Looking good
When I stepped outside for a short breath of fresh air – among the smoking crowd in front of the door – I was surprised to find a stranger giving haircuts to our guests. A hairdresser on her way home from the fresh market had put her groceries down, taken the scissors out of unskilled hands and quickly improved the look of quite a few guys. No, she didn't want to stay. With just a quick glance inside and a satisfied smile on her face she picked up her bag and left.This was already the third time I had found an unexpected haircutting service outside – each time a different person. Apparently, God likes to have his homeless guys look good.
Spontaneous worship
John is blind. He spends his days singing in worship – any time, any place with much freedom of expression. So some of his worship has been put into proper songs for all to learn. When we introduced one of the songs to the homeless gathering, we encouraged them to also find their voice in song and prayer. As the meeting went on, a young guy who spent most of his life in the streets stood up to say that he had just written the words for his very own song. Of course, we all wanted to hear it. »Please read it to us!« Paper in his shaking hands, he took a deep breath and started to freely sing the words in front of 50 people. He told Jesus of his love for him, his trust in God's goodness and his hope for heaven. It was a moment of awe and a glimpse of what we will see when we are all freed from our limitations in God's presence.
A blind man's vision
John also spends a lot of time listening to his audio bible and prays fervently for more people to be saved. »I have an idea, that God gave me!« he told us one day. »I will buy a loudspeaker and have the bible read out loud in the square, where I used to hang out.« (He now lives in a tiny place, sponsored by a kind Christian). His friends were sceptical: the authorities don't approve of such thing. »They will confiscate it within minutes«, they told him. He did it anyway. Nobody has given him any trouble so far, but people have walked up to him to thank him for his courage. A blind man with a vision. And a heart that trusts the Father.