A Shepherd for the Sheep:
Reality & Truth Ministries

There is no greater visual to LaDonna Brendle than seeing someone smile. Seeing someone have hope who hasn’t had it. Someone who believes in Jesus who hadn’t previously believed.

“I just love that,” she said. “It’s like seeing the Lord transform people right before your very eyes, and it’s beautiful.”

This is her life’s work.

Almost 15 years ago, Brendle (pictured on right in photo) founded Reality & Truth Ministries. Its mission is to serve and glorify God according to the work of Christ by promoting the one source of truth amidst everyday realities – through encouraging, teaching, loving and gifting others.

“First and foremost, people need to see what Jesus looks like,” she said. “And when you speak the truth, and at the same time you’re showing the truth – actually living it out amongst the people, it’s life-changing.

“There are people with real needs. They need to know that it is the Lord who cares about their needs. And that the Lord will meet them there, and He cares. In the scriptures Jesus says, ‘I looked upon them with compassion because they were a sheep without a shepherd.’”

As believers in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, “we have been gifted to live life eternally in Heaven with Him and gifted to live life today on earth in Him through the Holy Spirit. Jesus commissioned every believer to go out and be His hands and feet in His power by His Spirit. The Holy Scriptures as written in Isaiah speak this Truth aptly…”

The mission work of Reality & Truth includes One Church Mission, Beautiful Feet Mission, Israel Love Mission, Let’s Talk Truth on WFRZ TV, and The Well Residential (housing and discipleship for women in transition from prison).

Located at 506 Montgomery Street, the 9,000-square-foot One Church Mission will provide the amenities of home to the homeless and poor in downtown Montgomery, including Bible studies, showers, laundry, clothing, home furnishings, groceries, daily dinners, and weekday lunches.

“About 50 percent of our outreach is One Church Mission,” Brendle said. “About 50 percent of those (at the mission) grew up without a shepherd, parents, leadership, guidance, and direction into the pathway of life did not exist. The streets were their leadership. So, when you have a ministry that is not humanitarian, that is very much relational, it becomes like a family to the people.

“There’s this misunderstanding of people without. People weren’t willing to get near them. Like the untouchables in the scriptures – where a lot of people don’t want to get close or deep with people who are not like them. And that’s unfortunate because Jesus came for all people, especially the ones that nobody wanted to look at, be near, or be a friend with.”

The ministry temporarily serves dinner at 108 Camden Street until the development of One Church is complete. Plans are to open it full-time later this summer or in the fall.

Reality & Truth: The Beginning

Soon after it was founded in 2008, the ministry began evangelizing and giving away Bibles at an apartment complex – while remaining active in prison ministry. The Lord then focused the mission field to downtown Montgomery and also to Tel Aviv, Israel, as they began short-term missions once or twice a year to the homeless and poor in Tel Aviv, serving the homeless and poor communities through local organizations and street outreach.

Back in Montgomery, the ministry offered “Sunday Street School,” teaching God’s Word and providing weekly lunches to a downtown street community, and also teaching a Bible study and providing a weekly meal at a downtown church.

The ministry has gone from feeding the homeless at Overlook Park, to a church building, to someone’s backyard, and after, a soup kitchen. Whatever it took, whatever obstacles faced, Brendle never stopped.

“The Lord does things purposefully,” she said. “People see that someone will be there with them every single day. That we’re ready to suffer with them. Also, we did a full circle around downtown. He expanded our reach.”

“The greatest and most exciting thing that our mission center provides is the opportunity to fulfill the great commission of go, teach and baptize. The time spent throughout each day building relationships with this community has proven to be very fruitful for the expansion of His kingdom. We literally are doing what God has commanded in Deuteronomy 6 by teaching as we walk, talk, sit, and eat together daily,” Brendle explains.

Providing Outreach

Reality & Truth has several outreach programs – and shares that the women’s transitional home – The Well Residential – offers the women something when they have nothing. When they have no money, no home, no job opportunities.

“What do you do?” Brendle asks. “A lot of them end up homeless. Our home provides free housing. We provide four different Bible studies throughout the year based on life, so we believe they will come out and be self-sufficient.

“We also teach them how to have healthy relationships. Finally, we develop prayer life. We believe that if your prayer life is developed and healthy, that you will hear from the Lord and will walk in the purpose He has made for you. And that you will be very successful. We all need a fresh start. And it’s not free – they volunteer, get jobs.”

The ministry’s teaching program, Brendle said, is important to the community because “we all need to hear the word of God. And not everybody is going to be reading the word of God. And not everybody is listening to teaching that is more like application – a lot of it is very historical, which is all good.

“And people need to be encouraged to be with other Christians and be in the Word together. And we believe that no matter who you are, the word of God is powerful, and it is effective. And we all need more effectiveness in our life.

One Church Mission

The building was acquired about 10 years ago. Brendle stresses everything she does is in obedience, explaining the Lord has not provided for the building to be open any sooner than this summer or fall.

“You can do campaigns and fundraisers to get buildings up and running, and that’s not the approach we took,” she said. “We’re run by all volunteers and no staff.

“The Lord’s timing is as such. When Covid began, we lost every bit of our leadership in our mission. When you’re serving the Lord, you don’t stop doing ministry. He immediately showed me, ‘See? Aren’t you glad the building is not ready?’ It would have been a very big challenge to run the business and organization and all the operational part of the organization with just me on board. I have a board that is wonderful, and who stepped in and up at that time.”

Brendle said when the Lord called her and her team to reach the homeless, there were only overnight shelters. She slowly started filling the needs piece by piece.

“It takes time to invest in people,” she said. “We are selfish with our time. I was, before I met Jesus. People need people.”

How to help or donate:

Online: https://realityandtruth.com
Call: 334-354-6142
Address: 108 Camden Street, or PO BOX 6322, Montgomery, AL 36106-0322
Email: realityandtruth@live.com