Bob (Boston 2)

The night before Memorial Day we blew up balloons and painted the cardboard that would make a float. It was awesome bonding time for the team, which was made up of mostly people that I had never met before. I was able to connect with everyone on one level or another, getting to know their favorite food, scriptures, sports, and movies. I was even able to share my Bane voice with them. 

The next morning came Memorial Day. We helped Redeemer Fellowship throw a carnival for the city Watertown. Every Memorial Day, the city throws a parade to celebrate the holiday. Redeemer's participation in the parade was a miracle; the city never lets the churches get involved with anything city-wide, this was the first time anything like this ever happened in a long time. It was crucial that the church have an impact through their presence. 

Everything went well! Molly, Alfonso, and I worked an inflatable obstacle course. It attracted tons of kids and even adults. I would say that one of the hardest things to do while working that was to not fall into the temptation of going through it myself, every single time. By the end of the day I had eaten 5 & a half hot dogs, drank about 8 cups of Gatorade, and witnessed about 14 kids eat it on the obstacle course. It was a great day.

During the parade, we got to see a lot of cool Army tanks, horses, and motorcycle gangs roll through. Towards the end, a van that was a part of the parade passed us with the pictures of the innocent people killed in the Marathon Bombing. In that moment we remembered how much this area was affected by the tragic event. It also reminded our team of what we were getting ourselves into. This region of the world needs God's love just as any other region does, and the church's participation in events like this that shows how much joy the love of Christ can bring a dead body. I can't express how many children and their family members appreciated all that we did at that we did for them. 

Later that night, our team worshiped in the basement of the church. Caleb P. brought his guitar along for the trip, and he led us that night. That's when I started to really understand how much our team loved God, and also, how much more He loves us. We were praying for each other, and the lost. I don't think that any of us knew what we were going to get ourselves into that next day. I think things work out a lot better that way. I'd rather have full faith that God is going to do something insane than know every little detail, and worry about what's going to happen.

The next day we left for Harvard Square. Harvard Square is an area in Boston that is owned by Harvard University. During the day it's an awesome tourist attraction. There's many restaurants and businesses. There's also many homeless people about. In Boston and most of the east coast, cost of living is very high. It's also not as easy to get a job there as it is in Texas, because Texas has so much land. We are always building something here, which always creates job opportunities. The east coast was colonized first, so just about everything there is already built up. Living among beautiful old buildings comes at a cost. Even the churches are large and beautiful. It's even more crazy to see how most of them were transformed into condos.

We entered Harvard Square at night, when the crazy stuff happens. After grabbing a bite to eat, Roswell split us into smaller teams. I had the awesome opportunity to have Clay and Caleb P. with me. We prayed behind a small concession building in the pit, then off we went.

I don't know why, but I was led a different way than Caleb and Clay. There was this guy sitting alone on the edge of the pit, facing the subway entrance. I probably stared at him awkwardly for 5 minutes before I went to chill with him. I hate awkwardness, so i didn't want to cause it. A 20 year old black guy with dreads is not your typical chill guy. So I asked God for the words to say and walked over. I asked him how his day was going and asked him his name. His name was Bob, but he wanted me to call him b.o.b... and he quickly explained, "I had the name before the rapper." 

I talked to B.O.B. for a very long time. I started off by asking him about Harvard Square, because i knew very little about it. He told me about how crazy it gets at night and also how he loves it out there. For some reason he kept looking at a digital clock that was fixated on a building hovering over Harvard Square. I asked him how long he has been out here, and he told me a year. He lives with his girlfriend and it's hard for him to find a job. Then, I asked him if he was originally from Boston, and His life story exploded into my ears. Bob was a foster child (he is 28 now). He was kicked out of many homes, ran away several different times, and when he finally got to the age where he could live on his own, he started hopping trains all over the country.

A guy passed by us in the middle of Bob's life story and asked for some weed. I was so caught off guard until I realized where I was and the fact that anything under 2 ounces of weed was legal. Bob told this guy that he didn't have any and that he hasn't seen any dealers around. Many people passed by us asking about drugs and stuff to get into. After a few more passed by, Bob asked me why I was in Boston. He said that he could tell by my southern accent that I had to be from the South. I explained to him that my friends and I came to Boston to help out Redeemer Fellowship in Watertown and to see some sights in town. Before I could say that i was a Christian, he kinda figured it out. He told me that he is a Christian, and a door opened up and I was able to talk a little bit about Jesus.

Bob and his girlfriend were going through a lot. Bob had no job and no money, and his girlfriend was not the most loving person in the world. "And she's not a Christian," Bob continued. 

At that moment I realized that Bob was going through a whole lot. Though he didn't make it easier on himself by being in the "Pit" every night, that was besides the point. He was looking for something a lot more than he knew. I prayed with Him for a bit, and then I got a chance to pray for his relationship with Jesus. Afterwards, I got to guy him a drink at Dunkin' Donuts to bring home to his girlfriend. I saw him off and gave him a hug, not knowing if I'd ever see him again.

I stepped back to where I had first met Bob that night, and sat down near the area where he sat. I looked up at the humongous digital clock that hang on the building over the pit. I realized that this was one of the few times I had ever hang out with somebody for no agenda at all. I sat not only where they sat, but I sat with them. I didn't only hear Bob's story, I felt for him. And I didn't pray to a wall, I prayed with faith.

Jesus loved people. This is true. However, He did not only love people and sat on His donkey all day. He put legs on the word. He added arms to it. And with those arms and legs He sat with tax collectors, the widows, the poor, the blind, rich, and lame. Just as Jesus meets us where we are with our sin, He met others where they were. Though some did not know God or ever witnessed God, Jesus' hands were the only hands they could feel. So He used them for His glory along with everything else He had.

As a Christian, this is something I fail at everyday. I fail at loving those who do not love the Lord. Not only do I fail, but most of the time I do not even think about it. Until I sat with Bob and everyone else in the pit, I had never understood why it was that important. I looked up at the very same clock that the drug addicts, hippies, cutters, alcoholics, & homeless used there everyday. And this is the point: Jesus saved me from the pit of my sin, and now He called me to be His ambassador. His hands, His Feet, His messenger of the good news.

People aren't going to know about Jesus until we show them with our actions.

(to be continued...)