Week Four: El Paso in Our Rear View Mirror

It's Tuesday and we are actually in Tucson, Arizona.  As we have suffered much in the way of technology, both from equipment failure and user failure, we are behind in our storytelling!  So for our time in El Paso, we have condensed (and I use the word lightly) our stories into just one post.  It's a long one, but so worth your read.

We drove all day and arrived in El Paso early evening on January 23rd, and met our hostess, Isabel, for the 1^st time.  What a gracious lady.  (That's her to the left!) A friend from our small group back home lined us up with her, and we are so thankful.  She was a perfect hostess for our time there.

Wednesday morning we had to catch up on paper and media work to send back home.  We’d had yet another malfunction with our equipment (just reminding us that the enemy is trying to keep us from doing this because it’s going to bring praise to God); but we visited with a new group of techies and now we’re back on track.   I feel like maybe we should add a separate weekly story about our techie friends!

I made some calls to try to reconnect with sources we’d spoken to before to try to set up appointments, one of which was the Rescue Mission of El Paso.

The Rescue Mission of El Paso was a great place, and as we showed up to volunteer and took the "grand tour" we realized the entire place was under expansion and renovation.  The Rescue mission houses both men and women. They can house as many as 50 men and 25 women, but when the total reconstruction is finished, they will have a capacity of 250.

On our tour, we were introduced to Chef Bill, the head cook.  He cooks at the mission, showing up at 3 a.m. each morning, something he's done for the past 14 years. “We serve breakfast, lunch and supper.  Everyone is welcome here. We want everyone to have a hot meal.  We have a philosophy here:  Everyone is equal here but we have some rules.”  

Bill has 2 other cooks under him that are staff members, as well as other volunteers and those sent by court to assist. Each day they serve about 150 "guests and clients," as they say, and around 200 on a cold day.  

Bill came there as a client himself, worked as a volunteer, went to culinary school and ended up on staff.  He had an alcohol problem and was homeless himself.  He was “reborn” in 1989.  “Some people are Christians but they don’t have it here” (pointing at his heart.)  “It takes something big for people to open their eyes, and I thank God, He opened my eyes and saved me.” Bill said if it had not been for the mission he would not have made it.  He still lives at the mission and is “giving back.”  

Bill loves his work at Rescue Mission El Paso and left us with this word.  “Just because this is a shelter, it doesn’t mean we are homeless.  We all think we are family here.”

Once our time with Chef Bill was over, we went to visit the Chaplin, Rev. Julius O. Martin.  Reverend Martin has such great stories!  (We could have listened to him all day but we only had an hour before we were to report to the kitchen for meal serving!)  Though a staff member at the mission for only nine years, Reverend Martin is a 40 year veteran of the ministry.

He grew up in Montana but has lived numerous places including Germany, New Mexico, Arizona and Texas.  He explained he also teaches classes to young families concerning child rearing and child development skills.  He tells them they must be consistent on discipline.  He told us a story on his wife .She was feeling like the kids didn’t listen to her until she yelled at them, but wondered why he didn't have to that.  He told her it was because they knew he meant what he said and they would suffer the consequences if they did not respond in the proper manner.  He told us how he tells the young parents that if they are consistent, just one day on their discipline, it will work.   The reason he thinks it is so important to train your children, while they are young, to be respectful to rules and your elders is because “many of the adult people at the Mission that I minister to are just now learning and understanding there are consequences for all their actions.  You have to take responsibility for yourself.  It’s best if taught to you as a child."  Good words.

The Pastor told us that they make furniture there and ship it all over.  They ship it to camps and missions.  They’ve even shipped a load of bunk beds to Jamaica.  This mission is a member of the AGRM.org, an association of independent missions across America. (We are learning so much on this journey!)   

It was then time to go to the kitchen.  I wanted to help serve, but also wanted to talk to some of the homeless people there.  We served an estimated 50 persons.  By the time we finished serving and went to the dining room, most of them were gone.  However, there were still a few there, so  I went to a table and sat down while waiting for Kathy to come.  The gentleman sitting close by said “Hey, I have some barbacoa if you’d like to have some.”  I picked up my bowl of beans and joined his table.  He introduced himself as Adam.  I was thinking “How awesome I get to hear someone’s story that lives at this mission."

Adam has been at the mission for a year and said that his job was being a full time volunteer there.  He is in charge of picking up food and donations and picking up and delivering furniture, as well as being the nighttime security guard.  Adam is a gentle spirit with such kindness in his voice.  He is a Christian (so many of the homeless we meet are), and he loves the Lord.  This past year he found out he had liver cancer and underwent 6 months of chemotherapy.  Because he has suffered with diabetes for the last 22 years, it caused his cancer treatments to have a much worse effect on him. (Boy how I understand that, as I was diabetic while I had cancer and got all the bad side effects of that!)  

Adam told us how his friend George and fellow resident had helped him when he’d been so sick.  George had arrived at the mission just a week after Adam, and they have been good friends ever since.  He said he didn’t know what he would have done without George through that hard time.   

Recently Adam's cancer specialist said that if she hadn’t seen all his blood work before now, she wouldn't believe he'd ever had cancer.  Adam said, "I told her that God cured me, and he did”.  He said the mission had done so much for him and he loved being there. 

While we were in the kitchen serving, two people walked through.  The gentleman introduced himself as Pastor David Dutton, and introduced his wife, Angie.  He told us how he did Bible Study classes at the mission and invited us back at 6:30 that night for his class.  

We got back a little early and went to the kitchen.  We saw about 20 kids from the local Catholic church helping serve food and clean up.  These kids were all in high school.  It was nice to see this age group being so active with the homeless.  I spoke to one of the mothers that was there, and we told her what we were doing and she said she’d pray for us.  About that time, Pastor Dave and Angie got there.  

We followed them to the chapel and began study.  It was an awesome study on Revelation 18.  He was such a teacher!  He spoke so slowly and clearly, and he was so humbled by the Lord.  He passed out handouts on the class, and I was thankful because it was some really good verses with a place to write down notes on the verse.  He’s an awesome teacher and full of the Holy Spirit.  You could see it on his and his wife’s face.  The class members were a mixture of homeless people living at the mission and others that were former homeless that come back for the class.  You could tell they all loved Pastor Dave and Angie.  

It was one of those moments when you are sitting in a service, and you feel like the pastor is speaking directly to you.  He spoke about how we have to be warriors for Christ and teach the Gospel and how ONE person can make a difference.  As I was listening to him, tears started rolling down my cheeks.  I looked at Kathy, and she had tears too.  I knew right then and there it was another confirmation that we were in God’s will and doing what he wanted us to do.  We all prayed together and then broke class but not before I asked Pastor Dave if I could meet up with him the next day.  He knew by looking at me that his words had really struck my heart, as I am not bashful to cry.  I explained to him how his words were such an encouragement to me, and I wanted to hear his story.

We met Pastor Dave and Angie for breakfast and to video his story. Pastor Dave is a tall strappin’ Alabama boy.  He has that southern charm and easy speaking spirit.   He is an Associate Pastor at Hillside Baptist Church in El Paso, and a pastor for Rescue Mission El Paso, a Chaplin for the Sherriff’s Department AND the V.A.  He’s quite a busy man.  He also is a lead singer and manager for a Gospel Band that plays from time to time.  

I think the most surprising thing to me was that Pastor Dave has only been a Christian for 12 years. "What life changing event caused you to surrender your life to God?"  He said, “well, that’s a long story but…”  

Pastor  Dave, the oldest of three children, left home when he was 17 to go into the military, and he never went back home to live again. When he got out of his 20 year service, he was then in civil service for 25 years before “retiring.”  He’d become an alcoholic when he was in the military and remained one for 30 years.  

He had gone home to take care of his parents, and knew the Lord was working on him.  He went to sleep one night and had a dream and the Lord said “If you don’t come to me and surrender to me, Hell will be your home.” The vision he had at that time was so clear that  he saw himself there at the gates of Hell, and when he woke he had been sweating so much you could see the outline of his body in the bed.  He asked his wife if she wanted to go to church on Sunday and she looked like a deer in the headlights.  She couldn’t believe what he was saying.  At church that Sunday, it was like everything the Pastor said hit him in the chest.  When the Pastor invited those there to come to the front of the church if they wanted to surrender the hearts to Christ, he was up there right away.  He came to Christ that day and felt the weight of the world come off his shoulders.

But the "real" story is what God did with him after that day.  God told him He wanted him to be a preacher and he said “Oh God, please, not me!  As mean and ugly as I’ve been and away from you for so long, why would You want someone like me to represent You?”  He went on to Bible school for 3 years and then went to Hillside Baptist Church.  While there, he had a pastor ask him to go into the prison ministry, where he ended up serving for 5 years.  He was way out of his comfort zone but the Lord opened doors for him and showed him how, even in the worst situations, God is there for you.  After that he went to Gospel Rescue Mission of El Paso, and is still there today.

The one thing I didn't share with you is that Pastor Dave is sick.  His wife, Angie, shared with us that God had cured her of MS, but that recently they found a spot on Pastor Dave's lung.  At times his breathing was so labored that we would stop so I could pray for him to be able to continue.  We had a special prayer time over him, asking God for healing, but also for peace for Dave and Angie as they awaited test results.

Missions like Rescue Mission of El Paso are doing such incredible work for the homeless and those in need.  Their staff members and volunteers (some of them residents themselves) offer such hope to the people they serve.  If you live in the El Paso area, please be sure to volunteer with this incredible place!

As for Kathy and I, please continue to pray for us, message us through Facebook or the website, and as God leads you, donate.  Your prayers, your encouragement and your donations keep us going.

Sammie

Week Three: We are All Called to Serve

As I’m on the street,  I see these homeless people, so many of them Christians, that have so little but are so in love with God and thankful for what they do have, some as little as a blanket for cover at night. And then we have “Christians” (I think sometimes they treat it as a club) that think going to church on Sunday and sometimes Wednesday is all there is to being a Christian.

I was one of those at one time, so I know.  I think the word “Christian” is used too freely.  I love to use the words “disciple for Christ.”  A true disciple is being a student of Jesus and follower of Him.  It’s also one who accepts and assists in spreading the doctrines of our Lord Jesus Christ.

As I think of many Christians that go to church and have it all, I wonder why some of them don’t hear the cry of their brothers and sisters unfortunate enough to be on the street. I want to say “Why don’t you come out into the streets and see what the real world is like and see what you could do to help?”  Be a doer, not a talker.  I don’t think they know how blessed they are and how their kids are raised so separated from the real world.  It breaks my heart because I see it every day.

I know that not everyone is called to work on the streets with the homeless.  We all have our calling.  But that's my point.  We all have our calling.  And some of us are not living out our calling.  We are attending church, but we aren't serving.  God created us to serve others.  He created you to serve.

Well, how's that for a sweet gentle entrance into a blog post?

I met some wonderfully, sweet people on the streets this week.  I don't have many pictures to share (it's been a trying week of technology!)  Here is a glimpse of many of their stories:

Josephine: Has been homeless off and on for 20 years.  This last time she’s been consistently homeless and on the streets due to loss of job.  She’s around 55 and has a very sweet spirit.  I asked if she kept warm at night and she said “Oh yes, I’ve been blessed with blankets.”  I gave her a Bible and toiletries, and she put them up with a bag of tortillas someone had been given her.  She’d picked up a stray puppy and was trying to take care of it until she can find it a home.  I prayed with her for healing and a job.

Sky:  A tall thin black man with vision in only one eye.  He’s been on the street a long time and is neighbors with Josephine.  He’s almost blind and not really in good health.  When I asked if he wanted prayer he said he did and said “This is how I like to do it” and knelt on the concrete.  We prayed for his health and for shelter.  He was cold and needed gloves.  I gave him mine because I didn’t have any extras, only those on my hands, so I took them off and gave them to him.  He said “I don’t want no girls gloves,” and I said they were unisex but I’d get him some pink ones if he wanted! He said “That ain’t gonna be happening.”  We laughed and he put on the black fuzzy gloves and they fit.

(Pastor Robert Davis asked Kathy to put Sky and Josephine in our prayers because Sky would often get angry about not being able to see and he’d take it out on Josephine.)

Bob was one of the first guys I spoke to.  I asked if he knew Jesus Christ was his savior.  He shrugged his shoulders and said "Nah”.  I asked if he’d like to know the Lord and he said “I think you only live once.”  I proceeded to ask him did he know, when he died, where he would go, Heaven or Hell.  His answer was “You only live once.”  I went through all the things I knew to say to him;  he was so lost, I felt sad for him.  I proceeded to try to plant a seed in him and prayed that God would help it grow, as he had no desire to think anything outside of the life on earth.  What a lost soul.

Maria:  What a beautiful young lady.  She and her friends came to eat a little too late.  (The night she came, it was 34 degrees outside.  37 people were fed that night, but a dozen or so more did not get food.)  Maria, her girlfriend, her girlfriend's two babies and two guys got there just before the food was all gone.  Brian scraped the bottom of the pot to try to see that they got something.  He warned them to come earlier as he hated to see anyone go without.  Kathy told me there was no more food and the babies didn’t get much, so I went to car and got peanut butter crackers for the kids.  We tried to get the kids to eat something.  While we were doing this I noticed Maria.  She was so beautiful, but you could tell something was wrong.  Along with her pretty face and all her body jewelry, she looked sad.  I gave her and her friend a Bible.  She held the Bible, and I knew she’d probably read it.  

I left her and walked around praying with others while she was eating.  I came back and said “Maria, what I can I pray for for you?”  She looked at me with her sad, beautiful eyes.  She said “I need prayer.  CPS took my kids.”  Because a lot of people were around us I took her by the hand to an area about 10 feet away, and I asked her to tell me her story.  She said “CPS took my 3 kids because I have problems.  I’m in the streets.”  I asked why she was in the streets and she said “drugs.”  She doesn’t have a job and can’t get off drugs.  I asked if she knew Jesus Christ as her Savior and she said she was working on it.  I asked what “working on it” meant.  She said she wasn’t sure.  I asked her if she knew if she died right then would she go to heaven or hell.  I could tell by her eyes that she didn’t know what to say, but she didn’t want to say the word hell.

I said, “Maria I’m going to pray 2 times for you.  The first prayer will be for God to open up your heart to listen to what I’m saying, and I’ll tell you about the other prayer later.”  I proceeded to pray for the Lord to open her heart to know the He loves her and to know that there is nothing that she has done that He can’t handle and that Jesus Christ died on the cross for all our sins.  I told her that I’m a sinner too, and I have to pray for forgiveness every day and she needn’t feel bad about the things she has done, and that she can get out of this.  She kept saying “Oh but the drugs, the drugs.”  I said I could pray the surrender prayer for her right then.  She was right on the edge, but I could tell she felt she wasn’t good enough.  She said she had a Bible with her kids' pictures in it.  She kept caressing the pink Bible I gave her and said “I’m going to read this one.”  She’s just not at the point of letting go, so I will continue to pray for her salvation and that of her children.  Drugs are bad, this is a perfect example of their destructive power and our powerlessness without Jesus.

People on drugs are not the only ones affected, the people around them suffer too.  Her children were taken away because of her addiction.  My marriage was taken away because of my husband’s addictions.  One addiction leads to others making it harder to recover, impossible without the Lord.

We left San Antonio with heavy hearts for all the homeless we met.  But we were joyful for all the wonderful servants that God has in place in San Antonio, Texas.  We leave here headed for El Paso.  Praying God's blessing over  all we have met.

Week Three: Serving the Homeless - An Officer and a Gentleman

When you are out on the road, traveling from city to city, one of the things you find yourself looking for is a smiling face; someone whose face alone beams a welcome to you.  We had the opportunity this week to meet two such people who were serving the homeless of San Antonio.

We had planned on working with a man named "Pastor Dennis" at an organization called Church Under the Bridge, which didn't actually happen to be under a bridge, but was, in fact, in a building.  Go figure.  It was on our hunt for Pastor Dennis that we met Pastor Brian Wicks with Resurrection Ministries. 

Brian started his ministry in San Antonio, Texas, in 1998.  Prior to starting his homeless ministry, he led a pretty rowdy life, dabbling in drugs and alcohol for years.  One night, Brian was at home alone, having just experienced a devastating break-up.  His heart was so broken, he didn't know where to turn.  And then he remembered all those Christian men who had witnessed to him for so many years, years that he was simply unwilling to listen to their message.  So there in his apartment, desperate and alone, he met God, and his life has been forever changed.

He stayed in his apartment for three days, fasting and praying, asking God what to do next. God’s direction to him was to go out and spread the gospel.  He’s been dedicated to serving the needs of the homeless ever since.

It was very humbling to see a Pastor with such a loving heart for the homeless and needy.   One of the homeless guys told me Brian was their hero.  He also said Brian didn’t see himself that way, but they did. 

Resurrection Ministries has partnered with several local companies to help the homeless.  One is Mike’s Bikes who helps supply bikes and parts to the homeless.  Please check out Brian's web site and Facebook as he is such a blessing for the lost and homeless of San Antonio.  

Thank you, Pastor Brian, for being so awesome to me and Kathy while in your city. What a gentleman.  We are grateful for your kindness to us.

So you've met the "gentleman" of this post, now I'd like to introduce you to the "officer."

We were meeting Pastor Dennis (yes, again!) at the Church Under the Bridge building.

As we pulled up, this very fit, large, man dressed in military fatigues stopped us.  We told him we were volunteers, and he directed us where to park.  His name tag said CUB and his name was Joe.  I have to say his disposition and mannerisms were so precise and military that I had an instant love for him.  His serious, very polite, attitude let me know he was military.  We parked and got out.  

I asked him laughingly, “So, are you in charge of security here?” as I’d not seen him there that morning.  He said “Yes ma'am, I am."  As I spoke to him, he softened and when I saw his name was Joe, I said "I’m calling you GI Joe!"  I laughed, he laughed and said “I was a Marine for 12 years.”  He stood at attention all the time, was a nice looking man, still in very good shape, so much so that  I was surprised he wasn’t still on active duty.

GI Joe is really remarkable.  He was a Marine for 12 years, completed three tours in Iraq and one in Afghanistan beginning with Desert Storm and ending just a few years ago.   He showed us his burns and scars from his active duty.  Both of his ankles, one knee and one arm were blown up during the conflict.   He was proud to show those scars he earned protecting our freedom.  And he was proud to be a Marine.

Joe came home from the war and lives with his mom, still trying to get his life back on track.  He’s recently engaged and broke into a smile while talking about her.  He’s a war hero, and he is still giving to others as a volunteer, helping the church on security and helping to direct and give aid to the homeless.  GI Joe, you’re my hero. 

It is so incredibly encouraging to see how many people the Lord has stationed all over this country, serving the homeless, being Jesus to them.

Week Three of the Journey - San Antonio

There is so much to tell you this week, that's it's hard to know where to start.  I guess I should start by saying nothing went the way we thought it would, the way we had it planned.  But everything went the way God had it planned.  After all, this whole thing was His idea, so I guess His plan is going to be way better than ours.  I do feel like I need to tell you to strap on your seat belts or get out a notepad, because this was one crazy week! There are so many moving parts to this story, you're going to need both to keep up!  And even though it's long, there was just too much to try to decide what to leave out!

So grab a cup of coffee and settle in.  There is much to tell you.

We arrived in San Antonio, Texas, on the night of Saturday, January 12th.  We got unloaded and got ready to go to Church Under the Bridge on Sunday morning to meet Pastor Dennis.  We got up, excited to meet Pastor Dennis and work with him.  When we arrived under the bridge, we saw a ministry unloading music equipment, chairs, etc., so I parked and went over to see the Pastor.  “Hi, are you Pastor Dennis?” I asked.  He explained that he wasn't Pastor Dennis and pointed us to a building down the street.

When you think of Church Under the Bridge, you think of it actually being under the bridge, hence our stopping at his location.  I got his name, Pastor Brian Wicks, thanked him for his invitation to stay and told him we'd be in touch.

I told Kathy, “We’ll be back to this ministry because he is doing things the way I did for the Mark 10:27 ministry in the Houston area.”  I loved it because he drove up with a trailer, opened the doors, got out his tables and chairs and set up to have church (with the homeless helping him, it was going fast!).

We headed on down to the building down the street to meet Pastor Dennis.  Originally we'd planned to speak with him before the service, to confirm my speaking at the Tuesday evening service, as we'd discussed on the phone.  But because we had gone to the wrong church initially, we were late to meet Pastor Dennis and the service had already started.  We left our card with one of the Deacons and told him we’d be back to help serve the dinner to the homeless after the Sunday night service and meet with Pastor Dennis then. 

We had to leave because I was scheduled to be the main speaker at another church that started at 11:30.  My only contact there was a "Pastor Robert."  I didn't even have the name of the church.  But I had an address, and we headed there.  He told me the intersection and parking place to meet him and said there would be a sign that said, "Haven of Hope" at the back where we could drive in.

We were certainly familiar with the name "Haven of Hope" because we'd been trying to get in there and had been turned down three different times, finally being told it was impossible to get in and that it would take weeks to get approved.  Could this be the same place?

Sure enough, it was the same place.  Kathy and I were so shocked and so excited at the same time. 

We went through the gate with Pastor Robert and his wife, Janie, to the chapel.  I remember Kathy and I looking at each other, still not believing we were actually there. The security was so tight, and we were just driving through the gate like we were somebody.  Satan didn't want us at the Haven of Hope, but that didn't matter, because God did.

I have experienced moments like that throughout our entire journey.  The things we think we can or can’t do are all guided by God.  We have to remember it’s His plan.  When God gives you a mission and sends you out, He will take care of the details.  God’s never early, but He’s never late, always on time.  SO TRUE!

We went into the chapel at Haven of Hope and started church.  Pastor Robert was brief as he introduced me, having decided that the Lord wanted me to speak the entire time.  It was an incredible time there, as we felt the Holy Spirit move and trust that seeds were planted.

Monday was a scheduled "office day" for us as we had a lot of emails, Facebook downloads and media work to do to catch up and finalize our plans for Austin.  We planned to stay in and work getting ready for our work on Tuesday with Pastor Dennis, work that would never happen.  I love how God directs us to the plan He has for us, because I thought we were doing one thing and He had us doing something else.  We met the people He wanted us to meet, and He directed us where He wanted us to go.

Pastor Brian Wicks called me on Monday (remember him from the "wrong" Church we went to on Sunday?)  He said we could go with him on Tuesday as he fed the homeless on the streets, and we could speak with them and pray for them.  We still hadn’t heard from Pastor Dennis, so we agreed to do that.  He was just so helpful in so many ways, giving us opportunities to work with him again on Thursday and to connect us to other people that we needed to meet in San Antonio.

Later, Pastor Brian called to tell us the weather was going to be bad on Tuesday and said we might not want to go that night as the homeless don’t like to come out when it’s really cold.   He told us we should go to Bethany Methodist Church because when it gets to 34 degrees outside, they open the church for the homeless.  We called and spoke to Sherry and told her we wanted to come help do whatever was needed and to pray with the homeless.  She said we were very welcome and to come on.

When we arrived, Sherry showed us around, gave us information about their operation and set us free to do whatever we wanted, especially praying with the many homeless men who were there.  They were serving dinner, some were eating, some watching TV, others were taking showers and washing their clothes.  The church is a wonderful facility for them when it’s cold.  Sherry and her staff are amazing, all caring volunteers, working tirelessly.

I sat down at a table with four homeless men who were all very welcoming and spoke openly with me about being homeless.  They all had stories but mostly they were homeless due to a loss of job.  The loss of job is putting so many people out on the street in America that it's mind boggling.  I don’t think that people really know how bad it is.  These men weren't stupid or lazy, they just needed a chance.  Of course, EVERY crowd has a few curmudgeons, but I got their stories, prayed with some and moved on to another area.  

A man named Buddy told me he’d had a divorce over 20 years ago and had never gotten over the depression and hurt. It was still with him.  He said it was a heart breaking divorce, I didn’t ask details but I could see the pain on his face as he spoke. I asked if he was a Christian, and he said “Yes.”  I prayed for a job and for peace in his depression. We prayed for about 5 minutes, and when I leaned back, he grabbed my hand and said, “Can I pray for you?”  I said yes.  I took his prayer, (what a sweet prayer), hugged him goodbye, and moved on to speak with others, introducing myself to find out their story.  

I went back to the entrance of the church where we’d come in and saw that the volunteers were all gathered there with a homeless gentleman.  As I walked up, they pointed at me and said “She will,” indicating I would pray with him. I grabbed his hands, asked his name (Mike), and many of the volunteers gathered around and laid hands on him as we prayed.  Mike needed prayer for his wife and daughters, a  job and that his family would be reunited.  He had an alcohol problem that became more than his wife could handle, and they broke up.  When I finished praying a long prayer with him, I hugged him and tears were rolling down his cheeks.  He turned and walked back to the big room where all the gentlemen were wiping tears from his face.  I hung out for a minute, got a cup of coffee and then headed back to the big room.  As I walked in, Mike was talking with a friend and pointed at me saying “That’s her. She’ll pray with you.”  I went over to meet his friend, Carlos, and we prayed, and Carlos cried.  His prayer was for his family and a job.  He hadn’t seen his family in a long time.  He touched my heart just as Mike had.  I could tell they both had beautiful spirits.

We have to remind ourselves that the purpose of this journey is to raise awareness for the homeless of this nation, but it is also to bring the hope of Jesus to those who live daily without hope.

(Do you see now why I couldn't decide what to leave out?  There were just too many stories to tell you.)

Wednesday was another office day.  I don't know if you, our readers and supporters, have a picture in your minds' eye of what we do out here on the road, but there is a lot of what some might call "logistics" to deal with.  So.  Many.  Details.  And so much technology to learn! 

We were so behind with so much work to do on email and getting information back home to our writer, that we worked 8 hours straight on two computers.  And then, wouldn't you know it, on Thursday, when we got up all excited to go meet with Pastor Brian, our camera was not working!  Argh!  Satan, get behind me!

We spent four solid hours at Best Buy fixing our camera, (but now everything works correctly, including the camera operator, Kathy, tee hee.)  You know it’s so funny how when you’re doing good how hard the enemy tries to mess everything up.  Between camera malfunctions, misplacement of files and a change in sleeping arrangements, it could have been a very defeating week.  The enemy tries to come on you and take your peace when you’re about the Lord’s work, but you have to refuse to allow that and keep on keeping on.  I don’t think people know how tough it is on the street and even what we are doing isn’t easy.   Some days we wonder how we'll get to the next city, where we'll stay and how we'll eat.  But we are depending on the Lord and the people He calls to provide for us while we are out on the road.  It’s tough out here.  

But enough about that.  We persevered, didn't let Satan stop us, and God gets the glory.  That's what matters!  By the time you read this, we will be in El Paso, possibly even headed for Tucson, Arizona.

I am including the link to our donation page, or here, in case the Lord calls you to give to this incredible journey.

Much love to you.  We appreciate your prayers and your support!

Keep up with us in "real time" on Facebook!

Sammie

Week Two: Serving the Homeless - Gandalf's Cafe

There are so many great people out on the streets working with the homeless, and just like me, they each have a different reason as to why they are out there.  

For our week in Austin, we got connected to an incredible organization called Mission Possible Austin   www.mpaustin.org   They have so many incredible ways they work with the homeless, from very large venues like Church Under the Bridge, to a free medical clinic and even a coffee shop.

The people that work with Mission Possible all have to raise their own support to work there, true missionaries, all with their own unique stories.

One of the coolest things they do is run a coffee shop called Gandalf's Prayer Cafe'.  This is a place where the homeless and needy can go for free coffee and donuts in the mornings and three nights a week, a hot dinner is served by area churches and volunteers.  What's so beautiful about Gandalf's is that it's small and intimate.  Not that those very large venues like Church Under the Bridge aren't important, but for the time that a guest at Gandalf's Prayer Cafe' is there, they are just that, guests.  They can sit down, relax, and enjoy the simple pleasure of a hot cup of coffee, a donut, and some friendly conversation.

Gandalf's Cafe was started by a man named Tim Pinson, Sr. as an outpouring and overflow of an incredible ministry to the homeless run by he and his wife, Cindy.  They are still very active in this ministry as they oversee the bigger scope of Mission Possible, Austin.  They leave the direct operations of Gandalf's Cafe up to a couple of their staff members, Beau Hamner and Alissa Lewis.

Beau is the Director of Street Ministry and Community Outreach for Mission Possible Austin.

He lives by this motto:  “If you aren’t giving God everything, you’re not really giving him anything.”

Beau’s been a Christian since he was 18, and served for many years on the staff of various churches, as well as a volunteer in his home state of North Carolina.  He got his degree in Christian Ministry and was working with homeless and inner city young people in North Carolina when the Lord told him to “go” away from being a youth pastor and make the homeless his life’s work.  He left North Carolina for his position with Mission Possible Austin.  He actually found the job on the Internet and packed up his beautiful family and moved to Austin.  He lives in the under-franchised community he serves.

He’s a soft spoken young man with strong Christian faith and values.  He’s passionate about the homeless.  He prays “for warmth for (his) friends on the street.”

Alissa is the Event Coordinator at MPAustin, and also oversees Community Relations.  Alissa's story is a bit different than most of the staff at MPAustin.  She grew up in a non-Christian, alcoholic and drug using family.  She lost her brother and father to drugs and alcohol.  She also had a drug and alcohol problem.  Now 37, and clean for over 5 years, her life is the best yet.  Alissa, by most's standards, had it all.  She worked for a law firm over 11 years, was married and were stock market millionaires, but she was lost and not happy.  Because of her drug addiction, her husband left her, leaving her alone and devastated.  With God’s grace and mercy, her life has never been better.  She now lives “simplified” in an RV by the river and owns her car.   “Less is more” she said.  She’s now in charge of the volunteers at the Gandalf’s Prayer Café, and says she’s rich in love with God and the community.  When she spoke of simplifying her life it spoke to me because I had everything, like her, and lost it all and was forced to simplify my life as well.  But the best for both of us is that we are the best yet in our lives; serving others and serving God.

In addition to these great staff members, is a core of regular volunteers.  I'd love to share all their stories with you, but instead I'll leave you with the words of one of them.  "People, no matter who they are, no matter the condition of their home life, need two things in their lives that they can verbalize. They need some sense of normalcy, and they need community.  Here at Gandalf's Cafe' we offer those two things, but we also offer them something they may not know they need; the love of Jesus.  We are their community.  We are their sense of normal.  And we are Jesus to them, a beautiful reflection of Jesus."

If you'd like to donate to Mission Possible, Austin, or serve in any of their many ministries, click on over to here and check them out.