Follow The White Van

I have a couple of thoughts for yesterday...

It was the last day of my fourth group of the summer and chaos struck. We were supposed to be at our park VBS at 3pm. One of the other hosts got sick, leaving one host to direct three vans to the site while my van was already there. The caravan took a wrong turn, lost one van, the other van got pulled over, and the host didn't have her map to try and track down the other vans. Amidst a lot of struggle, we located everyone, showed up at the public housing projects 45 minutes late and then it down-poured as we gathered the kids for the last day. Hahaha.. of course it did. All I could really do was laugh. We played in the rain, ate some treats with the kids, and then sent everyone home with smiles on our faces.

I am reminded of much after this week of hosting.

1. Chaos can be beautiful. Throughout the problems, the kids and leaders were just wonderful, gracious, and never complained. It was beautiful.

2. The rain brings life. As we stood in the park the last day I was reminded that God brings rain to bless us and to bring new life. Without the rain, the world would cease to exist. The kids continued to talk about the rain and felt that it was a new beginning for them. Many of them came to this trip without a lot of direction, especially with spiritual things, but are leaving with a change in heart. As the rain poured down, we stood humbled and ready to emerge better and stronger then before.

3. God works even when I feel like I am lacking. This week went well, I gave 100%, but I did not feel that I connected with these kids or had any idea of the impact the week was to them. The last night we debriefed for maybe two hours. The leaders spoke and were really encouraging to the group. However, the kids took over the night when I asked them how they saw God this week. So many spoke up, seeing God in people, in situations, in their own lives, in the changes they have underwent, in us... you get the picture. Coming into this week, the youth pastor expressed that he wasn't sure if some of these kids were even Christians. This last night was an outpouring of love and grace on everyone. High school cliques were broken down, new friendships made, the Bible became exciting and understandable, and God comforted the broken. I sat their in awe of the way God moves even when I am so completely unaware.

4. And finally, follow the white van. For one of leaders who drove, her main job throughout the day was basically to follow the white van from site to site as they maneuvered the city. DC traffic gets pretty hectic and if you are not focussed entirely on who is leading you, but instead distracted, switching lanes, or doing your own thing, you will get lost and separated from your goal. If the people in your car are distracting, telling you contradictory information, or just not there, you will get off your path. One of the youth leaders used this as an analogy of our life. I we are not focused on the goal, focused on Christ as the end in site, then we will quickly fall of the path and get distracted by the world around us. Wow.

Strength for the Streets

Today I went to a soup kitchen for the morning with my group. While the volunteer coordinator put them to work on the serving line and cleaning the tables, I sat down with a couple guests who were eating lunch. These women's names were Kathleen and Carlita.

Kathleen immediately caught my eye since when she came in she called my kids "angels" and sincerely thanked them for the work they were doing. I sat down with her and chatted about DC and her life. I was struck to hear her story and the hardships she has endured. Throughout her daughter's murder, her poverty, her husband's death and other life calamities, she has stayed reliant upon the Lord. It was amazing. She gave me advice about everything from marriage, to kids, to jobs, to traveling. She also told me stories of miracles and shared her story of relying on God.

Along with these stories, these women both described to me their lives on the streets. They both would rather stay on the streets then in shelters, since many of them have bedbugs, maggots, and roaches and are dirty places to stay. I have heard other stories about women who sleep during the day and stay awake at night to protect themselves. When I asked Carlita if she ever felt unsafe on the streets she said that she had always felt protected by God and had never been attacked. I can't imagine making that decision, staying on the streets or staying in an infested shelter.

I asked them what I can be praying for them about. They both answered with the same request, strength.

Pray for the strength of those living on the streets tonight. Pray that they would be comforted in the midst of uncertainty and that they would have the peace and hope that can only come in Christ.