Right Now Counts: Monday 1/26/16--and the Burned-Out Church

"Only a fool would say, 'There is no God!' People like that are worthless; they are heartless and cruel and never do right." Psalm 14:1

"I praise you, Lord, for being my guide. Even in the darkest night, your teachings fill my mind. I will always look to you, as you stand beside me and protect me from fear. With all my heart, I will celebrate, and I can safely rest." Psalm 16:7-9

What started out as 'just another trip' turned into a memorable one. I didn't have any extra money to buy any food to take, so I loaded up the car with clothes and blankets and stuff and took off downtown. I was a little concerned about not having any food to give out and kind of bemoaning the fact that I was going 'shorthanded', but if you have our Lord and His Kingdom with you, you've got everything covered. Actually, in retrospect, no one asked me for any food or water. On the way down there I was trying to decide whether to go look for people to help first or drive by the burn-out church first. I ended up looking for people to help first. After getting off at the Alameda exit I drove around to where John Stokes used to live. I had been told by another homeless man last week (his name was Don), that a newly arrived woman by the name of Kia had started living right where John had lived. I pulled up there next to a large make-shift shelter, but since I hadn't been introduced to her yet I didn't try and 'roust' her out of her shelter. I drove on down the street to where Dave and Don were and stopped there. Dave wasn't there initially, but came by a few minutes later. Don called out to me as soon as he saw me. I parked and got out of the car and opened up the back. There were about 4 other homeless folks about 20 or 30 yards down the street. He called them over. One of them was Kia! So I met her finally. Well they all got clothes and blankets and even a few of the tarps that I had. When I finished praying with Don and Crystal from that group, Crystal asked for special prayer for a friend of hers who had died two days ago. This friend's name was Carrie. So I prayed again, just with Crystal for her heart to be comforted by the Holy Spirit about her friend and so that she knows that others care too about her and her life situation. I stayed with Dave and Don for a while longer before leaving. I let them know it would probably be three weekends before I could return due to my work schedule.

Well, just about all the clothes had been picked through and I was now out of blankets. It was time to drive over the the burned-out church. When I got there it was about 11:30. As I got closer I could see some new timbers up in the roof area and there were several men standing in front of the church. I thought, "Finally...some one's there and I can find out what's going on." I parked across the street and asked one of the men if Pastor Magee was there. He pointed him out to me and a few minutes later we met. I told him I had called and spoken to his wife Mary and few months back and he did recall her telling him about me. We talked about the progress being made with the church's rebuilding process. At this point there seems to be one obstacle remaining with the city building commission about some handicap access and then the rebuilding program can begin. It was a real joy to meet Pastor Magee and see how faithful God truly is in rebuilding this church to be a lighthouse of God's faithfulness to this neighborhood. Pastor Magee told me that the architect of this building was a man by the name of John Austin who was the architect for several well know buildings in the Los Angeles area. So not only is the church building an historical landmark due to it's age, but it's significance as one of Mr Austin's buildings enhances the historical value too. I was able to walk into the building and see the inside first-hand and yes I did pray with Pastor Magee (you knew I wouldn't let that opportunity slip by now did you?). We exchanged phone numbers and I hope to meet with him again soon. What started out as an ordinary trip, ended up on the highest of notes! Praise God. Until next time. John

Here are some photos I took this morning....you can see the new timbers on the roof. Pastor Magee is the one in the white T-shirt and pants on the corner. FYI..I started praying specifically for this church and prayer-walking this neighborhood in September. The fire was three years ago in October...