Meet Paul

A while ago I blogged about homeless people and how I want to know their stories.  I then started thinking and praying about how I can bless them and find out what their stories are.  I then came up with the following idea.  I'll go to Spar and buy a few Haven Night Shelter Passports and then give them out to Homeless people when they come and ask me for money instead of giving them money.  Before I give them the passport I'll ask them about themselves, their name, family and why they are homeless.  Depending on how God leads, I'll either approach a homeless person or wait for them come and ask me for money.  

A Haven Night Shelter passport costs R10 and it allows a homeless person to go and stay there for the night. They are able to sleep in a bed, receive a meal, have a hot shower and receive social welfare support. 

Last week Wednesday I had the opportunity to talk to a homeless person.  I've bee putting it off for a while because I've been rather nervous to approach a homeless person and talk to them because sometimes they can get aggressive, but I need to remember that they are just people who also need love.  

Paul

I was sitting a bench reading a book in the Gardens and a homeless man approached me and asked me for money towards staying at the Haven Night Shelter.  I looked at him and thought, "here's my chance".  I asked him what his name is and to tell me a bit about himself.  He told me that his name was Paul and that he was a painter until he fell and broke his ankle.  He broke it pretty badly and couldn't work so he was fired.  He told me that he has a 10 year old son, who was at school while he was walking around looking for money.  I asked if he had family to stay with and he said that he was staying with his sister and her husband but he felt it was time to leave and he was a burden to them.  

I told him I would give him R10 towards the passports, that was half the amount he would need. He would also need to get another R10 for his son. I also only had R10 on me and I haven't bought the passports yet.  Come to think of I must go do this at lunch time. 

When I gave him the money he was super happy and thankful and then he asked me why I was giving him so much.  I looked at him and I told him that I'm Christian and that I really believe in community and helping people out in your community. Jesus also tells us to help the homeless, weak, orphans etc, he live like that, he did it and he set the example for us.  I also told him how in acts when people in the community never had something the community would step in and help and I believe that we should be living like that. 

Paul looked at me and said he'd never heard someone say that before. I smiled and said, God's put me in a place where I can help and I want to do that, and this is one way I can see myself doing that.  He then said thank you and I said, "I really pray that God blesses you." And that was that - he got up, said thanks and then walked off into the Gardens. 

After he had left I sat there thinking about how God has blessed me and I just gave thanks for what I have.  I then said a quick prayer for Paul asking God to bless him and his son. 

xKx

Homeless people and the stories they tell

Yesterday while I was walking back to work, a guy in a hoodie and jeans stopped and asked me for money.  He told me that he had been running around trying to get R120 together to stay in a backpackers.  If I had time and wasn't running late to get back from lunch, I would have asked him why he needed R120 for the backpackers and where all of his stuff was.  I wanted to know his story.

As I walked down the road I remembered that he was the same guy who has asked me for money a couple of weeks ago outside my office with the same story.  This got me to thinking.. I think he was homeless and this was a story that he was telling everyone.

This thought lead me to the stories that homeless people tell.  I encounter A LOT of homeless people walking from the station to work every day.  Usually they just ask form money, but then there are some who have given me a long story of how they need money for a taxi to an interview. Then there's the story of having a kid and they need money to staty some where.  There's also the people who show the haven night sheler card and ask for money for that. Every single time a homeless person tells me their story, I want to help them... but I know I can't. I don't have the resources or the money to find them jobs, provide places for them to stay or save them. It's the whole star fish story, BUT that's a whole seperate post.

I often wonder how a homeless person became a homeless person. Where they born into it? Did they do something and their family had enough and cast them out?  Have they spent MONTHS looking for a job and this is the last resort... and then the horrible thought of do they get more money begging?

One day, when I have a storng heart, I want to stop and talk to a few homeless people and hear their story as to why they are homeless and begging.  I hope that they are honest when I do stop and chat and that they don't tell me another sob story. 

I guess I should pray for God to provide a way for me to do this and that he guides the process and opens the doors for honest communication... And then when I meet the next homeless person asking me for money... ask them to tel me their story and how they got there.

xKx