The day had finally arrived.
We were ready, had a strategy.
After more than two months of preparing and waiting, WE
FINALLY HAD A TEAM TO HOST.
From Thursday to Sunday, the 9th to 12th
of October, a team of Messiah College students served with Priority 1. This
weekend had a big circle around it on our calendars, because this team was the
first that we would help to lead around the city. This team, Lord help them,
would also serve as an experiment of sorts: we didn’t know exactly how it would
all work out, how the roles would be divided, how Ginny would get to school,
etc.
I, Greg, did as much as I could without actually staying in
the Priority 1 apartment with the team, while Bonnie (Priority 1’s Director)
and Amber (P1’s Children’s Ministries Coordinator) both stayed with them at the
apartment. Our own apartment is either a 10-minute ride or a 30-minute walk
away, depending on whether buses show up regularly or not. I learned that the
buses don’t come nearly as often at 7am on a Saturday as they do during the
week, and thus I had a half-hour stroll in the dark morning drizzle. I also
learned that my shoes are insufficient as rainwear.
The first two evenings the team helped out at the after-school
program run by the school where Ginny attends. They split up among the
different classes and helped with homework, singing and dancing, crowd control,
and, of course, snacks. The kids were really excited to have some volunteers,
especially when they found out they would be there two days in a row!!
Friday morning was spent at the World Vision Storehouse, a
facility that collects lots of corporate donations and then distributes them in
the South Bronx and beyond, and in particular they help school teachers who
don’t have enough supplies. We sorted jeans and polo shirts into bundles, then
did the same with boxes full of hats. It’s admittedly tedious work (especially
when we discover that we had packed all the bundles wrong and would have to
re-sort and re-bag them – an issue that may or may not have been my fault), but
it’s a good reminder that building up the Kingdom of God often takes the form
of doing manual, unskilled labor for little or no compensation. Those bundles
of clothes and hats will go to organizations that work with the homeless,
domestic abuse victims, underprivileged kids, and on and on, and someone
had to package them up.
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| Sandwich-making fiends |
My personal favorite activity took place on Saturday morning
(despite my aforementioned soggy socks). We caravanned to the HQ of Manna of Life
Ministries, a group who provides food and love to the homeless. The Messiah
group got their gloves and hairnets on, then made a whole bunch of PBJ and tuna
sandwiches. We then caravanned to three different sites, spending the longest time
at a homeless shelter called The Living Room. I didn’t know exactly what to
expect: in the past we had been permitted to go up and talk and pray
with the people staying there; other times we were only allowed to hand out the food down on the sidewalk outside the building. This time, after
handing out the food, we did indeed go upstairs. After the team sang a song they
had (hastily) prepared, Jasmine, a woman who works with Manna of Life and who
had herself once been homeless, stood and basically preached a salvation
message to the people. She spoke with passion and excitement of our need for
Jesus to forgive and transform us. Then the team spread out, with prayer request
cards in hand, and had the chance to talk with some of the people there. It was
wonderful. Several of the team even had the chance to pray with people there. I
am grateful to have been a part of this time.
Two of our stops were at gas stations where day workers
gather, waiting for work. These guys stand around hoping that someone will come
by and offer them work for the day: sometimes they get work, sometimes they don’t.
We came, lined up with sandwiches, stew, fruit, and juice for any and all who
wanted some. At the last stop several of the men joined our group as we circled
up and prayed.
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| It's New York, right? Gotta get some pizza. |
The last major component of the weekend was a photo
scavenger hunt that we call the AmazinGrace. We hand the team a list of
landmarks throughout the city to pray at and photograph, then pat them on the
head and wish them well. They get a chance to navigate the subways themselves
and see how well they can get around on their own.
They all survived. They even all made it back to the P1
apartment in the Bronx!
They were a wonderful team, and we look forward to hosting many,
many more.
I slept well after they left.
