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| Jack's dangerous, rocky, kayak landing under the bridge |
Sunday,
September 7, 2014
“Paul,
why are you here?” Today was his first
day with me in the street.
Certainly, Paul is drawn of the Lord to minister to the “least of
these.” Yes, he is concerned for those
less fortunate than him. But what was
the pivotal point which slid him into serving in the street? What changed him from clicking the TV remote
from the sofa on Sunday afternoons, to ministering to the homeless in the
street instead? Why? What happened?
“I must
say the one sentence that grabbed me right by the heart was, ‘Just before stepping into eternity, at the
very moment of my leaving this Earth, what would the Lord find me doing?’ WOW!
Talk about a thought provoker!”
Today
would be a spiritual eye opener for Paul.
He left the land of fiction when he rose from his sofa and exchanged it for
the non-fiction, true-to-life zone of homeless reality where one can’t survive
from day to day without faith in The Lord Jesus Christ.
We pulled
up to the pavilion at the Bay Side Camp where some of the homeless were waiting
for us. I consistently arrive at about
two in the afternoon on Sundays, rain or shine.
It was good to see those I had missed this past week, and I rejoiced to
see many more new faces present. A half
a dozen of them crossed the railroad bridge from Gilligan’s Island (See post
from July 27, 2014) to come to the pavilion to receive food, drinks, toilet
paper, gas canisters, fruit pies, prayer, fellowship…and to be loved.
“Hey,
‘Happy’, how are you doing?” I said as Paul
and I hand him food and drink.
He nodded
his head, “Doin’ good.” “Happy” doesn’t
talk much.
I then
noticed the cross hanging from his neck from a worn out string. “Praise the Lord! That is a nice cross you have there.”
He nodded
his head in agreement and after a moment of pensiveness he explained to me
where it came from.
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| "Happy" and the cross |
It had not been his best day. “Happy” was hungry, he was thirsty and had
that feeling of dejection that comes upon the homeless from time to time. The rejection from other people is not as bad
as thinking that, possibly, the Lord had rejected him also. He had not been able to clean up, shave or
get fresh jeans and a T-shirt to replace the worn and stained ones he had
on. His shoes were fast wearing
out. He was ripe for that painful spirit
of depression to worm its way into his heart and make its home there.
He ambled
to the convenience store and in his weakness just slumped and sat down, leaning
against the outside wall not far from the front door. He could walk no further. He didn’t know what to do next…and he didn’t
care anymore. Slouched there on the
stained sidewalk, sweating in the heat of the day, he was the poster picture of
what people think of when they try to picture a homeless man in the street.
Most people
came and went and passed right by him…never seeing him. He had become invisible to those around him.
Upon
looking at him, the mama took her daughter’s hand to lead her into the
store. There were some things a little
girl did not need to see. Mama was
protecting her. But, it was too late; the
little girl had seen the one in need.
She was
so clean and fresh and so loved…and loved…and loved. Her innocence was only exceeded by the humble
heart of a child still so close to Eden.
Heaven, it seemed, had just released her yesterday. She had the angelic capability of seeing
injustice in that human heap wilting on the sidewalk.
Humbly
and simply in touch with the heart of the Father, she wanted to share the love
she had received from Him. Food or drink
would supply the homeless man with only momentary relief. However, God is not a momentary God, but the
God of eternity. She blamed no one for
that man’s position. She judged not one
soul for what she had seen. That little
girl didn’t know about “psychology,”
“social issues,” “alcoholism.” She
didn’t even consider such a thing as “Satan” at work.
Within
her resided pure love from a pure heart.
As they
exited the store, the mama again protectively took her daughter’s hand. The child of God knew that through that door
and to the right lay her charge. The
mama opened the door and cautiously pulled her daughter through the doorway
with her. Little did the mama know that
heaven was about to be opened up and the glory of God about to be seen.
Before
the door even closed, the little child of God miraculously slipped her hand out
of her mama’s and without hesitation walked toward the homeless man.
Her mama
just stood there; speechless…frozen in place!
As the
little girl took the few little steps to the man, she was taking off the string
from around her neck. She stopped in front
of him, took the string from which the cross was hanging, and put it around his
neck, as she said, smiling at him,
“You look
like you need this more than I do.”
He looked
at her as one child of God looking to another and plainly said, “Thank you.”
Pride and
self-glory were as far from her as the East is from the West. Her satisfaction was that justice had just
been served.
She
turned to walk back to her mother.
He asked,
“How old are you?”
“I’m six
years old.” Why would he ask that, she
thought?
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| This cross saved my life! |
Happy held
the cross in his hand and explained to us, “This cross saved my life on that
day, four months ago, and now protects me every day.”
“In the
name of Jesus?” I said.
“In the
name of Jesus,” he replied.
“I
praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these
things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children.” Matthew 11:25
“I
tell you’re the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you
will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in
the kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 18:3, 4
It took
me many years to be like a child.
Just
about then, two of God’s other precious, homeless children, coming from Gilligan’s Island
(July 27, 2014), saw us in the park and ran over to greet us. After plentiful hugs, they both immediately
started sweetly singing Amazing Grace
right there and then. After taking pictures, Paul and I joined them in such a spontaneous and joyful occasion! Praise God!
Mari and “Shorty” keep God very busy!
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| Ama...zing...grace... |
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| ...how sweet...the sound... |
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| ...tha...at saved a...wretch... |
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| ...li...ike me...... |
Paul and
I then drove to the Bridge Camp. Jack
the Astrophysicist (7/6/14) came over to be fed and to tell us his latest
adventures. He has a wide and colorful
vocabulary which makes his story telling the more entertaining.
“I have a
friend who bought himself a new kayak so he gave me his old sit-on kayak.
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| Jack the Fisherman, Astrophysicist's kayak |
I paddled a little ways out from the seawall
and fished. I hooked something real big
‘cause it pulled me all the way to the center of the bay before I could pull that
fish, slowly paddling backwards, all the way back to the seawall. It was a big ‘ol Redfish 48 inches long! I unhooked him and put him back in the water.”
(It was illegal to keep it). Jack normally sells the fish that he catches.
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| "The fish pulled me all the way to the center of the bay over there!" Behind him is the location, by the bridge (light pole #9), for his next adventure. |
But his
most amazing story was yet to be told!
After he
had gotten the kayak from his friend, he excitedly loaded it up with his
fishing equipment the next day and headed for light pole #9 on the bridge…at FOUR
in the morning! The light from the pole
attracts a lot of bait fish which in turn attract large, feeding fish.
Absorbed by
his distant thoughts, silently floating on the dark waters of the bay, he was
suddenly startled by a loud snorting sound right next to him, and by a shower of
water coming out of the breathing hole of a large dolphin (porpoise, actually)
longer than his kayak! He was so taken
by surprise that his reaction caused him to flip the kayak over. He ended up in the dark waters, in the middle
of the night.
“This
Bozo the Clown thought he was funny,” he said very agitated, “I lost my casting
net, my fishing pole, my hat, and worst of all – my WW2, Austrian Army issue,
multi-function lighter. The new flint
would drop in automatically and you could pull the wick out for a candle! It had a little flip-up blade on the side,
and you could light that thing in screaming hurricane.”
He tells
us that he tried to turn the upside down kayak over, but the dolphin jumped completely
out of the water and landed near him, slapping its tail on the water near
enough to spray him. As Jack swam around
the kayak, the dolphin pushed him in the chest and against the kayak with its
nose! (When a dolphin is born, the
mother will push it to the surface of the water so it may get its first breath
of fresh air. It has been said that the
dolphins will instinctively do the same for humans appearing to drown)
Jack was
not impressed. He put his hand on the
middle of his chest and winced, showing that his chest still hurt. But he did have a great story to tell! Who said being homeless was boring?
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| Paul says, "Jack went out in the bay in this?!" |
Now we go
to Jack and Mari’s camp. That is the
other Jack…Jack the Intellectual. Not
far from the camp, there is a convenience store to which the camp residents
walk if they have any money. A couple of
days ago, as Jack was walking through the parking lot toward the front door of
the store, an energetic, clean-cut young man (22?) stopped him and asked Jack,
“Are you a veteran?”
Jack
looked up at him, “Yes.”
“Do you
smoke?”
“Yep. I smoke the little cigars.”
“Come in
the store with me,” said the young man, “and I’ll get you some!”
Surprised,
Jack followed him in. The young man put
a 12-pack of Pabst Blue Ribbon beer and two packs of cigars on the counter and
then asked the cashier for a large stack of Lottery scratch-off tickets! After paying for it all, he made two stacks
of lottery tickets and asked Jack to pick one!
Jack
picked one ticket.
“No, I
mean, take one STACK of tickets!” said the young man.
Jack,
totally amazed (or I should say – dazed) took one stack of Lottery tickets.
The young
man continued, “I’m in the Marines, and I just got back from overseas
today. My flight arrived here in the U.
S. this morning, and leaving out again in a few hours to go home.”
The young
man shook Jack’s hand, “God bless you, and thank you for serving our country.”
Then he
left as abruptly as he came.
Jack
turned in the Lottery tickets and walked away with twenty-five extra dollars!
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| The scene of "The Blessing!" by the young man |
Jack is
very proud to have been in the military service. My hat off to you, Jack. In fact, this is so important to Jack that the
only complaint he had about my book, The
Spark in the Street, was that I had not made mention enough about our many
veterans in the street. We find a large
portion of the homeless to be veterans.
That is not acceptable, as these are the ones who risked their lives for
YOUR freedom. Please pray for our
veteran’s welfare, health, protection, healing and especially…salvation.
And then,
find a homeless veteran, shake his/her hand; then thank and bless him/her, as
the young marine showed us.
Paul and
I then headed to the Palafox Camp, as dark thunder clouds were forming above
us. By the time we arrived on Palafox
Street, a half a dozen of the homeless had come out of the park, crossed the
street, and taken shelter under the wide eave of a closed restaurant. We could see lighting in the distance, as the
storm was quickly approaching. We got
out of the truck and got immediately drenched by the cold rain, as we
made our way to the expectant homeless who were trying to stay dry against the
grey stucco wall.
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| "Paul, are you alright?" |
The
lighting was getting brighter and the rumbling thunder was now following right
behind.
Paul had
positioned himself with his back against the dry stucco wall, as he watched the
core of the storm move over us. Lighting
was now crackling with continuous thunder claps following almost
instantly. The howl of the wind
intensified as we became unnervingly drenched.
Out of
the swirling, dark mass above suddenly appeared a blinding streak of white
light, like a mighty spear angrily thrown from heaven, landing on the other
side of the street. The sizzling and
crackling of that lighting strike made the hair on the back of our head stand
on end and our skin tingle.
With this
lighting was also what sounded like the city around us exploding in a deafening
blast. The roar of this blast did not
feel life it came from the black clouds above or from across the street, but
from immediately around us; the gut-wrenching sound vibrating within our body.
I looked
to my right to see Paul plastered like a pancake against the stucco wall with
his outstretched arms and hands firmly part of the wall. If you understood Paul’s size, you would have
to admit that his flattened position on the stucco wall was truly a miracle!
Staring
blindly ahead and facing the other side of the street where the lighting had
struck, Paul’s eyes were as big as tea cups!
In a
split second, this faith-building moment was over.
I thought
I would have to get a crowbar and peel Paul off the stucco wall!
“Paul,
are you alright?”
He stood there for a moment to check if he
was still alive or maybe walking on the shores of heaven, instead. After a few seconds, he relaxed and a peace
could be seen flowing over his complete being.
Then, he looked at me and smiled.
“If I had
died, it would have been alright. Just before stepping into eternity, at the
very moment of my leaving this Earth, what would the Lord have found me
doing? He would have found me
feeding His precious children. He would
have found me ministering to the “least of these.”
During
that passing moment of threatening light and sound, Paul had found the peace of
God which surpasses all understanding.
(Philippians 4:7)
“Then
the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my
Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation
of the world. For…whatever you did for
one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.’” Matthew 25:34, 40
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| .... like a mighty spear angrily thrown from heaven, landing on the other side of the street. |
Good night, folks, and God bless y'all.
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