"As Jesus was walking along, he saw a man called Matthew sitting at the tax booth; and he said to him, 'Follow me.' And he got up and followed him. And as he sat at dinner in [Matthew's] house, many tax collectors and sinners came and were sitting with him and his disciples." --Matthew 9:9-10
I love this image of outcasts gathering around to be with Jesus (tax collectors were considered traitors for collecting money for the occupying foreign government). At a place of grace and truth, people willingly gather. Yesterday this happened to me downtown. I had prayed on the way down to be a place where the Kingdom of Heaven would break through, I had my own expectations of what might happen, but as usual, something completely unexpected happened.
I remember a couple of years ago picking up some food for a Sunday evening run at the Jack in the Box down on Alameda just off the 10 freeway. I gave out 2/3rds of the food and a lot of clothes before I even left the parking lot that night. Sunday I drove over to where I met Arleo last week to see if I could find him. As I got close to that street I saw a couple of people on the sidewalk at 14th and Paloma. One of the people called out to me. It turned out to be Dave Parker who I haven't seen in quite a while. It turns out he has been in Texas for the last couple of months and just got back into town. The other person was a woman (I think) who I've helped before. The last time I saw her, she was with another woman just around the corner from where we were yesterday. The other woman said they were transgender people at the time. They also had the bad cough that was going around at the time. Anyway, that encounter turned out to be similar to yesterday. As I stood there and gave out food and clothing to these two people, other people started slowly coming by. Now usually I don't spend a lot of time on one stop, but as I started meeting and talking to more and more people I decided, "Hey, maybe this is exactly where God wants me to be." I stopped worrying about being on a timetable to get to the next place and decided, "this is it". It was the first time in almost five years of going downtown that I gave out all the food in one stop! Lots of clothes were given out and I had a great time meeting these folks. Dave knew most all of the people that came by. It was kind of interesting how initially some of the people seemed a little wary of me, but Dave would give me a great introduction and after a moment or two they would open up to me and be thanking me for stopping. I prayed with most everyone who came by, it was really a place of grace.
Now I was still on kind of a tight schedule. I was hoping to get back home in time to get to the church service Sunday night where my daughter was singing (by 6 pm). It was now about a quarter to four in the afternoon and I was on my way to McArthur Park. I stopped by on the way and prayed in front of the "I am Legion" door and continued on to 'the Park'. When I got there the very first parking space was available! After parking I walked back down to the corner of the park where my friends are preaching in Spanish. I didn't see the usual people there, but there was one man preaching that I had seen before. After he finished, he handed his microphone and speaker to me and said, "Do you want to preach?" I haven't done this in quite a while now (about a month or so) and I hadn't really even thought about what I might say, but I decided to just go for it anyway. I ended up talking about Martha and how she was so upset with her sister that she wasn't helping her get things ready for the dinner they were having when Jesus showed up. It was the way I felt just a little earlier about wanting to move on from the encounter with Dave and his friends until I decided it was just the place I was supposed to be. Sometimes we are moving so quickly from one thing in our lives to the next thing that we miss the opportunities God has given us to help others and be helped by others. How timely to learn the lesson in a real experience and then turn around and give it out to others within the hour.
So despite the 'timetable' I had going into the trip, I was finished within an hour and a half from the time I arrived. I got to the church on time and enjoyed the service immensely. Now the service was not a 'normal' type service. One of the unique features of last night's service was the opportunity to pick a country in the world, be given a short page of information about that country and place a location pin in a large wall map of the world where that country is. I picked Trinidad and Tobago which is a small group of islands off the northeast coast of South America (Ireland was already taken). I picked this country because a couple of years ago I received several 'hits' on this blog from that country. I still wasn't even sure where it was until last night. However, I still placed a locator pin in the wall map on "Los Angeles" too. After all, that is my turf! --Until next time. John
Monday, March 24, 2014
Monday, March 17, 2014
Downtown 3/16/2014
From David Wilkinson's little book, The Prayer of Jabez comes this little anecdotal story...
"There's a little fable about a Mr. Jones who dies and goes to heaven. Peter is waiting at the gates to give him a tour. Amid the splendor of golden streets, beautiful mansions, and choirs of angels that Peter shows him, Mr. Jones notices an odd-looking building. He thinks it looks like an enormous warehouse--it has no windows and only one door. But when he asks to see inside, Peter hesitates. 'You really don't want to see what's in there.' he tells the new arrival. 'Why would there be any secrets in heaven?' Mr Jones wonders. What incredible surprise could be waiting for me in there? When the official tour is over he's still wondering, so he asks again to see inside the structure.
Finally Peter relents. When the apostle opens the door, Mr Jones almost knocks him over in his haste to enter. It turns out that the enormous building is filled with row after row of shelves, floor to ceiling, each stacked neatly with white boxes tied in red ribbons. "These boxes all have names on them, " Mr. Jones muses aloud. Then turning to Peter he asks, "Do I have one?" "Yes, you do." Peter tries to guide Mr. Jones back outside. "Frankly, if I were you..." Peter says, but Mr. Jones is already dashing toward the "J" aisle to find his box.
Peter follows, shaking his head. He catches up with Mr. Jones just as he is slipping the red ribbon off his box and popping the lid. Looking inside, Jones has a moment of instant recognition, and he lets out a deep sigh like the ones Peter has heard so many times before. Because there in Mr. Jones's white box are all the blessings that God wanted to give to him while he was on earth...but Mr. Jones had never asked.
"Ask," promised Jesus, "and it will be given to you" (Matthew 7:7). "You do not have because you do not ask," said James (James 4:2). Even though there is no limit to God's goodness, if you didn't ask Him for a blessing yesterday, you didn't get all that you were supposed to have.
I read this story this morning. I thought to myself, "How fortunate I was to make a special request on my way downtown yesterday. I had asked to meet someone who was desperate emotionally. The special encounter came with the second man I stopped to help. His name was Arleo Jones. He told me he will turn 44 years old this week and he is from the LA area. When I first pulled up and asked if he was hungry he immediately responded with a yes. He said yes to the water too and then I asked if he needed some socks. I noticed when I pulled up that his shoes and socks were off. It was about 3 pm and a pretty warm Sunday (about 78 degrees). When someone says yes to the socks, that opens the door up to a longer conversation because I have to get out of the car and open the back up. Arleo ended up needing a couple of T-shirts and a pair a shoes too. During this time he opened up to me about his frustration with his life. More than once he told me, "I have so much to offer, I have lots of talent and yet I'm stuck here with no hope." Eventually, because he hadn't showered in a while he told me he felt so dirty that he thought about going down to the beach and just swimming straight out until the under current pulled him under and he could just end it all right there. His frustration with life was palpable. He told me he is a father to six kids and that he was a good and patient Dad (you'd have to be with that many) and that a couple of years back he was in church and accepted Christ and even received the gift of tongues and a week or so later he was homeless and on the street! He just couldn't understand "why God had let this happen to him!" You know it doesn't take too long to realize an encounter with someone goes far beyond giving them food, water and clothing. I had prayed for this not fifteen minutes before, but for some reason it always sneaks up on you as a surprise, you're not just on deck, you're up (that's a baseball term), it's time to shine and meet the need with whatever the Holy Spirit leads you to give out. As a man of nearly 60 years of living experience I've had my share of trials and tribulations and I knew and recognized the frustration in his words. This was the real deal and this is why I was called for this ministry. All my plans for later in the day are now on hold as it's time to deal with this man for as long as it takes. You know there are no "magic words" to say, each time and each person is different and I like to first let them speak out their circumstances. Not knowing how much of a biblical background each person has can kind of hinder or limit your use of scripture to help, yet there are some general basics to tell them. Usually, people are familiar with the main patriarchs of the bible and you can tell people that these "great men" of the bible are great because of what they overcame without getting into too many specifics. With Arleo I was able to tell him about how things disintegrated around me a couple of years after my spiritual conversion (family, job, auto accident) and it took a few years to slowly get back up. Nothing happened overnight, it was a slow process. I think Arleo appreciated the fact that I wasn't some 25 year old where nothing bad had happened in their life and was trying to give him "advice". Well, we talked, we prayed and I gave him a card from the Dream Center. I only had a dollar and some change in my pocket which I gave to him. He refused it at first until I told him, "Hey, when you're ready, offer someone the buck to use their cell phone and call the number for the Dream Center. See what happens". With that he took the money. Nearly every time I meet someone in this situation, there are more than one or two factors. With Arleo, he was hungry (he ate the two burgers immediately--and I gave him another one before I left), he was thirsty (he drank the two bottles of water and I gave him another one), he was feeling dirty, frustrated, and no doubt guilt over not providing for his kids and his mistakes in the past that led to this situation. He also needed someone to listen! Someone who knew and understood the difficulties and frustrations of life. It was a privilege to be there, thank you Lord for answering my prayer to be a helper to someone in trouble.
Two other notable encounters for me. Carlos, whom I've been seeing for the last six months or so finally accepted some food Sunday. Also, when I was with my Spanish preaching friends down at McArthur Park later in the day, the battery pack gave out before I was able to speak. When they realized they couldn't fix it and had packed up to leave, I gathered them all together to pray for them. After I thanked God for giving me the opportunity to pray behind them and for being co-laborers in His harvest field they asked me to pray for someone with a special need in their group. One of the women who I thought was just with them (I didn't recognize her) turns out she was homeless and had no place to stay. I prayed for her (her name was Mary) to receive some opportunities for shelter and a new start. When I finished I suggested they take her to the Dream Center. Rosalla knew of the center, unfortunately, I didn't have a card on me (they were in the car), but I told them it was straight up Alvarado on Bellvue. I hope to find out how things went next week. --Until next time. John
PS...Yes, the green is in honor of St. Patricks Day....Hey, I'm of Irish descent!
"There's a little fable about a Mr. Jones who dies and goes to heaven. Peter is waiting at the gates to give him a tour. Amid the splendor of golden streets, beautiful mansions, and choirs of angels that Peter shows him, Mr. Jones notices an odd-looking building. He thinks it looks like an enormous warehouse--it has no windows and only one door. But when he asks to see inside, Peter hesitates. 'You really don't want to see what's in there.' he tells the new arrival. 'Why would there be any secrets in heaven?' Mr Jones wonders. What incredible surprise could be waiting for me in there? When the official tour is over he's still wondering, so he asks again to see inside the structure.
Finally Peter relents. When the apostle opens the door, Mr Jones almost knocks him over in his haste to enter. It turns out that the enormous building is filled with row after row of shelves, floor to ceiling, each stacked neatly with white boxes tied in red ribbons. "These boxes all have names on them, " Mr. Jones muses aloud. Then turning to Peter he asks, "Do I have one?" "Yes, you do." Peter tries to guide Mr. Jones back outside. "Frankly, if I were you..." Peter says, but Mr. Jones is already dashing toward the "J" aisle to find his box.
Peter follows, shaking his head. He catches up with Mr. Jones just as he is slipping the red ribbon off his box and popping the lid. Looking inside, Jones has a moment of instant recognition, and he lets out a deep sigh like the ones Peter has heard so many times before. Because there in Mr. Jones's white box are all the blessings that God wanted to give to him while he was on earth...but Mr. Jones had never asked.
"Ask," promised Jesus, "and it will be given to you" (Matthew 7:7). "You do not have because you do not ask," said James (James 4:2). Even though there is no limit to God's goodness, if you didn't ask Him for a blessing yesterday, you didn't get all that you were supposed to have.
I read this story this morning. I thought to myself, "How fortunate I was to make a special request on my way downtown yesterday. I had asked to meet someone who was desperate emotionally. The special encounter came with the second man I stopped to help. His name was Arleo Jones. He told me he will turn 44 years old this week and he is from the LA area. When I first pulled up and asked if he was hungry he immediately responded with a yes. He said yes to the water too and then I asked if he needed some socks. I noticed when I pulled up that his shoes and socks were off. It was about 3 pm and a pretty warm Sunday (about 78 degrees). When someone says yes to the socks, that opens the door up to a longer conversation because I have to get out of the car and open the back up. Arleo ended up needing a couple of T-shirts and a pair a shoes too. During this time he opened up to me about his frustration with his life. More than once he told me, "I have so much to offer, I have lots of talent and yet I'm stuck here with no hope." Eventually, because he hadn't showered in a while he told me he felt so dirty that he thought about going down to the beach and just swimming straight out until the under current pulled him under and he could just end it all right there. His frustration with life was palpable. He told me he is a father to six kids and that he was a good and patient Dad (you'd have to be with that many) and that a couple of years back he was in church and accepted Christ and even received the gift of tongues and a week or so later he was homeless and on the street! He just couldn't understand "why God had let this happen to him!" You know it doesn't take too long to realize an encounter with someone goes far beyond giving them food, water and clothing. I had prayed for this not fifteen minutes before, but for some reason it always sneaks up on you as a surprise, you're not just on deck, you're up (that's a baseball term), it's time to shine and meet the need with whatever the Holy Spirit leads you to give out. As a man of nearly 60 years of living experience I've had my share of trials and tribulations and I knew and recognized the frustration in his words. This was the real deal and this is why I was called for this ministry. All my plans for later in the day are now on hold as it's time to deal with this man for as long as it takes. You know there are no "magic words" to say, each time and each person is different and I like to first let them speak out their circumstances. Not knowing how much of a biblical background each person has can kind of hinder or limit your use of scripture to help, yet there are some general basics to tell them. Usually, people are familiar with the main patriarchs of the bible and you can tell people that these "great men" of the bible are great because of what they overcame without getting into too many specifics. With Arleo I was able to tell him about how things disintegrated around me a couple of years after my spiritual conversion (family, job, auto accident) and it took a few years to slowly get back up. Nothing happened overnight, it was a slow process. I think Arleo appreciated the fact that I wasn't some 25 year old where nothing bad had happened in their life and was trying to give him "advice". Well, we talked, we prayed and I gave him a card from the Dream Center. I only had a dollar and some change in my pocket which I gave to him. He refused it at first until I told him, "Hey, when you're ready, offer someone the buck to use their cell phone and call the number for the Dream Center. See what happens". With that he took the money. Nearly every time I meet someone in this situation, there are more than one or two factors. With Arleo, he was hungry (he ate the two burgers immediately--and I gave him another one before I left), he was thirsty (he drank the two bottles of water and I gave him another one), he was feeling dirty, frustrated, and no doubt guilt over not providing for his kids and his mistakes in the past that led to this situation. He also needed someone to listen! Someone who knew and understood the difficulties and frustrations of life. It was a privilege to be there, thank you Lord for answering my prayer to be a helper to someone in trouble.
Two other notable encounters for me. Carlos, whom I've been seeing for the last six months or so finally accepted some food Sunday. Also, when I was with my Spanish preaching friends down at McArthur Park later in the day, the battery pack gave out before I was able to speak. When they realized they couldn't fix it and had packed up to leave, I gathered them all together to pray for them. After I thanked God for giving me the opportunity to pray behind them and for being co-laborers in His harvest field they asked me to pray for someone with a special need in their group. One of the women who I thought was just with them (I didn't recognize her) turns out she was homeless and had no place to stay. I prayed for her (her name was Mary) to receive some opportunities for shelter and a new start. When I finished I suggested they take her to the Dream Center. Rosalla knew of the center, unfortunately, I didn't have a card on me (they were in the car), but I told them it was straight up Alvarado on Bellvue. I hope to find out how things went next week. --Until next time. John
PS...Yes, the green is in honor of St. Patricks Day....Hey, I'm of Irish descent!
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