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“Father, hallowed be
your name,
your kingdom come.”
This weekend’s story is about answered prayers and the people we meet along the way. It’s also about how we should never judge a book by its cover, and how we can change the world one soul at a time.
My dear friend Dianah and her family first saw the homeless
woman sitting on a street corner ranting and raving as traffic drove by while
coming home from Sunday church service in their hometown of Spokane.
Most people would just look the other way and keep
driving.
Dianah and her family had done so several times before, but
on one particularly cold day her now husband Mike just couldn’t do
it. He could no longer look the other way and keep driving.
He got out of the car, walked up to the woman, and said, “Is
there anything you need?”
The woman said, “I’d love a cup of coffee.”
So, they drove to the corner gas station to buy the coffee and Dianah said, “We need to get her a sandwich, too.” So they bought a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Turned out the woman “loved peanut butter and jelly” sandwiches. She was so excited about the sandwich and hot coffee and said, “Thank you.”
“Father, hallowed be
your name,
your kingdom come.
Give us each day our
daily bread”
Dianah is someone I’ve known for 25 years.
This would not be the last time Dianah and the homeless woman
would see each other. Dianah would drive by every couple of days and ask
if there was anything the woman needed.
This went on for months. Dianah found out the woman
loved hot cocoa and warm banana bread with butter on it. So, she
brought her some on a regular basis.
She would asked her, “Why do you keep stopping by?” Saying,
other "people stop by, but you keep coming back.”
Dianah said, “I think God put you in my life for a
reason.”
In other words, well-dressed, professional people like Dianah
don’t come back.
“Father, hallowed be
your name,
your kingdom come.
Give us each day our
daily bread
and forgive us our sins
for we ourselves forgive everyone in debt to us,”
Dianah would usually sit down on the sidewalk with the woman
during their visits together to get on her level.
One day during a visit, Dianah noticed the woman didn’t have
any shoes. It was in the middle of winter. It was cold out. The
woman claimed someone had taken her shoes. So, Dianah went and got her a
pair.
Dianah eventually learned the woman’s name was Marcella.
Due to city ordinances, Marcella was forced to move on a
regular basis. This made it difficult for Dianah to find her. But
Dianah always found a way to find her friend Marcella.
I
first learned of Dianah’s experiences with Marcella through Facebook picture
posts from Dianah’s husband Mike, another dear friend and longtime homeless
advocate.
A friendship
blossomed and Marcella began to count on Dianah to stop by for a visit. Slowly,
her mood started to change. Dianah would see Marcella smile, joke and
laugh more and more.
One day Dianah stopped by and could tell Marcella was
crying. It was such a bitter, cold winter day that Dianah was afraid to
get out of the car. Turned out it was the anniversary of Marcella’s
father’s death a decade and a half earlier and Marcella was not in the mood for
a visit.
Dianah asked, “Are you OK? Do you need a hug?”
Marcella looked at her and said, “I’m strong.”
Dianah told her “You are strong, but we’re still allowed
to be hurting inside.” She got out of her car and hugged Marcella as the
homeless woman cried in Dianah’s arms for a long while.
Once Marcella told Dianah, “People keep telling me I’m on
Facebook. I don’t even know what Facebook is. But you’re making
me famous.” Dianah said, “No, I think you’re making yourself famous.”
Soon, others would join in helping Marcella on the streets
due to her Facebook fame. In fact, Dianah met a Spokane police officer who
would check in on Marcella every night just to make sure she was OK.
Dianah realized Marcella had a heart that was not
meant to be on the streets and started to look for ways to get her off the
street and talking to Marcella about this.
Then Dianah lost touch with Marcella. Dianah
became despondent. Where was my friend? She disappeared from the
streets. Had something happened?
Weeks went by and Marcella was nowhere to be found.
Dianah and her family attend Sunday services at a
non-denominational church that does a weekly feed for low income and unhoused
in Spokane.
Actually, many experiencing homelessness attend the church
service, too.
Marcella told Dianah that day, “You know, we’re kindred
spirits.”
“Father, hallowed be
your name,
your kingdom come.
Give us each day our
daily bread
and forgive us our sins
for we ourselves forgive everyone in debt to us,
and do not subject us to
the final test."
Both had judged a book by its cover. Both had been
wrong about each other. Both learned to love each other just as
Christ loved us and taught us to pray.
Many people like to talk about homelessness, but few actually
do anything about it.
I pray all followers of Christ will look deep inside our hearts and question the assumptions and judgments that keep us at arm's length of sharing Christ's love. Learn to forgive others for not being like us. And ask God to write off our debts, make us whole again, and let his Kingdom come.
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