July 20th Prayer Update
“Whoever is wise, let him understand these things; for the ways of the Lord are right.”
The ministry is still going strong and we are thankful for our faithful volunteers who continue to serve even on hot summer days. We sent teams into North and Central Concord, Martinez, and Vallejo and we had one Bible study participant, Mark who joined us for his second Bible study. We were able to distribute 14 English Bibles and 3 Addiction books: 'Cross Talking, a daily gospel for transforming addicts.' We are thankful for many extensive gospel conversations where the Word was shared. Praying for the Lord to bring clear fruit.
Our hearts were broken for Steve. We found him in a hospital gown, with two hospital bracelets on his wrist and his name on the wheelchair left alone in a parking lot. He had a few items on the ground near his wheelchair but not much. Our team came in and offered him coffee, water, food, and a blessing bag and engaged him in conversation. He told our team that he grew up Catholic but would now call himself a Jehovah's Witness. Possibly due to his recent medical situation, he didn't seem to be fully present with the conversation but he was willing to accept a Bible. We pray for Steve's safety and also pray that he has a community that he can lean on for support. We hope to meet him again in a better situation.
Jesse
We asked Jesse how we could pray for him and he asked for prayers for a full-time job. He currently has a part-time job but he is hoping to save up and establish a home so he can have a relationship with his 9-month-old daughter in foster care. We prayed for him and shared the gospel with him. He is going to a job orientation for a county job soon. We prayed that he would go to the orientation, get the job, and be able to see his child before Christmas. We challenged him that he can't do all of these things in his own strength and he needs God's help.
Kenny was friendly and conversational with our team. When we asked him if he believed in God he answered frankly with a 'no.' He shared that he grew up occasionally going to church. We went into a brief Bible overview with Kenny starting with creation and the beginning of sin. Kenny was very engaging and brought up questions about evolution. He also told our team that he tried reading the Old Testament while in jail but found it too violent. The team pointed out that the Old Testament shows the story of sin and why Jesus needed to come. He was giving his full attention to the gospel presentation, and thinking through the things that he was being told. He was willing to accept a Bible from our team.
When we asked how we could pray for him, he asked for prayer for his knees and we also incorporated the aspects of the gospel in our prayer for Kenny. We pray for another opportunity to engage with him.
We were thankful to be able to check in on Andrew (in green), and Zoey the dog, and offer him coffee, and food, and continue building a relationship with him. He has been on the street for 4 years. He gave us his phone number and we hope to coordinate a ride to church in the near future.
Our heart goes out to Vicky who was just recently released from the hospital. She wasn't very welcoming to our team but she was willing to accept a large print Bible and some gospel tracts. We pray that she is willing to consider the brevity of life and consider her eternal destiny before it is too late. Please be praying for a softened heart and better conversation when we next encounter Vicky.
Pray for these individuals who took Bibles or previously received a Bible. We ask that you pray that they would read the Bibles provided.
Angel - First encounter, interested in a Bible study
Mario - Says he is a believer, been out there for 2 weeks, Prayer for housing
Cassandra
Cathy - provided her glasses to better read her Bible
Rihanna - eager to have bibles, grew up in church and fell away
Jennifer - good conversation
Nick - he and Jennifer have two kids in protective custody, recovering from addiction.
Cheryl - living in her car, reading the book of John
Brian - had a Bible, and requested a tent and sleeping pad so he wouldn't have to sleep on the ground.
Rick - Given a replacement Bible and reading glasses
Danielle - 32 years old, teared up when we talked about God
Chris - church background
Anthony - Took a small Bible
Darnell
Toni
Pray for these people who were friendly but declined Bibles. We pray that they will be more open on our next outreach.
Jamie - Spanish Speaker, not an in-depth conversation
Thomas - Requested a lot of physical goods, gave him info on the Bay Area Rescue Mission
Anthony
Nacho
Kareem - looking for a job
Josh - still grieving from the loss of his Mom Theone
Steve
Joe
Steve - Very strong Atheist. Resistant to Bible verses but open to a book.
Kelly
David
John
Chris
Nikki
George
Gary
Scott (who also goes by Sean) used to be very closed to prayer, accepted prayer for work and health
Jamie
Dan
James
DJ
Pray for these people who were closed to a conversation that God would work to soften their hearts before our next outreach.
Mario - grumpily asked us not to come closer
Roy
Charles
Pasha
JOIN US!
Our Next Outreach is August 3rd 2024
Please consider serving during a Saturday Outreach in one of the following ways:
1) Prepare Lunches
2) Serving at the Homeless Camps
3) Volunteer Breakfast
4) Cookies for Volunteers
Our ministry is a labor of love with the main purpose of providing gospel hope through practical means to the homeless. Thank you for serving alongside of us!
We continue to pray for those who might be able to contribute a small additional monthly gift of $25 or $50 a month to help with ongoing Hope680 expenses, including our ministry supplies, offices, and RV maintenance. We are trusting God to continue to provide through you!
FYI Our Executive Staff and Leaders (including Toby and all team leaders) are unpaid volunteers - all donations go 100% towards the running of Hope680, including administrative contractors, our facilities, and RV maintenance costs, as well as ministry supplies.