Ministering to the lost sheep, the homeless, those in prison, to widows and orphans and to the sick, are birthed in the heart of God Himself. When He can find a person or persons who hear the sound of His  heart, a ministry such as Lost Sheep Outreach Ministry is born. In truth, Lost Sheep Outreach Ministry has evolved over a twenty-year period. Its inception came about as a result of Rev. Ron Collier and Brother Phil Brickle discussing the needs of the homeless and less fortunate one autumn afternoon. Both young men had a burning desire to meet the physical and spiritual needs of the community of forgotten persons. Realizing those persons, precious to God, had need of food, clothing, shelter and spiritual guidance, they were motivated to start a ministry to them. They made an appointment with Mother Melvina Blalock, a missionary from Elevation Baptist Church in Raleigh, North Carolina. The meeting was held at K & S Cafeteria in Raleigh on November 19, 1996. That was the beginning of Ray of Hope Ministry. Through that church and those people, meals sere provided, buses and vans provided transportation to church services and to Bible Studies. They collected clothing items and distributed those to the needy. A coalition of churches was formed at times some fifteen churches were providing meals on Sundays when the shelters offered no meals. Brother Brickle remained the primary coordinator of the ministry until 2001 when he began to train others to continue the Ray of Hope Ministry. Many brothers and sisters have given their time, talents, money and love to the continuation of the ministry. Brother Brickle began Theological Studies and plans toward Ordination and was ordained a Minister of Jesus Christ on November 16, 2001 by The Wake County Baptist Association in The United Church of Christ for All People. He and Rev. Raymond Grant, pastor of that church, and Brother Ron Cabiness kept doing the work of Outreach Ministering in Raleigh. Rev. Brickle continued to collect clothing and provide food and monetary assistance to all he could. He spent many hours counseling, coaching and mentoring persons who were unnoticed by the community. In the summer of 2005 Brother Harold Bessard and his wife Sister Brenda Bessard join the ministry, plans were made to enlarge the ministries outreach effectiveness by becoming a non-profit organization. Rev. Brickle had, in years past, set up a lawn service to train people in a job skill. He called this lawn service Ministry, Lost Sheep Lawn Service. When searching for a name for this organization, the vote for Lost Sheep Outreach Ministry was unanimous. “He who begin a good work in you will be faithful to complete it.” Hallelujah!