A Bouquet of Flowers

Nearly every week, I watch adults and teens who are in the Discipleship programs here at the Dream Center get up on the stage at church and share how their lives have been positively changed. Many of them are trying to break away from a life of drugs, alcohol and abuse. People look on with hopeful expectation for these individuals who desire to go in the right direction and let God take over their lives.

There was this one man that I met who was in Discipleship not too long ago. He was a smiling, energetic man who greeted people walking into the DC Cafeteria with a "God bless you!" and a large smile on his face. To me, he always seemed to be in a joyful mood and excited to allow God to change his life through the program.

Some time had passed and I hadn't seen him, but I didn't think anything of it because there are so many men in the program that you tend to not really realize who is still there and who isn't.

I went out on an outreach about a month ago to Skid Row and to my shock and terror, there he was, right in the middle of the most impoverished community of Los Angeles, where thousands of people sleep on the streets. The same smiling man who seemed so filled with joy was there, almost disheveled and with a black and blue eye from getting punched in the face by one of the homeless individuals out there. He still sort of had a brightness in his face and kindly greeted me and told me he remembered me, but a light in him had obviously been snuffed out.

I felt remorseful- why did he leave the program, which makes such a great impact in people's lives, just to go back to a defeated life out on the streets? What inner battle could he be facing and what lies has Satan been telling him that would cause him to think for a moment that he can't make a better life for himself?

So, I was walking to church last night with a few friends, and there was the smiley guy, with a bouquet of flowers, nearly dying in his hand. Smoking a cigarette and looking a lot emptier than when I had seen him in Skid Row, he walked up to me and extended the flowers to me. I motioned to him that I couldn't afford to buy a bouquet of flowers, but he insisted that I take them. He proceeded to thank me and told me that he hopes to go back into discipleship.

I just felt bad. I took the flowers and felt kind of strange about it, but sad about his situation, as he seems to gradually get worse.

Pray for John.

-Shimmy