The Rapture did not happen and I think the devil celebrated on Memorial Day Weekend 2011. At least he did on the West Side of Buffalo, New York. Outbreaks of gang violence left several men dead. Another gang attack left an innocent girl in jail for two days and homeless men battled over their homeless territory under a bridge.
You might be wondering how the devil could slither his way into a Bright Spot Report. Well, his darkness has a way of bringing out brightness in good people. Even if you don't believe in God, I'm sure everybody believes in good versus evil. This was a weekend filled with evil and yet evil did not win in the end. I've already written how there is a Bright Spot in a murder. That was one of the hardest stories that I have ever written. You can read it at:
(http://thebrightspotreport.blogspot.com/2011/06/can-murder-be-bright-spot_03.html) I will write about the innocent girl in jail after her court case has been completed. This story is about homeless men fighting on the street below their viaduct homes.
Saturday was a very harrowing day as we dealt with the murder of the father of one of our YWAP Staff members. On Sunday we went to court and found out we would have to post bail for the innocent girl. We did not have bail so we found a Bondsman who gave us the full afternoon to raise the needed capital for his fee.The whole weekend I cried a lot as each murder of someone close to you hurts worse than the previous death. We have dealt with many killings in the last ten years here in Buffalo. On Monday, I wanted to take a few hours to recharge before I went back to assist the family of the innocent man who died. I went for a run. Before I had covered one mile, I saw three men wearing only shorts (they were shoe-less and shirtless) yelling at each other. They were standing underneath a viaduct with broken beer bottles littering the sidewalk. They were at the end of a bottle throwing battle and now continued with a verbal assault. They were all very drunk.
Two of the homeless men lived on one side of the street. The other homeless man lived diagonally in a separate viaduct across the street. It was not a beautiful day in the neighborhood. The two men went back to their side as I approached. I asked the first man what the problem was as the other men continued to scream that I should call the Police regarding their neighbor. One of the men then came toward us and the man I was talking to ran into the street narrowly missing oncoming traffic. Realizing that he could get hurt or cause an accident, I called the Police. A Patrol car arrived and I think I detected a slight smile as the Officer got out of his car and walked toward us. He said that they were getting way too many calls and if this behavior continued he would have to evict them. I think it was a regular routine for him, he smiled and left. I stayed to talk to the men.
The single man told me that his neighbors had stolen seven dollars from his pocket as he slept. I then told him that God had a plan for his life but he would never use the gift that God had given him if he continued to live the way he was living. We prayed as he grabbed my hand and squeezed it until I hurt. He then turned around and headed up to his living quarters under the bridge. He was crying and looked almost like a sad puppy dog after being scolded, his self esteem was gone. I hurt for him.
I walked down to where the other men were. The shorter of the two kept saying: "God bless you." He also told me several times that he had a Bible up in his "home." He said he had lived there for five years. He tried to keep his friend away from me. I think he was comfortable in his captivity in a bottle of alcohol. His friend walked up and glared at me. I launched into the same speech that I had given the first man. I told him that God had a plan for his life. His gaze began to soften as the Holy Spirit worked on him. I declared: "demon alcohol be gone in Jesus Name." I said it several times as his friend tried to divert his attention. I spoke to his heart and told him that he was healed in Jesus Name. He finally and tearfully walked away and headed up to his "home."
You might think I'm a fruitcake after reading that story. I'm okay with that. The truth is, I cared for those men and I could feel their pain and embarrassment. Imagine what it would be like if you sank that low. Even if you said to yourself: "Today I'm going to get up and look for a job" who would hire you? Dirty, smelly, unshaven, unkempt, fearful, ashamed and beaten, how do you even begin unless somebody pours love on you. There is a Bright Spot here because I will continue to pray and I believe you will pray also. Here's a quote taken from The Message: "Take this most seriously: A yes on earth is yes in heaven; a no on earth is no in heaven. What you say to one another is eternal. I mean this. When two of you get together on anything at all on earth and make a prayer of it, my Father in heaven goes into action. And when two or three of you are together because of me, you can be sure that I'll be there." Matthew 18:18-20
Dear God, I ask that those homeless men find a home in You. Amen
Bob Kuebler
6-4-11
10:24 PM
No comments:
Post a Comment