Another Novel-like Update

Hello all! This week has been a much-loved slower schedule. We have spent most of the week working on creating monthly goals and key result areas for ourselves to focus our time here with CSM on. I have also been spending a lot of time working on the research paper they are having us do to get to know the city. The main purpose of this paper is to familiarize us with the Bay Area by starting with the history of San Francisco and Oakland. The next section is to identify needs of the Bay Area that can be met by non-profits or the church. The final section is to describe 3-5 organizations that already exist that are working to fill these needs. From this paper we are to gain a better understanding of where we might be interested in serving this year. Although a paper sounds like school, something that freaked my roommate Kat out greatly, I love that we are really being pushed to understand where we are serving. Through our weekly reflection papers, assigned reading, this research paper, and other writing assignments we are really being pushed to learn and reflect on our experiences.

We also spent time last week serving at a couple of organizations. On Tuesday we went with a group from Salvation Army to deliver sandwiches, juice boxes, chips, and gallon jugs of water to the “homes” of homeless individuals in homeless camps under many bridges in San Francisco. . Trey from the Salvation Army was such a real example for me of what Christ-like urban ministry looks like. His love for God was so apparent in the way that he interacted with the people on the streets. Despite the fact that many of these people suffered from clear mental and addictive illnesses, were dirty, smelled of body odor and urine, and called the shelter of bridges home, they were Trey’s great friends. He greeted each of them with a hug and used their name as he so authentically asked them how they were doing. As they continued to talk like old friends, Trey would not only meet the need he set out to fill that night, but he would inquire about any other needs they had. He filled their tummies with the sandwiches, talked with them, and when another issue would come up he would offer to do anything necessary to help with it. When the issue of their things being taken from their camp by city officials and moved to a junkyard came up, without hesitation he offered to take anyone who wanted to go claim their stuff that Friday morning. He also offered to bring paperwork for housing programs to a few individuals he talked to. When one person shared that they were not feeling well he offered to bring a doctor into the camp to check them out. With each individual he desired to meet all of his or her needs regardless of the difficulty on his part that it would take. Trey showed God to these people not because he screamed about God on the street corner or forced them to pray with him, but just by showing up and caring for each and every one of them the love of God was apparent through him.

            In American society we are taught to live by schedules, to work hard in order to gain success, and to plan every minute of our days in order to reach maximum productivity. In urban culture this way of living doesn’t exist. Despite my background, in order to do effective ministry I can’t live by my perfectly scheduled life. Trey allowed the Spirit to lead him and because of that he could connect with the individuals on the street and meet their needs effectively. He wasn’t concerned with getting all the sandwiches delivered to as many people as possible; he was concerned with connecting with them and showing God’s love for them through that. In a conversation with Trey he said that the best advice he ever got was “just show up and to show up consistently.” By his continuous desire and commitment to meet any of their needs, I could see him acting out this advice. I feel as though this experience with Trey delivering sandwiches was incredibly impactful on my understanding of urban ministry. I was challenged to let go of my schedule, ideas, and plan for this year and to let the Spirit of God guide me. I was challenged to be aware to the Spirit’s calling and willing to meet people’s needs regardless of the difficulty or my plan for the day. I am incredibly thankful for all that Trey does with Salvation Army to serve the needs of these people and the way in which his ministry was a ministry to me as well. Pray for me that I will be able to let go of my desire to plan out this year and accomplish something great through it. Pray that I will be able to serve the city like Trey does by letting the Spirit lead my ministry.

We also went to Bay Area Rescue Mission, or BARM for short, to work with their after school program called King’s Club again on Friday. Again I loved working with Sister Marshelle and the other staff as we played with these children. Since it was a Friday we didn’t have schoolwork to do, so I got to play pretend that we were a dog family with a group of five 2nd graders. I absolutely love getting to connect with these children as I get to be my super goofy childlike self and also getting to connect on a deeper level with some of the older students. I still strongly desire to serve at this ministry site on a regular basis and plan to spend 3 days there this week to continue to develop an understanding of all their ministry does. Please continue to ask God to make it clear to me whether or not He wants me to serve at King’s Club throughout this year.

As my search for a church continues I went to a church this Sunday called Oakland City Church and I absolutely loved it. They don’t have a church building and meet only on Sunday nights within another church’s building. I have never experienced a church that was this multi cultural. I honestly could not say what the most highly represented ethnicity was. Due to their range of ethnicities they also had a much more gospel style worship, which I love. They sang a majority of well-known contemporary Christian songs, only they sang them much more upbeat in a gospel style. I felt like we were really rejoicing the good news of God through our worship. Although it wasn’t the head pastor speaking, the preaching was sound. I look forward to experiencing the head pastor speak. After the service there was a Raiders tailgate potluck dinner. As soon as the service let out multiple people came up to me and introduced themselves, talked to me for a while, and encouraged me to stay for the dinner. I decided to stay for the dinner and after no more than 2 seconds of me standing there awkwardly looking for a table after getting my food, the head pastor came up to me. After we talked for a little while, he introduced me to a table of incredibly friendly people that I sat and chatted with for the remainder of the dinner. After talking for a while one of the girls asked me if I would want to go to her home group and took down my information to let me know more about it. This church experience was such an answer to prayer. Being such a people person and being without a strong community around me I was beginning to feel lonely out here. The community at this church that I am already starting to get invested into after only one visit is God’s way of showing me that he hears my distress and is using them to comfort me. God is so good!

This weekend Kat and I are hosting another group of 15 junior high students. We are going to be leading separate serving groups but will be together for dinner and debrief times. The group is coming on Friday and will be here through Sunday. Please pray for energy and wisdom to lead them effectively for both Kat and I. Pray that we will allow God to lead them instead of trying to rely on our own strength to lead them.

I guess it is becoming my trend to write incredibly long posts. I don’t think I can get myself to write on here more than once a week, so I am probably just going to continue to write long posts on a weekly basis and you are just going to have to deal with it :P. Rest assured that, as my schedule gets more regular as I get plugged into a ministry, church, and are out of this busy month for hosting, my posts should reduce in size. I hope you are all doing fabulous! Thank you all for your support and prayer for me throughout this year. Love you all like crazy!

Meet all of our CSM staff here in the San Francisco Bay Area. From left to right, the first girl is Becky. Becky is another apprentice that is going on almost 3 years here between hosting and her first year apprenticeship last year. As an apprentice she does many of the same things Kat and I do, but she also has a much more leadership position and works as a mentor for Kat and I. She is great! So next in the blue is Kim and next to her is her husband Jason, who was squatting so he isn't actually that short. Kim and Jason are the city directors here in the Bay Area. They do much of the behind the scenes planning for the groups. Although they are our bosses they are really more so our friends. The little cutie in the pink is their one year old baby named Stephanie. When Stephanie comes into the office it makes work much more enjoyable. Next is me! Then to the right of me is Kat, my roommate and the other apprentice. This picture was taken outside of the church building that we work at and where Kat and I live. Although you can't see anything besides brick at least it is some pretty cool brick!