10/30/2025
How can your Church respond to the hunger crisis?
The following email was sent today from TBMB Compassion Ministries:
I am writing to you today because of the impending food crisis facing our state and our communities. Nearly 700,000 of our neighbors rely on SNAP benefits (formerly food stamps) to make it through the month and keep food on the table. Because of the current federal government shutdown these neighbors will not receive their SNAP benefits in November. In fact, my friend received a call yesterday from DHS to tell her she will not have benefits in November. She and so many like her in our communities, including children, single moms, and senior adults are wondering if they will have food next week. This is a Matthew 25 moment for Tennessee Baptists.
Maybe you’re wondering why this matters if the shutdown is resolved. Hunger is an everyday reality for more than 1,000,000 Tennesseans. That’s 1 in every 6 of our neighbors, and most of those are children. Around 300,000 children do not know where their next meal will come from. That is 1 in every 5 children in Tennessee.
Let those numbers sit with you for a minute.
What can your church do to love your neighbors through this crisis and beyond?
- Make sure your church members and attendees receiving SNAP have food. Take them to the grocery store, provide grocery gift cards, give food boxes, or make extra freezer meals for them. (SNAP recipients receive their benefits the 1st – 25th of the month based on their social security number. This means we will see a staggered effect until these benefits are reinstated.)
-Consider hosting a community meal and seize this opportunity to be a light in your community.
-Donate to your local food bank or pantry. Contact them first for a list of items needed.
-Go to feedtn.org for information on how you can donate your time, food, or money to a local food bank.
Because Tennessee Baptists have generously given through the Golden Offering, Cooperative Program, and Tennessee Hunger Funds, we are able to financially support Tennessee Baptist feeding ministries across the state.
If your church is offering a feeding ministry and you need assistance, please contact me.
You may also find our Feeding Ministry Serve Guide helpful if you are considering starting a feeding ministry in the future.
“For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in,”
