“Do you believe in God?”

“2% of me does. When I hear the background worship music at Loaves & Fishes, I feel really peaceful.”

What’s going on here? It’s part of a conversation started by a YWAM team member recently with one of the Loaves & Fishes diners. It felt like there were spiritual conversations going on at many of the tables. These guys were still chatting after the meal was over and tidied up after.

Loaves & Fishes happens every week from Monday to Wednesday at All Saints in central Nelson.

My team and I work to address the problem of local people going hungry and lonely in the days before payday.

By Thursday, all the government benefits have been paid out. Rather than being a dependency service, we like to think that our diners will manage for themselves over the next few days. We’ve noticed that the diners’ hunger for relationships and being heard seems greater than their need for food, particularly since the Covid lockdowns. The meal and the company together provide a sense of community. 

I love it when people in our Christian community join us for a meal. I think some hesitate because they think it’ll be too hard to talk with our diners. The challenge is often coming for the first time, but it’s probably a challenge for any new diner. We have all kinds of colourful characters sitting at our meal tables. They all long to be accepted. Even the smallest thing like a greeting is a sign of acceptance, and that could have some of them considering the possibility that Christ also might accept them. They haven’t been “too” bad after all. We know that no sin is too great, but they may not know. Chatting with them is a start, even if not initially “Christian” chat.

We notice that on the days YWAM team members join us for a meal, the diners wake up big-time. Sometimes they even pour out their life stories.

“We love working in the community and love what Alison and her team at Loaves & Fishes have been doing for many years.”

That’s Shane Jette, from YWAM here in Nelson.

“During our training courses we practice talking with strangers about God’s love and his desire to have a relationship with each of them. Loaves & Fishes is such a great venue to engage with others."

"It's a true blessing if they can be engaged in a loving and caring conversation at the same time as having a hearty meal.”

Shane shared a really handy tool they teach to help engage new friends in conversation. It’s a short acronym: SAFE.

S: Self. Who they are, where they are from? 
A: Activities. What they like to do, do we have any common interests? 
F: Family. How big is their family, where do they live? Any special memories as a family? 
E: Experiences. What have they done in their lives, anything unique or amazing?

Then you can have a few spiritual questions on hand to follow up with. Do you have a faith? What is your experience with Jesus? How did you come to faith? There are many different questions we can ask that are non-threatening. Sometimes our diners are quiet, but usually when we start to ask questions, people respond. If not, we answer the questions ourselves.

We find that when we’re open and vulnerable, people begin to feel comfortable opening up with us.

I’d love to welcome anyone reading this to come get a meal here at Loaves & Fishes sometime. If you’re around Nelson, it’s a quick trip to the hall behind All Saints. Come sit at one of the tables and start asking questions! 

Loaves & Fishes offers $3 meals on Mondays at 5:30pm and on Tuesdays and Wednesdays at noon in the hall behind the church at 30 Vanguard St.