Downtown 10/16/2011

"You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against any of your people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the LORD." Leviticus 19:18

Yes, loving your neighbor as yourself is a concept in the Old Testament too. To answer the question of "Who is my neighbor?", continue reading....

After missing a week (car in the shop again) I returned downtown Sunday night. Feeling a need to see some familiar faces I went to see some of my 'regulars' and other old friends starting with John Stokes and his friend David. Where they live under the freeway there is a fenced dirt lot next to them. A trucking company had leased the lot to park their trucks there, but the lease was up and they had moved out. In addition to the trucks and equipment being gone so were the guard dogs. I mention this because John and David told me that now along with the flies in the day and the mosquitos at night, their place is now infested with rats and mice. I think in the past the guard dogs must have kept the rats away. I promised to bring them some traps next time. I can't imagine living under those conditions on a daily basis--as if being homeless isn't bad enough. When David asked me to pray for them it brought on new meaning when I asked God to protect them that night.

After leaving John and David I went over to Hooper St. under the I-10 freeway where Richard Brown lives. I met Richard on the very first trip I made downtown. Usually Raul is nearby but I didn't see him. Instead two other men by the names of Steve and Earl were there. Richard called them over so I could pray for all of them. Richard told me he was going to turn 64 in 10 days (the 26th) and was looking forward to turning 65 the next year. At 65 he can begin collecting Social Security and would have enough of a monthly income to afford a place in Mississipi where his sister lives. I really hope his dream comes true because he told me one of his friends, by the name of Angel, had died on the street the previous week about 10 blocks away there on Hooper St. I'll have to bring Richard something special for his birthday next week.

When I left there I drove just a couple of hundred yards north on Hooper to the alley where I saw Willie and Tara Lee a couple of weeks ago. I was hoping they were still there and they were. As I pulled up I saw Willie and another man standing in the alley talking. Tara Lee usually is inside his make-shift 'house' and doesn't come out. He will usually poke his head out to say hello and we talk through the 'drapes' of his house. So as I pulled up and said hello to Willie and then pulled over to one side to park the car I heard Tara ask who had come by. Willie said, "It's John" and Tara asked, "Is it 'our' John?" They had all been hoping I would come by that night. It was one of the most heartwarming welcomes I've ever received and I realize it's a result of time spent developing a relationship with them. During our conversation Willie prayed specifically for me (I was seeing a doctor the next day) and then Tara asked me to pray for everyone before I left. I don't know if you noticed, but all three of these groups asked me to pray for them, how wonderful is that?

At this point I had four hamburgers left, so I went over to Olive St and at Pico I saw a man named Julio sitting on the corner sitting up against a short retaining wall. He told me he was hungry and then I noticed he had on socks and sandals but no shoes. I was out of socks, but I did have a pair of shoes for him and a blanket too (he didn't have one). After praying for Julio another homeless man was walking by. He had a small blanket wrapped around his shoulders. Knowing I only had two burgers left I asked him if he was hungry too and he told me he was. I had a hooded sweatshirt in my hand that I was going to give Julio, but since I had given Julio a blanket I asked this man, his name was Pierre, if he could use it. He said yes, but then said, "I thought you had some food?" I told him I did and we walked over to the car and I gave him the last two burgers and some water. Before leaving him I prayed for him. I don't think I've ever prayed for someone named Pierre before! I continued on down to Skid Row and Cloud Nine alley to prayer-walk before leaving for home. It's always a good trip being able to pray for everyone I meet down here. --Until next week. John