There is a man at the homeless hostel where I work. Like all people I don't want to identify his name is Bob. Bob is an alcoholic. During a normal week he swings between drunk and passed out on the pavement. However on Sunday mornings he turns up to the church service at the hostel (only tipsy) and at the time where they ask for prayers he speaks up, in stilted English, saying words to the rough meaning of "God, support my family because they have to carry me as a burden". Bob doesn't ask to pray for himself, just his family that God will help them where Bob can't. (Someone else inevitably asks to pray for Bob - for which he is grateful but sees as completely unexpected). After the prayers Bob leaves the service to resume his drinking.
This happens every Sunday I have been there. There is no radical change because others have prayed for him. Bob believes in God (I know this because he speaks about God at other times). His family don't get released from the stress and burden (I get the occasional call asking about him and a tearful lament about him when they saw him last week).
Bob is at rock bottom. Its not about evangelism, its not about providing all the facts (something useless to Bob) it is about support for Bob, from the small community that meets at the hostel and prays what he asks every week and it is about God, who waits patiently in the dark.
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branchandroot
no subject
Date: 2007-11-14 06:58 am (UTC)There is a man at the homeless hostel where I work. Like all people I don't want to identify his name is Bob. Bob is an alcoholic. During a normal week he swings between drunk and passed out on the pavement. However on Sunday mornings he turns up to the church service at the hostel (only tipsy) and at the time where they ask for prayers he speaks up, in stilted English, saying words to the rough meaning of "God, support my family because they have to carry me as a burden". Bob doesn't ask to pray for himself, just his family that God will help them where Bob can't. (Someone else inevitably asks to pray for Bob - for which he is grateful but sees as completely unexpected). After the prayers Bob leaves the service to resume his drinking.
This happens every Sunday I have been there. There is no radical change because others have prayed for him. Bob believes in God (I know this because he speaks about God at other times). His family don't get released from the stress and burden (I get the occasional call asking about him and a tearful lament about him when they saw him last week).
Bob is at rock bottom. Its not about evangelism, its not about providing all the facts (something useless to Bob) it is about support for Bob, from the small community that meets at the hostel and prays what he asks every week and it is about God, who waits patiently in the dark.
Cross-posted to http://lepsdavid2.livejournal.com