My name is Bro. Paul Edwards, pastor of White House First UMC, and this is the story of what unfolded at our church during the snow and ice storm.

After our power went off Sunday morning, I walked over to see if the church had power. As I walked, the devastation all around me was heartbreaking—trees and limbs were down everywhere.

When I reached the parking lot, I saw a light on outside the Fellowship Hall.

From the moment I saw that light until I reached my office, I heard the Lord clearly say, “You can’t keep this to yourself.”

All I said was, “Yes, Lord.”

I went back home and told Stephanie what I had heard. We packed everything we thought we would need—blankets, pillows, food—and made our way back to the church.

I posted on our Facebook page that we would be opening the church around 1:00 p.m. Sunday afternoon. Stephanie called the Police Department to let them know we were opening as a shelter. About ten minutes later, Emergency Management called to confirm we were opening our doors.

Then the calls started coming.

Some people were able to drive themselves. Some were brought by neighbors. I personally made multiple pick-ups until dark that Sunday evening.

Since then, we have been providing three meals a day. People have been sleeping in every possible Sunday School room—and even in my office. Many others came during the day to recharge phones, get hot coffee, warm up, and even work since we had Wi-Fi.

The church never lost power.

There is no doubt God opened a door for us to serve the community—and we walked through it. As I am writing this, we are still serving.

As of Friday morning, around 80 different people have come through these doors. We have housed between 12 and 27 people nightly. This has truly been a team effort.

We are so thankful for everyone who has helped and supported us. Many others have checked in and prayed for us as we’ve tried to be the hands and feet of Jesus to our community.

I’ll be honest—there have been weary moments. But each time, the Lord has sent a text, a hug, or a smile to help me keep on keeping on.

Every person who has stayed here has been incredibly appreciative. They’ve pitched in to help with cleaning and meal preparation. It has been beautiful to see people we’d never met before become family under such difficult circumstances.

Two women who came realized they lived just four doors down from each other—and had never met before this.

One moment I will never forget came Sunday night as I checked on each room. One elderly woman looked at me and said, “Thank you. You’ve saved our lives. We would have probably frozen to death.”

All glory belongs to the Lord—for the clear message Sunday morning, for His provision, and for the stamina and strength to meet the needs of so many in our community.

God is great, all the time.
And all the time, God is great.

God bless,
Bro. Paul Edwards

Editor's Note: Special thanks to Brother Paul for sharing not only his light, but also his voice through this account.