I’ve been at Faith Mission for over 12 years now, but I can still remember my first day like it was yesterday. Besides getting to know all the staff, I soon found out that all the clients wanted to meet the new guy. I had a lot of conversations that day, heard a lot of ideas for ways to improve like softer beds or better food but mostly I realized I had a lot to learn.
One conversation stands out to me, and I reflect back on it often. He was a tall, gray-haired man wearing camouflaged pants and a black t-shirt. We’ll call him JD. JD started telling me his story and boy were my eyes opened. He told me that he had a family and a home with a career in auto parts sales. He was one of those guys at the counter who could tell you the model number for a valve cover gasket for a 1971 Dodge Rambler without looking it up.
Sadly, something happened in his life that changed everything. He never told me what happened, but the results were that he began drinking heavily. He eventually lost his job, his family, his home and then ended up living on the streets. When I met him, he had been on the streets of Wichita Falls for over 20 years.
I asked JD a lot of questions that day, trying to understand how we might be able to help him. He kind of chuckled and said, “I’m alright. This is my life now. I’ll probably die out here.” But what he said next has stuck with me ever since. He went on to say, “You know, the worst part for me about being homeless is that it has become my present and my future. I can’t believe how quickly I got used to it.”
From that day on, I committed my life to listening to stories and helping men and women write new ones of hope and a brighter future. After hundreds of similar conversations, I can see how a person might think that homelessness could be a life sentence. It is an extremely hard road to come back from. It is isolating and embarrassing. The streets are hard and dangerous. But God placed these men, women and children on the hearts of a couple from Amarillo 70 years ago and Faith Mission was established. Providing hope for the hurting and help for the desperate. And in 2024, we are just as committed to that mission. We believe that their present doesn’t have to be their future. Not if we can help.
About 5 years ago, JD stepped off a curb and broke his neck. I had the honor of preaching his funeral. His story will always live with me.
