you can relate to one of these situations. Have you ever missed a meal and been hungry, hungry to the point of being irritable? Or maybe your car wouldn't start and you had to shiver until someone showed up to help? Or possibly a mini-crisis ruined your plans for an evening or a whole week and you ended up being stressed by the situation?

Having a home-cooked meal in our stomach, a warm roof over our head, and a stable living environment goes a long way toward positive mental health. When these simple necessities of life are met, the other problems we face seem more manageable.

That's why housing is a fundamental human need. And yet for many of our residents it has been an unmet need at one or more points in their lives. At Paxton Ministries it is our goal to meet this need.

Our slogan at Paxton Ministries is "Housing, Help and Healing in the Name of Christ." We chose this slogan to most accurately reflect what we do (Housing, Help and Healing) and the motivation behind what we do (In the Name of Christ). This article, focusing on Housing, is the first in a three part series on our slogan.

Providing a pleasant living environment has always been one of our highest goals. But a lot of work goes on behind the scenes for this goal to be realized. Supplying three warm meals a day, 365 days a year is a big job. Many people comment on how clean and odor free Paxton Street Home is. And toilets, light bulbs and kitchen equipment don't fix themselves when they are "out of order"--somebody has to do it. (Are there any wives nudging their husbands ribs at this point?)

And finally, when we share our lives together, this group of people living under the same roof becomes a community. Game times, meal times or free time spent enjoying the company of friends create the family-like atmosphere we strive to maintain. In essence, this is what makes our house, or building, a home.

Three part series on our slogan "Housing, Help and Healing in the Name of Christ:
Article #1: Housing in the Name of Christ
Article #2: Help in the Name of Christ
Article #3: Healing in the Name of Christ

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