I had lunch with a friend the other day and on the way back to the office, we stopped at a light next to a woman asking for help. She told us she was living on the streets because the friend’s house she was staying in had a bad odor of natural gas. She also had a cat in a backpack that prevented her from staying at the shelters.
Fortunately, nobody was behind us at the light because it cycled through a few times while we were listening to her story. The man she was married to was abusive and she was really at the end of her road. She couldn’t even go into the shelters for a meal because of her cat.
We bought her a couple of tacos and I asked her to come to Faith Mission after she ate, and we would see if there was anything we could do for her.
Now I’ve had dozens of similar conversations like this one, and very rarely do they take me up on coming to the shelter. But low and behold, later that afternoon, she showed up. We talked for a while and she assured me that she has a relationship with Jesus and she just wants to do the right thing.
I called our women’s case manager over from Faith Refuge and she started the process of helping this lady to become self-sufficient. It was a bit unusual because she isn’t a resident at Faith Refuge, but it just seemed right that we should alter our normal procedures and help her navigate the system. It’s just another example of how working outside the usual ways of doing things can sometimes work.
The last time I checked, the lady is well on her way to getting her ID and completing applications for housing. I hope and pray she has a very happy ending.
If you happen to see someone on the streets and you want to help them, do whatever God leads you to do. But before you leave them, please mention Faith Mission or Faith Refuge. You never know until you ask and our case managers and program directors may be able to help them.
