Friday, December 19, 2008
Deuteronomy and The Lord's Rain
Deuteronomy is one of my favorite books in the Bible. It should be required reading for anyone who's going through a tough time, wondering how he or she is ever going to pull through; it inspires one to think back over past crises and remember how God has come through in the past, and declare that He's not going to let them down now.
Deuteronomy (the word means "the second telling") is the last of the five "books of Moses", and consists of a recap of the previous 40 years. Moses, standing at the brink of the Promised Land (which he knows he'll only be allowed to see and not set foot in), reviews for the Israelites all the hardships and trials they'd gone through, all the victories God had given them, all the bad choices they'd made, and all the ways God had pulled them through. He also reminds them of the promise -- the land God had sworn He would give to their forefathers. Fired up with that reminder of His faithfulness in the past, the Israelites are prepared to cross the Jordan into that land.
I was prompted to pull out Deuteronomy early this morning (Sat. 13 Dec) and start reading it, and it was even more impressive, as it goes over the battles in which the enemy seriously outnumbered them ... or seemed more powerful ... or had cities that had enormous walls that no one thought could be scaled ... and yet with God in command, the Israelites moved forward.
And why would I be "prompted" to get up at 3 am and read Deuteronomy? It had a lot to do with the headline in yesterday''s 24 Hours, the daily fishwrap handed out free at SkyTrain stations, which itself was arresting: "Gospel Mission in dire straits". Having recovered from the near whiplash caused by the double-take (my comedy tends to make Kramer look understated), I realized the headline was referring to Union Gospel Mission -- not us. Regardless, the story was about the decline in donations at UGM, and the underlying theme is that donations are down all over.
So, indeed, are they with us at Gospel Mission, which is why a sort-of Deuteronomy is in order at this stage, and since you all have a stake in this, allow me to do my Moses impression, so we can all be fired-up with faith again.
The best records Barry can find show that Gospel Mission was founded "sometime in the 1920s" (I've seen a reference to the Mission being founded in 1929, but can't find it now). Now, in those days, the Downtown East Side was not the Skid Row cauldron of despair it is today: it was the business and entertainment heart of Vancouver. The Pantages Theatre was still running vaudeville shows; there were restaurants, clubs, law offices, a couple of consulates. Why would God have the Apostolic Church of Pentecost (ACOP) plant a Mission right bang in the middle of such unbridled prosperity?
Because He knew what was coming. Late that year, we ran smack into the Great Depression, which, coupled with the Dust Bowl days, landed a lot of guys on skid row -- and the Mission was sorely needed. God provided for the Mission through the Depression, followed by World War 2, and through the decades, including at least three major recessions, and now the current financial uncertainty. Through that time, the Mission has stayed alive and kicking, ministering the Word and preaching Hope -- the wonderful, intangible hope that comes in Christ.
Just as in 1929, people on the Downtown East Side today have been failed by the world's "systems" -- not just the economic system but the various social experiments that have moved in, trying to undo the damage done by choices that "seemed like a good idea at the time."
Truly, the only source of hope is in the knowledge that God is able to do what He's said He will do. Hey: we've not only stayed alive and kicking, but expanded this year, totally under the direction, leading and provision of God. He engineered the whole building of The Lord's Rain, providing the vision, the prophecy, the space and -- most importantly -- the people, doing what they can, as much as they can, to make it happen. (That would be you, by the way ...) The construction has been nothing short of a miracle, and the expansion -- including the new daytime openings on Mondays and Fridays with our newfound sister Teresa -- has come exactly in His time. The Ministry has developed "by little and little", with God meting out the responsibility -- and the blessing -- as He knows we can handle it (that's also in Deuteronomy -- Ch. 7, v. 22).
As I say, God knew what was coming back in 1929 when He ordained Gospel Mission on the brink of the Depression: looks like He sees something else coming, that will make the work of Gospel Mission even more crucial. Perhaps the idea is to step up efforts to turn lives around and get the currently poor moving up and moving on so that the soon-to-be-poor will have someplace to come to have their hope and faith restored.
As an aside -- speaking of Hope and so forth -- Christmas can be a depressing time of year for many people. How many times have you seen a newspaper awash in adverts telling us how to have a happy unspecified holiday (good morning, Stuart Shepard!), and stuffed in amongst the with a feature-length piece on some psychology boffin talking about how depressed people get at Christmastime?
Don't think there isn't a connection. The more our society tries to excise Jesus from talk of Christmas, the more we're left with some bizarre near-winter ritual that involves buying stuff and eating fancy food and having parties but no apparent reason - and certainly no expression of Hope. We're left with stupid songs about "the man with the bag" and forced fun that has all the sincerity of a Tom Vu seminar. No wonder people get depressed, no matter what their income bracket. That's a truth Charlie Brown uncovered 43 years ago, and somehow it's fallen further away from us, no matter how many times we watch that show and mouth along with Linus, "Lights, please".* (If you haven't already, Google "Merry Tossmas" and check out Stuart Shepard's video -- which he's updated this year. And be advised that Central City in Surrey is actually using the word "Christmas" and the expression "Merry Christmas" in its ad campaign. I know where I'll be doing my Christmas shopping -- worth the SkyTrain ride!)
But I digress. This letter is our own "Deuteronomy" for Gospel Mission and The Lord's Rain: a testimony to God's faithfulness and provision over nine decades in a city that's only in its 13th decade -- and a reminder to you that the stake you have in this work continues to pay off and continues to move forward. Thank you for all you do: truly, we will probably never know how many lives are changed by it!
Sunday, November 30, 2008
Michael
We lost a good friend recently at Gospel Mission. Michael Thompson is referred to as the "oldest member" at Gospel Mission -- had been coming, if I heard Barry right -- for over 30 years. Considering he was barely into his 50s, that means he'd been on the Downtown East Side since he was a teenager. That is, sadly, par for the course with a lot of people there: there may be a few transients in the area, but many of them have spent the better part of their lives surrounded by the drugs and the violence.
Michael was just there. I believe he loved the Lord, although as I write this, I hear the echo of a Pentecostal minister who, when I wanted to share with him about Rusty Campbell, who was murdered in spring of 2007, and referred to him as "drunk as a skunk most of the time,", declared, "then he couldn't have loved the Lord!" You really can't debate that one. But as for Michael, the poems he wrote and are shared on the Gospel Mission website leave no doubt.
When I knew him, he was going through serious issues as the drugs continued to ring up their toll on his life. Many others were closer to Michael -- Amelia, for instance, refers to him as "a gentle soul" -- and gave freely of their time and love and encouragement. Michael wanted to be free of the demons, and for sure, there was one Wednesday evening earlier this year, after Bible study, when Barry started casting the demons out and Michael wound up flat on his back, mumbling in tongues.
But the physical toll continued to build. He wound up spending many weeks in hospital, unable to recognize anyone, and with his clothes hidden away, lest he decide to "check himself out". Barry and Janet went up to visit him often, praying over him mostly; God moved on Michael's life, by getting him into an assisted-living facility, and in September, Michael was well enough to come to Bible study a couple of times. His voice was reduced to a mumble and he needed a walker and physical help to get up and down the stairs, but he was lucid and able to recognize most of us.
Last week, we learned that he was dead. In fact, he'd been dead for a month, but the facility apparently didn't have contact information for any of us. His family on Vancouver Island, which had lost track of him over the years, didn't know, either, until they contacted Barry and Barry directed them to the facility. Michael had had a seizure at the end of October, and died a few days later.
It's like that on the Downtown East Side. For whatever reason, people lose track of their lives, and life loses track of them. It's no one's fault -- and God knows everyone of us has reason to beat themselves up for not Being There at the end. But we do know Who was there at the end, and even now, I'm hearing Him telling me that it was the prayer and the ministry that people gave Michael over the years that kept reinforcing the message that Jesus came for him, just as He came for others; ensuring that Michael kept his eyes on the Lord, even as he struggled for his footing in the endless battle with the enemy.
Michael's niece sent the following letter to Barry:
Hello Pastor Barry
Once again let me express my gratitude for being there for my Uncle when we could not. I remember him on many occasions talking about the Mission and look forward to meeting with you.
The poems are wonderful and do indeed allow me to look inside that part of him. I will pass this web site on to the family so they too can see these and download them.
Do you have the originals or were they on the computer?
Anything you can share with us is very much appreciated. You did mention that you had some pictures as well so maybe we can arrange to have copies of those. When Uncle Mike comes to us and we have a celebration for him I will let you know so maybe you will want to write something about him that I can share with the family. I was unsure of what I would do with my father's ashes and I will now wait for Uncle Mike and spread them together. Maybe this is what was to be.
Thank you and I look forward to hearing from you.
Yours Truly
Sheila Thompson
Sheila has asked for some recollections of Michael, and I'll share them here on the blog as they come in.
Michael was just there. I believe he loved the Lord, although as I write this, I hear the echo of a Pentecostal minister who, when I wanted to share with him about Rusty Campbell, who was murdered in spring of 2007, and referred to him as "drunk as a skunk most of the time,", declared, "then he couldn't have loved the Lord!" You really can't debate that one. But as for Michael, the poems he wrote and are shared on the Gospel Mission website leave no doubt.
When I knew him, he was going through serious issues as the drugs continued to ring up their toll on his life. Many others were closer to Michael -- Amelia, for instance, refers to him as "a gentle soul" -- and gave freely of their time and love and encouragement. Michael wanted to be free of the demons, and for sure, there was one Wednesday evening earlier this year, after Bible study, when Barry started casting the demons out and Michael wound up flat on his back, mumbling in tongues.
But the physical toll continued to build. He wound up spending many weeks in hospital, unable to recognize anyone, and with his clothes hidden away, lest he decide to "check himself out". Barry and Janet went up to visit him often, praying over him mostly; God moved on Michael's life, by getting him into an assisted-living facility, and in September, Michael was well enough to come to Bible study a couple of times. His voice was reduced to a mumble and he needed a walker and physical help to get up and down the stairs, but he was lucid and able to recognize most of us.
Last week, we learned that he was dead. In fact, he'd been dead for a month, but the facility apparently didn't have contact information for any of us. His family on Vancouver Island, which had lost track of him over the years, didn't know, either, until they contacted Barry and Barry directed them to the facility. Michael had had a seizure at the end of October, and died a few days later.
It's like that on the Downtown East Side. For whatever reason, people lose track of their lives, and life loses track of them. It's no one's fault -- and God knows everyone of us has reason to beat themselves up for not Being There at the end. But we do know Who was there at the end, and even now, I'm hearing Him telling me that it was the prayer and the ministry that people gave Michael over the years that kept reinforcing the message that Jesus came for him, just as He came for others; ensuring that Michael kept his eyes on the Lord, even as he struggled for his footing in the endless battle with the enemy.
Michael's niece sent the following letter to Barry:
Hello Pastor Barry
Once again let me express my gratitude for being there for my Uncle when we could not. I remember him on many occasions talking about the Mission and look forward to meeting with you.
The poems are wonderful and do indeed allow me to look inside that part of him. I will pass this web site on to the family so they too can see these and download them.
Do you have the originals or were they on the computer?
Anything you can share with us is very much appreciated. You did mention that you had some pictures as well so maybe we can arrange to have copies of those. When Uncle Mike comes to us and we have a celebration for him I will let you know so maybe you will want to write something about him that I can share with the family. I was unsure of what I would do with my father's ashes and I will now wait for Uncle Mike and spread them together. Maybe this is what was to be.
Thank you and I look forward to hearing from you.
Yours Truly
Sheila Thompson
Sheila has asked for some recollections of Michael, and I'll share them here on the blog as they come in.
Saturday, November 8, 2008
The Showers Saga - 13: Don't Take Your Eyes Off The Pillar (original post: Feb. 25/08)
I had to listen to the voice mail from Barry four times before I finally understood what he'd said.
He was calling on his cell phone from SkyTrain, which is two strikes against any phone call, and I could have sworn he'd said "the shower ministry got broken into". Four times of listening to it didn't change it. That's exactly what he said.
Truth to tell ... it wasn't broken into. Someone walked in through the door that I thought I'd locked, after showing an out of town guest around the project on Sunday afternoon. They walked out with a bunch of tools, a bag of brass fittings and two sets of shower fixtures. Evidently, I didn't lock the door when I thought I had.
So now we have to replace the tools that got ripped off and buy more fittings. Not the end of the world, no one got hurt. This would happen the day after I'd preached a sermon on getting to know one's place in the Lord, and went off on a tangent about Mayor Sam and the fact that, by his words, he's "written off" the people on the Downtown East Side, but God has not written them off. Now, I find myself in the midst of a test of how much I believe that, because on the one hand, yes, I'm angry with myself for not locking that blasted door, but I am REALLY DISAPPOINTED in whoever ripped us off! Doesn't he (or she) realize the showers are for him (or her)? Doesn't he (or she) realize this is an expression of the love of Christ for him (or her)?
Of course not, Drew: they're too strung out on drugs to know right from wrong. That's why you and the others are doing this. The change in people will come from within and will take time. If the change had already happened, the showers project wouldn't be necessary.
The Lord never said it would be easy. But He did say He'd be with us, every step of the way.
It is all the more reason for us to press ahead with the showers project: a graphic reminder of whom we are called to serve and the battle we're fighting; a reminder of the importance of showing these people the love of Christ in the face of an "official" society that's written them off.
They need to see that God has not written them off, even though a significant sector of those in authority has bought into the insane theory that giving them a "safe place to shoot up" is the best solution. "Go ahead and kill yourselves! We don't care! (Just don't die at InSite!)"
So we begin by forgiving. The Lord has been showing me whom to forgive: the thief, of course; the people who got him on drugs to begin with; those who buy into the insane philosophy behind InSite; and our society, which has, little by little, grown to condone drug use as it's turned away from those silly absolutes called Right And Wrong.
(One could take a timeline and plot the general out-of-control spiral of our society and pinpoint that the spot where it was kick-started was the spot where the Lord's Prayer was banned from public schools. Of course, that's pure coincidence, right?) Now, it's time to remember how God has brought us through it so far. It's like the Israelites in the wilderness, being reminded (Deuteronomy) how God got them out of Egypt, across the Red Sea, through the wilderness, provided manna and quails and water from a rock.
He was calling on his cell phone from SkyTrain, which is two strikes against any phone call, and I could have sworn he'd said "the shower ministry got broken into". Four times of listening to it didn't change it. That's exactly what he said.
Truth to tell ... it wasn't broken into. Someone walked in through the door that I thought I'd locked, after showing an out of town guest around the project on Sunday afternoon. They walked out with a bunch of tools, a bag of brass fittings and two sets of shower fixtures. Evidently, I didn't lock the door when I thought I had.
So now we have to replace the tools that got ripped off and buy more fittings. Not the end of the world, no one got hurt. This would happen the day after I'd preached a sermon on getting to know one's place in the Lord, and went off on a tangent about Mayor Sam and the fact that, by his words, he's "written off" the people on the Downtown East Side, but God has not written them off. Now, I find myself in the midst of a test of how much I believe that, because on the one hand, yes, I'm angry with myself for not locking that blasted door, but I am REALLY DISAPPOINTED in whoever ripped us off! Doesn't he (or she) realize the showers are for him (or her)? Doesn't he (or she) realize this is an expression of the love of Christ for him (or her)?
Of course not, Drew: they're too strung out on drugs to know right from wrong. That's why you and the others are doing this. The change in people will come from within and will take time. If the change had already happened, the showers project wouldn't be necessary.
The Lord never said it would be easy. But He did say He'd be with us, every step of the way.
It is all the more reason for us to press ahead with the showers project: a graphic reminder of whom we are called to serve and the battle we're fighting; a reminder of the importance of showing these people the love of Christ in the face of an "official" society that's written them off.
They need to see that God has not written them off, even though a significant sector of those in authority has bought into the insane theory that giving them a "safe place to shoot up" is the best solution. "Go ahead and kill yourselves! We don't care! (Just don't die at InSite!)"
So we begin by forgiving. The Lord has been showing me whom to forgive: the thief, of course; the people who got him on drugs to begin with; those who buy into the insane philosophy behind InSite; and our society, which has, little by little, grown to condone drug use as it's turned away from those silly absolutes called Right And Wrong.
(One could take a timeline and plot the general out-of-control spiral of our society and pinpoint that the spot where it was kick-started was the spot where the Lord's Prayer was banned from public schools. Of course, that's pure coincidence, right?) Now, it's time to remember how God has brought us through it so far. It's like the Israelites in the wilderness, being reminded (Deuteronomy) how God got them out of Egypt, across the Red Sea, through the wilderness, provided manna and quails and water from a rock.
So here goes:
- God placed the project on Barry's and my hearts separately and independently
- the project is connected to not one, but two prophecies: Gerry's over Barry, that Gospel Mission/Carrall St Church would expand and reach out to more people; Lee Grady's over me, that God would provide more effective tools to reach the people on the DTES
- Greg the landlord gave us every break imaginable so we could put the project together
- crucial funding that we needed -- and which confirmed the hand of the Lord is on this project for blessing -- came in exactly when we needed it
- the showers have been donated (by Andrew Sheret)
- The Oasis (Gerry's church) sent the work crew to do the job -- brilliant work by carpenters
- two plumbers have stepped up to the plate, both enthusiastic and with "can do" attitudes that pulled us through the early part, when we needed to hear the project could be done
- people with diverse gifts have emerged to contribute in whatever ways they can: Murray and Tim with their building and planning skills; Kathleen with the towels; Diane with a contribution through her company, IKEA; Gord supplying the soap
- God even protected Barry and Brodie when the mob hit happened across the street
- the media have grasped the vision
- the police are onside
- there's a positive buzz on the street among the people
And we give Him the glory for bringing us this far, and for taking us all the way -- wherever that road leads. We just have to keep our eyes on that pillar of fire, leading us through this wilderness.
We need to remember the miracles -- the ways in which God is touching the people at the Mission: people who are hearing from Him, praying for others, giving words of wisdom and/or knowledge ... even just moving closer to the front ... one man came up after the Sunday service, and showed me his Bible, that he's had people at the churches he goes to sign for him ... so proud of it! I'd seen him before, but he'd never come up to talk before ...
That's what's important at times like this: to re-focus on God, how great He is, how much He wants us to succeed ... and blow off the enemy's feeble attempts to beat us.
We must be on the right track, or Satan wouldn't be throwing so many rocks under the wheels. If you're not taking flak, you're not over the target.
Pastor Barry said it best: "they may think they're killing our faith, but they never will".
Amen.
Back to work.
The Showers Saga - 12: more media coverage (original date: Feb. 22/08)
This entry is hereby turned over to my old mate, Al Siebring, who writes a column for NoApologies.ca, reads the newscasts on the NoApologies radio show, and penned (or processed, since I don't think anyone can read his handwriting) this one for the Cowichan Valley Citizen.
I have a .pdf of the article, but by the time it gets posted here, it would be illegible, so here's the text:
A Duncan church group is making a difference in one of Canada’s poorest neighbourhoods. The Oasis Church – the folks who meet out at the Cowichan River Bible Camp every Sunday – have been helping a mission in Vancouver “clean up” the neighbourhood. Quite literally. The story is an example of how networking works. Or maybe it’s about how God uses what some people would call “serendipity.” One of the key figures in this story is an old friend of mine, Drew Snider. Drew and I go back almost 25 years; we worked together at the old CKDA Radio in Victoria back in the 80’s, and then went to work for competing radio stations in Regina, Saskatchewan for a time. Our careers and personal lives have kept crossing paths.
When I moved back to the Valley almost 10 years ago, we reconnected. I found a changed man; someone who had “found God”, was very passionate about his faith, and was attending Pastor Gerry Wall’s Oasis Church. Today, Drew lives on the mainland. His day-job is as a spokesman for TransLink, but his passion is his work as an “evangelist”; he works with the street people on the downtown east side. Specifically, he’s with an organization called the Carrall Street Church – it’s also called the Gospel Mission (as opposed to the better-known “Union Mission”.) The church has been around since the 1920’s, and has operated out of the second floor of a two-storey walk-up on Carrall Street – next to Pigeon Park – since the end of WWII.
In the almost four years since Drew started volunteering there, he noticed that the street people who would show up for dinner were filthy. Not only that, but they were keenly aware of their filthiness. Often, he says, they would head to the laundry tubs in the back of the building, wash themselves with hand soap, and try to dry off with paper towels. That set him to thinking about meeting not just the spiritual, but also some more of the physical needs of that clientele. And then – late last year – one of the tenants on the ground floor of the building moved out. In an amazing confluence of events – I’m sure Drew would tell you this was “the hand of the Lord” – the vacancy happened at around the same time that he had planned to go to New York City to see an old friend.
While he was in the Big Apple, he stopped in to visit “the Bowery Mission”, the third-oldest downtown street mission in the USA. What he saw there inspired him – when he got back to Vancouver – to approach the landlord on Carrall Street about renting the soon-to-be-vacant space on the ground floor. He wanted the spot for a project that has since been labelled “the Lord’s Rain”. The Bowery Mission, you see, has a “showers” program for street people. A place where these folks can come in off the street and get cleaned up – if not in the sense of getting away from the drugs, at least “cleaned up” in a physical sense.
But there was the small matter of finding the money to rent the extra space. And finding the plumbing supplies. And tracking down the expertise to plumb a bunch of showers into the ground floor of a 70-year old building. Once again, enter the power of networking. Or was it “the hand of the Lord”?
About 15 years ago, when he was working at CFAX Radio, Drew emceed the 100th anniversary dinner for Andrew Sheret, the Island-based plumbing company. So he called them. CEO Brian Findlay remembered him, and when Drew explained “the Lord’s Rain” to him, he instantly agreed to donate all the plumbing supplies to the project, along with some of the expertise to get the installation done. And in a final bit of serendipity that’s just too coincidental to be “just coincidence”, Pastor Gerry Wall’s Oasis Church had decided at around the same time late last year – before Drew had even gone to New York – to make a major donation to the Carrall Street Church.
The money? Well, let’s just say the “extra rent” for the space to be occupied by the showers is looked after, at least for the short term. And Pastor Wall and a number of volunteers from the Oasis have been over to Vancouver a number of times on recent weekends, helping to get the shower stalls built.
This is truly an amazing project. And the way the various threads have come together brings to mind an old quote from Benjamin Franklin: “The longer I live, the more convincing proofs I see of this truth, that God governs in the affairs of man.”
The “hand of the Lord”, indeed.
I have a .pdf of the article, but by the time it gets posted here, it would be illegible, so here's the text:
A Duncan church group is making a difference in one of Canada’s poorest neighbourhoods. The Oasis Church – the folks who meet out at the Cowichan River Bible Camp every Sunday – have been helping a mission in Vancouver “clean up” the neighbourhood. Quite literally. The story is an example of how networking works. Or maybe it’s about how God uses what some people would call “serendipity.” One of the key figures in this story is an old friend of mine, Drew Snider. Drew and I go back almost 25 years; we worked together at the old CKDA Radio in Victoria back in the 80’s, and then went to work for competing radio stations in Regina, Saskatchewan for a time. Our careers and personal lives have kept crossing paths.
When I moved back to the Valley almost 10 years ago, we reconnected. I found a changed man; someone who had “found God”, was very passionate about his faith, and was attending Pastor Gerry Wall’s Oasis Church. Today, Drew lives on the mainland. His day-job is as a spokesman for TransLink, but his passion is his work as an “evangelist”; he works with the street people on the downtown east side. Specifically, he’s with an organization called the Carrall Street Church – it’s also called the Gospel Mission (as opposed to the better-known “Union Mission”.) The church has been around since the 1920’s, and has operated out of the second floor of a two-storey walk-up on Carrall Street – next to Pigeon Park – since the end of WWII.
In the almost four years since Drew started volunteering there, he noticed that the street people who would show up for dinner were filthy. Not only that, but they were keenly aware of their filthiness. Often, he says, they would head to the laundry tubs in the back of the building, wash themselves with hand soap, and try to dry off with paper towels. That set him to thinking about meeting not just the spiritual, but also some more of the physical needs of that clientele. And then – late last year – one of the tenants on the ground floor of the building moved out. In an amazing confluence of events – I’m sure Drew would tell you this was “the hand of the Lord” – the vacancy happened at around the same time that he had planned to go to New York City to see an old friend.
While he was in the Big Apple, he stopped in to visit “the Bowery Mission”, the third-oldest downtown street mission in the USA. What he saw there inspired him – when he got back to Vancouver – to approach the landlord on Carrall Street about renting the soon-to-be-vacant space on the ground floor. He wanted the spot for a project that has since been labelled “the Lord’s Rain”. The Bowery Mission, you see, has a “showers” program for street people. A place where these folks can come in off the street and get cleaned up – if not in the sense of getting away from the drugs, at least “cleaned up” in a physical sense.
But there was the small matter of finding the money to rent the extra space. And finding the plumbing supplies. And tracking down the expertise to plumb a bunch of showers into the ground floor of a 70-year old building. Once again, enter the power of networking. Or was it “the hand of the Lord”?
About 15 years ago, when he was working at CFAX Radio, Drew emceed the 100th anniversary dinner for Andrew Sheret, the Island-based plumbing company. So he called them. CEO Brian Findlay remembered him, and when Drew explained “the Lord’s Rain” to him, he instantly agreed to donate all the plumbing supplies to the project, along with some of the expertise to get the installation done. And in a final bit of serendipity that’s just too coincidental to be “just coincidence”, Pastor Gerry Wall’s Oasis Church had decided at around the same time late last year – before Drew had even gone to New York – to make a major donation to the Carrall Street Church.
The money? Well, let’s just say the “extra rent” for the space to be occupied by the showers is looked after, at least for the short term. And Pastor Wall and a number of volunteers from the Oasis have been over to Vancouver a number of times on recent weekends, helping to get the shower stalls built.
This is truly an amazing project. And the way the various threads have come together brings to mind an old quote from Benjamin Franklin: “The longer I live, the more convincing proofs I see of this truth, that God governs in the affairs of man.”
The “hand of the Lord”, indeed.
Friday, October 10, 2008
God does not give up (originally posted Feb 19/08)
Last night, the Lord took me to a piece of Scripture, proving the point of yesterday's entry: that He does not give up on people, no matter what they've done.
He always leaves the door open for us to come back to Him. In Judges 2, we read how the Israelites have disobeyed God, specifically by failing to drive out the nations that were living in the Promised Land. God is so grieved by this, He sends not a prophet, but an angel to tell them to smarten up. But after the death of Joshua, the Israelites fall away again, and God then raises up judges to keep watch over them
... And when the LORD raised them up judges, then the LORD was with the judge, and delivered them out of the hand of their enemies all the days of the judge: for it repented the LORD because of their groanings by reason of them that oppressed them and vexed them. (Judges 2:18)
Matt. 8:16 ... and He ... healed all that were sick .... Acts 5:16 There came also a multitude out of the cities round about unto Jerusalem, bringing sick folks, and them which were vexed with unclean spirits: and they were healed every one.
Don't you love Bible journeys? They remind you of the goodness of God and His glory and His desire for all of us to have every good thing. His intention is for people to be healed, no matter what they've done in the past, nor really what the state of their particular walk with Him might be at the time. (That's how He healed my back after 26 years, and it was a miracle that truly "got my attention" -- reflecting on Kenneth Copeland's remark that God doesn't do miracles to make you believe, He does miracles to get your attention -- I was still having my struggle with believing Him and His promise and whether I was worthy, and He settled the matter.)
This all reflects back to yesterday's post, built around the quote from Mayor Sam, in which he says that, for the same reason that getting out of his wheelchair is "not going to happen", drug addicts can never be clean. O h yes, they can -- because even though The World (or at least, the Mayor of Vancouver) has written these people off, God is just getting started. The door is always open. We just have to push.
2 Chr. 7:14 If My people, which are called by My name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.
The Emperor's New Clothes - And The Mayor's True Colors (originally posted Feb 18/08)
If you dig back to one of the very first entries on this blog, you'll find a little mini-rant about the (in)effectiveness of Vancouver's "safe" injection site (dubbed "InSite" in deference to the play on words and of course, the 21st Century penchant for words with capital letters in the middle).
Put succinctly, THEY DON'T WORK -- unless, of course, their purpose is to let drug addicts die, and decrease the surplus population. The InSite supporters, in a lovely bit of Orwellianism, have defined their own success: no one has actually overdosed and/or died in the facility itself. To my mind -- having hung with some people this morning who were smoking crack outside the showers facility -- the measure of success of any program to deal with drug addicts is whether they get off the drugs, not whether they don't die on the facility property.
But there are some areas where you can set your own "industry standard" after the fact. Not long after I posted that entry, I said something similar in an interview on OMNI 10 TV. So far, I have not awakened to find a horse's head in my bed, courtesy InSite (perhaps another part of the anatomy would be more appropriate). One must admit ... it's a little like the kid in The Emperor's New Clothes ... everyone has been conditioned to believe that InSite is the answer to the drug problem -- harm reduction, in other words, ignoring the Hippocratic oath to "do no harm", not "do less harm than something else might" -- so anyone who says that InSite is NOT the answer is immediately suspected of standing in the way of a perfectly good ... well ... theory.
The latest development in this saga comes from Dan Rather. He Who Took Over Walter's Chair was in Vancouver recently, doing a documentary on the DTES, and InSite in particular. According to the Vancouver Sun, Mayor Sam Sullivan -- billed as "the first quadriplegic mayor of a major world city" -- is interviewed. According to Glenn Bohn's article in the Sun ... "I have talked to many people with drug addictions, and they all want to be healthy," says the mayor, who has confirmed that, before he was mayor, he bought heroin for a female prostitute and bought crack for a man and allowed the user to smoke the crack in Sullivan's van.
"They all want to be clean," the mayor says. "I tell you: I do not want to be a quadriplegic. I would do anything to stand up, but that's not gonna happen. That's not my life. So, I need help managing my disability, just like those people with drug addictions need help managing their disability." (Italics are mine.)
Excuse me? Mayor Sam, suggesting it's just as likely for someone to recover from drug addiction as it is for him to get up out of his wheelchair? Well, he's right ... but not in the way he thinks. The translation of the above statement? Drug addicts can forget about ever recovering. Drug addicts: THE MAYOR OF VANCOUVER HAS WRITTEN YOU OFF! He's given up on them. No sense trying to heal them of their addiction: just help them "manage" it.
Help them "manage" going through life as zombies, because they made a wrong turn somewhere.
Help them "manage" being the detritus of society, because no one wants to get down and dirty and tackle the real problem. Help them "manage" being shifted from lousy hotel to shelter to the streets to some other community where they won't be a liability to a world class city on the international stage. But recover? Get over the addiction? Not as far as Sam's concerned.
AND GOD SAID, "I HAVE NOT GIVEN UP ON YOU! MY SON DID NOT GIVE UP ON YOU, AND WILL NOT GIVE UP ON YOU AS LONG AS THERE IS A HEAVEN AND EARTH AND THE SUN AND THE STARS! MY SON TOOK THE LASHES SO THAT YOU COULD BE HEALED! "
And what is Sam saying? "Ehh ... Jesus was wasting His time ..."
?
God can heal addictions ... and does heal addictions ... and has healed addictions. The trick is to shut up the people who are being the instruments of Satan, parrotting the line that the addicts can't be healed, and to get enough people to tell them that they can be healed and they deserve to be healed and God wants them healed. That was true 2000 years ago and it's true today.
This brings us to the irony of Mayor Sam's statement, likening their addiction to his affliction. What happened at the Beautiful Gate when Peter and John met the lame man? Peter said, "In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk!" And what happened then? So indeed: Mayor Sam's disability is just as heal-able as drug addiction. All he needs to do is reach up and expect to receive something. Hmm ...
The Showers Saga - 11: Gunfight at Pigeon Park (originally posted Feb 16/08)
The CKNW "Breaking News" alert came in on my BlackBerry at 9:25 Friday night: "A man has been shot and killed across from Pigeon Park in the Downtown East Side. Vancouver Police say the man was shot while sitting in his van."
It's Murder #6 of 2008 for the City of Vancouver alone. That's a murder a week, if you're scoring at home. If you include the homicides in the rest of Metro Vancouver and go back over the past 12 months, rather than just since Jan. 1, people are offing one another at an alarming rate in this region. There is no consolation in Bugsy Siegel's famous remark, "we only kill each other": one of the more shocking massacres included two innocent bystanders, either caught in the overall hail of bullets or taken out -- along with the four "targets" -- because they were witnesses. It's no consolation, either, to say, "well, one fewer drug dealer out there". The victim was "known to police", but they "know" a lot of people out there, and because the drug trade is so lucrative, they will get to "know" a lot more.
The "hit" took place as Barry and Brodie were working on the plumbing for The Lord's Rain. They'd just finished running the 1" pipe from the outside (evidently, they finally found the right spot after jackhammering through the century-old concrete), and were back inside when they heard the sirens. At first, they thought it had been an accident, then went outside to see yellow tape all over the place, the area crawling with rozzers, and Brodie's van -- with his tools -- caught inside. Work was suspended for the evening.
Further sign of God's Hand on the project for blessing: Brodie and Barry had already finished the outside work when the shooting happened. Brodie was not at his own van -- which was parked right behind the van the victim was sitting in (see above) -- getting tools when it happened. Shaughnessy, South Granville, The Drive, any Vietnamese restaurant after 3 am ... why shouldn't our little parish -- the DTES -- have a franchise in the MML (Murder & Mayhem League)?
All the more reason why we need The Lord's Rain to remind the people who live there that they are not forgotten and deserted because of the perception of violence.
We're still there, guys. God is still there.
The Showers Saga 10 - It's Groundhog Day! (originally posted Feb 5/08)
Sadly, there are no Biblical references to groundhogs, so really no way to make a lame tie-in between the latest work party and the fact that it happened on Feb. 2.
(There are Biblical refs to badgers -- as in the kind of skins required in the building of Moses' tabernacle -- but that's as close as it gets. But as we know ... WE DON'T NEED NO STINKING BADGERS!)
But I digress ... The Oasis gang returned this past Saturday: a much smaller work party than the week before, and, supplemented with Murray Scott, they got the fourth shower stall set up, the showers dry-fitted and the plumbing roughed-in.
Gerry Wall stayed home this time, but Brandon came, and told us how his dad decided to cancel last Sunday's sermon because 15 guys from the work party got up to testify about what working on the showers -- and being on the Downtown East Side -- meant to them. This past Sunday, it was Murray's turn to give the announcements and receive the offering, and he gave testimony. This is obviously about more than providing showers for street people. And yet that whole concept brings hope to the area. People at the Mission are asking, When will it be open? Still don't have an answer yet, but people can see that something is happening and it's going to be a good thing for them.
The really good thing, of course, is that people coming into The Lord's Rain will feel something besides hot water and clean skin: the love of Christ. That's the motivating factor behind all of this. It's not the "do-gooder" mentality that burns brightly on high and then disintegrates when it gets closer to the earth; it's something that keeps burning through the worst circumstances and spreads as others catch the same vision. Whether the others catching the vision are those working on the project or those benefitting from it, the underlying theme -- the love of Christ -- is the fundamental factor.
The police like the idea, by the way: I spoke with the Inspector in charge of neighbourhood policing in that zone -- Insp. Cam Murdock, VPD -- and he thinks it's a great idea. He's given some good insights into security and means of preventing the place from turning into a "shooting gallery". One method is to install lighting of a particular color that makes it impossible to see one's veins. (There's a Petro-Canada station near my place, where the restrooms have some kind of funky black-light action: I assume that's what it's for.)
Unfortunately, when I asked what kind of lighting would be best, he suggested I call InSite, the "safe injection site" (or, more truthfully, the human rejection site) on the Downtown East Side. I opined that they probably wouldn't like me too much, since I made some rather pointed comments about the operation in a TV interview last month. Simply put, the comment was: there are still people shooting up in alleys and wandering around like zombies on the streets because of drugs; don't tell me the operation is "working" because no one has OD'd or died on the premises. Rather like the little kid saying, "The emperor has no clothes!"
Anyway, Cam agreed they probably didn't like the truth, and said he'd look into it. I don't know why InSite would know what kind of lighting would prevent a place from becoming a shooting gallery: InSite is a shooting gallery. It may carry the cachet of a medically supervised safe injection location, but it passes the "duck test" for a shooting gallery -- walks like, quacks like, therefore it is. (Cvacio, ergo sum, is probably how Descartes would have put it. If he'd been a duck. But that's probably a canard.) THANK YOU! I'LL BE HERE ALL WEEK!
OK ... enough of this ... more work to come ... more photos coming on this site as well.
The Showers Saga - 9 (originally posted Jan 27/08)
331-327 Carrall Street will never look the same.
As Pastor Barry says, "we like to change our approach every 80 years or so", and so on Saturday (the 26th), a swarm of constructive locusts descended on our new location. Kathleen and James had begun the operation the Saturday prior, ripping out the pony wall back near the toilet area and disconnecting the old hot water tank. Yesterday, the gang from The Oasis arrived from Duncan around 8:45 and went to work. See, wouldn't we just have to be associated with a church, where the Senior Pastor (Gerry Wall) is a carpenter and the population of males is made up of young men eager to learn trades?
In building the addition for the church at the Cowichan River Bible Camp back in '02 (my contribution: barking one log for a column on the new entranceway), Gerry got these young men turned on to marketable skills, like carpentry, electrical, plumbing, etc. He also got the others turned on to such crazy concepts as working as a team, following instructions and GETTING THE JOB DONE. Add to them Tim and Gord from Coast Mountain, Murray from Westpointe (as in Murray Scott Construction), Kathleen and Carolin with their cooking, Janet and Amelia with the cookies and coffee, and showers from Andrew Sheret, and you now have a space that actually looks like a space!
Global TV was there, as well ... The reporter, Jennifer Palma, is very sharp and asked some very good questions ... got some good clips in of Gerry and Brandon Wall ... evidently she has a Catholic upbringing, because she kept referring to the people who go to Gospel Mission as "the parishioners" ... why not?
We also had a rather serendipitous encounter with the crew from "ListenUp", a TV series aimed at non-believers. They were doing something else on the DTES and Brandon recognized host Lorna Dueck. Since I'd printed up a bunch of fact sheets about The Lord's Rain, I gave her one, and she's passing it on to her producers for a future segment.
The Apostle Paul's writings about many members of the one Body of Christ also apply to any human endeavour: people of various anointings come together to give the Word of God substance.
It's been obvious from the start -- check back through the previous installments in The Shower Saga -- that this project has the Hand of God firmly on it for blessing, and as we so many people with so many varied gifts working to make it happen.
One of the things that delighted one during the work blitz was the lack of competitiveness. We had some highly skilled people on the scene, and I'd say at least four could each have taken the lead and tried to run things. Yet they all submitted to one another. A lot of the time, Brandon took the lead ... and the others listened, stepping up now and again when they felt they could contribute.
I felt a little useless and in the way ... but only a little. At that point, my main duty was to talk to any reporters who came along. That was perfectly fine: that's What I Do. I have a hard time hammering anything straight, and if I'd attempted something with the electrical, most of BC would be operating by candle-light now! So I do what I do ... and the others do what they do.
A new God-send in this project is Bill from Hillcrest Plumbing and Heating. Our friends at Andrew Sheret had offered to work with our plumbers, and when we had a problem getting a senior plumber to pull the permit we need, I contacted Brian, the president of Sheret; one of his managers quickly rounded up Bill, and Bill came down to the Mission on Saturday to look the project over and give advice.
And so we press on. We'll have to set up another work party to build that last stall ... then comes the plumbing and the permits (not necessarily in that order) ... hook up the water heater ... and let the people bathe!
As Pastor Barry says, "we like to change our approach every 80 years or so", and so on Saturday (the 26th), a swarm of constructive locusts descended on our new location. Kathleen and James had begun the operation the Saturday prior, ripping out the pony wall back near the toilet area and disconnecting the old hot water tank. Yesterday, the gang from The Oasis arrived from Duncan around 8:45 and went to work. See, wouldn't we just have to be associated with a church, where the Senior Pastor (Gerry Wall) is a carpenter and the population of males is made up of young men eager to learn trades?
In building the addition for the church at the Cowichan River Bible Camp back in '02 (my contribution: barking one log for a column on the new entranceway), Gerry got these young men turned on to marketable skills, like carpentry, electrical, plumbing, etc. He also got the others turned on to such crazy concepts as working as a team, following instructions and GETTING THE JOB DONE. Add to them Tim and Gord from Coast Mountain, Murray from Westpointe (as in Murray Scott Construction), Kathleen and Carolin with their cooking, Janet and Amelia with the cookies and coffee, and showers from Andrew Sheret, and you now have a space that actually looks like a space!
Global TV was there, as well ... The reporter, Jennifer Palma, is very sharp and asked some very good questions ... got some good clips in of Gerry and Brandon Wall ... evidently she has a Catholic upbringing, because she kept referring to the people who go to Gospel Mission as "the parishioners" ... why not?
We also had a rather serendipitous encounter with the crew from "ListenUp", a TV series aimed at non-believers. They were doing something else on the DTES and Brandon recognized host Lorna Dueck. Since I'd printed up a bunch of fact sheets about The Lord's Rain, I gave her one, and she's passing it on to her producers for a future segment.
The Apostle Paul's writings about many members of the one Body of Christ also apply to any human endeavour: people of various anointings come together to give the Word of God substance.
It's been obvious from the start -- check back through the previous installments in The Shower Saga -- that this project has the Hand of God firmly on it for blessing, and as we so many people with so many varied gifts working to make it happen.
One of the things that delighted one during the work blitz was the lack of competitiveness. We had some highly skilled people on the scene, and I'd say at least four could each have taken the lead and tried to run things. Yet they all submitted to one another. A lot of the time, Brandon took the lead ... and the others listened, stepping up now and again when they felt they could contribute.
I felt a little useless and in the way ... but only a little. At that point, my main duty was to talk to any reporters who came along. That was perfectly fine: that's What I Do. I have a hard time hammering anything straight, and if I'd attempted something with the electrical, most of BC would be operating by candle-light now! So I do what I do ... and the others do what they do.
A new God-send in this project is Bill from Hillcrest Plumbing and Heating. Our friends at Andrew Sheret had offered to work with our plumbers, and when we had a problem getting a senior plumber to pull the permit we need, I contacted Brian, the president of Sheret; one of his managers quickly rounded up Bill, and Bill came down to the Mission on Saturday to look the project over and give advice.
And so we press on. We'll have to set up another work party to build that last stall ... then comes the plumbing and the permits (not necessarily in that order) ... hook up the water heater ... and let the people bathe!
The Showers Saga - 8 (originally posted Jan 8/08)
Wow ... 9 days since the last post! Now, THAT's restraint! Just back from the CBC, and a radio interview with Rick Cluff on "Early Edition". Praise the Lord for the air time, for a nice, laid-back interview, and for the courage to point out, when Rick implied that I was a "Bright Light" -- which is the name of that Monday 6:50 AM segment, on People Who Make A Difference -- that the real "bright light" is Christ, motivating those of us who work on the DTES. Also for remembering to mention Andrew Sheret and Pastor Barry and The Oasis etc. etc. Let's pray for a flood (shower) of donations from people who heard this.
The Vancouver Courier ran a very good feature in its Jan. 11 issue; Cheryl Rossi even checked through this blog to get some background I didn't provide her (like, that there was prophecy involved).
(Text): A Downtown Eastside mission that aims to immerse visitors in love and hope will so
on be providing "the Lord's Rain" to the needy.
When Drew Snider started ministry work at a Downtown Eastside mission in 2004, he noticed how dirty its visitors were. When he moved to the Gospel (not Union) Mission last year, he saw visitors flock to its laundry tubs to clean up. Some washed their matted hair with hand soap and dried their locks with paper towels.
Their predicament weighed on him.
In September, a guest speaker--whom he referred to as a prophet, at his church, Westpointe Christian Centre, informed him God would send him on a journey and that he would gain new ideas about ministering.
Shortly after, while visiting an old friend in New York, Snider, who's usually in the news for his role as spokesperson for TransLink, visited that city's second oldest mission, saw its shower program and was inspired to set something similar up in Vancouver.
The Gospel Mission, also known as the Carrall Street Church, has run from the second floor of a two-storey walkup on Carrall Street next to Pigeon Park since the 1940s, and has operated since the '20s.
The Apostolic Church of Pentecost of Canada funds the mission, which serves dinner to visitors four nights a week after a period of prayer, worship music and a sermon. "There are missions in the area that serve food primarily," Snider said. "Our main function is as a church... so a lot of what we do is feed the soul."
When Gospel Mission's senior pastor, Barry Babcook, told Snider in November that the Anti-Poverty Committee was moving out of a ground floor space in the same building, Snider told Babcook about his shower idea.
Babcook talked to the landlord, the son of the man the mission first rented from 60 years ago, who agreed to give them until Nov. 22 to devise a plan and come up with the money to back it.
Two days before the deadline, the Oasis Church in Duncan, which Snider once attended, made a large one-time donation to the project and pledged monthly contributions.
A man who attends his West Point Grey church pledged an even larger upfront donation and promised more to come.
The mission will establish four portable shower stalls so it doesn't have to alter the historic building. The facility, dubbed The Lord's Rain, will be in the back with a sitting room in the front.
The mission plans to open the showers to the general public from 7 to 8:30 a.m. three days a week with three volunteers on site.
The facility will be co-ed with a female volunteer in attendance.
Visitors can take a shower and stay for a cup of coffee.
Andrew Sheret Ltd. has agreed to donate four showers. Two plumbers who were "saved" off the street will install them. The mission hopes to have the showers running in February.
It's seeking donations for operations. Snider said 30 donations of $50 a month would suffice.
For information, visit www.gospelmission.net or call 604-737-7337.
We also going to be featured on "The Standard" on OMNI 10, Tuesday (Jan. 15) night at 9. That's in the broader context of What To Do About The Downtown East Side, and it gave me a bit of a chance to do my "Emperor Has No Clothes" rant about "safe" injection sites. Now, we'll wait for other media to get with this.
The Vancouver Courier ran a very good feature in its Jan. 11 issue; Cheryl Rossi even checked through this blog to get some background I didn't provide her (like, that there was prophecy involved).
(Text): A Downtown Eastside mission that aims to immerse visitors in love and hope will so
on be providing "the Lord's Rain" to the needy.
When Drew Snider started ministry work at a Downtown Eastside mission in 2004, he noticed how dirty its visitors were. When he moved to the Gospel (not Union) Mission last year, he saw visitors flock to its laundry tubs to clean up. Some washed their matted hair with hand soap and dried their locks with paper towels.
Their predicament weighed on him.
In September, a guest speaker--whom he referred to as a prophet, at his church, Westpointe Christian Centre, informed him God would send him on a journey and that he would gain new ideas about ministering.
Shortly after, while visiting an old friend in New York, Snider, who's usually in the news for his role as spokesperson for TransLink, visited that city's second oldest mission, saw its shower program and was inspired to set something similar up in Vancouver.
The Gospel Mission, also known as the Carrall Street Church, has run from the second floor of a two-storey walkup on Carrall Street next to Pigeon Park since the 1940s, and has operated since the '20s.
The Apostolic Church of Pentecost of Canada funds the mission, which serves dinner to visitors four nights a week after a period of prayer, worship music and a sermon. "There are missions in the area that serve food primarily," Snider said. "Our main function is as a church... so a lot of what we do is feed the soul."
When Gospel Mission's senior pastor, Barry Babcook, told Snider in November that the Anti-Poverty Committee was moving out of a ground floor space in the same building, Snider told Babcook about his shower idea.
Babcook talked to the landlord, the son of the man the mission first rented from 60 years ago, who agreed to give them until Nov. 22 to devise a plan and come up with the money to back it.
Two days before the deadline, the Oasis Church in Duncan, which Snider once attended, made a large one-time donation to the project and pledged monthly contributions.
A man who attends his West Point Grey church pledged an even larger upfront donation and promised more to come.
The mission will establish four portable shower stalls so it doesn't have to alter the historic building. The facility, dubbed The Lord's Rain, will be in the back with a sitting room in the front.
The mission plans to open the showers to the general public from 7 to 8:30 a.m. three days a week with three volunteers on site.
The facility will be co-ed with a female volunteer in attendance.
Visitors can take a shower and stay for a cup of coffee.
Andrew Sheret Ltd. has agreed to donate four showers. Two plumbers who were "saved" off the street will install them. The mission hopes to have the showers running in February.
It's seeking donations for operations. Snider said 30 donations of $50 a month would suffice.
For information, visit www.gospelmission.net or call 604-737-7337.
We also going to be featured on "The Standard" on OMNI 10, Tuesday (Jan. 15) night at 9. That's in the broader context of What To Do About The Downtown East Side, and it gave me a bit of a chance to do my "Emperor Has No Clothes" rant about "safe" injection sites. Now, we'll wait for other media to get with this.
The Showers Saga - 7
A comment to the previous post from Catalonia, Spain, indicates people are starting to read this. Well, some are, anyway. So I'd like to draw your attention to a series of posts, most of which are now stored under "older posts" linked at the bottom of the first page. The series is titled "The Showers Project" (new working title for the actual project: "The Lord's Rain"), and relates to a project we've undertaken at Gospel (not Union Gospel) Mission here in Vancouver. Rather than re-post all of those, I'd just like to invite you to dig in and read them over.
A Word From The Lord: 2008 - the year of Healing
The following is a Word from the Lord, received in early December, and relayed to the people at Carrall Street Church/Gospel Mission Dec. 29, 2008.
Up until now, it has seemed like the lives of My people on the Downtown East Side -- all those in poverty in cities -- have been out of their control. Poverty has them in bondage on one hand -- politicians use them as bargaining chips on the other -- people in social service functions, including missions, seem like they get no help at all.
But I am here. I never change.
My only agenda is the wellbeing of My people. My will is for the yoke sitting on My people to be destroyed. As I told My servant, Isaiah, "it shall come to pass in that day, that his burden shall be taken away from off thy shoulder, and his yoke from off thy neck, and the yoke shall be destroyed because of the anointing."
The yoke is poverty ... addiction ... alcohol ... despair ... the lie that there is nothing better; the belief that survival depends on lying and cheating and stealing and conning people ... the lie that you're not worthy. To Me, you are all worthy!
Come to Me -- receive My Son as your Lord and Saviour -- let Us knock off the rough edges and smooth things out and turn you into the image I had of you since before I created anything. The key to it is your healing, and 2008 will be the year that you shall be healed. To do that, you must come to Me ... you must be active to receive what I have for you. Turn to Me and the yoke of sickness will be destroyed -- crushed to powder.
Turn to Me and you will walk in a power and authority far greater than any drugs or anything else that's had a hold on your life. Turn to Me and the control the politicians and activists and social workers and drug dealers have had on your lives will be wrested away. Turn that control over to Me and let Me take it from here. I am the Lord Who Heals ... I want to heal you as no one else can.
In 2008, hand me that control, and I will take you places you couldn't even imagine in your present state. Have you had hard times?
Have you been beating yourself up, saying you deserved it?
Turn to Me, because I have already forgotten it. Turn to Me and you can leave that in the past where it belongs.
I can heal you of bad memories just as surely as I can heal you of a cold.
I can heal you of a broken heart: bring your broken hearts to Me and let Me comfort you and mend you.
Up until now, it has seemed like the lives of My people on the Downtown East Side -- all those in poverty in cities -- have been out of their control. Poverty has them in bondage on one hand -- politicians use them as bargaining chips on the other -- people in social service functions, including missions, seem like they get no help at all.
But I am here. I never change.
My only agenda is the wellbeing of My people. My will is for the yoke sitting on My people to be destroyed. As I told My servant, Isaiah, "it shall come to pass in that day, that his burden shall be taken away from off thy shoulder, and his yoke from off thy neck, and the yoke shall be destroyed because of the anointing."
The yoke is poverty ... addiction ... alcohol ... despair ... the lie that there is nothing better; the belief that survival depends on lying and cheating and stealing and conning people ... the lie that you're not worthy. To Me, you are all worthy!
Come to Me -- receive My Son as your Lord and Saviour -- let Us knock off the rough edges and smooth things out and turn you into the image I had of you since before I created anything. The key to it is your healing, and 2008 will be the year that you shall be healed. To do that, you must come to Me ... you must be active to receive what I have for you. Turn to Me and the yoke of sickness will be destroyed -- crushed to powder.
Turn to Me and you will walk in a power and authority far greater than any drugs or anything else that's had a hold on your life. Turn to Me and the control the politicians and activists and social workers and drug dealers have had on your lives will be wrested away. Turn that control over to Me and let Me take it from here. I am the Lord Who Heals ... I want to heal you as no one else can.
In 2008, hand me that control, and I will take you places you couldn't even imagine in your present state. Have you had hard times?
Have you been beating yourself up, saying you deserved it?
Turn to Me, because I have already forgotten it. Turn to Me and you can leave that in the past where it belongs.
I can heal you of bad memories just as surely as I can heal you of a cold.
I can heal you of a broken heart: bring your broken hearts to Me and let Me comfort you and mend you.
The Shower Saga - 6 (originally posted Dec 31/07)
Went on Wilf Ray's program last night on "Unforgettable" AM600, promoting "The Lord's Rain". I was supposed to go on at 10:30, but a previous interview ran long, so I didn't get on until a little bit after 11. Gave as concise a capsule about the project as I could, and made sure my phone number got Out There at least 3 times, so we'll see where this goes.
Wilf cautioned that his show loses a lot of people every quarter-hour, but maybe a few heard it and will be inspired.
Nothing much else has been happening over Christmas, although a young man who was saved at Street Church, is now an apprentice plumber, and is a friend -- spiritual son -- of Kathy McPhillips' may be coming on-board. He'd learn a lot from Brodie, the plumber who was saved at Gospel Mission; also, his father is a qualified plumber, who could help us get the necessary permit from City Hall.
Brodie is only certified to pull permits for gas-fitting, not plumbing. We're now heading into the phase of the project that's going to stretch me: actually building it. It entails navigating through City Hall, drawing up the plans and developing a timeline. Suddenly, raising the funds is looking incredibly easy.
The Showers Saga - 5 (originally posted Dec 27/07)
If ever we needed proof that the shower project is a necessity on the Downtown East Side, I got it last night, in spades! Jim is one of the regulars at Carrall Street. It's clear that he loves the Lord -- usually has his TV tuned to one of the evangelist shows, like 100 Huntley Street or Benny Hinn -- and keeps his room key on a shoelace around his neck with a "PRAISE 106.5" key fob. And he comes to Carrall Street, regardless of whether we're serving a full meal or just a snack.
But since he had a stroke about 3 years ago, he doesn't communicate well: can barely talk, and his hearing and comprehension have been damaged. On top of that, he broke his collarbone two years ago, and it's never been set properly. One of the broken bones occasionally pokes through the skin, and it causes him no end of pain when that happens. It can really turn your stomach, the first time you see it. My first time was praying over him for something else, and I patted him on the shoulder, nearly launching him into the stratosphere. That's when he pulled the collar of his shirt down and showed me.
There's a long story behind Jim's shoulder, and interestingly, the orthopedic surgeon who has been handling his case believes that doing nothing -- i.e. not trying to repair the clavicle with a bone graft -- is the best option. Removing the entire clavicle is in second place. The doctor is concerned the repair job could break again and get infected. It's counter-intuitive, I know, but I have no doubt about his sincerity -- one thing I've learned at TransLink has been that the best solutions are often counter-intuitive.
ANYWAY ... the bone broke through the skin again and last night, Jim was in a great deal of discomfort. So I took him up to St Paul's Hospital Emergency after our Bible study at Carrall Street. I know about as much of his medical history as anyone, so I go along to do the talking for him. Fortunately, Dr Goetz was on call at the hospital at the time, so he was able to see us personally. But as we waited for him, Jim turned his attention to another medical problem: an array of nasty, itchy sores all over his body. A health worker from the Pender Health Unit had gone to Jim's hotel room last week, and left him with several jars of anti-itching cream. She suspected he had bedbugs, but the place had just been fumigated, so we both looked for some other possible causes. Last night, Jim peeled off his t-shirt and started sorting through it, and sure enough ... the bedbugs were there. He then hunted them down and killed them, but there was no way he was going to put that shirt back on. I gave him mine, and we fired the offending garment into the "destroy" bin, along with discarded needles and other things that can't be washed.
Up till this year, the only exposure I'd had to bedbugs was the little nursery doggerel: "sleep tight/don't let the bedbugs bite", which poses quite a conundrum, since keeping watch against voracious vermin would require constant wakefulness. (Oh, yes ... the other bedbug exposure was the tale of the railway customer in the 19th Century, who had been bitten by bedbugs in a sleeper car, and wrote a scathing letter to the president of the Pullman Company. He received back a letter over the Prez's signature, apologizing profusely for the experience, offering free passage on the next trip, and assuring the customer that steps would be taken to make sure this doesn't happen again. Unfortunately, the original letter had been paper-clipped to the reply, along with a handwritten note on the original, "Send this SOB the bedbug letter". Great Moments In Customer Relations!)
Anyway, between Danilo's battle with the bugs at his SRO hotel, and now Jim's experience, it's evident that these little brutes are nothing to be taken lightly. If people have a clean, safe place to wash up, that can hold down some of the factors leading to outbreaks such as this; and can (for those looking for even more tangible benefits to society) reduce the demand on our health care system. That's why the showers project is needed.
Judging by the way support is coming in, God thinks so, too. The showers project now has a name: "The Lord's Rain". Barry's wife, Judith, suggested "God's Rain", and that witnesses, because I'd been looking for a name that had some kind of Biblical connotation. Rain doesn't get mentioned much in Scripture, aside from the get-the-animals-in-the-ark-Martha*-it's-startin'-ta-pour! kind of rain and the former and latter rain references in the OT prophets, so any direct reference might be lost on people. But "The Lord's Rain" (I think it rolls off the tongue better) has that pun on "reign" (in case you missed it), which makes it -- I think -- a pretty good name.
But since he had a stroke about 3 years ago, he doesn't communicate well: can barely talk, and his hearing and comprehension have been damaged. On top of that, he broke his collarbone two years ago, and it's never been set properly. One of the broken bones occasionally pokes through the skin, and it causes him no end of pain when that happens. It can really turn your stomach, the first time you see it. My first time was praying over him for something else, and I patted him on the shoulder, nearly launching him into the stratosphere. That's when he pulled the collar of his shirt down and showed me.
There's a long story behind Jim's shoulder, and interestingly, the orthopedic surgeon who has been handling his case believes that doing nothing -- i.e. not trying to repair the clavicle with a bone graft -- is the best option. Removing the entire clavicle is in second place. The doctor is concerned the repair job could break again and get infected. It's counter-intuitive, I know, but I have no doubt about his sincerity -- one thing I've learned at TransLink has been that the best solutions are often counter-intuitive.
ANYWAY ... the bone broke through the skin again and last night, Jim was in a great deal of discomfort. So I took him up to St Paul's Hospital Emergency after our Bible study at Carrall Street. I know about as much of his medical history as anyone, so I go along to do the talking for him. Fortunately, Dr Goetz was on call at the hospital at the time, so he was able to see us personally. But as we waited for him, Jim turned his attention to another medical problem: an array of nasty, itchy sores all over his body. A health worker from the Pender Health Unit had gone to Jim's hotel room last week, and left him with several jars of anti-itching cream. She suspected he had bedbugs, but the place had just been fumigated, so we both looked for some other possible causes. Last night, Jim peeled off his t-shirt and started sorting through it, and sure enough ... the bedbugs were there. He then hunted them down and killed them, but there was no way he was going to put that shirt back on. I gave him mine, and we fired the offending garment into the "destroy" bin, along with discarded needles and other things that can't be washed.
Up till this year, the only exposure I'd had to bedbugs was the little nursery doggerel: "sleep tight/don't let the bedbugs bite", which poses quite a conundrum, since keeping watch against voracious vermin would require constant wakefulness. (Oh, yes ... the other bedbug exposure was the tale of the railway customer in the 19th Century, who had been bitten by bedbugs in a sleeper car, and wrote a scathing letter to the president of the Pullman Company. He received back a letter over the Prez's signature, apologizing profusely for the experience, offering free passage on the next trip, and assuring the customer that steps would be taken to make sure this doesn't happen again. Unfortunately, the original letter had been paper-clipped to the reply, along with a handwritten note on the original, "Send this SOB the bedbug letter". Great Moments In Customer Relations!)
Anyway, between Danilo's battle with the bugs at his SRO hotel, and now Jim's experience, it's evident that these little brutes are nothing to be taken lightly. If people have a clean, safe place to wash up, that can hold down some of the factors leading to outbreaks such as this; and can (for those looking for even more tangible benefits to society) reduce the demand on our health care system. That's why the showers project is needed.
Judging by the way support is coming in, God thinks so, too. The showers project now has a name: "The Lord's Rain". Barry's wife, Judith, suggested "God's Rain", and that witnesses, because I'd been looking for a name that had some kind of Biblical connotation. Rain doesn't get mentioned much in Scripture, aside from the get-the-animals-in-the-ark-Martha*-it's-startin'-ta-pour! kind of rain and the former and latter rain references in the OT prophets, so any direct reference might be lost on people. But "The Lord's Rain" (I think it rolls off the tongue better) has that pun on "reign" (in case you missed it), which makes it -- I think -- a pretty good name.
The Showers Saga - 4 (originally posted Dec 21/07)
(Funny ... I thought we were up to more than four ...)
ENORMOUS news earlier this week! Andrew Sheret, Ltd., which has been in business, providing bathrooms to British Columbians, since 1892, is donating the showers we need! Barry and I had been discussing our next moves, and the next pressing need is the showers themselves. So the Lord gave me a nudge, and said, "Andrew Sheret". Of course!
Back in 1992, when I was at CFAX Victoria, I was called on to MC Andrew Sheret's 100th anniversary dinner (http://www.sheret.com). The company struck me as one class act (partly because they paid me for the gig -- something virtually unheard of in Victoria!), and really, you can't stay in business 115 years if you don't have some kind of integrity. I hadn't had any dealings with them since then, but I called their head office in Victoria, wound up talking to the president, Brian Findlay. He remembered me; I emailed him the proposal; he said "yes" without hesitation!
Another brother has stepped up to the plate to provide all the soap and shampoo, and donations of towels are coming in for Kathleen's "Towel Mania" -- she's in charge of organizing that, and she and her son will be pushing that forward, when school goes back in in January.
And we still have to get pledges to cover the operating costs. 30 people pledging $50 a month will do the job, and it's all tax-deductible. They can be sent to Gospel Mission, PO Box 57151, Vancouver, BC V5K 1Z1.
ENORMOUS news earlier this week! Andrew Sheret, Ltd., which has been in business, providing bathrooms to British Columbians, since 1892, is donating the showers we need! Barry and I had been discussing our next moves, and the next pressing need is the showers themselves. So the Lord gave me a nudge, and said, "Andrew Sheret". Of course!
Back in 1992, when I was at CFAX Victoria, I was called on to MC Andrew Sheret's 100th anniversary dinner (http://www.sheret.com). The company struck me as one class act (partly because they paid me for the gig -- something virtually unheard of in Victoria!), and really, you can't stay in business 115 years if you don't have some kind of integrity. I hadn't had any dealings with them since then, but I called their head office in Victoria, wound up talking to the president, Brian Findlay. He remembered me; I emailed him the proposal; he said "yes" without hesitation!
Another brother has stepped up to the plate to provide all the soap and shampoo, and donations of towels are coming in for Kathleen's "Towel Mania" -- she's in charge of organizing that, and she and her son will be pushing that forward, when school goes back in in January.
And we still have to get pledges to cover the operating costs. 30 people pledging $50 a month will do the job, and it's all tax-deductible. They can be sent to Gospel Mission, PO Box 57151, Vancouver, BC V5K 1Z1.
The Showers Saga - 3 (originally posted Dec 16/07)
I did indeed pick up the keys to the ground-floor space below Carrall Street Church (331 Carrall St., Vancouver) yesterday (Saturday the 15th). The whole Story So Far is summed up in "The Shower Saga-1", below, but it's amazing to look at how this went from a "neat idea" to its current point. God has definitely been leading the way and propping us up where needed, and this morning, a piece of Scripture leapt out at me.
And when it was evening, His disciples came to Him, saying, This is a desert place, and the time is now past; send the multitude away, that they may go into the villages, and by themselves victuals. But Jesus said unto them, They need not depart; give ye them to eat. And they say unti Him, We have here but five loaves and two fishes. He said, Bring them hither to me.
-- Matt. 14:15-18
When God tells you to do something, He doesn't tell you to afford it.
How many times have we heard a directive from God to do something, but we've shelved it because we didn't have the resources? Yet, that passage in Matthew tells us that, when Jesus gives us an assignment, we are to take what we do have and hand it over to Him. After all, what came next? Those five loaves and two fishes were converted into a meal for 5,000 men, plus women and children, with twelve baskets full of leftovers.
In fact, the very next thing that happened was that Jesus "gave thanks", and then started handing out the food.
Thanks for what? Not thanks for feeding everybody, because a specific prayer like that, I believe, ties God's hands to what we think we need; but thanks that God is in control and that, so long as we're obedient and walk in His ways, He will provide all our needs according to His riches in glory. And "thanks" before we see the manifestation, because in God's plan, it's already a done deal: we just have to put it in motivation with our faith.
So that's what we've been doing in getting the shower project off the ground. We took the resources we do have and gave them to Jesus; giving thanks that, if God has put this project on our hearts and given us the assignment to carry it out (Jesus, saying "Give ye them to eat"), then He will provide what we need.
One thing to remember here is that, when we take the resources we have and give them to Jesus, those are only the resources that we know about. Sometimes, we forget that in going to Jesus, we're exercising one of the most valuable resources we have: the Lord Himself.
So this is to encourage you that, when you hear from the Lord, or sense that He's put something on your heart to do, don't just blow it off as a "nice idea, but ...": press closer to Him and hand Him the resources you have ... give thanks ... and get ready to start serving the fish!
And when it was evening, His disciples came to Him, saying, This is a desert place, and the time is now past; send the multitude away, that they may go into the villages, and by themselves victuals. But Jesus said unto them, They need not depart; give ye them to eat. And they say unti Him, We have here but five loaves and two fishes. He said, Bring them hither to me.
-- Matt. 14:15-18
When God tells you to do something, He doesn't tell you to afford it.
How many times have we heard a directive from God to do something, but we've shelved it because we didn't have the resources? Yet, that passage in Matthew tells us that, when Jesus gives us an assignment, we are to take what we do have and hand it over to Him. After all, what came next? Those five loaves and two fishes were converted into a meal for 5,000 men, plus women and children, with twelve baskets full of leftovers.
In fact, the very next thing that happened was that Jesus "gave thanks", and then started handing out the food.
Thanks for what? Not thanks for feeding everybody, because a specific prayer like that, I believe, ties God's hands to what we think we need; but thanks that God is in control and that, so long as we're obedient and walk in His ways, He will provide all our needs according to His riches in glory. And "thanks" before we see the manifestation, because in God's plan, it's already a done deal: we just have to put it in motivation with our faith.
So that's what we've been doing in getting the shower project off the ground. We took the resources we do have and gave them to Jesus; giving thanks that, if God has put this project on our hearts and given us the assignment to carry it out (Jesus, saying "Give ye them to eat"), then He will provide what we need.
One thing to remember here is that, when we take the resources we have and give them to Jesus, those are only the resources that we know about. Sometimes, we forget that in going to Jesus, we're exercising one of the most valuable resources we have: the Lord Himself.
So this is to encourage you that, when you hear from the Lord, or sense that He's put something on your heart to do, don't just blow it off as a "nice idea, but ...": press closer to Him and hand Him the resources you have ... give thanks ... and get ready to start serving the fish!
The Showers Saga - 2 (originally posted Dec. 15/07)
Updating you on the Shower Saga (see below) ... today, I hand over the checks to the landlord. By day's end, we will have possession of the space.
Praise the Lord God who provides -- including providing the monthly operating costs (if you'd like to donate, the information is at the bottom of "The Shower Saga - 1").
Praise the Lord God who provides -- including providing the monthly operating costs (if you'd like to donate, the information is at the bottom of "The Shower Saga - 1").
The Showers Saga - 1 (originally posted Dec. 12/07)
One of your agent's ministry activities involves Vancouver's Downtown East Side. Skid Row. Identified by some expert from the United Nations as the WORST location for poverty in the urbanized world, which is pretty scary, considering the competition: New York, East LA, Kolkata.
Maybe it's a bit of hyperbole from someone wanting to contrast the phenomenal wealth which parks its collective bottom just a couple of blocks away in the luxury suites at General Motors Place or is visible from the DTES on the North Shore mountains. Maybe he's trying to wake up the powers that be, as we get ready to preen on the world stage with the 2010 Winter Olympics (am I allowed to use that name without copyright infringement?).
Or maybe he's absolutely right.
Whatever, it ain't pretty, and Gospel Mission (not Union Gospel), which is the oldest mission in Canada (since the 20s), is right bang in the worst postal code in the country. The alley next to our building generally reeks of ... well, it reeks ... people smoke up and shoot up outside the Mission, either in a doorway or in Pigeon Park, a longtime gathering place for the poor and destitute.
These people are victims of a lot of things, including theories. A popular theory among civic officials is that if you give drug addicts a safe, healthy environment in which to do their drugs, that will somehow reduce the harm and therefore solve the problem. I'm not a stupid person, but I'm having a hard time getting my head around the theory, especially as I pick my way around the bald, obvious evidence that IT'S NOT WORKING.
When the federal government wanted to take a second sober look at the concept before approving any more funding, the screeching from the program's proponents (including those who were being paid to run it) was deafening. "The site is working!" they protested, while not exactly stating how they arrived at that conclusion, leaving me feeling a little like John Cleese, when Michael Palin has just told him his cheese shop is the finest in the district: "Explain the reasoning behind that statement!" The closest I've seen to a benchmark for measuring "success" has been the claim that no one had yet died from an overdose at the safe injection site.
Sorry ... my benchmark for any kind of drug program is the number of people who have kicked the habit, and the number of people who no longer shoot up in back alleys or smoke their crack in open view ... not because they've been given a safe, out-of-sight/out-of-mind place to do it, but because THEY'RE NO LONGER ON DRUGS!
So what does this have to do with showers? Surprisingly, a lot. People who come to our "upper room" at 331 Carrall Street have a tendency to be quite dirty. Filthy, in fact. Many try to stay clean by going to our laundry area at the back and washing up at the laundry tub before our services. They live in shelters, long-term, single room hotels or on the streets. Where do they wash up, otherwise?
In late September, I took a trip to New York City. I have a friend there I hadn't seen in almost 30 years, but beyond that reunion, I didn't have much planned. But I had a notion to go and check out the ministries serving the poor and destitute there and see how they did it. That notion got kicked into high gear when I went to a series of meetings at my home church, Westpointe Christian Centre, with Lee Grady, publisher of Charisma magazine.
Lee is a prophet, and invited those in Ministry to come up for a word from the Lord. The word he spoke over me was that God would be sending me on a journey (he had no way of knowing I was about to leave for NYC) and that I would be acquiring a lot of new ideas about ministering to people. He used the image of "axe heads", like the one that Elisha caused to float to the surface in I Kings. Lee prophesied that God would provide me with more and sharper axe heads, which would finally cut through, rather than bounce off.
Among the places I visited in NYC was the Bowery Mission, the second-oldest rescue mission in NYC and third oldest in the US (there's one in Chicago that's in-between the two in NY). Pastor Reggie Stutzmann -- a Pentecostal -- gave me over an hour of his time to show me around the place and share some of the things they do. One of those services is a shower program. Twice a week for men -- and once a week for women -- they open up for people to come in and get a shower and a change of clothes.
Suddenly, I had an "axe head". I brought back others to Vancouver, but this was one worth considering. The problem was, where was the handle?
Gospel Mission occupies the second floor of a two-storey walkup. Its space is very well used, with a commercial kitchen, chapel area, baptismal tank, office, prayer room ... but noplace to put showers. So I let the idea lie fallow for a while, waiting for God to provide the handle.
He did, early in November, when our senior pastor, Barry Babcook, mentioned off-handedly that one of the two ground-floor tenants -- an anti-everything coalition I had dubbed the "rebels without a clue" -- had moved out.
I told Barry about the shower idea, and he told me he'd had the same thing on his heart for years, but it was a matter of space. He called the landlord and the landlord agreed to give us two weeks to come up with a plan -- and money to go with it. I started sending out letters soliciting funds -- which has not been my forte -- and doing a lot of praying.
I've had some good personal success with praying things into existence, and when God has His hand on something, there shouldn't be any doubt that it will happen. Looking at the timing of everything and the landlord's willingness to give us the chance, it was obvious God's hand was on this project, and we just needed to push from our end.
Three days before the self-imposed deadline, Barry called to give some encouragement -- mainly pointing out that when God wants something done, He'll generally wait until the 11th hour, 59th minute.
Two days before the self-imposed deadline, one church -- ironically, one on Vancouver Island where I fellowshipped in the year or so leading up to my going into Ministry -- came through with a large one-time donation and a pledge of monthly contributions, and a gentleman of "some means" who attends my church in Vancouver -- Westpointe Christian Centre -- called to say we could count him in for an even larger up-front donation, with more to come later.
As usual, God pulls off the "grandstand play" with the game on the line!
So as of this writing, we are getting our heads into the fact that this project is a go. More donations are coming in, along with pledges of monthly contributions -- which will be the next big challenge: making sure the operating expenses -- rent, heat, water, etc. -- are covered.
The prophecy Lee Grady spoke isn't the only one involved here, you know: the pastor at that church on Vancouver Island spoke one over Barry a few years back, that Gospel Mission would expand. This shower project gives us a street-level presence that we haven't had since we moved into the Upper Room in the 1940s. There's enough room in that space to do other outreach activities.
For the Lord of Hosts hath purposed, and who shall disannul it? And His hand is stretched out, and who shall turn it back? (Isa. 14:27)
I'll keep you updated.
Want to contribute? You can send a one-time donation, or pledge a monthly amount ($50, say), to Gospel Mission, PO Box 57151, Vancouver BC V5K 1Z1 Canada. Write "Showers" in the memo line on the check.
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