See previous post for days 1 and 2 of our Spring Break mission trip to We Will Go.
On Monday love looked like physical labor as we helped work on restoring one of the former crack houses to make it a place where Kingdom work will take place. I was so proud of all our kids as they donned masks and gloves and ripped down dry wall, hauled lumber, pulled nails, swept, and did everything the adults did with no complaining. Since we have now been to WWG a number of times, they have seen the transformation with their own eyes and they now have a sense of ownership in this beautiful place where the restoration of these houses is a prophetic declaration of the restoration of lives by the love and power of Jesus! What an honor to be a small part of such a big thing! Wow, Jesus!
Tuesday is Hands and Feet day at WWG. This means walking with neighbors though the clothing shop, assisting them in finding garments and toiletries, loving them, and praying with them. I got to go through with Ms. Hattie. What a sweetheart! I held her well-loved Bible with the purple cover for her while she chose outfits and shared her story with me. She is the rock in her family...the one who takes care of her ailing daughter and rebellious grandson...she is the glue that holds them together and sometimes that gets hard, but thankfully Ms. Hattie knows and loves The One Whose yoke is easy and burden light. We returned to Peace House for Bible Study and prayer. I served Ms Hattie some hot coffee and returned her Bible to her, which she cradled in her arms as the precious treasure it is.
After a quick bite to eat, we went back to work. This time we split up into various groups...some cleaning up the worship pavilion and readying it for the Passover meal to take place later in the week...some helping with front porch ministry as canned goods and love are given to those with appointments...some doing yard work...and some cleaning Love House to bless the sweet missionaries who live there. This last is the team I ended up on. The first time we went to WWG, I cleaned this same house, but for a precious family who lived there at the time. Now it is occupied by single girls who have said yes to Jesus.
On Saturday, a new friend had found his way to WWG. His name is Marvin and he'd walked three miles in the cold because he was told he would find love and help there. Because of abuse in his childhood, he was a confused man who was dressed as a woman, complete with hair extensions, fake nails, a high-pitched voice, and he called himself Marvina. Amy loved him where he was, shared Jesus with him, and he gave Him his life that very day. She brought him upstairs when I was organizing the clothing shop and we helped him find some men's pants and shoes in his size, and she helped him remove the extensions.
He returned every day we were there. On Tuesday, as we cleaned Love House, he sat at the table with Brooke and Sarah, as they helped him with one more step of his transformation, the removal of his fake nails. Afterward, we gathered around him and prayed, prophesying and declaring his true identity as a beloved SON, a MAN after God's own heart, an OAK of RIGHTEOUSNESS! Wow, what an honor!
So, Tuesday love looked a myriad of ways...just like Jesus, Who IS Love is multi-faceted...we can never exhaust the possible ways of loving in His Name, because His love is limitless...whether it's given to a sweet woman who has walked with Him all her life, a missionary who has sacrificed the comfortable life, or a confused man who has been tormented by the enemy...Love meets us where we are and transforms us into His likeness.
When Jesus returned to Heaven, He gave us our marching orders. He gave us the key to the Kingdom. He gave us the authority to act on His behalf. This day we were His hands and feet, loving The One and loving the one...
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