A new season of growth...

The past 2 weeks have been really sweet for the Ministry.

The hot topic at the moment is the excitement built up for our Neighbors getting FREE dental work done next week. I can only imagine what some of them must be feeling, knowing this opportunity is nothing short of a miracle for them. I'm still having a hard time believing it myself... But GOD is that good to being forth a solution to such a need, to show His love.

Last week, we had a group from our church come to our side and help serve with us. To our amazement, that same group returned this week and some asked if they could continue to be a part of what is doing with us.
It's so funny because it wasn't that long ago (just a few shirt weeks, at best) that we were short-handed, and now we have like another 5 or 6 sets of helping hands.

A neat thing that I notice is how much our dinner guests pay attention to us. What I mean is, some ask "Where's so and so?" or say things like "I miss blah blah blah."

I don't ever want to be in such a place where I stop caring for our guests that I see them as faces that I forget about when we drive away. An important tool that I'm confident our entire team agrees on, is the importance to remember as many people as we can by name, calling then by name, and remembering to keep them in our prayers as individuals and not as a whole packaged group.

Our team may not be the most organized, if at all, but we remain place where GOD has set each one of us, and through that faithfulness comes learning. When passer-byers stop to inquire, most think that we're very organized and most of us laugh about it, because we are soooo not that. It's literally walking the waters by faith.

This Friday I noticed that more people passing on the boardwalk are stopping to listen to the sermon. I believe that GOD is definitely doing something bigger in Pacific Beach, than what we can see with our eyes.

I was having a discussion with Amanda last night and she reminded me that although the group we serve might have issues and perhaps not everyone pays attention or even believes what I preach, they still return each week, and that GOD has chosen to give me this flock. I am thankful like never before.

Way behind on the updates.....

I can't believe how much time has gone between the posts! Where does the time go?

Honestly, at this point I don't even remember what events happened which week, so I'll share the highlights of what I do remember.

God used a negative situation into an encouraging one, which of course glorified Him in the outcome of it all.

Summer is here and so are the crowds of people migrating tro the sandy beaches of sunny San Diego. From my perspective, the more people that come to the beach, is an opportunity for more people to hear the Gospel
preached. I've noticed a lot more tourists stopping in their tracks to either listen to a message from the Bible...... or to join us for a free meal.

Looking back at what differences there have been since Amanda and I first arrived that night in April of 2009, I'm thankful that GOD has allowed us to be a part of something so rewarding.
Has everyone gotten saved? Of course not! But we have seen lives transformed. We've witnessed alcoholics near death, accept the grace of the One and only Savior... Letting Him do the work in their lives. We've seen a handful of people find jobs and pick themselves back up off the streets,.. Because of the hope and love that we've given them, through the hope that we've found in our GOD. We've seen some of the hardest hearts, crumble before our very eyes and they now can't help but smile when they see us coming. None of that is "us"... It's all the work of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we get a front row seat.

I'm excited to announce something that I never would have dreamed of, but this too is only the power of our King, who has no bounds or limits to what He can do.....

There's a Dental Office who has contacted us, and is offering 100% FREE service to 15 of our neighbors.
This past Friday I gathered a few people that are in serious dental need and let them know what is taking place. This will be taking place on Aug 4th in Santee, CA. It is my duty to transport these individuals to their appointment, but I could use your prayers an maybe even some help with the transportation from PB to Santee and back... Or possibly help with funding to purchase bus/trolley tickets for their return to the beach.

On another note, the LTN team has been blessed recently with extra friends coming to our side to help with the serving and ministering the love of Jesus to our neighbors. This is an exciting thing for me, because it's allowing other people to put into action what we read about. I've learned that there are several people who have a desire to do something, to maybe share the Gospel or evangelize, but they lack the experience or maybe are held back by the fear of not knowing what to do. Our Ministry is very unique in that sense. It's simple. We show or love through food and showing kindness to everyone without regards to race, age, sexuality, or financial ranks. In short, our Ministry is perfect because it's very non-threatening and casual.

I am still praying how we can be more productive and I'm open to ideas, so if you're reading this and you have something in mind..... Please send us an email and somebody will get back to you.

Hello everyone. I apologize for the serious delay in sharing what has been happening over the past 3 weeks, so I'll do my best to give a recount for everything... May 25th: I posted that entry asking for prayer just before we left the house that evening. We were short handed with help, so I was able to actually be useful. I helped distribute the hygiene supplies! That was neat for me, because I got to see people face to face, like the old days, and actually get to talk with them... now it's almost like there's not enough time while they eat and I run around as needed. June 1st: A small group of Ruben's friend came down to help out. All went well without any outbursts from our dinner guests. June 8th: Amanda was out of town visiting family. I was very nervous not having her there... she's not my side-kick, I'm hers! The kind staff at our church kitchen blessed me with taking on the task to cook what was needed. (I can't cook) I'm very grateful for them. This night was very cool because I wasn't sure what was going to happen or who would be there to help out. One of our team members, Jan, is pretty much like Amanda's right-hand gal. Both were absent. GOD is the one in control though, and He knew exactly what was needed to keep things in order - Some HSE Alumni came to help, which was awesome! They helped with serving the pasta, others with one-on-one counsel & prayer. I recognized a familiar face after giving the message, and it took me a minute to collect myself when I heard his voice... it was Pockets. He was a completely new man! He'd been delivered from the booze and was on his way to a meeting, but wanted to stop by our Ministry to thank us for continual love we've shown him. He attributed our help in his transformation. Hearing that from him, totally blew me away. It get's even better though... GOD even sent a team of 10 college folks from El Paso, TX to give us a hand with the Ministry. They stuck around after I left, but I learned that a few people accepted Jesus through them.

Friends, we need your help. Allow me to explain. A typical Friday for us goes like this... 3:45am - Amanda's alarm goes off and she hops in the shower and does her thing to get ready for work. 5:00am - Amanda arrives at work for a full 8hr day. 5:30-6:00am - I wake up and start my day. 6:15am - Walk into our stuffed garage and sift through the bag that we bring to PB. 6:20am - Refilling necessary items for the night: Packing plates, folding 100-200 forks inside napkins, pouring Parmesan cheese from the bag into the container for an easy pour, etc... 6:45-7:15am - Slicing whatever bread donations we have that week and buttering each piece, then wrapping in foil pan. 7:15-8:30am - Re-evaluting my sermon and checking for any errors, and prayer. 10:00-10:30am - Drive to Costco for pasta sauces. 10:30-10:45am - Drive to Vons for alfredo sauces. 11:00am - Pack bag with all items to be used later. 1:00pm - Strategically place each large pot, strainer, and personal weight scale, in it's rightful place for easy access once Amanda gets home. 1:15pm - Amanda leaves work and heads home. 2:00pm - Amanda gets home. 2:15pm - I start loading the truck. 2:20-3:00pm - Amanda is weighing herself first, then grabs a bag full of desired pasta and returns onto the scale to determine the weight of the pasta... all while multitasking and cooking in between weights. 3:00-3:15pm - Amanda evaluates what hygiene supplies need replenishing and fills accordingly, by walking from our living room into our backyard shed numerous times. 3:15-3:30pm - Scrape whatever remnants of sterno fuel I could reuse into lesser full cans and open new ones as necessary. 3:30-4:00pm - Finish loading the truck, including all food pans. 4:00-4:15pm - Prayer again. 4:15-4:20pm - On our way to PB. 4:45-5:00pm - Arrival in PB and immediately unload. 5:00-5:05pm - Huddle for prayer. 5:05-5:25pm - Give sermon. 5:25-5:30pm - Start serving food. In case you missed where we need the help, back up to 2:20pm. There is something wrong here. We need a commercial grade food scale for the amount of food we're handling. It seems so ridiculous to stand and reweigh over and over just to get weight for the pasta. Silly, right? The problem is the commercial grade scales are pretty expensive... at least for us. We need all you friends and readers to please join us in prayer regarding the food scale. I'm not asking for your financial contributions, just some good old fashioned prayer for something that we need. We appreciate it!

Hello to all that come across our blog... it seems as though time has just been slipping by again, so this post will account for the past 2 weeks. May 11, 2012 - This night was definitely worthy of posting sooner! From our obedience, and the faithfulness of those that have joined our team... our Ministry has become a well established entity. Over the years, many people have stopped by with kind words of encouragement. It's practically impossible to be on the boardwalk on a Friday evening and not see what's going on. I share this, not out of pride, but to boast in the things of the LORD and the work that He is doing. The works of GOD are evident. For some bicycling by, it may look like a group of nice people feeding the homeless, but for those that let their curiosity get the best of them, as they are drawn near... they soon discover much more going on than just some plates being passed down a line. Last week, I mentioned a gentleman with his wife and kid, who donated pizzas to contribute. The LORD touched his heart again this night, and again it was a tremendous help! Two of our team members, Nicole and Robert, experienced something radical this night. The Holy Spirit used these high school seniors as vessels to heal 2 of our guests! One individual, (who I can testify) has had his arm in a sling for awhile and was unable to move it... after Robert laid hands on him and prayed, the man was able to move his arm. Nicole had a similar encounter with a woman who had a problem with her leg. Upon getting in line, she could only hobble with a limp. Nicole laid hands on her and prayed... the woman walked away just fine! GOD is doing amazing things in Pacific Beach!!! I get the opportunity to speak with people all the time about why we are there. Some catch that vision and join us the following weeks. It is a real honor to serve The King of Kings and represent The Lord of Lords. May 18, 2012 - Amanda and I were able to beat the clock tonight. We arrived in our vehicle a little earlier than normal, so we used that time for prayer inside the quietness of our truck. I just knew something big was going to take place... I just didn't know what yet. With the help of some of our guests (who always help), we unloaded and got set up in no time at all. We originally thought that we were going to be short-handed, so I'd asked one of our guests if he would like to participate in serving his comrades, in which he happily took the task of hygiene distribution. We had ALOT of people to serve and there was a wave of totally new faces that I did not recognize. The message was shared to this massive crowd, and an invitation was given to accept Jesus Christ... 9 people came forward! Praise the LORD. I like to mingle with those that are waiting in line, so I walk around and introduce myself to the new faces and ask anyone if they need some prayer. One of our new guests said something so encouraging that it stopped me in my tracks. What he shared with me, I took as a word straight from the LORD. Unfortunately not everyone agrees with what I preach, so for those folks, they choose to come late (after the "preaching") while the line grows. Those few that came late did not get to eat because we ran out of food by the time they reach the front of the line. I hate feeling the way I do when I look into the eyes of desperation and disappointment. I feel like a failure when stand there empty handed and they do not want to hear of the hope that is available to them.

Hi again everybody. Time seems to be slipping away faster than I can manage, so I thought it best to start condensing my blog entries to every other week, unless of course something totally awesome happens and I just have to let it out. So here goes... Friday: April 27, 2012 - The absence of our beloved worship leader and his guitar has really made an impact on our evenings. Usually, the beautiful sound of praise sang unto the LORD keeps a peace over the area, and it's blatantly noticeable when we don't have anyone to lead us in worship. The events of the evening were without problems and everyone's stomachs were filled. Three of our dinner guests asked if they could attend church service with us the following Sunday... praise GOD! Sunday: April 29, 2012 - Piling into the vehicle, Amanda and I picked up Sid, Keith, and Mohawk Mike. All three of the guys enjoyed the service and were welcomed with open arms of love from our church. (I often worry how others who might be 'unfamiliar' with this type of group will react or treat them.) I'm overcome with great joy when I see such genuine love pouring out from those I congregate with. Our church had a baptism planned later in the afternoon, and Keith seemed eager to find out more about it during announcement... after service we dropped the guys back off in PB, but to my surprise, Keith ended up riding his bicycle to Crown Point to join us, because of the positive people he encountered while on campus. It was really sweet to see his big smile as he pulled up on the grass. Friday: May 4, 2012 - Tonight was crazy! As I've mentioned before, we can usually plan on the attendance being smaller at the beginning of the months, but this was so not the case. As summer approaches, it draws an entirely new sea of faces... not necessarily homeless people either... just people passing by who would like to catch a free bite to eat. Is there a line that needs to be drawn? The message was from Mark 8, where Jesus feeds the multitude for a second time using only a few pieces of fish & bread, and the miraculous multiplying of that food. It trips me out, because although we didn't have any fish with us this night, we literally did see the bread multiply before our very eyes and then some! GOD knew exactly how many people would show up this night and He met the needs to assure that all would be fed. As the line started to form after the message, it was obvious that we were going to run out of pasta. Out of nowhere comes some random guy carrying two really big pizza boxes. (I'd never met or seen this man before in my life!) He simply said, "Hey I'm here to help." and started passing out slices of pizza to those waiting in line. It was truly amazing to see and I think that for that next hour I stood there in semi-shock. Two of our newest team members, (Horizon Academy Seniors) who also happen to oversee our "Loving The Neighbor" Facebook account, took it upon themselves to and visit with the family that just donated the pizza. I'm eagerly waiting to hear how that all came about. If you're a Facebook'r please "like us" and be a fan or whatever it's called. (Can ya tell I'm not on there?) All in all, it was a really good night.

Well friends and readers, this post will be making up for the past 2 weeks. Blogger has changed their page tremendously, and it's taking me some time to figure it all out, so please bare with me. Friday, April 13th - The weather was extremely poor, with rain & winds blowing against us. Those conditions usually allow for us to fellowship with our dinner guests more... at least those that still show up, anyways. This time was no different. We served around 40 people, but the fun thing was all of us trying to huddle up and stay dry under the 3 pop-up canopies that we brought down. The wind was so bad, that I actually had to use Gorilla Tape on the canopies and the railing so that our things would not fly away! Somebody suggested that we should have shot a short video of that as a promotion for their products. Hooray Gorilla Tape! It was funny to look around and see black tape keeping everything together. All of us shared in celebrating the birthday of one of our team members. She brought her own giant (and delicious) Oreo cookie cake and wanted to spend her birthday with our neighbors. I thought was really cool of her. We actually had quite a few more volunteers show up which was a surprise, especially due to the rain storm, but it was really nice by the time were were done serving the food. We ended up breaking down our make-shift forts and took the magnificent opportunity to worship our Creator together under the glorious rays of the setting sun. The one thing that really sticks out to me from this evening was something that a passer-byers stopped and said to Amanda: "I see you guys week after week, and now I can really see your faithfulness by coming down during this storm." Friday, April 20th - This month marks our 3 year anniversary in Pacific Beach. It still baffles me how our Ministry has sustained this long, especially without any grants or financial support from any organizations. The only true answer is GOD. He is the one providing the necessities each week, faithfully He pours out His blessings, to share of His love to the houseless people of the beach. I heard a saying once, that has remained with me: If it's GOD's will, then it's GOD's bill. We are seeing that first hand, and it still blows me away! Lots of volunteers came to show support this week and help in whatever capacity was needed. My buddy, Rudy, helped make this possible by praying with people as he saw the need. Brian shared his testimony to the crowd, which I know was a GOD thing for most of these men to hear what needed to be said. Although I had a rough life before I met Jesus, I can only relate so much to this group. I never did the drugs that these people are addicted to, so my words mean nothing when it comes to that... but Brian spoke with conviction from the Lord, and GOD used that through Brian. He was able to speak one-on-one with a gentleman this night, who needed some serious help. This guy was in no condition to take on the street life, and GOD strategically placed Brian here on this night, to show the man that there is a way out.