A simple act of kindness can make a huge difference. Today half of our team helped out at a food bank while the other half of us did homeless outreach. I have always had a heart for the homeless but lately have been convicted of not taking the time to truly care or see them. Today God opened my eyes and let me see.
We met Annie, who was the sweetest old lady. I do not think she was homeless just in need. Her grandson David is very sick. He had an operation where the Doctors accidentally hit a nerve and he is now paralyzed. She desperately wants to help raise money for him and this is the only way she knows how. The next lady God brought us to was Valentina. She came off a little rough on the edges but after talking to her she was warm and welcoming. Valentina is homeless and all alone. Her sister and both of her parents passed away from cancer. She has hit rock bottom but she revealed that she is thankful and without Jesus she would have nothing to live for. Wow, I think we could all learn from her. We gave her a pastry before we said goodbye and her face lit up with joy. She grew so excited and blew us kisses.
(Mandi, Almantes and I with Valentina)
We had no money to offer them just our time and a simple pastry but that made a difference in their lives. The Bible says, “I tell you the truth whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers you did for me” (Matt. 25:40) and “I tell you the truth whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.” (Matt. 25:45)
How often do we avoid making eye contact with homeless people, how often do we judge them without knowing their stories, how often do we walk by them and pretend like they are not there. They are there and each time we ignore them Jesus says it is like we are ignoring him. A typical response when talking about the homeless population is they are just drug addicts or alcoholics or they are lazy; why can’t they get a job like the rest of us. This may be true, but we don’t know their stories and God doesn’t say judge them, he says to love and put others before ourselves. We are supposed to treat people how we want to be treated. If I were Valentina or Annie, I would want someone to stop and acknowledge me. They didn’t care we had no money to offer them, our time meant more and made a difference to them. They left a mark on my heart, they showed me it doesn’t matter how hard life gets, for if we have Jesus than we have the greatest gift in life!
