Run to the Chariot?

Felt great to be in the presence of God today. Don’t know exactly why it was different today, but it was just a great feeling. Been an interesting week for me. I was reading an email devotional a few days ago and it just happened to be a verse from Acts. Acts 8:30. "Then Philip ran up to the chariot and heard the man reading Isaiah the prophet..." I thought about this verse several times during the week and then this morning, I read it again from the NIV. As I read, it became a little clearer to me. Go to the chariot. Don’t stop and ask questions. Don’t weigh the pros and cons. Just go. Do it. And when he got there, he found the fellow at the chariot reading from Isaiah. Reading things maybe he didn’t necessarily understand. Philip was led to a guy who needed a little discernment. Apparently. At least that’s how it comes across to me. And I get that. I need that often. So he goes to a chariot, sees an opportunity to share the Good News and jumps at it. What an awesome opportunity. What’s the chariot?

We get to our corner this morning and I sense a good day ahead. Again, don’t really know why, but I just felt like it was going to be a great day. It was. Because we were in the presence of the Lord. It is so obvious. I had a lengthy conversation with an older fellow named John today. John is like a long lost grandpa. 60 years old. From Houston, Texas. Been in Omaha quite a while now. Alcoholic. By choice he says. I can’t say that I’ve ever really seen him in a bad way. Just a nice, very endearing fellow. And he’s one of the guys I always look for. Always smiling. And just a genuine person. So, we’re talking at the back of the van and I’m trying to understand how a fellow like John is in the position he’s in. How? Addictions. Never been married. Never had any children that he knows of. How does that happen? John is just a really nice guy. I absolutely love talking to him. And he’s homeless and probably not going to change that anytime soon. He tells me he loves me. And he means it. I can tell. And the feeling is mutual. I have to be honest here. As in any situation, be it your average social gathering, the workplace, a church, whatever, there are simply people we either have difficulty relating to or people we simply don’t like to have relationships with. It’s no different here. There are homeless guys that I have a hard time with. It’s usually a personality issue. Sometimes we just run into people we clash with. Happens. And it happens in our Sunday activities. Some people I’m naturally drawn to. Others are just more difficult to relate to. Not John. I could talk with John for hours. He’s just that kind of guy. His afternoon plans? Heading to a bar to have a beer. That’s what it comes down to. I asked if he ever tired of that lifestyle? Nope. It’s what he wants to do. But he’s a definite believer. Got tears in his eyes several times during our conversation. Genuine tears. Told me how thankful he was for what we did. That he thinks of us almost daily. I told him not to think of us. Think of Him. There has to be more in there. Has to be. I’ll keep searching. Probing. Has to be more. Is he the guy at the chariot?

The funniest thing happened this week. Robin gets a call from someone at the Sienna Francis House. They had a hygiene collection or drive or something like that. They were looking for the small bars of soap and larger bottles of shampoo. Not sure why they needed those specific sizes. Surely they have their reasons. So as I was loading out our stuff last week, I noticed that we were almost out of our supplies. We take several bins of various hygiene items with us every week. And the lines that form at the back of our van for these items says it all. So how are we going to replenish our dwindling supplies? Well that call from the Francis House took care of that for us. Seems that they got their sizes reversed and we were going to be the recipients of about 12 crates of travel sized shampoo, large bars of soap, conditioner, lotion and toothpaste. Enough to last us quite a while. The nice thing here for me is that we don’t have to spend our time and resources looking (begging) for this stuff. We can focus on the more important stuff. The chariot stuff. See for me, it’s like this. I don’t have to do the paralysis by analysis thing. I don’t have to continually spend time wondering what the Lord’s will for my life is. I don’t have to worry about all the details of stuff and things. They just keep showing up. I don’t have to overcomplicate things. I can simply “run to the chariot” and let the Lord lead. That’s what it’s been about for me from the start. Getting out of the way and letting Him run the show. It is, after all, His show. And what a great show He put on today. Got to our “chariot” today and got to tell guys about His love. For them. Got to talk to Steve about his prayer time in the park this week and his need for a Spanish Bible so he can study at the shelter with one of his buddies. Got to talk with Terrance about his crack addiction and his need for a King James Version of the Bible, which we will pick up this week. Got to talk to John about his addictions and his love for the Lord. I got to watch my kids jump rope with other kids and some homeless guys, using an old string of Christmas lights. I get to do this stuff every week. Me. Why? I guess it’s my chariot.

One last thing that happened today. A guy shows up late. Native American. First he tells me his name is Jay. I get him a cup of soup. He’s been drinking, so the conversation is a little difficult. Shortly after that, as we are getting ready to leave, he approaches me again. This time his name is Joe. So JayJoe takes some money out of his pocket. Three dollars. Says this is difficult. I’m thinking this is going to be a cool moment. Is he going to make a donation? It’s happened a few times before where one of the guys has made a small, but significant, donation to us. I’m thinking this might happen here. He tells me he’s a man. I’m a man. I agree. We’re both men. Says it again…this is difficult for him. So here we go. He starts to hand me the money. He pauses…looks around and he says…”I need to make this $3 turn into $5”. I just laugh. Do I look like a magician? Don’t we all need to turn a little bit of money into a little more money? No dice JayJoe. That…is not a chariot. :)

“Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience…Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.”- Colossians 3:12, 23-24

Peace and have a great and blessed week.

…”it matters to that one”…