A Humbling Experience

A group of us went downtown to Sanctuary to take part in their Street Tour to check out what it is like to be a homeless person living and surviving in the heart of downtown Toronto. What I didn't realize before the night started was how this opportunity was right in front of my eyes the whole time...and how such a humbling experience tonight would lead me to really see what God has in store for me in the next little while.

We were split up into pairs and threes and sent off on a path through the downtown (Eaton Centre area) and east downtown (Church street / Ryerson area) portions of Toronto. We were told to imagine as a 14 year old who has just fled from an abusive home and was trying to figure his way to survive in the big city. He has no money, no food, no contact with anybody, no ID, no health card, no shelter to go to (because he's too young), and the police is out to catch him to send him back to his abusive parents. What I didn't realize as we walked on the streets was the difficulty in finding a suitable place to stay, any kind of food to satisfy hunger, any form of contact/communication with fellow people on streets because they all walk by as if you didn't even exist. It's interesting because all along Yonge Street, there are people who have shopping bags and food in their hands and yet they pass by the homeless all the time. There are stores all along Yonge Street that have all the necessities that the homeless need, yet the homeless are the ones who lie right outside the store without the things they need. People walk into the stores buying expensive stuff, yet they don't realize just outside are people who just need a few bucks for food. Kids riding in a limo express their joy and excitement as they scream out the window, yet homeless people walk by without anything, and are left to just completely ignore the screams so that they don't reflect on what they could have been. There are homeless people who you walk by everyday, who have no emotions on their faces at all because they are pretty much dead and have no hope in their lives. If you ever so look carefully, you realize the death on their face and realize that you are so fortunate with the things in your life. All of these things I just mentioned are just a few things that we as a big group discovered after debriefing our 2-hour trek throughout the streets of Toronto. These are the people that reside in the very same city we live in, yet they are in such poverty. There's so much we can do if we only stretch our comfort zone and try to understand these people and give our efforts to support and pray for these people. I'm so happy for Sanctuary's ministry in providing the homeless with meals, activities, church services, and other ministries to provide the homeless with physical needs, emotional guidance, and also spiritual food. So many homeless people have become Christians due to the efforts from Sanctuary's workers and volunteers, and I praise God for what this ministry has done and also pray for God's continued grace and provision to be with Sanctuary for their future ministries.

After the trek and debriefing, we all headed to a nearby restaurant to feed our stomachs (yes, it's ironic how we were just experiencing the homelessness and hunger) and while we were eating, a man sitting beside us just started talking to us. He didn't seem homeless, but he did give an impression that he didn't have much and was barely surviving on his own. He didn't seem like he had many close friends nor family with him, and he had hearing and speaking problems, so it was hard trying to hear what he was saying. Anyway, he just started talking about how he was a Christian and he went to "St. Paul" church and that he talks to God all the time and that God has impacted his life in many different ways, but people don't take him seriously because he has his disabilities. Although he did mention some things that I questioned in my own head (e.g. he said that God has given him some sort of "power" like Moses to help people in their lives), he did make a very good point in that there are so many people who think they can receive God's blessings by just asking God, yet they do all sorts of negative stuff in their own lives that completely contradict their offers to God. It's true how there are so many people who keep asking God, yet their hearts are not truly for God. A great example was the story that Bosco, another member who was with us on this Sanctuary journey, told us. He mentioned of how there was this guy who stood at this corner of an intersection (in front of a church, no less) every day for the past 20 years, yet nobody had ever bought a coffee for him until Bosco did it one day. And through that simple gift, Bosco had a great conversation with the guy and found a new friend who was also a Christian. If we don't even notice the people who need help who are right in front of our homes, churches, schools, etc., and if we don't help them, why should God answer our prayers the way we want Him to? Why should God provide us with what we need if we don't even provide or take time to help support those who need it? I think this is the bigger picture that God has shown me tonight. The journey to the streets of Toronto has given me a whole new perspective of what I can do in terms of serving God by serving the needy. I really pray that God will continue to support Sanctuary, the homeless people of Toronto, and Danny (the dude we met at the restaurant) in whatever way they need in His will. I also pray that God will continue to teach me what I can do because this night has clearly shown me that my mission field isn't somewhere far off in Africa or China. It's right here in the city I live in. The homeless people of Toronto are people who I encounter every day and I feel there's something I can do about it. I don't know what it is, but I pray for God to continue to show me what I can do, and also that God will equip me with whatever I need in order to really serve Him with my full capability. Tonight was definitely a humbling experience, and to think, this was all right in front of me...downtown Toronto, where I go to school every single day. God definitely reveals things in His own special way.