Homeless Man Receives Dinner Invite

We have a man named Lawrence in our community who lives in a tent. He often will ride his bike with a trailer he built collecting bottles. I remember the day in the summer when Lawrence was passing by our home. He was a sweet man, rugged and smelling of beer. He was respectful and gracious and he had boundaries of never wanting to come inside our home. After giving him bottles, I told him that he could come back anytime to get more. Lawrence now visits us weekly to get his bottles.

A couple of weeks ago, my hubby and I asked him if he wanted to come over for Thanksgiving dinner. We wondered if he would show up, but he did. He had brought a gift for our kids that he had bought from the Sally Ann. I was a little nervous as we had never had Lawrence over before and we had another couple over for dinner as well.

Turns out, it was one of the best Thanksgiving dinners we have had. We laughed, had great conversation and found out many wonderful things about our new friend. I don't know why we are so afraid of the homeless. I do believe caution is necessary, but towards everyone, not just a certain sector of people.

Lawrence left a little teary. Before he left he said, "One of the most beautiful things people can share is a meal together". I was touched by his statement as it is one of my dreams for my home. I dream of a "table of misfits"(you can read more about this here) and I got a glimpse of that on this Sunday evening.

Our homes can be lighthouses, a beacon of hope for those who need it. My kids can't wait to have Lawrence over again. He'll be over for dinner again very soon.

"The next time you put on a dinner, don't just invite your friends and family and rich neighbours, the kind of people who will return the favor. Invite some people who never get invited out, the misfits from the wrong side of the tracks. You'll be - and experience - a blessing. They won't be able to return the favor but the favor will be returned" (from Luke 15).

- Connie Jakab

Check out Connie Jakab's blog at http://culturerebel.com where she blogs about her family's adventures in serving the less fortunate and her continued rebellion to what culture tells us. Be sure to pick up her book, "Culture Rebel - because the world has enough desperate housewives" at http://culturerebel.com/books/. You can find Connie on Twitter at @ConnieJakab

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Nina Haggerty Centre for the Arts "96th Street Exhibition"

Approximately seven community members were placed in the spotlight this month as several pieces of their artwork were put on display at the “Reflecting 96th Street” exhibition at the Nina Haggerty Centre for the Arts in Edmonton. 

Community member Linda, whose Tiger inspired art pieces attracted many spectators at the exhibition, said that her pieces were mainly inspired by a theme of being alive. 

“I like to do life, anything that’s alive because I think they’re beautiful,” said Linda. 

Rachel de Leon and Laura Foster, the organizers of the exhibition, said that their work with community members in the church began back in 2007 when they started an open Thursday art group for community members at the church to participate in. 

“We keep a lot of the artwork with us because a lot of artists have nowhere to keep their art,” said Rachel. 

Elanor, who has been working with the art program since its inception, was proud to display her pieces which included, “the colorful Mandela” and the “A perched Owl.” 

“I get a lot of the inspiration for the art from magazines,” said Elanor. 

With a room full of spectator’s Exhibition Coordinator, David Janzen, said that he believes the future for this event can only be bigger and better. 

“Two years ago when we did a smaller exhibition it was a success. This year these folks needed a venue and you can see it’s a win-win situation,” said David.

The art will be on display at the Nina Haggerty Centre for the Arts until November 1, 2013. Find out more here.

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Taking a Look in the Mirror

Have you ever caught yourself looking in a mirror and it’s like you’re seeing yourself for the first time? That happened to me recently and I realized that the tall good looking individual that I really never was, no longer existed, even in my own imagination.

It’s almost like for a few brief seconds you see yourself the way the world sees you and it’s somewhat of an eye opener. In fact, there is often a gap between how we see ourselves and how others see us, and occasionally the gap is much bigger than we think. Self awareness, not my greatest strength, involves a kind of brutal honesty that is often difficult to deal with, but it’s really the only way we grow. Sometimes it’s the only way we get better in our understanding of ourselves and our relationships with others.

Self-awareness often involves comparing ourselves to those around us. Sometimes what or who we deem as comparative can enhance or deplete our self-esteem, as well as benefit or hurt our health. For example, often in street life there’s a comparison of living situations. A person that is sleeping in a shelter might actually see himself or herself as having an ideal living situation. This, however, might be because he/she is comparing shelter-living to sleeping in a park in minus 30 degrees weather. Knowing what the comparison is can really help us unravel the complexities of street life.

I’m so grateful that God sees past all of that stuff in my life and the lives of others. Recently, a group of employees at The Mustard Seed in Calgary were reflecting on the names of God. Genesis 16:13 uses the name El Roi in reference to God – literally meaning a God who sees. There is great comfort in knowing that God not only sees me, but loves me and accepts me where I’m at. And there is no performance clause! If I get it right, God loves me. If I get it wrong (frequently), God still loves me. Who knew Billy Joel was sharing a biblical truth when he sang, “I love you just the way you are.”

How do the homeless see themselves? Likely not as their public persona, where because of deep hurt and rejection they have developed some pretty amazing self-defense mechanisms complete with corresponding story lines to build themselves up. Furthermore, some individuals experiencing homelessness might actually believe that they’re doing alright, mainly because their situation compared to others in their lives seems more ideal. Thereby making them seem like they’re putting on a brave face. If you’ve never had a bed to compare a shelter mat to, a shelter mat might actually feel like you’re sleeping on a Sealy Posturepedic in comparison to sleeping on the street.

Sometimes their social presentation seems very different than some of us would expect from people living “without,” yet even the stigma surrounding homelessness might influence the identity they present to others. If we expect certain attitudes, we often receive stories. On occasion, however, if you walk alongside these amazing people, you will get glimpses into the reality of the mirror image they see; an image that throws back broken pictures of abuse and rejection or of self-inflicted pain based on bad choices often forced upon them because of circumstances beyond their control. An image that makes them victims or, in some cases, even heroes of their own story. Their image is often no more accurate than ours.

And what about this gap between how we see ourselves, and how others see us?  Sometimes our flawed self-awareness makes us bigger and better. Other times, we do not value ourselves as much as we should. Many of the awesome folks we care for at The Mustard Seed see themselves as having little or no value. How often does our attempt to be an encouragement get lost in the false reality of their own self-image? This is perhaps why mental health issues amongst the homeless are so much more prevalent than in other population bases. I‘ve asked it a million times: did the mental health crisis result in being homeless, or did homelessness result in the mental health crisis? It’s a kind of self-fulfilling prophecy. We have expectations of the homeless to be broken, and perhaps, in some way, through survival self-defense mechanisms, mental illness arises.

So what’s the point? Simply this: the reality is that we have so much more in common with people we care for in this world. We are not that big of a deal.

It’s in our common challenges that we will often find the bridge that can lead to relationships, and that out of those relationships comes the opportunity to truly make a difference in our neighbours’ lives. We are all just out there doing the best we can; we all have good days and bad days. Some of us just look like we’re more successful at doing it than others.

-Kristen Desjarlais deKlerk, PhD ABD, Department of Sociology at U of C and Bill Nixon, Director of Support Services, The Mustard Seed

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My night of homelessness

Last week, I left my house with nothing but the clothes on my back and went downtown to our YWCA shelter to spend the night for "Keep A Roof Over Her Head". I can't deny how odd it felt to drive myself downtown to be homeless.

Let me just say right off the top that spending one night in a shelter with others who are there to learn more about homelessness can never, ever truly tell what someone who faces that every day goes through. The CEO of the YWCA (who also slept over) stated, "In the morning, I want you to remember that the average woman who used our shelter over the winter stayed 154 nights in a row. Think about 153 more nights when you wake up tomorrow." This is a thought I couldn't shake all night as I slept on a hard mat with the lights on.

In the morning, I felt exhausted. I couldn't get to sleep because of others in the room chatting and because of the lights. There was no comfortable position for my body on the hard mat. However, I was grateful for a mat, and not to have to sleep on the floor. Dinner the night before was upsetting my stomach. I have a wheat intolerance and the pasta and bun didn't sit well. Reality check: when you're homeless, you eat what you get - even if you have allergies.

However, let me get to what really struck me. Shone Abet Thistle from the YWCA told a story of her imagining she was fleeing domestic violence. She had three minutes to gather everything she deemed important and put it in a plastic bag. What would she bring? She managed to stuff items into her bag quickly, but then just before heading out the door, she saw a picture of her grandmother on the wall that was still in it's original casing. It had been passed down from her grandma to her mother, and now to her. Should she bring it? She broke down knowing she had to leave it behind.

We don't realize how much is lost when a woman has to flee her home. Imagine for a moment losing all you have in the comforts of your own home, only to find yourself sleeping on a mat, eating buns and pasta, and having to leave the building at 6am with no where to go other than wander the streets in the daytime - no matter what the weather. For many, they did not choose to lose everything. How easy it is to become an addict to numb the pain. To choose to sell your body for sex so you can at least sleep in a bed under a roof, even if it means giving yourself to a man who only cares for the use of your body. How lonely must it feel to sleep night after night wondering what will happen to you, your home, your kids, and your life as you knew it?

I can imagine most of these women want to cry out, "This is not who I am!", but her cries are not heard by those passing her on the street. All they see is a good-for-nothing woman who needs to "go get a job". The hard truth is that in my province of Alberta, we carry the 2nd highest rate of violence against women. 905 women and 195 children were turned away due to over-capacity from the YWCA in my city of Calgary last year. Where do they go from there?

There are glitches in our system that keep women impoverished once they get there. For example: women who lose their children due to living in a shelter, often can't afford to get them back because they no longer will receive government funding we all receive for her children, thus decreasing her income.  How can she survive on $323 a month?? Even if she has a job that pays $10/hr?

Even beyond issues of fleeing domestic violence, all it could take is one illness to find someone living on the street.  How many of us have money saved for emergencies such as this for 6 months of income? 3 months? Even 1 month? With the cost of living, many of us are living paycheque to paycheque. This became very real to me while I laid on my mat that night.

Homelessness is something that we have become used to in our society. It's not odd to see a business person crossing the street along side one carrying a big bag of bottles. We don't even flinch anymore. When we do look, we can easily think of all the reasons how they got themselves into that situation to dismiss their pain from our eyes.

I'm done with stereotyping them.
I'm done with coming up with why they are there.
I'm finding out the truth, and more than ever, I see how we are all the same.
I want to feel their pain, and let it move me to intolerance.
To me, they are not invisible any longer.

Women's homelessness is one of the topics we are presenting in our show, Invisible playing at Theatre Grand Junction June 14-15, 2013 in Calgary, AB.  Tickets are on sale.  Hungry to know more and what can be done.  Tickets are on sale for only $25 by clicking here.

- Connie Jakab

Check out Connie Jakab's blog at http://culturerebel.com where she blogs about her family's adventures in serving the less fortunate and her continued rebellion to what culture tells us. Be sure to pick up her book, "Culture Rebel - because the world has enough desperate housewives" at http://culturerebel.com/books/. You can find Connie on Twitter at @ConnieJakab

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A Poem Dedicated to The Mustard Seed

The Mustard Seed

Before Care

While waiting here in this lunch line,
I look back when all things were fine.
When work was plenty, when bills were paid.
So Blessed was I –I had it made.

Now waiting here I’ve lost it all,
because one day I had a fall.
Those paid to care, they dealt in fraud.
Yet for this lunch, I thank my God.

After Care

I thank you Father for “The Seed”.
Your people cared to fill my need.
They did so happily in Jesus name.
They proved to me just why He came.

They proved to me my God You give.
They helped me find a place to live.
We know they didn’t have to bother,
yet did this service for you Father.


-Brian, a guest at The Mustard Seed

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How will they know?

One of my favourite stories took place about one hundred years ago while I was in Bible School. I had been working at a Ski Shop in Grouse Mountain when I discovered that taking the tram on a clear day, is perhaps the most amazing view of Vancouver and the lower mainland one is ever going to see.

One day a friend from work and I decided we were going to hike along the ridge between Grouse Mountain and an adjoining peak called Goat Mountain. If you've ever been to Vancouver, one of the tourist highlights found on postcards all over town is a view of twin peaks called the Lions. Well, the ridge we were hiking that day runs between Grouse and the Lions. It’s a spectacular area to hike in and pretty high up.

As you hike up to the top of Goat Mountain, you come out above the tree line and stand on the edge of a pretty significant drop where you can see Vancouver and the lower mainland, and on this particularly clear day, all the way to Washington State. It was amazing, but I have never forgotten the conversation that took place on that ridge.

I said, gazing out over one of the most beautiful cities in the world, "look what Man has created." My friend Lisa replies, "yeah, but look what God created." Lisa was looking the other direction, over what looks like hundreds of miles of mountain peaks, all snow covered, and going back literally as far as you could see.

In the years I had worked with and known Lisa, she had never mentioned God. Other staff had often sought me out to discuss their personal views regarding faith and Jesus, mistakenly viewing me as a theological sounding board because I was a Bible School student. But not Lisa, until that very moment where she was unknowingly expressing one of the greatest truths found in scripture.

Creation Testifies About It's Creator

"For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities-his eternal power and divine nature-have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse." (Romans 1:20)

Psalm 19 says, "The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands"(Psalm 19:1). It is impossible to live and breathe in this world without recognizing God. Just observing nature in itself is proof of that. Lisa's declaration of that truth, that one of the greatest witnesses to the reality that God is, is creation itself.

Another great proof that God is real is US.

Loving and Caring People speak to the existence of God

“Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, be you reconciled to God” (2 Corinthians 5:20).

In Acts 10, there's the story of the Roman army officer named Cornelius who was described as “a devout, God-fearing man,” who “gave generously to the poor and prayed regularly to God. His prayers and gifts to the poor were as an offering to God.”

The Apostle Paul in the book of Romans mentions a group of Christians who had “eagerly taken up an offering for the poor among the believers in Jerusalem” (Romans 15.25-26).

The early church held helping the poor as a core value. In fact, it was one of the greatest testimonies to the world all around them; visible evidence of a people of faith whose belief in God resulted in actions towards the neighbours that God has called them to love.

Jesus himself went so far as to say that how we treat those in need is how we treat Jesus himself. Jesus said, “I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me into your home. I was naked, and you gave me clothing. I was sick, and you cared for me. I was in prison, and you visited me.” Jesus went on to say, “I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these, my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!”

So how will they know that God is real??

“By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another” (John 13:35).

 - Bill Nixon,  Director of Public Education, The Mustard Seed
@billbytheminute 

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Four Years and Running: An Interview with Ray

When it comes to reliability, look no further than Ray! Ray has been volunteering every Thursday at The Mustard Seed for over four years, spending the morning in the Computer Lab and the afternoon in the Employment Centre. Before retiring in 2008, Ray was VP and Senior Engineer at RBC Capital Markets, where he spent 28 years of his career.  We caught up with Ray and asked him a few questions about his volunteering experience:

What prompted you to become a long-term volunteer with The Mustard Seed?

I was already familiar with the organization, as I would occasionally walk by on my lunch breaks or volunteer with meal groups from RBC or the Knights of Columbus. I decided to help on a more consistent basis when I retired.

What have you learned since being a volunteer at The Mustard Seed?

Volunteering has expanded my horizons, made me more tolerant, and taught me that appearances are not the whole person. If you have no experience with the homeless, it’s hard to relate until you know someone affected by it. When I would walk by, I used to think, “Shouldn’t they all be working?”, but now I understand how complex people’s circumstances are and how difficult their lives have been.

Tell us about what you do in each of your volunteering roles.

In the computer lab, I primarily monitor people’s time allowances and sign them in and out, and help them with technical questions, job search and resume tips.  In the Employment department, I am able to offer more intensive resume and job search support since it is a one-to-one appointment format. I support guests as they work with their Employment Coach to develop a career path.

What do you love most about volunteering?

The Mustard Seed feels like a family environment, and I have met so many inspirational guests and staff while being here.  But what I love most is when guests come back and thank me for helping them, and I’m glad that it happens frequently.

What has been your most memorable experience while volunteering at The Mustard Seed?

There have been so many, both tragic and uplifting. One of my best experiences was with a guest who lost his house and was laid off, despite being highly qualified. When he first came he was difficult to help because of his attitude, but after several months it changed for the better. I’ll never forget the look on his face the day when he finally got a job and he came back to shake all of our hands and thank us.


The Mustard Seed is celebrating National Volunteer Week from April 21-27. Join us in thanking the thousands of volunteers who donate their skills and time to The Mustard Seed every year!

If you’re interested in becoming a volunteer, please visit www.theseed.ca and click “Volunteer”.

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Invisible

Walking downtown, I notice the strange mix of business suits with those wearing worn out clothing, carrying bags of bottles. Although they walk side by side, they are different. They don’t acknowledge one another. As they walk, the only similarity is their eyes looking towards the ground. I stop to chat with a dog owner when we are interrupted by a homeless woman. Before she can speak, my dog-owner friend cuts in to say, “I have no change”, and walks off. I’m left with this woman waiting for me to reject her as well. I reach into my purse and give her a toonie. I ask for her name and tell her mine. She introduces me to her friend and her friend’s new fiance. They are beaming with pride over the bright blue ring that looks like it came out of a toy box. We exchange in casual conversation about the amazing soup you can get at Red’s on 4th and then say our goodbye’s.

Harmless, really. However I understand how many are afraid to even speak to the homeless. It’s not that we look down on them, it’s more so the fear of what’s unknown. Personally I have wondered about my safety at times or have had thoughts of being followed for more money. We don’t fully understand their situation, making it hard for us to engage even in something as simple as conversation.

I’ve been doing a fair bit of research on homelessness in the last year and a half, and more recently, on women who are homeless. My findings have allowed me to engage in friendly conversation with ones such as these. I have found a few interesting truths in the process; I’d like to share them with you:
-No teeth does not equal axe murderer. It equals someone who has nothing and is probably ashamed of their smile. (If I struggle with a slight coffee stain, how must they feel?!)
-Saying “hello” does not mean unending harassment.
-Giving money may indeed go to booze, but it may remind them that someone cares. Wouldn't you drink if you were on the street in the dead of winter?
-If you have no money to share, I've found finding out their name and introducing yourself brings more than money can buy; it brings humanity back to their existence.

There are many contributing factors to what causes homelessness. Because of how vast the subject is, I would like to highlight a couple of factors when it comes to women you may see on the street who are homeless.
Did you know?:
-Many women on the street have come from situations of domestic violence. If they don’t have children, there is very limited shelter space for them.
-Women on the street will often hook up with a man for survival and a place to live – even if that man is abusive or feeds her substance abuse habits.
-Women only make up 20% of homeless shelters, mostly because of the dangers that exist for them while staying at a shelter.

Some women you see on the street were once just like you and I. Maybe they were trying to support themselves through University and chose an escorting job that led them to a party lifestyle of crystal meth that depleted their beauty and thus their employability. Prostitution was the next best option for them. Some women are homeless due to mental illness and no family that is around or willing to help them. Single moms have a hard time finding affordable housing in Calgary. Imagine working a $10/hr job and having two kids that cost more than that for childcare and your rent is $1500 a month. How does one survive?

Knowing some of these facts has brought their humanity back to my heart. Knowing their name has become important to me. Thinking about where they have come from means something to me. I don’t see them as separate from myself; I see them as valued members of our community, our city.

Seeing value in them makes them visible to me. I don’t need to solve their problems, but having them and the issues surrounding their situation makes them no longer invisible to me. This becomes the start to building a city I want to live in.

- Connie Jakab


Check out Connie Jakab's blog at http://culturerebel.com where she blogs about her family's adventures in serving the less fortunate and her continued rebellion to what culture tells us.  Be sure to pick up her book, "Culture Rebel - because the world has enough desperate housewives" at http://culturerebel.com/books/.   You can find Connie on Twitter at @ConnieJakab 



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I'm Cutting Up My Bible

 I'm cutting up my Bible.

Let me explain that.  I read about a university student and his friends who went through all the books of the Bible cutting out the verses dealing with poverty, wealth, justice and oppression.  When finished, they were left with a Bible that could barely be held together.

Why would they do this??

When standing in front of a group of people he replied while holding up the mangled Bible; “This is our Bible full of holes.  Each one of us might as well take our Bibles, a pair of scissors, and begin cutting out all the scriptures we pay no attention to and ignore”.

Wow.

That really impacted me.  I’ve decided to do this.  I want this visual constantly in front of my face to remind me what my faith is really about… what this life is really about…  what God Himself is concerned with.  I want my kids to know this and have it serve our family as a reminder that our neighbor IS our responsibility.  That we need to care.   We can’t save the world, but we can reach those who are within the reach of our arms.

So yes, I’m cutting these verses out of a Bible I bought online for $3.   I’m on Exodus (the 2nd book in the Bible) and am already amazed at how much is missing.  Some pages I’ve been tempted just to rip out altogether due to the page hanging by a thread of paper.

I don’t want to ignore this anymore.  I don’t want to live in my prosperous bubble, blind to the needs not just around the world, but around the corner from my house.  God is clearly concerned for the least of these, how can I not be?  I want to be a rebel to the culture that screams: ME FIRST.   A culture that says I need "more" when I have so much already

Whether you are a person of faith, or if you’re not sure what you believe in this life, I hope that you can go past all the images of “church” and the word “christian” to hear the heartbeat of God in this demonstration.

Maybe you wouldn’t "cut up a Bible" (I don't recommend we all do that), but maybe it’s time to get back to seeing how much God really talks about caring for others in need, what we are to do with our wealth, and how He longs for us to be the answer to those living in oppression.

You and I hold an answer in our hand.   That is a journey I’m on right now personally asking:  What does it look like to live this out?

- Connie Jakab

Check out Connie Jakab's blog at http://culturerebel.com where she blogs about her family's adventures in serving the less fortunate and her continued rebellion to what culture tells us.  Be sure to pick up her book, "Culture Rebel - because the world has enough desperate housewives" at http://culturerebel.com/books/.   You can find Connie on Twitter at @ConnieJakab

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Self-Made People

Yesterday morning on the way to work, I heard an interview on the Fan 960 with R.A. Dickey, the new starting pitcher for the Toronto Blue Jays. He was telling the story of how he had gone from traditional pitcher to having to learn to throw a knuckle ball if he had any hope of becoming a big leaguer - a transition that he has certainly been successful in making, having won the National League Cy Young as the best pitcher in baseball in 2012. However, in telling his story he said something interesting: “I’m in no way a self-made man.” R.A. then spoke about all of the people who loved him and cared for him in his life and profession - people that made it possible for him to be the man he is today. And I thought, “That is so awesome”.

I know what people mean when they point to someone and describe him or her as a self-made man or woman. But, is it ever truly possible to be that person who is so stable on their own two feet that their family, education, faith and all the amazing people that they have in their lives has not shaped the person they have become? The greatest of people on this earth are in fact a combination of a whole series of influences both positive and negative that allow them to be the man or women that they are.

For example, I am excellent at doing dishes…but I didn’t start out that way. When the lovely Janice agreed to marry me 25 years ago, I was actually very poor at house cleaning. I often say I didn’t know what dirt was until I married Janice, as she just kept pointing it out to me all the time. Now 25 years later I have become quite accomplished at dishes, cleaning bathrooms, and the even the occasional vacuuming of the house. Janice has influenced the man I am today.

I work at The Mustard Seed, an amazing organization that is doing all it can each and every day to build community, grow hope and support change amongst Alberta’s homeless population. Amongst my friends on the street I have truly met some of the most amazing people that I have ever met in my life. Talented people and often terribly intelligent people who had dreams and visions of what their life was going to be. None of these dreams involved being homeless.

Unfortunately, the homeless are often stereotyped in very negative ways. They are described often by people who have never taken the time to hear a homeless person’s story as somehow they deserve what has happened to them, that they must have done something to deserve their situation. Failing to recognize that homelessness is something that happens to good people. That it is, in fact, but a symptom just as most addictions we see all around us are symptoms. The illness is a world that is increasingly so self-possessed that we miss the whole point of our existence on this earth. So how do we finally once and for all kill these misconceptions?

Well, if there is truly no such thing as a self-made man or women – at least in the truest sense, if they are in fact really nothing more than compilation of a series of influences of people and circumstances. We now have an ability to understand my friends on the street. They also are not self-made men and women. They also are more often than not a compilation of a series of influences of people and circumstances; however, in the case of the homeless these have seldom been positive.

We are surrounded by people to whom we could be that source of positive influence or experience, so they too could one day stand up as R.A Dickey did and say, “I’m not a self-made man.”  Then they too could talk about all the people who loved them and cared for them in their lives and professions that made it possible for them to be the man or women they are today. The formerly homeless.

- Bill Nixon,  Director of Public Education, The Mustard Seed
@billbytheminute 

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Something Practical Families Can Do For The Homeless

A few nights ago I saw a sight I hadn’t seen since living in Vancouver.  I saw a young man walking in between cars parked at a stop light along one of our city's busiest roads.  He was rugged, wearing clothes that were old and tattered.  His beard was long and almost ready for dreadlocks.   He had a cardboard sign that he held in front of  him as he walked, stating his homeless situation.

I quickly started to look for something, anything I could give him.  Nothing.  I was panicked, as I was sure the light would turn green and I would miss my chance.  Finally I found three quarters.  I rolled down my window and yelled for him to come.  As I bashfully gave him my measly seventy-five cents he said “Thank you so much.  Everyone has ignored me all day”.  It was six at night.  All day?   All I could think of saying in response was, “Well, I noticed you. God bless”.

Do you ever wish you could go back and say something a little better? It just all happened so fast. As I drove away I said a prayer for him and decided that I needed to get an emergency bag in my van.

What’s that you ask?  I read in “The Missional Mom” by Helen Lee about the idea of having a zip-lock bag filled with a warm pair of socks, granola bars, snacks, gift certificates to places that serve coffee, toiletries, etc and a note with a prayer or sentiment.  The idea is to have the bag in the vehicle so that when your path crosses with someone such as the young man I saw, you have something truly valuable ready to give them.  Beats scrounging around for quarters.

I went home with the best of intentions to get that ready…. and then I forgot.

The next morning, after dropping off my son at school, I was at the gas station and what did I see?  Another homeless man out early with his shopping cart looking for pop cans in the garbages.  Why didn’t I pack that bag?  This time my search for something to give him came out empty. By the time I looked up, he was gone.

You may wonder why the effort?  Is it really worth going through all that thought just for a random person who may not even be in need?  Or what if they’re just collecting money to buy alcohol?   That’s why I like the zip-lock bag.  It’s practical, shows someone actually put thought into pre-planning meeting up with someone in need, and hopefully the thought and the written encouragement inside gives them something they may have not experienced in a long time….. hope.

And hope is something you can live off of for awhile when you haven’t had any.

Here's something YOUR FAMILY can do together!
- take a trip to the grocery store to buy large freezer bags, water, juice, socks, granola bars, gift cards to McDonald's, Tim Hortons, bus tickets, anything else that would help (eg: winter: gloves, hats)
- lay out all the items and stuff the bags with your kids
- write notes of encouragement or draw pictures
- put the bags in your vehicle ready to give away!

 

Check out Connie Jakab's blog at http://culturerebel.com where she blogs about her family's adventures in serving the less fortunate and her continued rebellion to what culture tells us.  Be sure to pick up her book, "Culture Rebel - because the world has enough desperate housewives" at http://culturerebel.com/books/.   You can find Connie on Twitter at @ConnieJakab

We Are All in This Together

Melbourne Harbor, Australia

Space travel these days is nowhere near as popular in the public eye as it was when Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin walked on the moon. Today, Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield is sure helping these efforts as he tweets from the International Space Station (ISS) several times a day. Before he blasted off from Kazakhstan on December 19, Hadfield had 20,000 Twitter followers and today he has over 283,000. I have really appreciated the view from space through his pictures and his short 140 character or less tweets. From the spectacular view of the volcanoes at Mt. Taranaki in New Zealand to the harbor in Melbourne, Australia, Chris is giving us a spectacular view of earth from the ISS. The fact that he can tweet from space and I can read it on my mobile phone moments later still amazes me and I assume this has drawn many of the 249,000 who follow him.

One of his tweets in particular a few weeks ago inspired me and has encouraged me down here on earth:

“The world just unrolls itself for you and you see it absolutely discreetly as one place.”

This statement spurs me into thinking a few things:

1. We are all in this thing called life together, all 7 billion of us
2. The sooner we can love our neighbours as ourselves and set aside our differences, the quicker the distance between us all will decrease

Today our world is divided by so many factors. Language, race, religion, gender, socio-economic status and many other factors. While some of these we are born with or born into, others we will eventually have a say in how they play out in our lives.  In my travels around the world and through my career working with people affected by homelessness and poverty I have witnessed firsthand the wide gap between the rich and poor and between the developed and developing world. I see people on the streets of downtown Calgary scurry by the gentleman begging for lunch money or the young lady caught up in prostitution who is only trying to survive in this fast paced and expensive city. When I see them I am reminded of the successful man I met who made $200k+ a year and lost his wife and children in a car accident and could not return to ‘life’. He ended up losing his home, his job and felt abandoned by his friends as they struggled to support him with his newly diagnosed mental health concerns. I am also reminded of a young lady I knew well who hated the reality of sex work but did so to make ends meet and survive the only way she knew how. As she was starting to turn things around in her life unfortunately she was tragically murdered. A close friend said once “these are our mothers and fathers; our brothers and sisters; our sons and daughters.” You see each person is one or many of those. They are a precious person made in God’s own image and they are not only living in our downtown cores or in poorer neighbourhoods, they are living next door to you, across the hall from you and likely in your very own family.

When I have the privilege to speak and educate the public on the issues of poverty and homelessness, I challenge each one from kindergarten to graduate studies that the answers for these issues lay in our hands, in our mouths and in our time. We each need to take a step back and realise that we live in our neighbourhoods right now for a time such as this. We need not travel abroad to see and help brokenness; all we need to do is look out our back window and find practical ways to love our neighbour as ourselves. These efforts will break down borders and fences we put up to keep the those who are different from ourselves or those who make us feel uncomfortable in our society and will help us realize that we are all in this thing called life together, all 7 billion of us.

Byron Bradley, Student Engagement Coordinator, The Mustard Seed
Twitter: @sportsguyB                                                                                                                                        

Follow Chris Hadfield on Twitter @Cmdr_Hadfield

 

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Downsizing

Welcome to 2013!

About 2 years ago, my lovely wife Janice and I downsized our housing. We had the traditional 2500-square-foot, 3-bedroom home with a 1000-square-foot unfinished basement that stored mostly junk… I mean, we could have run a season of Storage Wars in our basement! So, we bought a townhouse, 10 units over from my Mom, and let someone else do our yard work for us, leaving us with the challenge of what to do with all of this unnecessary stuff; all that stuff that we must have seen some value in, or else why did we keep it?

Well, Janice saw some value – we lived in that house for 7 years and there were actual boxes that had not been unpacked, along with a broken ping-pong table that one day I was (supposedly) going to repair. Like that was going to happen! 

So, choices had to be made, furniture given away, and boxes of stuff had to go.

I wonder if our walk with God can, on occasion, use this same kind of “clearing out” of the basement. I mean, just how much baggage have we gathered that common sense says, “Toss it out, why are you hanging on to that?” What are the priorities, and more importantly, what are the distractions that so easily come to us in this world? How do we avoid the kind of modern idolatry that is so prevalent in our lives, recognizing that for most of us, this will not involve worshiping false Gods. Our idolatry is much more subtle.

Money – Do not store up for yourselves treasures on this earth….. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. Matthew 6: 19-21

The number-one cause of distraction in our lives is often our money and our “stuff”: our physical possessions. More often than not, we are seeking to answer the question of “How am I going to get more money so that I can buy more stuff?” Now, personally, I like "stuff" as much as anyone. I can often be found in front of my 65-inch Samsung Idol watching some kind of sporting event. However, when our stuff becomes more important to us than God or the people in our lives, it is likely stuff that needs to be dealt with.

We are by nature easily distracted from the things that are really the best for us. It’s actually very easy to get off of a first-love relationship with God, and instead focus on things that at first glance are seemingly not a problem. Yet it is those necessary things, and those subtle things, that more often than not interfere with our walk with God.

So maybe that’s where the downsizing needs to take place in 2013 – not the obvious stuff, but the subtle stuff that we have stacked up in our spiritual basements that have prevented us from ‘seeking first His Kingdom and his righteousness, and all of these things will be given to you as well.” (Matt 6:33)

- Bill Nixon,  Director of Public Education, The Mustard Seed
@billbytheminute

Faces and Names

"Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around."
- Leo Buscaglia

I gave my mom a tour of The Mustard Seed Calgary’s Centre Street location yesterday afternoon. She just so happened to be in the area, which was an almost-miracle in itself, as she is NEVER in the downtown core, due to the outrageous parking prices and confusing one-way traffic streets.  She also has never had the opportunity to view the building(s) where her daughter spends 5-out-of-7 days a week, even though she shares the same very strong passion and drive that I do to help the men and women in our city that are in need, so this seemed like a great time to change that. Add-in the fact that I was smack-dab in the middle of a lengthy website SEO analysis when she called and could use a quick break, so I jumped on the opportunity to show her our downtown digs.

As much of an eye-opening experience that this must have been for her, I, too, walked away from the experience with somewhat of a perspective shift. I have worked for The Mustard Seed long enough that I find I am generally pretty comfortable in my surroundings that include daily interaction with a portion of the homeless population in Calgary. I’d estimate that I could pass anywhere from 20-50 individuals who are experiencing homelessness on any given day, whether I’m running back and forth between buildings for meetings, running an errand, or grabbing lunch. These men and women may be lining up for an afternoon meal, chatting among themselves outside of our doors, or simply walking down the streets in our neighborhood. It’s often a highlight of my day to have a brief chat in passing with them – “Hi, how are you doing?” “This is what’s new with my family; this is what happened the other day; man it is cold/warm/windy/sunny out today!”

So, I was slightly taken aback when I noticed the small amount of timidity and apprehension in my mom’s mannerism as guests approached us for a quick chat, as if she wasn’t quite sure how to react to them. It caused me to rewind my mind into the past and consider my own views on homeless men and women prior to my time working at The Mustard Seed. I remember being somewhat nervous as well when I would be approached for spare change while walking down the street or entering a store, and would respond with either a quick “I’m sorry, I don’t have any”, or else by dropping some money into their open hands if I had any available with a quick smile. Needless to say, I definitely hadn’t been Little Miss Suzie Sunshine striking up any lasting conversations!

It’s amazing to compare and contrast my views now, after almost a year and a half of working in such close proximity with our homeless population. If I could summarize what I have learned of my dealings with these men and women in any one way, I would say that I’ve found that these people are really “just like you and I”. They have good days, and bad days. Good things happen in their lives, and so do bad things. They have relationships that mean the world to them, families, hobbies and passions. They struggle in their faith, experience hurt emotions, and also experience moments of happiness and excitement. They are often interesting to talk to, and many of those conversations have come to be a permanent highlight of my day. As one fellow in particular had mentioned to me just last week, “We are not dangerous – we are just misunderstood”.

I made a quiet promise to myself yesterday to become more aware and deliberate in my conversations; to make sure I am relaying this information as much as possible in my daily life. Not just in our social media postings or other digital interactions for The Mustard Seed, but also to my own friends and family. The money that you, our donors, so generously give to our organization and the hours that you, our volunteers, so diligently spend here in service do not just support a nameless, faceless statistic on the street -  rather, they support individual men and women, each with a unique story to tell of their own - stories of pain, trials and tribulations, dreams, goals, and hopes for the future.

 
"The place to improve the world is first in one's own heart, and head, and hands." 
- Robert M. Pirsig

- Jennifer Fast, Digital Marketing & Web Manager, The Mustard Seed
@loveismotion222

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