Camping at 26° ?

Today was cold. It was in the low twenties and many people camped outside.

Why? Because they have the latest REI camping gear and seek to battle the elements? No.
Today thousands in Dallas will camp outside in clothes they have scavenged, cardboard they have stacked, and eat someone else’s leftovers. The reality of homelessness bites when the temperature drops like this. Some will face the cold as they have for years, for many this is a new reality that comes with the economy.

Today I took a group of students from Dallas Theological Seminary on a field trip. We went to a particular  location and found about thirty individuals. They were eager to see us and warmly greeted us with cold hands.

We had blankets, socks, gloves and bottles of water. It wasn’t much, but it was greatly received. One man told us “You brought us exactly what we needed”.  More than just meeting physical needs we also took time to pray with them. We invited them to our next outreach which will include many more resources and much more time for fellowship and interaction.

As we left there I reminded those students “This is why you came to seminary. This is why God placed you here on this rock. This is why you have been given the gift of faith. Use it wisely.”

Jesus repeated the phrase “love one another” many times. That isn’t a suggestion, nor is he telling us to do the impossible. It begins with the simple step of just showing up.