Our Stories
Kingdom Moments
By Kelly Humphreys | posted 12/17/2009
"Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." (Matthew 5:3)
"As you go, preach the message: The kingdom of heaven is near." (Matthew 10:7)
I had an hour to kill in downtown Escondido before meeting three friends for a much-anticipated lunch at the local French bakery café during my recent vacation in Southern California. I decided to wander over to Grape Day Park, which was on the way. Since moving to Washington I had missed seeing some of the people who live there; I used to have breakfast at the park on Saturdays with a few friends from my faith community.
I love it when kingdom moments break through - for example, when God leads me to unexpected conversations where He ultimately is given glory. And I find I remember it better when I tell the story to someone. So here is a recent kingdom moment; may it perhaps inspire others to seek their own.
I thought I’d see if Robert was there at the park, and kid him about his not emailing me. (He had an account at the local Interfaith office.) I was confident he’d be friendly, yet I was a little nervous, not sure what to do if no one I recognized was there. I prayed that God would go before me, guide the conversations and lead me to whomever He wanted me to talk with.
I found Robert [names have been changed] in the park and talked with him a bit - how’s he’s been (fine), if he were planning to go home to D.C. (no) (I’m always interested in seeing if there’s a way for homeless people to get off the street). Then he excused himself to go catch another friend who was leaving the area. I wasn’t ready to leave so I talked with two people I recognized, who were sitting on a park bench where Robert had just left.
I chatted with Paulette, a 52-year-old long-haired woman who was friendly, a bit rough looking, and with kind eyes and a proud spirit. She was sitting next to James, a middle-aged African American man, also friendly. His eyes were yellow, probably from liver disease, but also kind. I started talking with them about the recent rain they had, and wondered what happened to them, where they stayed overnight. "I got wet," said Paulette. I had thought that they could sit under the overhang at the nearby public restroom. They told me that there was a time limit that people could sit under there.
I’m not sure how the conversation turned, but it segue-wayed into our children, now grown, and when they were growing up. I asked them what they would do if one of their children invited them to stay with them, had an extra room or something? (See above.) Paulette dismissed the question, saying "I’m not that old!" James said that he had tried to live with his son and family, but never got along with his son’s wife; he moved out so the family didn’t have to go through that. (I thought quietly that their children must be so sad to have their parent on the street, but didn’t share that thought.)
Paulette told me that she’s very proud of her children - that they all have families and homes. I told her about some of the problems I’ve experienced raising my children, and she had some advice to me about boundaries, and not letting people disrespect you.
She also said, "I told my children when they were growing up ... your opinion of me is not my business - keep it to yourself!" She told me that parents need to have them show respect, not to stand for anything less, and to remove themselves from the situation if the kids wouldn’t stop being disrespectful. We had a really good conversation.
At one point, Robert scooted over and invited me to sit in-between them on the bench. I did so, saying I needed to leave in about 15 minutes or so to meet my friends. That’s when Paulette, out of the blue, said that she didn’t like any organized religion. (Perhaps she was thinking I was going to pull out the four spiritual laws.) I told her that I had heard that a lot of people in their situation were people of faith - that they had heard the gospel many times. She agreed, pointing to the beautiful tree we were sitting under, saying, "How can people not believe in God? Just look around you!" I agreed, and marveled with her at the beauty around us.
I told them that I became a Christian in college when I made some friends who were passionate about Jesus. "That’s what I am," said Paulette, "Passionate about Jesus." I told her that was really cool, and that I am too.
When the time came for me to leave, I was sorry to go. I pray for them from time to time as God reminds me. A friend of mine, who has worked with the homeless for some years, told me about the faith of a lot of people on the street. He said, "They don’t need someone to tell them about Jesus, they need someone to be Jesus to them."
Right before I left the park, one of the regulars came over to Paulette and asked if she’d take care of his bag.
"How long?"
"Oh just a few hours, just going to the senior center down the street," he said.
"Okay, I’ll be here."
Kelly can be reached via email.
