Thursday, August 11, 2016

The Battle is Real at Tompkins Square Park

“Do you have any idea what it’s like to get robbed while you’re asleep?” This was Dominic’s question as he came up to the truck seeking assistance.  He was orphaned at a young age but has since aged out of the system. Now, at 19 years old, he came to New York City with the hopes of a better life, but things were just getting tougher for him. He was conflicted; He knew he needed a job, but his hopeless spirit left him with no motivation. As Dominic and I assessed our options, I invited a fellow team member, Travis, to sit down with him as I made some phone calls. Dominic sat patiently as we secured a bed at the rescue mission.  Throughout the day, Travis and I got to know Dominic as he shared his dreams of going to college, which had all fallen through. He was weary and ready to give up, but as God would have it, we were right there in his crisis moment, which gave us the opportunity to speak words of life over him and show how much God cares.


Things were going well, but towards the end of the day, one of Dominic’s homeless friends offered him a job with a promise to get him his own place. Dominic believed him and changed his mind about going to the rescue mission.  All at once, we saw how the enemy came in and stole all the seeds we had planted. When we are on the streets we see the spiritual battle raging over people’s lives. The Enemy comes to people promising them a better life, and then because of their independence, people resist submitting to the Lord and choose to go their own way. Unfortunately, this is what happened to Dominic. We found out the next week that the job fell through and he was back out on the streets. Although our encounter with Dominic did not end the way we wanted, it is our prayer that God would continue to pursue him. We will also pray and make ourselves available and continue to meet people in their moment of crisis. 

Gaining Compotence

Our heart here at Street LIFE Ministries is teaching others to "win souls for God", and this is something that one man from Danville Virginia learned after just one week with us.

"This week I've seen the entire spectrum of socioeconomic here in New York City, and now I can confidently state that I now feel comfortable ministering to all of them, thanks to Street LIFE Ministries. I've seen God touch the poor and those who are well off, and this applies to their spiritual and economic situation. I feel changed. I've stepped out of my comfort zone and learned that I can adapt."

Friday, August 5, 2016

Breaking Ethnic Barriers

As a white woman from a smaller town in Southern Virginia, doing street evangelism in a predominately black neighborhood of New York City was a little out of Kelly’s comfort zone. “I’ll be honest, when we arrived in Harlem for the Prayer Station ministry, I was a little intimidated and scared.” She was certainly out of her element, but she began to pray asking the Lord to bring people that He wanted her to connect with. It wasn’t very long before Rashawn came walking down the street.

When Kelly offered to pray with him, he explained that this was not his usual route to work and that he usually walks with his headphones in but they just stopped working right before he turned the corner. It was as if God was setting him up as he was coming towards them. “We spoke for over an hour,” Kelly said. “He was excited about the things of the Lord and very curious about a relationship with Jesus. He was not yet ready to commit himself to the Lord, but he took a New Testament and I am praying that he will be starting his walk with the Lord very soon.” Kelly got to experience firsthand what can happen when we are willing to break down barriers and go where the Lord sends us. She ended by saying, “I had an encouraging week with Street LIFE Ministries, and God is doing great things here.”