Shakespeare and laughter

Tonight was our first official outing of the semester! It felt good to be back in Greenville, back on the street, back with our friends. We arrived at Food for Life just as everyone had received their meals, so we jumped right into conversation. Daniel and Michael, both new arrivals on the team, were thrown into the madness and did quite well. I had a nice talk with my friend Kenny, and we were able to serve him by providing some cough medicine for his cold. I also spoke with Toni, who just had surgery to remove scar tissue from her side.

Dan had some good laughs with one guy (whose name we don't know) about the difficulties of studying Shakespeare in school. It was good to laugh and enjoy the humor that God has given us. Katrine caught up with Steven, a guy who used to go with us to the Channel on Sunday nights my freshman year. We continue to praise God for the ministry of Food for Life and for their consistency in the gospel.

This week

Hey friends,

So that we can plan out this week...we need you to email

downtownimpactteam@gmail.com

and tell us

1) which outing you will be attending

2) and whether or not you will be attending the meeting (6:30pm ADM 204).

Tuesday outing: 7:00-9:30ish

Thursday outing: 8:30-11:00ish

Obviously some of you have class on Tuesday nights. We understand if you can't make it. This just helps Zach and I plan accordingly. Thanks!

Good to see that you have found our super-awesome blog!

If you have questions, please ask.

Tuesday night is just all right

Another solid night at Food for Life. We saw C.W. for the first time in several months, and Bethany asked him all about the Soup Kitchen crew. Wayne and Sharon are still in the area, as is Pat, but we heard that Reggie has gotten back into trouble since he took the cooking class at the Soup Kitchen.

As for C.W. himself, he said his wrist is still hurting him but that he should start getting disability pay soon. He also wants to move into Greenville Summit, government housing for the handicapped. He told me,

"I don't know why God took away my hand. My hand was my blessing, and I used to be able to work, but now I can't even close it."

Continue to pray for perseverance for C.W.

Dan and Daniel both dealt with Doc, the self-proclaimed kingpin of the streets and spoke with Jeff as well.

Katrine caught up with Kenny, and I talk to a man named David, a writer who feels rejected by society. He has a 15-year-old daughter who is on the Honor Roll at Tanglewood Middle School. Although he feels outcast by the world, he said that he sees a clear difference between the churches and the world. That was encouraging to hear.

T is for Tuesday and all its craziness

This will be quick...What a night! We had three random encounters with people on the street, all of which resulted in some funny stories. Ask Katrine, Bethany, or I about them some time.

Bethany got to speak with Franklin, who looks like a completely different person without his massive beard. Katrine spoke with a guy named Chris, and I spent my time with Toni and her husband. She lives a few blocks from Triune and is considering going back to school because she is so bored all the time.

A guitar was lying around, so somebody picked it up and started playing the blues. It reminded me that healing can start to come through music, as well as through narrative, or telling your story.

Continue to pray for these people and the entire Food for Life ministry.

Flat Tires and the End Times (Tuesday)

We arrived at Food for Life at 8:00 and jumped into some conversations. For some reason, we tend to feel exhausted on Tuesday nights, but God gave us strength. Dan and I talked to Jesse, a man who is studying the Bible but believes that you must not sin in order to get to heaven. We explained that we cannot be pure by ourselves -- we need Jesus to purify us. Pray for clarity.

Bethany, Katrine, and I all had separate conversations about the end times. It seemed to be the theme of the night. Alexander and James are two tradesmen who are having trouble finding work.

We met Devin, a Christian who was saved later in life and said he really connected with the Passion of the Christ. Terry said that he wanted to be a missionary some day. We also talked briefly with Kenny as we were leaving.

As we were walking back to the van, we saw a young lady on the side of the road with a blown tire. She was having trouble changing the spare, so Andrew, Dan, and I gave her a hand and got her on her way. It was cool that God put that opportunity for service right in our path.

Thanks for praying.

Tuesday night

Last night, Dan, Katrine, Bethany, and I arrived at Food for Life at 8:00, but most of the crowd had already thinned out. The service must have been shorter than usual, but we still saw Kenny and had a good conversation with him. He told us that he is from Gaffney, but he has lived in Florida, the Bronx, DC, Delaware, among other places. And he had a crazy story about when he was in an Atlanta bus station where there was a shooting. It was one of the better conversations we've had with him. Again he thanked us for being there for him, and he said that we are one of the reasons he keeps going.

Continue to pray that God would draw Kenny to Himself.

Also, take advantage of the list of prayer focuses that Caleb gave us. And keep thinking through ways that we can clearly present the Gospel in a way they will understand. You guys are the best!

Tuesday's outing (25 degrees is cold)

It was very cold again, but Dan and I were wearing pajama pants under our jeans, so we stayed warm. Katrine and Bethany survived as well. We got delayed on the way into downtown, meaning that we were slightly late for Food for Life, but we still had some good conversations.

-TJ: now working at the McDonald's near Triune
-Patrick: janitor at the hospital
-Kenny: has a cold; his bag was recently stolen; attending Changing Minds church on Wade Hampton Blvd.
-Michael: from Greenville; went to jail in Georgia but is now back in South Carolina; wants to know about the afterlife and judgment
-David: a carpenter who cannot find work because of the bad economy

Continue to remember our specific prayer focuses as well:

-Downtown churches
-City leaders
-Business leaders
-Local and national economy

Thanks for your faithfulness,
Paul

Tuesday outing, fools!!

Last night, it was Bethany, Katrine, April, Dan, Caleb, and I; and once again we walked over to Food for Life. On the way, we met Louis, who told Dan that he should stop using the word "awesome" to describe everything and should start calling everybody "Fool." It was hilarious, because as we were walking, Louis starting saying "awesome," and Dan starting calling us all "fools." Funny stuff.

There were probably 50-60 people (maybe more) getting fed at Triune, plus about 25 volunteers, so we had plenty of people to talk with. We met several men who want to work but cannot find any jobs in the poor economy, so that is definitely a matter of prayer. Also, Dan got into an intense theological discussion with one guy who knew the Scriptures but has some false ideas as well. Pray for clarity there.

This week, we are continuing to gather information and ideas about the homeless culture, and next week at the meeting, we will put our cards down on the table and discuss what we found and how we can best bring the Gospel into that context. Have a great week,

Paul

Alert! Time change for Tuesday meeting!

Due to the student-led renewal service taking place tomorrow night at 6:30, we will be having our regular Tuesday meeting at 6:00 instead of 6:30. Sorry for the late notice, but we're trying to cater to everyone. 6:00 -- Tomorrow -- ADM 201.

Tuesday's outing (brrrr!)

Hey guys,

Dan, Katrine, Bethany, Caleb, and I had a great outing last night. We walked through the wind, snow, and ice -- okay, maybe not snow and ice, but it was REALLY cold and windy -- and we ended up at Triune to catch the last hour of Food for Life. We saw Kenny, Dr. Love, Lee, and some other friends, and Paul Blumer, the guy who heads up Food for Life, shared with us his heart for ministry with the urban poor. Kenny said that he has been waiting for us to return, and Dr. Love was happy to see us, and we want to be faithful to be there for them this semester.

We intentionally observed the different tendencies of the downtown culture, asking some of the questions in the previous post and listening for their answers. I would have posted some of our discoveries, but they are written in Caleb's secret notebook, which I do not have access to. I'm sure we will discuss them soon, and the Thursday outing will involve much of the same information-gathering process. It's exciting!

Keep praying,
Paul