Good Samaritan Style

A few months ago one of our ministry workers came running in the office saying that a man was lying in our West covered stairwell.  She didn't know if he was alive or dead, conscious or unconscious.  I was called to the scene, opened the door to the outside steps, and approached the extremely thin man checking for signs of life.  

He awoke in a fluster and said, "Hey Joey."  I was taken aback because at first I did not recognize him.  Through the haze of inebriation he explained that he attends our Sunday Lunch every week.

I found myself feeling extreme compassion for this individual.  He stays in a tent within a wooded area of the city and he is a slave to the substance of alcohol.  In his drunken stupor he found his way to our church, a place where I think he subconsciously knew he would be safe.  

Instead of calling the police (which would have gotten him nowhere but deeper in debt with fines he cannot pay) I sat with him, gave him crackers and water to sober him up, and one of our secretaries came out with a first aid kit to dress the gash on his forehead.  After our secretary left, he and I had a candid conversation about his addiction, his current life situation, and the truth of Jesus' gospel that calls us to a life of freedom and love.  I told him how important he was.

By sitting with him I hoped to show that he was not forgotten in society.  By giving him food and water and dressing his wounds we hoped to show we care for his physical situation (a new earth).  And by speaking the Truth in his life I hoped to remind him of who he is as a child of God (a new heaven).

We cannot separate the physical and spiritual needs of this world.  Jesus never did, so why should we?

Revelation 21:1  "Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea existed no longer."

It's amazing what $2.25 can get you these days

For this entry I've decided to let someone else's words bring the story. A few months ago one of our church members and coordinators of our Sunday Lunch sent this story of what happened to her. I asked her if I could share it and she said of course. Here are her words...

My husband and I were serving seconds at the Sunday Lunch and things had slowed down quite a bit when Steve came to the kitchen and asked for me. He told me that he had the "two twenty five". For a minute I was totally puzzled, but then he said, you know the "two dollars and twenty five cents".
Then it hit me...
When we had driven the van on Easter Sunday and were taking people home afterwards, Steve waited until everyone else was dropped off and then asked me if he could borrow bus money to get to OKC to pick up his paycheck. I told him that we are not supposed to give money. He said that he understood and was sorry he asked. Then, I told him that I was going to give him the two dollars and 25 cents, but if he told Joey, I would be in trouble. Steve said that he was ever so grateful because he had to pick up his paycheck in person and that he would repay me just as soon as he got his money. I told him that we would consider it a loan and he could repay me (like I ever thought that was going to happen!).
So, it was so rewarding for Steve to be a man of his word and repay the $2.25 this morning. He waited until my husband could join us, because it was important to Steve for him to see that he had repaid his debt. He asked us to keep him in mind because he has saved up $1,200 to spend on a car and he is going to pay his rent for 2 month in advance. This experience was very rewarding to me personally, because now I not only want to pray for Steve, but I know what to specifically pray for.  

                                                                      - B.P.

Amazing, isn't it?  How hard some people have to work to improve their life situation?  And then how powerful gratitude can be?  Upon reflecting on these moments we see that true Christ-like transformation is happening for everyone involved.