The older I get, the more convinced I am that Jesus is NOT in a hurry. . . almost ever. . . maybe never.
I've been loving my homeless friends for a couple years now, maybe three. There have been ups and downs in this relationship, often it feels like more downs than ups. But the last two months have been so sweet for me. Laurie has been asking more questions, and we're having more real, deep conversations about Jesus. Today she said, "I used to be afraid of Jesus coming back. But now I'm excited! I know he's gonna forgive me and everything will be right."
ahhhh. Jesus, you're not in a hurry. Teach me to love without timeline or any agenda but your love.
Showing posts with label Homelessness. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Homelessness. Show all posts
Saturday, October 29, 2011
Thursday, October 7, 2010
A Fulfilling Day
Today felt full and fulfilling. My allergies subsided enough today to actually think clearly and enjoy life, people, and my kids along with the crisp autumn, drizzly day. (Back in Oregon, I would've never added the "drizzly" part to the enjoyment section but California makes me long for cozy, drizzly days!)
Ella and I dropped the three kids off at school and headed to the public library. After our leisure in a perfectly quiet library, we headed off to our first ever Starbucks date! That in itself is fulfilling!
As we walked out of the library a sad man stopped me, asking for food, not money, food. John and Yolanda were obviously needy and in deep distress. I told them I'd be back with food. When I brought them back the groceries, I was able to offer them some love, dignity, and prayer. They soaked in all of it. I don't know what was more thrilling for me, being able to pray for Yolanda's kidney to be healed or giving her a long, long hug that she didn't want to let go of, all the while praying the love of Jesus into her heart.
As I pointed them to the hope of Jesus and His nature of Provider, we were all in tears there on the sidewalk in front of the library for all the passersby to see. It was a holy moment.
Jesus, I know you love John and Yolanda, no matter what their sins, struggles, situation or needs. I know you long for them to experience your love, forgiveness, freedom and healing. I pray that tonight, wherever they are trying to sleep, that you will speak to their hearts and let them know the love that you are pouring out on them. Thank you for hearing me. Amen.
Ella and I dropped the three kids off at school and headed to the public library. After our leisure in a perfectly quiet library, we headed off to our first ever Starbucks date! That in itself is fulfilling!
As we walked out of the library a sad man stopped me, asking for food, not money, food. John and Yolanda were obviously needy and in deep distress. I told them I'd be back with food. When I brought them back the groceries, I was able to offer them some love, dignity, and prayer. They soaked in all of it. I don't know what was more thrilling for me, being able to pray for Yolanda's kidney to be healed or giving her a long, long hug that she didn't want to let go of, all the while praying the love of Jesus into her heart.
As I pointed them to the hope of Jesus and His nature of Provider, we were all in tears there on the sidewalk in front of the library for all the passersby to see. It was a holy moment.
Jesus, I know you love John and Yolanda, no matter what their sins, struggles, situation or needs. I know you long for them to experience your love, forgiveness, freedom and healing. I pray that tonight, wherever they are trying to sleep, that you will speak to their hearts and let them know the love that you are pouring out on them. Thank you for hearing me. Amen.
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Read Aloud Book Recommendation
I just finished reading this book out loud to the kids: "The Family Under the Bridge," by Natalie Savage Carlson. It was endearing to us for several reasons.
1. It is set in Paris. Because we now have dear friends who live in Paris, came to visit us this summer, and gave us a real taste of the beauty of the French language, we are now all excited about any reading we do that brings up all these wonderful memories.
2. We have homeless friends and can relate very intimately to the plight of the old man and family in the story.
3. It has a very happy ending . . . often contrary to real life scenarios of similar content.
4. It sparked enriching conversations about all of the above for us.
If you are looking for a good read aloud, this is a winner in our house. It wasn't captivating for Ella (almost 3) but did hold Asher's focus (5 1/2).
-----
This post is linked up to Amy's Thursday's read Aloud Thursday here: Hope is the Word. Again, if you are looking for great book resources, this is my favorite site ever. I love her taste in literature.
1. It is set in Paris. Because we now have dear friends who live in Paris, came to visit us this summer, and gave us a real taste of the beauty of the French language, we are now all excited about any reading we do that brings up all these wonderful memories.
2. We have homeless friends and can relate very intimately to the plight of the old man and family in the story.
3. It has a very happy ending . . . often contrary to real life scenarios of similar content.
4. It sparked enriching conversations about all of the above for us.
If you are looking for a good read aloud, this is a winner in our house. It wasn't captivating for Ella (almost 3) but did hold Asher's focus (5 1/2).
-----
This post is linked up to Amy's Thursday's read Aloud Thursday here: Hope is the Word. Again, if you are looking for great book resources, this is my favorite site ever. I love her taste in literature.
Monday, December 28, 2009
Amazing Abiel
I love all my kids so much. It is a thrill and a joy to see them growing and showing evidence of Jesus moving in and through them. We have truly befriended a homeless couple, James and Laurie. We have them over often and they sleep on our floor on very cold nights. The kids have loved on them so well!
Several weeks before Christmas, without my knowledge, Abiel wrote several of her friends to ask for a donation to give to James and Laurie! One day she came to me with $50 in checks and a few dollars! I was blown away! She also has a "giving fund" of her own that had $40 in. She told me she wanted to buy Laurie a Bible and give her the rest of the money as cash!
It was delightful to watch Laurie open her Bible and card with all that money knowing it was all Abiel and her friends! Later that evening, James called and with a choked up voice and tears in his eyes (I could tell!) he expressed his amazement and gratitude for Abiel's gift!
Jesus, thank you for your heart of love and generosity expressed through Abiel this Christmas! We love you!
Several weeks before Christmas, without my knowledge, Abiel wrote several of her friends to ask for a donation to give to James and Laurie! One day she came to me with $50 in checks and a few dollars! I was blown away! She also has a "giving fund" of her own that had $40 in. She told me she wanted to buy Laurie a Bible and give her the rest of the money as cash!
It was delightful to watch Laurie open her Bible and card with all that money knowing it was all Abiel and her friends! Later that evening, James called and with a choked up voice and tears in his eyes (I could tell!) he expressed his amazement and gratitude for Abiel's gift!
Jesus, thank you for your heart of love and generosity expressed through Abiel this Christmas! We love you!
Thursday, September 24, 2009
Compare and Contrast
I think there is more than one way to look at our shortcomings. One is to beat ourselves up about how we fall short of living out the life of Christ. I don't recommend this option. It only leads to condemnation, immobilization, and sin consciousness . . . exactly what the enemy wants us to focus on.
The other option is to compare and contrast.
As I continue in relationship with our homeless friends, I am sometimes greatly distressed about their continual need. (You can interpret "greatly distressed" in many ways: anxious that I don't have enough to meet their needs, frustrated that they keep asking me to meet their needs, perplexed at the seeming strength of the curses over their lives, etc.) These things are constantly highlighting just how much disparity there is between my actions and thoughts and the actions and thoughts of Christ. But instead of choosing to live in a state of condemnation with it all, I'm choosing to compare and contrast my life with Christ. In doing this, I have been in such AWE of our AMAZING JESUS!! His love, generosity, overwhelming compassion, richness and abundance of resources from which he was SURE he could draw on are in such contrast to my own efforts to love and give and have compassion. Instead of despairing, I am rejoicing that the more I allow His Spirit to live in me, the more I will look, smell, and BE like my older brother Jesus! HE is amazing!
So today, when challenges in life seems to highlight your insufficiencies, contrast your weaknesses with His amazing strengths. Let this lead you to marvel and praise our amazing Jesus who longs to give us more of His Spirit so that we may look like He does!
The other option is to compare and contrast.
As I continue in relationship with our homeless friends, I am sometimes greatly distressed about their continual need. (You can interpret "greatly distressed" in many ways: anxious that I don't have enough to meet their needs, frustrated that they keep asking me to meet their needs, perplexed at the seeming strength of the curses over their lives, etc.) These things are constantly highlighting just how much disparity there is between my actions and thoughts and the actions and thoughts of Christ. But instead of choosing to live in a state of condemnation with it all, I'm choosing to compare and contrast my life with Christ. In doing this, I have been in such AWE of our AMAZING JESUS!! His love, generosity, overwhelming compassion, richness and abundance of resources from which he was SURE he could draw on are in such contrast to my own efforts to love and give and have compassion. Instead of despairing, I am rejoicing that the more I allow His Spirit to live in me, the more I will look, smell, and BE like my older brother Jesus! HE is amazing!
So today, when challenges in life seems to highlight your insufficiencies, contrast your weaknesses with His amazing strengths. Let this lead you to marvel and praise our amazing Jesus who longs to give us more of His Spirit so that we may look like He does!
Monday, September 14, 2009
Hope rising!
I got a phone call from Laurie yesterday asking if I could pray with her! She had joy and anticipation in her voice as she told me that she was going to try and find a job tomorrow!! I was filled with excitement and joy for her!
I can't say that loving Laurie has brought her to the point of wanting to get a job, but I can't help but wonder if those who are loved well feel hope rise within them! If you think of it, please pray for her to follow through with her plan!
I can't say that loving Laurie has brought her to the point of wanting to get a job, but I can't help but wonder if those who are loved well feel hope rise within them! If you think of it, please pray for her to follow through with her plan!
Sunday, September 6, 2009
Giving Hilariously. . . Long post but Great story
2 Corinthians 9:6-9
Remember this - a farmer who plants only a few seeds will get a small crop. But the one who plants generously will get a generous crop. You must each make up your own mind as to how much you should give. Don't give reluctantly or in response to pressure. For God loves the person who gives cheerfully [can also be translated 'hilariously']. And God will generously provide all you need. Then you will always have everything you need and plenty left over to share with others. As the Scriptures say, "Godly people give generously to the poor. Their good deeds will never be forgotten."
I've befriended a homeless couple named Laurie and James. I take them to lunch, get them groceries, pay for their storage unit, and numerous other needs that arise. I have been stretched in my view of giving. The verses above talk about giving hilariously, giving that is almost absurd. I feel like that is what God has been asking of me in my friendship with James and Laurie.
And I want to be perfectly honest with you, I have wrestled. I've had all the "warnings" we hear about giving to the homeless ringing in my ears. I have been shocked by how deeply ingrained in my mind those 'cautionary statements' really are. And I thought I was out of that box. God knew I wasn't!
At one point a few weeks back, Laurie called with an immediate need (all her needs are immediate and I've learned to stay in the calm no matter if she's frantic). Honestly, I didn't want to meet it. But I prayed. And that's when God told me that if I will meet the needs that I can, He will give me whatever I need and ask for. I believe what He meant is that hilariously giving, giving to Laurie even when it seemed ridiculous, was going to break through the Kingdom of Darkness and release the Kingdom of Heaven over Laurie and James and over my family as well. Ok, Lord. Here we go! So I met the need at hand.
Then it got bigger! Two weeks ago, Laurie called and asked if I knew anyone with a cheap or free car. They had to get rid of the one they had (things were breaking on it left and right). They sold it and rented a dumpy motel room for a week and half, putting all their "belongings" from the car into the room. That's when I helped them transfer their stuff to storage and saw first hand the dire situation.
I sent out an email to people I know in the area asking for a car on their behalf. No word. One night I was up at 3:30 AM with Ella and was praying for God to meet their needs. I keep telling them that Jesus will meet their needs, sometimes through me and sometimes other ways, but He always comes through. So where was he right now? I was asking where the provision was for them. And clear as day Jesus said, "It's in your driveway!"
Oh whoa. And I wrestled again! We live out in the country. Heath needs the truck to get to work. It would be terribly inconvenient to have only one car living out here. It's not in that great of shape. It has an oil leak. Are you SURE you want them to have our truck??!!
"YEP!"
So I rolled over and shook Heath! "Wake up. I think we're supposed to give the truck to Laurie and James."
"Yeah, I think so too." And he rolled over and went back to sleep! Boys.
I called Laurie the next day to let her know we had a truck for them and to see if they would have resources to register it, etc. She was really excited. I told her we'd get it ready this week and meet them the following Saturday to give it to them.
So all week I was back and forth on giving up the truck. Some days I was really excited and other days I was wavering. But we were committed to giving it. Someone had given it to us a year ago and now God wanted it to move through our hands to another. That's how all our resources need to be. . . flexible and ready to be passed on to another in need.
Now for the good part: James is a harsh guy. They are both older, maybe late forties, early fifties. But life has not been easy and hardness of heart has set in. Whatever crosses his mind usually comes out his mouth! So I was fully prepared for his response when he saw the truck to be something like, "You're giving us THAT piece of junk?"
I got to the parking lot before Heath did. I was chatting with them and shared how someone had given us the truck and told them the story of how God told us to give them the truck. Then Heath pulled up. James looked at me and said with tenderness and shock, "Is THAT the truck you are giving us?"
"Yeah, is it ok?"
Tears started rolling down his face! I was NOT prepared for his response. He was beside himself. On and on he went about how this is exactly what they have been hoping for but couldn't afford, and how did we know, and are you SURE you are going to give it to us?
Wow. I can't tell you how amazing the moment was.
James ended up not being able to stay in the shock and left before Laurie, leaving her to sign the papers. As we said goodbye to her, I gave her a huge hug and said, "Laurie, I love you. And Jesus really loves you."
And my favorite part of the whole event came next, "I'm finally beginning to believe it!"
And Heaven breaks through the darkness!!
Then she looked at me with tears in her eyes and a gigantic smile on her face, "I think I need to start coming to your prayer meetings! Can you come pick me up on Tuesday?"
Oh my word. Friendship evangelism. Loving them into the Kingdom. Showing them the extravagant love of God and breaking through the Kingdom of Darkness to bring the abundant life and hope of Jesus. There is nothing better than this moment.
As I was sharing this story with a friend, she reminded me of a Reese Howell's quote that goes something like this, "Don't pray for someones need unless you're willing to be the answer." That's burly. But I believe that is what God is teaching me in this relationship. This is one moment of glory in the span of months of friendship. I know this isn't the end. It's not the end of her need, it's not the end of the glory. In fact, as I was writing this post, she called to ask me if I'd be willing to meet one of her other homeless friends named Tam. Oh Jesus, help!
So pray with me for James and Laurie. Pray that I will continue to listen to the Lord and continue to obey, not for my glory but for the glory of God and salvation of my friends!
And I want to be perfectly honest with you, I have wrestled. I've had all the "warnings" we hear about giving to the homeless ringing in my ears. I have been shocked by how deeply ingrained in my mind those 'cautionary statements' really are. And I thought I was out of that box. God knew I wasn't!
At one point a few weeks back, Laurie called with an immediate need (all her needs are immediate and I've learned to stay in the calm no matter if she's frantic). Honestly, I didn't want to meet it. But I prayed. And that's when God told me that if I will meet the needs that I can, He will give me whatever I need and ask for. I believe what He meant is that hilariously giving, giving to Laurie even when it seemed ridiculous, was going to break through the Kingdom of Darkness and release the Kingdom of Heaven over Laurie and James and over my family as well. Ok, Lord. Here we go! So I met the need at hand.
Then it got bigger! Two weeks ago, Laurie called and asked if I knew anyone with a cheap or free car. They had to get rid of the one they had (things were breaking on it left and right). They sold it and rented a dumpy motel room for a week and half, putting all their "belongings" from the car into the room. That's when I helped them transfer their stuff to storage and saw first hand the dire situation.
I sent out an email to people I know in the area asking for a car on their behalf. No word. One night I was up at 3:30 AM with Ella and was praying for God to meet their needs. I keep telling them that Jesus will meet their needs, sometimes through me and sometimes other ways, but He always comes through. So where was he right now? I was asking where the provision was for them. And clear as day Jesus said, "It's in your driveway!"
Oh whoa. And I wrestled again! We live out in the country. Heath needs the truck to get to work. It would be terribly inconvenient to have only one car living out here. It's not in that great of shape. It has an oil leak. Are you SURE you want them to have our truck??!!
"YEP!"
So I rolled over and shook Heath! "Wake up. I think we're supposed to give the truck to Laurie and James."
"Yeah, I think so too." And he rolled over and went back to sleep! Boys.
I called Laurie the next day to let her know we had a truck for them and to see if they would have resources to register it, etc. She was really excited. I told her we'd get it ready this week and meet them the following Saturday to give it to them.
So all week I was back and forth on giving up the truck. Some days I was really excited and other days I was wavering. But we were committed to giving it. Someone had given it to us a year ago and now God wanted it to move through our hands to another. That's how all our resources need to be. . . flexible and ready to be passed on to another in need.
Now for the good part: James is a harsh guy. They are both older, maybe late forties, early fifties. But life has not been easy and hardness of heart has set in. Whatever crosses his mind usually comes out his mouth! So I was fully prepared for his response when he saw the truck to be something like, "You're giving us THAT piece of junk?"
I got to the parking lot before Heath did. I was chatting with them and shared how someone had given us the truck and told them the story of how God told us to give them the truck. Then Heath pulled up. James looked at me and said with tenderness and shock, "Is THAT the truck you are giving us?"
"Yeah, is it ok?"
Tears started rolling down his face! I was NOT prepared for his response. He was beside himself. On and on he went about how this is exactly what they have been hoping for but couldn't afford, and how did we know, and are you SURE you are going to give it to us?
Wow. I can't tell you how amazing the moment was.
James ended up not being able to stay in the shock and left before Laurie, leaving her to sign the papers. As we said goodbye to her, I gave her a huge hug and said, "Laurie, I love you. And Jesus really loves you."
And my favorite part of the whole event came next, "I'm finally beginning to believe it!"
And Heaven breaks through the darkness!!
Then she looked at me with tears in her eyes and a gigantic smile on her face, "I think I need to start coming to your prayer meetings! Can you come pick me up on Tuesday?"
Oh my word. Friendship evangelism. Loving them into the Kingdom. Showing them the extravagant love of God and breaking through the Kingdom of Darkness to bring the abundant life and hope of Jesus. There is nothing better than this moment.
As I was sharing this story with a friend, she reminded me of a Reese Howell's quote that goes something like this, "Don't pray for someones need unless you're willing to be the answer." That's burly. But I believe that is what God is teaching me in this relationship. This is one moment of glory in the span of months of friendship. I know this isn't the end. It's not the end of her need, it's not the end of the glory. In fact, as I was writing this post, she called to ask me if I'd be willing to meet one of her other homeless friends named Tam. Oh Jesus, help!
So pray with me for James and Laurie. Pray that I will continue to listen to the Lord and continue to obey, not for my glory but for the glory of God and salvation of my friends!
Sunday, August 30, 2009
Too Close to Home . . . less.
There have been times in our life of adventure that we could literally call ourselves "homeless." But the actual definition of "homeless" infers that the person lives on the streets. And that is something we haven't had to experience.
Maybe it's because we've had the experience of having no place of our own to call "home" this side of heaven, or maybe it is because of our time in Africa seeing the great poverty and destitution of so many, or maybe because we are just trying our best to live out the simple gospel and love the unlovable. . . maybe these are some of the reasons I cannot ignore the tug of the Holy Spirit on my heart when I run into a homeless person.
I've had many interactions with homeless people and truly, most of those interactions have been amazing God moments in my life. Yes, there have been a few "weird" moments but hey, I've had weird moments with my best friends!! :-)
My most recent interactions with the homeless have been very intense for me. Several months ago, the Lord brought Laurie into my life. She was near the entrance to Starbucks as my dear friend and I were going to coffee. We loved on Laurie that night but I knew it wasn't over. I gave her my number and told her I'd be back on the weekend to help her fix her car.
Several months and many needs later, I'm still interacting with Laurie and her "boyfriend," James. They are now my friends. I take them out to dinner, help them with the practical things and mostly just try to show them the love of Jesus in tangible ways. Laurie is very open and seemingly interested in what I have to say about Jesus and how He's healed my heart from deep wounds in my past. She's glued to me when I tell her stories of how God continues to provide for our family even when we don't have a regular paycheck. And she lights up when I ask if I can pray for her or when I hand her a note I've written just to her.
Even though I've given my phone number to several homeless people over the years, Laurie is the first to really take me up on the "friend" offer. Some of you may be thinking it's because she knows I'm an easy fifty bucks. Some of you might feel like I'm being taken for a ride. Some of you may think I'm being totally irresponsible in the way I'm reaching out to Laurie. And guess what . . . over the last several months, I've thought through all those things more than once. But here's a few things my Jesus has said to me in response to my fears:
"Can you give the money to Me? Then find Me in her eyes tonight."
"How many needs do you have, Emie? At what point do I turn away from You?"
"Why is giving to her in her need any different than those who give to your family in your need? Is it more noble to give to a missionary or someone society says is responsible?"
Then I come back at Him with things like, "But I'm NOT you," or "But I DON'T have all the resources you have!" And then He gently reminds me that I'm his child and everything that belongs to Jesus belongs to me!!! So I MUST live out a place of generosity. I MUST be the first to give when there is a need and I have the means to meet it. It is my privilege as a daughter of the King to represent the King out in the villages filled with beggars, whether they be literal or figurative.
And so I'm learning . . . . . A TON! Jesus keeps talking to me about who He is and who I am as I Re Present HIM to the world around me. Please pray for Laurie and James. Pray that they experience so much of the extravagant love of Jesus that they are COMPELLED to say YES to HIM! Pray that Jesus will keep leading me and teaching me in this journey of loving. In my giving, in my loving, I want to be a minister of reconciliation. . . reconciling people to Christ. May it be so with Laurie and James, someday.
Maybe it's because we've had the experience of having no place of our own to call "home" this side of heaven, or maybe it is because of our time in Africa seeing the great poverty and destitution of so many, or maybe because we are just trying our best to live out the simple gospel and love the unlovable. . . maybe these are some of the reasons I cannot ignore the tug of the Holy Spirit on my heart when I run into a homeless person.
I've had many interactions with homeless people and truly, most of those interactions have been amazing God moments in my life. Yes, there have been a few "weird" moments but hey, I've had weird moments with my best friends!! :-)
My most recent interactions with the homeless have been very intense for me. Several months ago, the Lord brought Laurie into my life. She was near the entrance to Starbucks as my dear friend and I were going to coffee. We loved on Laurie that night but I knew it wasn't over. I gave her my number and told her I'd be back on the weekend to help her fix her car.
Several months and many needs later, I'm still interacting with Laurie and her "boyfriend," James. They are now my friends. I take them out to dinner, help them with the practical things and mostly just try to show them the love of Jesus in tangible ways. Laurie is very open and seemingly interested in what I have to say about Jesus and how He's healed my heart from deep wounds in my past. She's glued to me when I tell her stories of how God continues to provide for our family even when we don't have a regular paycheck. And she lights up when I ask if I can pray for her or when I hand her a note I've written just to her.
Even though I've given my phone number to several homeless people over the years, Laurie is the first to really take me up on the "friend" offer. Some of you may be thinking it's because she knows I'm an easy fifty bucks. Some of you might feel like I'm being taken for a ride. Some of you may think I'm being totally irresponsible in the way I'm reaching out to Laurie. And guess what . . . over the last several months, I've thought through all those things more than once. But here's a few things my Jesus has said to me in response to my fears:
"Can you give the money to Me? Then find Me in her eyes tonight."
"How many needs do you have, Emie? At what point do I turn away from You?"
"Why is giving to her in her need any different than those who give to your family in your need? Is it more noble to give to a missionary or someone society says is responsible?"
Then I come back at Him with things like, "But I'm NOT you," or "But I DON'T have all the resources you have!" And then He gently reminds me that I'm his child and everything that belongs to Jesus belongs to me!!! So I MUST live out a place of generosity. I MUST be the first to give when there is a need and I have the means to meet it. It is my privilege as a daughter of the King to represent the King out in the villages filled with beggars, whether they be literal or figurative.
And so I'm learning . . . . . A TON! Jesus keeps talking to me about who He is and who I am as I Re Present HIM to the world around me. Please pray for Laurie and James. Pray that they experience so much of the extravagant love of Jesus that they are COMPELLED to say YES to HIM! Pray that Jesus will keep leading me and teaching me in this journey of loving. In my giving, in my loving, I want to be a minister of reconciliation. . . reconciling people to Christ. May it be so with Laurie and James, someday.
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