Driving down the road...there he was, just sitting under a tree, holding a sign that read "Homeless Veteran, Please Help". I was on a bus with about 50 high school students, and we were stopping at In-N-Out-Burger. I ordered my food and sat outside trying to figure out what my heart was telling me to do. I knew deep down that I needed to just walk over and talk to him but there were so many worries that were racing through my mind. I turned to Paige and said "what did his sign say again?" We were attempting to unscramble the sign when I said "Lets just go over there and talk to him". Paige agreed, but first I wanted to grab some guys to go with us just for protection reasons. We got two guys to go with us...as we were walking over he made eye contact once but didn't really make any facial expressions. I sat down, along with the three others and we all introduced ourselves. The first thing I said after that was straight to the point "So John, how did you get to this point in your life?" He said "how about we start from the beginning", so I replied "sure".
John was born in Chicago, IL. He grew up in a semi-religious family, it was never a big deal to attend church though. After graduating high school he served the United States with all he had. After coming home from war, he decided to not go home to Illinois but instead move to California. He rented a house for a while but the rent became too much, he down sized and yet still it was too much. As time progressed things kept getting harder and harder. One day he just decided it was time to live on the streets, he couldn't hold a steady job, so sitting on the corner of a street, holding up a sign was the best he could do. This is what he has done for 30 years now...living on the streets, watching cars drive by, begging for life. He was currently "living" on the other side of the freeway (from where we were sitting) with tons of other homeless people on a campground. He said it wasn't too bad just got chilly sometimes. That's all he has known for years and years.
That was his story, simple right? Well, we all began telling parts of our stories, little did he know that we were here on a church trip...but soon he did. We talked about church and God. He told us he wasn't really involved with a church or anything like that but he did believe in a higher power. We then told him about our missions trip and middle school trip experiences and how amazing God really is. It was breath taking to see how interested in the conversation he was, made my heart feel full. I then asked if I could pray for him, and he said "I would love that". So I called everyone to huddle around him and I prayed...asked God to bless this crippled man, help heal his arthritis, keep him on the right path and allow him to grow in his relationship with you. I thanked God putting John in my life and I know have another story to add to the many I already have. As I said "amen" I looked up and saw a tear rolling down his face, a tear of happiness, a tear of hope, a tear of encouragement to me, a tear for God. Before I walked back to the buses, I shook his hand and he said something to me that I will never forget. He told me, "I've met alot of Christian people in my life but none that have made me as happy as you have. I hope that you will keep me in your prayers as I figure out my life, and I will keep you in my prayers too, now that you've taught me how to pray." I patted his back and thanked him, and walked away with a tear in my eye, a tear of hope that someday I will see this man again in heaven.
All you have to do.....is take a drive down the road.
~Haley~
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