At the Leftovers event this Sunday we prepared brown paper bag lunches to pass around the city. In them were ham and turkey sandwiches, juice boxes, chips, and fruit. Bill and I had to leave a bit early, but Ali suggested we bring two sack lunches with us in case we encountered anyone who could use a lunch on our walk home. So we did. Being that we live across from Petco Park, we decided to stop there first.
At first glance, the park felt pretty empty. This is a first, I thought, as we walked on. We rounded the restaurant of El Vitral, when I spotted a bike and a cart full of someone’s belongings. I pointed at the bike and motioned for Bill to stop. This cart full of blankets, clothes, a sleeping bag–this was a sign of someone living on the streets.
Sure enough, we meet John and Big Don sitting on the bench.
To be honest, I wanted to do a quick hand-off and leave. But God had other plans. As we handed them the lunches, John stood up and shook our hands. He then spent the next 10 minutes talking to us like we were old friends.
He looked Bill dead in the eye and asked calmly, ” What do you, me, and everyone else have in common?”
Bill paused for a minute and responded, “The love of God.”
John smiled. “Well, yes. But something that you and me and the rest of us have in common…is that we are sinners.”
I froze in my spot. Here I was selfishly wanting to get home–planning on handing off food and leaving–when God used John to speak to us.
John went on, “It says right in the bible, you and me, all of us- we are all sinners.”
I look over at Big Don, who had already started in on the sandwich. I look over at Bill who is smiling from ear to ear. And suddenly I felt the peace of God among us.
John thanked us for the food. He shook our hands again and said “God Bless” over and over again. He then affirmed, “The next time you talk to a homeless guy, I want you to point that out. You, me, all of us– we are all sinners.”
Then he took us around the corner and showed us his belongings.
He pointed at his bike. “This is my bike. This is my sleeping bag.” He starts to point at his belongings, the stuff in his life. His life that filled up an 8 square foot space. Suddenly, a rush of humility came over me. John, in his short economy of words, summed up the gospel to us. He who was in need, gave.
The next time I see a cart full of blankets, a sleeping bag, and clothes. I will remember, the one thing we all have in common. We are all sinners. It is what you, me and everyone else has in common. And God made it so that we could be reconciled with Him. That is the gospel message summed up by our friend, John.
