the praxis path

Homemade sleeping bags...

2010-11-20T12:02:00.000-06:00

Elspeth forwarded this to me, about how to make sleeping bags for the homeless

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dPxT_lNx60c

Here is the group's page, with the instructions...

http://www.reese.org/sharon/uglyinst.htm

Is anyone interested in getting together and giving this a try? Let me know...

Christmas Presence, December 11th.

2010-11-20T11:53:00.000-06:00

We are gearing up for the next Christmas Presence event (see previous events in Rice Park listed below). Socks, underwear, mitts and hats are particularly needed. The event is on Saturday December 11th. Let me know if you are interested in helping out, and meeting some great people!

Getting ready for cold weather

2010-10-16T15:01:00.000-05:00

Friends,
We've been blessed with wonderful weather this autumn, but we know what's coming!

(some Praxis folks from 3 winters ago...)

Simple things like new socks (either full-length athletic, or workman/thermal), knit hats and mitts make a huge difference to our friends on the street...
Also, new underwear is always appreciated (mens and womens, all sizes...).

If you remember, can you drop off items at either CrossRoads (Praxis bins across from the children's ministry check-in area), or at The Gallery...

Shalom,
Matt

Changes...

2010-08-24T14:53:00.000-05:00

Changes have a funny nature of happening in clusters...

One of our leaders over that last couple of years (Kim) is moving away to be with her sons. Thanks so much Kim for your energy and enthusiasm!
Terry and Matt are looking to move to a ministry that works more towards getting people off of the street. This is grea, and I hope you plug in with one of the great ministries in the Twin Cities.
For a year we've been part of the CrossRoads Church Live-out-Love Saturdays, and in this time we've had the opportunity to take many people downtown and let them meet our friends. My desire has been that people come to see our friends as people made in the image of God, and to start to feel God's love for them (as well as for all of us). Thank you Lisa and Cyndi for facilitating our involvement in Live-out-Love!
Bill, one of the originals, is now a leader in BSF, and so his Saturday mornings are spoken for. I've appreciated your companionship through the many cold winter mornings when we've searched the streets and skyways for people needing gloves, hats and prayers!

One the plus side, the young folks (ok, to me mid-20s is young!) at the Gallery Church are getting involved in homeless and urban issues in a way that inspires me! Tony and friends have worship services and just hang out and talk, play music and pray with people Sunday nights (rotating through each of the parks).
I enjoyed hanging out with Tony and others a few Saturdays ago (chatting with people, singing, even painting!).

So, the faces of Praxis (except mine...) have changed, but the mission is the same (Dignity and Respect for all the Image-Bearers of God), and the approach is the same (learning by doing...)

Shalom,
Matt

Dignity and Respect for all the image-bearers of God

2010-03-23T20:14:00.000-05:00

We were was sitting with some ladies in the green space across the road from Dorothy Day. We'd been talking for a while, and had offered them some water, snacks and hygiene kits. I asked what other sorts of things they'd appreciate receiving. One answer surprised me, and I've passed it on several times since. The lady said, "Dignity, underwear, respect, socks, moisturizer, and, did I mention dignity?" She went on to list the local churches that treated people well, and then other churches that made her feel degraded even while they served her.

I tell this to every group that we take downtown with us: "Dignity and respect." It doesn't matter what a person's housing and employment status is; everyone needs love, and to know that they are not forgotten, by God or by us.

We don't just hand out items (although that's part of it); we try to connect with people, we ask their names and we offer to pray with them, and we catch-up with them in subsequent weeks. We offer them a safe place to unburden themselves, and perhaps talk through some things.

Some people accept this readily, others reject us. When we first met one gentlemen he tried to punch us. Over the next year and a half, we kept gently serving his friends, and eventually we got to know him and pray with him. A few months later we learned that he had died. When I think that I'm too tired to go downtown, or it's too cold out, I think of him, and how time is short, and we head out again.

Thank you for your donations to Praxis (at CrossRoads, Gallery, and my workplace), and thank you for your prayers. If you would like to join us sometime, please let me know.

Shalom,
Matt

In the park with Gallery Church

2010-03-02T20:48:00.000-06:00

We got together with The Gallery Church (St. Paul) in December (just a couple of days after a huge snow storm...fortunately part of the park was cleared...).

As usual, we set up with some tables (with with food, coffee and hot chocolate) and bins of clothes in the park, and then sent out groups (with bags of hygiene kits and mitts and gloves) to the shelters and bus stops. After an hour, people started coming by. It was a really cold day, but the team from Gallery were really energetic and enthused!

We had a lot of conversations with the people that came by. (One funny time: when we were setting up, a couple came by and asked, in a pointed tone, if we were setting up to "sell our wares to the tourists". When I explained what we were doing, they kept saying, "Oh, that's so nice...".)

We got some donations through an event at The Peach art gallery, and the excess clothes then went to one of the East Side schools that a couple of the Gallery people teach at. It worked really well, and I look forward to the next time we take part in a Love: St. Paul event with The Gallery.

November in the park

2009-11-21T22:23:00.006-06:00

We had a great morning last Saturday with the CrossRoads Church/Live Out Love group! We started with 3 assembly lines for lunches and snacks.

We then headed downtown to Rice Park, set up some tables with coffee and hot chocolate, lunches and snacks, and hygiene kits.

We had several benches with men's items (socks, underwear, shaving kits and coats), and benches with women's items (socks, underwear and feminine hygiene packs).

Groups of three or four headed through the other parks, the bus shelters and Dorothy Day Center, taking water and food, letting people know we were in the park.

We met a lot of people, and many of our group got to sit down and talk our friends. It was a great day, and our friends really appreciated the chance to talk (and get new socks, underwear and hygiene items).

Thanks so much to the CrossRoads Women's Ministry for enough donations to make 500 feminine hygiene packs! Our friends really appreciated that!!! Thanks to the Children's Ministry for the donations of socks and underwear! Thanks to the ladies who have been faithfully making mitts, scarves and hats!

If you would like to contribute to either our monthly events, or our weekly smaller walks through downtown, please use the donation bin at CrossRoads Church (near the Children's Ministry check-in desk), or find me at Gallery Church. Our friends are very appreciative for all the items you donate!

Peace,

Matt

It's time to break out the mitts!

2009-09-28T22:29:00.003-05:00

This past weekend, we had a couple of people ask us if we had mitts and gloves with us. It was 50F that morning. Now that the cold front has moved in, and there is a frost warning for tonight, we're now gearing up for the cold weather. If you have hats, scarves and mitts/gloves (for adults and children), let me know, or drop the items in the bins at CrossRoads (or hand them to me at CrossRoads Sunday morning, or The Gallery Sunday evening).

The photo is from last winter; I'm showing it to remind us (me), that now is the time for the cold-weather gear...

Tomorrow night, some of the ladies of CrossRoads are getting together to make some mitts and hats. Thank you ladies! (The men on the street prefer dark, solid colors, while the ladies prefer colorful items.)

Peace,

Matt

Autumn Updates...

2009-09-14T20:10:00.002-05:00

Long time, no typing...
We've been going downtown most weekends through the spring and summer. Usually it's been our group of 4-5, but four times we've host a group from Live Out Love from CrossRoads Church. On those days we've set up a station in Rice Park, then sent out groups of 4-5 to the parks and bus stops. It's been great to see the participants' enthusiasm, and better to hear them say their eyes have been opened to the people they'd normally walk by.
Thanks to CrossRoads for promoting the events, and supplying the water and the bananas (and vacuum pots of coffee!).

One thing we've seen is that the number of people on the street and in the parks have been increasing (numbers were down last year before and after the RNC: the Excel Center is next to Rice Park and across the road from Dorothy Day, Listening House and Mary Hall). I'm expecting that we are going to be seeing more people through the winter as well.

If you'd like to help out, come to one of the Live Out Love events, or send me a note... We have a group of ladies that knit mitts, hats and scarves for the winter (thank you so much!). Our friends also need new socks (athletic socks are best...), and underwear (mens and ladies, S,M,L,XL), as well as hygiene items. Drop me a note if you'd like to help, or you can drop items for the homeless in the donation bins at CrossRoads and The Gallery churches (CrossRoads in Woodbury: bins are near the entrance to CrossWalk, The Gallery @ Stepping Stone Theater: bins are in the lobby).

And, please pray! If you think it is cold and miserable out (and you know it's coming!), please stop and pray for the people finding shelter.

Thanks and blessings,
Matt

A cold day in February...

2009-02-21T21:41:00.004-06:00

On Valentine's Day this year we put on a little event in Rice Park. We set up a table with a cooler of orange drink (thanks, McDonalds in Cottage Grove), bagged lunches and hygiene packs. We put out bins of mens and womens clothes, hats, socks, scarves and mitts, and spread coats (thanks Stone Soup) and blankets across the benches. A couple of us manned the food table, and the other four helped people find the clothes they needed. A special "thanks!" to the ladies at CrossRoads who have been knitting scarves and sewing the mitts! People really appreciated that these were hand made.

We had a great day! The sun shine helped counter the cold wind (yes, it was cold!). We got to talk to a lot of people, and share some laughs and some hugs.

We will be looking at repeating this maybe every six or eight weeks; in the meantime we will be doing our regular walks through downtown.

Christmas 2008 - Thank you ladies!

2008-12-20T10:57:00.005-06:00

Thanks to very generous donations from the ladies that attended the CrossRoads Church Women's Christmas Brunch, we have been able to purchase supplies to put together Christmas gift bags to give to those in shelters today. The bags have new socks, cookies, candies and candy canes, and breakfast bars. We are also handing out Christmas cards that a local Girl Scout troop wrote, some baked goods donated by Rainbow, stuffed animals some friends donated, and handwarmers.

Thanks all for your generosity and compassion for people in the shelters and on the streets this cold and snowy Christmas. Blessings to you all!

Memories of warm weather

2008-11-09T21:29:00.005-06:00

Gang,

With the weather turning cold, I'm posting pictures of when it used to be warm...

The first picture is from Rice Park (we did a goofy thing, and had a sign for free smiles along with our usual food and water), and on the other is from when we helped with Hearts on Fire for God homeless outreach in Minneapolis (we arranged the clothing give away, and then several bands performed and a couple of pastors spoke in the Musicbox Theatre).

God bless,

Matt

Updates

2008-11-09T21:16:00.002-06:00

Gang,

We still head downtown St. Paul most Saturday afternoons. Lately we've learned that warm dark socks are very appreciated (white socks are ok, but dark socks are a treat!). Hygiene items (and especially hygiene packs that meal groups at CrossRoads have put together) are really appreciated. Now that the weather is turning cold, it's also hats and gloves time. We had a great group of ladies that made lined fleece mitts for us last year (the people LOVED the mitts!), and some other ladies that make scarves. Let me know if you would like to join these ladies in serving the homeless in these ways.

What we hear over and over is that people like to be treated with dignity. That's why we always approach someone saying "Excuse sir" or "Excuse me ma'am", or "Good afternoon...". The hats and water and snack bars and hygiene items are a bonus.

Let me know if you have questions. You can usually find me every service at CrossRoads Church (Woodbury campus) at the CrossWalk Kids check-in desk. Or you can send me a note through this blog and I'll contact you.

God bless,
Matt Atkinson

A sad day

2007-11-16T13:38:00.000-06:00

It's a sad day .... one of our cohort, JoynJesus, is heading to another state as result of a job relocation. She was our key person working with Family Life Services (on the pregnancy crisis line, and coordinating donations), and always a truly joyous person. I'm happy for her family's new opportunities, and glad that I can call her a sister, and sad that she won't be around.
JnJ, I pray for God's blessing on you and your family, and I pray that you will be led to a place you can serve with as much joy as you served with us.

Ideas for the Whole Community: Should we give money to street people?

2007-11-13T21:08:00.000-06:00

I found this post on another blog... interesting thoughts....
Matt

Ideas for the Whole Community: Should we give money to street people?

More sewing

2007-11-10T18:07:00.000-06:00

Can you sew? If not, can you cut fabric? We are also going to be getting together to sew mitts and hats for our homeless friends. Interested in helping? Let me know... Matt

A little Help

2007-07-31T12:18:00.000-05:00

Do you know how to sew? We have a winter coat thats in good condition but needs a zipper. Would you be willing to supply what's needed and fix it?

If yes, please leave your name and phone number with someone in the office.

Thanks
Praxis

Socks and underwear

2007-06-04T11:54:00.000-05:00

Over the past while, we've learned that our friends living on the street, living in shelters or camping along the Mississippi really appreciate new clean underwear and socks. Our desire is to be able to give a couple of changes of socks and underwear to every person we find on the street over the summer.
If you or your meal group would like to help, we would like:
-New, clean underwear (both men's and women's)
-New, clean socks (white athletic socks are great), either ankle socks for women, or full length socks for men and women.

You can drop the socks and underwear off in either the office during the week, or at the Welcome Table/Info Booth on the weekend. It would be best if you could put them in a grocery back labeled "PRAXIS"

As well, we can always use hygiene items.

If you would like to join us some Saturday, leave a message for me at the church office, and I'll give you a call.

Blessings all!

Matt

Some of what I've learned while walking

2007-04-25T23:09:00.000-05:00

I've been walking downtown now for 6 months helping the homeless and those who just seem to be in need. When I first started I thought it might be interesting to check it out and see what happens. I didn't know that God had much more in store for me.

Some day's can be tough. So many people are hurting and lonely. For a long time I didn't know how to handle it. I would pray to God and ask him WHY WHY WHY! and then I'd feel like giving up and not going out. But then, Saturday would come and I couldn't help but go out again. This kept happening to me, I'd get depressed and angry and Saturday would come and I'd go out. One of the people on the streets that we meet sometimes is Freda. One particular Saturday I found out that she had been on the Streets for 16 years. The sadness she had in her eyes was just to much for me to bear. I went home that day from my walk and cried for at least an hour. I prayed constantly to God asking why he would let this happen to this elderly woman. I also prayed to find a way to help if not cure homelessness. I was so distraught about it. After about two continuous weeks of praying God gave me my answer. He told me that it wasn't my job to cure homelessness and I can' t help everyone. My job is to bring joy to those I come in contact with. He also let me know that there is no cure for homelessness and that there will always be "haves and have nots". He also let me know that it's OK for me to go home to my family and be thankful for my blessings. Not only did he give me answers but he lifted the burden I was carrying. I'm no longer depressed or sad but am grateful to be able to help those I meet and am now able to enjoy the time I share with them.

I don't want to end this post with it sounding like we are out there not having any fun. We have some really great days. Like when me met Boomer. Boomer is a parrot. His owner has him trained to do tricks to a ringing bell. That was a fun day! We also get to meet lots of interesting people who like to share where they've been and where they are going. Some people are just passing through on the way to new jobs and it's fun to hear about their travels on the road. We have a few friends that we see often and it's just nice to chit chat. Not only is it fun to see our friends on the streets but it's fun just hanging out with our group talking and laughing. When we are walking, I sometimes envision if that's what Jesus and the disciples where doing. Walking, talking and laughing.

God Bless
Little Dawn

Scraps and loose ends...

2006-11-10T12:27:00.000-06:00

"The only constant is change..."
When I started this blog, I was hoping that people would use it to share their experiences helping others. Through the spring and summer it worked that way. We had a fairly regular stream of comments. It was good.
We had a bit of a end-of-summer blogging slump, and we lost our readership.
While we currently have a link from the Sanctuary website, soon we may be posting announcements directly on the Sanctuary blog. Keep your eyes open there also.
We'll be handing out lists of items that can be donated for the homeless after the Sanctuary service this Sunday. We collect these items before and after the Sanctuary service. Alternately you can drop things off in the church office.
We are still going downtown most every Saturday, and if you want to join our expanding group give me a call. If you want to learn more about helping New Life Family Services, given Reagen a call. If you want to help with Bill's Pantry, give Mary B. or Jim L. a call (call the church office for numbers).
If you want to know about Care Kits for community nurses in Swaziland, send me a note.
Blessings as you get out into the community and care for the forgotten...
Matt

As Long as God Has Me Here, I'm Going to Do What I Can.

2006-09-20T13:23:00.000-05:00

A friend of mine from high school works at an amazing ministry in Tegucigalpa, Honduras called Project Manuelito. This ministry helps get children off the streets of Tegucigalpa. He recently wrote me a letter, and I wanted to share part of it because what he does is definitely 'praxis'.

"...When I first came to Honduras back in 1993, I never imagined that it would lead me to where I am today!

Just a day or so ago, I was out walking when some kids asked me for some money. I smelled the glue they were sniffing...so potent! I told them I wouldn't give them money, but that if they were hungry, I'd get them something to eat. I went into the closest restaurant and bought them a little something. The deal had been that I give them the food and they give me the glue...well...didn't quite work out. They never handed over the glue... but I always give the food anyway. It's sad just how many and how young street kids are. Used to be 15,000 in Honduras. They now estimate 18,000! This country needs help. And as long as God has me here, I am going to do what I can."

"As long as God has me here, I'm going to do what I can." That is my new motto. There is so much to be done, and so few workers. I thank God for my friend's servent heart, for his willingness to go to the ends of the earth to feed hungry children, both physically and spiritually. My prayer is that God will use me where I am too. For whatever His will may be.

Here are some links to more information about project manuelito.

http://www.projectmanuelito.org/

Here is a link to a video of another ministry my friend works with. My friend refers to it as the "Micah Project". It is a fairly new ministry in Teguc, and it helps the 1200 people or so who call the city dump, their home.

http://www.hondurasfield.org/jumbaugh/. Then click on the Micah Project.wmv file. It's just over nine minutes long.

So, whatcha up to?

2006-09-15T10:43:00.000-05:00

We want to connect people to ministries outside our doors. I am a bit hesitant to simply give a list of ministries that I don't know much about. We've been checking some out individually, but that's been taking time. That's were this request comes from: if you are connected with a ministry outside our doors, and you are excited about it and wished more people served with you there, let us know, so we can direct people to it (and let them talk to you to get more details). You can respond here, put it on a communication card during service, or catch Bill or me after service.
Blessings all...

One year later

2006-08-20T15:20:00.000-05:00

So, we started doing this praxis thing just over a year ago. There is something about an anniversary that makes me reflect back. So, what where have we been?

Pastor Brad asked us to do something with "social justice", and to "run with it". We first found a multimedia course that our denomination put together. This course was written specifically to help churches launch appropriate social justice ministries. It was a combination of finding the needs in the neighborhood and region, finding the passions and giftings of the people in the congregation, and slowly building a self-sustaining structure to move forward. Sounded great. I was told however that we weren't going to run this course (for a variety of reasons). Oh well.

Bill and I first tried mapping out a complete organization, and then tried finding people to fill the various roles. Well, since Sanctuary was just starting and we didn't know very many people and how they could plug in, we didn't succeed. After that we advertised a couple of meetings and asked interested people to come and suggest ministries.

Out of this came the support for New Life Family Services.

The AIDS task force was launched with strong support from the pulpit, which drew a strong leadership team. Armed with their passion and materials on launching AIDS minsitries (from a Saddleback Church conference), this group found and built connections with a couple of established HIV/AIDS ministries in the Twin Cities, and are active. That's great.

Bill and I and some others have been going downtown most Saturdays to spend time with the homeless and give them water and hygeine supplies in the summer, and hats, gloves, handwarmers and blankets in the winter. Many people have generously donated blankets and winter gear. (Thank you very much: your generosity touched many people!)One small group asked us to come and talk to them about it, which was beneficial.

Now to some of the challenges we faced: we are not an conventional-style org-chartable ministry. We don't have a voice "at the table". We are not a budget line anywhere (and having been on the church council several years ago, I've seen the benefits of appearing on the budget...). For a while we set up a table in the lobby each Sunday night, but that has become difficult with the numbers of people now attending (oh, the problems of a growing church (smile) ) I've tried to get space at the different info tables, but even when I got the space, I didn't really get the space (long story...)
What could be done? I've thought about setting up the donation bins by the wall. However, I've noticed that the food shelf barrels that have been set up in the lobby seem to collect empty coffee cups...probably not going to work for our stuff either. We tried leaving our bins in the cloak room, but everyone was asked to clean their stuff out of the cloak room (a reasonable request...)

I've just received a request to provide 400 pairs of socks to give out at an event for the homeless...faced with this request (and knowing that we don't have announcements at Sanctuary or a way of advertising this except through what you are reading right now), what would you do?

Also, dear reader, I'd also like to know what you would change as of today concerning Praxis (it might help to review the first couple of posts to get a sense of the mission)?

Oh, and one more thing...if you read this, just send a comment saying "I read this", or "I read this and you're whining..." or something to let me know...
That's it.
Blessings all,
Matt

HIV drugs for children in Africa

2006-05-26T11:23:00.000-05:00

I came across this news item on the BBC website. It refers to a report from a coalition of groups, including World Vision. I'm posting this as there has been interest in the topic in previous posts on this blog. The news item says in part that:

The Global Movement for Children said that, in June 2005, around four million children were in need of cotrimoxazole, an antibiotic costing 3 US cents per day per child, which prevents life-threatening infections in HIV infected children and infants born to HIV-positive mothers.

It can also delay the onset of Aids and the need for anti-retroviral therapy.

It adds that 90% of HIV-positive children are infected by a failure to prevent mother-to-child transmission.

The report says providing a mother with comprehensive care can reduce the risk of transmission to less than 2%.

But under 10% of HIV-positive pregnant women currently receive the necessary drugs.

The report makes a series of recommendations including the development of simple and affordable diagnostic tests, more research and development for child specific treatment and improvements to health-care systems in developing countries to make it easier to get medication to children.

The rest of the news item can be found here

The part that struck me is again the low cost of doing the right thing! Thoughts?

Message about trip to Swaziland

2006-05-16T21:48:00.000-05:00

As you know, we were in Swaziland with pastors from 2 other churches. Here is a link to a message by one of the pastors, Pastor Reed Mueller from Columbia Ridge Community Church (in the beautiful Columbia River gorge). Listed on this page is the first message he gave after he returned from Swaziland (2006-05-06). Reed and his wife Erin visited some of the same places we did, and also visited some different ones.
I enjoyed his message very much, and he makes some great points.
Listen when you get a chance, and let me know what you think.
Blessings...

Link to messages here

Swaziland-Part 1

2006-05-12T11:39:00.000-05:00

It's been awhile since I've posted. I've been in Swaziland with Pastors Phil & Brad, Jim, and a couple of newly-met brothers and sisters (from Portland OR, St. Louis, Pennsylvania...). We were there an a "Vision Trip" (we were told to roll down our sleeves and be receptive and learn...) as opposed to a Mission Trip. We've been back a week, and I'll still processing what I saw. Perhaps giving snapshots will help both you and I see what is happening to our brothers and sisters in southern Africa.

One of my big take-aways was again that God never fails to surprise me. We went over prepared (as much as we could) to be heart-broken by what we were going to see. That happened. But I was really surprised by the hope and joy we saw in the rural area of Swaziland we were in. Here there is a 42% HIV/AIDS prevalance level, and it's really taking its toll on the communities. And yet people are hopeful and joyful because they have a bigger and more real and intimate vision of God. They really believe that with their service to their community in Jesus' name that the tide can be turned and that they will be able to raise the children aged 5-15 to adulthood free of HIV. At that point the corner will have been turned.
Such faith!
We went expecting to have our hearts broken, and they were. But not only were they broken so that we could feel their pain, but also that we could feel their joy. Without being able to feel their pain, I don't think I'd be able to fully understand their joy.
More rambling thoughts to come...

Face to Face

2006-03-27T09:20:00.000-06:00

So, how does one cope with the overwhelming needs, and the worries of "bringing it home" with you...I think that sometimes we need to be overwhelmed. Sometimes we need to "bring it home" with us. I have read about activists who live in boxes or tents to call attention to the problem of poverty and to get a feel for what it is like to be homeless. I applaud these efforts. But no matter how long we choose to "sleep in a box" or how many times we walk the streets on cold days looking for someone to minister to, the one thing we can never feel is their true despairation. However long we choose to put ourselves in the "homeless condition," we know in the back of our minds that we can escape back to our own comfortabe lives at the time of our choosing. We do not, because we can not know this kind of despairation. We can only catch a glimse when we allow ourselves to to get close to someone in this circumstance. This is exactly the point at which government and private organizations fail these people. An organization can not, by definition, get to know someone on a personal level. As Matt said, these kinds of organizations are wonderful and necessary, and we support their efforts woleheartedly. But this personal kind of ministry kind of needs to be spontaneous and unscripted. It is messy, and scary. We are vulnerable because we are allowing God to use us completely at His will. We are without org charts, mission statements, and all of the other familiar organizational structures we are used to relying on. Sometimes, we admit to ourseves that we have no idea what we're doing. We are not the ones running this show!
The bottom line is, we are not "changing " the people we meet. They are what they are...God's crowning achievement, His most beloved. Though they find themselves in dire circumstances, they are priceless in the eyes of God who created them. No, we take it home with us because we are the ones being changed. If we are not overwhelmed; if we can get through a night without worring about one of our new friends, then I fear God has much more work to do in our hearts.
I think Jesus affirmed this kind of personal ministry in the story told in Matt 26:6-13. The problem of poverty is always going to be there, and giving to the needy through charities is clearly something we are called to do. But we can't forget the importance of the personal relationship...it is why He came.

Face-to-face vs writing a check

2006-03-24T12:20:00.000-06:00

Recently I received comments that what we are doing lacks focus and isn't the right way of approaching the homeless. Further, the person indicated that it was better to send money to the established service organizations that are already in place. Oh, of course I was going to reply... This is what I said in response (some parts edited for clarity)....

I think I should clarify what the focus of what we're doing with Praxis is:
We are actually meeting face to face with the homeless and learning their stories. It is infinitely easier for me to simply write a check and send it to Union Gospel Mission, and our family and many others do that. However, it changes a person when they stand and talk to a homeless person, for either 5 minutes or for an hour (like we had the opportunity to do last weekend). Sure, Jesus ministered to thousands at a time (Sermon on the Mount, feeding the 5000, etc...), but He also took the time to talk to individuals. The focus for Praxis isn't efficiency, it's faithfulness. And in talking to the homeless, I've learned more about what they like about these organized service groups, and what really offends their sense of self-worth. That's something I would not learn any other way. That's another aspect of it: learning. And when we listen to their stories, we give them a dignity they say they don't get from certain organizations.

At the beginning of each day, we put our time in God's hands to bring people to us to talk to. Does that seem unfocused? In one way, yes. In another way, to acknowledge God's sovereignty can't be a bad thing, can it? Obviously we're not transitioning people to high-paying jobs overnight, but when we see someone without a hat or gloves and it's -5 degrees out, then I'd say that the organized charities missed this person, and that we are exactly where we need to be.

Now, we have dropped items off and Union Gospel Mission and Naomi House, and will continue to do so. (Soon I'll post about what the kids in CrossWalk @ CrossRoads have done: it's awesome!).

Absolutely, there has to be people plugged into the service organizations, and I applaud those people and the passion that God has given them. However, I have an informal rule that if people don't get my particular passion, then it's likely they aren't meant to serve there. I am called to talk face to face with the homeless and to give them dignity. That's it. Others are called elsewhere, and should serve elsewhere. I'm not big on convincing people that they should serve the way I'm called to serve. That's not God's way. All I can do is tell my story, and something will stir in someones heart, or it won't. That's it.

This is becoming a spiritual discipline, in the sense that Richard Foster means (see note on his books below). We are putting ourselves in front of God and asking God to both work in us and work through us.
I can't stress enough: until you stand in the cold, in a park or on a street corner, and create a space for a homeless person to unpack their emotional & spiritual baggage, you won't really understand them. And after all, Jesus died for that individual also, so how can our giving them a bit of dignity by listening to their stories be a bad thing?
Comments?

Silence (Molchanie) and Unity (Sobernost)

2006-03-12T15:37:00.000-06:00

I've come across this passage in Molchanie (The Silence of God) by Catherine de Hueck Doherty. Doherty worked with the poor in Harlem and Toronto, then set up a servant community in mid-Ontario. Thomas Merton (The Seven Story Mountain), monk and contemplative writer, heard Doherty lecture, and was facinated and challenged by her intimate faith in God, which turned her to service to the poor. Now the passage...

You wish to experience this kind of silence? Go into the alleyways of the world. Look at the garbage pails and see the old ladies rummaging through them, and the children collecting what you have thrown away. The poor go about this task in silence, a despairing silence, crying silently to God. People have closed their hearts to these poor. So some day, when you have nothing to do, walk through the garbage alleys of the world. Then you will know the silence of the Devil. And in that silence two thoughts will emerge: “Will I share more with the poor?” and “To hell with the poor!” What effect will this silence have on you?
Silence can lead us to God, and that is why the Evil One constantly tries to interfere with it. Take, for instance, the silence of indifference.

I appreciate that she is honest enough to say that we don't always have pure responses, and sometimes we're tempted to walk away from the things the bother us. It's important how we respond at this decision point.

Another quote, this time from Sobernost (Unity):

The only way to show the reality of Christ is to become an icon of Christ, a reflection of his face. And the reflection of his face will make us not only pray but serve. The two go together. For those who follow Christ, there is no service without prayer, and no prayer without service. They pray always, and they serve always.
So we have to enter the world – not the world that God condemned as evil – but the world he created … the beautiful world. And we have to restore it.
...
To serve mankind, to restore mankind to what was in the mind of God when he created it: this is our task! For this have we been baptized. Remember! We have died with Christ and have been resurrected with him. And if we listen carefully, the Gospel will shout at us clearly and simply, and we will have to do what it says.

Note her devotion to God, which leads her to serve Him by serving those He created and loves.
We've had several people mention that it would be a real stretch to walk downtown with us. I understand that. One alternative would be take some time and walk downtown, and simply pray for the people you see. God is sovereign, and will work in your heart uniquely. Go with someone, and take some time afterwards to talk about it. Let us know what you learn.
Blessings

Speaking of prayer...

2006-03-03T13:28:00.000-06:00

In the post below, I answered the question "How do you cope with what you see?", by saying "prayer, and lots of it", and also by talking through it each day. Following along that theme, I'm currently reading Richard Foster's book, Prayer: Finding the Hearts True Home. I've read Fosters other books, and really enjoyed and was challenged by them. This one is just as good. One of his strengths is that he draws upon the whole of Christian history, not just the past 30 years (like some other contemporary authors). Reading this book will excite you and draw you into a deeper prayer life. Not bad for $24!

This book might also prompt you to read his other books. I also recommend Spiritual Classics and Devotional Classics. Those two explore extended passages from some of the older Christian writers. Following each section are personal reflection and group questions. They certainly stretched me out of my comfortable little way of seeing our faith. I regularly go back to these books, and also search out the original books that the passages come from. Let me know what you think of them.

Finally, Streams of Living Water will challenge you to learn about other Christian traditions, not denominations mind you, but traditions. Quoting from a summary "The six streams Foster presents are: the Contemplative, or prayer-filled life; the life of Holiness, or the virtuous life; the Charismatic, or Spirit-empowered life; the life of Social Justice, or the compassionate life; the Evangelical, or Word-centered life; and finally, the Incarnational, or sacramental life." His book looks at strengths and possible weaknesses of each tradition. He is even so bold as to suggest how merging a couple of streams could strengthen each. The section on the Incarnational Life is one of my all-time favorite chapters in any book. This one will also stretch you.

OK, enough Foster for now. Let me know what you decide to pick up.

"How do you cope with what you see?"

2006-03-01T09:25:00.000-06:00

Last weekend, a video describing some of what we do when we walk downtown was shown in service. I have to tell you we were a bit hesitant about doing the video, because we're not doing it to be noticed. However, Pastors Phil and Brad assured us that if the story is told so that others will be inspired to do likewise, then that is good.

Several people have since asked how they can be involved. We are going to be having a "training session", which really isn't the right term for it, in a couple of weeks, followed by a trip downtown. We'll be announcing that soon.

I just received a very nice email from someone at church, who is inspired to get out and help, but is understandably concerned about being overwhelmed by the needs, and about bringing that home. That is a great question, and I've included my answer below. Bill & Casey will also have worthwhile insights to the question.

About your question about how we cope, the short answer is prayer and lots of it. The long answer is: Before we get out of the car, we pray that God will make us responsive to what we see, will bring the people He wants us to meet to us, and that we are offering this time to Him. As we walk, we'll spontaneously pray (eyes open, of course, because I don't want to walk into a lamp post!) for people we see. Sometimes when we get to talk to some people for a while, we'll get some of their story, which is usually quite sad but with seeds of hope. We ask if they'd like us to pray for them and the answer is always "Yes please!". As we walk away we again ask for God's protection on that person.

As we drive home we talk about what we're learned and who we met, and what God is doing. Sometimes if we have to really decompress we go for a coffee. Sometimes I'm still bothered when I get home, but fortunately my wife is very understanding, and let's me tell her what I've seen.
A couple of times I've woken up in the middle of the night worried about someone we met, and I'll pray for their protection through the night. The next day at church I'll find out that Casey and Bill also woke up at the same time and prayed for that person.

We keep our eyes open for people we've met before, and sometimes we do. Often we don't, and I'm saddened.

About wanting to do more than you actually can, I'd say that you might feel that way, but you absolutely can't let that chain you down. We know we're not getting people off of the streets and into jobs (although I pray that will happen). We helping ensure that some people's hands don't freeze off in the night. We are helping people get through the day. Like I said, we are offering this time to God to use as he sees fit. Without that mindset of obedience, it would be too depressing to do.

Blessings!

Light In Darkness (Mexico)

2006-02-20T05:20:00.000-06:00

I recently returned from a missions trip to Playa Del Carmen, Mexico where I spent just over a week working side by side with over 25 fantastic people from this church and the Family of Christ Church from Hastings. This mission’s trip had many different parts, home visits, children’s ministry, a prison ministry, women’s ministry and a work ministry. Part of the work ministry was to help in the construction of a Baptist Church that the Cross Roads team had partnered with last year as well. Anyway, having very little knowledge in actually speaking Spanish, the work ministry was where I was going to show God’s love by using my hands and really working hard all week. This story that I am about to share is one of 100’s that the group could share so if you see one of these people stop and ask them about our missions trip.

I had my work focus on and was going to just kick but and git er done, but something unexpected happened along the way. I met Miguel, his wife Gabi and their 2 year old daughter Gabi. We first met at church service on Sunday night, where Miguel and I shared a Spanish Bible and Spanish Hymn book. I borrowed an English / Spanish dictionary from Dawn Hass so Miguel and I could communicate a little. We sat in the back row during service sharing God’s word and signing in spanish. (I had no idea what I was signing but I apparently can annunciate Spanish words well enough to get a Beun from Miguel.) After service we said our good byes or adios?
I saw Miguel on occasion during the week, mostly in the afternoons as he was at work during the day. He would make a point to tap me on the shoulder and we would attempt to communicate for a while.

The Missions team was set to leave on Saturday morning so, On Friday night the church body held a farewell party for all of us, I was very impressed as I think all of the congregation showed up to thank us for our help! We played games, talked and really enjoyed an evening of multi-cultural exchanges. During this time Miguel came up to me, thanked me for the work that we did over the past 5 days. Took his work jacket off and said – for you. Hermano (brother) I was like “Dude, wow”. That gesture means so much to me and really had me thinking deeply about life ,God and relationships. I am not sure, with all that I “have”, that I would give the jacket off of my backs for a recent acquaintance. The jacket that I am wearing is the one that my friend Miguel gave to me.

If I took one thing back from this trip it is this: While many people in Mexico make less in one year than I make in a month, they showed me that they were richer in life than I was. Many don’t have solid roofs, separate bed rooms, or running water but the things they do have are God, Family and friends.

Oh, to be that secure in our relations with each other and our maker.

Under the Overpass

2006-02-14T14:23:00.000-06:00

Here is a story (real-life, unlike a certain famous bookclub choice...) of a couple of college age guys who decide to live on the streets, to see what it is really like.

They spend a month at each of six US cities, with nothing but a guitar and their sleeping bags. Their experiences are eye-opening (for them and for the reader). Particularly painful yet hopeful is how they are treated by various Christians.

The last chapter on reintegrating into "normal" life is worth the price of the book. Mike finishes by discuss somethings that people like you and me can do. While I was telling my friend Bill about the book, and the last chapter of suggestions, he said, "What are you doing this Saturday? Let's go downtown." And that was the start of our weekly walks downtown. Pick-up the book. Let me know what you think.

Blessings.

Carlos

2006-02-14T12:10:00.000-06:00

I'm sitting here on Valentines Day, and my thoughts go back to a guy we met on Saturday. We were outside the Dorothy Day Center, handing out water, snack bars and gloves when he walked up to us. He was a young guy, maybe early 20s. He asked what we were giving out. We gave him some food and a knit hat. He hung around and kept talking, and we got his story.

Carlos is from the south of Mexico. He's here working in the construction trades. He's a roofer, and isn't working right now. Work starts up again in a month. He has no money until then, so he gets by sleeping where he can and eating at the Center. He admitted that it is so tough that sometimes he has to "escape reality" to survive. He glanced around at the other people outside the center.

After a pause, he went on. His biggest fear when he's working is that he'll fall off the roof and be injured. Next to that, his biggest pain is that he hasn't seen his wife and daughter in over a year. Right now he has no money, but once he gets some if he went back to visit he wouldn't be able to reenter the US. His eyes started to water, and I could see that he was torn between doing anything he could to feed his family, and missing them desparately.

Later that day, we kicked ourselves for not taking him over to Mickey's Diner for some food, and simply being there for him. Next week we'll seek him out. Larry is going downtown a couple of days this week, and is going to keep an eye out for him.

So here I am, getting ready to pick up some flowers to give my wife tonight, and I still see Carlos, and the hurt in his eyes that he tried to hide, as he talks about his wife and daughter. I still see his loneliness.

As we left we prayed for his safety, and also that God would guard his heart and mind and keep him from desparate choices. Right now, as you read this, you are one of a very few people that even knows Carlos the person exists. When you sit down with loved ones tonight, say a silent prayer for Carlos and his wife and daughter, for their safety and their reunion.
Blessings all!

Jesus Delviers

2006-02-07T04:58:00.000-06:00

Boy does He ever!

This Saturday was a cold day to be walking the streets, looking for some friends that may have a need for food, water or friendly conversation. At first Matt and I ran into a group of four younger men that when we approached started to break up, like we were 5-O or something. We stopped to talk to two of them as they passed by, offering a friendly hello. As it turned out they were in need of hats and gloves but not cold enough to take the Vikings hat from Matt. No one wants the Minnesota Vikings hat, this was the second time that someone specifically said “oh, not that one, got anything less bright”. Being a Bears fan, I find a lot of humor in that response. Anyway, on our way around town, we saw a van parked in front of the Dorothy Day center with the advertising on the side stating “JESUS DELIVERS”. This van has been in front of the center on many weekends but this weekend we decided to stop by and introduce ourselves.
This van had an orderly line of people waiting for a fresh hot meal. Today’s meal included a HOT roast beef sandwich, juice and Gourmet Cheese cake. Being a cheese cake junky, my friend Matt could not pass up the invitation to try a piece. While he enjoyed his desert and I drank a fresh cup of hot coffee we found ourselves totally relaxed, on the streets, with dozens of homeless people. I think that this was the first time that we “let our guard down a bit” and just mingled with the group. That was a very humbling and inspiring moment.
We got to meet Pastor Pete, who heads up this ministry and a couple of volunteers from Trinity Church in Stillwater. Apparently Trinity Church staffs the mobile kitchen every Saturday, a Church from Eagan staffs it every Wednesday and a bunch of others fill in on Tuesdays and Thursdays. I pulled up some information about the ministry and would like to gear up a group to help this cause out on a regular basis.
Look for more information on the Jesus Delivers Van at the Praxis table. (Located in the lobby before and after the Sunday evening Sanctuary service).

“And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.” Colossians 3:17

Walking in the Skyway

2006-02-04T06:06:00.000-06:00

In St. Paul, when the winter hits hard and the wind is hollering, it is hard to find refuge anywhere on the streets. So, my friend Matt and I took our packs of supplies and went in to the skyway system. We stared by Rice park and, being new to the skyway system, we relied on the maps and the Yellow dots guiding our path on the carpeting. We start each Saturday’s walk with prayer to God our Father and for strength and guidance to find those in need of food, water or just a smile and a hand shake. This afternoon was no different but after about an hour of walking in the skyway, I admit, I was a bit saddened that we had not been able to help anyone. I turned to Matt and said “I have learned one thing so far today.” His reply was quick with an “Oh yeah, what would that be.” “That the homeless have no refuge in the skyway and we should head out” Just that instant and not any slower did we turn a corner and there were three of God’s children huddled up sleeping. They were using bags of ice melt as pillows and shared an area not larger than my bathroom floor. But to watch them resting and warm you could tell that this was a safe place for them to be. Without wanting to disturb them we stared to place water bottles and breakfast bars on the floor beside them. But being accustomed to the street and keeping one eye open, they instantly opened their weary eyes and gave us a puzzled look. “Good Afternoon” one of us said “would you like some fresh bottles of water and some breakfast?” YEAH, was the response. While they sat up and started to drink, we opened up some brand new fleece blankets and coved them. WE shared a quick moment of talk, told them that God loves them. They replied with a GOD BLESS YOU.

New Life Family Services

2006-02-01T12:31:00.000-06:00

When I first heard about Praxis, I was excited. I was excited to get involved, to reach out to the hurting of this world. To be Jesus to people.

My passion is children. Teaching, helping, loving, caring for children. And in doing these things for kids, I then have the chance to touch their families and their friends. There are so many opportunities out there to help kids. This post is about New Life Family Services. New Life is a non profit Christian social service agency. Their mission is to honor the sanctity of human life by assisting clients in life-affirming decisions with the love and compassion of Christ. They do free pregnancy tests, ultrasounds, offer counseling, practical assistance, and licensed adoption services to the women they help.

Being a new mom myself, I am especially passionate about the smallest and most helpless of God's children (at least at this stage of my life). This is why I feel that New Life needs my help.

There are many ways to help New Life. We will be collecting baby and maternity items at the Praxis table each Sunday before and after Sanctuary. New Life accepts new and used baby items and maternity clothes. Also diapers, wipes, toys, stuffed animals, formula, baby food, etc. (any donated equipment like high chairs and car seats must be new and in it's original packaging). They also take office supplies as donations. Another option is to put together a Birth Mother Gift Bag. These gift bags are given to new moms who have just given their baby up for adoption. They contain things like disposable camaras, journals, picture frames, candles, lip gloss, etc.

New Life also has a 24 hour pregnancy hotline. Any time day or night women can call and reach a caring individual who can listen and pray with them. The hotline needs volunteers for off business hour times. I just called the women in charge of the hotline, and she said they are currently really hurting for volunteers. It is a somewhat of a process to get the training to work on the hotline, but I was like sign me up! I'll keep you updated on how it goes. If anyone out there is interested in potentially volunteering, please come talk to me at the Praxis table on Sundays! I know they could use you!!

And whoever welcomes a little child like this in the my name welcomes me. -Jesus (Matthew 18:5)

Blankets

2006-01-29T20:56:00.000-06:00

There are a couple of women and a couple of high-school small groups that have been making double-thickness fleece blankets for the people downtown. We take a couple everytime we go downtown. We’ve given a bunch to Naomi House (an apartment for women and their children transitioning from life on the streets). Others we’ve given them directly to people we’ve met.

One day Bill and I were walking, and came across a couple of people sleeping in an alcove. They woke up while we were leaving some food and water. We offered blankets, as they had none. When we handed a fleece blanket to the woman, she took it and scrunched it up and rubbed it against her face. She looked at us and said in a surprised voice “This is new! And so soft and beautiful! Oh thank you!” I told her that I knew the people that made it, and that they cared about the person getting it. Walking away, we realized that even though this lady was on the street, she showed a tender side that we didn't expect. It opened our eyes a bit further to our friends.

A couple of weeks later, we were handing out blankets. One lady that we'd given a blanket to saw another one in our bag. "Oh, can I give this one back and have that blue one? It's so pretty!" The one she was pointing to was powder blue with a white snowflake pattern. Of course, she got the one she wanted. Walking away, Bill said "She's a lady. She's still a lady." And our eyes were opened a bit more.

Tonight at church someone asked us how much longer we would be collecting blankets. "Ah, the Second Coming?" I said. Goofy, but that's the intention. Blessings to the ladies and senior high groups that have been making the blankets, and also the people that donate new store-bought blankets. You have kept people warm at night.

Birds

2006-01-28T22:28:00.000-06:00

The other day as we were walking through Rice Park, we spotted a couple of our friends at a bench. We walked over, said hi and offered them some water and cereal bars. They took them, then asked for a dollar to buy some bread for the birds in the park. One man said that only the homeless take care of the birds, and that the rich don’t care about the little birds, don’t even see the little birds. This was an odd request, and we haven’t usually given people money. We said we’d bring bread next time for them. We gave them some handwarmers and introduced ourselves to them, and they said their names were Tony and George. We chatted a bit more, then headed off.

The next weekend when we were packing to leave, Bill opened his knapsack and showed me a loaf of bread. “For George and Tony” he said. I laughed. Unfortunately, we didn’t see George or Tony that trip.

The following Saturday we headed out, again with a loaf of bread. This time walking through Rice Park we saw George. We called out to him as we walked over to him. He looked up, searched our faces for a couple of seconds, then smiled. “The handwarmer guys!” We gave him the loaf of bread for the birds, and he laughed and thanked us, and wandered down to the south end of the park. We headed north out of the park

A little while later we were walking through the park back to the car, and we passed where George had taken the bread. Scattered on the path in a ten foot diameter circle were more bread crusts than I’d seen before. A couple of sparrows were eating some of the crusts. “Breadsplosion!” We laughed. Looking back, I wish I had watched George feed the birds. In fact, I wish we could have fed the birds with him. We sometimes forget that our friends on the street might want to have a conversation. In delivering the goods we forgot the people side. We’ve realized that we need to slow down and leave open the possibility for talking more to people.

Welcome to Praxis

2006-01-28T22:25:00.000-06:00

Praxis, now that’s a funny word! Google it and you’ll get results ranging from a math skills learning system to a planet that was destroyed in one of the Star Trek movies. It is a word that we are reclaiming for the church, because it perfectly fits what a group of us feel called to. Praxis means that we are putting our theories into practice. We love others, not just in word, but in deed.

Pastor Brad invited (or challenged) a couple of us to start some sort of ministry that would comfort those who are suffering. Specifically it would be directed towards people who are not part of our church (CrossRoads in Cottage Grove, MN). The form it would take would be up to us. We immediately thought of the homeless, of women’s shelters, crisis pregnancies, and about a dozen other teams. We very soon had too many ideas for the number of hands. What would we select? How were going to launch this?

During many coffees at the local shop, we realized that the current forms we were talking about, like the standard hierarchical ministry, were just not going to work. We decided to experiment with what could be called a node-and-hub ministry (my term for it, more on that later.)

We decided that a couple of us would get something going, something small, and people who were excited could join us. People who were interested but had different passions, well, we would support them and help them launch something.

With that, a couple of us started to walk through downtown St. Paul, talking with the homeless (“our friends”), and offering them water, cereal bars, coats, hats, gloves, blankets and hand-warmers. We’ve done this now every Saturday for five months. We’ve set up a table at our Sanctuary service to collect donations, and our friends downtown have been blessed by some very tender-hearted people at the church who have donated new and almost new clothing and blankets (I’ll talk about these beautiful blankets in another entry…)

Before going on, I want to talk about why I’m even writing any of this. A couple of us talked about this, and Pastor Brad pointed out that in the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5:16, specifically) Jesus said that we are to let our lights shine before men so that they would see our good deeds and praise our Father in Heaven. Brad said that it’s also valuable to let people know the kind of things that could be done, to energize them to join in.

With that, future entries will be about the people that have touched us, made us laugh, and broken our hearts even while we’ve been serving them. As well, as we launch other teams in our network, others will join in with their stories of love, pain and redemption. What will hopefully emerge is the big story. I’m catching glimpses of how this is more than a ministry (in fact, I don’t call it a ministry at church anymore…), how it is a transforming spiritual practice that becomes a way of life, a way of walking humbly with our God (i.e. Micah 6:8).

Welcome

2006-01-24T12:37:00.000-06:00

Welcome to the path.