Big, Big News!!

One of the goals of Sacred Sparks Ministry is to provide opportunities and spaces for our friends to worship. We have done this very thing over the last 10 years in some interesting places: various Nashville laundromats, the woods, the streets, under overpasses, etc. We also get asked often, “where is your church because we want to come worship.” I would tell them that the church I serve on Sunday mornings is over an hour away from Nashville, which makes it difficult to transport friends on a regular basis.

Recently, a series of fortunate (and unfortunate) events caused me and my friend, Rev. Lisa Oliver to start thinking about a few things. The outcome of all those events and our thinking is a crazy plan that Lisa and I believe God is calling us to put into action. We believe God is leading us to create a worship space and time for our many friends at Sacred Sparks Ministry and ANYONE else who wants to join us!

It began with Lisa and I meeting with a group of friends at their house on Sunday evenings for worship. These were special times! We brought our camping chairs and gathered everyone in the living room and had worship together! Often, we would be invited to stay after worship and eat delicious food prepared by our friends.

As we were worshipping in the home, we put together a proposal asking to use the sanctuary at St Luke CP for our Sunday evening worship. This will hopefully keep us and our friends tethered to St Luke during our displacement and while they rebuild. We were approved to begin meeting all together as a congregation in the St Luke sanctuary this past Sunday, February 18. The service will be cross-cultural and include songs and liturgy in both English and Spanish.

We had 33 people attend our first worship service and they were a mixture of Sacred Sparks/Loads of love friends (including about 15 children) plus some people from St Luke CP and Hendersonville CP. The first service was just as beautiful and just as chaotic as we expected!!! 😊  But, we have no doubt that God was present.

So, what in the world have me and Lisa Oliver and some other good people been up to? We are trying our best to follow as we have been called by God to lead God’s people in worship. We really hope you can come join us sometime!! #sacredsparksministry #rideordieprreacher #sempergumbyalwaysflexible

Pastor Lisa & Pastor Lisa

What’s Next?

On Saturday, December 9th 2023 a tornado tore through Madison TN leaving much destruction in its wake. St. Luke Cumberland Presbyterian church suffered significant damage to their building. Since March of 2022 Sacred Sparks Ministry has been hosting our Loads of Love laundry ministry in the St Luke building. For 75-100 friends per week, St Luke was a regular place to gather and to find healthy community. We washed their laundry each week. We fed them each week. We offered pastoral care and relationship opportunities. We poured out loads and loads of love each and every week to those we serve. For now, all of that is on pause because that tornado destroyed the very parts of the building we use to host our friends: gym, fellowship hall, kitchen, office/storage room, and our laundry room we built up from scratch and made our very own, proudly displaying on the walls our logo, our scripture verse that guides us (John 13:34), and pictures of our sweet friends.

The question has been asked by many: “What’s next?” While we dont have a good answer for that question right now, we are certain God will provide a way forward for this ministry. What that might look like is already being considered by our team and once we have a firm plan, we will share with you how you can help make that plan happen. For now, here are some immediate ways you can help:

• Financial Support: we know we will be back in the local laundromats for a while and those machines require payment. You can donate safely on this website through Easy Tithe or you may send a check to Sacred Sparks Ministry, 516 Franklin Rd, Brentwood TN 37027
• PRAYER: this is unchartered territory for us so we covet your prayers for guidance, encouragement, and wise decision making
• Engagement: YOUR support and encouragement is so very important to us, please stay engaged and in touch with us on this website and our social media (Facebook: Sacred Sparks Ministry/ Instagram: @sacredsparksministry)

Peace and love y’all!

Rev. Lisa Cook, Sacred Sparks Ministry

Let’s Get Ready to Rumble!!

In my preaching on Sundays I am following the lectionary semi-continuous reading of Genesis. Tomorrow’s text is about Jacob and his wrestling match which ended in a blessing. I’m really quick to tell you guys all the good news stories about Sacred Sparks and our Loads of Love laundry ministry, and I want to be just as transparent with the bad days, or in this case, the bad week. For example, our week started on Tuesday with this little gem of a story: we accidentally dropped a laundry duffle bag traveling over the Korean Veteran’s bridge in downtown Nashville, the same bridge the Indy cars are racing on this weekend. By the time we circled back to claim the bag it was being examined by two fireman in SUVs who were most likely seconds away from calling in the bomb squad!!

This was probably our toughest week of laundry since we have been in the new space at St Luke CP. It was so tough that I basically just sat like a lump of clay all day yesterday trying to decompress from the week. But just like Jacob, after the wrestling match was over, I am slowly able to see and affirm the blessings which manifested despite our bad, terrible, no good week of laundry. I’m especially glad for my friend Rev. Lisa Oliver, who has become for our entire team, our pastor (I am hereby naming her the official chaplain for our team). The way she lifts up the blessings of this week pulled me out of my funk, so I asked her if I could share, and with her permission, these are her words about last week: 

Good morning!! 

What a week!! And by God’s grace we all made it!!

Carolyn loved helping on Thursday and is looking forward to helping next Thursday – when she can help – Thursday is likely to be her best day. And she is bringing tea, a dessert, and fresh fruit this next week!

I have invited a couple of friends to help next week.  I’m waiting on confirmation – and which day.

There were some precious moments yesterday.  The big boys playing gently and carefully with the little boy! The giggles and laughter were  so beautiful.  For just a little while, they felt safe and could just be kids!!  

One of the littles dropped his plate. Roger cleaned it up for us. We were trying to get through serving and tried to tell everyone to be careful. Roger did a jig to stay upright – and fortunately managed.  He just cleaned it up because it needed doing.  Bless him!!

Most are very thoughtful to bring in their cups and plates so we can wash them.  Most clean up after themselves really well.  

Kimberly washed dishes on Tuesday – she said out of appreciation for the great meal!!

Courtney helps out anytime we need her to help.  

Others pitch in and help from time to time.  Community building takes time, a lot of love, a lot of growing pains.  This week was some of the growing pains.  God is moving in a big way, and I am blessed to be able to help!!

Thank you Lisa for this necessary reminder that bad days WILL happen, bad weeks WILL happen, we WILL get tired and frustrated at times, we WILL wrestle at times, but come morning, even though we may be limping, we HAVE truly and no doubt been blessed!

Y’all have a great Sunday tomorrow and don’t be afraid to “wrassle” a little in life!

Peace and Love,

Pastor Lisa

What a Weekend!

How was your weekend? Mine was so meaningful and so much fun!

My weekend started on Thursday as I drove to Missouri from my home in Nashville TN. My destination was Camp Cumberland in Greenfield, MO to visit my CP friends. I spent friday with 35 campers (ages 9-11) and their adult chaperones. I shared news and updates about Sacred Sparks and our Loads of Love laundry ministry. I talked for about 2 hours total and these kids were SO engaged, listening and asking really good questions despite the stifling heat that day.

When I finished speaking, several of the campers approached me, some wanting to hug me, some asking to pray with me, some giving gifts, and some grieving with me (they were aware I have recently lost my mother). It was a very holy moment and I experienced Jesus in every encounter!

After my day at camp and some rest I headed to Virginia IL to visit and worship with the Shiloh Cumberland Presbyterian Church family. They have a beautiful church building in a beautiful rural setting, and the church is filled with beautiful people who love Jesus! We had a meet and greet pizza party on Saturday night. During the Sunday school hour the next morning I shared with them about the work of Sacred Sparks Ministry. We worshiped together and they allowed me to preach for them. I so enjoyed our time together and looking forward to building on our new relationship!

Enjoy the pictures and have a great week!

Pastor Lisa, Sacred Sparks Ministry

This model of the church building took three years to build!

Loads of Love Laundry Ministry Update

June 2023

Sacred Sparks Ministry opened our new laundry ministry space in March of 2022. This new sacred space is inside St Luke Cumberland Presbyterian Church in Madison, TN. We gave this vital aspect of our outreach/ministry efforts the name “Loads of Love.” 

In the weeks we have gathered since our opening in 2022, we have provided the following to our friends:

• 2268 Loads of clean laundry
• 2271 Meals served to hungry friends
• 423 Showers
• Loads, and Loads, and Loads of LOVE to all who enter our presence!

Other Notes:

Volunteers: Loads of Love has established a strong core team of volunteers who help serve our friends every week. From time-to time, other volunteers and individuals or groups will drop in and provide and/or serve our weekly meals and assist with clean-up.

Meals: Loads of Love now has access to a full kitchen at St Luke CP so we are able to provide full, hot meals to our friends. We have a full-time kitchen volunteer but we also encourage and invite individuals and groups to come cook/provide lunch to our friends. Many churches, individuals, and groups prepare casseroles that can be frozen so we have meals ready to go if no one is cooking for us that day

Special Occasions: Being in our own “sacred space” allows us to share more deeply in special occasions for our friends. In November we had a wedding in the St Luke sanctuary and we were open on Thanksgiving and fed a full Thanksgiving meal to more than 100 people; in December we provided Christmas for four children who are regulars at Loads of Love; in April we threw a baby shower for our friends who were expecting a baby; we also celebrate birthdays with our friends with a cake and a small gift

Laundry Littles: Loads of Love picks up at the Women’s Mission every week and we found out there are no free laundry services available onsite for women who have children. In response, we added a second weekly pickup at the mission. This pick-up is for women with children specifically. We have slowly noticed God bringing in more and more new friends with babies, and toddlers, and tweens/teens. At last count we have 22 children we see each week on a fairly regular basis. We have embraced this new area of ministry, given those children the nickname “Laundry Littles,” and started a Children’s Closet where we collect donations such as diapers, wipes, formula, baby hygiene, etc. for Moms to pick up on laundry day.

Transportation: In the Fall of 2023, Sacred Sparks Ministry will celebrate 10 years serving our friends!! During that decade of ministry, we began by utilizing my personal vehicles to transport our friends for ministry purposes. After a couple of years Sturgis CP in KY donated their 1998 Ford E250 van. It was a game-changer for the ministry because we could now transport up to 12 people at once. That van has served the ministry well for over seven years. It is now 25 years old with 90K+ miles. We have logged many miles in that van, and it has been vandalized twice. 

A couple of years ago the air conditioner stopped working so we mounted a little fan up front and that helps some during our hot summer months. We wanted to celebrate our decade of service and existence (thanks be to God!) by finding and purchasing a new transport van with working air so that our friends can be safe and comfortable during transport. 

It did not take long to find a van we feel is just perfect for our needs and a real upgrade to our transportation. It is a 2015 Ford E350 XLT transport van that carries 15 passengers. This van was a former government fleet vehicle and only has 37K miles AND the air conditioning is fabulous and cools the entire van! The van was priced at $36K

We sense God’s fingerprints all over this search because here is what has happened since we located the van: (1) a CP church has agreed to write the check for the van with the agreement that Sacred Sparks Ministry will fundraise to pay them back, and (2) supporters of Sacred Sparks Ministry have agreed to match funds raised for the van up to the full cost of $36K. This means that we only need to fundraise $18K, our matching donor will match that amount, and we will pay back that CP church…win-win-win!

Contact me if you want to get involved or help in any way. We are so very excited to see what God has planned for us next at Sacred Sparks Ministry!

Love & Peace!

Rev. Lisa Cook

Big News!

In the Fall of 2023, Sacred Sparks Ministry will celebrate 10 years serving our friends!! During that decade of ministry, we started out by using my personal vehicles to transport our friends for ministry purposes. After a couple of years Sturgis CP in KY donated their Ford E250 passenger van. It was a game-changer for the ministry because we could now transport up to 12 people at once! That van has served the ministry well for about seven years. It is now 25 years old and has been driven 90K+ miles. We have logged many, many miles in that van and it has been vandalized twice. A couple of years ago the air conditioner stopped working so we mounted a fan up front and that helps some during our hot summer months.

We want to celebrate our decade of service and existence (thanks be to God!) by finding and purchasing a new transport van with working air so that our friends can be comfortable during transport. The ministry felt led to move forward in faith and begin the research to find a “new-to-us” van. It did not take long to find a van we feel is just perfect for our needs and a real upgrade to our transportation. It is a 2015 Ford E350 XLT transport van that carries 15 passengers. This van was a former government fleet vehicle and only has 37K miles AND the air conditioning is fabulous and cools the entire van! The van was priced at $36K

We sense God’s fingerprints all over this search because here is what has happened since we located the van: (1) a CP church made it possible to secure the van (we picked it up Saturday morning!) with the agreement that Sacred Sparks Ministry will fundraise to cover the cost of the van, and (2) some supporters of Sacred Sparks Ministry have agreed to match funds raised for the van up to the full cost of $36K. This means that we only need to fundraise $18K, our donors will match that amount, and that will cover the cost to purchase the van…win-win-win!

So, we start that fundraising effort today. We need to raise $18K. If you are a church, a church group, a small group, a group of any kind, an organization or an individual, please pray about supporting this specific fundraising effort. We have several safe and secure giving options:

• Mail check: Sacred Sparks Ministry, 516 Franklin Rd, Brentwood TN 37027
• Text “LOVE” to 615-307-9400 (easyTithe)
• Visit: www.sacredsparksministry.wordpress.com (easyTithe)

Every friend served by Sacred Sparks Ministry will be surrounded by tangible proof of your love and care for them as they are safely (and comfortably) transported to and from various ministry resources/opportunities in our “new-to-us” transport van. To God be the glory!!

We need to raise $18K, lets go!!!

Rev. Lisa Cook

GOT LUNCH?

It seems unreal, but next week we celebrate the 1 year anniversary for our Loads of Love laundry ministry on March 22!! In 2021 Sacred Sparks Ministry acquired space in St Luke Cumberland Presbyterian Church in Madison, TN and we created our very own laundry room in that “sacred space.” Now, we can bring our friends to a warm, inviting church space where they will know without a doubt they are loved and welcomed.

One component of the hospitality we offer our friends is a hot, delicious meal while their clothes are being washed. Ask someone who has served in this capacity how rewarding it can be for both our friends and for you. There is just something about food that brings people of all types together around the table. Jesus did some of his best work and said some of the most amazing things around the table with others, all kinds of others.

If you are looking for an easy way to plug into a ministry like Sacred Sparks, we would love to have you sign up to provide and/or serve a meal (including drinks and dessert) for 20 friends on a Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday afternoon. A link to sign up is below. Contact me by text or email if you have any questions. If you would rather provide financial support for this effort, click on our “donate online” link above.

Signup Genius Link: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20F094BA4AB2CA0FB6-sacred

PEACE AND LOVE Y’ALL!

Rev. Lisa Cook, Sacred Sparks Ministry

Text or call: 615-307-1487 / Email: sacredsparksministry@gmail.com

I Came Back For More Cake, But…

The cake we had at the Loads of Love Blessing of the Space yesterday was delicious! I left it at St Luke when I took a friend back to camp, then I decided I wanted to take some of that cake home for later that night, so I drove back to St Luke CP. Everyone was gone and it was very quiet. I went upstairs to the laundry room to make sure I had left everything in order and I was SO glad I came back for cake. I took a few precious, quiet moments to sit in the laundry room and reflect on the day. The friends from all over who came to celebrate this milestone of Sacred Sparks Ministry. The sound of their laughter and the blessing of their words of encouragement and celebration. The presence of God that was felt during the liturgy of blessing as we traveled from the door of St Luke, to the door of the laundry room, then inside the laundry room for blessings of the machines, carts, supplies, St Luke, friends of Sacred Sparks, and for me. Take a look at the pictures and video below, they tell a story of yesterday. I will add more as they come in from others who took pictures, but these are a great start, and I think they tell the story of yesterday just fine. It was a good day (and it was a good cake).

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What About That Name??

You know, I have been thinking and have realized that almost nothing is ever my idea! I am a good listener though, and I tend to listen for and hang on to wise words and wise ideas. It was not my idea to do a laundry ministry for our friends experiencing homelessness and extreme poverty, but that has been a major focus for us for seven years. Now, we are on the verge of opening our “Loads of Love” laundry ministry space at St Luke CP church in Madison TN and that name, “Loads of Love,” that was also NOT my idea.

A few years back, the Sturgis (KY) CP youth group was in town to serve with us for their 30 Famine. This group was the first ever to come and serve with Sacred Sparks and until the pandemic hit, they served every year with us after that first year. I forget what year it was, but I asked them to break into groups and brainstorm slogans and t-shirt design ideas. While we have never gotten around to making those t-shirts a reality (I still have hope!), one of the slogans they came up with rooted itself in my subconscious and swam to the surface at just the right time: “LOADS OF LOVE”

I don’t know exactly whose idea it was among the groups, but my friend Rev. Samantha Hassell will know. So, thanks for the idea Sturgis CP youth and adults who love them! It was not my idea, but I heard you, and years later that slogan has found its place and will hopefully become a bright beacon for our friends for years to come!

BE the Love, SPREAD the Love! Text “LOVE” to 615-307-9400 to give securely online.

LOADS of LOVE!

We are so excited for March 18th when we will officially open our new laundry ministry space at St Luke Cumberland Presbyterian church in Madison TN! For seven years now we have been providing this much needed resource to our friends experiencing homelessness and extreme poverty. Now, our friends will be able to gather in a welcoming church space and not only wash and dry their clothes but also take a hot shower, break bread together over a hot meal, rest, charge phones, receive outreach supplies, fellowship and so much more!!

We hope you will pray about BEING THE LOVE (volunteering in some capacity), and SPREADING THE LOVE (sustaining our ministry through financial donations)!

Contact me about volunteer opportunities and here are some ways to give financially:

Text “LOVE” to 615-307-9400 and follow the link you receive to our secure online giving portal (one-time and recurring donation options)

Mail check to:
Sacred Sparks Ministry
516 Franklin Rd
Brentwood TN 37026

Click this link for our secure online giving portal (one time and recurring donations):
https://app.easytithe.com/app/giving/ssm