Due to a conflict in our church calendar, we had to switch with another church and serve on the 4th Monday instead of our usual 3rd Monday. This ended up putting our day on the last full day at the Center before Christmas. Anne told me they were planning on having a Christmas party complete with gifts for everyone and we could lead everyone in Christmas Carols.
We cooked up a feast the day before. We had roast pork loin, scalloped potatos, our famous green beans and about a million Christmas cookies that were baked by the youth group during their Christmas party.
The first 15 minutes were the most intense 15 minutes I have ever experienced at the center. Everyone seemed to eat all at the same time. We were even a bit short handed, but it all worked out. Once we got past that first test, we could enjoy serving and watching.
I recruited on of our more outgoing workers to lead us in caroling. She did a great job and we had about a dozen of our homeless friends sing out like crazy. Everyone had so much fun, they loved singing loud and lauging all at the same time.
Then the gifts came out. In the weeks leading up to this day, there was a sign up sheet where everyone could write down a gift they would like for Christmas. Typical requests included, flannel shirts and hoodies.
Some how (I heard the Center got another generous donation, but I am not sure) there were enough gifts for everyone including any new friends for that day. They had a ball opening up the gifts. It was so nice to watch the genuine thankfulness on display.
When it was winding up, one homeless friend told me that when they heard that our day to serve ended up on the Christmas party, they knew it would be a great day. We have a reputation for excellent food. As usual, I was quick to tell them that we are simply using the money that God keeps giving us through the incredible donations and God is the one who gets the credit.
I saw Christmas today and it was great. We were certainly blessed to be a part of watching God move. The lesson - it is better to given than to receive.
Saturday, December 20, 2008
Thursday, December 18, 2008
Team work works again
Today we get to serve along side New Life church. New Life supplies the breakfast at 10:00, and we supply volunteers at 10:00 and lunch at 12:00.
It was a nice and smooth day for everyone. We had a few adults serve for the first time and a few regulars.
Things were so smooth, I was shocked to see that the sign in sheet showed 52 names of homeless friends for that day. We must be getting used to the crowds and know what we are doing.
It was a good day, again.
The lesson - not sure, but it could be to keep on keeping on and it will get easier.
It was a nice and smooth day for everyone. We had a few adults serve for the first time and a few regulars.
Things were so smooth, I was shocked to see that the sign in sheet showed 52 names of homeless friends for that day. We must be getting used to the crowds and know what we are doing.
It was a good day, again.
The lesson - not sure, but it could be to keep on keeping on and it will get easier.
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
They Finally Meet!!
We went on our usual delivery today and we had two first timers.
My daughter went for the very first time, she is on break from college and she had heard so much about this ministry.
The other newbie is my friend Jim. He helps in the middle school area every Wednesday, and like my daughter, has heard a lot about this ministry. He also helps with transportation when the adults serve on Monday.
Before we get too far, I need to tell you what happened way back in May. When the youth were assembling the meals, I had them write their name on a 3x5 card and simply tell the person who would receive the card that they were prayed for that day. We put what we call "Spiritual Food" in our meals that we deliver. We always hear about our homeless friends reading and saving all these cards. Usually we put an encouraging verse on the card, but I felt God wanted us to be more personal.
I don't even remember the delivery day that included these different cards, but sometime in September, we were making our rounds and one of our regular homeless friends got to talking about the cards. She told us that she has saved all of them and one of the was very special. Yes, you guessed it, she was treasuring the card that Jim wrote. She asked me if I knew Jim, of course I did. She went on and on about how that card has encouraged her simply by reminding her that Jim prayed specifically for her on a day in May. Of course, I could not wait to tell Jim and the whole youth group that story.
Now to the delivery for today. I could not wait for Jim to meet her. He had heard so many things about her, but they never met. This homeless friends rarely goes to the Day Center.
We saw her at her usual location and offered a ride to where she and her husband live. When we finally met up, I got to introduce her to Jim. It was so cool to see them remember the card and be able to make this kind of connection. I think Jim got the bigger blessing while we stood in that parking lot.
I think the time we did those cards differently in May was the only time we have ever done it that way. God sure used it to bless two friends of mine.
The lesson - God has a reason for doing the things the way He does and we sometimes have to wait a few months to see the fruit of His actions.
My daughter went for the very first time, she is on break from college and she had heard so much about this ministry.
The other newbie is my friend Jim. He helps in the middle school area every Wednesday, and like my daughter, has heard a lot about this ministry. He also helps with transportation when the adults serve on Monday.
Before we get too far, I need to tell you what happened way back in May. When the youth were assembling the meals, I had them write their name on a 3x5 card and simply tell the person who would receive the card that they were prayed for that day. We put what we call "Spiritual Food" in our meals that we deliver. We always hear about our homeless friends reading and saving all these cards. Usually we put an encouraging verse on the card, but I felt God wanted us to be more personal.
I don't even remember the delivery day that included these different cards, but sometime in September, we were making our rounds and one of our regular homeless friends got to talking about the cards. She told us that she has saved all of them and one of the was very special. Yes, you guessed it, she was treasuring the card that Jim wrote. She asked me if I knew Jim, of course I did. She went on and on about how that card has encouraged her simply by reminding her that Jim prayed specifically for her on a day in May. Of course, I could not wait to tell Jim and the whole youth group that story.
Now to the delivery for today. I could not wait for Jim to meet her. He had heard so many things about her, but they never met. This homeless friends rarely goes to the Day Center.
We saw her at her usual location and offered a ride to where she and her husband live. When we finally met up, I got to introduce her to Jim. It was so cool to see them remember the card and be able to make this kind of connection. I think Jim got the bigger blessing while we stood in that parking lot.
I think the time we did those cards differently in May was the only time we have ever done it that way. God sure used it to bless two friends of mine.
The lesson - God has a reason for doing the things the way He does and we sometimes have to wait a few months to see the fruit of His actions.
Friday, November 28, 2008
It happened again!!
As written about in the other blog, our church got the responsibility to fill the boot needs for the women at the shelter and then it happened -
Right before the Thanksgiving Eve service a person gave me $300 so we could buy all the boots that are needed. What a great way to start the Christmas season.
Chris and I got to brave the crowds on Black Friday to make the purchases, but guess what? There were no crowds!!! We got great parking places at the two places we went to. That is so awesome, I can't stand large crowds.
We got all the boots that are needed with some money left over and we get to deliver them to the Center on Saturday.
The lesson - God provides!!
Right before the Thanksgiving Eve service a person gave me $300 so we could buy all the boots that are needed. What a great way to start the Christmas season.
Chris and I got to brave the crowds on Black Friday to make the purchases, but guess what? There were no crowds!!! We got great parking places at the two places we went to. That is so awesome, I can't stand large crowds.
We got all the boots that are needed with some money left over and we get to deliver them to the Center on Saturday.
The lesson - God provides!!
Friday, November 21, 2008
Do you have any ribs?
Today was delivery day. It was very cold and windy.
We decided to visit the folks that got kicked out Monday.
We found about 5 tents all crammed together only about 10 yards from where they were on Monday. They have simply moved across a property line. They know where all the property lines are in this area.
Two of our friends were in their tents just trying to keep warm. They came out, along with a cute cat. Normally, they don't take the food we offer, they have a few places in the area that support homeless, but they wanted what we had. This showed me that they are pretty depressed although they were doing their best to stay positive.
I told them we had PBJ and stuff. One of the homeless jokingly asked if we could get them some baby back ribs instead. The other agreed. We joked about pretending that the sandwiches would be baby back ribs, but it was not all that funny.
There is that feeling again - helplessness in the middle of a terrible situation.
We left the food and went on our journey. It was much colder after that visit.
We decided to visit the folks that got kicked out Monday.
We found about 5 tents all crammed together only about 10 yards from where they were on Monday. They have simply moved across a property line. They know where all the property lines are in this area.
Two of our friends were in their tents just trying to keep warm. They came out, along with a cute cat. Normally, they don't take the food we offer, they have a few places in the area that support homeless, but they wanted what we had. This showed me that they are pretty depressed although they were doing their best to stay positive.
I told them we had PBJ and stuff. One of the homeless jokingly asked if we could get them some baby back ribs instead. The other agreed. We joked about pretending that the sandwiches would be baby back ribs, but it was not all that funny.
There is that feeling again - helplessness in the middle of a terrible situation.
We left the food and went on our journey. It was much colder after that visit.
Thursday, November 20, 2008
The book was delivered
Remember the guy I met on Saturday and promised to give him a book on Monday? If you can't read the post titled, "30 Pounds an Hour."
He was there and I gave him the book. I also found out he has a facebook account. We are now friends and he also writes a blog filled with poetry. This guy is pretty interesting. He is very intelligent and is doing what he can to get things back in order in his life.
He even put this blog on his facebook account. It will be interesting to see how this all unfolds.
The lesson - Always be read to tell everyone about the hope you have.
He was there and I gave him the book. I also found out he has a facebook account. We are now friends and he also writes a blog filled with poetry. This guy is pretty interesting. He is very intelligent and is doing what he can to get things back in order in his life.
He even put this blog on his facebook account. It will be interesting to see how this all unfolds.
The lesson - Always be read to tell everyone about the hope you have.
Moving on up
I had a neat conversation with one of my favorite people at the Center.
She showed me a purse and asked me what I thought. Since I have been married for 20 plus years, I knew that I had better like it even if it looked like any other black purse I had ever seen in my entire life. It's not that I don't like purses, I just don't pay attention to this kind of stuff at all.
After she received the compliment, she proudly told me that she paid for the purse. It was bought at the Thrift Store for something like $4, but she was so proud that she actually bought it with her own money. It was not a handout and that meant a lot to her.
The told me her first step up the ladder was when she quit using a backpack. When you are homeless, you need to keep as much stuff with you as possible.
Once the backpack was gone, she used a purse that either was given to her or one that she found somewhere.
Now, she has a job (actually, her and her husband have started a business), a room and now can actually purchase something and not rely on handouts. Her and her husband are really neat people.
The lesson here - One step at a time - keep movin on up.
She showed me a purse and asked me what I thought. Since I have been married for 20 plus years, I knew that I had better like it even if it looked like any other black purse I had ever seen in my entire life. It's not that I don't like purses, I just don't pay attention to this kind of stuff at all.
After she received the compliment, she proudly told me that she paid for the purse. It was bought at the Thrift Store for something like $4, but she was so proud that she actually bought it with her own money. It was not a handout and that meant a lot to her.
The told me her first step up the ladder was when she quit using a backpack. When you are homeless, you need to keep as much stuff with you as possible.
Once the backpack was gone, she used a purse that either was given to her or one that she found somewhere.
Now, she has a job (actually, her and her husband have started a business), a room and now can actually purchase something and not rely on handouts. Her and her husband are really neat people.
The lesson here - One step at a time - keep movin on up.
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
God uses unusual things
As soon as we got to the Center, we heard that the very large camp was being kicked off the property by the police. We did not see them at the Center, it was strange.
Joe had us put together about a dozen meals and asked if we could take food to them. I went with one of our volunteers. It was just starting to rain and the temperature was in the mid 40s. I hate those cold and rainy days.
When we found them, a few tents has already been put up on a different piece of property. The owner of that property gave them permission to stay there for a week. After that, no one knew where they were going to go.
We brought the food and it was greatly appreciated. One homeless friend had me leave a message at his wife's job, so that she would not be surprised when she came home from work. That was weird.
Before we left, I said, "Let's circle up and pray, we need God to help us in this situation." They all agreed, that is not unusual. The unusual thing was who prayed. One of the homeless guys volunteered to pray. It was beautiful. Such a heartfelt prayer. I could only imagine how God felt when that prayer was presented to Him.
We left with empty boxes, but we certainly saw God move.
The lesson - God starts to do unusual things when things are not the way they usually are.
Joe had us put together about a dozen meals and asked if we could take food to them. I went with one of our volunteers. It was just starting to rain and the temperature was in the mid 40s. I hate those cold and rainy days.
When we found them, a few tents has already been put up on a different piece of property. The owner of that property gave them permission to stay there for a week. After that, no one knew where they were going to go.
We brought the food and it was greatly appreciated. One homeless friend had me leave a message at his wife's job, so that she would not be surprised when she came home from work. That was weird.
Before we left, I said, "Let's circle up and pray, we need God to help us in this situation." They all agreed, that is not unusual. The unusual thing was who prayed. One of the homeless guys volunteered to pray. It was beautiful. Such a heartfelt prayer. I could only imagine how God felt when that prayer was presented to Him.
We left with empty boxes, but we certainly saw God move.
The lesson - God starts to do unusual things when things are not the way they usually are.
What a dilemma
On Monday, the largest camp that we know of was told to leave the property that they camp on. About 25 people live in the woods and many are regulars at the Center.
The problem is that all these camps are trespassing and probably violating all kinds of codes. This group was told to leave or they would all be charged with trespassing. Many people already have records and this would only add to their problems.
They got permission from the owner of an adjacent property to spend the night. After that, they don't have many options. Please pray for this group.
Here is the typical order of events that leads to this problem.
First, a few homeless people camp together so they can look out for each other and stay safe. The police usually are aware of the camp, but if no one complains, they look the other way.
Second, the camp grows because they support each other.
Third, stupid people start doing stupid things. Unfortuatly, many of the homeless have addiction issue. The addiction is usually illegal and the different ways to earn money to support the addiction are illegal as well.
Forth, the cops come to send a message to get things to calm down. The cops don't know who is doing what, so everyone gets hassled.
Fifth, the stupid stuff continues and the cops tell everyone to move on.
This ends up hurting everyone, even the ones who are not being stupid. There is one person in particular who has a job, takes care of her husband, does not do the stupid stuff, but now is homeless without a place to camp, now that is homeless. She was so upset, but she listened to me and Anne and I even got to pray for her.
Now the dilemma - how do we help? What can we offer? How do you help them to do what they need to do to get out of the situation?
How can she continue to "do the right thing?" How do you live in a community to protect each other, but a few bad apples are messing it up for everyone?
The hardest part of this whole deal is the helpless feeling you have when you see everything that goes on. The lesson here - God brought us to this point, He must have something up His sleeve. We must continue to do what we can, there is always hope when our God is involved.
The problem is that all these camps are trespassing and probably violating all kinds of codes. This group was told to leave or they would all be charged with trespassing. Many people already have records and this would only add to their problems.
They got permission from the owner of an adjacent property to spend the night. After that, they don't have many options. Please pray for this group.
Here is the typical order of events that leads to this problem.
First, a few homeless people camp together so they can look out for each other and stay safe. The police usually are aware of the camp, but if no one complains, they look the other way.
Second, the camp grows because they support each other.
Third, stupid people start doing stupid things. Unfortuatly, many of the homeless have addiction issue. The addiction is usually illegal and the different ways to earn money to support the addiction are illegal as well.
Forth, the cops come to send a message to get things to calm down. The cops don't know who is doing what, so everyone gets hassled.
Fifth, the stupid stuff continues and the cops tell everyone to move on.
This ends up hurting everyone, even the ones who are not being stupid. There is one person in particular who has a job, takes care of her husband, does not do the stupid stuff, but now is homeless without a place to camp, now that is homeless. She was so upset, but she listened to me and Anne and I even got to pray for her.
Now the dilemma - how do we help? What can we offer? How do you help them to do what they need to do to get out of the situation?
How can she continue to "do the right thing?" How do you live in a community to protect each other, but a few bad apples are messing it up for everyone?
The hardest part of this whole deal is the helpless feeling you have when you see everything that goes on. The lesson here - God brought us to this point, He must have something up His sleeve. We must continue to do what we can, there is always hope when our God is involved.
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
A good kind of tired
What a weekend!! We got to serve at the center on Saturday and on Monday!! We ended up serving a total of about 95 people when you combine the two days. Fortunately, many came to both days making it easier for me to build the relationships I have with several people.
We also had two totally different groups from our church serving on the two days. So many people are being used by God and the word is spreading. God is touching our volunteers, it is so cool.
I was pretty much wiped out after our Monday. Again, I came back with absolutely no food, just empty containers and coolers. Even though I was wiped out, I was thinking ahead to the delivery day we have this week and the next time we serve in December. That is a good sign, to be tired, but ready for the next round.
A lot happened on Monday, look for another post or two that will address a specific story in some depth.
The guy I mentioned on the previous post returned and I was able to give him the book. This guy is a very intelligent person and we had some good conversations. We are now friends on Facebook and fellow bloggers. He writes poetry and I really need to check it out.
My shopping buddy was also there and he remembered my name. This has been an on going joke and he was very proud of himself when he got the name right. He is a very nice kid.
We also had two teenagers there. A very sad story, please pray for this family.
It looks like a Bible study will be starting very soon. Somewhere around 11 homeless friends are looking forward to getting into the Bible as a group. That is so cool.
Well, that is all for now. Remember, I am tired, so I need to get some rest.
We also had two totally different groups from our church serving on the two days. So many people are being used by God and the word is spreading. God is touching our volunteers, it is so cool.
I was pretty much wiped out after our Monday. Again, I came back with absolutely no food, just empty containers and coolers. Even though I was wiped out, I was thinking ahead to the delivery day we have this week and the next time we serve in December. That is a good sign, to be tired, but ready for the next round.
A lot happened on Monday, look for another post or two that will address a specific story in some depth.
The guy I mentioned on the previous post returned and I was able to give him the book. This guy is a very intelligent person and we had some good conversations. We are now friends on Facebook and fellow bloggers. He writes poetry and I really need to check it out.
My shopping buddy was also there and he remembered my name. This has been an on going joke and he was very proud of himself when he got the name right. He is a very nice kid.
We also had two teenagers there. A very sad story, please pray for this family.
It looks like a Bible study will be starting very soon. Somewhere around 11 homeless friends are looking forward to getting into the Bible as a group. That is so cool.
Well, that is all for now. Remember, I am tired, so I need to get some rest.
Monday, November 17, 2008
30 pounds per hour!!
I think we set a record on Saturday, but I can't find the category in the Guinness Book of Records.
We experienced our first Saturday at the Day Center and it was packed. We have joined forces with another church to meet the needs on the 3rd Saturday of each month. This was a special meal, the other church provided deep fried turkeys and we provided all the traditional Thanksgiving sides.
A total of 105 pounds of turkeys were cooked AND eaten in 3.5 hour period. As fast as they could be cooked and sliced, they were eaten. We ended up serving 50 homeless friends this past Saturday. We did not take any food home, it was all eaten or taken back by the homeless friends.
The cool thing was that we had a whole different set of people serving from our church than we do on our other day, the 3rd Monday. As usual, God was present and our volunteers were blessed.
I had to run to the store to get drink mix and cups and was accompanied by a new Homeless friend. This guy is only 25 years old and knows the Weis like the back of this hand.
I ended up sharing Jesus with a new guy. He is very smart and is approaching Jesus in a very analytical way. I told him I would bring him a book when we serve again on Monday. I hope he shows up - I will bring him a copy of More Than a Carpenter, by Josh McDowell.
We experienced our first Saturday at the Day Center and it was packed. We have joined forces with another church to meet the needs on the 3rd Saturday of each month. This was a special meal, the other church provided deep fried turkeys and we provided all the traditional Thanksgiving sides.
A total of 105 pounds of turkeys were cooked AND eaten in 3.5 hour period. As fast as they could be cooked and sliced, they were eaten. We ended up serving 50 homeless friends this past Saturday. We did not take any food home, it was all eaten or taken back by the homeless friends.
The cool thing was that we had a whole different set of people serving from our church than we do on our other day, the 3rd Monday. As usual, God was present and our volunteers were blessed.
I had to run to the store to get drink mix and cups and was accompanied by a new Homeless friend. This guy is only 25 years old and knows the Weis like the back of this hand.
I ended up sharing Jesus with a new guy. He is very smart and is approaching Jesus in a very analytical way. I told him I would bring him a book when we serve again on Monday. I hope he shows up - I will bring him a copy of More Than a Carpenter, by Josh McDowell.
Thursday, November 6, 2008
We actually needed an interpretor and we had one!
Today was delivery day.
Right off the bat, things were different. The camp site for one of our regulars was a total mess. It looked like someone went through all his belongings. Things were just not right. We left food and a note. We circled up and prayed for him. Please pray for this guy.
Next we met a new person. She is in her 20's and is 6 months pregnant. She is staying at a hotel under the watchful eye of another one of our friends who helps everyone. She is concerned about what she is going to do. There was a fire or something in the house she rented a room and now she is on the streets. I told her about the Day Center and that she could get connected to services there. She promised she would visit on Saturday. Pray she follows through and the right connections are made. I will let everyone know if there are specific baby needs.
Then things got even stranger. We went to a site where we are basically checking up on the homeless friends. They don't go to the center much and they had asked us to not walk near the camp. They got kicked out of another area in the spring because of too much foot traffic causing too much attention.
This place is surrounded by several businesses and there were several people just hanging out about 50 yards from the path to the camp. I told two of our youth to quickly leave the bags and get right back in the truck. They did that, but those people watched everything we did!! Oh well. Then, one of them drove his car up to my van and got out. I was very worried. I thought I blew it. I got out to meet them and told the youth to pray.
They guy was really hard to understand. I don't hear well, but there was something else going on. I finally figured out that he was speaking Spanish!! Guess what? I had not one, but two youth who speak fluent Spanish!! Each youth has a mom from a Spanish speaking country!! I lead my new friend to the van and introduced him to one of these youth. It was so cool to watch them communicate. Our new friend, who is originally from Cuba, lead us down to the camp. He told us how he works nearby and has been taking care of the folks in this camp. He was even getting a bit frustrated that one of them was not looking for a job.
Then one of the homeless friends showed up and all 4 of us chatted for quite a while. They had been getting the food we were leaving and they really appreciated all that we had been doing. They even gave us permission to come down to the camp to leave food and visit. Our relationship has deepened.
Later, the youth who was doing the translating, said the Cuban guy kept telling her that, "your dad is a good man." He was referring to me. We got that corrected, but he was still impressed and wants us to join them when he cooks rice, beans and pork for those in the camp.
That was really cool. The lesson here - God provides even when we don't understand what is going on, He will bring someone who does.
Right off the bat, things were different. The camp site for one of our regulars was a total mess. It looked like someone went through all his belongings. Things were just not right. We left food and a note. We circled up and prayed for him. Please pray for this guy.
Next we met a new person. She is in her 20's and is 6 months pregnant. She is staying at a hotel under the watchful eye of another one of our friends who helps everyone. She is concerned about what she is going to do. There was a fire or something in the house she rented a room and now she is on the streets. I told her about the Day Center and that she could get connected to services there. She promised she would visit on Saturday. Pray she follows through and the right connections are made. I will let everyone know if there are specific baby needs.
Then things got even stranger. We went to a site where we are basically checking up on the homeless friends. They don't go to the center much and they had asked us to not walk near the camp. They got kicked out of another area in the spring because of too much foot traffic causing too much attention.
This place is surrounded by several businesses and there were several people just hanging out about 50 yards from the path to the camp. I told two of our youth to quickly leave the bags and get right back in the truck. They did that, but those people watched everything we did!! Oh well. Then, one of them drove his car up to my van and got out. I was very worried. I thought I blew it. I got out to meet them and told the youth to pray.
They guy was really hard to understand. I don't hear well, but there was something else going on. I finally figured out that he was speaking Spanish!! Guess what? I had not one, but two youth who speak fluent Spanish!! Each youth has a mom from a Spanish speaking country!! I lead my new friend to the van and introduced him to one of these youth. It was so cool to watch them communicate. Our new friend, who is originally from Cuba, lead us down to the camp. He told us how he works nearby and has been taking care of the folks in this camp. He was even getting a bit frustrated that one of them was not looking for a job.
Then one of the homeless friends showed up and all 4 of us chatted for quite a while. They had been getting the food we were leaving and they really appreciated all that we had been doing. They even gave us permission to come down to the camp to leave food and visit. Our relationship has deepened.
Later, the youth who was doing the translating, said the Cuban guy kept telling her that, "your dad is a good man." He was referring to me. We got that corrected, but he was still impressed and wants us to join them when he cooks rice, beans and pork for those in the camp.
That was really cool. The lesson here - God provides even when we don't understand what is going on, He will bring someone who does.
Saturday, November 1, 2008
The van was packed, I wish you could have seen it
Today, I got to see God in action and watch others try to figure it out.
We have gathered quite a collection of clothes, sleeping bags and blankets in the foyer and I needed to get it all up to the Day Center. I had the youth who delivered on Thursday help to load the van, it was huge. I also put all the clothes that were in the food pantry in the van. It was even more packed. Finally, I put the clothes that had been in my car in the van. It was now packed. The back seats were down and it was filled almost up to the roof!!!
Chris and I went to the Center while it was open on Saturday. Right when I turned off the van, there were three homeless friends waiting to carry everything up the stairs. It took several trips and several helpers. Everyone we talked to were so thankful. It really felt weird to receive the thanks and I was very quick to point out that God was the one who was making all this possible.
I was able to introduce Chris to many of the homeless people we now know. That was cool.
When we left, one of the homeless people really went on and on about our church. I told her that we were just following God and we were very thankful to be helpful.
God is so good and it was plainly seen in the van full of stuff and the thankful people in the Center. Let's keep following God and see what will happen next.
We have gathered quite a collection of clothes, sleeping bags and blankets in the foyer and I needed to get it all up to the Day Center. I had the youth who delivered on Thursday help to load the van, it was huge. I also put all the clothes that were in the food pantry in the van. It was even more packed. Finally, I put the clothes that had been in my car in the van. It was now packed. The back seats were down and it was filled almost up to the roof!!!
Chris and I went to the Center while it was open on Saturday. Right when I turned off the van, there were three homeless friends waiting to carry everything up the stairs. It took several trips and several helpers. Everyone we talked to were so thankful. It really felt weird to receive the thanks and I was very quick to point out that God was the one who was making all this possible.
I was able to introduce Chris to many of the homeless people we now know. That was cool.
When we left, one of the homeless people really went on and on about our church. I told her that we were just following God and we were very thankful to be helpful.
God is so good and it was plainly seen in the van full of stuff and the thankful people in the Center. Let's keep following God and see what will happen next.
A nice visit
Today, we did a delivery. Since this is a 5th Thursday, we really didn't have to do this, but we decided to go anyway. I also wanted to swing by the Laurel people since we don't see them all that often and we had heard that a large number of them were going to be kicked out of the area they are camped.
We also had a visitor, Maina went with us for the first time to see what is going on in this ministry.
When we went on our visit, I was blown away by the number of tents at this location. There had to be 10 tents and our good friend at that location told us that we could find about 5 other tents just a short walk away. It was amazing.
I met a new person and saw several others that are regulars at the Day Center.
We ended up talking to one of our good friends who calls himself the big brother of that area. He does look out for others. I told him that we just came by to visit and we really did not have enough food for him at that time. The cool thing was that he was totally cool about just visiting. The food was not a big deal. In case you are wondering, the people in Laurel do have other resources for food.
Our homeless friend really enjoyed the visit. In youth group the day before, we ended discovering a Bible we had meant to give him. We wrote his name in the Bible, but, for some reason, never got it to him. He was really happy to receive the Bible and said he would read it.
The lesson for today -- A good sign of a good relationship is if just visiting is OK. We certainly have reached that level of a friendship in this case. God is so good.
We also had a visitor, Maina went with us for the first time to see what is going on in this ministry.
When we went on our visit, I was blown away by the number of tents at this location. There had to be 10 tents and our good friend at that location told us that we could find about 5 other tents just a short walk away. It was amazing.
I met a new person and saw several others that are regulars at the Day Center.
We ended up talking to one of our good friends who calls himself the big brother of that area. He does look out for others. I told him that we just came by to visit and we really did not have enough food for him at that time. The cool thing was that he was totally cool about just visiting. The food was not a big deal. In case you are wondering, the people in Laurel do have other resources for food.
Our homeless friend really enjoyed the visit. In youth group the day before, we ended discovering a Bible we had meant to give him. We wrote his name in the Bible, but, for some reason, never got it to him. He was really happy to receive the Bible and said he would read it.
The lesson for today -- A good sign of a good relationship is if just visiting is OK. We certainly have reached that level of a friendship in this case. God is so good.
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
Our Second Day at the Center
It is hard to believe it has been a month already. It is our turn to serve at the Center again.
On Sunday evening, the food prep team again cooked, cleaned, laughed and prayed together to prepare the food. We made smothered chicken and boy did it smell good. We even set a new BLBC food prep record - we prepared all the food in 2 hours. We were done a full hour faster than the month before. We seem to be getting the hang of it. It was fun as well.
On Monday morning, we had to heat up the food and get it there. We also had a lot of clothes, sleeping bags and a huge tent that had to be taken to the Center. I also had food, but that will have to wait until the next time I visit.
Again, everything went very smooth. The transportation guys went out and brought many homeless friends to the Center. We had lots of kitchen help. In fact, we had about 20 different Bethany Lane people be involved during the day!! Right before we left the Center, I counted the sign in sheet at the door, and it looked like we had 28 homeless friends visit that afternoon.
We had several new volunteers along with our veterans (if you count 2 as being a veteran). We also have 2 or 3 that come very regularly on the days that we don't serve. If you would like to do that, I can find out what days need the most outside help and you can get plugged in that way. There are all sizes of churches involved. Some of the smaller ones can use some outside help.
I finally saw the homeless friend that I had not seen since summer started!! I was so happy to see him. I told him how much I missed him and I think that kind of surprised him. We ended up talking a lot to get caught up. He actually had his tent burn down over the summer and he shared that story with me. Don't worry, he has one of the biggest tents I have ever seen now!! He appreciated the food that we have been leaving for him. Boy it was nice to see him. I even told him that we had been praying over his site when we visited. Again, he was kind of confused about that.
It was fun to listen in on the conversations. Since we have so many volunteers, we can spend a lot of time just talking. One of our volunteers was asking a homeless friend about living in the woods all the time. Eventually this volunteer asked about going to the bathroom!! It was hilarious, but sad at the same time. One person thought there were port-a-potties at these camps. I guess I better watch my step.
We also had a great case of mistaken identity. On Monday's we have a few people from other churches come to hang out as well. One of our members was passing out Bibles and gathering prayer requests and went up to one of the people from another church. This guy is actually a pastor!! He kind of went along with it for a while then told our volunteer who he was!! She came up to me and had to tell me all about it. That was so funny. She asked the pastor if this encounter he had with her would end up as a part of his sermon on Sunday, he said it probably would. He liked the way she did not make any assumptions about how people look or act. That may be the lesson for this day.
Again, our food was loved by all. Our people are so generous. All the food we made was donated, none of it had to be purchased from the growing contributions we receive!! It was all great quality food prepared very carefully. We are treating our new friends just like they were part of the family. That is so cool. We have only done this twice with 4 weeks between the visits and I can see relationships starting. Please pray that these relationships progress to the point where trust is gained and we can help them have hope and a desire to reach up for a better standard of living. Pray also that they can tap into the power of Jesus to do this as well.
When I got back to the church, there were more sleeping bags in the foyer!! There was more food!! God has really got this church fired up to serve this way. I hope you can see that and can know God better as He continues to lead and guide this ministry.
What a day. Don't make any assumptions about the people you are in contact with. Make sure everyone has a Bible and is expressing a way we can pray for them. Who knows what might happen. You might even get mentioned in a Sunday sermon.
On Sunday evening, the food prep team again cooked, cleaned, laughed and prayed together to prepare the food. We made smothered chicken and boy did it smell good. We even set a new BLBC food prep record - we prepared all the food in 2 hours. We were done a full hour faster than the month before. We seem to be getting the hang of it. It was fun as well.
On Monday morning, we had to heat up the food and get it there. We also had a lot of clothes, sleeping bags and a huge tent that had to be taken to the Center. I also had food, but that will have to wait until the next time I visit.
Again, everything went very smooth. The transportation guys went out and brought many homeless friends to the Center. We had lots of kitchen help. In fact, we had about 20 different Bethany Lane people be involved during the day!! Right before we left the Center, I counted the sign in sheet at the door, and it looked like we had 28 homeless friends visit that afternoon.
We had several new volunteers along with our veterans (if you count 2 as being a veteran). We also have 2 or 3 that come very regularly on the days that we don't serve. If you would like to do that, I can find out what days need the most outside help and you can get plugged in that way. There are all sizes of churches involved. Some of the smaller ones can use some outside help.
I finally saw the homeless friend that I had not seen since summer started!! I was so happy to see him. I told him how much I missed him and I think that kind of surprised him. We ended up talking a lot to get caught up. He actually had his tent burn down over the summer and he shared that story with me. Don't worry, he has one of the biggest tents I have ever seen now!! He appreciated the food that we have been leaving for him. Boy it was nice to see him. I even told him that we had been praying over his site when we visited. Again, he was kind of confused about that.
It was fun to listen in on the conversations. Since we have so many volunteers, we can spend a lot of time just talking. One of our volunteers was asking a homeless friend about living in the woods all the time. Eventually this volunteer asked about going to the bathroom!! It was hilarious, but sad at the same time. One person thought there were port-a-potties at these camps. I guess I better watch my step.
We also had a great case of mistaken identity. On Monday's we have a few people from other churches come to hang out as well. One of our members was passing out Bibles and gathering prayer requests and went up to one of the people from another church. This guy is actually a pastor!! He kind of went along with it for a while then told our volunteer who he was!! She came up to me and had to tell me all about it. That was so funny. She asked the pastor if this encounter he had with her would end up as a part of his sermon on Sunday, he said it probably would. He liked the way she did not make any assumptions about how people look or act. That may be the lesson for this day.
Again, our food was loved by all. Our people are so generous. All the food we made was donated, none of it had to be purchased from the growing contributions we receive!! It was all great quality food prepared very carefully. We are treating our new friends just like they were part of the family. That is so cool. We have only done this twice with 4 weeks between the visits and I can see relationships starting. Please pray that these relationships progress to the point where trust is gained and we can help them have hope and a desire to reach up for a better standard of living. Pray also that they can tap into the power of Jesus to do this as well.
When I got back to the church, there were more sleeping bags in the foyer!! There was more food!! God has really got this church fired up to serve this way. I hope you can see that and can know God better as He continues to lead and guide this ministry.
What a day. Don't make any assumptions about the people you are in contact with. Make sure everyone has a Bible and is expressing a way we can pray for them. Who knows what might happen. You might even get mentioned in a Sunday sermon.
Friday, October 17, 2008
Not much happened
Today, we went to deliver. I had so many things I wanted to accomplish and so many people I wanted to see, but it was a very quiet day.
We did go later than usual to accommodate some youth who either live far away, are involved in after school activities or need rides home. It was great to have them join me.
We really only talked to one person. We had been leaving food at his camp and I figured we better tell him who had been doing this. He was pan handling at his usual location and really loved our company. He seems to be doing really well and was in a great mood.
After that, we basically dropped food off at camps with no one home. We did swing by a relatively new person. They have been seen before, but had not visited the Center. He hangs out really close to the Center. We gave him food on the median and had a very short conversation.
The lesson for today - As usual, I asked the youth where they saw God and if God spoke to us through any of our Homeless Friends. One of the youth commented on how positive the guy was that we spent so much time talking to. We need to be content and positive no matter what circumstances we are in.
We did go later than usual to accommodate some youth who either live far away, are involved in after school activities or need rides home. It was great to have them join me.
We really only talked to one person. We had been leaving food at his camp and I figured we better tell him who had been doing this. He was pan handling at his usual location and really loved our company. He seems to be doing really well and was in a great mood.
After that, we basically dropped food off at camps with no one home. We did swing by a relatively new person. They have been seen before, but had not visited the Center. He hangs out really close to the Center. We gave him food on the median and had a very short conversation.
The lesson for today - As usual, I asked the youth where they saw God and if God spoke to us through any of our Homeless Friends. One of the youth commented on how positive the guy was that we spent so much time talking to. We need to be content and positive no matter what circumstances we are in.
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
Trying out being homeless for a short while
Tonight in Youth Group, we got to hear from a long time member of our church, Marty Baylor who, while in her Sophomore year in college, participated in a homeless exercise for 3 nights and 4 days. We usually have quite a loud and rowdy group, but they were really interested in hearing what Marty had to share. She helped the youth understand a bit more what it feel like to be homeless. We learned about the isolation, the mocking and the different physical issues Marty faced while doing this for only 4 days. Imagine what it must be like to be homeless for years.
We made a craft thing that can be hooked on a zipper on a tent, jacket or whatever. This craft has 6 different colored beads that tells the salvation story. We are planning on giving these out when one of our adults teaches a Bible study while we are serving at the Center on Monday. I can't wait to see how this goes.
We also assembled meals for our delivery on Thursday. We will be doing a later delivery to let youth who live outside the county or have after school activities a chance to participate.
I am hoping to see the lady in the median again, and two others I have not seen in weeks. We will see what happens.
We made a craft thing that can be hooked on a zipper on a tent, jacket or whatever. This craft has 6 different colored beads that tells the salvation story. We are planning on giving these out when one of our adults teaches a Bible study while we are serving at the Center on Monday. I can't wait to see how this goes.
We also assembled meals for our delivery on Thursday. We will be doing a later delivery to let youth who live outside the county or have after school activities a chance to participate.
I am hoping to see the lady in the median again, and two others I have not seen in weeks. We will see what happens.
Terrible News
I have heard that one of our Homeless Friends was hit by a car and killed this weekend. Here is an excerpt of an email Anne recently sent.
We learned today that Lester was hit by a car and killed this weekend
somewhere around Routes 175 and 1. For those of you who can't put a face to the name, he was the one who came in late during the week because he had a job; and he had a smile that lit up his face and made everyone around him smile. He was a gentle soul and will be terribly missed.
We do know he had an Aunt and other family members who lived in North Carolina.
Please keep all of them in your prayers.
It is so very hard when we lose one of our friends, but he had a smile on his face because he loved coming to the Center. Each one of you who knew him, helped to make his life a little brighter. The work is hard, but there is no doubt you are making a very positive difference in
people's lives.
Thank you for your dedication and caring hearts,
Anne
I don't think I ever met Lester, maybe one of you did. Please let me know if you did.
The Sun had a small story about this in the Wednesday edition. His full name is Lester Erick Smallwood and he was 47. This happend at 11:30 Friday night. The driver was not injured.
As Anne mentioned in her email, we have been put in all these new people's lives for a reason. God wants us to give them hope, understanding, a helping hand and a real relationship as we point them to Christ. Please pray for Lester's family and friends.
We learned today that Lester was hit by a car and killed this weekend
somewhere around Routes 175 and 1. For those of you who can't put a face to the name, he was the one who came in late during the week because he had a job; and he had a smile that lit up his face and made everyone around him smile. He was a gentle soul and will be terribly missed.
We do know he had an Aunt and other family members who lived in North Carolina.
Please keep all of them in your prayers.
It is so very hard when we lose one of our friends, but he had a smile on his face because he loved coming to the Center. Each one of you who knew him, helped to make his life a little brighter. The work is hard, but there is no doubt you are making a very positive difference in
people's lives.
Thank you for your dedication and caring hearts,
Anne
I don't think I ever met Lester, maybe one of you did. Please let me know if you did.
The Sun had a small story about this in the Wednesday edition. His full name is Lester Erick Smallwood and he was 47. This happend at 11:30 Friday night. The driver was not injured.
As Anne mentioned in her email, we have been put in all these new people's lives for a reason. God wants us to give them hope, understanding, a helping hand and a real relationship as we point them to Christ. Please pray for Lester's family and friends.
Thursday, October 9, 2008
First day at the Center
It was awesome!!
We had our first day to serve at the center and our church was really used by God. Thankfully, it was kind of a slow starting day so we were not swamped with people right off the bat. We were hearing about a cookout in Laurel that invited homeless people from the area. This ended up enabling us to have a very smooth and quiet opening day.
We had so many volunteers everyone was able to focus on whatever job they had to do. These jobs included organizing the food pantry and clothes closet, serving food, transportation and just talking to all our new friends.
Funny thing is that I actually had a dream the night before about the Day Center. I was not nervous, I was excited!! The only real thing I remember about the dream was the feeling that everything was going smoothly and everyone was simply doing their job, and that is exactly what happened.
The other funny thing is that the day before in Lifeline, our discussion was about how God speaks to us. Of course one of those ways is through dreams and I remember telling the class that I have never had God speak to me that way!! As usual, God taught me a lesson.
At the end of the day, we realized we served 27 people in all and that fits with the average for that day. Our slow start was another gift from God.
Other things I noticed
- I truly saw the body of Christ in action. So many different people with different gifts all working together. What an image.
- We even got to help out at a traffic accident on Route 1 right in front of the center.
- The homeless friends were very impressed with our food and our love we shared with all
- A people were so grateful to serve, many could hardly put it into words
- I saw a different side of people as they were being used by God
- I heard how God had been working in the lives of several people to serve in this ministry way before we even knew we would be in this ministry
We had our first day to serve at the center and our church was really used by God. Thankfully, it was kind of a slow starting day so we were not swamped with people right off the bat. We were hearing about a cookout in Laurel that invited homeless people from the area. This ended up enabling us to have a very smooth and quiet opening day.
We had so many volunteers everyone was able to focus on whatever job they had to do. These jobs included organizing the food pantry and clothes closet, serving food, transportation and just talking to all our new friends.
Funny thing is that I actually had a dream the night before about the Day Center. I was not nervous, I was excited!! The only real thing I remember about the dream was the feeling that everything was going smoothly and everyone was simply doing their job, and that is exactly what happened.
The other funny thing is that the day before in Lifeline, our discussion was about how God speaks to us. Of course one of those ways is through dreams and I remember telling the class that I have never had God speak to me that way!! As usual, God taught me a lesson.
At the end of the day, we realized we served 27 people in all and that fits with the average for that day. Our slow start was another gift from God.
Other things I noticed
- I truly saw the body of Christ in action. So many different people with different gifts all working together. What an image.
- We even got to help out at a traffic accident on Route 1 right in front of the center.
- The homeless friends were very impressed with our food and our love we shared with all
- A people were so grateful to serve, many could hardly put it into words
- I saw a different side of people as they were being used by God
- I heard how God had been working in the lives of several people to serve in this ministry way before we even knew we would be in this ministry
Thursday, October 2, 2008
A new high schooler joins us
Today was another delivery day!!
This week we had a new youth deliver with us along with a few regulars. The new guy is a freshman who, as a middle schooler, really wanted to be a part of this ministry in this way. That all worked out today. It is so cool to see youth who are excited to do this.
Again, we saw the lady whos husband is in the hospital right at the beginning of our deliveries and again, we adjusted our trip to pass by her. Yeah, more U turns, but worth it.
She remembered us from two weeks ago and said that her husband was actually doing much better!! I told her that we were praying for her and she made a comment like, "I pray a lot as well, but I am sure God is tired of hearing from me." Immediatly, I told her how wrong that thought was. God loves to hear from His children, He loves to spend time with them even especially when His children are going through a difficult time. He will never tire of hearing from you. She seemed surprised at this and seemed to appricaite the comments. Again the light changed in record time and we had to go. Talk about drive by ministering!!
When then went to find the guy we have not seen in a while. When we got there, we found two different tents set up. One was huge!! The other had a person sitting in it and he invited us up to talk. This was a new guy I had never met. He seemed to like the company, he told us quite a bit of his history and how he ended up homeless. Each story I hear is so unique and shatters the sterotypical impresson we often have of the homeless. This guy had a great life and then a series of events took that all away. He was just passing through hoping to see his dog in NY and get a job in Alaska. He visited the Center yesterday and loved it.
He also said the huge tent was a new one for the guy we have not seen in a while. It was nice to know he was doing well. (since then, I heard he was at the Day Center which is great since he usually does not go there)
We then went to the couple at the hotel and they were unusally chatty. She told us about thier family and more history. Our relationships are growing here. Again we gave extra meals with the promise of telling them about Jesus and the Center.
Our final stop was again at a big camp with no one home. I had been praying to see a certian person, but I guess it is not time for that to happen. Keep praying.
A pretty uneventful day, but the lesson here is to be patient. Just like our new freshman had to wait to do a delivery, I will have to wait to bump into the person I have been praying for.
This week we had a new youth deliver with us along with a few regulars. The new guy is a freshman who, as a middle schooler, really wanted to be a part of this ministry in this way. That all worked out today. It is so cool to see youth who are excited to do this.
Again, we saw the lady whos husband is in the hospital right at the beginning of our deliveries and again, we adjusted our trip to pass by her. Yeah, more U turns, but worth it.
She remembered us from two weeks ago and said that her husband was actually doing much better!! I told her that we were praying for her and she made a comment like, "I pray a lot as well, but I am sure God is tired of hearing from me." Immediatly, I told her how wrong that thought was. God loves to hear from His children, He loves to spend time with them even especially when His children are going through a difficult time. He will never tire of hearing from you. She seemed surprised at this and seemed to appricaite the comments. Again the light changed in record time and we had to go. Talk about drive by ministering!!
When then went to find the guy we have not seen in a while. When we got there, we found two different tents set up. One was huge!! The other had a person sitting in it and he invited us up to talk. This was a new guy I had never met. He seemed to like the company, he told us quite a bit of his history and how he ended up homeless. Each story I hear is so unique and shatters the sterotypical impresson we often have of the homeless. This guy had a great life and then a series of events took that all away. He was just passing through hoping to see his dog in NY and get a job in Alaska. He visited the Center yesterday and loved it.
He also said the huge tent was a new one for the guy we have not seen in a while. It was nice to know he was doing well. (since then, I heard he was at the Day Center which is great since he usually does not go there)
We then went to the couple at the hotel and they were unusally chatty. She told us about thier family and more history. Our relationships are growing here. Again we gave extra meals with the promise of telling them about Jesus and the Center.
Our final stop was again at a big camp with no one home. I had been praying to see a certian person, but I guess it is not time for that to happen. Keep praying.
A pretty uneventful day, but the lesson here is to be patient. Just like our new freshman had to wait to do a delivery, I will have to wait to bump into the person I have been praying for.
Thursday, September 18, 2008
Lot's of U turns
Today, we did our usual deliveries.Again, this was a day of firsts. We ended up having only one youth this time!!
We also finally met a lady I had been hearing about for a long time. She pan handles at the corner of 175 and 1. Her husband is in the hospital and he is not expected to recover. When we passed by the intersection, we were heading to our usual first stop and I spotted her. Anne had described her to me and there was no doubt who this was. I was not sure how long she would be there, usually we return to that intersection at the end of our day, so I did the first of what would be many U turns.
Luckley, the light was red when we stopped at the intersection. I called our her name, and told her I was a friend of Anne. We gave her a couple of bags of food and I asked about her husband. She said he was not doing all that well. Her eyes were so tired looking and sad. I can't imagine what she is going through. She wears a cross around her neck and I told her we put different verses in the food bags and told her that God is here and He will speak to you through those verses. She really appreciated the food, the brief converstation and the mention of God.Unfortunately, the light changed. You know, the lights on that corner take so long to change when we are trying to get someplace. This time, it seemed to change in about 5 seconds. Talk about putting things in perspective!! Before we left, I reached out and held her hand for just a few seconds and told her we love her and we would be praying for her and her husband. I felt so bad that we had to leave.
Now we are going in the opposite direction we need to travel, so we do another U Turn. On the way through the intersection, we see a couple that we normally see at the hotel they live in. They are so sweet and they usually remember when we are doing the deliveries and wait for us at their room, they must not be used to our Thursday deliveries. So, to get to them I need to make another U turn (this one is not totally legal, I would have had to drive half way into Columbia otherwise). When we get back to the intersection, I leaned out the window to wave her over. There is a guy selling roses there and he gets all excited thinking I want one. I wave him off and point to our homeless friend and she lights up. Immediately, she says, "Oh yeah, it is Thursday!" It is nice to be expected.
We usually give them several meals because they hand them out to others at the hotel. This place is a bit creepy and it is cool to think they are an extension of our efforts. The issue is, do we give them a bunch of meals right here in the median or leave them at the hotel? She asks if we can give them a lift to the hotel. That is a great idea, but that requires another U turn in tons of traffic.
When we get them to the hotel, I ask her to make sure when she gives these extra meals out to tell them about Jesus and the Day Center. She agrees and gives us hugs. They are a very nice couple.
We now go to our normal first delivery and yes that requires another U turn. I am getting dizzy with all the turns. He is not at camp and I am getting worried. The youth and I decide to pray over his campsite for safety and protection.Off to our last stop, to get here it only requires a difficult left turn!! No one is there so we leave food near the tents.
Our lesson for this delivery - We all must be ready to adapt to the needs and circumstances God puts us in. This may require unplanned U turns and tricky left turns. I like that about God, He is always up to something and we need to be ready to adapt and join him.
We also finally met a lady I had been hearing about for a long time. She pan handles at the corner of 175 and 1. Her husband is in the hospital and he is not expected to recover. When we passed by the intersection, we were heading to our usual first stop and I spotted her. Anne had described her to me and there was no doubt who this was. I was not sure how long she would be there, usually we return to that intersection at the end of our day, so I did the first of what would be many U turns.
Luckley, the light was red when we stopped at the intersection. I called our her name, and told her I was a friend of Anne. We gave her a couple of bags of food and I asked about her husband. She said he was not doing all that well. Her eyes were so tired looking and sad. I can't imagine what she is going through. She wears a cross around her neck and I told her we put different verses in the food bags and told her that God is here and He will speak to you through those verses. She really appreciated the food, the brief converstation and the mention of God.Unfortunately, the light changed. You know, the lights on that corner take so long to change when we are trying to get someplace. This time, it seemed to change in about 5 seconds. Talk about putting things in perspective!! Before we left, I reached out and held her hand for just a few seconds and told her we love her and we would be praying for her and her husband. I felt so bad that we had to leave.
Now we are going in the opposite direction we need to travel, so we do another U Turn. On the way through the intersection, we see a couple that we normally see at the hotel they live in. They are so sweet and they usually remember when we are doing the deliveries and wait for us at their room, they must not be used to our Thursday deliveries. So, to get to them I need to make another U turn (this one is not totally legal, I would have had to drive half way into Columbia otherwise). When we get back to the intersection, I leaned out the window to wave her over. There is a guy selling roses there and he gets all excited thinking I want one. I wave him off and point to our homeless friend and she lights up. Immediately, she says, "Oh yeah, it is Thursday!" It is nice to be expected.
We usually give them several meals because they hand them out to others at the hotel. This place is a bit creepy and it is cool to think they are an extension of our efforts. The issue is, do we give them a bunch of meals right here in the median or leave them at the hotel? She asks if we can give them a lift to the hotel. That is a great idea, but that requires another U turn in tons of traffic.
When we get them to the hotel, I ask her to make sure when she gives these extra meals out to tell them about Jesus and the Day Center. She agrees and gives us hugs. They are a very nice couple.
We now go to our normal first delivery and yes that requires another U turn. I am getting dizzy with all the turns. He is not at camp and I am getting worried. The youth and I decide to pray over his campsite for safety and protection.Off to our last stop, to get here it only requires a difficult left turn!! No one is there so we leave food near the tents.
Our lesson for this delivery - We all must be ready to adapt to the needs and circumstances God puts us in. This may require unplanned U turns and tricky left turns. I like that about God, He is always up to something and we need to be ready to adapt and join him.
Thursday, September 4, 2008
Back in the Woods
After the long summer break from making deliveries we finally got back in the woods. It was really nice to see everyone again. They were happy to see us as well. We definately have established several good relationships.
We also had several firsts happen on this delivery.
The first first was that we went without Anne for the very first time. I certianly was nervous. Everyone knows and loves Anne. When the homeless friends see her, they light up and welcome her very warmly. Today, we I called out people's names, I told them I was a friend of Anne. That did the trick. Many did also remember us, so it was not all that scary.
The second first were the amount of male youth that went with us. We had 4!!! Boy, it is nice to have boys with us. Not that the girls can't handle this, but having the boys was a really nice addition.
The third first was the amount of youth who delivered. There was a bit of a communication problem on Wednesday and we had a total of 6 youth go out. We were fortunate that Anne did not come, we did not have enough seats for her.
We also met a new person for us at the big camp. She ended up being the one that God used to teach us. I always tell the youth to be on the look out for when God speaks to us when we are on these deliveries. While we were talking to this new person, I felt that I needed to tell her about Jesus. I normally don't start out with talking about Jesus, but I made an exception. As soon as we mentioned Him, she changed and told us all abut how she knew He was taking care of her. It ended up to be a nice converstation.
As I said, it was nice to be back in the wood.
We also had several firsts happen on this delivery.
The first first was that we went without Anne for the very first time. I certianly was nervous. Everyone knows and loves Anne. When the homeless friends see her, they light up and welcome her very warmly. Today, we I called out people's names, I told them I was a friend of Anne. That did the trick. Many did also remember us, so it was not all that scary.
The second first were the amount of male youth that went with us. We had 4!!! Boy, it is nice to have boys with us. Not that the girls can't handle this, but having the boys was a really nice addition.
The third first was the amount of youth who delivered. There was a bit of a communication problem on Wednesday and we had a total of 6 youth go out. We were fortunate that Anne did not come, we did not have enough seats for her.
We also met a new person for us at the big camp. She ended up being the one that God used to teach us. I always tell the youth to be on the look out for when God speaks to us when we are on these deliveries. While we were talking to this new person, I felt that I needed to tell her about Jesus. I normally don't start out with talking about Jesus, but I made an exception. As soon as we mentioned Him, she changed and told us all abut how she knew He was taking care of her. It ended up to be a nice converstation.
As I said, it was nice to be back in the wood.
Monday, June 30, 2008
The adult's turn
As I mentioned earlier, for the delivery on June 27th, I recruited 3 adults to take our place. We will be getting back from camp on the 27th and I am sure we would be way too tired to make the deliveries.
I heard it went well. The adult that went the previous week has fallen in love with this ministry. She thanks me just about everytime I see her at church. She is a wonderful person full of the Spirit. I can see her getting involved in this ministry in a big way.
We also learned that the new Day Center is going to open the first week of July and the deliveries will be stopped for a while to encourage people to come and check out the center. It was kind of sad to realize that I ended up missing the last delivery for a while. Our youth are really good at this and I pray we will have opportunities to resume in the fall.
On the other hand, this could not have come at a better time for me. Summer is so busy with all our trips and stuff, it will be nice to take a break and see what happens with the Day Center.
I heard it went well. The adult that went the previous week has fallen in love with this ministry. She thanks me just about everytime I see her at church. She is a wonderful person full of the Spirit. I can see her getting involved in this ministry in a big way.
We also learned that the new Day Center is going to open the first week of July and the deliveries will be stopped for a while to encourage people to come and check out the center. It was kind of sad to realize that I ended up missing the last delivery for a while. Our youth are really good at this and I pray we will have opportunities to resume in the fall.
On the other hand, this could not have come at a better time for me. Summer is so busy with all our trips and stuff, it will be nice to take a break and see what happens with the Day Center.
Friday, June 13, 2008
Drawing too much attention!!
We got to meet and talk to the homeless people today. It was sunny and the temp was in the lower 90s, which is actually a bit cooler than the past several days. As usual, since this is a day off for me, my day usually starts out a bit strange and I am in a strange mood to start things off. Those going out today included Anne (as usual), two other youth and an adult who will be handeling the next delivery since we will be getting back from camp that day.
New for this delivery were about 60 frozen bottles of water. We heard this would be a good idea, so on Wednesday we stuck them in a freezer and we will pack them in the bags as we go. Also new is the "Spiritual Food" we have included. While in youth group on Wednesday, each youth held one of the bags we were to pack and hand out while we listened to and sang a few praise songs. They prayed over their bag, then wrote a note that had thier first name on it and something that said, "I prayed for you today." My goal is to make this as personal as possible for all the youth, even those who can't deliver the actual food.
Back to the actual delivery. It was really smooth with a few exceptions.
The first exception was seeing a tent on the ground which belonged to a couple who seemed to have thier act togehter. I remembered when I first met them about 3 deliveries ago - they were so neat and tidy. The wife was in her flannel PJ wearing slippers. The husband was cooking something on the grill. They were both excited about the possibility of getting into some sort of housing situation. Today we learned that the wife was in prison. The husband was in prison 2 weeks ago and is out now. This is just one example of how fast things change for these people. It is very hard to keep everything straight.
Secondly, we learned that another who lives near there is missing. No one knows where he is. He has not picked up is recent pay check and his friend was very worried. Please pray for them.
The last exception was at the very end. As we were getting back into the van, we heard the sirens of an ambulance on the major road we park along. Everyone was in the car except Anne and the ambulance actually stopped right behind my van!! The EMT guys got out and talked to Anne, they seemed to be OK with whatever she said. Anne got in the van and told me that someone had called them saying they saw someone hanging out the window of a car. Next, a police officer approached my van. I panicked a bit since I don't hear well at all with all the traffic noise. He asked if we were OK and wondered what we were doing. We told him we were feeding the homeless and he let us go and got into his car.
Other than that is was smooth. We did get to spend time talking to quite a few people and that is always nice. My mood quickly changed while we were out. I love doing this and seeing the youth be involved.
I guess I learned that these people really need someone to be there for them, making sure they are looked after and noticed that they are missing. That lesson can be applied in our churches as well.
New for this delivery were about 60 frozen bottles of water. We heard this would be a good idea, so on Wednesday we stuck them in a freezer and we will pack them in the bags as we go. Also new is the "Spiritual Food" we have included. While in youth group on Wednesday, each youth held one of the bags we were to pack and hand out while we listened to and sang a few praise songs. They prayed over their bag, then wrote a note that had thier first name on it and something that said, "I prayed for you today." My goal is to make this as personal as possible for all the youth, even those who can't deliver the actual food.
Back to the actual delivery. It was really smooth with a few exceptions.
The first exception was seeing a tent on the ground which belonged to a couple who seemed to have thier act togehter. I remembered when I first met them about 3 deliveries ago - they were so neat and tidy. The wife was in her flannel PJ wearing slippers. The husband was cooking something on the grill. They were both excited about the possibility of getting into some sort of housing situation. Today we learned that the wife was in prison. The husband was in prison 2 weeks ago and is out now. This is just one example of how fast things change for these people. It is very hard to keep everything straight.
Secondly, we learned that another who lives near there is missing. No one knows where he is. He has not picked up is recent pay check and his friend was very worried. Please pray for them.
The last exception was at the very end. As we were getting back into the van, we heard the sirens of an ambulance on the major road we park along. Everyone was in the car except Anne and the ambulance actually stopped right behind my van!! The EMT guys got out and talked to Anne, they seemed to be OK with whatever she said. Anne got in the van and told me that someone had called them saying they saw someone hanging out the window of a car. Next, a police officer approached my van. I panicked a bit since I don't hear well at all with all the traffic noise. He asked if we were OK and wondered what we were doing. We told him we were feeding the homeless and he let us go and got into his car.
Other than that is was smooth. We did get to spend time talking to quite a few people and that is always nice. My mood quickly changed while we were out. I love doing this and seeing the youth be involved.
I guess I learned that these people really need someone to be there for them, making sure they are looked after and noticed that they are missing. That lesson can be applied in our churches as well.
Friday, May 2, 2008
Finding a teen in the woods
I really don't remember when this actually happened, but I will never forget this delivery.
We started the usual trip, but it started with the news that a teen female had been seen in an area where an abandoned camp sits. Anne told me she was happy we were on the schedule in case we contact this person. We also had 3 teen females doing the delivery that day.
Now this camp is basically a dump, I'm serious. The person who lived there before had all kinds of issues and he never threw anything away. Trash is every where. A mattress is on the ground with a bunch of blankets and sleeping bags all covered by a tarp. The person who used to live there did not like the idea of being enclosed in a tent. It really stinks there. Rotten food is everywhere, clothes litter the ground along with random tires, chairs, shopping carts and so many other things.
The person who lived there had been missing for a while. Rumor has it that he is in jail, but we can't confirm.
When we arrived, there is a teen girl sleeping on a bunch of cardboard boxes on the ground covered by a blanket. Anne starts to talk to her and asks me to talk to her while Anne tries to see what services she can find for this poor thing.
This girl had been outside for a while, she was very dirty. Ants were crawling all over her. We gave her a bag of food and she immediately began to eat. Ants were on her hands, they were everywhere. I started to ask her a million questions to try to learn about her and to see if she was OK. Ants were on me. There were hundreds of them. She was very tired and at times didn't focus on me. She was 18 and had dropped out of high school.
She told me her mother had died two days ago and she did not want to be in her house. I had the girls try to talk to her while Anne and I decided what to do next. The girl really wanted a ride home, which was in a trailer park north of our location. We took her there and no one was home. She fell asleep a few times and when she woke up, she ate more food.
Anne talked her into going to Grassroots. At first she did not like this idea, but agreed and away we went. They took her in and we found out later that they took her to the hospital because she kept zoning out. We learned she checked herself out and we have never heard anything about her. Anne tried the different numbers she gave us, but they were disconnected.
She really seemed like a sweet girl, but I can only imagine what was going on in her life. She knew all the homeless people in the area.
We ended our delivery after taking her to Grassroots. It was getting late. That was a strange one, but it is getting to the the norm for Bethany Lane. Even Anne mentioned that we seem to get the strange deliveries.
The lesson here - Not sure, that was so sad. She was too young to be in the woods. She was still a kid. She should be worried about iPods, cell phones, hair, boys, part time jobs, classes, makeup, homework, designer clothes. Instead, she was covered with ants all alone, inhaling a PBJ sandwich, candy bar and chips that we put together the day before, falling asleep in a car with total strangers. We only had a few moments to be with her. I continue to pray for this young lady, please join me.
I guess the face of homelessness just got even more diverse.
We started the usual trip, but it started with the news that a teen female had been seen in an area where an abandoned camp sits. Anne told me she was happy we were on the schedule in case we contact this person. We also had 3 teen females doing the delivery that day.
Now this camp is basically a dump, I'm serious. The person who lived there before had all kinds of issues and he never threw anything away. Trash is every where. A mattress is on the ground with a bunch of blankets and sleeping bags all covered by a tarp. The person who used to live there did not like the idea of being enclosed in a tent. It really stinks there. Rotten food is everywhere, clothes litter the ground along with random tires, chairs, shopping carts and so many other things.
The person who lived there had been missing for a while. Rumor has it that he is in jail, but we can't confirm.
When we arrived, there is a teen girl sleeping on a bunch of cardboard boxes on the ground covered by a blanket. Anne starts to talk to her and asks me to talk to her while Anne tries to see what services she can find for this poor thing.
This girl had been outside for a while, she was very dirty. Ants were crawling all over her. We gave her a bag of food and she immediately began to eat. Ants were on her hands, they were everywhere. I started to ask her a million questions to try to learn about her and to see if she was OK. Ants were on me. There were hundreds of them. She was very tired and at times didn't focus on me. She was 18 and had dropped out of high school.
She told me her mother had died two days ago and she did not want to be in her house. I had the girls try to talk to her while Anne and I decided what to do next. The girl really wanted a ride home, which was in a trailer park north of our location. We took her there and no one was home. She fell asleep a few times and when she woke up, she ate more food.
Anne talked her into going to Grassroots. At first she did not like this idea, but agreed and away we went. They took her in and we found out later that they took her to the hospital because she kept zoning out. We learned she checked herself out and we have never heard anything about her. Anne tried the different numbers she gave us, but they were disconnected.
She really seemed like a sweet girl, but I can only imagine what was going on in her life. She knew all the homeless people in the area.
We ended our delivery after taking her to Grassroots. It was getting late. That was a strange one, but it is getting to the the norm for Bethany Lane. Even Anne mentioned that we seem to get the strange deliveries.
The lesson here - Not sure, that was so sad. She was too young to be in the woods. She was still a kid. She should be worried about iPods, cell phones, hair, boys, part time jobs, classes, makeup, homework, designer clothes. Instead, she was covered with ants all alone, inhaling a PBJ sandwich, candy bar and chips that we put together the day before, falling asleep in a car with total strangers. We only had a few moments to be with her. I continue to pray for this young lady, please join me.
I guess the face of homelessness just got even more diverse.
Sunday, April 20, 2008
History pt 10 - Our first delivery!!
Boy was I nervous!! I did all I could to make sure the three youth that came were not aware of my condition. We met at the church then went to the Holiday Inn at 175 and 1 and met Joe there. Joe is just like Anne, a huge heart for this ministry and tons of experience. Joe will take care of us.
We immediately saw a couple pan handling in the median. Joe had already talked to them and they had a tree identified on our side of the street where we would leave the bags of food. OK, first contact, but we could only wave and try to hear the thank yous over the roar of the traffic. On to the next stop.
We went south and Joe lead us to a camp within a stones throw of Route 1, but no one could see the tent It was also right by a river. Without the traffic noise, this would be a nice place to spend a weekend. The guy who lived there was really friendly and very talkative. I had three female members of the youth group with us that day. I will never forget what our new Homeless friend said when Joe introduced us, "Joe! You brought me angels today!" I guess that was the first time God spoke to us as we were out in the field doing this ministry. Yes, we were angels (that even included myself!!).
As you know, as I write this, many months have passed and I can finish out this story. We only got to see this new friend maybe 3 more times. Each time he greeted us very warmly and loved to talk to us. Once he was a bit drunk, but he was still so nice to us. He ended up getting out of the woods. He moved in with his girl friend. We heard he was working and all seemed well. Much later, we learned he was in the hospital in critical condition with pneumonia. He died just a few days after we heard he was hospitalized. The leaders of the different churches that are a part of this ministry decided to have a memorial service, apparently, his family did not want anything to do with him even in his death. So sad. The memorial was nice, many of the homeless people came and the pastor really did a great job. We had been hoping a sense of community would develop. We did see it, God was already making good out of a very sad situation.
This friend did talk about God and his faith when we saw him. We feel he is a Christian and now he is with Jesus. It will be nice to pickup our relationship when I get there.
Back to the first delivery. I only really remember the last stop. This is the "famous" camp that everyone talks about when they get involved. I can't tell you where it is, we want to allow our new friends as much privacy and respect as possible. It is in a very unusual location, thousands of people pass buy it every day and most, if not all, are totally unaware. Fortunately, no one was home. When I saw the tents, the trash, the fire pit, the stuff, I was very, very overwhelmed. Again, I was trying to keep it together for the youth. It was so incredible to know that human beings were living right here like this in Howard County, Maryland in the United States of America. We left a bunch of food and moved on. Wow, what an image that I will never get out of my head.
As we were leaving, Joe said he had a special job for one of our girls. There was a lady living in her pickup truck in the Walmart. She even had two large dogs with her. Joe said they had been trying to reach out to her with no success. He was hoping one of our girls would be the thing to open up a relationship. We were in the parking lot, Joe pointed out the truck and asked who would like to take food to her. It was pretty quiet for a while, then one of them volunteered. She went to the truck, knocked and talked very briefly. She came back with the food. The lady said, thanks, but she was OK.
Again, I can finish this story out - It has a better ending. Much later we learned that an entirely different organization eventually broke through and started to help her. The last thing we learned was that she was getting into some sort of housing. Pretty cool.
We did it, we did our first delivery. We meet a bunch of new people, we saw things I will never forget. We were on a journey following God as He revealed Himself in this new ministry.
We immediately saw a couple pan handling in the median. Joe had already talked to them and they had a tree identified on our side of the street where we would leave the bags of food. OK, first contact, but we could only wave and try to hear the thank yous over the roar of the traffic. On to the next stop.
We went south and Joe lead us to a camp within a stones throw of Route 1, but no one could see the tent It was also right by a river. Without the traffic noise, this would be a nice place to spend a weekend. The guy who lived there was really friendly and very talkative. I had three female members of the youth group with us that day. I will never forget what our new Homeless friend said when Joe introduced us, "Joe! You brought me angels today!" I guess that was the first time God spoke to us as we were out in the field doing this ministry. Yes, we were angels (that even included myself!!).
As you know, as I write this, many months have passed and I can finish out this story. We only got to see this new friend maybe 3 more times. Each time he greeted us very warmly and loved to talk to us. Once he was a bit drunk, but he was still so nice to us. He ended up getting out of the woods. He moved in with his girl friend. We heard he was working and all seemed well. Much later, we learned he was in the hospital in critical condition with pneumonia. He died just a few days after we heard he was hospitalized. The leaders of the different churches that are a part of this ministry decided to have a memorial service, apparently, his family did not want anything to do with him even in his death. So sad. The memorial was nice, many of the homeless people came and the pastor really did a great job. We had been hoping a sense of community would develop. We did see it, God was already making good out of a very sad situation.
This friend did talk about God and his faith when we saw him. We feel he is a Christian and now he is with Jesus. It will be nice to pickup our relationship when I get there.
Back to the first delivery. I only really remember the last stop. This is the "famous" camp that everyone talks about when they get involved. I can't tell you where it is, we want to allow our new friends as much privacy and respect as possible. It is in a very unusual location, thousands of people pass buy it every day and most, if not all, are totally unaware. Fortunately, no one was home. When I saw the tents, the trash, the fire pit, the stuff, I was very, very overwhelmed. Again, I was trying to keep it together for the youth. It was so incredible to know that human beings were living right here like this in Howard County, Maryland in the United States of America. We left a bunch of food and moved on. Wow, what an image that I will never get out of my head.
As we were leaving, Joe said he had a special job for one of our girls. There was a lady living in her pickup truck in the Walmart. She even had two large dogs with her. Joe said they had been trying to reach out to her with no success. He was hoping one of our girls would be the thing to open up a relationship. We were in the parking lot, Joe pointed out the truck and asked who would like to take food to her. It was pretty quiet for a while, then one of them volunteered. She went to the truck, knocked and talked very briefly. She came back with the food. The lady said, thanks, but she was OK.
Again, I can finish this story out - It has a better ending. Much later we learned that an entirely different organization eventually broke through and started to help her. The last thing we learned was that she was getting into some sort of housing. Pretty cool.
We did it, we did our first delivery. We meet a bunch of new people, we saw things I will never forget. We were on a journey following God as He revealed Himself in this new ministry.
Friday, April 18, 2008
History pt 9 -- Acting in faith
Now that we decided to be invovled in this minstry, I needed to attend the weekly meetings in the afternoons on Wednesdays. That is quite possibly the worst day for a weekly meeting!! Again, I was sure this was from God.
During these meetings we shared information on how each other was reaching the homeless people. I learned a lot and I could really see the youth doing this.
It came time for me to get us in the game. Deliveries were being done on Sunday, Wednesday and Friday. The best day for us was Friday. We could assemble the meals on Wednesdays and do the deliveries right after school on Friday. I asked for and got two Fridays per month. We were the only Youth Group to do this on a regular basis and we were the only group to deliver twice a month.
We were now in and we had no idea how we were going to do this. I feel this is exactly where God wants us to be.
During these meetings we shared information on how each other was reaching the homeless people. I learned a lot and I could really see the youth doing this.
It came time for me to get us in the game. Deliveries were being done on Sunday, Wednesday and Friday. The best day for us was Friday. We could assemble the meals on Wednesdays and do the deliveries right after school on Friday. I asked for and got two Fridays per month. We were the only Youth Group to do this on a regular basis and we were the only group to deliver twice a month.
We were now in and we had no idea how we were going to do this. I feel this is exactly where God wants us to be.
Thursday, April 17, 2008
History pt 8 -- Letting God talk to the youth
Now here is the thing. I am pretty sure that God finally showed me what big project He had been leading us to do. Now, what about the youth? How is He going to speak to them?
At the next youth group I told them that I felt God was showing us and if anyone was interested in trying to figure it out, see me after youth group. Three youth came up to me and I told them to pray specifically for a clear answer and to be ready to go on a visit with me. They agreed to do that.
Later, Anne and I finally connected. I explained to her that I felt God may be leading us to join her in this ministry. I also told her that God would need to speak to the youth before we decided anything. I wanted to take the youth to Route 1 to pray and see what happens. I asked if we could go visit a camp along Route 1. Initially, she was very hesitant. We want to keep the locations a secret to respect the homeless peoples privacy. She told me there was an abandoned camp that she would show us. I called the youth that said they would be praying and looking.
Later that week, we went and saw the camp. We had to walk quite a way off of Route 1 to get to the actual camp. Wow, even though no one was there, it was astounding!! The tent was there, but it was in bad shape. There was trash everywhere. Anne told us that the person who lived there before got beat up and they did not know where he was anymore.
After we dropped Anne off, the youth and I went to Arby's to talk about what we just experienced. We prayed and they were very excited about what might be happening. We decided that this was the thing that God was leading us to do. I now had to get us involved. This is so cool.
At the next youth group I told them that I felt God was showing us and if anyone was interested in trying to figure it out, see me after youth group. Three youth came up to me and I told them to pray specifically for a clear answer and to be ready to go on a visit with me. They agreed to do that.
Later, Anne and I finally connected. I explained to her that I felt God may be leading us to join her in this ministry. I also told her that God would need to speak to the youth before we decided anything. I wanted to take the youth to Route 1 to pray and see what happens. I asked if we could go visit a camp along Route 1. Initially, she was very hesitant. We want to keep the locations a secret to respect the homeless peoples privacy. She told me there was an abandoned camp that she would show us. I called the youth that said they would be praying and looking.
Later that week, we went and saw the camp. We had to walk quite a way off of Route 1 to get to the actual camp. Wow, even though no one was there, it was astounding!! The tent was there, but it was in bad shape. There was trash everywhere. Anne told us that the person who lived there before got beat up and they did not know where he was anymore.
After we dropped Anne off, the youth and I went to Arby's to talk about what we just experienced. We prayed and they were very excited about what might be happening. We decided that this was the thing that God was leading us to do. I now had to get us involved. This is so cool.
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
History pt 7 -- God finally showed us
I will never forget this meeting. Unfortunately, I don't remember what day it happened. It must have been in December before Christmas.
I was at yet another 30 Hour Famine meeting. These were evening meetings because many of the youth leaders were either lay people or bi-vocational pastors. I had not had dinner, I was very hungry, they only had cookies to eat and I was so tired. It had been a long day. Christmas is a busy time of year and I was beat.
During the meeting, we got talking about the different service projects and Anne kept talking about providing hot meals to some homeless people in the area. A church Route 1 was going to make a hot meal and several youth would be able to be there to serve the meal.
As soon as this was mentioned, one of the other youth pastors asked if a certain Sunday was available for them to deliver meals to be done as a service project. Anne and the pastor completed the deal and the rest of the table kept on talking about all these homeless people and where they were living. One of the people at the table had been to one of the camps. It was so unbelievable to hear how primitive the conditions were knowing that Howard County is so wealthy.
I started to ask a bunch of questions and eventually was told that Anne was the point of contact for this whole deal. I honestly thought that I had finally found what god was leading us to do!! I traded information with Anne and left that meeting feeling much better.
I could not wait to hear more from Anne.
I was at yet another 30 Hour Famine meeting. These were evening meetings because many of the youth leaders were either lay people or bi-vocational pastors. I had not had dinner, I was very hungry, they only had cookies to eat and I was so tired. It had been a long day. Christmas is a busy time of year and I was beat.
During the meeting, we got talking about the different service projects and Anne kept talking about providing hot meals to some homeless people in the area. A church Route 1 was going to make a hot meal and several youth would be able to be there to serve the meal.
As soon as this was mentioned, one of the other youth pastors asked if a certain Sunday was available for them to deliver meals to be done as a service project. Anne and the pastor completed the deal and the rest of the table kept on talking about all these homeless people and where they were living. One of the people at the table had been to one of the camps. It was so unbelievable to hear how primitive the conditions were knowing that Howard County is so wealthy.
I started to ask a bunch of questions and eventually was told that Anne was the point of contact for this whole deal. I honestly thought that I had finally found what god was leading us to do!! I traded information with Anne and left that meeting feeling much better.
I could not wait to hear more from Anne.
Monday, April 14, 2008
History pt 6 -- 30 Hour Famine
As a Youth Pastor, I am always looking for new things. I have heard about the 30 Hour Famine for a while, I usually get a few things in the mail from them each year. The folks at GenX told me they do a big event for the 30 hour famine each year in the spring.
Sometime in the fall of 07, the GenX people told me they were beginning the planning meetings for the next 30 Hour Famine to be held in Feb of 08.
I decided to get involved and simply provide a new event and experience for the youth of Generation Hope.
I found out that this event has a several year history and about 10 different churches are involved every year. This year about 20 churches were initially involved. The event is really cool, not only do you not eat for 30 hours, you also do different service projects all around our area. It seems I am not the only one who see the youth of this generation need a hands on experience with God.
Sometime in the fall of 07, the GenX people told me they were beginning the planning meetings for the next 30 Hour Famine to be held in Feb of 08.
I decided to get involved and simply provide a new event and experience for the youth of Generation Hope.
I found out that this event has a several year history and about 10 different churches are involved every year. This year about 20 churches were initially involved. The event is really cool, not only do you not eat for 30 hours, you also do different service projects all around our area. It seems I am not the only one who see the youth of this generation need a hands on experience with God.
Sunday, April 13, 2008
History pt 5 -- Could it be in Baltimore?
Also in the fall of 07, I was part of a team to plan the Youth Evangelism Conference for the State Convention. That year the conference was taking a whole new theme and purpose. It was going to have a component of different service projects on Saturday afternoon in the City of Baltimore. Again, it seemed like God was affirming what I thought I was hearing from Him.
While at one of these planning meetings I thought I had found the big thing God was leading us to do. I ended up sitting next to a person who was responsible for a lot of cool things in the City. We talked for a while and I ended up sending an email to that organization and anxiously waited to see how this would all work out.
Guess what? Nothing happened at all. I even called and left a message, but to this day, I have not heard from them. I guess that is what it means when God closes a door. I thought for sure this was it.
Oh well, we keep looking.
While at one of these planning meetings I thought I had found the big thing God was leading us to do. I ended up sitting next to a person who was responsible for a lot of cool things in the City. We talked for a while and I ended up sending an email to that organization and anxiously waited to see how this would all work out.
Guess what? Nothing happened at all. I even called and left a message, but to this day, I have not heard from them. I guess that is what it means when God closes a door. I thought for sure this was it.
Oh well, we keep looking.
Saturday, April 12, 2008
History pt 4 -- Still looking
Back in the summer of 07, we actually had the message fro God, but we did not realize we had it. I kept my eyes open to see where He would lead me and to see where He was working.
A few interesting things came across my desk, but each of them just was not right.
Somewhere along the line, a monthly coffee house that included about 6 different churches that was hosted by GenXaret was canceled. I ended up having a meeting with the folks who run GenX and we got talking about how to reach teens. We pretty much came to the same conclusions. They need to see God in action and they need to participate in that action.
It was nice to hear others with the same feelings and experiences about youth ministry.
I guess God was wanting to affirm me and not yet give me more direction.
A few interesting things came across my desk, but each of them just was not right.
Somewhere along the line, a monthly coffee house that included about 6 different churches that was hosted by GenXaret was canceled. I ended up having a meeting with the folks who run GenX and we got talking about how to reach teens. We pretty much came to the same conclusions. They need to see God in action and they need to participate in that action.
It was nice to hear others with the same feelings and experiences about youth ministry.
I guess God was wanting to affirm me and not yet give me more direction.
Thursday, April 10, 2008
History pt 3 - God speaks, but we don't see
The life of a Youth Pastor really begins to change in late Spring. Summers are a great time to be a Youth Pastor. We go on week long trips, there is no school pressure and God usually really shows up and does some amazing things.
In late Spring, us Youth Pastors are busy getting the spaces we reserved filled with kids, getting paperwork returned, recruiting leaders and just being very busy. This year was no different, but with the added deal of trying to see what the big thing was for us.
We went to our summer camp called Centrifuge in late June. In the weeks leading up to this trip, I sensed that God was going to speak through the youth to tell us what the big thing for us was. I liked that idea and told the youth a few time what I was feeling.
While at Centrifuge, we talked about this big thing with the whole group and everyone seemed to be kind of excited about what might happen. I really had no idea what to do next, but I though we could at least talk about some ideas we might have for the big thing. We spent a little time in prayer and simply had kids talk about things they thought might be the thing. Cara wrote down everything. Here is what it looked like:
I can't find it right now, it will be here soon.
When it was done, I really did not sense a consensus, but told the kids I would send them a copy of this list when were back home and they should keep praying.
Now I can see it, then we could not. Look at item number one.
In late Spring, us Youth Pastors are busy getting the spaces we reserved filled with kids, getting paperwork returned, recruiting leaders and just being very busy. This year was no different, but with the added deal of trying to see what the big thing was for us.
We went to our summer camp called Centrifuge in late June. In the weeks leading up to this trip, I sensed that God was going to speak through the youth to tell us what the big thing for us was. I liked that idea and told the youth a few time what I was feeling.
While at Centrifuge, we talked about this big thing with the whole group and everyone seemed to be kind of excited about what might happen. I really had no idea what to do next, but I though we could at least talk about some ideas we might have for the big thing. We spent a little time in prayer and simply had kids talk about things they thought might be the thing. Cara wrote down everything. Here is what it looked like:
I can't find it right now, it will be here soon.
When it was done, I really did not sense a consensus, but told the kids I would send them a copy of this list when were back home and they should keep praying.
Now I can see it, then we could not. Look at item number one.
History pt 2 -- God silent
As I mentioned in a previous post, I knew God was leading us to a big thing and I had a week long vacation at the beach coming up. I just knew God was going to show me the big thing as I walked along the beach in the morning during a quiet time.
I managed to have several of these walks. When I am on vacation, I usually have a hard time having these quiet times. I am a creature of habit.
Each time I walked, I wondered how He would speak to me. I gave Him permission to speak in any way He wanted. Wasn't that cool of me?
Guess what? Nothing happened at all.
I remember being puzzled, not disappointed, but confused.
I managed to have several of these walks. When I am on vacation, I usually have a hard time having these quiet times. I am a creature of habit.
Each time I walked, I wondered how He would speak to me. I gave Him permission to speak in any way He wanted. Wasn't that cool of me?
Guess what? Nothing happened at all.
I remember being puzzled, not disappointed, but confused.
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
History pt 1 -- Early memories
The earliest I can remember where I thought God was leading us in this direction was sometime before Easter 2007. Sherrie and I had been talking about what a good idea it would be to incorporate more service type projects into the youth ministry. I had been really thinking that the kids needed a cause to both get excited about and a cause that they could actually see God helping us accomplish. It seems youth today rally around a cause.
They are also very skeptical about things spiritual, they need to actually see God at work.
I felt it had to be a big project, so big that our youth group would have no way in the world to be able to do it on its own. The project would also have to include the rest of the church. Everyone would be able to be involved, but it all would be run out of the youth ministry.
We talked about a few different ideas. Some were really cool, some were crazy. A few even made sense considering the skills of the people we had at our church. For some reason, none of these ideas felt right.
My family had scheduled a vacation in Florida right after Easter. I figured I would get up early and walk the beach while praying and seeking what the Lord would have for us. I fully expected that I would have a clear understanding of what we were supposed to do by the time I got back to work.
They are also very skeptical about things spiritual, they need to actually see God at work.
I felt it had to be a big project, so big that our youth group would have no way in the world to be able to do it on its own. The project would also have to include the rest of the church. Everyone would be able to be involved, but it all would be run out of the youth ministry.
We talked about a few different ideas. Some were really cool, some were crazy. A few even made sense considering the skills of the people we had at our church. For some reason, none of these ideas felt right.
My family had scheduled a vacation in Florida right after Easter. I figured I would get up early and walk the beach while praying and seeking what the Lord would have for us. I fully expected that I would have a clear understanding of what we were supposed to do by the time I got back to work.
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
What this is about
I am the youth pastor of Bethany Lane Baptist Church in Ellicott City, Maryland. I have been at this church for over 9 years and just love what I am doing. Over the past few years, I have noticed a change in the kids who come to church. They need more than being pointed to God and learning what the Bible has to say about God. I had a strong feeling they needed to experience God for themselves in a project or something that they could not accomplish on their own. I also felt that this project must include the whole church.
This blog will attempt to tell that story. We are actually doing this large, God sized project. We started to join God in February of 2008, but the story really starts in the summer of 2007. I will be bouncing back and forth between remembering how we got here and what we are doing now that we are here and how that here keeps changing. This has been fun, a bit frustrating and totally a God thing all at the same time.
This blog will attempt to tell that story. We are actually doing this large, God sized project. We started to join God in February of 2008, but the story really starts in the summer of 2007. I will be bouncing back and forth between remembering how we got here and what we are doing now that we are here and how that here keeps changing. This has been fun, a bit frustrating and totally a God thing all at the same time.
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