Wow! Wednesday - again - we packed it in! This day we started out early and arrived at SOME (So Others May Eat) to work their breakfast shift. SOME is a ministry in downtown that provides many services to the homeless. They provide two hot meals a day, showers, job training, medical services, low-income housing and much, much more. They strive to offer all services with dignity. The tables are set with flower arrangements, food served off of printed table cloths, and each person greeted with a handshake and smile as they enter. Marines were volunteering the same shift that we volunteered to serve. We set tables, poured drinks, dished up food, and washed dishes for three or four different groups this morning. One group would file in and eat. Then we would clear and clean and reset the tables and the next group would arrive. It was good to get to see the people that we were serving face to face! We stopped at Starbucks and then headed on to St. Thomas More - a low income nursing home. We spent an hour and a half visiting the resident's rooms and just giving them some company. Yeoi Bin brought her flute and played for some of the residents. We met many people and heard many stories. We prayed with most of them prior to leaving. One, Mr. Jackson, had both feet bandaged up and wore only a hospital gown because he had been robbed and attacked prior to coming to this facility and owned nothing else! Then it was lunch and off to ROJA, the two afterschool programs to work with the kids. There we helped with homework, talked to them and played a bunch! The evening was filled with dinner at Wok -n- Roll in China Town. We had our leftovers boxed up and went out in the streets to find a homeless person to bless with the packages. Next we went on to the Lincoln Memorial where we debriefed for the day. What a place to debrief after a day of serving the underprivileged all day - the place that honors the man in leadership at the time of immancipation and the spot where Martin Luther King, Jr gave his "I have a dream" speech! Kristin challenged us to think about that even with the diversity and dichotomy of society - all people are equal in God's eyes. We are all equal in our sin and we are all equal in our opportunity to have a right relationship with God! This focus helps in serving the people and the city that we are learning to love. Next we walked by the Vietnam Memorial - 58,200 + names of men and women who lost their lives in this war are on that wall! How sobering! We also walked through the Korean War Memorial and the WWII Memorial. The views were beautiful and the night was a perfect temperature. All in all it was a great day to grow in Jesus! Thanks for your prayers and thanks for the comments they are all so encouraging!
