IOWAY: Life Changing

Hi IOWAY family and friends,

This will be a long entry so grab a big glass of cold water!

This morning we ate breakfast early and were heading out at 7:30. Our caravan of minivans went to Faith Lutheran Church loaded with gifts for families in Watts and to the homeless on Skid Row.

Last night we ‘marked’ 50 Bibles so the recipients could learn of God’s love from specific verses. Then we filled 100 snack bags with candy, 100 health care kits with donated items, loaded up school supplies for 50 backpacks and made 100 cross necklaces. When we arrived at Faith, we made 100 sandwiches and filled 100 backpacks with lunch items, health care kits, bags of candy, etc.

THANK YOU to those of you who donated money ‘to be used as needed’ because your money was used to purchase 150 backpacks. They are really nice ones for only $3.00 each. A church member here was able to purchase them from a wholesaler.

David Duncan, our fearless leader, led our ‘caravan’, each equipped with a two way radio to the Watts area where he works and lives. Half of the green-shirted team headed down one side of the street with the 50 backpacks with school supplies and pockets bulging with scripture candy and 150 witness bracelets.

This team shared Jesus and prayed with parents and kids who were outside their home. It was not scary at all. We were in a poor, but safe area. Claudia and Alma, from Denison, who speak perfect Spanish were very busy as we connected with many none English speaking families. Claudia and Alma are awesome!!!!

The other half of the team headed to Miss Wilson’s house with gloves, rakes, shovels and the determination to make her yard look great in 1 ½ hours. They ended up with a pile of dried weeds the size of a large Iowa hay/straw bale. We then walked to the Jordan Café for soul food. The food was delicious. We had chicken wings and a choice of sides along with cornbread.

Refreshed and rested, we headed for Skid Row. We are very thankful for the leadership of David and the two way radios!! We had no idea what to expect at Skid Row, but everything went well and we were told many times that we were an answer to their prayers and that we were a godsend to the Ministry Team that we joined.

It was an amazing team of a Pastor and his wife, a DCE, two college students and two men. They do this ministry monthly, from their own resources and whatever people donate. AMAZING people of God!! When we arrived, there was a long line of people waiting for the distribution to begin. There were three Christian motorcycle men helping too. Ten people at a time were let into the fenced-in area to receive a hot meal of beans, fruit, chicken, bread and cookie. Then they could go to an area and pick up clothes.

Seeing and working with the little kids who are homeless really affected our team. We prayed with them if they wanted us to and were offered a Bible. Some of the youth had amazing stories to share about the people they visited with.

When the hot meals of 400 pieces of chicken were gone, then the next group received the backpacks that we brought. It was a hot and emotional day. As we were cleaning up, there were many tears from the Iowans. It was very emotional and hard to describe.

We did try though to put our feelings into words. At devotions tonight, we shared stories and I asked each of them to write about their day. Following are those stories: (You may want to get a second glass of water before reading on!)

Katie: Today was life changing. Never in my life will I be able to describe the heartbreak I felt today. Seeing so many people come for a meal and clothes was so sad. It really made me appreciate the things I have. It was an amazing experience. I can’t believe the way these people have to live and how grateful they were to get anything. My heart hurts for them and I thank God that we were able to have the opportunity to work with them.

Lynette: It was unbelievable how special the people felt that we gave them a simple backpack with supplies. It made their day. We take so much for granted in our daily life. It was sad to see the children living on Skid Row, playing on the hot sidewalk. Our kids get to play in our nice yards. Thank you for green grass, God!

Julie: Today was an eye opening experience. While in the ‘projects’ in Watts and on Skid Row in downtown LA, we witnessed the massive amount of poverty and sickness here. We have seen the extremely wealthy and their expensive cars and homes and now those who have nothing. I feel even more blessed by all I have and what a blessing it is to share with others.

Amanda: The things I have seen here have nearly left me speechless. It is amazing to see God working in LA and it’s amazing how He seems to be with us and answering our prayers. I could never grasp what it meant to feel the Spirit until I came to LA. It is all so moving and an emotional roller coaster. I love being here and I know it is where God wants me.

It is after 11:30 so I better sign off for tonight. I will share the rest of the stories later.

God bless you and continue to pray for us,

Ellie