Prayers for Mark

This entry isn't so much a story of something neat or cool that happened... it's more of a plea for prayers for our brother Mark... Mark has been on the street for over 10 years, and is a severe alcoholic.  Mark is a perfect example of the "Why do you help others who won't help themselves" argument.  Mark wakes up in the morning looking for that first Cobra beer... he spends his days pretty much just hoping to stay alive and find that next sip.  Several weeks ago, Mark broke down crying and claiming he wanted to go to rehab, because he knew he "would not survive another winter on the street."  Mark cries a lot, and usually can cry on command, but it still doesn't hide the fact that he is a severely broken man in severe need of Christ's furious love.  He once told me that it's not fair he's alive, because he was the outcast and the black sheep of his family.  I look forward to every Sunday at the Hope House, just hoping to hear one of Mark's hilarious stories.  He often tells of how he hopped a train one day to head to Florida.  He was too scared to jump out of the train unless it was completely still, so three days later, he landed on the other side of Georgia.  From the first time we met Mark, he definatley grasped onto a very special place in our hearts... I ask that we all please pray for his deliverance and his healing.... He knows who the Lord is, as demonstrated by the moring he talked with God, Jesus, and his dog Benji... but please pray that he can fully grasp onto the unrelenting delivering love of our Christ... without some God intervention, I'm not really sure how much longer Mark will be with us... thank you, God bless, and GOd love!!

http://www.facebook.com/#!/video/video.php?v=758616724269

"I felt so close to God in there..."

On three different occasions, I've had a chance to get somewhat of a view from the homeless side of things.  Now by NO means, did I get a real taste of what these folks go through, but I got a tiny glimpse into the Hell that it must be.  The first experience I had was down in New Orleans, last January  with The Venue Church!!  We were going down to NOLA to pass out lunches and do a little street ministry, and thought it'd be a neat idea to "dress homeless" and attempt to see what it was like as people walked past you.  My wife and I made a sign that said "Please Pray for US" and sat down next to the big catholic church at Jackson Square.  Our plan was to sit for about two hours, and take notes of the reactions we got from others... and honestly, we didn't get much reaction, because nobody at all would look at us!!  Several hundred people passed us that day, several talking about church and God... one woman even talking about how close she felt to God that day... After a few minutes of nobody at all talking to us, it really started to sting a little.  I knew I was going home to a hot meal and a warm bed, yet I still felt ashamed knowing that everyone was thinking "wow look at those people"... About an hour into it, I began realized how hard it was to make eye contact with people... a few children smiled and waved at us throughout the day, which definately brought a brighter touch to the day... After about two hours, we were getting ready to wrap things up... we'd been ignored, talked about, and even heard folks softly repeating with a bit of sarcasm, "pray for us"... Towards the end, we had that little God moment that we'd been waiting for... a group of about three homeless guys walked past us, then suddenly turned around, and knelt down right next to us... they asked if we were ok, told us they really hoped things worked out for us... the youngest of the three said "Man I don't have anything to offer, but you can have the rest of these peanuts", and he held out a half eaten bag of peanuts... Talk about blowing you away!!  He had NOTHING of his own, yet was willing to share with us what little he did have... as they were getting ready to leave, one of the guys patted me on the knee and said "I'll tell ya what man, we'll pray with you... but you have to lead it"... We huddeled up, prayed, and they left... The ONLY group to stop and talk with us, was a group of guys who were not even CHristians, but they were willing to do whatever they could to help us feel a little bit better... It completely broke my heart, in a most amazing way, to know that the only people who offered us prayer and help that day, were not even Christians... After being ignored, very blatantly, for over two hours, I can easily see why someone would turn to alcohol or drugs to get that quick fix... It's defintely time for Christians to step up and take a bigger role... we have something amazing, something beautiful to offer to this world... We know the way to hope and peace and we know what this world needs... it's time to stop thinking that things needs to change... because I honestly believe that the change is us...If your passion is not to get out in the streets and the woods, that's totally fine, but please be in prayer for our brothers and sisters who are less fortunate, because that's definately one thing we can all do!! God bless, GOd love!!

"Where are your shoes..."

AGAIN, please know that this goes out for the glory of our Christ, not to bring any kind of notice to ourselves... when I talk about giving of our own possessions, it's not for us to get the credit, but to drive home the essence of all that was goign on... thanks so much!!!....One of the first exclaimers I always give about doing homeless ministry is to never wear something you're not willing to lose!!  The very first time I went down there, I gave my hoodie to a homeless girl named Sarah... and since then, I have parted ways with several hoodies and hats.  Pretty much everyone that has ever been down there with us, has come back home short one article of clothing.  I think being down there surrounded by people who have nothing, makes you realize just how unimportant material items are.  When I thought to myself  "Absolutely not, this is my favorite hoodie"... the Lord punched me in the mouth... It was 40 degrees, she had a tank top, and I was concerned with losing my "favoriet" hoodie... of which I had several more at home?  After that, it become a lot easier to just let things go... Anyway, the most raw and beautiful and experience with thist I've ever seen was from a beatuiful friend named Kil... We were down there by the wall, walkin around passing out water and tryin to make conversation, when from across the parking lot, I noticed Kil walking towards me with no shoes on.... Now this isn't just a regular parking lot... gravel, glass, trash, bodily functions, mud... if you can name it, it's probably mixed in with that dirt somehow...I see Kil walking towards me, and with no hesitation, I tossed her my keys and said "I've got a pair of flip flops in the car"... I just got chills thinkin about that... The beauty of that moment was that, it wasn't weird or unusual whatsoever to see her walking though those conditions, with no shoes on...I didn't ask any questions, because I didn't need any answers... She saw a need, and she met it, with the love of Christ... We never really talked much about it, because to Kil, it was nothing... just doing what Christ would have done... I wish I had the words and the beautiful descriptions that could perfectly sum up what happened that night... but I can't... Giving up a pair of shoes may seem like no big task, but to that lady on the streets, it was one of the most beautiful gifts she'd ever received... God bless, GOd love!!

"I'm gonna take yall out to dinner one day..."

A lot of folks often how ask how "successful" we were in New Orleans, as in how many salvations did we witness or how many people we saw rise out of their situation... And honestly, I have no answer for this because that isn't at all what it was about to us.   I mean, we were defintely there to show the love and grace of Christ, but we were NOT there to preach and keep count... If we have to use the term "successful" though, I would think the most "successful" encounter is from a man named Chad.  We met Chad at the wall one day, and it was very obvious that he was just a fella down on his luck.  He moved to New Orleans from Florida with the promise of work, but after some things fell through he found himself on the street.  He found an orginization that would put you in a Hotel for a flat rate amount per week, and proved that you were constantly working or attempting to work.  After sharing a some water and beautiful conversation, we asked if there was anything he needed.  His reply was awesome, though it seemed so standard.  "Work things... gloves, backpacks, food I can eat at work...anything that can help me like that!"  The awesome part though was that he knew he could have asked for absolutely anything!   After making a list and exchanging numbers, we dropped him back off at his hotel.  We made a shopping trip that next Sunday, gathered all the work supplies he needed, and head back down to NOLA!  We picked him up at his hotel, and to say he was excited would be an understatement!  It was kinda like a kid on Christmas morning situation!  After going through his backpack and supplies, he thanked us and promised to pay us back over and over again.  He promised that as soon as he found steady work, and he passed through Hattiesburg, that he was taking us out to eat.  Promises like that are always made down there to the folks we minister to, and I honestly believe they're made with grand intentions, thought they usually never work out.  In the past we'd had a few experiences where people would call us, but it always to ask for a few more items.   About six months later, I was out of town and received a couple of phone calls from a number I didn't recognize.  Bein that I was on vacation, I decided not to answer.  About a month later, I got another call, and decided to answer it this time... "Hello"... "Hey, is tyler there?"... "That's me, what's up?"... "TYLER!!  This is Chad, from New Orleans!!!"... Almost took my breath away hearing from him six months later!!  He told me he found steady work with a company up in Colorado, and that he was just letting us know that he was ok, and that we were in large part to thank for that!  After talking for a few minutes he said "Yea man, I came through Hattiesburg not too long ago, and I called you because I promised yall dinner, but I wasn't able to get ahold of ya."  Man, what a beautiful thing!!  Beyond excited, and completely humbled, to say the least.  There is no doubt in my mind that our God had Chad call me that night... Earlier that day, I was questioning if all of the time and money put into NOLA was really worth it.  I was wondering if were touching and making a difference in lives, and was wondering if it was something we needed to keep pooring resources into... A few hours later... Chad calls... I defintely didn't hear God's voice come from the clouds like thunder, but I know without a doubt that I heard it from a pay phone in Colorado!! Thanks so much!!  God bless, GOd love!!

"Why do y'all do what y'all do?"

*after re-reading this, I realized how much I rambled and jumped around.. and how I never actually got to the points i wanted to make about working with the ones who won't help themselves.. but I felt like I said some other things that were on my heart, so I'll try it again another day, blessings!!*

When we first got involved with working with the homeless, the mainq question I always got was "Why do yall want to help the ones that don't want to help themselve?"  To me, this was always a very simple answer... because they need it the most!  I don't believe anyone wakes one morning and says "Today is a new day... I will be broke, I will drink till I pass out, I will shoot up till I pass out, I will smoke till I cough blood, I will sleep with a rock as a pillow, because I don't want any help!"  Christ clearly calls us to love unconditionally... I am the very first to admit that I do not know my Bible well at all... I don't know all the answers, but I do know that Christ didn't start his mission on earth by gathering a group of well educated men with all the right answers.  It seems as if the ones who did the most for the kingdom, were the ones that we would so easily point out as "unhelpable"... Many of the men and women we encounter on the street openly choose to do drugs and choose to abuse alcohol, but after one conversation with one of these precious people, it's clear that the choice isn't as easly as we would all like to think.  Addiction is a much more powerful demon than anyone will ever admit it... Drugs and alcohol are the easiest things to turn to when things get rough...Christ calls us to love the "LEAST OF THESE"... not the "THESE that deserve it"... because let's all be honest, who really deserves it... I sure as hell don't... The most real encounter of helping someone who would not help themselves was with our brother Marion.  Week after week after week, Marion rejected our invitations to join us at Hope House... usually with choiced worded sentences... One morning we were driving around, and saw Marion sitting on a bench... I can remember driving right past him and saying "I don't even want to deal with it today"... and I'm pretty sure God literally slapped me in the back of the head... After a few minutes, we turned around and drove back towards Marion, reluctantly asking him if he'd like to join us... and he said Yes... he freakin' said yes!!!   We had been after him for MONTHS!!!  Rejection after rejection, cursing after cursing, we kept on with a free offering of love... and he finally accepted... but we almost didn't even give him the chance that day... Marion was found dead a few months later... I don't know if he died peaceful, I don't know if he died hurting, I don't know if he died intoxicated... I do know he died knowing that someone cared about him...  So if you ever think to yourself, "why do I wanto help THAT person, it won't even matter"... just remember, you never, EVER know when those chances will run out, and you never, ever know when that one time, really will matter... God bless, GOd love!!

"It's people like you..."

Sorry about the delay!!  First and foremost, pleeeeeeeeeease, please, PLEASE know that I am writing this to bring glory and honor to Christ... The guy in this story complimented us over and over, and I always have a hard time talking about it because I don't want any of the praise for myself, but all for our Lord... After passing out as many sandwiches as possible, we were stuck on what to do with the rest.  We didn't want to leave them under the bridge, in case nobody picked them up... but we also didn't wanna take them back with us, because we knew that there were people on the street that could use them.  On our way back to the car ,we ran into a lil guy from Batom Rouge, who was out on the street after being kicked out by his wife.

He was supposed to be headed back to Baton Rouge, but he missed his bus, so he was goin to be staying in the city for a while longer.  After giving him a few sandwiches, we went on our way.  As we were leaving, he yelled out "HEY!!  If yall are looking to get ride of thsoe sandwiches, I know a place they can go!!"  Honestly, my initial thought was "absolutely not..."... I had no intentions of following a man I didn't know, into a place I had NO idea where it was...(seems like I've read that somewhere before)....Right as I was about to say no, the other two guys I was with said "YEA ABSOLUTELY!!!"  So releuctantly, I followed, praying like crazy that the Lord would keep us safe.  After a few blocks, we stumbled upon a burnt out and abandoned house.  There were a few guys standing outside, drinking mad dog beer, and a few folks on the inside of the house.  Our lil crazy friend introduced us to everyone, and we handed them out a few sandwiches.  They asked what church or group we were with, and we just explained that we were coming to simply love folks and pass out some food.   A VERY intoxicated man named Shane introduced himself to us, telling us over and over again that he was "tanked"... we exchanged names, where we were from, how we liked the city, etc..He introduced us to his girlfriend, Mary, and best friend Jacob.... as we were exchanging introductions, Mary and Jacob started rolling a few joints... They offerend us a little bit of their weed and alcohol... They were determined to share their stuff with us, since we had shared our food with them...  After talking for about thirty minutes, Shane stopped mid-sentence and said "wait, wait wait... you guys are Christians aren't yall... yall dont drink, yall don't do drugs, yall don't smoke, yall are giving out free food... yall are christians!!"  I just knew that I was about to be lynched... I was very reluctant to answer, but finally I said  "yea... well, yea.. .but we're not like the other ones you know!!"  In New Orleans, christians have a terrible reputation for being extremely negative to the homeless community, so I expected the worse.  Shane just kinda laughed and was like "yeah man, that's cool, I used to be a christian too."  He explained to us how he had a horrible experience when he was younger, and turned his back on the church and God, but that he was very impressed with what we were doing.  He said "man, I think it's awesome that you guys are talking to me even though I'm tanked.  Yall don't care that I'm drunk, yall don't care that she's smoking pot, yall just wanna hang out... ya know, it's guys like yall that make me think I could believe in God again someday."  That COMPLETELY blew me away... Words can't even express what I felt that day... To know that someone simply NOT turning their back on him because he was drunk, could make him possibly believe in God again... wow... A sandwich and love is what this guy needed to encounter Christ, but there is no doubt it my mind that we encountered Christ in every single person we met that day... After finally wrapping his head around the fact that we were christians, he said  "guys that's awesome... HEY MARY!!  MARY!!!  THESE GUYS ARE CHRISTIANS!!!  CAN YOU BELIEVE IT!!  THEY'RE CHRISTIANS, BUT THEY STILL WANNA HANG OUT WITH US!!"... She kinda shurgged it off, but Shane just kept on and on about how awesome it was that we just wanted to love them, reguardless... I think for the first time, "and they will know we are christians by our love" really made sense to me... God bless, GOd love!!

God does shady math...

After a few months of going down to the wall in NOLA, which is a very safe and secure place, we knew it was time to reac out a little bit farther... we decided it was time to hit the Tent City underneath The I-10 Bridge...

Now  "The Wall" was one of the safest places to do homeless ministry.  It was frequented by police, and there were always a lot of volunteers...safety in numbers, right?  As fun and as great as the wall was, I knew the Lord was calling us to go deeper, go harder, and go to the ones who weren't willing to walk down to the wall every Sunday.  The bridge, at any given time, had between 150 to 200 people living under it.  Crack addicts, whores, prostitutes, alcoholics, meth-heads, stoners, gutterpunks, tramps... any name you can think of, we were sure to encounter.  I argued quite a bit with God about his one, but after He lead someone to collect donations for over 300 peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, I pretty much knew there was no getting around it... we had to hit the bridge with Love... We arrived a little afet 11:00 a.m. on a Sunday morning, and my initial thought was "What the hell are we doing... this is crazy..."... and of we went, sandwhiches in hand.  We passed out sandwhich after sandwhich, usuall two or three at a time, to every person we encountered under the bridge... Now I'm NOT sayin that we had a fish and loaves miracle, but we handed more than one sandwhich to a LOT of people, and at the end of the brige, still had a full box of sandwiches left... We encountered several interesting people under that bridge... some hopeful that one day, they will be getting out of their current situation... others, just hoping that they could survive the day to score another hit come night.  Some people were incredibly thankful and happy for their sandwiches, some were mad they were getting fed peanut butter again.  Initially, I thought to myself  "you should be thankful to have a sandwich.", however, I don't feel like Christ woulda said "for those of you who like fish and loaves, you're in luck... if not, sucks to be you!!"... so I smiled, apologized, and left them with the sandwich anyway!  The sandwiches brought forth some amazing conversation, beautiful smiles, warm hugs, strong handshakes, and a few tears... they also brought on a ten minute argument with two drunk guys, who were VERY much set on paying us for their sandwiches.   We made a few more rounds under the bridge, and decided it was time to look for a few more folks to give the sandwiches to...  Not really sure where to go next ,we heard someone from behind us yelling... that's when I'm pretty sure the Lord sent us the crazy lil fella from Baton Rouge... What hapened after that, was by far the most amazing conversation of my life, and I can't wait to share it with you... but for now, I have to go... please keep coming back!!  Thanks, God bless, and GOd love!!!