My aunt makes us give her our Christmas lists by early November every year.
And every early November i enter a state of panic because I haven't even started thinking about what I want to put on my list.
So i search online for things that i don't really want, but might be nice to have.
This year, I found a book title that sounded interesting.
"Under the Overpass- A Journey of Faith on the Streets of America" by Mike Yankoski.
I read online that it was about a college-aged guy who grew up middle class and decided to live homeless for five months in a few different cities in the US.
I guess I didn't really think too much about the word "faith" or I may not have written the book title down on my wishlist, considering i'm not that religious.
But on it went, and lo and behold i received the book for Christmas.
It was amazing.
I just finished it today.
It actually recognizes and addresses the reason i'm not very religious.
The idea to do this popped into Mikes head while sitting in church one Sunday.
"The pastor was delivering a powerful sermon about living the Christian life. The gist of it was "Be the Christian you say you are" Suddenly i was shocked to realize that i had just driven twenty minutes past the world that needed me to be the Christian I say I am , in order to hear a sermon entitled "Be the Christian you say you are." Soon i would drive back past that same world to the privilege of my comfortable life on campus at a Christian College"
So he decides to be the Christian he said he was, and test his faith, and share it with those most needy.
He got a friend to join him, and off they went- with two guitars and two sleeping bags.
To say they struggled is an understatement. They were dirty, hungry all the time and ignored or sneered at the vast majority of the time.
A few times, at missionaries and such, there were sermons they would attend and i thought this fact was interesting:
"of the twenty seven chapel services i attended, about twenty focused on hell, condemnation, sin and eternal suffering. Are each of these relevant parts of the gospel message? Yes. But are they the most appropriate parts to focus on with such a physically needy group? Probably not. Telling someone who is suffering deeply that he's going to suffer more is probably a waste of breath. it's like warning someone who is already starving that they'r about to get really hungry. But tell him of the restaurant that serves heaping meals to all who come no matter where they're from or what they look like, and he's more than likely to listen"
"I thought of Christ's words, "for God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but ot save the world through him" Weren't these well-intentioned speakers condemning the broken for being broken?
There are so many other instances in which Christians shunned Mike and his traveling partner, Sam. Church leaders shooed them off of church grounds for no real reason. At one point, Mike's sandal broke and his foot was bleeding. They were in church and some church-goers actually stopped to talk with them. They made it very obvious that they were hungry, and desperately needed new shoes. And the church-goers awkwardly left saying "We'll pray for you!"
Mike says "Why do we so often overlook obvious ways to show the love of God we so loudly proclaim? If someone is thirsty, give them a drink! If someone is hungry, feed them! Who is to show the world Christ's love if not the church? I'm starving, and my feet hurt, and that guy back there knows it. But hey, he's praying for us"
And Mike acknowledges that many who are on the street have drug and alcohol problems. So it may not always be best to donate money to the guy panhandling on the street corner.
He says however, that you can offer to buy them a sandwich, or even give them your leftovers. Give them a smile at least. Because these people are still that- people. Living, breathing human beings. Who are worth something. Who have emotions.
It's so easy to walk past, not make eye contact and pretend you never saw them.
But you did.
And you didn't do anything about it.
I had to run some errands for CoffeeBytes while i was working today- which required a trip down State Street.
And on my way back to the shop I noticed a man out panhandling, singing and asking for change.
It was COLD out today and I just felt so sorry for this man who had nothing on but a thin coat.
When I got to him, he asked for some change.
I looked him in the eyes and said sorry, but I'd like to buy you a sandwich if you're hungry.
His eyes lit up and he said "really!?"
We walked across the street to a sub shop.
We chatted for just a minute and he told me he had just been released from the hospital (i saw the hospital bracelet on his wrist) and he's trying to get money to pay for his prescriptions which he can't afford right now. He needs penicillin which i'm assuming is probably pretty important.
I told him to go up and order whatever he'd like. He got a tuna sandwich.
A lady came up and asked what she could get for me and i just told her that i was paying for the man i was with and that's all.
It cost me $4.40. I walked over to the man (wish i would have gotten his name!) And told him he was all taken care of, and wished him luck with his health.
He gave me a huge hug, which may have been crossing the line, but i didn't mind at all.
He was just so genuinely happy.
I didn't do this act to tell people so they would say "good job Brittany! you're such a good person!"
Just for the same reason that I didn't do it to prove to God that i'm living the way He wants us to.
I did it because that man was real, and was hungry. And i had $4 to spare. And if I was in his position, I would hope someone would stop and try to help me. Even if just for a meal.
And every early November i enter a state of panic because I haven't even started thinking about what I want to put on my list.
So i search online for things that i don't really want, but might be nice to have.
This year, I found a book title that sounded interesting.
"Under the Overpass- A Journey of Faith on the Streets of America" by Mike Yankoski.
I read online that it was about a college-aged guy who grew up middle class and decided to live homeless for five months in a few different cities in the US.
I guess I didn't really think too much about the word "faith" or I may not have written the book title down on my wishlist, considering i'm not that religious.
But on it went, and lo and behold i received the book for Christmas.
It was amazing.
I just finished it today.
It actually recognizes and addresses the reason i'm not very religious.
The idea to do this popped into Mikes head while sitting in church one Sunday.
"The pastor was delivering a powerful sermon about living the Christian life. The gist of it was "Be the Christian you say you are" Suddenly i was shocked to realize that i had just driven twenty minutes past the world that needed me to be the Christian I say I am , in order to hear a sermon entitled "Be the Christian you say you are." Soon i would drive back past that same world to the privilege of my comfortable life on campus at a Christian College"
So he decides to be the Christian he said he was, and test his faith, and share it with those most needy.
He got a friend to join him, and off they went- with two guitars and two sleeping bags.
To say they struggled is an understatement. They were dirty, hungry all the time and ignored or sneered at the vast majority of the time.
A few times, at missionaries and such, there were sermons they would attend and i thought this fact was interesting:
"of the twenty seven chapel services i attended, about twenty focused on hell, condemnation, sin and eternal suffering. Are each of these relevant parts of the gospel message? Yes. But are they the most appropriate parts to focus on with such a physically needy group? Probably not. Telling someone who is suffering deeply that he's going to suffer more is probably a waste of breath. it's like warning someone who is already starving that they'r about to get really hungry. But tell him of the restaurant that serves heaping meals to all who come no matter where they're from or what they look like, and he's more than likely to listen"
"I thought of Christ's words, "for God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but ot save the world through him" Weren't these well-intentioned speakers condemning the broken for being broken?
There are so many other instances in which Christians shunned Mike and his traveling partner, Sam. Church leaders shooed them off of church grounds for no real reason. At one point, Mike's sandal broke and his foot was bleeding. They were in church and some church-goers actually stopped to talk with them. They made it very obvious that they were hungry, and desperately needed new shoes. And the church-goers awkwardly left saying "We'll pray for you!"
Mike says "Why do we so often overlook obvious ways to show the love of God we so loudly proclaim? If someone is thirsty, give them a drink! If someone is hungry, feed them! Who is to show the world Christ's love if not the church? I'm starving, and my feet hurt, and that guy back there knows it. But hey, he's praying for us"
And Mike acknowledges that many who are on the street have drug and alcohol problems. So it may not always be best to donate money to the guy panhandling on the street corner.
He says however, that you can offer to buy them a sandwich, or even give them your leftovers. Give them a smile at least. Because these people are still that- people. Living, breathing human beings. Who are worth something. Who have emotions.
It's so easy to walk past, not make eye contact and pretend you never saw them.
But you did.
And you didn't do anything about it.
I had to run some errands for CoffeeBytes while i was working today- which required a trip down State Street.
And on my way back to the shop I noticed a man out panhandling, singing and asking for change.
It was COLD out today and I just felt so sorry for this man who had nothing on but a thin coat.
When I got to him, he asked for some change.
I looked him in the eyes and said sorry, but I'd like to buy you a sandwich if you're hungry.
His eyes lit up and he said "really!?"
We walked across the street to a sub shop.
We chatted for just a minute and he told me he had just been released from the hospital (i saw the hospital bracelet on his wrist) and he's trying to get money to pay for his prescriptions which he can't afford right now. He needs penicillin which i'm assuming is probably pretty important.
I told him to go up and order whatever he'd like. He got a tuna sandwich.
A lady came up and asked what she could get for me and i just told her that i was paying for the man i was with and that's all.
It cost me $4.40. I walked over to the man (wish i would have gotten his name!) And told him he was all taken care of, and wished him luck with his health.
He gave me a huge hug, which may have been crossing the line, but i didn't mind at all.
He was just so genuinely happy.
I didn't do this act to tell people so they would say "good job Brittany! you're such a good person!"
Just for the same reason that I didn't do it to prove to God that i'm living the way He wants us to.
I did it because that man was real, and was hungry. And i had $4 to spare. And if I was in his position, I would hope someone would stop and try to help me. Even if just for a meal.
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