We are beaming this morning after last night's service at Gospel Mission. One of the messages I like to come back to is that anyone can share the Gospel with others - and that the guys (women come to the Mission services, too, but I call them all "guys") are uniquely qualified to witness to other street people, since they do have that shared experience.
This isn't a return to the belief I held for a while, that my own experience was too "white-bread" for people on the DTES to relate to. I finally got rid of that when the Lord reminded me, "you nearly died, and I saved you. That's all that matters. Now tell them about it." No, it's a question of people overcoming any thoughts that you have to have "Rev." in front of your name or a string of letters after it in order to preach the Gospel, but that each and every one of us is "allowed" and empowered to be Jesus' witnesses. His commandment to us in Acts 1:8 is directed at everybody.
Friday nights suddenly came vacant about 6 weeks ago, and we spent some time praying for another "team" to step up. It's a great opportunity for a church from outside the DTES to move into this vital mission field. After all, as I've mentioned before, Jesus' instructions to us in Acts 1:8 are to minister to "Samaria" -- land of the outcasts in our own backyard -- even before we turn our attention to "the uttermost part of the earth". But then Kim, Lincoln, John and Bill, who manage to fill in for me on Saturdays, said, "why don't we do it?" Barry and I prayed about it, and we've decided to try it out for a month.
Last night was Night One of the new team, and listening to Sean -- a fellow Bill brought in from the Salvation Army -- leading Worship, it hit me: this was the start of that "peer ministry" the Lord had put on my heart two years ago. Lincoln led the service, Kim gave a very well-researched message about God's desire for His people to prosper in all ways, Bill and Fred (who was very much involved at Rainbow Mission) made the food.
People were riding a "high" afterwards: they pulled it off, and I'll be interesting to see how far the Lord takes it and where it goes.
(Kim was also riding a high after seeing himself on the cover of the Vancouver Courier, featured in a story about "Free Geek". Check it out.)
***
And amid the hubris, something had to give. Fred had just been to the memorial for a young woman who'd died of an overdose. They were friends: he'd just seen her in a bar, and she told him, "I have to go home now". "You need to stop drinking, is what you need," he said. That evening, he saw the coroner's van outside the hotel where she lived and they were taking out a body. The next day, he found out who it was.
"She was always happy," he said. Can we say with a straight face that someone who was wired to drugs and booze on the Downtown East Side was "happy"? Oddly enough, in this part of town, there's a certain plausibility about that.
It turned out, she was one of four people of the same family who died in the past 10 days. One of them was Bingo, a man who came into The Lord's Rain often -- and sometimes upstairs to Gospel Mission. He was given to wearing colourful ties and keeping himself fairly neat. Apparently, he contracted food poisoning.
Amid the beaming and buzzing from a successful Opening Night for the new Friday "team", something to remind us about the reality of the job we have to do.
***
And another reminder of that reality: arriving this morning at The Lord's Rain, I came down the alley between Cordova and Hastings ... watching the rats darting back and forth (NB - we've had NO rats at Gospel Mission in well over a year: another sign God is protecting this place!) ... and there, in one of the doorways, was a young woman, tying an elastic around her arm, getting ready to shoot heroin. She knew I saw her, but it didn't matter: she was getting fix, and that was all that counted. But about half an hour later, she came into The Lord's Rain for coffee and a bun. At least she had a warm, dry place to come to.
The poor will always be with us, Jesus tells us, which is something we have to keep remembering when we see scenes like that or hear about Bingo and Fred's friend. Jesus didn't say they would be the same poor people. We're kidding ourselves to think we can ever eradicate poverty -- sorry, Bono: we can't make poverty history -- at least, not for the world. But with the Gospel and God's blessing, we can give hope to individuals so that they can make their own personal poverty history. Friday night at Gospel Mission showed us just how possible that can be.
Saturday, December 12, 2009
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Blessings where you can find them
The funny thing about doing ministry in an impoverished area like the Downtown East Side is, it's hard to get "good news" stories Out There. There are some endeavours that almost thrive on bad news -- health and climate change research, for example -- as if people would stop paying attention (and stop giving money) if it looked as though the problem were licked.
Or look at it this way: if a mining company were to explore over and over again and come up snake-eyes over and over again, would you support it? Do you invest in a company that repeatedly reports failure?
So with Gospel Mission and The Lord's Rain, I prefer to tell about success; the blessings that have come raining down on the place: the indisputable signs that God's hand is on both the Mission and the Downtown East Side and encourage people that their money, efforts, supplies and pr
ayers are well-used.
So to that end, let's look at some of the blessings I've seen lately around the Mission. It's a symbiosis, to use a really poncy intellectual term: the ministry blesses people and the people bless us.
Or look at it this way: if a mining company were to explore over and over again and come up snake-eyes over and over again, would you support it? Do you invest in a company that repeatedly reports failure?
So with Gospel Mission and The Lord's Rain, I prefer to tell about success; the blessings that have come raining down on the place: the indisputable signs that God's hand is on both the Mission and the Downtown East Side and encourage people that their money, efforts, supplies and pr
ayers are well-used.So to that end, let's look at some of the blessings I've seen lately around the Mission. It's a symbiosis, to use a really poncy intellectual term: the ministry blesses people and the people bless us.
One of the most palpable is the sense of community at The Lord's Rain. Creating the showers facility has raised ministry to a new level, so that whether people come in for a shower or not, that spirit of permanence and caring brings a new hope and optimism. Conversations range through the Bible, personal issues, current affairs, and really important stuff like the Canucks and the Lions.
Barry
He arrived from the Regina area about six months ago, and it's been easy to remember his name: with the remnants of a mullet, he bears a striking resemblance to Barrie Melrose, the sometime coach of the Los Angeles Kings. Unfailingly polite, a sharp dresser, especially considering he's been moving from shelter to shelter; he brings a measure of class to the Mission. Rather like Chet, who came at the same time as Barry, from the Six Nations Reservation near Ottawa (his is a story that's still unfolding).
Recently, Barry set out to find an agent to kick-start his acting career. Turns out, he did some TV and films in Saskatchewan and decided to try to get similar work in these parts. "It was a choice between getting an apartment and finding an agent, and I went for the agent," he told me.
This past week, he signed on with an agent and went for photo shoots. He certainly has a "look" and the kind of intelligence to work well on a set, so this is, definitely, a sign of hope for him.
Richard
"Have some coffee, Drew: it'll wake ya up!" That's Richard's catch-phrase, and he'll say it whether I've just arrived and haven't tucked into one of Danilo's signature brews (provided as a major blessing from Waves Coffee) or I'm working on my third.
To look at Richard, you could easily label him. He's native, tall and gangly, always wearing a toque (even in the summer), and his herky-jerky motion, whatever he happens to be doing, is a sign of current or former drug over-use. He has a capacity for our pre-mixed coffee (Danilo mixes the sugar and whitener in ahead of time) that is amazing, which almost doubles when he picks up "another cup to take to my ol' lady".
I'm beginning to think that Richard's "ol' lady" is a bit like Duffy on "Duffy's Tavern" or Maris on "Frasier": a character talked-about but never actually seen. Be that as it may, Richard's appearance continually reminds me how wrong you can be if you judge a book by its cover. This past Saturday, I brought in some Christmas cards for the people at the Mission to sign, and I did a double-take at Richard's penmanship.
"You have great handwriting," I said.
"I'm an artist," he replied. Ink and paper is his specialty -- he also carves, but doesn't have any tools at present. I'll take him some paper and pens on Saturday and turn him loose. Maybe -- if he does requests -- I'll get him to do a hummingbird for Amelia. Another native artist on the DTES -- name of Angelo -- did an ink drawing for me of a wolverine. I like wolverines. Amelia said, "why didn't you get a hummingbird?" So now I'm on the lookout for a native artist to do a hummingbird.
Anyway ... Richard's blessing: he'll be getting a room of his own in the "social housing" component of the new Woodward's development. He's really looking forward to it, and rightly so. A lot of the rental housing in the DTES is not noted for the cleanliness or attention to maintenance. What's intriguing is that this is the same Woodward's development that was the target of protests by the rent-a-mobs a few years ago -- indeed, the same ones who formerly occupied the space that is now The Lord's Rain. Go figure.
Kim
I've known Kim for years -- back to the days at Rainbow Mission, in fact -- and seen him grow in the Lord. By that I mean, he's gone from being the guy who showed up just as the message was ending, in time to get the food, to someone who fills in for me giving the message on nights when I'm not there (last time, he and Lincoln took turns). He trained as a cook and started training a few months ago for a service on the Downtown East Side called "Free Geek", which repairs and rebuilds computers and trains people in the area. Recently, he was promoted to a "trainer" position.
Walter
A native from Manitoba, he's heading back to a town near his reserve to work over the winter building cabins. The job takes him closer to his 17-year-old daughter, which means they'll be together for Christmas.
Pete
"Who here has never screwed up?"
I was on a preachin' roll that night. The message was about "belonging" and how we all belong with Jesus and I was heading for Paul's oft-quoted reminder that all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.
"Who here has never screwed up?" Pause for dramatic effect. One hand comes up. It's Pete.
70-something, alcoholic (on and off the wagon), in and out of prison most of his life, Pete was the most miserable sod you'd ever want to meet when I first met him; but in the past year and a half, it seems he's realized there has to be more to life than what he's been going through, and has changed considerably. Lately, he was diagnosed with cancer. He actually laughed when I asked him how he was. "I got cancer!" he said. And now, with exquisite timing that would have made Jack Benny proud, he sticks up his hand at my rhetorical question. We've been praying over him, and I believe his coming closer to God came just at the right time for this new challenge.
Lincoln
From what I know of him, Lincoln has always believed in and always sought God, and lately, he's been finding who he is in the Lord -- and who the Lord is in him. Breakthroughs like that are huge: he now fills in for me when I'm away, either going solo or partnering with Kim.
Shannon & Brannen
I mentioned Shannon in a previous post, in deep conversation with Howard when I arrived at The Lord's Rain one morning: an indication of how people who come to Gospel Mission and The Lord's Rain often counsel one another. This couple are on the methadone treatment program and have a variety of chronic ailments from drug abuse. Recently, Brannen got a job at the hotel where they live; the living accommodations are, by their account, atrocious - mold, leaky roof, underheated - but they're a great example of the blessing of having each other to help face those trials.
Barry
He arrived from the Regina area about six months ago, and it's been easy to remember his name: with the remnants of a mullet, he bears a striking resemblance to Barrie Melrose, the sometime coach of the Los Angeles Kings. Unfailingly polite, a sharp dresser, especially considering he's been moving from shelter to shelter; he brings a measure of class to the Mission. Rather like Chet, who came at the same time as Barry, from the Six Nations Reservation near Ottawa (his is a story that's still unfolding).
Recently, Barry set out to find an agent to kick-start his acting career. Turns out, he did some TV and films in Saskatchewan and decided to try to get similar work in these parts. "It was a choice between getting an apartment and finding an agent, and I went for the agent," he told me.
This past week, he signed on with an agent and went for photo shoots. He certainly has a "look" and the kind of intelligence to work well on a set, so this is, definitely, a sign of hope for him.
Richard
"Have some coffee, Drew: it'll wake ya up!" That's Richard's catch-phrase, and he'll say it whether I've just arrived and haven't tucked into one of Danilo's signature brews (provided as a major blessing from Waves Coffee) or I'm working on my third.
To look at Richard, you could easily label him. He's native, tall and gangly, always wearing a toque (even in the summer), and his herky-jerky motion, whatever he happens to be doing, is a sign of current or former drug over-use. He has a capacity for our pre-mixed coffee (Danilo mixes the sugar and whitener in ahead of time) that is amazing, which almost doubles when he picks up "another cup to take to my ol' lady".
I'm beginning to think that Richard's "ol' lady" is a bit like Duffy on "Duffy's Tavern" or Maris on "Frasier": a character talked-about but never actually seen. Be that as it may, Richard's appearance continually reminds me how wrong you can be if you judge a book by its cover. This past Saturday, I brought in some Christmas cards for the people at the Mission to sign, and I did a double-take at Richard's penmanship.
"You have great handwriting," I said.
"I'm an artist," he replied. Ink and paper is his specialty -- he also carves, but doesn't have any tools at present. I'll take him some paper and pens on Saturday and turn him loose. Maybe -- if he does requests -- I'll get him to do a hummingbird for Amelia. Another native artist on the DTES -- name of Angelo -- did an ink drawing for me of a wolverine. I like wolverines. Amelia said, "why didn't you get a hummingbird?" So now I'm on the lookout for a native artist to do a hummingbird.
Anyway ... Richard's blessing: he'll be getting a room of his own in the "social housing" component of the new Woodward's development. He's really looking forward to it, and rightly so. A lot of the rental housing in the DTES is not noted for the cleanliness or attention to maintenance. What's intriguing is that this is the same Woodward's development that was the target of protests by the rent-a-mobs a few years ago -- indeed, the same ones who formerly occupied the space that is now The Lord's Rain. Go figure.
Kim
I've known Kim for years -- back to the days at Rainbow Mission, in fact -- and seen him grow in the Lord. By that I mean, he's gone from being the guy who showed up just as the message was ending, in time to get the food, to someone who fills in for me giving the message on nights when I'm not there (last time, he and Lincoln took turns). He trained as a cook and started training a few months ago for a service on the Downtown East Side called "Free Geek", which repairs and rebuilds computers and trains people in the area. Recently, he was promoted to a "trainer" position.
Walter
A native from Manitoba, he's heading back to a town near his reserve to work over the winter building cabins. The job takes him closer to his 17-year-old daughter, which means they'll be together for Christmas.
Pete
"Who here has never screwed up?"
I was on a preachin' roll that night. The message was about "belonging" and how we all belong with Jesus and I was heading for Paul's oft-quoted reminder that all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.
"Who here has never screwed up?" Pause for dramatic effect. One hand comes up. It's Pete.
70-something, alcoholic (on and off the wagon), in and out of prison most of his life, Pete was the most miserable sod you'd ever want to meet when I first met him; but in the past year and a half, it seems he's realized there has to be more to life than what he's been going through, and has changed considerably. Lately, he was diagnosed with cancer. He actually laughed when I asked him how he was. "I got cancer!" he said. And now, with exquisite timing that would have made Jack Benny proud, he sticks up his hand at my rhetorical question. We've been praying over him, and I believe his coming closer to God came just at the right time for this new challenge.
Lincoln
From what I know of him, Lincoln has always believed in and always sought God, and lately, he's been finding who he is in the Lord -- and who the Lord is in him. Breakthroughs like that are huge: he now fills in for me when I'm away, either going solo or partnering with Kim.
Shannon & Brannen
I mentioned Shannon in a previous post, in deep conversation with Howard when I arrived at The Lord's Rain one morning: an indication of how people who come to Gospel Mission and The Lord's Rain often counsel one another. This couple are on the methadone treatment program and have a variety of chronic ailments from drug abuse. Recently, Brannen got a job at the hotel where they live; the living accommodations are, by their account, atrocious - mold, leaky roof, underheated - but they're a great example of the blessing of having each other to help face those trials.
The Cobs Kids
Here's one outta left field for you. As we've mentioned before, we receive bread products from the new Cobs Bread location in Caulfeild (West Vancouver). It brings me closer to full circle, because it's just a chip shot from Caulfeild Elementary School, where I went in 6th and 8th grades more years ago than I'd care to remember.
There's a high school in the area, and some of the people working at this new Cobs are students at that high school, and picking up the bread on Monday nights has brought me in touch with a couple of them. They are both very interested in the work going on -- particularly at The Lord's Rain. West Van is an exceptionally affluent area -- much moreso than when I lived there, 30 years ago -- and anything that gets these kids thinking about what they can do -- and more importantly what is possible to be done -- is the seeds of a major blessing for the future.
It would be prideful to say that these blessings come because of Gospel Mission and The Lord's Rain, but there's no denying that we are part of a distinct move of God over the Downtown East Side. If you unpack Ezekiel 40, which describes the building of the Temple in intricate detail, you'll see that each of us has a job to do, but the entire plan, in the final analysis, is in God's hands.
It would be prideful to say that these blessings come because of Gospel Mission and The Lord's Rain, but there's no denying that we are part of a distinct move of God over the Downtown East Side. If you unpack Ezekiel 40, which describes the building of the Temple in intricate detail, you'll see that each of us has a job to do, but the entire plan, in the final analysis, is in God's hands.
What's more, we get to be witnesses to that move -- and to tell others about it.
It's easy to portray the people on the Downtown East Side as pathetic victims, but on the principle that death and life are in the power of the tongue (Prov. 18:21), if we keep on hammering that message, then the situation remains the same. We can bear witness to the fact that there are VICTORIES going on as we speak, and these people are just a few examples. These are just the ones I've seen, and as soon as I hit "publish post", I'll probably think of many more examples of people being blessed. Watch out for sequels.
But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. (1 Cor. 15:57).
It's easy to portray the people on the Downtown East Side as pathetic victims, but on the principle that death and life are in the power of the tongue (Prov. 18:21), if we keep on hammering that message, then the situation remains the same. We can bear witness to the fact that there are VICTORIES going on as we speak, and these people are just a few examples. These are just the ones I've seen, and as soon as I hit "publish post", I'll probably think of many more examples of people being blessed. Watch out for sequels.
But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. (1 Cor. 15:57).
Thursday, November 19, 2009
Shelters - rights and responsibilities
The president of Union Gospel Mission, Bill Mollard, raises some interesting points in his op-ed piece in the Vancouver Sun on Nov. 11, about the provincial government's new emergency shelter law.
The law gives police the authority to force a homeless person to go to a shelter when the weather is particularly nasty. On the surface, it looks like a good way to keep people from freezing to death. Bill's main point is that forcing people to go to a shelter -- even ostensibly for their own good -- takes away their dignity by taking away their freedom of choice; police officers are not social or outreach workers; the government would do better to support outreach programs. Bill's right on this count: I know a lot of street people who prefer not to go to a shelter. They don't want to be caught up with the fights, the thefts, the attitude problems -- often conflicting with their own -- and the fact that, especially in flu season, airborne sickness in an enclosed space is a concern (whether real or imagined).
I'm not sure I agree, though, with his opinion of the ability of police officers to assess a situation. That's part of their training, and frankly, there are few people I've met on the Downtown East Side who are more compassionate than the cops. For all the paranoia-mongering of the "activists" in the area, the cops are there and they care about the people. The son of some friends of mine at church recently became a full-fledged constable, and while he's been working other parts of the city to start with, he's said his ideal is to work the Downtown East Side and make a difference with the people there.
Then there's that "freedom of choice" issue. A lot of people on the Downtown East Side don't have freedom of choice. People who are mentally ill or so strung out on drugs that their sole aim in life is to find the next hit don't know what's good for them. They don't realize they could die from exposure ... or set themselves on fire by trying to stay warm. What are we, as a society, supposed to do? Are they to die because, at that one particular moment, they're incapacitated? Does our concept of "freedom of choice" and "dignity" take precedence over their right to live?
We leave them to die on the streets in the cold, and they're gone. We do something to help them live another day, and they have another chance to straighten their lives out.
And that leads to the problem I have with the legislation. One of the incidents that gave it added impetus was the horrifying death of a woman last winter. She had made a makeshift shelter with a shopping cart and a tarp, then started a fire to keep warm. Something went wrong and she burned to death. If I recall correctly, she had been advised by police to find a shelter, but since they couldn't force her, they let her be.
What's noteworthy about this is that this incident happened not on the Downtown East Side but on Davie Street, an area noted for self-absorbed self-indulgence. In the summer preceding the incident, I came across Clive, a man I used to know at Rainbow Mission. I hadn't seen him for several months, but this one afternoon, I saw him wandering, zombie-like, past a crowd of partyers waiting to get into one of the bars, the partyers apparently oblivious to Clive's very existence.
I saw the same thing with another woman, sitting in a wheelchair with a ventilator in her nostrils, begging. We chatted for a time and prayed together, and she said no one had even stopped to talk to her.
Did anyone who wasn't paid to be there stop to check on the woman who died in the fire? Funny: I think it's more likely that the people on the DTES would have noticed and tried to convince her to find a place -- and might have been more successful than someone in uniform -- a representative of The Man.
That -- along with the distinct possibility that the aforementioned paranoia merchants will use it to claim that the government wants an excuse to run homeless people off the streets and hide them until after the Olympics -- is what concerns me about this legislation. Is this legislation truly a caring move by government, or a way to wash our hands of a situation by giving the appearance of doing something? It's the flip-side of the "homeless censuses" that come out every so often, laying a guilt trip on society about how many more shelter beds we need. Will more shelter beds solve the homelessness situation? Is a shelter a home? Or is it just a number of beds on a ledger, which someone thinks will indicate that the problem is solved if it equals the number of people who would otherwise be on the street. "Well, we tried," the government can say, and people can go on partying to their hearts' content, since someone else is taking care of things.
Doesn't Jesus call us to be that "someone else"?
Having a "right" is one thing, but we as human beings, children of God, joint-heirs with Jesus Christ, have a responsibility that we are all too willing to shirk. (Note what I've said in the past, that the DTES is "Samaria", and Jesus specifically includes Samaria in His final instructions to us in Acts 1:8.) If we are walking in love towards one another, we take care of one another. Maybe that means seeing if they want to go to a shelter; maybe it means sharing the Gospel and the hope of the knowledge that God has not forgotten them -- and neither have people in the "other half". It's amazing how much warmer you can feel when you know that. I believe that's one of the reasons why Gospel Mission and The Lord's Rain have been successful in achieving transformational revival: we're not a big organization, and our support comes from countless people coming forward in countless ways, with donations big and small, of money, time, labour and supplies, as the Lord lays it on their hearts. That sends an important subliminal message: that "someone else" from "the other half" does care.
The law gives police the authority to force a homeless person to go to a shelter when the weather is particularly nasty. On the surface, it looks like a good way to keep people from freezing to death. Bill's main point is that forcing people to go to a shelter -- even ostensibly for their own good -- takes away their dignity by taking away their freedom of choice; police officers are not social or outreach workers; the government would do better to support outreach programs. Bill's right on this count: I know a lot of street people who prefer not to go to a shelter. They don't want to be caught up with the fights, the thefts, the attitude problems -- often conflicting with their own -- and the fact that, especially in flu season, airborne sickness in an enclosed space is a concern (whether real or imagined).
I'm not sure I agree, though, with his opinion of the ability of police officers to assess a situation. That's part of their training, and frankly, there are few people I've met on the Downtown East Side who are more compassionate than the cops. For all the paranoia-mongering of the "activists" in the area, the cops are there and they care about the people. The son of some friends of mine at church recently became a full-fledged constable, and while he's been working other parts of the city to start with, he's said his ideal is to work the Downtown East Side and make a difference with the people there.
Then there's that "freedom of choice" issue. A lot of people on the Downtown East Side don't have freedom of choice. People who are mentally ill or so strung out on drugs that their sole aim in life is to find the next hit don't know what's good for them. They don't realize they could die from exposure ... or set themselves on fire by trying to stay warm. What are we, as a society, supposed to do? Are they to die because, at that one particular moment, they're incapacitated? Does our concept of "freedom of choice" and "dignity" take precedence over their right to live?
We leave them to die on the streets in the cold, and they're gone. We do something to help them live another day, and they have another chance to straighten their lives out.
And that leads to the problem I have with the legislation. One of the incidents that gave it added impetus was the horrifying death of a woman last winter. She had made a makeshift shelter with a shopping cart and a tarp, then started a fire to keep warm. Something went wrong and she burned to death. If I recall correctly, she had been advised by police to find a shelter, but since they couldn't force her, they let her be.
What's noteworthy about this is that this incident happened not on the Downtown East Side but on Davie Street, an area noted for self-absorbed self-indulgence. In the summer preceding the incident, I came across Clive, a man I used to know at Rainbow Mission. I hadn't seen him for several months, but this one afternoon, I saw him wandering, zombie-like, past a crowd of partyers waiting to get into one of the bars, the partyers apparently oblivious to Clive's very existence.
I saw the same thing with another woman, sitting in a wheelchair with a ventilator in her nostrils, begging. We chatted for a time and prayed together, and she said no one had even stopped to talk to her.
Did anyone who wasn't paid to be there stop to check on the woman who died in the fire? Funny: I think it's more likely that the people on the DTES would have noticed and tried to convince her to find a place -- and might have been more successful than someone in uniform -- a representative of The Man.
That -- along with the distinct possibility that the aforementioned paranoia merchants will use it to claim that the government wants an excuse to run homeless people off the streets and hide them until after the Olympics -- is what concerns me about this legislation. Is this legislation truly a caring move by government, or a way to wash our hands of a situation by giving the appearance of doing something? It's the flip-side of the "homeless censuses" that come out every so often, laying a guilt trip on society about how many more shelter beds we need. Will more shelter beds solve the homelessness situation? Is a shelter a home? Or is it just a number of beds on a ledger, which someone thinks will indicate that the problem is solved if it equals the number of people who would otherwise be on the street. "Well, we tried," the government can say, and people can go on partying to their hearts' content, since someone else is taking care of things.
Doesn't Jesus call us to be that "someone else"?
Having a "right" is one thing, but we as human beings, children of God, joint-heirs with Jesus Christ, have a responsibility that we are all too willing to shirk. (Note what I've said in the past, that the DTES is "Samaria", and Jesus specifically includes Samaria in His final instructions to us in Acts 1:8.) If we are walking in love towards one another, we take care of one another. Maybe that means seeing if they want to go to a shelter; maybe it means sharing the Gospel and the hope of the knowledge that God has not forgotten them -- and neither have people in the "other half". It's amazing how much warmer you can feel when you know that. I believe that's one of the reasons why Gospel Mission and The Lord's Rain have been successful in achieving transformational revival: we're not a big organization, and our support comes from countless people coming forward in countless ways, with donations big and small, of money, time, labour and supplies, as the Lord lays it on their hearts. That sends an important subliminal message: that "someone else" from "the other half" does care.
HELP WANTED - some real opportunities at Gospel Mission
This is called "casting your net wide". If you've read anything on this blog before, you'll know that Gospel Mission is small but motivated, and we've definitely had the hand of God on us for blessing in the work that we do. The more we reach out with the Gospel -- straight-no-chaser -- to let people know that God has not forgotten them and that the real turnaround they need is only possible through His Son, Jesus Christ, the more He blesses us with the resources that we need.
We have a couple of "human resource" needs at Gospel Mission, and I'm casting the net here to see who's interested. Sometimes, people don't step up to the plate because they're not even aware that there's a plate to step up to (lousy grammar, but I think you know what I mean). After all, the only reason I wound up ministering on the Downtown East Side is because God got right in my face about it. First, He first placed me at a job right at the worst intersection in Victoria (Broad and Pandora -- ironically, right beside City Hall) and then at a job where I had to run a gauntlet of drug addicts and panhandlers (CKNW, right beside Granville Station). It was then that I heard Him tell me, "these people don't need handouts ... they don't need money ... they don't need programs ... they need Me. They need My Son. And you have to tell them what I did for you."
So here are the opportunities:
1 - a ministry team for Friday nights. A good team would consist of 6-10 people -- one for the Worship music, one to preach, two in the kitchen, and the rest to serve coffee and meals, help with cleanup afterwards, and help disciple people and encourage them to focus their minds and hearts on Jesus and away from "the world".
2 - helping at The Lord's Rain on Tuesday mornings. We recently received a major blessing of bread from Cobs Bread and coffee from Waves Coffee. I need a couple of people to come in on Tuesday morning between 6:30 and 9 to help wrap bread and store it, and to make breakfast sandwiches for the people we serve.
3 - a team to open The Lord's Rain early on other mornings. The Lord's Rain is open Mondays and Fridays from 10-3, but the intent has been to have the place open early -- like 6:30 or 7am -- to give people a place to come after they get booted out of the shelters. We're open at those hours on Tuesday and Saturday; the early opening also gives one time to go to an office job afterwards (I close The Lord's Rain at 8:30 on Tuesdays, so I can get out to Metrotown by 9:15 or so).
The more people can spend time at Gospel Mission or The Lord's Rain, the more they're NOT out on the streets surrounded by the world, and the more they're hearing the Word of God and exposed to the Holy Spirit. (We don't preach at people at The Lord's Rain: it's what senior pastor Barry Babcook calls "soft evangelism" or "Jesus with the skin on" -- living and demonstrating the love of Christ.
The fruits are palpable. We've seen tremendous transformations in people. They're not cataclysmic, shaft-of-light-and-the-voice-of-john-ashbridge-from-the-clouds turnarounds, but gradual, definite, positive steps forward.
If you're interested in making a real, positive difference in an area that for decades has been long on bad news, please contact me.
We have a couple of "human resource" needs at Gospel Mission, and I'm casting the net here to see who's interested. Sometimes, people don't step up to the plate because they're not even aware that there's a plate to step up to (lousy grammar, but I think you know what I mean). After all, the only reason I wound up ministering on the Downtown East Side is because God got right in my face about it. First, He first placed me at a job right at the worst intersection in Victoria (Broad and Pandora -- ironically, right beside City Hall) and then at a job where I had to run a gauntlet of drug addicts and panhandlers (CKNW, right beside Granville Station). It was then that I heard Him tell me, "these people don't need handouts ... they don't need money ... they don't need programs ... they need Me. They need My Son. And you have to tell them what I did for you."
So here are the opportunities:
1 - a ministry team for Friday nights. A good team would consist of 6-10 people -- one for the Worship music, one to preach, two in the kitchen, and the rest to serve coffee and meals, help with cleanup afterwards, and help disciple people and encourage them to focus their minds and hearts on Jesus and away from "the world".
2 - helping at The Lord's Rain on Tuesday mornings. We recently received a major blessing of bread from Cobs Bread and coffee from Waves Coffee. I need a couple of people to come in on Tuesday morning between 6:30 and 9 to help wrap bread and store it, and to make breakfast sandwiches for the people we serve.
3 - a team to open The Lord's Rain early on other mornings. The Lord's Rain is open Mondays and Fridays from 10-3, but the intent has been to have the place open early -- like 6:30 or 7am -- to give people a place to come after they get booted out of the shelters. We're open at those hours on Tuesday and Saturday; the early opening also gives one time to go to an office job afterwards (I close The Lord's Rain at 8:30 on Tuesdays, so I can get out to Metrotown by 9:15 or so).
The more people can spend time at Gospel Mission or The Lord's Rain, the more they're NOT out on the streets surrounded by the world, and the more they're hearing the Word of God and exposed to the Holy Spirit. (We don't preach at people at The Lord's Rain: it's what senior pastor Barry Babcook calls "soft evangelism" or "Jesus with the skin on" -- living and demonstrating the love of Christ.
The fruits are palpable. We've seen tremendous transformations in people. They're not cataclysmic, shaft-of-light-and-the-voice-of-john-ashbridge-from-the-clouds turnarounds, but gradual, definite, positive steps forward.
If you're interested in making a real, positive difference in an area that for decades has been long on bad news, please contact me.
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
The windows of blessing are open!
They come big and small, and in all forms ... last month, we received the check from the W. Garfield Weston Foundation ... this month, it's staple foods for Gospel Mission and The Lord's Rain.
Cobs Bread has an "end of day giving program", where any of its bakemeats (to use the KJV expression) unsold at closing time are given to charities. We have been signed up for the Monday night "pickup" at the new Cobs location in West Vancouver (next to the Safeway just off the Upper Levels in Caulfeild, in what used to be woods where we kids would play while at Caulfeild Elementary School 40+ years ago).
The amazing thing is, when I walked in last Monday night for the first pickup, the shelves were practically full. I was told they have a corporate philosophy that their customers should have a wide selection of product no matter what time of day they walk in ... but I suspect there's also a corporate philosophy to give of their best to people in need.
So as well as using it for our own needs at the services (and it also means people coming to The Lord's Rain will have breakfast goodies, like Danishes, cinnamon rolls and the like), we'll give it away to those who need it.
One of our biggest expenses -- especially at The Lord's Rain at this time of year -- is coffee, and Waves Coffee is coming to the rescue, donating 20 lb of whole bean coffee a month (anyone got a large coffee grinder they're not using?). Barry receives donated coffee from another company for Gospel Mission (up till now, we'd been buying our coffee for The Lord's Rain), but I'm not sure if they want their name mentioned. Neither Cobs nor Waves has said one way or the other, whether they want publicity, so this is me, blowing a horn for them out of gratitude.
(It's an interesting paradox. Some of our contributors have said they don't want their names mentioned -- they're not after publicity. Others say "go ahead", not so much for the publicity, but to encourage others to help out, as well.)
Cobs Bread has an "end of day giving program", where any of its bakemeats (to use the KJV expression) unsold at closing time are given to charities. We have been signed up for the Monday night "pickup" at the new Cobs location in West Vancouver (next to the Safeway just off the Upper Levels in Caulfeild, in what used to be woods where we kids would play while at Caulfeild Elementary School 40+ years ago).
The amazing thing is, when I walked in last Monday night for the first pickup, the shelves were practically full. I was told they have a corporate philosophy that their customers should have a wide selection of product no matter what time of day they walk in ... but I suspect there's also a corporate philosophy to give of their best to people in need.
So as well as using it for our own needs at the services (and it also means people coming to The Lord's Rain will have breakfast goodies, like Danishes, cinnamon rolls and the like), we'll give it away to those who need it.
One of our biggest expenses -- especially at The Lord's Rain at this time of year -- is coffee, and Waves Coffee is coming to the rescue, donating 20 lb of whole bean coffee a month (anyone got a large coffee grinder they're not using?). Barry receives donated coffee from another company for Gospel Mission (up till now, we'd been buying our coffee for The Lord's Rain), but I'm not sure if they want their name mentioned. Neither Cobs nor Waves has said one way or the other, whether they want publicity, so this is me, blowing a horn for them out of gratitude.
(It's an interesting paradox. Some of our contributors have said they don't want their names mentioned -- they're not after publicity. Others say "go ahead", not so much for the publicity, but to encourage others to help out, as well.)
Saturday, November 7, 2009
The Lord's Rain -- it's all about the fellowship
Busy morning at The Lord's Rain, which isn't surprising, because it's just chuckin' it down out there ...
John arrived early to open up, and I was a few minutes late, and arrived to find Howard and Shannon in deep conversation. Howard is John's roommate, having more or less escaped from a group home. John's been a real blessing to him, giving him friendship and treating him as a normal person -- there's no doubt he has issues, but in his case, knowing that having issues is actually quite "normal" can help a lot.
For her part, Shannon -- along with her husband -- is going through recovery from drug addiction. She has a very kind heart and even though they have next to nothing, they have a strong relationship. And there she is, talking to Howard about his issues, sharing what she's learned from going through her own.
John and Mario are talking Scripture again. John's a charismatic and Mario is Catholic, so you can imagine they get into some interesting discussions. The beauty of it is that, unlike a lot of discussions masquerading as religious dialogue, their conversations don't degenerate into an "I'm right/you're wrong" battle.
It's about the fellowship, and one of the really cool things about The Lord's Rain -- something we'd never envisioned when we launched the project 2 years ago (gad! 2 years this month!) -- is the way people feel free to discuss and explore their faith and the various forms it takes. And we thought it was all about the showers.
Speaking of which, another fellow found us for the first time today. Very grateful for the shower and the dry clothes ... hearing someone say, "I feel like a new man", is wonderful! "I never knew you guys were here," he said, "until I saw someone with the coffee and they told me about the coffee and the showers."
The other thing "they" need to tell others is how to get here. The Carrall Street Greenway Project continues to create an urban adventure in actually navigating around the jobsite to the Mission. On Tuesday, I found the sidewalk blocked on one side and had to cross to the other and move the metal fences to get through. This morning, the sidewalk was blocked about 20' from the entrance, and I had to slide past the workers and another metal fence to get through.
This, too, shall pass (I keep telling myself) ...
Not the most productive conversation with the city re parking during the Olympics. At first, it appeared we might be able to buy a meter hood and pre-empt a parking space during Games Time; then I was told they couldn't do that and besides, people would park there anyway and their Bylaw Enforcement Officers couldn't be everywhere at once ("don't bother working with the system because no one obeys the law anyway"?) ... and of course, if word got out that we got "special treatment", others would want it too.
As Spike Milligan once said, you could explain Einstein's Theory of Relativity to a roomful of monkeys for 6 months, and at the end of it all, they'd still be monkeys.
But (and here's the kicker) "we really want to help you".
I then felt like John Cleese in the cheese shop (to leap to another British humorist): explain the reasoning behind that statement.
Then we discovered that the owners of the parking lot at Army & Navy (a block away) would charge approximately 1/3 of what we'd pay for a city parking meter hood that (apparently) no one would obey, anyway.
Looks like we will maintain our record of never receiving anything from the City.
The wintry winds blow ... and the rain is cascading down .. meaning warm coats and boots and socks will be in demand again ... donations are always welcome -- email me or leave a message at the Mission (604-684-3097).
John arrived early to open up, and I was a few minutes late, and arrived to find Howard and Shannon in deep conversation. Howard is John's roommate, having more or less escaped from a group home. John's been a real blessing to him, giving him friendship and treating him as a normal person -- there's no doubt he has issues, but in his case, knowing that having issues is actually quite "normal" can help a lot.
For her part, Shannon -- along with her husband -- is going through recovery from drug addiction. She has a very kind heart and even though they have next to nothing, they have a strong relationship. And there she is, talking to Howard about his issues, sharing what she's learned from going through her own.
John and Mario are talking Scripture again. John's a charismatic and Mario is Catholic, so you can imagine they get into some interesting discussions. The beauty of it is that, unlike a lot of discussions masquerading as religious dialogue, their conversations don't degenerate into an "I'm right/you're wrong" battle.
It's about the fellowship, and one of the really cool things about The Lord's Rain -- something we'd never envisioned when we launched the project 2 years ago (gad! 2 years this month!) -- is the way people feel free to discuss and explore their faith and the various forms it takes. And we thought it was all about the showers.
Speaking of which, another fellow found us for the first time today. Very grateful for the shower and the dry clothes ... hearing someone say, "I feel like a new man", is wonderful! "I never knew you guys were here," he said, "until I saw someone with the coffee and they told me about the coffee and the showers."
The other thing "they" need to tell others is how to get here. The Carrall Street Greenway Project continues to create an urban adventure in actually navigating around the jobsite to the Mission. On Tuesday, I found the sidewalk blocked on one side and had to cross to the other and move the metal fences to get through. This morning, the sidewalk was blocked about 20' from the entrance, and I had to slide past the workers and another metal fence to get through.
This, too, shall pass (I keep telling myself) ...
Not the most productive conversation with the city re parking during the Olympics. At first, it appeared we might be able to buy a meter hood and pre-empt a parking space during Games Time; then I was told they couldn't do that and besides, people would park there anyway and their Bylaw Enforcement Officers couldn't be everywhere at once ("don't bother working with the system because no one obeys the law anyway"?) ... and of course, if word got out that we got "special treatment", others would want it too.
As Spike Milligan once said, you could explain Einstein's Theory of Relativity to a roomful of monkeys for 6 months, and at the end of it all, they'd still be monkeys.
But (and here's the kicker) "we really want to help you".
I then felt like John Cleese in the cheese shop (to leap to another British humorist): explain the reasoning behind that statement.
Then we discovered that the owners of the parking lot at Army & Navy (a block away) would charge approximately 1/3 of what we'd pay for a city parking meter hood that (apparently) no one would obey, anyway.
Looks like we will maintain our record of never receiving anything from the City.
The wintry winds blow ... and the rain is cascading down .. meaning warm coats and boots and socks will be in demand again ... donations are always welcome -- email me or leave a message at the Mission (604-684-3097).
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
"Every wise-hearted one ..."
We've devoted a couple of the most recent postings to the contribution we've received from The W. Garfield Weston Foundation, but the Lord woke me up around 4 this morning with a reminder: don't forget the others!
Right, as usual, Sir. After all, when you hear of a whacking big donation from a foundation, you might be tempted to think, "what good would my 50 bucks do?" ... and the answer is, Gospel Mission -- and especially The Lord's Rain -- was built not on one or two major donations, but on a whole lot of smaller donations.
Indeed, the same day that I deposited the cheque from the Westons, I also deposited a $50 cheque from one friend and US $20 from another. And that's how our Mission has grown.
The Lord's Rain is a perfect example. When we set out to build it, we approached a wealthy Christian businessman to underwrite the project. We were turned down flat. At first, we were perplexed, but then God started to show that He had other ideas. People started coming forward with donations, large and small. Yes, it was two larger donations that kick-started the project, but they were "convincers", responses to our request for a sign that The Lord's Rain was supposed to move forward.
People also started coming forward with their talents. If you read the Book of Exodus, you'll see that the Tabernacle was built by "wise-hearted" people or "those whose hearts were willing" (Exodus 35:10 et seqq.): that's how The Lord's Rain was built.
And that's how it should be. I've said it before: the reason why The Lord's Rain has been successful has been because it was built by a variety of people with a variety of gifts to bring. The love that comes with that effort and dedication permeates The Lord's Rain and shows the people who come in, whether it's for showers or just coffee and conversation, that people from The Other Half really do care.
And that's love ... which sows the seeds of hope ... which sows the seeds of transformational revival.
--
No Plague Shall Come Nigh My Dwelling Dep't.: Heaven knows, we saw enough rats in and around the Mission during the time that work was going on at the old Woodward's site a block away. Prayer, oil and some judiciously placed packets of Wilsarin dealt with that menace, but then came renovations at the hotel-or-whatever-it-was next door and the total destruction of the 300 block Carrall Street. More rats were sighted in the alley and scampering across the sidewalk ... but nowhere near Gospel Mission / The Lord's Rain. We haven't been using Wilsarin, either. Go figure. Praise the Lord, Who protects His people!
Right, as usual, Sir. After all, when you hear of a whacking big donation from a foundation, you might be tempted to think, "what good would my 50 bucks do?" ... and the answer is, Gospel Mission -- and especially The Lord's Rain -- was built not on one or two major donations, but on a whole lot of smaller donations.
Indeed, the same day that I deposited the cheque from the Westons, I also deposited a $50 cheque from one friend and US $20 from another. And that's how our Mission has grown.
The Lord's Rain is a perfect example. When we set out to build it, we approached a wealthy Christian businessman to underwrite the project. We were turned down flat. At first, we were perplexed, but then God started to show that He had other ideas. People started coming forward with donations, large and small. Yes, it was two larger donations that kick-started the project, but they were "convincers", responses to our request for a sign that The Lord's Rain was supposed to move forward.
People also started coming forward with their talents. If you read the Book of Exodus, you'll see that the Tabernacle was built by "wise-hearted" people or "those whose hearts were willing" (Exodus 35:10 et seqq.): that's how The Lord's Rain was built.
And that's how it should be. I've said it before: the reason why The Lord's Rain has been successful has been because it was built by a variety of people with a variety of gifts to bring. The love that comes with that effort and dedication permeates The Lord's Rain and shows the people who come in, whether it's for showers or just coffee and conversation, that people from The Other Half really do care.
And that's love ... which sows the seeds of hope ... which sows the seeds of transformational revival.
--
No Plague Shall Come Nigh My Dwelling Dep't.: Heaven knows, we saw enough rats in and around the Mission during the time that work was going on at the old Woodward's site a block away. Prayer, oil and some judiciously placed packets of Wilsarin dealt with that menace, but then came renovations at the hotel-or-whatever-it-was next door and the total destruction of the 300 block Carrall Street. More rats were sighted in the alley and scampering across the sidewalk ... but nowhere near Gospel Mission / The Lord's Rain. We haven't been using Wilsarin, either. Go figure. Praise the Lord, Who protects His people!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)