The Birth of My Homeless Ministry
Once I surrendered my life unto the Lord's service, I meant it with every fiber of my being. I kept pursuing God until he gave me my next assignment. Then one day as I was practicing contemplative prayer, the inspiration that came to me was shocking--I felt the Lord calling me to live on the streets for a weekend. I didn't hear any audible words, but I knew in my heart the Lord wanted me to experience what it was like to be homeless.
After the Lord had spoken, I had a choice to make--was I going to be obedient, or would I pretend that I hadn't heard the voice of the Lord? Part of the discernment process in contemplative prayer comes from distinguishing among the voice of God, the voice of the devil, and the voice of my own fleshly desires. Many times all three voices seem so confusing that it's hard to know when God is speaking.
In this case, I knew the prompting to spend a weekend living on the streets wasn't coming from my own fleshly desires. My flesh liked living in my safe, warm, comfortable house. The voice didn't sound like it was coming from the devil either. The devil usually speaks to me in a tone of fear-driven negativity or the voice of some other self-gratifying temptation. After taking the time to discern the spirits to make sure the Lord was calling me to live on the streets for a weekend, I set out for the adventure of a lifetime.
It was during the middle of winter, so I dressed in my warmest clothes. I bought an old sleeping bag from a thrift store and packed some bottles of water in an army duffel bag. I also took along some cardboard signs. After parking my truck at my parents' house, I left my cell phone behind and started walking toward the downtown area.
I didn't bring any money with me, so after reaching the first intersection, I pulled out my cardboard signs to see what would happen. One sign said, I need $5 to eat today. I stood at that intersection for over an hour, and nobody gave me anything. Nobody would even look at me. It was the most humbling and humiliating experience that I have ever encountered. There I was, an accomplished, self-employed, real estate developer, who had owned numerous businesses with great financial success, holding a cardboard sign trying to bum a few bucks.
After a few hours, I sat down in the grass totally discouraged. I didn't think I would be able to last an entire weekend. After suffering through the frustration of trying to do things my own way, I decided to pray. As soon as I did, a lady in a small car honked her horn at me. She rolled down her window and said, "Do you need some money?"
She was waving cash out her car window, so I jumped up and ran across the street. She handed me six dollars. It was all the money that I needed for the day. I was overjoyed. I was able to ride the bus downtown and spent the rest of the weekend ministering to the people that I met on the streets.
The weekend turned out to be the birth of my homeless ministry. By calling me to live on the streets, the Lord taught me great humility and a deep compassion for the homeless. Before, I had no compassion for the guys holding cardboard signs. I had no idea what it was like to live on the streets without experiencing it firsthand. Before the Lord could call me into ministry, he first needed to train me with a real-life experience.
Copyright (C) 2013 by Robert Abel
After the Lord had spoken, I had a choice to make--was I going to be obedient, or would I pretend that I hadn't heard the voice of the Lord? Part of the discernment process in contemplative prayer comes from distinguishing among the voice of God, the voice of the devil, and the voice of my own fleshly desires. Many times all three voices seem so confusing that it's hard to know when God is speaking.
In this case, I knew the prompting to spend a weekend living on the streets wasn't coming from my own fleshly desires. My flesh liked living in my safe, warm, comfortable house. The voice didn't sound like it was coming from the devil either. The devil usually speaks to me in a tone of fear-driven negativity or the voice of some other self-gratifying temptation. After taking the time to discern the spirits to make sure the Lord was calling me to live on the streets for a weekend, I set out for the adventure of a lifetime.
It was during the middle of winter, so I dressed in my warmest clothes. I bought an old sleeping bag from a thrift store and packed some bottles of water in an army duffel bag. I also took along some cardboard signs. After parking my truck at my parents' house, I left my cell phone behind and started walking toward the downtown area.
I didn't bring any money with me, so after reaching the first intersection, I pulled out my cardboard signs to see what would happen. One sign said, I need $5 to eat today. I stood at that intersection for over an hour, and nobody gave me anything. Nobody would even look at me. It was the most humbling and humiliating experience that I have ever encountered. There I was, an accomplished, self-employed, real estate developer, who had owned numerous businesses with great financial success, holding a cardboard sign trying to bum a few bucks.
After a few hours, I sat down in the grass totally discouraged. I didn't think I would be able to last an entire weekend. After suffering through the frustration of trying to do things my own way, I decided to pray. As soon as I did, a lady in a small car honked her horn at me. She rolled down her window and said, "Do you need some money?"
She was waving cash out her car window, so I jumped up and ran across the street. She handed me six dollars. It was all the money that I needed for the day. I was overjoyed. I was able to ride the bus downtown and spent the rest of the weekend ministering to the people that I met on the streets.
The weekend turned out to be the birth of my homeless ministry. By calling me to live on the streets, the Lord taught me great humility and a deep compassion for the homeless. Before, I had no compassion for the guys holding cardboard signs. I had no idea what it was like to live on the streets without experiencing it firsthand. Before the Lord could call me into ministry, he first needed to train me with a real-life experience.
Copyright (C) 2013 by Robert Abel
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