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Best Movie I’ve Seen in a While – And only 3 Minutes Long!

By Jeremy Myers
6 Comments

Best Movie I’ve Seen in a While – And only 3 Minutes Long!

This short Thai commercial is better than most movies I’ve watched recently, and it’s only three minutes long!

If you watch it, you won’t have time for popcorn, but you will probably need a Kleenex…

God is Uncategorized Bible & Theology Topics: Discipleship, love, movies, poor, service

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Jesus is Risen! (and He’s with the Homeless)

By Sam Riviera
1 Comment

Jesus is Risen! (and He’s with the Homeless)

Easter with the Homeless

Amazing grace,
How sweet the sound.
That saved a wretch like me.
I once was lost,
But now am found.
Was blind,
But now I see.

We spent last Easter morning with the outcast — the lame, the thieves, the alcoholics, the drug-addicts, the murderers.

We climbed out of our warm beds and headed out into the streets laden with bags of clothes, food and water. We shared what we had with those who had slept under bushes, on the ground and any other place they could find.

Happy Easter!

“Happy Easter! Happy Easter!” we told them.

Almost every person greeted us with “Happy Easter!”

These are supposed to be the people who don’t know Jesus. But they do. They have seen Jesus walking among them. He has danced with them. He loves them. They like Jesus.

Jesus was with them in prison. He visited them there.

He was with them in Southeastern Asia when they spent the years rotting away in bamboo cages lowered into holes.

He was with them as they walked the streets of America, looking for a place to lay their head.

They told us Jesus was with them.

Grace to the Homeless

“Grace. It’s all about grace. No matter had bad we screw up, God’s grace is still good. He never forgets us. He’s always there. He’s always been there for me. He’s been there the last eighteen years while I’ve traveled around the country. I don’t have a dime to my name, but I’ve got God’s grace. It’s all about grace. Don’t ever forget that.”

So said the man sitting on the sidewalk on Easter morning. The man with no home. The man with nothing. But he knows that Jesus lives!

“See this mark behind my ear,” said another. That’s where the VC shot me. The bullet came out through my nose. See this big white patch on my thigh” he said, pulling up his pant leg. “That’s where they got the skin to graft onto the left side of my face. Another bullet ripped a big hole there and they had to patch it. God got me through it and He’ll get you through whatever comes your way too.”

Easter with the Homeless

We Found Easter

We gave a cup of water, a warm coat, and we found Easter. The risen Jesus had been there. The risen Jesus was there, walking among those outcast and despised by the world. He too had been outcast and despised. He knows what it’s like. He walks among those He loves. They see Him. They see the One who was despised, rejected and afflicted. He is one of them.

He is risen!

He is risen indeed!

He walks among His people. Jesus walks among the poor, the outcast, and the homeless.

He loves us. Whether we’re thieves, adulterers, liars, cheats, gluttons, alcoholics or murderers, He loves us.

Whether we see Him in a fancy building with stained glass windows or dancing with us in the streets, He’s there. He’s alive.

There is so much need in the world!

And YOU can help.

Fill out the form below to receive several emails about how to love and serve the poor and homeless.

(Note: If you are a member of RedeemingGod.com, login and then revisit this page to update your membership.)

God is Redeeming Church, Redeeming Life Bible & Theology Topics: Discipleship, Easter, evangelism, following Jesus, homeless, looks like Jesus, love like Jesus, ministry, missions, poor, Sam Riviera, Theology of the Church

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Just Love Homeless People

By Sam Riviera
24 Comments

Just Love Homeless People

love the poor and homelessFrom time to time Christians tell my wife and I that “Loving the poor and homeless and your neighbors is all well and good. But that’s really not all that important in the grand scheme of things. Getting them to heaven is the important thing. You should be telling them about Jesus so they can get saved and go to heaven. That’s what they really need.”

In a sense I understand where many such comments originate. I understand the sentiment and passion behind them. However, I sense that those making the comments are repeating some stock statements they have heard somewhere, probably in church.

Figuring Out How To Sell Jesus

Do you remember the heady days of the 70’s when “personal evangelists” were “saving” people right and left? If you read the book “Evangelism Explosion” or attended a two hour “soul winning” class, you too could be a “soul winner”, whatever that term was intended to mean. If you were really good at soul winning, you could “win” dozens of souls every day.

Unfortunately, the vast majority of folks who tried those no-fail soul winning methods discovered the methods didn’t work for them. Their friends, relatives, and neighbors would sooner have bought the carcass of a dead dog than sign on to whatever religious idea they were trying to sell.

As a result, the emphasis shifted back to the churches, where it had been before the personal evangelism craze. As good Christians it was once again our job to convince our neighbors, friends, and relatives to go to our church. Then the preacher’s responsibility was to preach the Gospel, the Word, or whatever term you might use, which would convince these folks to repent and get saved.

This plan hasn’t been going so well either. According to recent surveys, the average congregation in the USA reports approximately one person coming to faith each year. Actually the number is slightly less than one.

Many Christians have decided that neither churches nor individual Christians are doing a good job telling people about Jesus. “If someone would only tell people, surely more would repent. Of course many won’t, but at least they’ve had their chance. They made the choice to go to hell instead of heaven.”

They Already Know About Jesus And Churches

I find, however, that theory is rarely correct. Most people have heard about Jesus. Most people like Jesus. They’ve heard about “getting converted.” “getting saved,” “repenting,” going to heaven and so on. They think they know what all that means. Ask them. They’ll tell you.

They also think they know everything they need to know about churches and Christians, and often what they think they know is not complimentary. Using the exact terms I have heard nonbelievers use on repeated occasions, they believe Christians are unloving, mean, angry, hateful, bigoted, homophobic, judgmental, too politically motivated, hypocritical, and more.

Who of us would want to join up with any group that met those descriptions? Would we be interested in what they believe? Would we be interested in their religion or in their God?

I have been surprised by how many nonbelievers can almost quote Ghandi’s famous comment: “I like your Christ. I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.”

Love People

Keeping all these things in mind, we try to love people and build friendships and relationships with them. That is our agenda. We’re not selling soap, insurance, or religion. We don’t hand someone a bottle of water and say we’re with such and such a church. We don’t give out tracts.

Sound un-Christian? Perhaps, but it doesn’t work out that way. For example, we’re often asked when giving food, clothes, tarps and other items to the homeless “Where do you get this stuff?

“We buy most of it,” we answer.

“Who gives you the money?”

“We pay for it.”

“Are you part of some church or something?”

“We’re followers of Jesus. We’re not part of an organized church. We come here to spend time with you. We bring church to you. No songs or preaching. Church is spending time with you.”

“Well, the people down here have been discussing why you do this, and we think you do it because of your compassion. Is that right?”

“Yes, we’re trying to show the love of Jesus to our friends here.”

We’ve had variations of that conversation with the homeless, the poor, prostitutes, bikers decked out in their leathers and chains while sitting on their Hogs and others. We take Jesus to them.

Obviously not every person we come in contact with asks these kinds of questions, but we get them regularly, often several times a week.

Almost none of these folks go to church. The church has not been kind and loving to them in their opinion. In their hour of need, be it when a family member was gravely ill or died, when they lost their job, when they lost their home, or even when they ended up on the street, the church was not there for them. The church was sitting in a building singing songs and listening to Bible lessons.

Care About Me First, Then We’ll Talk

We’re often asked, “Could I ask you something?”

“Of course.”

With rare exceptions the questions are about God, Jesus, the Bible, church, and so on, questions that somehow relate to their lives. Sometimes we spend twenty minutes or more answering the person’s questions, usually with others inching up close enough to hear the conversation, and sometimes joining in.

We hear “I’ve always wanted to ask someone this, but didn’t know who to ask,” followed by God and Jesus questions.

No building, no sermon, no songs, no flyers, no ads, no sound system – none of those things. But most figure out we’re there because we care.

I remember that old adage “I don’t care what you think until I know you care about me.” I probably misquoted it, but you get the idea. Another way of stating the same idea: We must earn the right to be heard. Our currency is caring and loving.

The church and Christians lost the right to be heard in many peoples’ lives long ago. Instead of finding caring and loving, they found disinterest at best, meanness, hatred, anger, and judgment at worst.

Our friends, be they the homeless, the poor, our neighbors, or our gay friends, want to talk. They tell us their stories. We listen. They ask us questions. We answer their questions, talk with them, shake their hands, hug them, and in the case of the homeless give them some water and maybe an orange and a pair of socks, a tarp, or a warm coat.

Sometimes when we’re on the street and we answer their questions with “We’re here to show the love of Jesus to the folks here in the neighborhood,” they start crying. I don’t remember how many times this has happened, but it’s not unusual.

hugging the homelessI’ve hugged a crying biker on his Hog in the middle of the street, a bank robber, Viet Nam, Iraq and Afghanistan veterans and more. I even hugged a crying city councilman. (He said “Never in all my life have I ever seen or even heard of such a thing. If churches did this kind of stuff I might be interested in going to church.”)

We go. We care. We love. We share. They ask questions. We answer their questions. They listen intently because we’re answering their questions. Our agenda is love. Period. The Spirit works in that space.

“Thank you for remembering us. We love you.”

“We love you too!”

“We know.”

A Call to the Church

Dear church,

Awaken from your slumber.

Get out of your buildings with your comfortable chairs and comfortable sermons. Meet you neighbors. Meet the poor. Meet the homeless. Meet the people you despise. Meet the people you’re sure are going to hell.

Touch them. Hug them. Learn to care about them and their lives. Learn to love them. Be genuine. They can smell deception from afar.

Learn to share. Share your time. Share your material goods. Share your love.

Leave your theology, your opinions, your Bible verses at the door. They’ve already heard those things from people who don’t care and don’t love, people who have been unloving to them time after time. Don’t share your opinions about anything. Listen to their stories, their opinions. Listen and hear.

Homeless smileIf they’re willing to share their stories and their lives with you be thankful. You’re learning to care, learning to love, learning to share.

When they ask why you care, why you love them, it’s OK to tell them you’re sharing the love of Jesus. Then shut up. No Bible verses. No theology. Not a word about which church you attend. You – You are the church. So don’t blow it by repeating what you believe about alcoholics, unmarried people living together, homosexuality, or whatever you think might apply to them. Hold your tongue.

When they ask about this Jesus, the Jesus they’ve been seeing in you, tell them about Jesus, not Paul or Leviticus. They already know about Paul and Leviticus. What they don’t know about is followers of Jesus who care about them and love them with the love of Jesus.

May they exclaim “Never in all my life have I ever seen or even heard of such a thing.”

May they say as you part ways that day: “Goodbye. We love you.”

And may you reply in return: “We love you too.”

May you hear the echo: “We know.”

Allow the Spirit a space in which to work, and then allow the Spirit to work. Don’t try to sign anyone up for your Bible study, your church, or your theology class. Some may eventually decide to participate in those things, if they find caring and loving. Many others will not. They’ve been hurt too badly in the past and cannot risk being hurt again.

You are the church. For many of the people you care about and love you are the only church, the only Bible, the only theology, they know. For those, you are the hands, the arms, the feet of Jesus.

Awaken from your slumber, oh church. Awaken and walk among the people of this world. Touch them, hug them, love them. Share the love of Jesus with them, that they may see the real Jesus, God with us.

There is so much need in the world!

And YOU can help.

Fill out the form below to receive several emails about how to love and serve the poor and homeless.

(Note: If you are a member of RedeemingGod.com, login and then revisit this page to update your membership.)

God is Redeeming Church, Redeeming Life Bible & Theology Topics: Discipleship, homeless, poor, Sam Riviera

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10 Dos and Don’ts in Loving Homeless People

By Jeremy Myers
155 Comments

10 Dos and Don’ts in Loving Homeless People

love the poor and homelessThis post contains 10 Things you SHOULD DO when serving the poor and the homeless, and 10 Things you SHOULD NOT do.

As there are different things you should or should not do for homeless people versus those who have a home but are poor, some of the items on the list begin with the words “Homeless” or “Poor” for things that are specific to those groups of people.

10 Things to Do for the Poor and Homeless

  1. Get to know the poor and homeless. Spend time with them. Ask them their names, and remember them. Tell them yours. Shake their hands. Be open and friendly. Touch them. Hug those who want hugged. Allow them to tell their stories. Listen. Remember.
  2. The poor and homeless are our equals. Honor them, respect them and treat them as our brothers and sisters. Feel honored that they are willing to share their lives with you and that you have the opportunity to spend time with them.
  3. Find out from them what they most need. Your presence, your touch, your love, may be at the top of the list. If you’re giving them “stuff”, personally hand it out. Remember – You’re “sharing”, be it your time or your stuff.
  4. Homeless: Check with your town or city to make sure they do not have an ordinance against distributing food on the street.
  5. Homeless: If you distribute food, small items that can be held in the hand and that don’t need plates, silverware, ovens or refrigerators work best. If you plan to give out cooked food, make sure hot food (soup, burritos, pizza, etc.) is kept hot until you hand it out, and that cold food (meat sandwiches, etc.) is kept cold until you hand it out.
  6. Homeless: Give them new socks and underwear. Bag them individually in Ziplock bags, marked with the size. The highest quality socks and underwear are usually not necessary. When socks and underwear get really dirty they may be thrown out by those who don’t have access to a laundromat.
  7. Homeless: Give hotel size, single use toiletries – soap, lotion, shampoo, razors (bag one or two disposable razors in Ziploc snack size bags) and so on. Find toothbrushes that have covers. 16 oz. bottles of shampoo or lotion often end up in the garbage (They’re too heavy to carry.) You can buy single use items in bulk from hotel supply companies for a few pennies each.
  8. Homeless: Many of them have significant dental problems and cannot eat items that require a mouth filled with good teeth, such as apples. They can usually handle bananas, tangerines and oranges.
  9. Poor and homeless: Give them clean clothes, blankets, and similar items that are in good condition. Launder and fold them and label them with sizes. Dirty clothes and blankets usually end up in a dumpster.
  10. Homeless: Always take bottles of water, regardless of the time of year. Dehydration is a common problem among the homeless.

homeless need socks

10 Things Not To Do for the Poor and Homeless

  1. Homeless: Never give them money. If they tell you they need it to buy a specific item, buy the item for them.
  2. Homeless: Never tell them your address or take them to your home. If you doubt the wisdom of this, let’s communicate privately.
  3. Homeless: Don’t go alone. Don’t go in large groups. Groups of three to five work best. Don’t go after dark. Mid morning to mid afternoon works best.
  4. Homeless: Don’t take your wallet or purse or wear expensive jewelry or clothing.
  5. Homeless: Don’t give them new clothing, with a few exceptions – socks, underwear, and possibly shoes. Why? – Three reasons:
    1. Expensive new jackets, hoodies, shoes and similar items may endanger them in areas with high populations of street people, where it is likely they’ll be mugged (and possibly beaten) and lose that new coat you gave them.
    2. They frequently sell those items to raise cash to fund their habits. We go the day after Christmas, and they try to sell us brand new coats, shoes, blankets and similar items. Swap meet dealers in vans also patrol the homeless during the holidays, offering to pay cash for new items.
    3. Many do not have access to laundromats. When the sweatshirt you gave them gets filthy, if they can lay their hands on another one, they’ll throw the filthy one in the trash, whether it’s the $1 one you bought at a garage sale or the $30 one you purchased at the department store.
  6. Poor and homeless, but especially the homeless: Do not clean out your attic or closets, bag up the stuff and drop it off on a street corner in the homeless area. Most or all of it will end up in a dumpster. They do not need gold four-inch heels, bell-bottom pants from the 70’s and broken blenders. If it’s usable, donate it to the thrift shop. Otherwise, throw it in the trash!
  7. Homeless: Do not drop off cases of bakery products, such as loaves of bread, packages of rolls, whole cakes and pies, packages of frozen dough, unbaked pizzas, and so on. Most of this will end up in the garbage.
  8. Try to avoid giving out “packets” of items, such as a toothbrush, lotion, apple, socks and soap, unless you tell them what is in the packet and ask them which of those items they need. Otherwise, they sort through the packet after you’ve left and throw away the items they don’t want.
  9. Avoid giving out major items at Christmas, especially to the homeless. Visit them at Christmas, take along water, tangerines, little bags of crackers, hotel size shampoos and that type of thing. In most urban areas, many of the people who are on the street on the weekend before Christmas and on Christmas day are not homeless. They only pretend to be homeless and are on the street to get free blankets, sleeping bags, coats and similar items which they plan to sell at the swap meet. Hand out the sleeping bags and similar items at least a week on either side of Christmas, when the real homeless people will get them.
  10. Avoid giving out large quantities of candy. Many poor and homeless cannot afford dentists and have bad teeth. Also, people who work with drug addicts have advised us against giving out candy. Apparently some addicts will live on drugs and candy if possible.

These are not exhaustive lists. Of course, some of these things may not apply where you live. If you have one homeless guy in your small town who sleeps on the city square, you would probably notice if several other people sat with him on Christmas day, pretending to be homeless so they can receive new blankets and sleeping bags.

We would love to hear additional ideas or questions in the Comments section from those of you who also come alongside your poor and homeless friends.

There is so much need in the world!

And YOU can help.

Fill out the form below to receive several emails about how to love and serve the poor and homeless.

(Note: If you are a member of RedeemingGod.com, login and then revisit this page to update your membership.)

God is Redeeming Life Bible & Theology Topics: Discipleship, evangelism, following Jesus, homeless, looks like Jesus, love like Jesus, ministry, missions, poor, Sam Riviera, Theology of the Church

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10 Ideas For Helping Homeless People

By Sam Riviera
80 Comments

10 Ideas For Helping Homeless People

help the homelessIn addition to finding ways to build relationships with the poor, we are building relationships with the homeless and finding small ways in which we can help them.

We have over ten thousand homeless people in our city. We want to help, not make it attractive to live on the street, if sleeping on a cold sidewalk in a rainstorm might be considered attractive.

San Diego has agencies that work on permanent solutions for getting the homeless off the street. However, for every ten that get off the street at least ten take their place. Some never get off the street. We know some who have been living on the street for over twenty years.

My wife and I do not have the skills or resources to get people off the street. We try to help those who are waiting their turn to get into one of the shelters or programs that provide housing and services, and some who cannot get into shelters or programs because they are unable or unwilling to follow the rules (which usually have to do with drug and alcohol usage and behavior).

There is no template, one-size-fits-all plan that works for what we think of as “giving a cup of cold water” to our friends on the street. If we lived in Chicago or New York City, we would need to adjust some of what we do, especially in the winter.

10 Ideas for How to Help the Homeless

  1. We go to where the homeless live on the streets. (We do not go to the homeless scattered in the canyons and backcountry.) We park our car, get out, walk the streets and meet them.
  2. We greet them and tell them that we have water and whatever else we have with us that day, and ask if they need some of those things. We usually keep our supplies in a garden wagon that we pull behind us.
  3. We ask their names, shake their hands when possible and hug them when they want hugged.
  4. We talk to those who want to talk to us. We meet brilliant, unemployed people who have PHDs, people who are mentally ill and make no sense, and lots of people somewhere between those extremes.
  5. We ask them what they need that they have difficulty finding. Tarps are the number one request in winter. New, clean underwear is also high on the list. Those who sleep in a shelter at night have fewer needs. Those who sleep outdoors have a greater need for warm clothing, sleeping bags, blankets and that sort of thing when the weather is cold.
  6. Since we buy almost everything we give away, we try to find sources for decent quality products at a good price. For example, we have sources for inexpensive, bulk supplies of soap, shampoo, lotion, razors. toothbrushes, toothpaste, Q-tips and so on. (Hotel supply companies and dollar stores)
  7. We work with a local food distribution group to acquire inexpensive supplies of fruit, crackers, cookies and similar products that are packed in small packages.
  8. We have an inexpensive source for 6 X 8 tarps with corner grommets for wet weather use (Harbor Freight – $1.99).
  9. We scour garage sales, thrift shops, and swap meets to find used clothing, backpacks, sleeping bags and similar items that are in good condition. We do not give away new clothing, except socks and underwear. (I’ll explain why in the “Do’s and Don’ts” in the following post). We wash the clothing, fold and label it with the size on a strip of masking tape and put a stack on our wagon.
  10. Our friend David, who goes with us each time, always brings a couple of dozen packages of baby wipes (great for cleaning dirty hands), and a few other people give us used clothing. Two other friends give us bags of new socks and occasionally tarps.

care package for the homelessWater, food, toiletries, clothes, and similar items are temporary help at best. Some people assume that hundreds of churches and individuals hand out these sorts of things to the homeless. That doesn’t happen. Christmas may be big, but the rest of the year is hit and miss.

We frequently hear comments such as “That’s the first water I’ve had since yesterday,” “I’m wearing the only pair of pants I’ve had for six months and they’re full of holes,” “I haven’t had any clean underwear for months,” “We’ve been under the bridge at night with the addicts and are afraid to go to sleep. With these tarps we can get away from them and sleep at night.”

From time to time we see efforts by Christians and churches to “evangelize” the homeless and tell them about Jesus. We assume something of the message must get through, but have observed that is not always the case.

Do we tell people about Jesus? We’ll talk about that in a future post.

Until then, have you discovered ways to help your homeless friends? Please share your experiences in the comment section below.

There is so much need in the world!

And YOU can help.

Fill out the form below to receive several emails about how to love and serve the poor and homeless.

(Note: If you are a member of RedeemingGod.com, login and then revisit this page to update your membership.)

God is Redeeming Life Bible & Theology Topics: Discipleship, evangelism, following Jesus, homeless, looks like Jesus, love like Jesus, ministry, missions, poor, Sam Riviera, Theology of the Church

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