I wanted another perspective in addition to mine, so I asked Joy Junction Volunteer Coordinator Jonathan Matheny to give me his thoughts on Wednesday's massive Thanksgiving feast at the Albuquerque Convention Center (when along with our partners we fed about 1700 meals), and Thursday's Thanksgiving festivities at our South Valley location.

Waking up at his normal early rising time of 5 a.m., Jonathan got ready for his part in helping set up the Albuquerque Convention Center (along with 12 other volunteers). Careful not to wake up his sleeping wife and four daughters, he snuck quietly out of the house before the sun came up.

By 8:00 a.m., Jonathan and crew were at the convention center to help set up the rooms for the big event just a few hours away. Much to their surprise and delight, even though Joy Junction volunteers were scheduled for all the preparation, convention center staff had taken care of everything by the time they arrived.

That, Jonathan said, was an early indication of how well everything would proceed. Ever analytical, Jonathan mentally computed how many people the room was set up for.

He said, "A quick count showed 55 tables with 10 chairs at each table. Serving lines, drink and desert stations had been set up, and a stage for our guest musician, attorney Tom Griego, who would be singing opera. This would be a smooth operation, if we could just keep the 200-plus volunteers organized, and the guests fed."

I arrived about 10.30 a.m., and people were already sitting at tables. The process during the next few hours, with an army of volunteers led by Joy Junction CFO Joe Krall, ran like a well-organized machine. The hungry were fed-abundantly-with a delicious meal, while enjoying Tom Griego's amazing musical talents. If you need great singing for your event, I recommend booking Tom (www.tomgriego.com). You won't be disappointed.

In addition to all the meals that were fed, very exciting was the number of people who came to me and other staff members and asked us to pray for them. This was really an event, I believe, where people left with spiritual and physical needs met. I can't even begin to estimate how many people stopped me on their way out of the convention center, some with tears in their eyes, and thanked me for a great meal.

While I left about 2.30 p.m. or so, it wasn't about 4 p.m. when Jonathan left. It was then, he said, he noticed that his voice was "in some distress."

On the way home, Jonathan reflected about the experiences of the last few hours. He said, "The banquet gave the guests a feeling of home; a sit down meal, some dignity, and the underlying feeling associated with knowing you are loved."

Jonathan added, "For a section of society mostly looked upon with disdain, this is very important. It is essential to acknowledge the humanity of the individual, and the fact there is a uniqueness. Categorizing all homeless as lazy, addicts, or trouble belies that uniqueness."

Jonathan's voice regressed rapidly. He arrived home, made some hot tea and went to bed in an attempt to forestall the inevitable, at least for a day.

He said, "I knew my voice would not be in its best shape in the morning, but also knew I had many volunteers and tours to attend to. There would also be people who needed help feeling safe and loved. I could not run the risk of totally losing my voice."

Meanwhile, at about 10.45 p.m. Wednesday evening, I received a call from one of our network news affiliates. They wanted to know if they could come to our kitchen early Thanksgiving morning for some live dinner preparation shots. I agreed quickly - I love our local media and am so appreciative for their coverage of Joy Junction - and after completing some additional work for Joy Junction at my home office went to bed just before midnight. I set the alarm for just after 4.30 a.m., to give me enough time to get ready and drive from my house to Joy Junction.

Morning came too quickly. I staggered out of bed, asked the Lord's blessing on the day, microwaved a chai latte, listened to an audio devotional from Our Daily Bread on my Blackberry, took a shower and drove on almost deserted streets to Joy Junction. By the time I arrived, the news affiliate truck was already parked outside the kitchen and doing all the myriad of viewer-unseen preparations necessary for a successful live broadcast.

I introduced myself to the photographer, grabbed two cups of coffee and prepared to go live on the air (still just a tad unnerving, because if you make a mistake there's no editing. You're live!).

By 6 a.m., I was standing in the appropriate place in the kitchen, and hooked up to all the appropriate cables so we could do voice checks from me to the station's control room. A couple of minutes later I was on the air-calm, thanks to the Lord, a great photographer and a delightful anchor. A couple of minutes later, it was all over. We did another live, trouble-free broadcast at 6.30 a.m.

Just before 7 a.m., the photographer took some more live footage of the kitchen - this time without me-and then began to tear down his equipment while checking on his next assignment. I retreated to Kitchen Manager Mike Sedillo's desk in the store room, and ate a great breakfast of hash browns, bacon and egg-kindly prepared for me by Mike.

After eating, I went back to my house for a while before returning to Joy Junction at about 1 p.m.

Meanwhile, Jonathan was organizing volunteers, dealing with numerous media, conducting interviews with volunteers, "telling the story," and doing a number of tours. He said the experience was "A non-stop whirlwind of action where I knew my voice would definitely not have a hope of recovery. Towards the end of the day, the jokes started to fly between co-workers and even some of our more vocal residents about how peaceful it would be when my voice finally went away."

Jonathan quipped, "What a great way to become sick. During the course of the two days, I cannot count how many times I went through both the long and short version of Joy Junction's history. I can't guess how many faces were touched when they actually understood the amount of effort it takes to keep this organization running. I could see it in their faces as I presented numbers to them, always highlighting the fact we survive entirely from 10,000-plus meals a month, as many as 300 people sheltered each night (including 70-80 children), 24/7 van service, and a small staff who work because of their commitment to seeing the needy sheltered, fed and helped."

The information barrage became almost too much for some people to handle, Jonathan said.

"Some shook their heads in awe; others whistled softly as each number hit them. A few became visibly emotional when they heard about the children. No one walked away without being touched in some fashion. Most importantly, they all walked away with a better knowledge, a better understanding of why this is such a blessed ministry."

One conversation was very memorable for Jonathan. After telling a woman all the facts and figures listed above, she asked him, "What do you makes all this work so well?"

Jonathan responded, "I have no other answer than it is totally by the grace of God. This is a prime example of God's existence in our modern day society. Without God, we would not have survived 23-plus years."

I agree with Jonathan. Joy Junction's birth and ability to continue is an ongoing testimony to the Lord's goodness and love. And at Joy Junction, as I gently reminded our residents before our Thanksgiving dinner, the occasion is just that. It's not "turkey day." It's Thanksgiving, a time to give thanks to the One who created and sustains us. I hope your Thanksgiving was an equally happy one, and spent in the same spirit.