I don't think I could possibly convey in this writing how incredibly moving last night's trip was. I've had some memorable trips in the last 2 1/2 years and this one ranks up there with the best of them. This was the third consecutive trip specifically timed to start as the sun was going down. I got to the Jack in the Box at around a quarter to 7 p.m. The guy inside who took my order noticed the bible tucked under my arm (I figured I could read a little bit while I waited for the 20 burgers). His name was Juan and he told me he was starting school to become a pastor. He hoped one day to be able to preach the gospel like me! What an auspicious start! He asked if I would pray for him. When I walked out to the car and started organizing the food and everything for easy access I noticed two men going through the dumpsters at the recycling place just on the other side of the fence. My car was parked right opposite to where they were.
The photo I took is kind of dark so you may not be able to see much. Their names were Earl and Mike. Mike said he had been working at recycling since 4:30 a.m.
After praying with Mike and Earl, I drove over to an alley off Hooper St. This is an alley where some of my best friends down here have stayed, but no one has been living there for several months now. I keep checking each week anyway. As I drove back down 14th St. I noticed a man inside a fenced vacant lot. It turned out to be Doug. I hardly recognized him at first, he must have lost 50 lbs. or more. I have met with Doug many times in the past, one of the more memorable ones was on April 4th of this year. You might want to look at that blog again. He had prayed and asked God that I would come by that day. I took some pictures of Doug and they are on that blog. He was in terrible shape that day, both physically and emotionally. The next day he ended up in the hospital due to his diabetes. They were contemplating amputating his legs, but he recovered quick enough so that was unnecesary. He told me last night that the hospital healed him physically, but I had healed his broken heart and that had given him the will to live again. I was humbled. I have prayed continuously for greater spiritual gifts to serve these people (from 1 Corinthians 14:1), but haven't seen any visible results. Last night was confirmation of answered prayer. Doug and I talked for quite awhile. In addition to the food and water I gave him a shirt. He turned down a blanket because he had three (they were filthy and so was his shirt). He told me to give the blanket to someone who needed it more. I'll let you know how that turned out!
About two hundred yards down the street from Doug another man was sitting on the sidewalk. His name was Jerry and he was from south Florida. He has been out here for five years, but from the looks of it he hasn't been doing too well. He was overjoyed to receive some burgers and water. I asked him if he needed any socks or shirts and he told me he did. When I came back with them, he showed me a nasty gash just above the top of his sock. It must have been painful. I had already prayed for him, but I prayed again specifically for God to heal that wound as quickly as possible. Jerry was very thankful I came by. I also left him with a can of food for the next morning.
By now it was completely dark out. As I drove west down Olympic Blvd I saw Alan pulling his shopping cart with a mountain of stuff on it. Alan looks, not only homeless (which he is), but like a hermit too. The only time he ever actully spoke was the day a year and a half ago when he told me his name. Since then it's been mostly grunting noises and nodding if I ask him questions. So when I saw him I turned around and drove back to him and called out his name loudly. He saw me and stopped. By now he was in the middle of Olympic Blvd with his cart. He hustled over to me and I gave him a couple of warm burgers and cold water. I asked him, "Isn't this great?" He actually said, "Yeah" twice and hurried back to his cart! I told him I loved him.
Last week I had a great visit with 3 folks on Olive St near Pico Blvd. I drove over there to see if they or anyone else was in the area there. The man pictured was the only one around there. His name was Paul. He was sleeping when I walked up, but when I asked if he was hungry he woke up in a hurry.
He started eating the burgers immediately, not stopping when I prayed for him. I guess this is how most of the world goes to sleep at night--hungry. I was glad I was there for Paul.
I was able to help three others in and around the "doorway" area downtown. Eventually, I had two hamburgers left and was driving south on Wall St. I saw several people on the right side of the street, but happened to glance over to the left side and saw someone bedding down for the night under a stairwell. Something inside me said, "There's the one you want to help." I turned around and drove back there. After parking at the curb I got out and asked if they needed some food. I could tell by now there were two people there. They said in unison, "Yes, we need some food." It turned out to be a couple, Rhonda and Jose. They had been homeless now for 3 days. I was sorry I only had two hamburgers left, I wished I had more. I did have four cans of ravioli, so I gave them that along with some chilled water bottles. When it came to clothing, Jose said he had been wearing the same shirt for the last two days, so I gave them both some shirts and sweaters. I then asked if they needed a blanket. They told me they had only one small one. When I handed a brand new one, still in the zippered plastic bag,to Jose, I could tell he was overwhelmed. I was also thankful that Doug had turned it down earlier! They were truly thankful I had come by. I prayed with them standing right there at the back of my car for God to watch over and bless them and fill them with His presence. Again what a privilege it is to pray for people in their time of need. While we were standing there, another man had walked up and was waiting his turn to talk to me. He asked if I had any more food left. Well, I had just given out the last of the hamburgers and canned food to Jose and Rhonda. I did have some packs of cookies left and some water so I gave him some of those. I then remembered, just before leaving the house, my wife had given me a bag and told me briefly of it's contents. One of the things in it was a bag of snacks, so I gave him that also. The man's name was Ted and he told me I had prayed for him a while back, not too far from there. After Ted left, I walked back over to where Jose and Rhonda were. We talked a little bit about their situation. I asked if they had any family or friends they could ask to help them out. Jose told me they did have some family, but he was too embarrassed to ask. I talked to him briefly about what he could do, based on some of my experiences with prayer. I acknowledged that sometimes family relations can be strained, but I encouraged them to pray and ask God to soften the hearts of the people involved. I told them I have personally experienced God work to change people's hearts through prayer before and told him, with confidence, God can do the same for him. I prayed again with them for just this very thing to happen.
Well, with all the food gone, I drove over to Cloud 9 Alley. I got there just as the church service was ending with their prayer time. I joined in with them. It was a most memorable night. --Until next week. John
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