In case you’re curious, this has absolutely NOTHING to do with Valentine’s Day!!
What this is about is the Street Outreach ministry down here that has thrown me into a bit of a tail spin.
In a nutshell, the ministry includes a drop-in centre for prostitutes 3 nights a week, a caravan that drives the city circuit on another 3 nights of the week (both providing free food and drink), follow-up care and a house that provides a place to stay (both for those who want to come or have come off the street/those wanting to get back on their feet).
Oh me, oh my! – I had no idea I had lived such a sheltered little life up until now! I’m incredibly grateful for my upbringing and that it has not included much of what I have seen over the past few weeks but I’ve just had my world kind of rocked… I want to help and therein lies the challenge. How do you help? When I stood back and gave myself some thinking space, I realised I didn’t have a clue what these men and women needed.
All that knowledge that I thought I had of what to do in this job – gone!
All my thoughts on social injustice – challenged!
All my ideas of what really goes on out there – blown completely out of the water!
…and here’s the really weird thing for me – in The Salvation Army, officers often have to canvas their local pubs on a Friday night. You go in uniform with a little brown box to collect money, hand out The Salvation Army magazine and make conversation/build relationships with people. I find pubs REALLY diffcult. I suppose you could say I struggle to even make conversation (don’t laugh!) but I’ve managed to get through it and I’ve seen God move in some amazing ways - despite my sorry efforts at times! Here’s the weird thing – I find what I’m actually doing with the street ministry incredibly similar to the pubs - you're just there to chat and build relationships, yet I feel completely different. I can’t wait to get there each night I’m on even if it’s just to make sure that the girls are still alive! Another day is another opportunity to let them know that God loves them and that usually comes through what we do not what we say – that in itself challenges me.
Why Incomparable Love? Because that’s what we’re supposed to be all about, right? Jesus loved like no other – He loved unconditionally, He showed love even if people didn’t show love back and most importantly, He loved first. There’s just no other kind of love you can compare that to… and that’s the kind of love I’m challenged to show every time I’m out there on the street.
Is it enough? – I don’t know
Is there more I should be doing? – I’m not sure...that's all part of the tail spin at the moment!
Is it the answer? – I don’t know but it’s definitely a part of it and perhaps what should always come first
And the burning question most of you might have about now - Has anyone ever come off the street? … Yes
What this is about is the Street Outreach ministry down here that has thrown me into a bit of a tail spin.
In a nutshell, the ministry includes a drop-in centre for prostitutes 3 nights a week, a caravan that drives the city circuit on another 3 nights of the week (both providing free food and drink), follow-up care and a house that provides a place to stay (both for those who want to come or have come off the street/those wanting to get back on their feet).
Oh me, oh my! – I had no idea I had lived such a sheltered little life up until now! I’m incredibly grateful for my upbringing and that it has not included much of what I have seen over the past few weeks but I’ve just had my world kind of rocked… I want to help and therein lies the challenge. How do you help? When I stood back and gave myself some thinking space, I realised I didn’t have a clue what these men and women needed.
All that knowledge that I thought I had of what to do in this job – gone!
All my thoughts on social injustice – challenged!
All my ideas of what really goes on out there – blown completely out of the water!
…and here’s the really weird thing for me – in The Salvation Army, officers often have to canvas their local pubs on a Friday night. You go in uniform with a little brown box to collect money, hand out The Salvation Army magazine and make conversation/build relationships with people. I find pubs REALLY diffcult. I suppose you could say I struggle to even make conversation (don’t laugh!) but I’ve managed to get through it and I’ve seen God move in some amazing ways - despite my sorry efforts at times! Here’s the weird thing – I find what I’m actually doing with the street ministry incredibly similar to the pubs - you're just there to chat and build relationships, yet I feel completely different. I can’t wait to get there each night I’m on even if it’s just to make sure that the girls are still alive! Another day is another opportunity to let them know that God loves them and that usually comes through what we do not what we say – that in itself challenges me.
Why Incomparable Love? Because that’s what we’re supposed to be all about, right? Jesus loved like no other – He loved unconditionally, He showed love even if people didn’t show love back and most importantly, He loved first. There’s just no other kind of love you can compare that to… and that’s the kind of love I’m challenged to show every time I’m out there on the street.
Is it enough? – I don’t know
Is there more I should be doing? – I’m not sure...that's all part of the tail spin at the moment!
Is it the answer? – I don’t know but it’s definitely a part of it and perhaps what should always come first
And the burning question most of you might have about now - Has anyone ever come off the street? … Yes
Where to from here? - I'm just not sure. All I know for now is that I want to learn all that God has to show me and I don't say that lightly. The past few weeks have involved some pretty tough times where I've had no answers and wanted out more than once...yet I'm still here.
I think my out training is going to be a bit of a wild ride! Part of me wonders what's next and another part of me just doesn't want to know!!... I guess I'm just going to keep going - one day at a time (despite the fact that occasionally I would like to take it 2 or even 3 at a time!).
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