God is Full of surprises

Friends,

This past Tuesday we had our monthly Bible study at the women's shelter in Cleveland.  I have been working out of a Women of Faith Bible study book called Amazing Freedom, but I was feeling lead to go a different route.  At 11:30 PM, I was praying and struggling and was not sure what God was going to do.  I looked at my bookshelf and found another Women Of Faith book about life in Jesus.  So I opened it up and read the first chapter, and knew that was the study I needed to do.  It was about having a new life in Christ.

Now, God is full of surprises, if you remember the last e-mail I had sent it was about a silent lady at the shelter named Mary.  When I arrived at the shelter, I told Beth and Darlene I was going to check on Mary and I did.  I came in the room and she was laying on her bed and she smiled!  Then she pointed to the chair and said "have a seat" so I sat down and I asked her how she was doing, she said she was good.  We had a verbal conversation!  She didn't use signs or nods or shrugs, she used her words!  I asked her if she wanted to come to Bible study and she asked where it was and who was going to be there.  I told her and then she thought and thought and thought and she asked if she had to dress up, I told her no and she said, ok let me freshen up and she came to Bible study!  The workers were amazed that I had Mary out of her room!  Mary came into Bible study, she was quiet as usual and that is okay, but she seemed to listen.

We had two more ladies at Bible study as well, Laura and Linda.  We were talking about helping others and I'm not sure exactly what triggered her, but Linda just became upset and said "this place is full of drunks and drug users and they are beyond help" and then she stormed out, slamming the door behind her.  I didn't let that get to me.  Laura is new in the shelter and she said that she feels as if God has her in the shelter for a purpose.  Instead of me giving the salvation message I wanted to do in the end, I used my witness bracelet I had and taught Laura how to use it.  Please pray for Laura.  Pray for Linda as well, I know she is getting an apartment, so her days in the shelter are numbered, but as she is in the shelter he needs encouragement.

Lastly, I visited Donna who has a shattered spine and is facing possible surgery.  I went to her room to check on her as well.  She is supposed to find out when she is having surgery.  Pray for her because with this surgery she will have a 50% chance of not walking and she is afraid.

God is moving and I am excited to see what he is doing.  Please pray for me as I minister to these ladies.  It is humbling to be used by God in this aspect.

Again, it is fun serving Him!

Becky
(Becky Phillips, Wasdworth Church of the Nazarene.  reprinted from her Facebook Note on 3/30/2011)

Opened doors, Jesus disguised as an elderly woman

Dear friends,

I just want to share some stories from my adventures in serving the homeless.  If you remember last month, I talked about the new ladies shelter and how we weren't allowed to bring food and stuff in.  Well, last Sunday (December 12th) before we went out and in our prayer circle we prayed that God would open a door for us to come in and serve.  Darlene told everyone that we would have to prepare for not coming inside.  So we arrived to the shelter, talked to the guard.  Well, one of the staff members just happened to be in the lobby and she said this once she will let use in.  So, we came in and we never did this before.  It was chaotic ... but we were inside, however, we talked after and discussed asking if we could use the kitchen and use the serving window.  So we added that to the prayer list, if they would let us in and let us use the kitchen.

Well, now to December 19th ... we went to the shelter and the staff told us we could come in.  Well as Darlene went to the bus so we could back it into the drive and unload ... I went to the staff lounge and asked them to hang up signs for the Bible study next week.  I asked if we could use the kitchen and they told me we could.  The staff actually had me kind of take charge of things.  So what we did this time I numbered the 15 tables and had the ladies draw numbers and we ate a table at a time.  It was great!

As we were working, a lady came to me and said, "come with me" so I did ... she took me to the hallway where the sleeping rooms were and introduced me to Mary.  She is 84 years old, diabetic and is wilted down to nothing.  She was laying in her bed trying to keep warm.  My heart sank ... 84, no family and a sweet spirit.  I went to the bus and smuggled in a big blanket and covered her up.  I then smuggled a hat and gloves in.  I just put a hat on my head and walked out without one!  It was great!  I was reminded of the verse "Whatever you do to the least of these, you did to me" and I realized, this elderly woman is Jesus in disguise.  Pray for Mary.  A couple of the ladies told me she is forgotten a lot.  And it touched my heart to see that a few of the ladies are taking care of Mary.

God is moving ... I'm excited to see what is next!

Serving Him,

Becky
Published on Facebook profile, Becky Phillips on December 20, 2010

Obama honors CNN Hero who cooks meals for homeless people

Hot of the CNN Heroes Press!

Jorge Munoz is awarded the Presidential Citizens Medal at the White House on August 4.

A former CNN Hero who distributes free home-cooked meals to needy people in New York, was honored by President Obama on Wednesday.


Munoz was one of 13 everyday Americans who received the Presidential Citizens Medal, the second-highest civilian honor, behind the Medal of Freedom.

Read about the award presentation by clicking  here.  Don't forget to check out the videos found in the left side navigation bar.

Read the March 20, 2009 CNN Hero post by clicking here.  Don't forget to check out the video tab here.

Bar Hunger

Help SNICKERS and Feeding America “Bar Hunger” in America.

Listen to actor David Arquette, GQ magazine on how YOU can get involved and make a difference.

http://www.facebook.com/snickers

Remember you can help us Bar Hunger in America!

Simply enter the code inside specially-marked SNICKERS wrappers at http://SNICKERS.com or by texting the code to 45495 and SNICKERS will donate an additional meal to Feeding America for every wrapper code that is collected – up to one million meals.

For more info check out the newsrelease from FeedingAmerica or the Mars Company.

You can also join the Feeding America FaceBook Fan page, follow the Feeding America Twitter page, or join the Snickers Facebook fan page.

Remembering who she is. . .

She is his daughter.  She isn’t his mother, his wife, his nurse, his social worker.  But it’s been years since she’s been just a daughter.  It’s been years since he’s acted anything like a father.

When she was 8, she became aware he was different from other daddies.  He was gone a lot.  He laughed too hard and at all the wrong times.  He always carried a bottle in his hand.  He never  came to school plays, never drove her to McDonald’s for a treat, never told her she was good at softball.

When she was 12, her mom said enough was enough and suddenly he wasn’t there at all.  She realized she missed him sometimes — discovered there were little things about him she’d never really thought about.  Like the way he always had a stick of gum for her in his pocket; like his silly grin, his spiky hair.

When she was 17, she got a job at Sonic.  Within a few weeks, he started coming around — usually drunk, smiling, hungry — looking for a free meal.  She would grab a break, bring him a hamburger and ask him where he had stayed the night before. She began to worry.  She and her mom sat together during the 10 o’clock news on channel 9 each night just in case…

When she was 18, it finally happened.  Stumbling along a busy street just after dark, he lurched into traffic and was hit by an SUV.  The driver waited with him until the ambulance and police arrived.  ”He came out of nowhere,” the driver said.  She and her mother saw the newscast and wondered as usual.  The police knocked on the door minutes later, directed by a phone number crumpled in his pocket.  He is alive, the cop told them, but he is seriously injured.  The two women prayed it was the wakeup call he needed.

When she was 21, she stopped believing his life would change.  She was deep into her junior year of college  — a major in social work, a minor in criminal justice — and didn’t want to think about him anymore. For a year after the accident, he’d been in rehab, trying to hold his memory together in a skull that was broken into what seemed like puzzle pieces.  Then he got kicked out of rehab for drinking and had circulated through a series of recovery centers, more for the warm bed and food than to overcome his addiction.

He showed up at Sonic one night, and she watched wearily as he crossed the parking lot, weaving and waving in her direction. She fed him a hamburger and watched again as he drifted back to the street.  Later she heard he was at a mission downtown — Kansas City Rescue Mission.  She shrugged and thought, “Here we go again,” and turned her attention to school.

When she was 22, she learned her dad was graduating the Mission’s recovery program.  She battled skepticism, and opted for hope.  ”Maybe it’s real,” she thought.  She watched his progress from a distance, then closed the distance mile by mile as her hope grew.  She stopped worrying about him and began to talk to him … about sports … about school … about God.  She hugged him.
When she was 23, she counted two years of sobriety then swept away her last dusty thoughts of worry and wonder.  He told her he was fine and screwed his face into a look of disgust when she asked him if he would ever drink again. As he prepared to leave KCRM and move to his own place, she hoped it would be close to the home she shared with her mother — maybe he’d could come for dinner once in a while.
He is still broken in so many ways, but she wants to be near him.  He has spiky hair and a silly grin and gum in his pocket.   He loves her and worries about her.  How is school? he asks.  Are you dating?  Is he good to you?  This is how she remembers and she thinks to herself, I am  his daughter.
MO


Read more stories like this one .at the Kansas City Rescue Mission's blog.

Empty schools housing the homeless?

That is just what may happen in Kansas City, Missouri! 

This past June,  the Kansas City, Mo's school district closed for good more than 20 schools to save money(sound familiar Cleveland and Detroit?), but members of Kansas City's Homelessness Task Force hope the buildings could soon re-open with a new purpose.

Read more by visiting  the Kansas City Press.

Join the Kansas City Rescue Mission in praying that the city uses these vacant schools to further God's kingdom in amazing ways!  Join We Care in prayer as we serve the homeless of Cleveland!

Abandoned by his family and left homeless. . .

. . . New York City youth, Orayne Williams earns college scholarship!

In less than two weeks, some 50,000 city high school seniors will graduate.

Few of them will have overcome as many obstacles as Orayne Williams.

Abandoned by his family and living alone in a homeless shelter, the 18-year-old immigrant has not just endured, but excelled.

With a 91 average and three Advanced Placement classes under his belt, he's headed for college with a fat scholarship and big plans.

"I've been through hell," said Williams, a senior at Bedford Academy in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn. "School is my way out."

Born into poverty outside Kingston, Jamaica, Williams grew up with no water or electricity, scrounging food from the street and avoiding gangs.

He was 12 when his mother sent him to Florida with only the clothes on his back. He was taken in by relatives who he says abused him and dealt drugs.

He found refuge in school, arriving early and staying late.

"It was like my savior," he said. "The only thing I had."

In 2007, Williams was reunited in Brooklyn with his mother and an infant half-sister, who were homeless. The three lived in motels and shelters, sharing one bed.

"It was impossible to focus on school," Williams said. "My mom and I fought like crazy."

In November, Williams' mother kicked him out, and a social worker found him a spot at a shelter for young men in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, where he lives now.

The young man gets up for school at 5:30 a.m. and studies on his bed because there is no desk. He brings to school a bagged lunch made by shelter staff.

He works hard to blend in with the students who have homes and families and support.

"When I tell people I'm homeless, they're surprised," he said. "Most of the kids at my school still don't know."

Cluny Lavache, assistant principal at Bedford Academy, said Williams' positive attitude in the face of adversity has spurred people to help him.

"He touches your heart," she said. "He has a lot of people looking out for him."

Wayne Harris, who works in the Department of Education's Office for Students in Temporary Housing, is one of those people.

He helped him apply for college and financial aid, and let him use the phones and computers in his office.

This fall, Williams will be a freshman at upstate Sullivan County Community College, paying for his first year with $15,000 in grants. He hopes to become a doctor.

"I feel blessed," he said. "So many good things are happening to me."

New york daily news, June 15, 2010