Just off of I-5 onto 45th street, there is almost always a homeless man standing on the side of the street with a sign.We drive into Seattle every week for church, and each time, my heart goes out to these people on the streets - and yesterday, there were about 10 of them crowded just off the street where we exited.
"Wow, dad, look at all those homeless people. I wish I had twenty H2O bags to give them right now."
Let me go forward a little now, and tell you another story before I tell you about church.
After church, we went to Pike Place Market to get a few gifts for some friends. Dad dropped mom and I off, we found a store, made our purchases, and then went outside to wait for dad where he told us to. As we were waiting, browsing through a clearance rack set just outside the store, a voice, calling to passing shoppers, caught my attention.
"ANYONE GOT A DOLLAR SO I CAN SMOKE SOME POT?"
I turned to look at him from behind the clothes rack. I've never heard homeless people shout such things to people. But there he was, with a sign I couldn't quite see, calling out to people to give him a dollar so he could smoke.
Now I really wish I had one of those H2O bags to give out.
Almost just as soon as I had noticed him, another guy came walking along down the sidewalk, tapping random people on the shoulder.
"Hey, do you have any change so I could get some food?"
Most people said no and hurried on - swinging their designer-store purchases in their bags. I so desperately wanted to give them something besides money. It saddens me how people can just walk on...keep moving...like they weren't even there. Because behind that sign, under the dirt, messy hair, and torn clothes is a person, created in the image of God, just like me.
Then dad drove up, and we got in the car and left. Later I kicked myself for forgetting that I had 5 Gospel tracts I had put in my purse just that morning, thinking to myself, "I should always have these, because you never know."
We passed shoe stores, designer clothing stores, sports gear stores, and so many more. And I kept thinking...How can we have so much when these people right in our midst have so little? And not only do they have nothing, they don't have Christ.
Now let me go back, and tell you about church.
We had a short message from a 90-year old man named Phil Smart, as part of the service they call "Witness to the Working of God", where someone comes up and tells you about a ministry they serve in and what God is doing in their lives and in the lives of others through their ministry. I don't remember all of it, but his testimony was very inspiring. Most people I talked to afterwards said we could have just ended the service right there.
One thing he talked about was a little card that was in our bulletin. Here was what the front of the card looked like:
He explained that there are 24 hours in the day, divided into 8-hour segments. The first 8 hours are for school and work ("or retirement, but I don't like that", he added) and the second 8 hours, right next to it, are for sleeping; resting up for the work you have to do. And then, the last 8 hours are for you to do however you please. Then, he told us about the 8 different pains that people have in the world, and how we should use those 8 hours to reach out to people. He told a very touching story to go with it, but if I try to repeat it, I'll probably ruin it. But it was inspiring.Next he showed us the other side of the card:
Each of the letters represents the 8 pains, he said. The Hurt, the Hungry, the Homeless, the Unemployed, the Young, the Old, the Illiterate, and the Drug users. And the way that we reach out to them, he explained, is One-to-one.
After this, we had the sermon, which was extremely inspiring. Here are some things I gathered from it, in light of a lot of other things that I heard in various messages during the past week or so.
How would Dorothy live once she got back to Kansas? How would the scarecrow live with his new brains; and the tin man with his new heart? In the same way, how will we live, with our new life in Christ - the grace, the forgiveness, the joy that Jesus has given us? We should live the life God created us to live. Love as you want to be loved. You can be you, and still reach out to a hurting world - use the gifts God has given you. Respond to God's grace like the scarecrow would to his new brain.
Don't tell them what they should believe. Tell them what you believe.
Do you feel called to full time ministry? The answer is - yes. Jesus calls each and every one of us to be full-time lights for Him. Whether it's serving others through an organization or right around you - we should always be looking for an opportunity to bless others.
Just think what you could do to change a homeless person's life. A simple act of kindness could make their day - show them they do matter in the world, and most importantly, that they matter to God.
