Testimony of a Homeless Woman
Gene Allen Groner of Independence, MO, USA
Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth.
Worship the Lord with gladness;
come into his presence with singing.
Know that the Lord is God.
It is he that made us, and we are his;
we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.
Enter his gates with thanksgiving,
and his courts with praise.
Give thanks to him, bless his name.
For the Lord is good;
his steadfast love endures forever,
and his faithfulness to all generations. -Psalm 100
“Loneliness and the feeling of being unwanted is the most terrible poverty” (Mother Teresa).
This quote from Mother Teresa really came home to me and entered my heart one day at the Salvation Army Crossroads Homeless Shelter board meeting, where I was serving as vice-president. We had invited a homeless woman, a young lady with no family and no place to live, to come to our board meeting and to share her story with the board. We felt it would be helpful to us in our ministry of outreach to the homeless to develop a better understanding of the issues contributing to their situation. Also, we wanted to know how she felt, what it felt like to be homeless.
It was a very moving experience. She told us how hard it was to not have an identity. She felt she was no one because she didn’t have a home or family. Therefore, she did not exist. Well, that broke my heart. I shall never forget the experience, her or how my heart ached for her.
I paused after the meeting and offered a prayer for that young woman. I prayed that she would understand and feel how much we cared for her, that she was somebody important to us. She was someone we wanted to love, affirm, and provide for through our organization. I learned a lesson of empathy and compassion that day, and I will remember her prayerfully each time I see a homeless person.
Now I kneel and pray every night for the homeless and the refugees of the world, all 60 million of them. May God bless and care for each one and give us insight and wisdom in our relationships with them. I pray in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Prayer Phrase
God, help me seek peace for me, peace for us, peace for everyone, and peace for our planet. Amen.
Spiritual Practice
The International Community
Find (or imagine) a globe or map of the world. Look at all the nations and find a country other than your own. Notice the geographic distance between your homeland and this one. Picture a person living there. Pray for this person. Sense God’s love connecting you just as the oceans connect the continents. Thank God for the spiritual connection you have with all of God’s people around the globe. Ask a blessing on the church as a community sharing Christ’s peace, drawing all into the family of God.
Today’s Prayer for Peace
Engage in a daily practice of praying for peace in our world. Click here to read today’s prayer and be part of this practice of peace.
