God never ceases to amaze; in the darkest of hours, in the most desperate of situations, He uses our brokenness to reveal His GLORY and GOODNESS. Such were the cases I experienced in Colombia. With month number one of the World Race in the bag, it is only appropriate that I share the unreal ways that God moves in all situations, and how He showed up big time with perfect grace again and again.
The desperate exist. They do. I mean like truly, truly desperate. And they exist all over the world. The kind of desperate where someone screams for mercy from the depths of their soul and they don’t think anyone is there to hear it… yeah, it’s a thing. Sorry to drop that heavy sorrow bomb on you right out of the gate; but redemption is to follow I promise, we’ll just roll with it.
“Agua panela” is an outreach to the homeless that the ministry I served with engages in every Wednesday night where bread and sugar water is handed out. And I’ll never forget the first time I hopped up into the back of that cargo truck, bread and sugar water in hand, ready to help. Scrunching all parts of the body into the fetal position we were able to squeeze ten of us into the bed of that truck. It wasn’t the most luxurious ride but it suited us perfectly. Five minutes later after leaving the compound we pulled into a portion of the city that no longer resembled the beautiful Colombia that we had been experiencing prior. It kind of reminded me of a post-apocalyptic movie, or something to do with nuclear fallout. If you have ever seen the book of Eli, you know what I’m talking about. Buildings were nothing more than stacks of rubble. Dismembered cars and blown out tires sat on walkways and courtyards serving as ugly lawn ornaments. Everything we saw had a past story and you couldn’t help but think about how it all came to be so displaced and broken, especially the people. The truck slowed and we came to a stop. Peering out between the wooden slats that made up the back door of the truck, we could see that we were quickly becoming surrounded people. By the look on their faces it was as though they were approaching a UFO. A couple things ran across my mind:
1. They have never seen a truck before (not likely).
2. Their minds were so saturated with drugs that they couldn’t even deal with reality.
Yeah, unfortunately, option number two was correct.
Jumping out of the truck, as soon as our feet hit the pavement, we were transported into a different world. Bodies and trash lined the block. Putrid smells and horrific noises were constant. Not being able to speak Spanish is hindrance enough, add on top of that trying to understand someone so coked up they could sneeze frosting onto a cake, and you understand our dilemma. Our senses were on fire. And yet, by the grace of God we had such peace in our hearts. We knew that we were not just there to hand out food to these guys, but to be led by the spirit and bring a little light to a place hidden in shadow. Our friends from Germany, Kati and Simon, are tri-lingual, they love the Lord, and they came with us to translate; they were life savers. We weaved in-between these people draped with dirty rags that they were trying to pass off as clothes. People with lifeless stares clenching to dirty needles and crack pipes. Their arms peppered with glowing red tracks from whatever they had been shooting into their systems. People jerking with involuntary movements, concerned only with what they worshiped –their drugs and how they would get their next fix. Bondage and chains have never been more evident.
We prayed over quite a few people that night, most of them with stories that still make my stomach churn they are so gruesome, so I’ll spare you the details. But one of the guys that still stands out to me was a man that approached us as we were loading up into the truck. He was belligerently high and kept repeating that he was stuck in the same day and that there was no way out, no escape. He looked terrified, hopeless, and tormented. If this doesn’t paint a picture of what hell on earth looks like I’m not sure what will. Luckily, God hears our afflictions, whether we pray or not, He IS with each and every one of us and He SEES us to our core. In Genesis 16 you can find Hagar’s story, I’ll paraphrase it, but give it a read when you get a chance. Hagar was an Egyptian slave to Sarai, Abram’s wife. Sarai, frustrated and impatient with God for not blessing her with children, takes matters into her own hands and uses Hagar as her surrogate. Hagar, being used in such a way, despises Sarai and Sarai knows it. Sarai ends up mistreating Hagar even further. Hagar feeling abused, used, broken, and alone, takes off and runs into the wilderness. At this point she must have been DESPERATE; her soul must have been yelling out for help and rescue. It doesn’t say that she believed in God or that she was praying, and yet while she was in the wilderness it says that an angel of the lord found her. The angel then proceeds to say that if Hagar submits to Sarai, for the Lord, she will be blessed. Hagar says, “you are the God who sees me.” Hagar, like many in life, was dealt a bad hand at the mercy of other people. Used, abused and trying to cope with circumstances, she runs.
Ephesians 6:12 “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.”
When you are on the streets, watching people sell themselves for drugs, or talk to someone on the brink of vegetation because with every breath they inhale shoe glue from a bottle that never leaves their nose, it is easy to be confused. In the thick of it all, it is easy to fall under the trap that these people must be evil. They must worship the devil. Looking at situations in such regard is exactly what the enemy wants. These are our brothers and sisters who need our love. And just like Hagar, they are slaves and they have been subjected to brokenness. Just like Hagar, they are running from their circumstances the only way that the world taught them how. But, God is good all the time. In the same way He found Hagar when she was hopeless and running, He finds us where we are at. He hears our desperate cries of affliction. HE SEES US. He shows up and pours out grace. All He asks is that we submit to Him and for Him, and He provides a way out. For those that are willing to take the leap of faith and leave behind their idols, there is love, hope, healing, and restoration for all.
The ministry that we worked with had God’s hand all over it, it was undeniable. That love and restoration that people yearn for, could be found there. They were a rehabilitation center, homeless shelter, and church; all working in unison to point the hearts of the suffering towards the awesome life that God intended us to have. Their main-focus being to take these people in off the streets and show them a radically different path than what the world has taught them. To display the love of Jesus that they have never experienced in their lives.
Step 1. Psalm 46:1 says, “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” So why not give the distressed a refuge in which they can see God? And that is exactly what they did. They built a refuge. Every night at 7pm the homeless line up outside the big blue door waiting in suspense for it to open. They know that comfort is waiting. Hot sugar water, warm bread, showers, toilets, and sleeping pads may not be at the forefronts of your or my mind, but to those that are used to resting their heads on literal garbage and going to sleep with a gnawing hunger inside, it is amazing. Those amenities aren’t just an afterthought to them and they aren’t taken lightly. As they enter we pat them down, throwing away any pipes, needles, knives, or lighters that are found. We pass out food to trembling hands, trying to steady them as we go. Sharing life stories and relating it to the bible plants seeds for any future questions they may have. Doing life with these guys isn’t a struggle, it’s a blessing.
Step 2. Get them into the program. There is a yearlong rehabilitation program for anyone truly committed to changing their lives and living for something more. It is interesting, in America, according to Joseph A. Califano, Jr., former Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare and founder of the National Center on Addiction and Substance, “The therapeutic community claims a 30% success rate, but they only count people who complete the program.” Califano adds that the other 70-80 percent have dropped out by the 3-6-month marker. That leaves a total success rate at about 5-10%. Now with the program that is set up here, it is all faith based. Literally everything that the people in the program do, from the time they wake up until the time they go to sleep, is based around God. Multiple prayer groups, bible studies, times of worship, and times of fellowship ring throughout the day. It is faith in Jesus 101. Here’s the best part. The success rate of this program, you ready? 80-90% total! BOOM- ‘Jesus drops the mic.’
Step 3. Church and community. Every Wednesday, Saturday, and Sunday there is church service which the homeless and guys in the program get to be a part of. They get to see what some of them have never experienced, and that is what it is like to have a family. Having people from the community that actually care about them as a person. People that care about them physically, mentally, and spiritually. To have an encounter with such an over powering love from a group of people that believe in Jesus proves to be dramatic for most… I’ve watched these hardened thugs be completely wrecked by the Lord in the best way possible. They leave the service absolutely sloppy, just a mess of emotions; tears, sobbing, and feelings that have been held back for years just pour through the floodgates. But that is just God doing His thing, it’s what He does best. He reveals the love and plans that He has for us by using our past and past decisions. He makes us kids again. He makes us new.
God loves redeeming His children and raising them up to something so much better. The clear majority of everyone that God uses in the Bible has received a second chance, and they did some pretty bad stuff; Moses killed a dude, Jacob was a compulsive liar, Paul persecuted and killed Christians, Matthew was a scummy tax collector, David had all sorts of issues, and the list goes on and on. (P.S. if you haven’t read the bible I’d highly recommend it.) But, REDEMTION to the fullest for those that chose God, followed.
Walking through the steep and crowded streets on the way to the soccer field, we turned heads. Standby citizens took cover behind whatever they could, bracing themselves for something awful. Looks of distain seared us from all sides. Until we smiled and waved… and those looks of distain turned to looks of sheer awe and wonder. There is just something about being friends with the guys that were once the most crooked and cruel dudes around that I can’t put into words. The ones that would rob you for a quick fix, or shoot you if you didn’t comply. It was on that road, walking side by side with my new brothers in Christ, that I looked down and realized that Jesus covers tracks, metaphorically and literally.
Tommy stood to my right, and Jose to my left. Scattered on each of their arms were tracks. Tommy’s were still fresh, He was new to the program. Jose’s, you couldn’t even tell were there unless you looked hard; he was a veteran to the program, teaching the new guys the ropes. But his tracks were covered. God made him new and took all of the brokenness of his past for him. And the same would happen for Tommy. A relationship with Jesus starts with a leap of faith. It’s knowing that you are loved and that you are forgiven. The bible never says that people that don’t make mistakes go to heaven, it says that forgiven people go to heaven. Allow the love of a good, good father, to seep into your soul and cover the tracks of your past. Know that He is for you and not against you. Most importantly know that it does not matter where you have been in this life, what you have done, or the mistakes that have plastered you with shame. Your sin does not make you second-rate. Jesus is crazy about YOU and He will do anything to be a part of your life. He is a gentleman. He will knock at the door of your heart and wait patiently, but it is up to you to let Him in.
It was nothing less of spectacular to witness the guys in the program say YES to Jesus every single day; to witness their walk and watch God work in their lives. God is so funny because I came on this trip to serve and to love the broken, and that is how I thought He was going to use me. But every time I try to serve these guys, they beat me to the punch. Every meal my plate was handed to me, my cup was filled. If there weren’t any seats at the table they would get up and make me sit down, (refusing them was not an option). Every morning we would wake up early and go to a 7am prayer and devotional meeting with the guys in the program. On occasion, they would have a big pot full of coffee. Each of the guys had a designated cup that they would take around with them to drink out of. They really like their cups and they love their coffee. Well, I didn’t have a cup and I didn’t really think anything about it. I sat down in my chair and started my reading for the morning; but Jorge noticed. He filled up his cup, walked over with a servant’s heart, and put it in my hands. Do you know what it is for a Colombian to give up his coffee??? This man that has so little and has had so little throughout his life; someone who can only take the time to cherish the little things like coffee… It hit me hard in the ‘ol ticker to say the least.
I used to think it was so cliché when missionaries would come back from the field and say, “I learned so much more from the people I served than I could ever teach them.” I thought that they were just trying to martyr themselves. I’d usually walk away rolling my eyes… Month one of this mission down, 10 to go, and I have already swiftly been put in my place and humbled. To be honest my primary goal for the year has been to focus on loving well. To love like Jesus did. To release the love that is built into my DNA, that has been oppressed by the norms of society for too long. To have faith like a child that would enable me to love anytime, anywhere, with no stipulations. And as corny or cliché as it sounds, the people of Colombia have taught me more about the love of Jesus than I could ever have taught them. #blessed #humbled
