Mike Yankoski, 2005
An excellent book on homelessness, recommended in the packet of materials Wayne got from Harvest Farm. As a young man, Mike Yankoski decided to show his faith by living as a homeless man for 5 months. He and Sam, a volunteer who became a good friend, stayed about a month each in Colorado (Mike at the Denver Rescue Mission, Sam at Harvest Farm), then Washington D.C., then Portland, Oregon; then Phoenix, then San Diego.
Mike writes about his experiences. There is a lot of fear at first, a lot of discomfort. The homeless are by and large mentally ill or addicted or both. The ones with schizophrenia are the worst. You cannot really communicate with them. You can only pray for them, help them with momentary physical needs (food or water or clothing). They are a minority, though. He describes a man in San Francisco, Henry, who, as soon as he wandered into the park, every dog started barking and lunging for him. “As soon as his foot stepped into the park, every dog in the courtyard began barking viciously, ears back, hair raised, fangs bared…I am not comfortable saying that Henry was demon possessed. I don’t know. I will say that the experiences surrounding him were some of the most challenging for me to deal with or explain. How did every dog in the park sense his presence? Why were his actions so uncontrolled and erratic?…But here’s the thing: Jesus expects us to reach out to Henrys, too–and He draws the expectation in the clearest of terms. How we treat people in this life will determine whether we hear “whatever you did for one of the least of these…you did for me” (Matthew 25:40) or “Whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me” (Matthew 25:45, emphasis added).”
The very worst thing he ran into, though, was the hypocrisy of the Church. One church in Portland, Oregon, had a gate with a padlock and a sign on the front doors, ‘No trespassing. Church Business Only.’ It disgusted him.
He was amazed at how many people ignored him. That’s what I do, ignore the homeless. As usual, what Wayne does is the most loving – smiles, acknowledges them, sometimes helps with a bit of food or a soda pop. That’s what meant a lot to Mike and Sam. He doesn’t recommend giving homeless people money – in most cases, it will go for drugs and alcohol. “Unfortunately, it’s also true that the majority of the men and women we knew on the streets would-within a half hour of receiving a donation-spend it entirely on drugs or alcohol…That’s why I recommend you give something other than cash. For example, gift certificates to fast-food restaurants make a good alternative….Having said that, I think the most meaningful gift might be your genuine attention and caring. It was amazing how much a smile or quick hello did for Sam and me on the streets, partly because such kindnesses were so rare. When someone stopped to talk, even for a minute, the powerful underlying message was, “I notice you, you’re a human being, and you’re worth my time.””
Here’s what he recommends:
- Find the rescue mission nearest to you. Call and find out how you can get involved. Show up an hour early and plan on leaving an hour after you’re scheduled to. Have conversations with the homeless as they stand outside, waiting to get in. Bring bottled water, baked cookies, granola bars, patience, and a sense of humor. You’ll bless those who cannot bless you in return.
- Go downtown with a friend or friends (don’t go alone). Buy cups of coffee or a bag of take-out food, find a homeless person sitting around asking for money, share your gifts, and enjoy a conversation. No agenda, no plans, no purpose other than to be with that person. You’ll be amazed at what unfolds.
- Is it cold outside? Go to your closet and grab the sweater, sweatshirt, or coat you keep telling yourself you’ll wear sometime but know you won’t. Call up four friends and tell them to do the same thing. Then go downtown and hand out your warm clothing to the men or women huddled under the overpass or in a doorway. As you stand there thinking of how cold your nose is, you’ll be amazed at the genuine thankfulness of someone whose whole boy is probably numb. And your giving will warm your soul, too.
- Become a spokesperson in your youth group, church, and community for those who have no voice. Be relentlessly suspicious of our comfortable life, and of the comfort zones that render so many Christian fellowships insensitive and ineffective in our communities. God calls us all to more. And you and I can lead the way, one small step at a time.
Yes, if every church in Fort Collins was open during the week (daytime for all, nighttime for some), for a place the homeless could go and get relief – bathrooms, showers, food, water, clean their clothes, maybe – what a plethora of help and love of God flowing to the least of these. This book really convicted me.
When he lived at the Denver Rescue Mission for a month, he had kitchen duty with another resident. They had to forcibly kick out a violent person.
When a group of 15 youth from Nebraska came to help for a week, they were transformed. “The kids moved from timidity and caution to comfort and confidence. By the end of the week, most of them were enjoying themselves, bringing a welcome gift of friendship and encouragement to the whole place.
“Something critical is missing in places that care for the broken and needy. Without the presence of people in the rescue missions whose lives are not defined by addiction, alcoholism, crime, and mental illness, there is little positive influence. Chaplains and pastors can only spread themselves so far.”
He also commented that the pastors that preached to the homeless at the Denver Rescue Mission most always preached hellfire and brimstone messages, rather than the hope and love of God found in Christ Jesus.
At the end of his Denver Rescue Mission experience, he said: “The mission had been an incredible experience for me. I had seen Christ piece lives back together, one day at a time. Change for an addict takes a lot of work, a lot of prayer, a lot of God-and usually more than one restart. Almost every day I’d seen setbacks. Watching men destroy a year’s worth of rehabilitation with a single bad decision had been frustrating and painful. But even though the path to recovery was winding or interrupted, I had seen lives change.”
He talked about the homeless in D.C. – mostly Black, over 50, war veterans who kept to themselves. In Portland, the homeless were younger and hung out in groups. One time, after a heavy rain, he was practically drowned in foul water filled with filth and cigarette butts and trash. He shook all the filth out of his hair and clothes and stood out in the rain. He thought: “Maybe the reason so many people, Christians included, are so discontent is that we hold too elevated an idea of comfort, too grandiose a notion of pleasure. That sets us up to get frustrated by every passing circumstance. We can end up focusing more on our circumstances than on the One who ordains them.”
In Portland, he sums up the life of a person without a home: “Most of us don’t think much about bathrooms, or soap and water, or finding a meal or a safe place to sleep until we’re faced with doing without. Then almost nothing else matters.” Providing these 4 things are where our churches could be such a help. Almost all of them have kitchens, bathrooms, safe places. They could be the hands and feet of God for so many people. Even if it was just for the day, what a witness they would be for a loving God. Instead, it is our libraries who provide the safety, the warmth, the bathrooms, the water.
He writes: “An ongoing struggle to find safety, a place to sleep, a bathroom, and food becomes dehumanizing for anyone. One experience at a time, a person’s sense of dignity and sense of self-worth gets stripped away. I don’t know what the experience would be like for someone who has lived on the streets for thirty years.
“But I do know this: blithely allowing this terrible stripping to occur is a blot on the conscience of America, and especially on the conscience of the Church. If we as believers choose to forget that everyone–even the shrunken soul lying in the doorway–is made in the image of God, can we say we know our Creator? If we respond to others based on their outward appearance, haven’t we entirely missed the point of the gospel?”
They finally met some real Christians at People’s Park in Berkeley. There were some Christians who held a church service in the park and handed out sandwiches afterwards. It was so refreshing. They hung out and talked with the homeless. They offered to help Mike and Sam. They invited them to their church that night, where they could shower, eat a meal, and then gave them bus fare to leave the Bay area and go to Phoenix. “The rest of the evening was filled with acts of love (none of that fake crap): an awesome church service; a beautifully prepared meal; a long, hot shower; good conversation; applies for the road. Russ and James even made sure we found new flip-flops.
“The words “Jesus loves you” take on a whole different meaning when you’re down and out. You hear them differently. You need them more. Just saying them to the next desperate person you need could change his day Wrap those words in friendship, a home-cooked meal, bus fare, and you could change his life.”
In Phoenix, they were hanging out at the edge of a large church’s campus and saw a bunch of people arriving with stainless steel containers, full of food, etc. One of the Church members ran over to them and told them they needed to leave. This was on a Saturday. They left. The next day, they decided to attend church at the same place. The man who told them to leave on Saturday ran up to them and begged their forgiveness. He told them he was immediately convicted and drove around looking for them to try and find them and invite them in for the breakfast. He was so happy to see them and, it turns out, he was the director of homeless outreach program for that church. “He looked back and forth between us for a second, crestfallen–then all three of us burst out laughing. We all agreed we were extremely thankful that love covers a multitude of wrongs.”
“I wonder what would have happened if Sam and I had decided not to return to that church Sunday morning. Love can’t cover wrongs if we let frustrations and failures keep us apart.”
When they ended their homelessness and were back home, he found it hard to sleep – it was so quiet and comfortable. “Being uncomfortable with comfort wasn’t something I had expected to come home to.”
He also had the overwhelming urge to consume – he wanted to buy things for the sake of buying things, owning things. “Not because I needed anything, mind you, but because now I could.”
Near the end, he writes: “In a very real sense, the problem of homelessness is overwhelming. Jesus put it all in context when He said, “The poor you will have with you always.” You just can’t meet every need you see, or spend time with every homeless person you meet.
“So where do we start? Jesus summarized right living in two powerful statements: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart…and love your neighbor as yourself.” As over-spiritualized as it may sound, I really do think that caring for the needy begins with loving God more completely. It’s in knowing and responding to His amazing love for us that we begin to set our priorities straight…
“Fortunately, the “love your neighbor” part of Jesus’ teaching starts with the simple actions and small opportunities that are available to each of us. Little things do mean a lot, especially in the kingdom of God, where giving a drink of cold water has eternal repercussions. And I am convinced that the more committed we become to impacting one person at a time-whether through a cup of coffee or a genuine conversation-the more we’ll prepare our hearts and our churches to respond at both a community and national level.
“The bottom line is that real love always shows itself in action…” (See above 4 things that we can do.)
“What if following Him is hard? What if along the way He asked you to accomplish difficult tasks or to overcome intimidating obstacles? What if is requires more of you than you have to give?
“Listen, that’s the way it’s supposed to be. Those places of need are where you and I discover ourselves, our faith, and-best of all-our God. It’s there, in our weakness, that He shows Himself true, faithful, powerful, gracious, and loving.”…
Last paragraph: “So join Sam and me and so many others in our generation. This Jesus we follow is the Redeemer of the world. This God we serve is the Rock on whom we stand. He’s sure, steadfast, and worthy of our trust. He’s calling us to live this life abandoned to Him, encouraged at all points by His Spirit and His Work and His people, looking to Him for all we need.
“There’s only this left to do:
“Walk off the edge with Him.”
Yes, forgive me God for my attitude toward the homeless. I have been unloving and wrong. Forgive me.