“There are 2,000 verses of Scripture that tell us we must be committed to protecting the poor and the oppressed… There is no concern of Scripture that is addressed so often and so powerfully as reaching out to the poor.”  – Tony Campolo

 

I don’t know this for sure but I have to think it has rained more on Thursday’s than any other day of the week.  What is so amazing though is that we had 18-20 volunteers last night willing to get soaking wet to make sure people get some food.  Once again we went through our 300 meals before we could finish with 4 of the 18 motels we visit each week.  We are always cautious to add additional motels unless we know we can sustain them and yet we are not even covering our existing motels now.  I think the need is going to be huge this winter.  While, unfortunately cash is king, what we really need is some grocery stores or restaurants to assume a food item on a long term basis.  Cash will only go so far but commitments can last forever.  Don’t get me wrong we will never turn down cash for food but if we could lower our overall cost we could add more meals.  I estimate we need about 30-40 more meals per week to cover the 18 motels that we visit.  Thank you Kris and McDonald’s for their continued support by donating the buns week in and week out.

 

Last night was one of blessing and again heartache.  The blessing came from so many people willing to serve one another no matter the weather.  We had lots of new faces, which I always love.  It will take hold of you, soften your heart, create awareness, give you compassion, and then you never want to miss a night of delivery.  The heartache came from a single mom with 4 daughters that were having to change motel rooms because the heat/air conditioning unit was not working.  Can you imagine 5 of them in one double bed motel room?  All the kids are school age and of course, like many, they have no transportation.  We are really starting to get attached to the little girls as they are sweethearts.  They are always anxious for us to show up with our “Happy Meals”.  The mom does a great job as the kids seem pretty content.  They even have decorated pumpkins outside their room for Halloween.

 

Our friend, Abby Lewis, has taken on the task of setting up a Facebook Group Page for Jesus Was Homeless, so if you are on Facebook be sure to join it.  Thank you so much to Abby for taking on this task.  Another BIG thank you goes to Brian, Laura and Todd at Imagemakers in Hollister.  They are the website designers and hosters.  They have donated their services to us and just done an incredible job with the website.  If you like our website please let them know.  There is a link to them under the Links page.  We now have a Resources page which I encourage everyone to look at as it has our video on it.  You can also download the various information from it as well.  We also now have a Prayer/Needs page too.  On it you will notice a little girl by the name of Shania.  She is 3 years old and is in desperate need of some dental work.  The estimated cost is about $1200.  They are a family of 4 that live in one of the motels and like many other Americans do not have any dental insurance.  We need, not only as Christians but because she is just a child, to figure out a way to raise the needed money for her dental work.  So, if you have any ideas for fundraising please let me know.  We also have a Schedule page now where you will be able to find out more details on the Thanksgiving Dinner as it progresses.  The photo galleries have been updated as well with the last BBQ and Make A Difference Day.  In other words, JUST CHECK OUT THE WEBSITE at www.jesuswashomeless.org.

 

If you haven’t had the opportunity to experience the blessings that we get to every Thursday, then I invite you to “Come and See” with us.

 

God Bless,