Back to stories from my visit to Germany in May and June. I spent three days with the deaconesses of the Bethesda order at their mother house in Wuppertal and experienced various aspects of their work. One afternoon I helped out in their second hand shop, Seek and Find, where people especially from the migrant community are made welcome and supported in various ways. They are sensitively offered Bible verses on little rolls of coloured paper, and these, if accepted, often provide the stimulus for conversation, tears and prayers.
While I was in the shop two women came in and talked with Schwester Elisabeth and Schwester Heidi. They were in despair because they were unable to find work and the shop was clearly a lifeline, not just for its reasonably-priced goods, but for the personal contact and friendship which it offers.
I was naked and you clothed me…
