There’s always room for hope!

Do you remember the old Bill Cosby commercial – “There’s always room for Jell-O?” Well, it occurred to me today, that there’s always room for hope.

Some people don’t believe it. When they come into our door, their hearts and their minds and souls are so full of poison. All their life, they’ve heard that they will never amount to much. Being on the street, they feel the disdain of everyone around them. Maybe, at some point in life, you’ve looked at a muttering, filthy man or woman carrying everything they own in a sack or a grocery cart and made the judgment – nothing will make a difference in that person’s life.

You don’t have to say it out loud for the person to hear that message.

The good news is that I’ve got PROOF, living proof, right here at the Mission, that God has the power to do ANYTHING. He can work miraculously, even when it seems that all is lost.

James is a great example. He was one of those kids kicked out to fend for himself . . . at just 15. Can you imagine? When the economy was good, he found plenty of work in the construction industry. But before long, the business of building homes fell through the floor. Without a diploma, having pretty much raised himself, and using alcohol and drugs, it wasn’t long before he was homeless. To stay out of trouble, he spent his nights in a graveyard. No blanket or sleeping bag. Just the clothes on his back, freezing cold.

He really thought he was a bad person when he came into the Mission. But it just took a tiny moment for hope to get a foothold. A volunteer’s smile, a good, hot meal, a brand new pair of shoes, a nice, warm coat, a clean bed. Over time, James got to know some of the other guys here and saw their lives were changing. “They were getting happy,” he said. “I started wanting that.”

The door cracked open and hope streamed in. Today, James is a baptized Christian, helping others. He got his driver’s license, is finishing school and working hard to get back on his feet. “I love feeling like I’m a good Christian,” he said.

I thank God every day to see lives changing like this firsthand. So please help spread the word that homelessness is not hopeless. Let’s spread the word that there’s always room for hope!