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I asked one of our faithful volunteers to guest blog for last Tuesday night. It was a very difficult night but I believe Anthony did a great job describing what happen to all of us.
~Marc
I would have to say that since I have been going to Food for Life, tonight has to be the most emotional night for me. I picked up a buddy of mine and we made our way there. On our way we saw a woman sitting on the sidewalk with her head in her hands. I recognized her as one of the homeless woman that sometimes comes on Tuesday nights. We stopped and asked her if she’s ok. She told us that she had just been beaten by a couple of men. I got out of my truck to see how badly hurt she was and tried to convince her to let me give her a ride to Food for Life. What I saw broke my heart. She looked at me and asked me if I was going to hit her. A million thoughts started racing through my mind. I would never hit anyone or hurt anyone. I looked at her lovingly and said "no I will not hurt you". She asked me and my friend several times before we got her in the truck if we were going to hurt her and to the best of our ability we finally convinced her that we would not hurt her. On the way there I felt so overwhelmed with emotion. First of all I could not for the life of me believe that anyone would do this to a helpless and homeless woman despite her intoxication. I felt so heart broken to see her in such a state. When we arrived we helped clean her up. Another lady convinced her to call the police and then an ambulance arrived and took her to Shepherds Gate which is a place for battered woman.
Then everyone went into Triune Mercy Center and we all gathered in a big meeting room to eat and start the worship service. I got to tell you that the worship tonight was amazing. We sang some really great songs about how amazing and wonderful our God is; songs like fairest Lord Jesus and open the eyes of my heart. We sang and reveled in how awesome and how great our God is and I could not help to be reminded of how desperately we need Him for everything, and how much I love Him for what he has done for me in my life. My friend, Dan, sang a song for us that he wrote which was such a blessing, and to top it off, Paul sang a song too. But right before Paul started to pray for the meal, one of the homeless guys named David started singing a song for us and we were really taken back. It was really great. I could not believe he could sing so well and the Lord really touched my heart. Then the food was served and we all ate and had fellowship with each other. We all shared what God was doing in our lives, and we shared God to the ones that do not know him. We really had a good time getting to know each other. It really means a lot to a homeless person to have someone eat with them and just spend time talking to them. Think about it; these people are rejected everyday, all day by everyone. They are looked down upon because they are the “low life of society”. They have nothing and it is very difficult to get off the street so many often face addictions to various substances. Also, many have mental illness and fight depression. It means the world to these people that we spend time with them and build relationships with them with a simple “how are you doing” or “good to see you tonight”. It means a lot to these guys and gals that are broken and torn.
After the meal, I felt someone tap me on the shoulder. I turned around to see a lady pointing to one of the men who had just walked in. She informed me that this is one of the guys that beat up on the lady we picked up earlier. So I walked over to the guy and start talking to him. He was drunk and kept saying over and over that he wanted help or he was going to kill himself. He started crying uncontrollably, I stood there looking at him and my heart really hurt for this guy. I was very angry that he had hit a woman and I wanted to give him a piece of my mind. But I looked at him and was reminded of myself before the Lord saved me. I was at one time spiritually broken, tattered, beat down and ragged. This is what God saw when he looked at me, and he still had compassion on me and showered me with his grace and mercy, as undeserving as I was, He did it because He loved me. This guy did not deserve anything. He made his own choices that got him into this position. He had drank too much and beat up a lady. Does he deserve my compassion? Most people would think not. It’s the chopping block for him!! I looked at him and told him what he did was not right and that he would have to face the consequences. But I gave him the Gospel. I got to share with him that God sent Christ here to die in our place because we could not redeem ourselves no matter how much we worked at it. Then the police came, and as far as I know, after they questioned him, they called an ambulance and took him to the hospital. I don’t know what will happen to Becky, the lady who was beaten, and David, the man that had a part in it; but please pray that God will use this to draw them to Him. More than likely they will be back on the streets tomorrow and they will go back and get in the same situation. But God promises in 1 John 1: 9, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
To tell you the truth none of us deserve God’s goodness, but he loved us so much that he showered us in his grace and mercy at no cost to us. We cannot do anything without Him; it is His strength that is perfected in our weakness. So when it comes to being involved with the homeless or just anyone, remember that God had compassion on us and that we should display the same compassion to others.
~Anthony
~Marc
I would have to say that since I have been going to Food for Life, tonight has to be the most emotional night for me. I picked up a buddy of mine and we made our way there. On our way we saw a woman sitting on the sidewalk with her head in her hands. I recognized her as one of the homeless woman that sometimes comes on Tuesday nights. We stopped and asked her if she’s ok. She told us that she had just been beaten by a couple of men. I got out of my truck to see how badly hurt she was and tried to convince her to let me give her a ride to Food for Life. What I saw broke my heart. She looked at me and asked me if I was going to hit her. A million thoughts started racing through my mind. I would never hit anyone or hurt anyone. I looked at her lovingly and said "no I will not hurt you". She asked me and my friend several times before we got her in the truck if we were going to hurt her and to the best of our ability we finally convinced her that we would not hurt her. On the way there I felt so overwhelmed with emotion. First of all I could not for the life of me believe that anyone would do this to a helpless and homeless woman despite her intoxication. I felt so heart broken to see her in such a state. When we arrived we helped clean her up. Another lady convinced her to call the police and then an ambulance arrived and took her to Shepherds Gate which is a place for battered woman.
Then everyone went into Triune Mercy Center and we all gathered in a big meeting room to eat and start the worship service. I got to tell you that the worship tonight was amazing. We sang some really great songs about how amazing and wonderful our God is; songs like fairest Lord Jesus and open the eyes of my heart. We sang and reveled in how awesome and how great our God is and I could not help to be reminded of how desperately we need Him for everything, and how much I love Him for what he has done for me in my life. My friend, Dan, sang a song for us that he wrote which was such a blessing, and to top it off, Paul sang a song too. But right before Paul started to pray for the meal, one of the homeless guys named David started singing a song for us and we were really taken back. It was really great. I could not believe he could sing so well and the Lord really touched my heart. Then the food was served and we all ate and had fellowship with each other. We all shared what God was doing in our lives, and we shared God to the ones that do not know him. We really had a good time getting to know each other. It really means a lot to a homeless person to have someone eat with them and just spend time talking to them. Think about it; these people are rejected everyday, all day by everyone. They are looked down upon because they are the “low life of society”. They have nothing and it is very difficult to get off the street so many often face addictions to various substances. Also, many have mental illness and fight depression. It means the world to these people that we spend time with them and build relationships with them with a simple “how are you doing” or “good to see you tonight”. It means a lot to these guys and gals that are broken and torn.
After the meal, I felt someone tap me on the shoulder. I turned around to see a lady pointing to one of the men who had just walked in. She informed me that this is one of the guys that beat up on the lady we picked up earlier. So I walked over to the guy and start talking to him. He was drunk and kept saying over and over that he wanted help or he was going to kill himself. He started crying uncontrollably, I stood there looking at him and my heart really hurt for this guy. I was very angry that he had hit a woman and I wanted to give him a piece of my mind. But I looked at him and was reminded of myself before the Lord saved me. I was at one time spiritually broken, tattered, beat down and ragged. This is what God saw when he looked at me, and he still had compassion on me and showered me with his grace and mercy, as undeserving as I was, He did it because He loved me. This guy did not deserve anything. He made his own choices that got him into this position. He had drank too much and beat up a lady. Does he deserve my compassion? Most people would think not. It’s the chopping block for him!! I looked at him and told him what he did was not right and that he would have to face the consequences. But I gave him the Gospel. I got to share with him that God sent Christ here to die in our place because we could not redeem ourselves no matter how much we worked at it. Then the police came, and as far as I know, after they questioned him, they called an ambulance and took him to the hospital. I don’t know what will happen to Becky, the lady who was beaten, and David, the man that had a part in it; but please pray that God will use this to draw them to Him. More than likely they will be back on the streets tomorrow and they will go back and get in the same situation. But God promises in 1 John 1: 9, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
To tell you the truth none of us deserve God’s goodness, but he loved us so much that he showered us in his grace and mercy at no cost to us. We cannot do anything without Him; it is His strength that is perfected in our weakness. So when it comes to being involved with the homeless or just anyone, remember that God had compassion on us and that we should display the same compassion to others.
~Anthony
