(3) Acts 1:8

Where to begin!

It is day 7 of my internship and I'm feeling pretty good. I'll back up and tell you about the rest of my weekend.

I was curious as to where I wanted to worship when Sunday rolled around. I feel like there is a church every where I look in Hartford. Kyle and I ended up going with Paul to his home church in Windsor locks. ( Don't worry, I have all summer to immerse myself in the Hartford churches.) Seeing how passionate Paul is about the Lord I felt compelled to see what church he calls his own. For such a small congregation they can sure make alot of noise! It was so evident that every one in that small building loved Jesus. The most interesting part was when they shout out prayer requests and begin praying for one another. I was already surprised when I noticed that the Pastor wasn't even writing down the prayer requests, and even more surprised to see that he simply began praying and remembered every single one. He spoke so fast as though we were at an auction. While he did this the congregation stood and laid hands on those who needed prayer and each began praying out loud. The sound was overwhelming. To hear that many voices speaking to God so freely was really a sight to be heard. The prayer time came to a halt and the senior pastor walked onto the stage. Before he could even say anything an older woman at the front who was still standing, turned and faced the congregation. With one hand in the air, and her eyes shut tight she began to tell us that God wanted some of us in the church to take our focus off of whatever we want an answer for and start focusing on God. She told us that the true answer we are looking for is the Holy Spirit, and that God could answer our prayers simply while we were sitting there that morning. She spoke with such wisdom and truth, as though God was right beside her giving her the words. It really spoke to me.

The pastor went on to speak about Missions (coincidence?) He spoke of the "Goers" and the "Senders." If you are goer you must go. If you are not called to be a goer than you are indeed a sender and must give. And so this made me think about what I am. I certainly feel I am a Goer. I want to be the one people are sending. But to what extent do I go? And where? My goodness, how do I differentiate from what I want to do and what the Lord wants me to do?

After church a few us went to Bushnell Park. It was the day of the Puerto Rican parade. The streets were filled with people dressed in red. Every car had Puerto Rican flags flying high on all four corners of the roof. People hung their bodies out of their car windows holding their flag with pride. I felt as though it was their day to come out of their shells and show Hartford that it wasn't just African Americans living there.

And then I met Frank. The sweetest, most gentle man I've ever met. He was sitting on the park bench patiently waiting for 3 o'clock. "Saturdays they serve meat, but Sundays are vegetarian meals," he told me. He is a vegan. Frank has been homeless for 3 years. He had long hair put in a low pony tail, wearing a button down short sleeved shirt, shorts and a plastic toothbrush holder sticking out from his front shirt pocket. I noticed he had decorated it with stickers, one of which being a Chiquita Banana sticker. The most interesting part about Frank was that he just couldn't stop telling us that we should wait until 3 o'clock when they serve the free meals. He also told me that he knows of a bunch a great places to get clothes and food if I need any. This really struck me. I became confused, did I look homeless to him? Why would I need to know of these places? And it hit me. Those who have little, enjoy sharing with others. They associate those things with great joy and simply want to share that joy with others. That's what Frank was doing to me. It made me realize how selfish we can be. We have so much, and therefore most times don't think of sharing. We don't experience the kind of joy Frank experiences when we see a hot meal. We are used to it, it's normal no big deal. We need to be in constant reminder to ourselves of how much we really have. Is there anything you take for granted?

The next day we visited "The Catholic Worker," an organization based out of a house a few blocks away from Vine Street. We met the founder Chris and he passionately told us the history of Hartford as we sat in a circle staring at him with full attention. He told us how Hartford came to be the way it is today, and as our eyes widened at some of things he said, our hearts for Hartford widened as well. So many misconceptions were shattered in that room as he spoke to us. "If you want peace, work for Justice," he told us, and asked us what we are going to do with the Capitol we have been so lucky to inherit. We walked out of that house with many changed attitudes.

Kyle lead us in our devotion time the next morning. We prayed through Psalm 34. When we finished he wanted to lay hands on someone and pray for them. I almost immediately volunteered. Lately I have been wanting to be more in tune with the Holy Spirit and hearing Gods voice. It really isn't my thing to have all the attention on me, but I felt I needed it. Prayer is so powerful, why not use it? When they were done Paul said he saw a picture in his mind as they were praying for me. It was a rocket launching into the air, with a huge flame and cloud of smoke right below it. He said it was like God is always behind me, like a huge raging burst of fire, strong and mighty, pushing me along.

Later that day an older gentleman named Butch came over to talk to us. At 66 years old, he has spent most of his life living in a house down the road. He wore a hat, one my Italian grandpa used to wear at the beach. Course white curly hair stuck out from underneath the hat, and he had a beard that broke in the center to make two separate streams of hair coming down from each side of his chin. He immediately made himself comfortable and started talking about his life and the neighborhood. The whole time he sat at the very front of his chair, leaning way back at times and then sitting straight up again. He didn't stop moving around for a second. He was captivating. His arms flailed in the air as he spoke and his legs comfortably spread wide. He spoke with such confidence. He told us of his times as a Black Panther, and when Martin Luther King came to Hartford to speak. He told us how people revolted when Dr. King was assassinated and how you couldn't open your house windows because of the tear gas billowing through the streets. It was amazing how much he had experienced, I felt as though he was a walking history book. He was so content with his life, every aspect of it. "Everything that I've done in my life I've enjoyed, and all my riches is in me," he said proudly. He said he often wonders how we don't get sick of the neighborhood kids constantly on our porch, and how what goes on here at the Vine house is a good thing. "These kids are getting attention here that they don't get at home," he said.

( Tahari )

Later that day we walked around the neighborhood handing out Camp Noah applications to get more kids enrolled. A few of the neighborhood kids came with us, one of which was a 5th grader named Tahari. Tahari went to camp Noah last summer, and spent the last school year attending the after school program here at the Vine. He is one of the more difficult kids. He can be the sweetest, but also the worst, and would sometimes be sent home for fighting and what not. We had just finished up and walked back to our house. Somehow during the trip another child joined us on his bike, one of Tahari's friends. He had a plastic gun that popped when you pulled the trigger. It was then that I experienced my favorite moment so far as an intern. "Don't shoot that gun here, that's God's house," Tahari said pointing to our big red house. We made eye contact and I smiled and nodded my head at him. He got it! He knows that the things he has been taught inside "God's house" are things of another place. A place much different than the one lurking outside on these streets. He understands that, and all we need is to continue teaching the kids that. They are the future generation, and they will influence their friends. If we can change their teaching, we can have a hope of changing their living. God truly is working in this place..


In Christ,
Cheryl

Jordan - one of my favorites :)

Kewa