God continues to amaze me. No matter how long I know my Savior, He truly gives me more pleasure than anything else on this earth. Matthew and I had the pure blessing of stumbling upon an awesome ministry called 7 Bridges this weekend. It basically works to bring Christ to people in downtown Atlanta in order to get them off the streets.
I have seen a lot of poverty in ATL, but I have never been to the neighborhoods and burbs with such hopeless-seeming poverty as I did today.
We caravanned through various neighborhoods bringing food to all sorts of strangers, yet after a moment of prayer and a hug of love, the word "stranger" didn't seem fitting.
There was one neighborhood that reminded me of the movie The Blindeside where we sung with kids, and passed out toys and food for mothers and their children. Nothing about our day was unmoving, and everything we did blessed us more than it blessed those we met.
I was especially moved by one man, Bobby, who was undoubtedly a seller of drugs. Rough, tough, and maintaining confidence in himself, Bobby talked about knowing who God was and once having a relationship with His son Jesus. However, complications in life have led him to live on the street, which he admitted was all because of his own choices. Once I expressed God's love and purpose for His life, he was moved to tears, as was I. How this exceedingly rough exterior could become so vulnerable, so quickly with a young white girl could only have been a reaction from the Holy Spirit's work. He really wanted the peace he believes comes from living for Christ, but he wasn't ready to make a move away from his life yet. But Bobby did say before I left, "Will I see you again soon Miss Katie?" I definitely believe you will Bobby! And I can't wait!
I hope you know how blessed you are as you start 2012. Never underestimate what God has planned!
~CubBuster
I have seen a lot of poverty in ATL, but I have never been to the neighborhoods and burbs with such hopeless-seeming poverty as I did today.
We caravanned through various neighborhoods bringing food to all sorts of strangers, yet after a moment of prayer and a hug of love, the word "stranger" didn't seem fitting.
There was one neighborhood that reminded me of the movie The Blindeside where we sung with kids, and passed out toys and food for mothers and their children. Nothing about our day was unmoving, and everything we did blessed us more than it blessed those we met.
I was especially moved by one man, Bobby, who was undoubtedly a seller of drugs. Rough, tough, and maintaining confidence in himself, Bobby talked about knowing who God was and once having a relationship with His son Jesus. However, complications in life have led him to live on the street, which he admitted was all because of his own choices. Once I expressed God's love and purpose for His life, he was moved to tears, as was I. How this exceedingly rough exterior could become so vulnerable, so quickly with a young white girl could only have been a reaction from the Holy Spirit's work. He really wanted the peace he believes comes from living for Christ, but he wasn't ready to make a move away from his life yet. But Bobby did say before I left, "Will I see you again soon Miss Katie?" I definitely believe you will Bobby! And I can't wait!
I hope you know how blessed you are as you start 2012. Never underestimate what God has planned!
~CubBuster
Crying here. Shocker, I know :)
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