Jason and Tommy hit the streets of Anderson yesterday morning at about 9:30 on Thursday morning. We thought that interviewing some people in the community could leverage us in meeting their needs. Jason and Tommy went out with some breakfast biscuits to help them show some love to the people that they met along the way. As they passed the employment office, on Whitner St. in Anderson, SC, they saw a group of 15 men hanging out on the sidewalk. Jason whipped his jeep in the parking lot and they got out to talk to the men. They offered the biscuits to the men and they all hastily accepted. As Jason and Tommy sat down to eat with them, they realize that all of these men were homeless. They sit at the employment office, in hopes that someone will pick them up looking for a day laborer. Usually they turn to the bottle, or worse, to help numb the pain that comes with being homeless. These men were surprised that Jason and Tommy stopped to talk to them. Jason states the reason that they are there, "We have come in the name of Jesus! Have you ever heard of him?" As Jason continued quoting some scriptures to the men, a few of them are moved to tears. Apparently, these men are dealing with problems deeper than just shelter, food, or work. Jason continues to explain that Christ died for them because He loves them. Jason then quotes John 3:17, “For God did not send His son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him.” To make a long story short, 7 these men accepted Christ on that sidewalk, and later on that day 2 more men and 2 women accepted Christ. Several of these men ended up staying the night at the Haven of Rest, which is a homeless mission with a drug and alcohol rehabilitation program within it. Sadly, upon contacting the mission this morning, they informed us that they had left after breakfast. One of the biggest problems with ministering to these people is the follow up. How can you follow up with these with these people when they have no phone number, address, or workplace? If you have an answer to that, please let us know! The closest thing that we have come up with is to be persistent in pursuing these people. We are learning their names, hearing their needs, and feeling their pain. We can’t help but feel this way because being weekly involved in this community truly breaks your heart. When your heart truly breaks for something, action has to follow. We wish we knew what we were doing, but the truth is that we just trust the Holy Spirit to prompt us and we try to be obedient. The people were informed about the bus that we bring to the neighborhood on Sunday mornings, so hopefully they will all file on. Please continue to pray for these people that are in our community, and for us as we slowly try to submerge ourselves into their world. Thank your for your supporting us, there is still hope for the streets...
Our Story...
It all started as a "crazy idea" that we thought we were just making up in our heads, but it has slowly become a reality. God continues to show us that He is the one that put this vision on our hearts. As we started looking at what and who was around us in our everyday lives, we noticed that we encounter many different types of people. Some may be believers and others may not be. Some may be criminals and others may be saints. Any way you look at it, you are going to encounter those that don't know that Jesus loves them and wants to have a relationship with them. What do we do about that? LOVE THEM. That is the only answer. We have to love these people right where they are. This is in no way going to be easy, but it is a must. Personally, we believe that we will be held accountable for our interaction with the people that we encounter in life. When I see that someone doesn't know Jesus, I want to do something about that. God has given all of us the gift of the Holy Spirit, and with the Holy Spirit we can do something about it. First, we started taking some kids to youth on Wednesday and church on Sunday. We also started taking homeless people to church on Sundays. We have seen numerous people accept Christ in a little over a month. God is absolutely blowing our minds with the things we are seeing happen. God has been breaking our hearts for people that don't know Him, so we have to do something about it. What if more kids show up? What if we encounter 100 homeless people? (Easy to find in Greenville and Anderson) How can we help these people? We really feel that God is leading us to start a non-profit ministry that reaches out to the people He loves. Jesus said in Matthew 25:40, "Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me." We want to be able to do something for these people and we know that God wants us to too. The ministry is called The L.O.T. Project. It is an acronym standing for the least of these. Also in the old testament, Abraham pleaded to God to spare Lot's life, and we are pleading to God to spare the lives of those who don't know Him YET. Give us one more month, one more week, one more hour to show these people the love of Christ, that is our prayer. We have been praying over this for months, we have been serving with all we have, and we have been asking others for advice. The L.O.T. Project is becoming a reality and God is blowing our minds and lives are being changed. Feel free to pray or donate to this cause, and know that your contributions are greatly appreciated. Contact us for more info, or if you want to get involved.
Rollin' Down The Street...
God is filling the bus up more and more every week. Last Wednesday we took 23 middle school and high school students to Fuse*. (NewSpring Church's Youth Group) Last Sunday we took 17 homeless people to NewSpring's Sunday morning service. God blessed us with this bus, and He is going to fill it up. It is awesome to see the numbers grow from week to week. I am just amazed at how He provides the resources to bring others closer to Him. These students and these homeless people don't even know that God has a plan for their life; but week after week, they are getting closer to the relationship that will change their life. Please keep The L.O.T. Project in your prayers. We appreciate EVERYTHING that our supporters do for us.
Happier About That One...
Jason (3rd from the right), with help from some others, fed and loved on these homeless men from Anderson, SC. He also got a chance to share Christ with them, and two of them accepted Christ as their personal savior. That makes all of the hard work involved with this ministry worth it! Jason is just trying to live Matthew 18:12-13 and that is what The L.O.T. Project is all about!
Reaching Out...
We try to take every opportunity to build relationships with students in the community. Spending time with them. as much as possible, has a huge effect on their lives. Prayer, willing servants, and financial contributions to The L.O.T. Project will help these relationships grow.
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