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.
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
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.
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