Community Christian Church

-

-

Wise Investment

Congregation's challenge moves one woman to discover faith in herself and community

Publsihed Dec 27, 2004 - The Naperville Sun

By: Ron Pazola

Sometimes a single unexpected moment can snowball into something that can change people's lives forever.

That's what happened to Naperville resident Maria Risch, a stay-at-home mother of three who soon learned that giving doesn't have to come wrapped in glitzy packaging and expensive price tags — and that the power of love can flourish in the simplest of acts, restoring people's faith in God and each other. Risch wasn't a religious person. She stopped going to church a long time ago and she never considered herself a joiner. "I've never done any charity work before," she said. "This is not something I normally do."

Risch's husband, who also had drifted from his faith, recently started to attend services at Community Christian Church in Naperville, taking his children with him. "I viewed it as a Sunday morning opportunity to drink coffee without an interruption of family, so I didn't go," Risch said. Then one day she read in her 7-year-old daughter's journal that her daughter told her teacher that she goes to church with her father but her mother doesn't go and she didn't know why.

"That pulled at my heartstrings, so I reluctantly decided to attend services with my family," Risch said. Little did she know what she was getting into. It was late November, the third time that Risch had gone to Community Christian, when the pastor spoke about how the money people have is actually God's and that they have an obligation to help others. Then the pastor started to give $100 bills apiece to 10 volunteers with the intention that they had 100 days to use it. The people would then come together to talk about their experiences. The assignment was based on the book "Kingdom Assignment" by Denny Bellesi, a pastor in southern California who gave cash to people in his congregation, so they could invest the money to build God's kingdom.

A man at Community Christian, who wanted to remain anonymous, was so moved by the book that he donated $10,000 to the church so some members of the congregation could take part in a similar assignment. During the worship service, Risch reluctantly decided to be one of the volunteers who accepted the $100 bill. I was moved by the service and up to this point, I hadn't invested a lot of time in my faith," she recalled. "I decided that I needed this experience and that it would be good for me." Risch soon regretted her decision.  She didn't just want to give the money to a charity and felt a responsibility to use "the church's money" wisely. She decided to spend $75 of that money for a newspaper ad that ran in early December. It said: "We are a blessed family, wealthy in love and faith, and we want to help others in need this holiday season. If you, or someone you know, have a hardship or are willing to help, please write to us."

Risch kept checking her e-mail but nobody responded to her ad. "I was concerned that I had just blown the church's money," she said. "I thought it was a big mistake to take the money in the first place and now I would have to return the money to the church with nothing to show for it." Then a few days later she checked her e-mail again and the message lit up her computer screen like a rare pearl she had just uncovered.  The message was from a woman who lived in a one-room apartment in Naperville, who used her living room couch as her bed for the past three years. Her husband had left her several years ago and she was living paycheck to paycheck from her part-time job, finding it difficult to support herself and her 15-year-old son, who is a sophomore at Waubonsie Valley High School in Aurora.

She said she doesn't receive public aid or food stamps and makes $2 too much to qualify for government assistance.  What really bothered her this year, the woman said, was that she was unable to find a full-time job and that she wasn't able to buy her son any Christmas gifts. She recently bought him shoes by pushing back her car payments and felt ashamed that she couldn't adequately provide for her son. Risch was immediately moved by the woman's honesty and they continued to correspond with each other. "It's pretty hard to turn down someone who is asking help for their children," Risch said. "I told her not to despair, that she has a friend in me." Risch gave the woman a $100 gift certificate to Target and took the boy shopping so he could buy some Christmas gifts for his mother. She also attended a Christmas concert at Waubonsie where the boy plays in the high school band.

On Christmas Eve, Risch gave the mother and son some meals that were donated by the Pancake Cafe in Naperville. She also invited the two for dinner at her house on Christmas Day. "I don't like asking for help, but when it comes to my son I can't be too proud," said the woman, who wished to only be identified as Teri. "I think my guardian angel led me to Maria's ad. There aren't many people who are willing to do what Maria is doing."

The story could have ended there, but it doesn't. Risch decided to make 257 copies of a letter she wrote, explaining her involvement at Community Christian Church and asking for a donation to help some people she had met. "My stepfather drove me around and I placed the letters on every mailbox in my subdivision," she recalled. "It was 20 degrees outside. I froze my fingers. I was sick and my nose was running. But I knew I had to get this done. People were depending on me."

That afternoon one of her neighbors came by her house. "Here," she told Risch. "My husband just lost his job but we don't need this gift basket. Please take it." Other people started making donations, leaving cash or gift cards in a matter-of-fact way as they went about their business. Marci Mitchell, who never met Risch, was touched by Risch's letter and they cried together over the phone by the generosity they saw in people.

So far Risch has collected $840 in cash and gift cards, with more money coming in. "I only asked each person for $10 and many gave me considerably more than that, including my next-door neighbor, who gave me $350." Risch remains humbled. "Most of these people don't know me from Adam and yet they were still willing to give," she said in a quivering voice. "They put their faith in me and believed I was an honest person who would pass along their donations to the right people."

Pastor Dave Ferguson of Community Christian Church said that experiences generated by giving $100 bills to people give them permission to realize that they can make a difference in the world. "Maria's act of generosity has opened up her spirituality," Ferguson said. Risch said she will never be the same. "I feel blessed to be a part of this neighborhood and blessed to be part of Community Christian Church," she said. "All I did was distribute some letters. My neighbors did the rest.   "I haven't given huge amounts of cash to Teri and her son. I haven't solved their financial woes. But I hope in some small way I have restored their faith in people by showing them that some people really do care."