I was the last person to leave the Ministry yesterday. As I was closing the gate a man pulled up on a bicycle with a suitcase. He was shirtless and covered in sweat. He had tattoos, including ones that had military and prison meaning. His simple request Do you have any water? He said hed been riding all day and nobody would let him get water because he wasnt wearing a shirt. Our service was under tents. We had an outside faucet. I filled his bottle. He gulped it down like he hadnt had water in a very long time! I told him to slow down that I would refill it. All the while he was thanking me for getting him some water! I learned his name was Jesse. He said he was a veteran of Desert Storm. He is married and had a service dog due to PTSD. I asked if he wanted a shirt and told Jesse to come with me. The Ministers office was around the corner. The excitement of the Ministry and people gathering around Thomas office at the end of service had subdued and I asked Thomas if I could come in and get Jesse some clothes. The clothing closet had t-shirts, jeans, and toiletries. I let him select everything he needed for he and his wife. Jesse said he was working for a manual temporary labor company. He shook Thomas hand and thanked everyone in the room while apologizing for having to take us up on our offer. He said hes a Marine but also just done 16 years (prison) and never thought hed be in the situation hes currently in. Thomas and I both told Jesse to come to service next Saturday at 12:30 and to bring his wife and dog with him. Jesses last request was for a Bible and Thomas phone number to call if he needed to talk to someone! I walked Jesse outside the office. He hugged and thanked me again while I reminded him of the service next Saturday. ---- This is unfortunately the world we live in! I pray for Jesse that he can overcome everything he and his wife are going through!
Posted on: Mon, 22 Sep 2014 01:13:36 +0000
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