With all the misrepresentations of supernatural work in our broken world, I always hesitate to use the term miracle. I’ve learned time and time again though that miracles DO happen every single day, and that there is no such thing as coincidence, only providence. This week has been a bit of a rollercoaster of highs and lows, but as believers we are to rejoice in the Lord always and simultaneously weep with those who weep, so that’s just life for us until Jesus “comes back and makes all the sad things come untrue,” as Truma’s Jesus Storybook Bible says.
Wednesday morning started out like most mornings. I left the house about 4:45 AM and headed to Breaking Bread Soup Kitchen to prepare breakfast. One of my regular volunteers on the breakfast truck brought three dozen gigantic burritos. We made the coffee, loaded up the truck, and headed out. Every day we go out on the truck is different so we didn’t have any idea what to expect, but nothing could prepare us for what we were about to witness.
The beauty of Breaking Bread Mobile is that it is all about the relationships we make rather than the food we serve. It is designed specifically to facilitate heart-to-heart interaction with people who otherwise wouldn’t have the opportunity to connect. We do not have a set route and we can feed anyone we feel led to feed, from people on the street corner to people in corner offices. Each person we serve is created equally in the eyes of the Lord—all are masterpieces in need of the saving grace of Christ.
We had stopped off at the Salvation Army to see some of our regulars and headed towards the south side Wal-Mart. I decided to take the back way to see if might stumble upon people on foot in the surrounding neighborhood. We happened to drive by the Boys and Girls Club and saw a bunch of kids sitting outside waiting on them to open. We knew that we needed to stop and see if any of them would like some breakfast and before we knew it we had a long line of hungry and very polite kids about to head off to a big field trip at Old Miner’s Maze.
We had approximately 25 burritos left when we arrived and as we were serving the kids, they just kept coming. We got down to 7 children left in line and we ran out of burritos. It felt pretty crummy to hold the bag up and show them that it was empty. I wanted to go down the street and buy some more but we didn’t have time. The first two of the remaining 7 said that they only wanted juice and muffins anyways which was a relief, but the third one asked for a sausage burrito. I guess he didn’t hear that we were out so we had to tell him the bad news again. We grabbed for the insulated bag and opened it up to show him it was empty and I was overwhelmed by what I saw—five more burritos in the bag—exactly enough to feed every last kid in line. WOW! I have no explanation for this but God. I saw the empty bag with my own eyes.
It is easy to forget or chalk it up to something else but we see miracles all the time. Some are less obvious than others, but things happen daily that can only be explained as miraculous. Having exactly enough food for those kids was a miracle, the systems that make our body function are miraculous, and it is a miracle that God saved me and doesn’t just strike me down for the sins I commit on a daily basis.
People often say that they are blessed to have a home, a good life, etc., but I like to reframe any earthly “blessings” as great responsibilities. As much as we like to think otherwise, we didn’t do anything to deserve them. All any of us really deserve is death and eternal separation from the Lord, but praise God, Jesus changed the game and made a way for us to be sons and daughters of the Most High King through His sacrifice on the cross. Any of us could have easily been dealt a different hand in life for better or for worse. The majority of Americans are only one paycheck away from being homeless so throw in a catastrophic life event and no family support and any of us could be holding a cardboard sign on the street corner. That said we must use our earthly blessings to lift each other up. Our ultimate desire is to show the houseless and the housed that Jesus is the only true home and that we are made to walk alongside each other in brotherly love and community. We all share a common need: salvation. Secondary to that, we need each other.
“ One road leads home and a thousand roads lead into the wilderness.”
— C.S. Lewis
As far as the nuts and bolts of our ministry are concerned, a lot has happened this week. We have added another outstanding board member who is fully committed to our vision. Another one of our board members has set off on an adventure to hike the nearly 500-mile Colorado Trail. We are also one step nearer to securing the land for the village. J.R., who I wrote about in this earlier post, is home with his family and is currently in a 6-month program to help him overcome his addiction to alcohol. Another homeless friend of ours has checked in to treatment for alcoholism here locally. Our prayers are being answered and it is a beautiful thing to be a part of. Thank you for all of your prayers and support!
Prayer Requests this week:
· J.R. and J. as they make steps to battle their addictions
· W and M for strength and perseverance in their mission work in SE Asia. Also for them to see God’s miraculous work in their ministry to Ibu M. and Ibu T.
· Continued prayer for The Field’s Edge to find the right piece of property and for God to raise up people to help us see this vision through.
· Prayer for Berry as he is on the Colorado Trail.
· Praise for beautiful opportunities to share the Gospel on the Breaking Bread breakfast truck.
· Peace and rest in this busy season of life.
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