NATCHEZ — Parkway Baptist Church members are giving the community a lesson in Christian love with a meal for those who need it.

On Tuesday, Parkway hosted a lunch for the beneficiaries of their food pantry.

Guests ate pasta, salad and cake while discussing scripture and the role of Jesus in everyday life with the members of Parkway.

“Our primary purpose is not the food you put in your mouth, but the food you put in your mind,” said Parkway Sunday school teacher Raj Behara in his sermon to his guests.

Parkway members have always paired their food pantry with spreading the words of Jesus, but Behara said he and other members thought they could be more involved.

“We wanted to do a lot more. More than just giving (food) out to people,” Behara said. “We wanted to spend some time with them. Get to know them. Find out what their needs are, and how best we, as a church, can serve our community.”

Parkway started their food pantry in 1993, said Pat Davis who is a member of Parkway.

“It started in a cardboard box, and we were just doing it at the holiday,” Davis said. “We thought holidays were when people need food, but someone brought it to our attention we needed to give out food more often.”

The cardboard box was replaced by wooden box and then the box was added the closet in Parkway where all the donations were placed.

Behara said this was the first month Parkway has hosted a community meal, but he expects the church will make it a monthly event.

“Our gratitude is overwhelming, we really appreciate it,” Trollas Gooden, a guest at Parkway, said. “It’s things like this that spread the peace throughout the neighborhood. We need more of this.”

Gooden came with his mother, Helen, to the meal after she met Parkway’s preacher, Jeff Brewer.

The pair said they were excited to come again next month with as many friends and family as possible.

“You never miss and opportunity to get some prayer,” Trollas said. “And to get something to eat.”

Helen said she invited more people to come to the lunch, but many people had to work.

Behara said the church members invited nearly 140 of the beneficiaries of the food pantry. Thirty people participated in the meal, and Behara said increasing attendance is the next step.

“We are real encouraged with (the turn out), and we want to see how better we can do it,” Behara said. “Will doing it in the evening work better than in the afternoon? But we are just glad that we were able to share the blessing of God with them.”