What is Love INC?

• Love INC is a strategy to help churches help their neighbors in need.
• Love INC is a network of churches that links volunteers to people in need.
• Love INC is a cooperative effort between churches and service agencies to provide effective help for the disadvantaged.
• Love INC is a vehicle that helps churches, collectively and individually fulfill their biblical mandate to reach out to the poor and needy.

Why does it work?

• There are unlimited resources in the body of Christ that Love INC mobilizes on behalf of those in need.
• Love INC gives Christians a specific, manageable opportunity to put their faith and love to work in the service of people in need.
• Because scripture tells us love never fails. (1 Corinthians 13:8).

How does Love INC work?

Individuals, agencies and/or churches contact Love INC with referrals. Because of our 25 year history in Muskegon, many people know about us and self-refer. Love INC volunteers assess the needs presented and determine the legitimacy and the manageability of the need before referring to a community and/or church resource(s). Many people are referred to one or more of our gap ministries located in area churches. Love INC does not seek to replace or duplicate what human service agencies are doing well, but only to supplement and complement the work of those agencies, therefore we help develop and/or work with existing ministries to fill known gaps in the community.

Many times Love INC is contacted when all other resources in the community have been exhausted. This gives the Body of Christ the opportunity to step in when there is no other resource available. Besides referring to one or more of our gap ministries, churches in the Love INC network may also help with emergency needs.

Some participating churches survey their congregations and establish a list of people willing to help meet legitimate needs that fit with their gifts and strengths and on their schedule. Those volunteers are contacted when a specific need they can fill is determined.

Availability of any requested service is dependent upon the availability of the resource, the church volunteer or the resources available in the requested gap ministry.

When assisting people, Love INC does not discriminate based on race, gender, age, religion or any other reason. Although distinctively Christian, we serve people of any faith or no faith at all.

2009 ANNUAL REPORT