Tsunami Saturday Continues
It is still Saturday. Tsunami Day. Worship is nice. Genuine at least. Announcements, followed by …. what? A homeless person walks in. He is stumbling and murmering. He places his last quarter before shouting
“I give you all I got! It’s all I got! What do I gotta do? You tell me what I gotta do, I’ll give it all, just give me Jesus. It’s all I got, I give it all to you people!!”
My heart sinks. I have never seen a more beautiful display of surrender. I could relate, very well. My life too, was in Gods hands. The only difference was that my roof was provided for by an addict. I was not complaining. I could have easily been this man. I cried. What happened next shocked me. Maybe I was the only one surprised to see the ushers of the church escort him out.
They lead him out like he was disturbing the peace. To me, he resembled perfect peace. He resembled me. They were leading me out of the sanctuary too. The only thing that separated me from that man were the old ‘preppy’ clothes I wore. No one knew my plight, but I was accepted. I did not belong there either. I got up and went to the cross out back, on the hill. I knelt and asked God to not let me hate them. I prayed hard. I cried hard. I did not want to hate them for not seeing Jesus in their own church. They ushered this man out to the cross. He said “What are you going to do, crucify me?” It looked as though they might. But I was there.
Everyone stopped. He ran to my side to ask if I was o.k. I told him I was sad and that I missed my kids. He told me about his. He began to tell me the reason he was there. He was there to entertain the angels. I believed him, because I could not tell if he was real or sent directly from God for that moment in my life. Twelve others joined me as he spoke about his journey. He was escorted off the property a few moments later. The people listening were changed by his story at the cross. I was amazed. The wait was worth that moment. I went back to the house on the beach with the roommate who stayed behind, it was still standing. God stopped the tsunami and let me see the Real Jesus. It was still Saturday.
The story of that man, from Juno Alaska spread to the whole island. I knew we would meet again.