In Service

Lunch Making Schedule June-August

2006-03-17T09:38:00.000-05:00

Please let me know if you can fill in on any of these days, and I will edit the posting-

July
2-

9- CSM (75)

16- Glenzer (50)

23- Stephanie (25) Kathryn's Group (50)

30- Matt (24)

August
6- Lora (25)

13-

20- Glenzer (50)

27

September
3-

10-

17-

24-

October
1

In Service Update (11-14-05)

2005-11-14T11:24:00.000-05:00

We had a beautiful Sunday this week. The sun was out and it was really warm. We had a good and mostly positive crowd this week (besides a little background bantering between 2 women)

We handed out 75 lunches, socks, coffee and some misc. clothing items. It was good to connect with many of our regulars, but also see a few new faces.

We were once again graced with the presence of the Christian Scientists, who pitched their big yellow tent behind us and gave out free massages- Our friends however, do not seem to acknowledge them, and there has been up to this point "peaceful co-existence"

We also bumped into another fellow who was set up at our spot handing out breakfast. He asked jokingly what we were doing invading his space (he didn't realized that we have been established there for at least 8 months.) It was fun working side by side someone who was just taking initiative to help some folks out.

So, a few things to note:

**Please pray for Ballston as I will return there next week to prayer walk with the interested volunteers about how the ministry should go forward there. Also pray for the Union Team as they press on in my absence (they totally rock it!)
**Please pray and consider volunteering for lunch-making and serving on Sunday at Union. Ask your small groups if they are interested in taking part.
**Consider walking in the Homeless walk-a-thon on Saturday the 19th.

For all volunteers, or blog readers, or prayer partners...
We are going to do another In Service fun outing to boost up our connection with one another as we prepare for the hard winter. We will go bowling in Bethesda after the services on Sunday December 4th! Be ready for some fun, and competition!
More details to follow, but pencil it in for that afternoon... Please rsvp through the comments or per email john1930@hotmail.com

peace
jh

Service opportunities

2005-11-10T09:48:00.000-05:00

Here are a few events that you can get involved in over the next two weeks:

SATURDAY (Nov 12) 1-5 p.m. at DC Central Kitchen (next to Georgetown Law): this is food prep for turkey dinners to be distributed to agencies serving hungry DC residents

MONDAY and TUESDAY (Nov 14-15) 10 a.m. near 3rd Street Church of God (New Jersey Ave, NW): Monday is setting up and Tuesday is a Thanksgiving luncheon for 600 homeless persons

We are also trying to coordinate something with the homeless walk-a-thon on saturday the 19th.

In Service Update (11-06-05)

2005-11-07T13:59:00.000-05:00

hey hey-

praise reports!!

thank you all for your prayers, and you ballstonites, thanks for coming out... we had 19 interested ncc-ers for the ballston in service expansion! i am looking forward to spending more time with them to tailor the ministry to the needs of those at that location. your continued faithful prayers are much appreciated.

union, from all reports that i received, went well. i thank my team at that location for holding the boat afloat while i was away. you guys are amazing!
we had lunches in abundance once again, so many thanks to michael glenzer's small group for making them!

finally- winter is coming. let's not be fooled by this indian summer- the cold nites are fast approaching. please start bringing winter items to church on sundays. myself or someone from the team will pick them up from hospitality. thanks again for your service. please let me know if you have any ideas or would like to participate in a bigger way...

peace

In Service Update

2005-11-03T10:28:00.000-05:00

well guys, i apologize- this is so long overdue.

i really just got behind and a little overwhelmed that unfortunately the in service blog took the hit. but i will definitely do my best to post more frequently again and try to keep you guys in the loop.

so what's been up?

some exciting new things are going on with in service...

**first off- we have this fall begun to try and utilize the manpower of the ncc small groups to provide lunches for the sunday outreach. this has already been very successful. it not only provides in service with the resources it needs to serve, but it gives other ncc-ers the chance to participate in our ministry. i have heard nothing but great things from the small group and ministry leaders about what a great experience it was for their groups.
if you think that this is something that your small group or ministry would like to participate in, please let me know!

**ballston in service! yes, we are finally going to start it up- this sunday nov. 6th, we will have an informational meeting after the ballston service for those interested in impacting the homeless community around the ballston mall. this is very exciting, especially as the winter months approach. if you are a ballston-ite and are interested, look for me after the service, or shoot me an email if you can't make it but still want to help.

**speaking of winter- it's coming- and we need to be prepared. not sure exactly what kinds of extra outreaches are going to be planned, but in general, it would be great if you guys could do a closet cleaning for sweatshirts, sweaters, hats, gloves, coats, etc. anything will be helpful. just bring it to church on sunday, and we'll take care of it from there.
i will also keep you up to date on outreach blast dates and other events!

**prayer, prayer, prayer... thanks to rachel lunde and the rest of the union prayer team- we are now going to be praying together as a ministry with them. they wanted to engage the other union ministries and bless them through prayer. this is truly a blessing for us, in that we need a lot of covering and spiritual protection as we engage the homeless community. however, outside of that, if you all could keep us in mind throughout the week, that would be very helpful.

**wednesday nite bible study- please pray for us as well. we have really built a strong community on this nite, but have been battling against a lot of spiritual blockades. everything from bitterness to alcoholism. all in all though, marie and i have built an atmosphere of trust and security. pray that as winter comes and we procede indoors, that this continues. names to lift up specifically are mildred, brian, richard, sam, darnell, pete, bernard, patricia, glen, randy and david.

whew- that was quite a bit- thanks for hanging through. look forward to reconnecting to you all this fall/winter-
please let me know if there is anything i can do to help you get involved!

peace
john

post article

2005-09-21T08:05:00.000-05:00

an interesting article in the post about dc homeless and katrina efforts-
thanks sarah-

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/09/15/AR2005091502278.html?referrer=emailarticle

In Service Update (9-18-05)

2005-09-20T10:26:00.000-05:00

thank you for all of your prayers and support.

pete was back and seems that he is doing much better- hopefully the transfer today to christ house will be successful.

thanks to elizabeth, we have started the process of outsourcing some of the jobs necessary to provide food and clothing, to the small groups this fall-
some of you may have already heard about this, or talked about it your small groups, but we will be having different ncc small groups help prepare food for either sunday or wednesday throughout the semester.
we thought this would be a great way to get other groups involved in the ministry, while supplying us with our needs as well.

as soon as groups start responding, we will have a full schedule up- thank you also to the individuals who continue to help out.

please let me know if you or your small group has decided on a day-

as fall comes upon us and we begin to think about winter down the road, we will have hopefully be getting together for some extra projects and outreach days, so stay tuned!

as always- your prayers for the ministry and those we serve are greatly appreciated- also, feel free to drop by on any wednesday for bible study in the park across from union at 6:30, or for the sunday lunch give-away at 11-

peace
jh

prayer requests

2005-09-15T16:04:00.000-05:00

please pray for our friend pete who just got out of the hospital for 2 weeks with pneumonia and severe fever and dehydration.

he is back in the park outside of union and we are desparately trying to get him some extended care- part of it is organizational, part of it is him accepting it-

we have an offer to get him into christ house in adam's morgan on tuesday and some spots until then- most of all just pray for God's mercy and for healing both physical and mental.

also, please lift up our friends richard, brian and sam who are also all battling some physical challenges-

thanks for your support and faith-

read this article!

2005-09-14T13:20:00.000-05:00

http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2005/009/16.38.html

links

2005-08-31T13:08:00.000-05:00

finally getting around to some links from a few weeks ago.

the Q and A from the guy from the national coalition for the homeless is a good assessment of public opinion and some practical answers and steps.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/discussion/2005/07/22/DI2005072201446.html

there is also supposed to be a video link here that might be dead now- check it out, maybe it's just my pc.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/custom/2005/07/22/CU2005072201071.html

peace
jh

In Service Update (8-28-05)

2005-08-29T11:31:00.000-05:00

getting the fall pass on sunday was just another step in bringing the summer to a close. though summer is always a fun time, i am very grateful always for the changing of the seasons...
i especially like the fall-

with the season change, it gives us a natural way to refresh as a congregation. we get to start up anew with all of our groups.
in the spirit of that, i would really like to take a fresh look at this ministry and make sure that we are staying efficient and utilizing all of our reasources and human power to the best of our ability- it is a God-honoring thing...

with that, a few things that I ask of you-

1. if you are on the email list (which has grown to over 70 and now is compiled of 2 hotmail lists) please let me know if you want to stay on it, or be removed.

2. if you read the blog regularly (on your own, or at my email promtings)

3. in what capacity you would like to volunteer (on and off sundays, speacial events, lunch making, passive observer and prayer)

4. what suggestions you have on improving/expanding in service

5. if you are a ballston ncc-er and would be interested in helping an in service launch at that location.

please respond because the more info i get, the better this ministry will be run- that means more people are reached with the love of God-

thank you all for your participation in making in service what it is!

peace
john

wednesday update

2005-08-25T10:29:00.000-05:00

wednesday continues to be a phenomenal time of growth and progress.

we have such an amazing combination of deep theological debate to common logistical problems. nonetheless God has been working in all of our lives as we share a meal together and life's struggles.

despite the differences in our daily lives, it has been amazing to see the commonalities among all of us on a human level. we similar joy, pain, and every other kind of emotion... the way those things are manifested however, look different.

we have been very much trying to get people to see some of the brokenness in their lives. whether it is familial or personal, we have been trying to apply some simple biblical principles that will help people get to a spiritual level of peace. it's a lot about forgiveness and humbleness.

the best part about how this group has progressed however, is the true building of community. everyone there is really beginning to care for one another. this is an amazing foundation that is going to be intricate in their own personal lives, as well as their life of living out the faith and acting out God's will in the world.

it is more and more evident to me every week, why Jesus chose to hang out with these kinds of people in His day-

street credibility

2005-08-18T14:02:00.000-05:00

that's right, good ole' pastor mark has street credibility!

it is amazing, every single time we bump into a new homeless person and they find out that we are from the union station church- they all say:

yea, that mark, he's got it going on' or
mark, he know's what he's talkin' about or
that pastor, he preaches like it is- he's good

i love that my pastor has street credibility in dc! :)

testimonies

2005-08-18T11:12:00.000-05:00

our wednesdays continue to be fruitful and God is so amazingly faithful. after a couple of rough weeks, we had a phenomenal time yesterday with our group.

we had all of our vols back and all of our regular friends were there as well. we even got to meet 3 new people!

last nite was just different. i felt like we really reached a new plateau. i think with the increase in number of people, the event has become much more social and less awkward. there are a lot more side conversations happening and some good one on one counseling. however, we are also still able to quiet everyone down to have a more group oriented discussion about the sunday sermon. people have made some big strides in the group, whether it be coming out of their shell a little in our discussions, to making it a goal to make it to church on sunday mornings. the little wins have been abundant.

the greatest testimony from last nite though, came from one of our new friends. he is an alcoholic and is really struggling with it mentally and physically. as we sat and waited on the food, he looked over and asked me if it was a bible that was in front of me. i answered yes- and he asked if i knew of the book of james... i said of course (i had just read the entire book several times last week and blogged about it in the social justice xanga) he asked if i could read him the first part of the beginning of the book. here is what it says:

James 1:2-4
2Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. 4Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

and then James 1:12
12Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him.

wow- he was moved by it... i was definitely moved by it. he then went on to tell me how amazing it was that Christ went on the cross to carry the burden of all of our sins- but he said that he still struggled with sin. he even went on to ask me what to do when the devil attacks him, and tells him that he is worthless and will never become what he is supposed to be, and that he belongs to him...
wow. this guy needs some major spiritual covering- but i went on to say that while we were in the book of james- that we turn to where the answer is to that question:

james 4:7
Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8Come near to God and he will come near to you.

finally he told me that he had already encountered healing. he said that while he was in jail, he was reading a book about oral roberts. he said that at the time he was suffering under some kind of nerve problem in his face that caused his eyes and cheek to twitch. the prognosis was that it would eventually spread to his entire face- after he finished the book, he said he felt someone tell him to just concentrate on the left side of his face- as he did this- the twitching stopped- he was healed!

man, do we need these stories. we need a greater faith! i really feel that God is prepared to do some great miracles in our midst with the homeless community.

i ask and challenge us all to be more mindful and intensive about our praying for this ministry and the individuals involved. i ask that we continue to press forward and allow God to enact all of the radical change in our city that He has planned. anyone want to be a part of that?
i do-

peace
jh

Family Photos-

2005-08-18T08:38:00.000-05:00

so i almost teared up last nite at our wed. nite bible study. one of our guys pulled out some pictures that he had taken with a disposable cvs camera that he'd bought and gotten developed. the pictures were unbelievable. it was basically a bunch of pics of his homeless friends hanging out in the park, feeding the pigeons, the squirrels, etc. there was even a pic of the path and bench that goes through the park across from union where we meet on wednesdays- and it just hit me like: wow, i'm looking at the world and dc through this guy's eyes...
he said to me: "i like taking pictures- i like having memories"

i almost lost it- it is amazing to see the capacity of love and human interaction. though his life looks much different than mine, we share so many of the same things-

more from last nite to come

In Service Update (8-7-05)

2005-08-09T10:55:00.000-05:00

thanks to all of the lunch-makers and the southeast whitehouse (who provided us with well over 50 leftover lunches they had), we were able to hand a lunch to every single person that requested one. what a great feeling it was not to have to turn anyone away. we even had extras that i brought down to the d st. shelter.

God continues to pull off sunday for us and i am so thankful for his guiding hand in our work. we continue to connect with individuals and just provide a peaceful atmosphere that is a consistent spot for those who have so many inconsitencies in their life.

inspiring

2005-08-09T10:38:00.000-05:00

what a sunday- not sure how you all felt but i was really moved by pastor zeb as well as pastor mark's wrap-up after the sermon. i think the message about stepping out and moving with the Spirit is truly at the heart of this ministry.

i do not underestimate the amount of dedication, prayer, and heart that it takes to work with in service. those who make lunches, i know how much time it takes to do it... those who come out and interact with those we serve, i know how difficult it can be at times... those of you who visit every once in a while, or support us by prayer, your contribution is worthwhile and an important spiritual covering. there is so much more we can do though.

my prayer is that this latest series on missions is really going to get into some ncc-ers' spirits and motivate them to take some steps, whether that be in going on a missions trip, getting involved in a small group, helping serve in a ministry, on so on-i think we sometimes forget what an awesome and amazing endeavor we are on and what has been entrusted to us- the fact that God has put it in our hands, in His Will and Direction of course- to reach the world. and not just with the Gospel message, but also with love and fairness.

let us continue to press on through the end of this summer and spread a God-inspired love and service to those we encounter on sunday mornings.i also ask that you would prayerfully consider how you want to stay/get involved come fall. we will be working on some reorganization and reassessment of our resources and support- we need to continue to be good stewards of the opportunities and doors that God is opening up to us.

peace

still fallen-

2005-08-04T10:14:00.000-05:00

had a bit of a challenging session last nite. in all honesty, i have felt truly blessed for the past 8 weeks that things had been going so smoothly, with very few problems, considering that we are sitting in a park in the middle of dc, with the homeless preaching the Gospel... if that doesn't sound like something that the devil would be furious about and try to take advantage of, i don't know what is.

so we showed up and a few of our friends had obviously spent a portion of the day drinking. it is something that we have been working with 2 of them about, and have seen good progress. nonetheless the atmosphere was much more volatale than it had been in past weeks- there were many distractions, outbursts, and just a general difficulty in keeping focus. even so, we got to share part of james, read a psalm and close in prayer. it also gave the opportunity for one of our more quiet friends to speak up a bit more, due to her annoyance of the others. so that was a great positive spill over benefit of the whole situation.

the most moving part of the entire nite though, was in our closing prayer one of the guys asked if he could do it. his prayer was basically thank you that you (me, elizabeth and tasha) are my friends. it just really struck my spirit.

so i ask that you all would continue to pray for covering over us. like i said, it has been such a blessing to have God's mercy upon us thus far. i consider it a huge success that over 9 weeks of meetings that we have only had one nite that has been slightly unruly... and let's be honest, a little drunken arguing is not the worst that we could encounter...

In Service Update (7-31-05)

2005-08-02T10:22:00.000-05:00

The summer is rolling along as we enter August.

Looking forward to the fall as well, with all kinds of new small groups forming, the coffee house opening, etc. I think it is an exciting time for NCC.

With that, In Service will move forward as well. We have really established ourselves now outside of Union Station and are reaching many people. I am going to take some time this month, since some of the small groups are in recess and get In Service a little more organized. This is going to entail updating the email list, setting a more organized lunch making schedule and just in general trying to better communication among volunteers.

Hopefully we can kick off the fall semester with a new and improved look, so that we might better give ncc-ers opportunities to get involved but more importantly, more efficiently serve the community we have established.

With all of that said, we still need to get things in order for the next four weeks. If you are interested in helping out for lunch making- we have the 7th, 14th and 21st open. Worship team is going to be responsible for the 28th. PLEASE LET ME KNOW ASAP IF YOU CAN HELP.

Thank you all for your help in a variety of different ways- Let's continue to prayerfully move forward in this ministry and help create an atmosphere where God can really work and use us and all of our different giftings...

peace
jh

Wed. Nite Rocks!

2005-07-28T11:59:00.000-05:00

Please welcome my first "guest blogger" using the In Service platform...

enter: Elizabeth Schloesser- co-leader of the In Service Wed. Nite Bible Study-

--------------------------------------------------

John can’t always have all the fun… I wanted to take a shot at this blog thing and tell you all about last night.

The rain has held off “many-a-Wednesday” now… we’ve been grateful for that. But last night, it poured (which we were grateful for as well, because it broke the humidity!). I was a little worried that we wouldn’t find our regulars to have Bible Study with, but a few of them were looking for us and we all settled down for dinner. (prayer request – as the weather cools down after the summer, in the fall, and into the winter, we would really like to secure a place to have the Living Room in a more private environment and away from the elements)

The atmosphere was exactly what we’ve been wanting with this group – we all sat around tables in the main hall of Union Station and it felt like we were sitting around the family dinner table. We were telling stories, listening to stories and just enjoying ourselves.

Bernard had invited his friend Mike to join us. Mike commented that he was a little leery, just checking us out…didn’t want to commit to anything before seeing if we (John and I) had our stuff (theology) together. So great! Richard then stepped in and said "Don't worry, they'll getcha!" lol He also started selling him on how good church is and how much he likes the music; then he told him that “they’re not just religious people, they’re regular people too” – which made John and I laugh.

Richard wanted to know how Lindsay was doing – he knew she was going to Colombia on a missions trip and was concerned for her safety in what he considered one of the most dangerous countries in the world. We talked about the same scripture we’d looked at last week – Psalm 4:8 “I will lie down and sleep in peace. For you alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety” – we talked about God’s sovereignty and how Lindsay is covered by that and that nothing will happen to her that is outside of His plan for her. Richard didn’t exactly agree with us, Mike kind of did, and at least we were talking about the Word and God’s protection in our lives.

Richard really wanted to hear Psalm 23, and Brian agreed to read it for us (a man who has professed over and over again that he doesn’t really believe in God). John asked that we make Psalm 23 a prayer for Lindsay and all the men agreed it was a good idea. After Brian read it (with some teasing from Richard about not projecting his voice…) (see – just like any other family) Richard said “who’s going to close us” (notice the “Christian lingo”) as he stood up and went to grab people’s hands to pray. And then Richard closed us in prayer – with the 7 or so of us standing in the middle of Union Station’s main hall. Wow.

As John and I walked out, we realized how awesome of a night God had given us – who would have thought we’d have Brian reading scripture to us, Richard closing us in prayer, and that John and I could sit back and just hang out with these NCCers… very cool.

Breaking Through-

2005-07-14T15:29:00.000-05:00

when i went to the ncc leadership retreat, one of the things pastor joel talked about was defining and attaining 'wins' in your ministry and small group-

not in that, tally sort of way to find out if you are a good, average or bad group- but rather to give yourself and others involved a sense of moving forward, or progress-

so it is pretty cool when you start to see some of those "obvious" wins.

last nite was full of them at our dinner/bible study in the park-
we have spent 5 weeks just really building up trust and community in the group. we have slowly brought in some more spiritual conversations and prayer. this week however, was the first time we actually got to read a major portion of scripture. it was so cool to see that we had finally arrived at a place, where we could sit in a circle and have everyone read along and listen attentively as elizabeth spoke aloud Luke 15:11-32, the parable of the lost son-

we talked about forgiveness and reconciliation. we talked about always being able to return to your family and loved ones- and that God models this for us in embracing us with open arms as we return back to him. it was amazing to see the depth that the conversation took, meandering between practical and spiritual-

it was good to welcome a few new friends this week who jumped right in.

prayer requests are for job prospects for richard and james- the rest wanted just general prayer for their overall needs.

a few people want to make it to church and even the variety show- pray that they find their way to both...

jh

In Service Update (7-10-05)

2005-07-12T12:46:00.000-05:00

It was a fine Sunday this week-

We had an abundance of lunches, thanks to those who made them and for the SE White House for providing some extras (even if some were waterlogged) We did a great job though, salvaging all that could be handed out-

It was good to see some of our regular vols back and to interact with several of our frequent visitors-

As the summer heat kicks up, nutrition and hydration become very important and it is a privlege that we get to help keep people safe and healthy.

I'm looking forward to the coming weeks in that we have several new people who are interested in joining up with us- please help welcome them and bring them into the fold when they come by.

As for me, I am taking a quick summer leave to spend time with my family- I will be gone from July 15th-24th- Please pray that I have a safe trip and will come back refreshed and rejuvinated!

In my absense, there will be a few people to take the lead on the two Sundays I will be gone-
Thanks to all of you for your continued service.

In order to refresh and regroup- I propose that we meet together after handing out lunches on Sunday July 31st- We will be able to set the lunch-making schedule and organize some other events that I have some ideas for in August. Please try to reserve a half hour or so on that day-
We can just move into the food court for lunch and discussion-

May the Lord bless you all this week-
peace
john

In Service Update (7-03-05)

2005-07-07T13:19:00.000-05:00

Well I can't write much to the effect of Sunday since I was not there, but I heard all went smoothly despite only having 4 or so volunteers-

I can report however, about last nite-
We had another great Wed. nite meeting in the park and we have really begun to gain the legitimacy and trust with those who have been there for five weeks now (can you believe that it has been that many!)

We continue to enjoy a great meal prepared by elizabeth, but aside from that have really been able to dig a bit beneath the surface and get to some spiritual issues. We continue to try and work off of the Sunday message and this week we talked about setting goals- We tried to get those who were there to define some tangible goals, but also to go ahead and set some that would truly be dependent upon God.

I shared a daily devotional that I had read right before heading over that talked about God-given vision- It talked about how the vision can be planted, but it is going to take some time to come to completion, not to mention take a long and winding road that is sure to be rocky at times. I talked about perserverance through those times and how that is also related to achieving goals. If God sets the vision or the goal, He is going to get you there, as long as you continually seek Him and His guidance faithfully-

The Scripture that I shared, and yes, it just happened to be the same one from the devotional, **ahem** but just by chance of course ;)

Psalm 35:1-7
Hope for Restoration
1Even the wilderness will rejoice in those days. The desert will blossom with flowers. 2Yes, there will be an abundance of flowers and singing and joy! The deserts will become as green as the mountains of Lebanon, as lovely as Mount Carmel's pastures and the plain of Sharon. There the LORD will display his glory, the splendor of our God. 3With this news, strengthen those who have tired hands, and encourage those who have weak knees. 4Say to those who are afraid, "Be strong, and do not fear, for your God is coming to destroy your enemies. He is coming to save you." 5And when he comes, he will open the eyes of the blind and unstop the ears of the deaf. 6The lame will leap like a deer, and those who cannot speak will shout and sing! Springs will gush forth in the wilderness, and streams will water the desert. 7The parched ground will become a pool, and springs of water will satisfy the thirsty land. Marsh grass and reeds and rushes will flourish where desert jackals once lived.

I just love verse 3, the parts that I highlighted. This whole passage is all about vision- what is about to happen. I love how it says to encourage, strengthen and say to- as if this news is going to help those who are struggling, to hang on just a little while longer-

I think it is such an appropriate message for those of our friends on the street- Many of them have had dream after dream, aspiration after aspiration shattered. They need to be encouraged, strengthened, said to- the good news about God's redemption and faithfulness- Israel in the desert as well as their many exiles must have seemed like a desperate and unchangeable situations- yet God promised to redeem Israel then- and He promises the same to us through Christ today...

Zweiter Versuch

2005-07-01T11:15:00.000-05:00

that means second try in German-

the original title was strike while the iron is hot- that was last nite at around 10:15pm... i had this great thought and just had to blog it, and after i had written a good 10 paragraphs or so, crash, my aol connection through my wireless connection failed me... i lost the signal for a blip and it booted me out, thus erasing it all... don't we all have such a sad story, or 20 :)

so i will attempt to revisit some of those thoughts this afternoon.

as i slowly got over my weeklong "summer cold" i realized how good our bodies are at making us slow down when we are getting out of control.
as the summer has kicked off, so have a gazillion activities-

and i just had to go back and think about paul. i have been thinking a lot about him and his ministry since reading Acts last month- just trying to compare and contrast aspects of my ministry and small group leadership to his-

my thought was this: in our age of ever-increasing technology and communication, we are more available, have a larger span of effect, greater sphere of influence, etc... but guess what- the hours in one day have not changed from paul's day (wow, what a revelation) some of you might be saying, well duh- but to the people-pleasers, non-stoppers out there, you know what i mean- if you have the means to be somewhere or do something- you want to do it.
and that reminds me of what paul actually wrote: "everything is permissible but not everything is beneficial." 1 Cor. 10:23 i know that this verse is about food laws, but it draws a similar connotation in my mind in that, just because something is there to be done, doesn't mean you have to go and do it-

now let me make a few disclaimers before you all run-off with some sort of misreading of this.

first of all, i still believe that the church has not nearly come close to reaching its potential on moving things in the world. a lot of that aforementioned potential is being carried out by a few people. as a whole, a body, we can be doing much more in turning the tides of culture, imagination, science, business, and much more, if we were to go about daily lives with purpose and a Godly utilization of our individual gifts. we just too often get lazy, complacent and discouraged-

secondly, all things are relative- in that i'm sure that paul had struggles about how much travel to do, how many churches to visit, etc- no doubt, his day was packed. but could you imagine what paul's life would have been like had he had a cell-phone and a laptop- would he had ever slept if he had a wireless connection on the ship? how would he have set boundaries?
don't get me wrong, i love the communication that we have now, but we have to know when to leave the inbox until tomorrow, or hmmm, just not pick up the phone-

let's take back our 24 hour day- and stop pretending that it is actually 34 hours- let's continue to utilize the benefits of our technology, but not be a slave to the encoded 0's and 1's...

i think as we become more self-substantial and surrounded by things that are meant to keep us organized and 'on track,' we lose a sense of need for God- we are budgeted just right, our calandar is efficiently sculptured, but God is the master planner, the greatest timekeeper and the most tremendous accountant of tasks-

he had to humble the sailors and marine engineers by crashing paul's ship onto malta to orchestrate revival-
he'll crash our pc's (or cause our wireless connections to fail) if he needs to in our lives as well!

fire hoses

2005-06-30T11:02:00.000-05:00

ok, i just have to blog this-

so we are sitting around our circle last nite in the park after just enjoying (or not) our pizzeria uno, when somehow the issue of heaven and hell came up. without a pause, one of the guys says, well even if i do end up in hell it won't matter- my dad was a fireman and he'll be coming down with a big ole' fire hose to take care of everything down there...

i nearly pee'd my pants (sorry)! we all got a huge laugh out- despite the bad theology behind the statement- the optimism in the whole conversation was good.
this all came from a guy who was so burned by the church a long, long time ago that he said before the last two weeks, where he has come to ncc sunday morning- he hadn't stepped inside a church (except for weddings and funerals) for like 40 years!
talk about your walk in the desert-

but he comes for the music- he says the words that are sung are like a second sermon-
and of course because of pastor mark, who "just talks to you like a normal person"

i told him before we left that Jesus needs to be there with that fire hose- and he said- well yeah, but Jesus still will ask his dad to come and help- lol-

In Service Update (6-26-05)

2005-06-29T09:16:00.000-05:00

First off a big thanks to the Cap. Hill Comm. Group who helped make lunches this week. If any of you are on this list and read this blog, please extend our thanks to the rest of your group. It was a true blessing to have you provide this week's lunches.

I really felt like we connected with some people this week. Got to promo the Wednesday nite meeting as well. We hope that the Bible Study will continue to grow, because it really allows for us to have more deep conversations on issues that are going on. There is a different sense of bonding and trust that is created there.

So please pray for tonite- first that the rain holds out for us, and secondly that we are blessed with good conversation and deeper understanding of God's Will. Hopefully we will be able to work from the Sunday sermon again.

** Just a reminder/heads up**
Due to weddings, family vacation, etc.
I will be missing at least 3 out of the next 4 Sundays. If anyone of you can committ to letting me know if you are going to be there the 3rd, 17th and 24th, that would be great-
We also still need lunch makers for the rest of july-

hugs and aura

2005-06-23T10:05:00.000-05:00

as some of you know i work at the language school of the state department, which employs a ton of teachers who are natives of the various countries where all the different taught languages stem from. a older mediterranean woman who teaches here just came into my office and said she was going on vacation and gave me a hug- she also said in her broken english that i was great and that i had a wonderful 'aura.'

and it's funny because elizabeth and i were debriefing yesterday about how the group went and she said that last nite was the first time that she had hugged a homeless person. (we both hugged one of the women as she left)

and i just think unfortunately, that the hug is such a lost part of our society. our individual guarded areas of 'personal space' grow every year- we have long evolved from the times of greeting each other with holy kisses-
i understand that there is plenty of debate about conduct within the church, etc... but man, there is nothing like just getting a big ole fashioned hug-

a really good ncc friend of mine blames it on my "greek-ness" all of the time- it is a challenge to their northern european-ness :)

aside from that- it is my hope that the 'aura' this teacher referred to is really Christ being reflected off of me- last nite in the group we talked about being conscious of things that we often overlook as being non-spiritual, that actually are spiritual. one of the things that i mentioned was how challenging it is at times to merely be outwardly friendly to those at my job (due to where i sit and the sheer volume of people that pass me by my desk each day)- that if it is to later come up in conversation that i am a Christian, that they will be able to make that "positive" link between my faith and my attitude- rather than have that thought of 'wow, for someone who has the love of Christ in them, they sure do not seem to be very joyful'

now don't get me wrong- we all have bad days- we all get tired and bogged down- but when we look at our overall demeanor or outward appearance, are we truly representing something worthy of attaching to Christ?

so smile and hug away!

Psalm 23

2005-06-23T08:43:00.000-05:00

that title pretty much sums up all you need to know about last nite's Bible study- we met a new friend in front of union station who joined our group for the first time this week. at the end of our time together, as we closed in prayer, she asked if she could pray Psalm 23- it was the most beautiful thing as she recited the poetic lines in the king james translation by memory-

what a blessing!

aside from our boneless ribs, broccoli and oven fries- we had a great discussion and accomplished what i sometimes have a hard time even doing in my other small group and that is to link the sunday sermon with the small group discussion-
i don't think it's vital to do that, but i think it's worthwhile. i believe that the message on sunday sets the tone or the rythmn of the church at a certain point of time. the ideas and challenges in the sermon should be permeating our lives all week long- and when you get together with others and talk through some of those things, there is an abundance of spiritual fruit and progression that can occur.

so there we sat, in the middle of the union station park, talking about the 'game of life'

the Christ-less model

2005-06-21T09:28:00.000-05:00

as i duked it out with someone with a pretty extreme political point of view that differed very much from mine, i was enlightened to quite a few things-

aside from the actual context of the debate- deeper than that was the observation of what a lack of faith in Christ and a recognition of His Kingdom and plan for humanity does to someone's worldview.

it was amazing to sit with 5 very intelligent and experienced people talking about how to construct a society that will help those in need and still extend personal freedom to individuals-

Christ however, was missing... and at every 'dead-end' in the conversation, you could see a puzzlement upon the faces of them all. and the answer was so clear- but could only be explained through the understanding of God's Sovereign Plan... and though no one knows what that exactly is, one can draw a lot of answers from Scripture on what His tendancies are. but I did not feel it was the proper moment to insert such a statement- and we carried on tirelessly, striving to stretch our minds to find a solution, but to no avail.

the whole experience just proved so much. no matter how smart you are- no matter what you have done or seen- worldly knowledge is so limited, our answers and resolutions so lacking- without room for the Supernatural- the miraculous Hand of God, you will never come to a fitting conclusion.

In Service Update (06-19-05)

2005-06-20T09:06:00.000-05:00

It was a very nice Sunday-

75 lunches, beautiful weather, great community.

also, In Service went international! We had two new volunteers, marcin and anke, from poland and germany. It just is such a great testament to the body of Christ. so often in my social justice community group, we are striving to see the world and believers in all of the other countries across the world as true bloodline brothers and sisters. we are not divided by national boraders, but rather united in Christ.

we also had a chance to spread the word about wednesday and it was good to see some of our regulars.

prayer requests:
-that we would continued to be covered and blessed on wednesdays.
-that God would continue to rise up volunteers and mobilize other NCCers to get involved or informed about In Service.
-for all of the homeless in our city but especially those we reach each week.
-for richard, who attended NCC for the first time and is giving 'church' another chance after being alienated by it many years ago.

Finally-- we still need lunch makers for the coming weeks. Please let me know if you can do a week.

peace
jh

irony and the devil

2005-06-16T10:47:00.000-05:00

something lindsay and i talked about in the parking lot last nite in debriefing about the group was pretty insightful-

it is just ironic how when one analyzes the current situation of our society, one might come to the conclusion that the devil really has a stronghold on the homeless community. in some sense many are down and out- hopeless- on the wrong track- stuck in poverty- etc...
and in many cases, i must agree that through addiction, depression, mental illness, the devil does hold many in spiritual and physical captivity---
however, the devil made a major miscalculation... and our interpretation of the current situation might be a bit skewed as well-
through the depravity of many of these brothers and sisters, God is able to reveal to them many truths, and as lindsay pointed out promises, a lot easier than those who have it all going for them.

pastor mark articulated this so well in the id series and subsequent book. the more you have going for you, the harder it can be to come to spiritual humbleness and dependency on God and His promises.

the irony unfolds in this: the more you have to struggle against, the more grace you are able to receive, and the more dependent you become on God alone-

it is not about stripping ourselves of everything (though perhaps for some of us, that is going to be the only way that we will ever get into a position to respond to the Lord) but it really means taking a hard look on what is holding you back from completely selling out for Christ.
i know that this is one of those topics that pops up in several parables, allegories and metaphors in the Bible, as well as countless sermons all over the world- but how do we interpret that message? how do we respond to it? do we really comprehend the substance of what Jesus is talking about when he says sell everything? and for what reason?

now there is a difference in voluntary and involuntary poverty. physical and spiritual. but the bottom line is that the Gospel message is often so much more appealing to those who in dire need than to those who feel they are doin' just fine-

when we who have so much, finally understand this concept, we will not only be able to look to our poor brothers and sisters in a new way and see that they are hungry and willing to accept Christ's message- but we might even get to the point of our own rediscovered salvation, and turn to worship the Lord.

broccoli and ants!

2005-06-16T10:17:00.000-05:00

i believe that more we do and jump into, the more God has to work with to reveal Truth about Himself and life in general. we gain insight into His will by doing-

last nite was our second installment of the wednesday nite group. we had a good talk with several of the people who showed up *or we hunted down ;)
we plopped ourselves down right in the middle of the park, somewhat impeding part of the walkway. it was neat to see the people flowing back to union station from the capitol and for us to be just good witnesses in that way, as they bustled by us while we ate lasagna on paper plates!

keep lifting up brian, richard, mildred, dorthea, patricia and glen-

we are still a bit unconventional, but the Spirit of God was definitely present! many thanks to elizabeth and lindsay who were there to help pull it all off...

ps. we were accident free this week! though ask elizabeth about lasagna ;)

Secret Lives-

2005-06-13T08:50:00.000-05:00

i wanted to add this encouragement based on something i read last friday-

Matthew 6
Teaching about Giving to the Needy

1"Take care! Don't do your good deeds publicly, to be admired, because then you will lose the reward from your Father in heaven. 2When you give a gift to someone in need, don't shout about it as the hypocrites do--blowing trumpets in the synagogues and streets to call attention to their acts of charity! I assure you, they have received all the reward they will ever get. 3But when you give to someone, don't tell your left hand what your right hand is doing. 4Give your gifts in secret, and your Father, who knows all secrets, will reward you.

i know a lot of you do a lot of things that don't necessarily get noticed. a perfect example is the countless times that supplies, or lunches, or soaps, or whatever, just end up in the pile behind the hospitality table- i assume most of it gets dumped off before the service- but no one ever really gets credit for bringing it-
but the Lord knows who did it, and Jesus promises us a reward for this!

i think it is a blessing in disguise that in service just sort of exists a bit off the radar- what we do is not flashy, it's just practical. my prayer is that each of you who give, or serve or pray for in service would be comforted in knowing that the Lord knows all- i just want to thank you all and encourage you in the spirit of 2 Thes. 3:13 to "never tire of doing what is right"

we can do as much or as little as we want, but i know God will take us as far as we let Him- let's keep on, even in secret, for the sake of the Kingdom...

In Service Update (6-12-05)

2005-06-13T08:35:00.000-05:00

Another week gone by-

Does it feel like this year has just been flying to anyone else?
We are all of the sudden in mid-June!

Well all I have to say about this past week is APPLES! Thanks to our capitol hill donation, we had an abundance of fruit this past week (still have about 20 apples left!)
It was a huge blessing though to have a bit of extra things to pass out this Sunday- Though we still had a lot of hit-and-run this week, it seemed to be a bit more orderly- It was good to see some of our regulars back who missed the picnic last week. But it was also good to see some of those who we met at the picnic come back-

A few organizational items: We need a new list of lunch makers! The schedule we created a few months ago is expired so we need volunteers. 3 people per sunday seems to have worked the best since that got us about 60 lunches (20-25 per person)
So please respond to me ASAP!! with a week or two that you would like to do. Here are the next 8 Sundays:
6/19
6/26
7/3
7/10
7/17
7/24
7/31
8/7

Please pray and respond-

Secondly- Wednesday- If anyone has any desire to help Elizabeth and I fascilitate the Bible Study, we meet at the In Service spot outside around 6:30 to pick people up. Pending the good weather- we will then proceed into the park across the street from Union. We will have Bibles this week and hope to get more acquainted with those who are going to be involved.
If you can't be there physically- PLEASE PRAY- we have already seen what the evil one tried to do last week... no more car wrecks! :)

That's all I got. Hope you all have a blessed week- Thank you all again for your service and participation-

peace
jh

Wednesday's Prayer Requests

2005-06-10T10:14:00.000-05:00

Just got an udated email from elizabeth with a few names to lift up from this past wednesday's bible study-

please pray in general for spiritual covering, but also for increased favor-
please pray that we might speak to some more individuals this sunday who will benefit and grow from the wed. group.

here are the names to lift up:
-Dorothy
-Arlene
-Brian
-Kevin (wants healing from alcoholism. he's been clean a month. and to get his life together)
-Bert
-CeCe

hot pasta and car crashes

2005-06-09T10:15:00.000-05:00

yes, we kicked off the in service bible study last nite in the park across from union station-

after spending a half hour rounding people up and trying to get the food unloaded and transported to the park, etc- we had our group established...

however, as i went to go and park the car, as elizabeth tended to the group- i ended up slamming into a mini-van in the diagonal parking across from union station as it barreled down through the green light.

needless to say this was not good timing! and the worst of it was, that it was sarah's new suv, that she so graciously lent me to transport all of the food and drink!
i feel horrible-

nonetheless, the kick-off went on and people were really excited about the whole thing. elizabeth got to spend a good amount of time sharing our vision and listening to their stories. it was a small group of 7, but i think after another week of promotion at our normal in service spot on sunday- that number will increase.

it is official however, that satan hates this minstry! but we hate him too and we know that God has already gained victory over him- we will continue to walk in the Spirit of truth and be faithful to God's calling. we will not be hindered by such attacks (or my plain stupidity) God is doing something big here- and we are excited to be a part of that.

now- my plea-
not that i am trying to get off of the hook, but a lot of my absent-mindedness that led to the accident came from me just being down right in a hurry- the logistics of the whole operation was a little too much for 2 people. so my wish is for more ncc-ers to get involved if they can. elizabeth and i would be happy to welcome anyone who would like to join us- it is going to be a really rewarding time, in that those who were there were really eager to learn and grow spiritually.

hopefully next week will go more smoothly- i am thankful to God for allowing to even meet! accidents happen but God is good.

Capitol Fruit

2005-06-08T13:10:00.000-05:00

no this isn't the name of a new capitol hill fruit market- rather a blessing that we as a ministry received yesterday.

i got a random call yesterday afternoon from someone who works on the hill who said that they would be having some sort of display from some farming delegation and were going to have boxes of fruit left over. the girl said she contacted ncc about donating it and the call got fwd. to me.

so this afternoon i went and picked up 20 cartons of strawberries, a box of apples, oranges and cucumbers. we will be able to use most of it throughout the groups this week and on sunday. if anyone has creative ideas on what can be done with a mass numbers of cucumbers, let me know.

it was just a blessing to be "thought of" as a ministry for such a donation. God is going to continue to bless our faithfullness in the little things-

please pray for the bible study tonite! we need lots of spiritual covering, as well as a place to meet in the future.

Community

2005-06-07T08:07:00.000-05:00

as the men's group prayed this morning, i felt inspired to pray for a greater sense of community within ncc and reaching out through our "community" groups.

it is so important for us as the new summer semester kicks off, to instill the proper tone in our groups. we must really strive to not create that 'sunday church-going routine' mentality, merely pasting it onto a different day of the week. our community groups should aspire to not be obligatory in nature, but rather a place of comfort, renewal, challenge and transformation.

it's a venue for conversation, merriment, prayer, devotion, learning, teaching, growing and boding-

most of all however, it hopes to serve as filling for a void that is ever-increasing in our current society. our american culture continues to be an impetus for individuality and compartmentalization of our lives-
but we have a new culture in Christ. He set the example for us in this way. He was welcomed and went into homes. He visited wedding celebrations. He provided feasts for mass crowds. He traveled in close relation with His disciples. did you ever notice how in the Bible there is always a special note whenever Jesus went off to be alone... i assume that is because most of the time He was not.

as we start this week, let's cherish our community- it is something that should be natural, an element of our New Nature, in that we are unified through the blood of Christ.

In Service Update (6-5-05)

2005-06-06T09:48:00.000-05:00

Greetings!

These are the days that I love to blog about!
We had an amazing time at the picnic yesterday. To those of you there and/or contributed through food, supplies, or prayer--- Thank You-

What started out to be a bit uncertain, turned out to be a fantastic blessing. I don't know about you guys, but when something goes off without a hitch and you know that it had nothing to do with 'your own' planning or organization, you can do nothing but sit back and give God all the glory and praise for it!

That is the best way to describe yesterday. All the pieces came together from the food and drink, to those who made the "hot walk" up mass ave- to the fellowship, laughter and conversations.

I think everyone who was there felt the peace and love of the Lord and the presence of the Holy Spirit. The smiles on the faces were golden and no one left hungry-

The best part of it all was that we saw a lot of new faces. Though we would have loved to have seen all of our regulars, the more we reach out the better.

A few prayer requests... Didn't get a lot of feedback on this yesterday- so please, if you had conversations that indicated any prayer requests, just respond to this posting in the "add comments" part and list them. We can all read and lift them up throughout the week.
I would add the man who had the seizure when we arrived to set up. For those of you who weren't there, a homeless man had a seizure and began spitting up blood just as we arrived to the park. I was able to call 911 and we was attended to and given care. Praise God for bringing us there (with cell phones) at that moment. The DC policewoman who first responded was very grateful for our response to him-

So we move on- I'm excited to see what comes of our Wednesday nite group. Please continue to pray for it and also that a place to meet would open up- We did a lot of good promotion yesterday and I think we are going to have a good group. Please feel free to join us if you'd like. The more the merrier.

I will blog again this week so keep checking back. I also have a few pictures from yesterday I will upload.

Thanks again-
peace
jh

In Service Update (5-30-05)

2005-05-31T10:58:00.000-05:00

Hi-

Well, I am not so much in a position to comment on Sunday, since I was out of town for a wedding.

However, I did hear that we had lunches and that things went relatively smooth. There was some criticism however, that we had much more of a "hit n' run" this week, and fewer stuck around for community than normal. We will pray about this and discuss ways that we can better streamline the distribution process that will make it more fair and effective. Anyone with ideas or comments- please contact me.

With this week behind us now, we prepare and plan for next week- which is a big one!

First of all- we have the picnic on Sunday in Stanton Park. All of you on the In Service email list also received an evite- for practical planning, I ask that you please respond either positive or negative. This is really intricate in the event's success.

Secondly, our Bible Study will kick off on Wednesday- still praying on a location, but it will be secured by Sunday. We will have invites to hand out!
Let me know if you are interested in participating or facilitating...

Thanks for checking in-

blessings
peace
jh

Testimony

2005-05-24T09:41:00.000-05:00

I just wanted to share with you guys and encouraging email I received yesterday from Ashley. You can read it below. It also includes a few prayer requests that you can all keep in mind this week.

One more thing. I forgot to mention in the Update that I will be gone this weekend for a wedding back home in Chicago. Matt Andrea and Ashley will be there to lead the group in my absence.

Have a blessed week!

----------------------------------------------
Hey John,

Neat story about the sleeping bags...

Kirk, Lisa and I had an encouraging experience on our way in to Union Station this morning that I wanted to share. We drove and parked up in the parking deck and as we were coming down the first escalators a tour bus driver employee asked us if we were with the church. He nodded towards the lunches and said that a bunch of his buddies go get lunch every Sunday. He said he used to be there too, but smiled and said, "I work here now." I asked him for how long - and he said 17 months. He looked full of hope. That is what Christ does for us...

In terms of prayer requests, William said he had a job interview this week with a telephone company. Eddie said things were looking up a bit, but still needs prayer.

In Service Update (5-22-05)

2005-05-24T09:23:00.000-05:00

It is truly amazing how fast time goes by. With the release of the new semester pass on Sunday, I couldn't believe that we have been at it this long.

As May winds down, we have several exciting things on the horizon for In Service.

Sunday went well. It was good to have some visitors from the University of California who attended NCC for their time here doing an internship. They helped us out this past week and were a true blessing. They also said how much they enjoyed our church and we hope that they will keep up with us in the future... (so if you're reading this guys, let us know what's up every once in a while)

So here are the announcements for what's coming up:

++Two Sundays from now we will be hosting a picnic at Stanton Park (3rd and Mass) in lieu of our normal In Service. Actually we are planning it for 12-2, so that we can get some 11am Service people involved too. That will be June 5th. There will hopefully be an evite soon to follow...
We will have a potluck style picnic and try to create more fellowship among those who serve and are served. It will also be a good promo/kick-off to the In Service Community Group which will start on the following Wednesday.

++Which leads me to the next point. We need prayer and a place still. So keep lifting that up. Also we are looking to find out if there is anyone who plans on participating in this small group. I'd like to get a feel for how many In Service volunteers will be there. It is hard to estimate how many of the homeless will be in attendance.

++Still need help on Mondays. Anyone interested in building up the community at McPherson Square? Let me know and we can try our best to adjust the time. We are shooting for 6ish though, since that is when Martha's Table comes by there with the food. Let me know please.

++Donations! Please keep in mind that we collect donations on a rolling basis- Let your friends, family, roommates know that we are always looking for clothes, shoes, misc. items- Also for you travelers... Raid those hotel rooms for soap and shampoo!!!

++Finally... Feedback- I would love to hear how many of you are keeping up with the blog throughout the week. I am doing my best to make a few postings outside of this weekly update. Also, feel free to post comments, or send me things you would like to be posted!

Thanks for your service...
Be blessed-
jh

Creative Kingdom

2005-05-19T13:25:00.000-05:00

Pastor Mark has been talking quite a bit about creative visions- experimental projects- and just an overall rekindling and capturing of 'anointed' ideas.

During the physics of faith series, PM talked about how imaginitive and complex God was in creating human beings and the greater universe...

Our minds are infinitely creative, and we are called to use our unique talents and charateristics. Aside from the amount of "unanswered prayers that no one bothered to ask" in heaven, how many potential inventions, solutions to problems, alleviations of pain, etc. are there up there as well?
How many inner sparks do we get to do something that we ignore? How many times do we say (if we even bother to share it) 'I had the craziest idea yesterday' and it goes unfounded?

I was touched by this story, which I will link below. Not only because it deals with the homeless, but because it is so simple, yet probably sounded zany at the time this woman came up with it... Just think how many have been blessed by this zaniness.

Let's not just step out of our comfort zones in what we are believing God for-
Let's step out of our comfort zones and allow our imaginations to become blessings-

the link:
http://www.share-international.org/archives/homelessness/hl-ssleepingbags.htm

It's all about the MESSAGE

2005-05-18T10:08:00.000-05:00

working my way through Acts (a bit slower than Pastor Mark)
and ran across something pretty intriguing this morning...

Acts 14-
reading about how Paul and Barnabas traveled through Iconium, Lystra and Derbe (today modern day Turkey). They preached in both the Synagogues and the streets. They were welcomed and stoned, people listened attentively and other plotted murder-

but it was all about the message. Even when the crowds thought they were gods because of the healing and miracles they did- they were faithful in directing their eyes back to the Lord.

Let's begin to enter into new territories in this city and preach the message to those who are eager to hear it. In Acts 13:48 it says: " When the Gentiles heard this, they were very glad and thanked the Lord for his message;"

Wow- have we become so disillusioned into thinking that we will always be rebuked for talking about Jesus? Have we forgotten that the News we bring is Good?

Let us approach our service with the Good News on the tips of our tongues. Let's remember that even though we are providing physical needs, all of the work is really only to help reveal God's Glory...
If we are faithful in giving God the Glory in this small way, I believe He will begin to do greater things through us. Just as Paul and Barnabas tore their clothes in resistance to the praise they were getting, we too must be humble in our service.

Do we believe God will heal people through our ministry? We have to get to a place where we believe it first, so when it happens we are not surprised- and we are prepared to react in the way the early disciples did.

Keep praying-

jh

Spiritual Gravity

2005-05-17T07:49:00.001-05:00

That title is the only way to really describe what has been happening at McPherson Square on Mondays.

Again Julia and I met yesterday evening and before she got there I was just prayer walking around the square- and as I finally made my way over to a bench, this guy just comes and sits right next to me and started reading the Express paper.

So I began talking with this guy Mike and as Julia arrived, we had the opportunity to invite him over to Union Station. It sounds so simple, but people these days don't usually get that close- and I have noticed that homeless guys don't normally bump up against "commuters" very often. So I am pressed to think of why?

And this isn't the only time or example that I have. We have just felt this urge while we are there to stay put, and we find that people are just drawn to us... and the only way to really explain it is that there must be some sort of 'spiritual gravity' around us. I think that those who are hungry and thirsty in their spirits are naturally drawn to God's presence. The Holy Spirit spills out all around us and I believe that there is a distinct area or radius around us in the spiritual realm that becons those in need.
The Bible gives us a lot of different examples of how God reveals Himself in us to others:

-We can be light (Matt. 5:14), or reflect His light (2 Cor. 3:18), or walk in the light (1 John 1:7)
-We are clothed with Christ. (Gal. 3:27)
-We put a lantern high on its stand (Matt. 5:15)
-We are a Temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 6:19)

These are all things that can help catch people's eyes...

This must be stated in humbleness though- in that it is only God, not us, that is able to create such a phenomenon.

In Service Update (5-15-05)

2005-05-16T09:59:00.000-05:00

Abundance-

That's the best way to describe this past Sunday-
Somehow through what I'll call "annointed miscommunication" we had more lunches made than usual... somewhere around 70- and as you can expect we had no trouble handing them all out.

We also had socks and an array of misc. clothes and shoes to bless who stopped by to see us!

Above all however, we continue to form meaningful relationships with several individuals. I see that many of us have an ever-increasing connection with certain people, and I ask that you remember to pray for those who you talk to on a weekly basis.

As our Pentecost Fast came to an end yesterday, culminating in an awesome Catacombs at Club Nation- it is my prayer that God would be faithful to our ministry and provide massive healing, physical, mental and spiritual, to those whom we serve. However, we need to continue to pray in faith, that He can and wants to do this.

Pastor Mark has on several occassions revealed one of the miracles that he is praying for. It is to see Acts 2:41 happen, that is for 3,000 to be baptized in one place at the same time! Let me tell you what has been on my heart: If there is any community in this city that I can envision such a thing to happen in, it's the homeless-
According to an article in last week's Examiner, there is an estimated 15,439 homeless in the DC Metro area- and they are some of the most spiritually seeking people in our city.

My vision is to see hundreds, and maybe thousands, maybe even 3,000, homeless gather together in a park or square in DC and hear the Gospel Message and worship the Lord together... maybe there will even be a baptism!

But until that day comes- let's be faithful in prayer and work. Let's continue to build In Service together, using our individual gifts.

Keep in mind the "In the week" activities at Mcpherson on Mondays, Farragut Wednesdays.
We Still Need Help and Support!

Finally, some things on the horizon. Our Wednesday nite Community Group, which will be called "The Living Room" still needs a venue. Please pray and keep your ears open for a spot that we could meet and have a meal in the Capitol Hill area...
This needs to happen by the end of the month!

Also, we are planning a "picnic and worship" in the park for the beginning of June. If you are interested in helping out with the planning of this, let me know.

"all who are weak, all who are weary, come to the rock, come to the fountain"

peace
john

In Service Update (5-8-05)

2005-05-10T09:58:00.000-05:00

Hey Servicers-

Hope this new blog idea is working for everyone (and you are still reading these updates)

Sunday was a bit blustery, but all went well-
We had a team helping us distribute from Springfield, VA. It is so amazing all of these different groups that we are getting to help out our regular volunteers. They seemed to be blessed through the experience and we obviously appreciate and enjoy their help!

I'm glad that God has faith and entrusts us to entertain service groups!! wow.

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So as I prayer walked through Mcpherson Square yesterday and observed the many homeless wandering, sitting, congregating- a thought crossed my mind- it was simple- convicting, but resourceful. So I wanted to share it with you all-

I thought: 'Wealth can merely allow us to manufacture creative ways to hide, ignore, disguise our sin and depravity.'

Take Revelation 3:17-18 for example: "You say, `I am rich. I have everything I want. I don't need a thing!' And you don't realize that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked. I advise you to buy gold from me--gold that has been purified by fire. Then you will be rich."
What I mean is that the more you talk to these people living on the streets, the more you realize that they are not much different than you or I. Their economic or social situation however, magnifies some of the daily human struggles- whether it be some sort of addictive behavior, depression, lonliness, etc. The quote simply implies that it is much easier for us to avoid displaying our life and faith struggles due to the things we have and the life we lead. At times I find the bluntness and transparency (whether intentional or not) of those I meet on the streets refreshing.
At the end of the day you must trust a Scripture like Proverbs 22:2:
"Rich and poor have this in common: The LORD is the Maker of them all."

A few things to keep in mind in the coming weeks:
- Please pray for all of those who are on the streets, that their needs are met in some way- Julia just recently shared with me that a homeless man didn't wake up from his sleep the other day at Dupont Circle. These stories remind us how fragile these lives are, and how sad it can be, when a man's death may go virtually un-noticed if he is not connected to relatives or friends.

- Pray that God brings the pieces together for the In Service Community Group that will start in the summer. We will start putting together invites in the coming weeks. Pray that God is already stirring those who will attend, that we might be able to minister and grow together and that those who wish to will have a place to take new steps of faith in their spiritual lives.

-Ashley will most likely me joining us this week and will be keeping the list of prayer requests. We will coordinate in the future and that list will be attached to this weekly update.

- We still need help for Mcpherson Monday and Farragut Wednesday. I am meeting every Monday with Julia at 5:45pm at Mcpherson Square to pray and minister to the homeless who meet there to get dinner from Martha's Table.
Wednesday morning, Andress and I (if i get a parking spot) meet with a man named Homer at around 8am at Farragut Park.
We would love to have more bodies at both (especially on Mondays due to the amount of people there) Please prayerfully consider both options-

Peace be with you all-
jh

In Service Update

2005-05-03T10:50:00.000-05:00

Hello dear friends-

Some great things to report this week.

Though we only had about 4 regular in service vols on Sunday we had a great high school team with us who had prepared care packages and showed a great upbeat spirit to those who come and hang with us on Sundays.

I think we set a new world record as well, in that we literally handed out 55-60 lunches, 32 care packages and 32 pairs of socks in about 8 minutes- most of the people are now waiting for us when we arrive to our post outside.

So what's new:

Well we still need people who are interested in doing "Commute outreaches." Right now we are in place for Monday evenings (about 6pm) at Mcpherson Square and Wednesday mornings (8am) at Farragut West.

Julia and I had a great time yesterday evening at Mcpherson and had 2 very meaningful conversations. Andress has built up a good relationship with a man named Homer in Farragut. We believe this is a start to something big in these parks right in the middle of the district! Pray and become a part of this exciting new opportunity.

Hospitality- the gracious "donut people" have approached me and asked if anyone wanted to help them out with serving, in that they are very "popular" among the homeless crowd that hangs out in the lobby- they know many of them personally and felt it would be a good place for some of our less engaged people to step in slowly. Let me know if you are interested in that-

Other than that, continue to pray and BLOG. I will report back to you all soon with some exciting news about the ever approaching Community Group for the homeless, as well as a picnic in the park/worship afternoon...

Press on and fear God-

peace
john

Welcome!

2005-03-31T10:50:00.000-05:00

just thought i would join the millineal crowd and start a blog...

hmm, not sure how i feel about this :)

anyway, i thought it would be a good place for our ministry volunteers to get better acquainted as well as share ideas, experiences, testimonies and the like-

it will also serve as a platform for our UPDATES. this will take the place of long emails clogging up your inboxes-

anytime there is new info posted here- i will send you a link or reminder to check it out-

it's just a way to allow us to use technology to the best of our ability.

peace
john