I first heard of Poppy through the leaders of Parent Life. I hadn’t ever heard of Unpack ministries before that night, but Poppy’s reputation proceeded her as a lion heart and a woman of passion and perseverance. I found her on Facebook and then recognized her when we began attending a new church last summer. They had a time of prayer after that first service I attended and I made a B-line toward her. She didn’t know me from Adam, but I knew who she was. I told her that I was so tired of worrying about what people thought of me and that it was holding me back from being the Christian that I knew I was called to me.

After a passionate prayer she grabbed my cheeks and looked me in the eye and honestly I can’t even remember what she said, but I saw a boldness in her and felt like it transferred to me just through her life’s modeling.

When I attended Unpack two weeks ago I walked in and saw the most warm, homey feeling space. The scent of warm candles were burning everywhere and there was beauty, femininity and attention to detail. The women seemed to feel completely at ease and Poppy took her place at the front and began talking. She gave some announcements and then dimmed the lights and turned on the music. I wasn’t sure what was about to happen, but I knew it would be special. She and her fellow ladies began walking around and praying for each woman. They touched, hugged and connected with each one as a mother or grandmother would do. I was seriously willing myself not to just start sobbing.

It was beautiful.

After that special time had ended Poppy got in front and began to speak the most forward, determined truth of God’s word to the women. She has such a lion heart! Here is what she said about her ministry…

What is Unpack’s mission and who do you serve?

We strive to be “the church” to single women in the Lubbock community. We hope to expand our territory as God equips us to do so. We want to help our women unpack the pain of their pasts and unpack their things to make a home. By doing so, with a Godly community guiding them and walking alongside them, they begin to understand their true identity and walk into their calling and purpose which shifts the culture of the generations to come.

How do you do help the people who come to your meetings?

Each week we teach Biblical principals relevant to today – anything from parenting to social media presence. We accept women as they are, but give them hard truths, hoping they will penetrate deep and propel change. We also hand out cleaning and hygiene products – things which foodstamps don’t buy but are necessities for a household. Not all of our women struggle financially, but the majority are single mothers doing everything they can to make ends meet. We believe if we can relieve some of the pressure it will keep them from getting into unhealthy relationships with men for the wrong reasons. Ministry doesn’t have “open” hours so it’s non-stop. I always say it’s “boots on the ground” because it’s not a fly over. It’s in the trenches and messy. Real lives have real stories and you can’t contain needs and crisis’ to weekly meetings.

How long have you been running Unpack?

I’ve been doing this type of ministry for 6 years, actually longer, but not as intently due to raising my own children and getting my education. Unpack received it’s non-profit status in 2017 allowing us more opportunity to get attention and support from others.

What are the areas that you have the greatest need from volunteers and other people in the community?

Our greatest need is financial. There’s never been a moment when all of our women have been self-sufficient. As mentioned before, it’s messy. We have grandmothers raising grandchildren who have no extra money to pay for field trips, teacher’s Christmas gifts, costumes for plays… We have women who have health issues with no insurance and certainly no sick leave from work. We have had women lose their children and found ourselves paying for funerals. Many people take for granted having birthday parties for their kids, but the majority of our women have no extra money to do these simple things. We try to step in and do what we can without enabling them and keeping their children’s emotions and hearts protected. We also appreciate donations of cleaning and hygiene products. We pass out several hundred dollars a week worth of toilet paper, paper towels, detergent, trash bags, cleaning supplies, shampoo, feminine products…

We typically are working on a “current project”. We just wrapped up our “Mother’s Day” one which each mother received an outfit, a candle, nice body soap, a devotional and a giftcard to a local restaurant. We also handed out gifts for the children to give their teachers for “teacher appreciation” week. There is never a time when we aren’t working on something. As summer approaches we will try to scholarship children to camps and other things. We will also begin working on new socks and underwear for back to school in the fall. It seriously is continuous.

What would you like for us to know about the women that you serve?

They are human. They need affirmation. They have real needs and are typically tapped on every level.

Where and when do you have your meetings?

We have a weekly Wednesday night meeting at Lubbock Impact from 6:00-7:30. We also have one-on-one mentorship each semester. We typically have 6-8 women go through, but as we get more semesters under our belt, we have more mentors who are equipped with the Biblical tools to walk mentees through painful areas of their past and get the freedom we know Jesus died to give us. We do the mentorship program on Thursday evenings at Lubbock Impact for 12-16 week at a time. We also have a computer lab, which was paid for by a grant from Parkhill, Smith and Cooper, to teach our ladies skills which help them become more employable. We are also in the process of getting some of them help with their GEDs.

What is one of your favorite stories from working with the women through Unpack?

I have one woman, whom when I met her, she was strung out on meth. She lived in a house with no utilities and broken out windows with her 3 young children. Today she has her teacher’s aide certification and serves Jesus with her whole heart. Her kids pray for people unashamedly and can quote more scripture than most adults.

How did you get involved in this type of mission?

I had a son born 9 ½ weeks early while being a single mother to a 5 ½ year old daughter (Her father was amazing). As well as other preemie issues, my son was diagnosed with cancer which landed us in the hospital over and over. At this point, I realized the church, as a whole, didn’t really know how to minister to single moms. They had no idea of what my needs were. That was almost 21 years ago. It changed my life and passion for single parenting in a Godly way with Christian community and support.

What is your favorite Bible verse and why?

“Above all else, guard your heart, for out of it is where you live your life.” Proverbs 4:23. If I had only known how to protect myself from poisoning my life by making terrible decisions, my life would have looked so different. Obviously, I would NEVER trade being a mom, but I sure could have prevented many heartaches. I teach my women how to guard their hearts without building walls of defensiveness and isolations. There’s a fine line of guarding your heart and becoming unteachable and impenetrable for the Holy Spirit to guide you into His truths.

How can people reach you if they are interested in supporting you?

If people will follow us on facebook “unpack ministries” or visit our webpage, unpackministries.com, they will stay “in the know” of what we are doing and how we are influencing and changing lives. Our mailing address is P.O. Box 65620 Lubbock 79464. I personally can be reached at 806-239-6162 or at poppy@unpackministries.com