Breaking Bread Together--Going the Extra Mile

Tuesday evening is always a special time for me as I go out with other volunteers to distribute sack dinners to our friends and neighbors. It's good to see the friendly faces I see every week, like Darryl's, and to shake the familiar hand that greets me and makes me feel welcomed, like Ernie's. There's always the pleasure of meeting someone new, like Mama Dee, and the relief of seeing that one friend you have been praying for because you haven't seen him for a while and finding out that he is okay, like Kenny.

However, last week something happened that taught me that maybe once in a while at least, I should go the extra mile. As we gathered around an outdoor table at Pollo Loco on Alondra and Woodruff, passing out some of the dinners, Mama Dee suggested we pray first for the food. We held hands as she prayed, and two other people, including Kenny, spoke up excitedly asking for their turn to pray. One prayed the Lord's prayer and we followed; the other just spoke from his heart until he was interrupted. It was a special moment for me as I realized that I and they are just the same, sinners saved by grace. But as I drove away I thought, if Jesus had been with us, he probably would have stayed behind and would have eaten with them--the faceless, nameless homeless strangers which we see everyday on the streets of our city. So perhaps on another day, when I'm not so busy going around doing good deeds, I will sit down and eat and partake together just as Jesus did; just as I believe he might have done on this occassion.

Special thanks to our GREAT VOLUNTEERS!

Last Saturday we had people serving all over the city! It was awesome.

To start the day, I headed over to Calvary Baptist church where Rosewood Church had a group working hard in the kitchen to make breakfast for our homeless neighbors. They did a great job once again! People got some great food and a chance to hear and experience the Gospel.

After breakfast I went over to First Bellflower Christian Reformed Church where a team of 16 men from the congregation gathered to help out with some work projects. They spent the morning hours helping to repair a couple of the trailers that we use to offer affordable transitional housing, and hanging and sanding drywall at another local ministry. They were SO helpful and generous with thier time and resources.

That same morning, volunteers from Bethany Church spent time weeding the flower beds out front of the Community Center and washing windows. What a blessing that was to our neighbors here in the strip mall. Max, our Muslim neighbor who runs a business next door came in to the office on Monday and expressed his thanks for the work that the volunteers did. I was able to tell him that the volunteers did this because they were seeking to honor God and simply love our neighbors like Jesus commanded.

What a great day! Thank you to all who gave thier time to serve.

Memorial for a Neighbor

The Stagger Inn bar was as dark as I had expected it to be, especially in comparisson to the afternoon sun of late July. Heidi, Aura and I were here to attend a memorial for Cooksie, one of the homeless neighbors we have come to know during weekly outreach to our neighbors without addresses. Apparently he had died in the early hours of the previous Sunday as he slept. Kenny, another homeless neighbor who stays by the Inn was shaken as he shared with me his account of finding the body. He was clearly suffering this afternoon... missing his friend of many years. He showed me to a makeshift memorial that had been set up in honor of this good friend just outside of the bar. Back inside the crowd was sparse but filled with familiar downturned faces. Someone was passing out free 16 oz King Cobra malt liquor as a remembrance. Heidi, Aura, and I sat a bit awkwardly at the tables to the right of the bar where a small gathering had assembled. We did our best to converse a bit and communicate a little comfort to these hurting friends. Aura was sitting at the end of the table talking with an older woman whose dentures were perilously close to falling out of her mouth as she complained about her "old man". As Aura sat calmly listening, graciously ignoring the foul language that peppered the conversation I was struck that this would be a place... a gathering... an event that Jesus would have attended. I was struck by the fact that these neighbors, hurting and raw are passionately loved by God. He knows thier hearts, sees thier pain, and longs for them to reach out to him.

A funny thing occured to me, I felt the same presence of Jesus in this bar at this memorial as I have felt in sanctuaries and worship services. The same Jesus we worship on Sundays is present in the pits... and he invites us along. It is when we follow him to the lowest places that we learn about the radical love of God and his desire for shalom for the least of these.

God may your kingdom come in the Stagger Inn as it is in heaven.

Cooksie

Camping with EUCY Group

This week we took 4 kids from our neighborhood on a camping trip to Leo Carrillo State Beach/Park. We met up with another group from Artesia. It was the first time camping for some of the kids. We had a blast exploring the trails and playing in the ocean. Each day different teams cooked the meals and helped around camp. On Wednesday morning we took the group down to the beach and gave each of them a little journal to write their thoughts on. We asked them to consider what things in their life make them who they are today... the good and the bad. It was a great reflection time for them. Here are some more pictures:

At night we had a campfire with s'mores, hot chocolate and games.

The kids burried Joel in the sand. Great team building!

Carolina caught a big fat lizard. Some of the boys caught frogs in the riverbed.

Desiree helped with a lot of the cooking. The burgers were super good!