Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee to the mountain which Jesus had appointed for them. When they saw Him, they worshiped Him, but some doubted. And Jesus came and spoke to them saying, 'All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.' Amen
So here was a trip I'll remember for a long, long time. It started kind of slow. I hadn't been to East Los Angeles for a while, so I thought I'd drive by Lincoln Park and see what was up. Most of the homeless that had set up encampments have been moved out. There were a few birthday parties going on in the park, but not many homeless folks were there, at least not yet. As I drove back into the downtown area I even noticed a spot where some Cuban men used to live had been cleaned out too. So I drove on (south) down Alameda and helped one Korean woman named Sonya. She didn't speak much English, but she knew enough to know I was offering her food. She also asked for the only blanket I had with me.
Well, I drove around some more, but didn't see any of the kind of people I usually try to target, so I drove on into what the locals refer to as the 'T-flats' or just the 'flats'. It's the south side of Washington Blvd and I ended up going by 25th St and San Pedro. I only saw a couple of people there and I wasn't planning on stopping, but as I drove back north the first alley I passed had several people in it and one of them was Becky. I drove around the block and entered the alley from the other end. The group of people were almost to the San Pedro end. Anyway, as I pulled up Nicky, who helped me serve the people back in November when I had the dinner on the street corner, recognized me and immediately came over and kissed my hand when I reached out to her. Then she told everyone there that didn't know me who I was. It was quite a welcome. There were about 8 or 9 people there and about an even mix of men and women. I opened up the back of the car and let them look through everything. I had nine sandwiches left when I got there, within a couple of minutes they were all gone. The energy level of the folks skyrocketed, they were so happy. I stayed for quite a while talking with them. Others would come by asking for clothes, but they were pretty much picked through. Just about everyone got a pair or two of new socks. There were three or four older women there that I hadn't met before. One of them was in tears after I prayed for everyone. Here's some pictures from the alley:
I opened this blog with the famous commission verse by Jesus (Matt. 28:18-20). We often romanticize this by thinking in terms of going to exotic places to preach the gospel. Yet, here I am in an alley off 25th and San Pedro in Los Angeles, California where anywhere from 6-10 people live every night. As I pulled up one of the women was going to the bathroom about 10 yards away from the rest of the group. They have no hope of ever getting off the street unless someone intervenes or a family member offers to take them back in. It's hardly a romantic awe-inspiring location, yet I was received with open arms. I left here and went around the block to where I served many of these people last November. Hiram and another man were on that sidewalk. I talked with Hiram for twenty minutes or so. Nicky had told me to go see him because he was emotionally down. He used to drive trucks like I did for years so we swapped trucking stories for a while. He told me he hoped to get into a SRO housing facility in a week or so off 21st and Hoover. He told me his son lived in Whittier, but I guess relations are strained. I told Hiram there is one thing he can pray about and that is that God will soften and change peoples hearts. The thing is that often times the first one that needs changing is our own. I'll be praying for him tonight. When I was with the other folks in the alley I had finished praying for them, but wanted to leave them with one more thought. I reminded them that the Apostle Paul tells us in Romans chapter 8, that NOTHING can separate us from the love of God. That's when I noticed the one woman in tears. Wow...I just loved this trip!!!
So when I got home, this is who was cheering for me upon my arrival.....
Yep...our dog Zoey. Until next time. John
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