Testimonials From Volunteers

April 2008 - Sarena: I will say that being a part of the Homeless Ministry
has really just changed my life because it has changed
how I see God. It has been so incredibly encouraging
to literally watch God work...to know that he is
working and to accept His invitation in joining Him in
His work. I have seen Him restore and renew people in
miraculous ways. Now I'm not saying that every person
I have met has been some miraculous success story. But
what I am saying is that I have seen God restore
people souls through this ministry. I have watched Him
bring His children out of the gutters and into His
Kingdom, which is where we all belong. Seeing the lies
exposed, seeing God move through people (this includes
the volunteers) and just watching Him restore people,
who society claims are worthless, has opened my eyes
up to the God of the Bible. He is the redeemer, the
restorer and so much more. Like I said, being a part
of this ministry has changed my life.

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March 2008 - Marco:  My school requires me to have 40 hours of community service and I chose the homeless ministry.  I did not expect to see so many people homeless on the streets. This is like a wakeup call for me. I really see the things that I have in a different light.

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March 2008 - A volunteer:  What I say is: tonight was very special. I felt God out there and it feels so good to do something and help. I went out there hoping to share God with someone – but the homeless people really were the ones who shared God with me. They showed me how God is kind, warm, happy, loving, welcoming, incredible, soft spoken and sweet and his amazing love. I could see it, hear it and feel it when spending time with them. I saw God in each of them. Thank you God – it was good to see You today. I feel so blessed!!!

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March 2008 - Mike: I have the privilege to serve as one of the lay
pastors to the homeless with Brandon, Rick, and
Andrew.

My messages tend to weigh in with little known facts
about common subjects. One day after my message one of
our attendees "Evangilina" approached me with a gift.
It was a book on Bible Trivia.

My heart just melted that she had thought about me
some time ago, knew my interest in this area, and had
found this gift for me.

Perspective and humility can be easily overlooked
sometimes and the homeless have a way of bringing us
down to earth and back to God.

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March 2008 - Michelle:  A few weeks ago, we were finishing at 16th/Island when we had some
water left over and we found a place on the way back that we had not gone to before. It
was already 10:00 PM and we were trying to love the homeless with just dropping off
the water, yet there was a guy named Ed that was extremely eager to talk with us. 

He had been drinking and his speech was slurry. We thought we should just offer to pray for
him and then leave, but  the Lord had a different plan.  One of us
said to Ed, "Would you like to pray, Ed?" And he shared with us that he was
ashamed to pray and did not know how, yet we encouraged him by saying that neither
did we, but that the Lord simply desires to hear from our heart.  He
smiled and began praying. Ed was extremely moved by the movie "The Passion" and through his prayer, I was humbled like never before.  Ed prayed with such humility and reverence for God, and
in detail, thanked Jesus for every moment of suffering and sacrifice He
gave for us.  He quoted scripture throughout his prayer. He truly
understood the gospel and how unworthy he and all of us were in the
presence of the Lord.  The moment when he said, "Excuse me, but I must get
on my knees; for the Holy Spirit is among us," we all followed his lead
was unforgettable and more beautiful than words can give justice.  He cried
out to Our Father with humility, tears and a heart, and faith that could
move mountains.  After the prayer, we gave Ed a hug and told him we loved
him.  It's crazy to think that by simply being available and
interruptible, God allowed us and Ed to experience fellowship and prayer
like never before.  We praise You, Lord!

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March 2008 - Petra: One Saturday I handed out bibles to the homeless at Balboa Park during Church Without Walls. The following Monday I went to A and Union with the “bread of life” group and I met one man to whom I handed a bible. He recognized me and told me this:  I have done some bad things in my life and I was sure that God could never forgive me. But you gave me the bible and you highlighted some verses for me to read and now I know that God does love me. I know that I am forgiven. We both cried and prayed and thanked God.

The verses: Hebrews 4:16,  Hebrews 13: 5-6,   John 14: 1-31,  1^st Corinthians 15:57-58, 1^st Peter 5:6-7

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March 2008 - Michelle:  Julian is about 70 years old, he never wants to talk - he prefers to be alone. One night, the Lord said do not give up this time!  So as usual, I greeted him, sat down, and asked him about his week and
this time he gave me a huge smile. I was overwhelmed, yet listened
intently as began to share his entire life story with me and the anger he felt
at the world and at God, for the circumstances in which he is. Not sure of
what to say and overwhelmed by his sudden vulnerability, I just grabbed
his hand, listened and cried with him. 

God taught me that night that consistency and persistence are
vital to this ministry. God's work in softening of people's hearts, is a
process, and we have to be ready when He makes their “soil
ready for the seed” (opens their heart to receive the gospel). 

 I have seen him a few times since and he still has
few words and is not open to the gospel, but we hug and I know that God
is working on his heart.

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March 2008 - A volunteer: Last month I went to “bread of life” and we formed groups to go out and serve the homeless. We gave each of them something to eat. I also had a couple of bibles that I wanted to give to someone. When I asked one guy if he wanted a bible, he looked at me and said “Are you serious”?  Yes I am serious.  He said: “let me tell you a story”. He went on to tell me that; not too long ago he told God that he wanted to start reading in the bible and to do that he needed a bible and a pair of reading glasses. Well a few days ago he was given a pair of reading glasses. When he received the glasses, he prayed again saying now he needs his bible. “Well now I have my bible” – he said. What an answer to prayer!! He also shared with us that he used to do drugs and drink a lot – but with God- he has been clean for 12 years! He said that people try to tempt him into old habits but his faith in God keeps him strong. He will never do drugs again.  All of us prayed together.  Michelle , another volunteer, said a prayer for him and he was touched! He told us that he appreciated everything, that he’ll continue to pray and that he’d read in his new bible.

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