Matt Gill

Finding Your Path to Joy and Fulfillment

10/19/2025

oops, missed a day....
Here's Sunday piece...enjoy your day!
10/19

Let’s jump ahead 27 years (dang!) and now I was going back to school to get my master’s degree in School Counseling; I had found my calling and my passion. I think
I must have read every single page of every single textbook I got. (Well, let’s just say every page of every counseling textbook, the education textbooks were really quite boring!). Knowing what I wanted to do with the rest of my life, really knowing, gave me an entirely new outlook on academics. I wasn’t here just to get my Master’s. I was here to learn how to be the best school counselor that I could be. This passion drove me to do my best every day. And if you haven’t guessed by now, yes, I finished my Master’s in School Counseling with a 4.0 G.P.A. and a notation on my diploma celebrating my graduation with “Highest
Distinction.” It meant a lot to me to get that 4.0, not just to prove to myself that I could, but it proved to me that this is where I belonged. This was indeed my passion and I had just proved it to myself. That was my motivation. What’s yours?
What is your motivation? Can you get 100% motivated to serve yourself? Possibly, but if we are comfortable where we are, do we really find the value sometimes in working hard, especially in those seasons where we are currently content? What about others? Can we find the motivation to give 100% commitment to others? Maybe. What do we get out of it? Is there a reward for me after all the effort I will put in? Do we think there may or may not be, but it’s probably a good thing to do anyway? Maybe it might make me feel better about myself. It might make others think that I am a good person. It might stroke my ego thinking that I was somehow better than the ones I was helping. Sure, I can probably go 75% “all-in”, that’s doable. I have other things going on in my life you know, 100%? That’s a bit much! I mean who has the time and the resources to go 100% “all-in” for anything?
How about this, can you find the desire and motivation to go “all-in” for God? “Whoa! Easy there! Don’t go trying to lay some heavy guilt trip on me now!
So, if I say “No” does that make me a bad person? 100% “all-in” for anything is asking the near impossible. That’s everything you know! 100%! There isn’t any more left for me! Is there a huge reward at the end, and heck, why not this too, is there a huge reward –during- this journey?”
These are all normal questions and reactions many have when they are seeking growth and purpose and the discovery of where their destiny lies. We want to know there is a reward, and not just a ‘when it is all over’ or a ‘when it’s all said and done’ reward, but a reward for the journey itself. A journey that promises a reward at the end is a journey with a purpose, not just a meandering through who knows what. It is a journey with a plan. But, if it’s a God–led journey, it is also a noble, spirit-and-soul building journey. It is a journey full of apprehension, trials, joy, heartbreak, frustration, peace, struggle, triumph, contentment, and growing self-worth and self-actualization.
It is a journey so full, so challenging, so enriching and character developing, that you will wonder why you ever spent your time doing anything else. The journey will be one of self-discovery. Where has this person been all these years? Why wasn’t I trying to understand the ways in which God has gifted me long ago? I am finally enjoying what I do. Is it easy? Hardly. Many times, when I come home, I am emotionally drained. But I have the satisfaction of knowing that something I said or something I have done that day may have been just what someone needed to get them through a trial they could not get through on their own. I am enjoying what I am doing now because I am working my passion. And, truth be told, it doesn’t even feel like work. I feel it in my gut and I understand the reasons why I am where I am, and why I am doing what I am doing. I see how God has taken some of my past life events and life decisions has molded them to lead me to this place.
I have made a core foundation of my life the Bible verse that says that God works all things for the good for those that love Him and are called according to His purpose (Romans 8:28). I now understand His purpose for my life during this current season. His purpose is to bless me as I praise and glorify Him. I can make mistake after mistake, and poor choice after poor choice. But, God’s love for me does not end at the start of my poor choices. I love God and He takes these poor choices and pulls good out of them and directs me toward the place of my passion; the place where my God given gifts can benefit me and others.
My message to a Christian friend when she was facing an uncertain decision:

Remember 8:28. It’s all gonna be ok. Better than ok. It’s all gonna work out for your
good! Whatever happens. Even if you don’t listen to Him, even if you are unsure of what you are exactly supposed to do, whatever happens, He’s got this!

I understand and now know that the direction I was traveling presented me with difficulty and frustration because I was traveling the wrong path. I wasn’t traveling along my gifted pathway.
Let’s say for example I am a carpenter and I build houses for a living, because maybe that is what my father taught me to do. I don’t dislike my work, but it doesn’t excite me to come to work every day either. Yet every time I am putting up a wall, I can’t help but look at the mason and admire his creativity and workmanship. What if that stone wall bordering the driveway makes me want to give it a try? I may be a good carpenter, I may be a real good carpenter, but is life more of a struggle or more of a blessing? Do I wake in the morning looking forward to what the day will bring, or do I roll out of bed as I do every other day, uninspired? Do I wake up before my alarm and tell the day what I am going to accomplish, or does my alarm wake me up and tell me that I need to get going? I am not saying that the journey of our passion won’t have its ups and downs, or that overcoming challenges, or working harder at something won’t make us better at whatever we are seeking to accomplish. What I am trying to convey is that to be fulfilled you need to have that passion. You have to want to get up in the morning. You need to wake up before the alarm goes off. You have to want to. You need to be saying to the day “Good morning! Let me show you how great I am going to make this day!” You don’t need the alarm to be jolting you out of bed and saying “Get up! Let me show you what you are going to be doing today! Like it or not!” You need to be the one that sets the course and the tone for the day. You need to be one that looks forward to the day. You need to have passion in your life.
You need to be excited to get out of bed and to have a day to look forward to. You need to be in love with your life!
For seventeen years, I worked as a UPS driver. Big Brown. Up and at ‘em. Let’s go. Move it out. Get in early. Hurry up. Work harder and faster. And oh yeah, be safe! (Maybe a little venting there!) I could probably count on one hand the number of days that I looked forward to going to work and not wanting to call in sick. I am not saying I had a bad attitude, because I didn’t; nor was I not fun to be around, because I was. I actually enjoyed 90% of the people I worked with and delivered to. But the job was exhausting. It just wasn’t where I was supposed to be. It was not my life’s passion. God did not birth me to drive a truck. People are called to any variety of profession and this is certainly not a judgment on whatever profession people may choose; this just wasn’t mine. And even then, after seventeen years I still wasn’t seeking my passion track when I left. I was just living day- to- day and week- to- week like the majority of people. I’ll write later on about my personal journey of discovery, but for now, I’d like to try to encourage you to be bold with your life. You only get one! Don’t you think you would enjoy life better if you spent it doing something you loved?
Don’t get stuck in a job just because it pays the bills, is easy, convenient or secure. Though even after we finally discover that our passion lies elsewhere, we may not be able to just pick up and leave. More times than not, that is not an immediate option. Let’s be realistic. We have bills to pay. We have responsibilities. We may have a family to provide for or we may be ill-prepared either financially or educationally at the moment to just jump out of where we are into something else. But if we have taken the time to identify our gifting and our passion, we should begin to explore the steps we need to take to make this change happen. Where can we take this passion? What are the available opportunities? What are some opportunities I can make myself or get help making? What do I need to do to start this process? Do I need to go back to school and get a degree, and if so how do I pay for that? Do I need to work a couple of nights a week, or on the weekend with someone to learn a trade? Do I need to do the same with an organization to get my foot in the door? Do I need to network and make connections? Whatever we need to do, we need a vision for how this process works. We are never going to get where we are going without vision.

10/17/2025

Starting Chapter 2

Chapter 2 Where Are We Going?

“Our willingness to serve and obey Jesus Christ enables us to be useful and usable servants to do work for Him – work that really matters.” ¹

“To have an effect on people’s lives, you first need to love them and believe in them.”
²

When reading my Bible in the morning (a beautiful though thick and heavy gift from my former neighbors in Florida, thanks Lee and Ron for the NIV Life Application Study Bible) I seldom read anymore the actual life application parts on each page. I used to. Maybe in a rush to get on with my day, I have been overlooking an important part. I think reading the above words this morning was a not so gentle nudge to return to my original practice.
Where are we going and how do we get there? How do we find our path? Are we seeking a path for a career, or just a more fulfilling life? Are we seeking direction for our life’s work or to enhance social interactions or hobbies? (The discussion that follows focuses on career choices.) How do we find our talents and the ways in which we are gifted? We learn that God has uniquely gifted each of us, but we wonder in what way He has gifted us personally. I believe we are looking in the right place when we find out in general terms what we like to do. Do we like to create things? Do we like to be by ourselves when we work? Are we independent risk-takers? Are we ‘people’ people? Answering general questions like these first will help steer us in the right direction.
When I was doing my personal search, seeking guidance on a choice for a second career, I was handed a personality assessment. Not having ever taken one before I was not sure what to expect. (You can find a variety of assessments online. I don’t recall which I took). My assessment results showed that I am a social person, a listener, a fixer, a helper and an encourager. Those weren’t the exact names of the categories, I’ve forgotten them since, but that was the gist of the findings.
Once I saw the results, I compared them with what I liked to do. I realized that they fit with my past experiences. I had been a baseball coach and an ice hockey coach and loved doing that. I had helped run middle school groups at church and enjoyed the interactions and listening to the life stories of young kids. I had also helped run an adult support group once a week in the evenings for those struggling with life-controlling issues. Then there was my time spent as a Guardian ad Litem in Florida when my level of empathy was stretched even further.
People were always asking my opinion on things, and I think that has turned me into a good listener. I have an aversion to conflict. I always want to see things fixed, maybe sometimes even things that can’t be fixed.
So now, I was moving along nicely. I knew what I liked, and I knew what a magical survey thought of me! Now I just needed to figure out how this was going to translate into my choice of a meaningful second career. After bouncing around a few thoughts with my pastor, I thought that the choice of becoming a Marriage and Family Therapist would be a good fit.
So, there it was. I had a direction. I had a goal. There was no longer just a blank confusing page in front of me. Now the important step lay in front of me. Now it was time to continue to pray about it as I explored the steps I would need to take to get where I felt led to go. I had no counseling or therapy background, save for life experience itself, so I was not sure how all this was going to play out. As it turned out, I could proceed without having a bachelor’s degree in counseling. I was able to go straight into a master’s program. It became even more convenient for me when I found I could do most of the program online. Paying for it? Well, that was another story! Like many students, I am now saddled with annoying and burdensome student loan debt.
That is the beginning of the story of how I ended up where I am today, a school counselor at a middle school. I love my job. It is where I belong. It is where I am happiest. It is where I find myself most effective. I can tangibly feel the sense of meaning and purpose it has added to my life. But I believe a huge part of discovering my ideal position was in first finding my gifts. I believe God’s personal gifts for us are found in the area where we are most happy. We are naturally happiest doing something we like and are good at. We need to seek out these gifts and let them flourish in us.
When you set out to find your passion and path, perhaps this method will work for you as well. I can’t emphasize enough how large a component of the search it is in finding out what you like and what you are good at. I don’t believe God calls us to do something that we hate. He may stretch our comfort level, but that is only because His gifts for us, and our ultimate happiness, lie beyond our current situation. I think our likes and loves flow naturally from the gifts God gives us.
If I am five-foot nothing and weigh 150 lbs., my gifting will not lead me to be an NFL lineman! If I am a highly extroverted person who loves working outdoors and interacting with others throughout the day, maybe a job as an actuary isn’t where I am called to be. God gifts us for success. That should seem obvious, but we still struggle at times to allow God to help us achieve success through our fear of stepping out into strange territory. We need to appreciate the fact that God loves us, and the plans that He has for us, and the gifts that He gives us, are for our good, for our success, and for our happiness. All this isn’t meant to be self-serving though! We are to use our gifts, our passions and our positions to help others and to make a positive difference in the world. We should never be afraid to follow God’s lead!
So, once you have found what you believe to be your calling, what do you do next? I would run it by some friends that know you well. See what they have to say. See if they have any valuable input. Do they see in you what you see in you? Wise friends and mentors are always good resources to have to help provide us with honest assessment and encouragement along the way.

‘Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed.’ (Proverbs
15:22)

When we have made our choice and prayed about it, and we have checked out what the path before us looks like, now what? It is time to take action. Without action nothing changes; no progress will be made, and everything that we have done up until this point will have been in vain. Sure, making a move here may be disconcerting; it may make you nervous.
In his book, QBQ, The Question Behind the Question, John G. Miller shows us what action does. I’ll paraphrase his highlights:

ACTION brings learning and growth.
ACTION leads us towards solutions.
ACTION requires courage.
ACTION builds confidence.

If you are looking for fulfillment and a sense of meaning and purpose in your life and are looking at major life change to accomplish that, then you could easily be scared. But you must act through the scared. Nothing worthwhile comes about without taking a chance. Working through our fears and insecurities helps us to grow and develop and build our self-worth. So, look at the path you need to take to get where you want to go.
AND THEN…
Find a step, then test it. Then take another
and test it. If it is all good, feels good, feels right, not necessarily easy right, but challenging right, if you feel that God is saying to go, then go! Give it all you have. This is not a time for half-hearted effort. This is your ‘all-in’ moment. Because if you are embarking on your personal journey to serve and discover how God has gifted you to live a life that means something, a life of purpose, a life of making a difference in the lives of others, and consequentially your own life, is there any time other than this, a time more important than this, to give it everything that you’ve got?
You’ll find it easier to be giving 100% when what you’re doing is your passion. In school, I always said that I could get straight A’s if I wanted to, but I was always distracted and sidetracked. Not because I couldn’t do it, but because I didn’t have the passion to follow that track. I became more involved in socializing and making friends. Academics were not a priority. (The whys of all that is another story we might get into later, yea, we probably do need to get into and address that as well). I remember in my junior year at Purdue I made my straight “A” claim to my buddy’s girlfriend. Whether she was just trying to challenge me to get all “A” s and push myself, or maybe she saw more of the clowning around and socializing side of my personality and didn’t think I had it in me, I don’t know. But, the smart side of me did not fail to take advantage of the ensuing bet. I bet her that I could, and we bet dinner on it. So, either I made her dinner, (strictly a friendly dinner, not a date, she was after all my best bud’s girlfriend!) or she made me dinner. And if you know how much I like food, well…The side advantage to this bet would be that the payoff would come after the spring semester was over, and if I lost I would have to go to Atlantic Beach, NC and spend a bunch of days on the beach there and cook her a nice dinner. (Momma didn’t raise no dummy!) Have I digressed? The point of this is that I didn’t really care if I got all “A”’s. And guess what? Surprise, surprise, I didn’t.

10/16/2025

Today we wrap up chapter one...

THURSDAY 10/16

I am hoping that I will continue to grow and to be impacted by the changes God desires for my heart. I hope to be more and more comfortable to go and sit with someone who is eating all alone. And when I discover that he needs new shoes, not to be afraid that God will tell me to take him shoe shopping! I am looking forward even more to the day when I actually seek out those needing shoes. When I look at each and every person as they eat and think,
“What else can I do? What do they need?”
Many times, people are more than happy just to have a conversation with someone who cares, to have someone ask them their name. I hear two or three sentences of their stories as they accept a cup of iced tea. I need to want to go and sit with them and hear the rest of the story. Stories like the one of a tall, thin lady telling me she had lost 50 pounds over the last three months, and “would it be ok” if she came back for second helpings. Then there was the incredibly polite and bubbly, thirty-something lady who gives such heart-warming smiles to the girls serving. I know there is a lot more going on there as well. Then there are always the guys that take their plates and go off and sit by themselves, and then when they are finished, slowly pick up their limited belongings and start a slow walk off to
I don’t know where, and sadly, maybe they don’t know either. There’s a story there. There are stories everywhere. We all have our own stories, stories of heartbreak, dashed dreams, broken promises and betrayal. The difference many times is that we had a family and friends to help us recover. Many of these people have no family. Many have, or have had, drug and/or alcohol dependency issues, which led them to losing many if not all of their friends.
I wonder sometimes how many actual conversations some people have had during the day. Did they have any? When was the last time someone put their hand on their shoulder and asked how they were doing? I pray that I become a better listener, to people and more importantly to God. As he nudges me in one direction or another, what am I doing? Am I responding with a servant’s heart like Christ, or am I thinking how I could save some money by ignoring the barefoot guy walking in the street?
When I pray, when I at times question my resolve thinking that it will cost me something, I need to remember
God’s response. I need to consider the cost and the reward;
I most certainly do now! I have come to realize that the reward I get far exceeds any cost I have incurred. My reward is exemplified in something that happened last week. I was pulling out from under the bridge and heading home. I was thanking God for an amazing night. Thanking Him for showing me the opportunity to serve. Thanking Him for nudging me and thanking Him for making sure I felt the nudge to go across the alley and ask if someone needed water. Because it was in doing so that I was able to be a part of what was a special moment for many, not the least of whom was the guy who neither gave nor received a picture, me! As I was driving out, I came to the main cross street about to turn left. As I slowed to check for traffic, I looked across the road, and there were two of the men we had fed. They were sitting next to each other on the concrete barrier. I started to make my turn, and they looked up at me as I was looking at them. They smiled and waved. I smiled and waved back. Enough said!
I didn’t start out helping under the bridge because I was some amazing person intent on saving the homeless. I just wanted to give something back. Yet, what I provide in terms of bananas and honey buns pales in comparison to the joy I get when I see a two-toothed guy smile at the thought of biting into a cookie, or the joy on people’s faces when they give what little they have in thanks and appreciation, or the look of “I’m slowly turning this around” on a guy’s face when he says “I worked three days this week.”
That first step……. take it……. it’s worth more than you know!

When parents can help instill empathy in their children, the world becomes a much brighter place. It becomes brighter for those serving as well as those receiving. Dean Graziosi relates how he views the homeless and how he hopes his children will view those less fortunate.

Rather than pulling away from someone who is barely dressed, completely dirty, or smells horrible, the lessons I’m able to share with my children are the ones I want to become permanent in their souls. I get to teach my children that we don’t know if the homeless people’s families threw them out, if they were molested, if they were beaten, if they have a severe learning disability that no one noticed. I share with my children that there are a million reasons the homeless could be where they are. Some of them may be on drugs, and may use alcohol, and maybe that’s the only thing that quiets the noises in their heads. I always tell my kids that we have no idea why they are there, but we can wish them well, let them know someone cares, pray for them, and find gratitude for the blessings we’ve had in our own lives. (Graziosi 214).

10/15/2025

Wednesday 10/15

I recall something I wrote years ago in response to I don’t know what. I wrote, “Everyone is handicapped. Some physically. Some mentally. Some emotionally. Some spiritually.” Now I think I would like to add one more. Some are handicapped through their own comfort. Some are so immune to the suffering of others. Whether that isolation occurs physically, geographically or mentally, intentionally or unintentionally, for some of us, it is very real. For those who have never suffered through pain and trials, once you personally experience the heart of the downtrodden you are never the same.

- When a homeless person you’ve been encouraging each week comes up to you and excitedly says, “I worked three days this week!” you begin to appreciate how good you’ve got it.

- When a tall thin guy that you spoke to two weeks ago, who at the time was sitting down eating, with beads of sweat covering his face, and you understood it was hot out, but this sweat wasn’t from the heat. When this guy gets to your end of the food line and looks good and it looks like he’s had a good week, (not that I assume he’s kicked whatever he was on), when you can be glad in the moment for him and know that right now, for a little while anyway, he’s okay, you appreciate your own health and well-being.

- When you hear some of the stories and begin to understand how people have come to where they are, you consider yourself blessed to own a different story.

- When you see the same people line up every week and know the struggle isn’t getting any easier for them, you wish you had their persistence and resilience (I know I don’t!).

- When you realize that some of these people have been in the same clothes for days and days, (and all that that brings with it) and you know that yes, sometimes you can do something about that.

When we see the hurting how can we just turn a blind eye? We can’t be everything to everyone, but we can do something for someone. I’m reminded of the story of the boy at the beach. An old man walking by sees him throwing starfish after starfish back into the water. The old man approaches the boy and says, “Son, there must be a thousand starfish washed up on the beach. You aren’t making a difference! You can’t save them all!” To which the boy replies as he proceeds to hurl another back into the surf, “I’m making a difference for this one!”
I’ll close this chapter as I opened it. When we take small steps, they may seem inconsequential at first, but you know what’s inconsequential? Not taking ANY steps! No one is saying that the fate of the world lies upon your shoulders. What I am saying is that the difference you may be able to make in someone’s life may just be giving them the opportunity to smile. If that is all you can do today, start there. Then think of what you can do tomorrow. Even the smallest of actions oftentimes opens up the doors and allows us to see and gives us added opportunities to help in ways we never imagined.
And the God thing about all this is how He takes what we do and firstly changes everything about it. He takes the blessing we meant for others, the piece of our ego that patted ourselves on the back for helping the less fortunate, and the smile we give ourselves in the mirror each day because we are ‘good’ people, and despite all that self-centeredness, God loves us so much not to point that out to us. He appreciates when we help take care of His kids, and we are ALL His kids, and He turns the blessing in our favor. He blesses us with the gift of genuine empathy for others. He blesses us by allowing us to stretch our boundaries and perspective and appreciate life itself, viewed from the other side of the alley. And we know deep down, and even not so deep down, that the blessings we are receiving are far more valuable that the tidbits we invested in our opportunity. When we can see ourselves growing; when we can see how life works, and see that it doesn’t revolve around us, when we can see the world through God’s eyes, we become so incredibly humbled at how much God loves each and every one of us. We become someone that doesn’t just observe the homeless, but someone who has come to realize it is a problem for us as well. We find a new and welcome responsibility to be there for those who at times can’t even be there for themselves. Then, coming from those tentative first steps we took months ago, we want to reach out and encourage others to volunteer as well. We do this not because we need the help, or the homeless need the help (which they do), but because we have been rewarded in our hearts and it feels good. Good because God changed our perspective, not good because we are bringing food to the bridge and patting ourselves on the back. We feel good about seeing young kids help serve cookies. We feel good when we see one of our youngest servers, sweet Elle, grab bottles of water and walk around asking, “Who needs one?” We feel good for the person getting the dessert, but more so because we know that here are kids that are growing into empathetic people. Without empathy, I don’t believe any lasting, meaningful and significant change occurs, in society or in people!

10/14/2025

Tuesday 10/14
FAITH

Chapter 1 That First Step
“I am shocked by the return of spring. And I wonder,
Can the same thing happen for my soul?
-Eldredge, Desire

When we take small steps, they may seem inconsequential at first. Several months ago, I became aware of a group of people in Charleston, SC, (Feed a Friend Charleston) that were feeding the homeless. I became aware of this through a Facebook posting. There was an invite posted to help out and I responded that I would join them as they served dinner for about 40 homeless people under the bridge at the interstate on Friday evenings. I thought it would be a nice thing to do.
As I am writing about this experience with the homeless, it brings to mind a car sticker I see every now and then. It is a sticker of a dog’s paw, done in black and white, and it says, “Who saved who?” If you aren’t familiar with it, it is a reference to the effect rescuing animals has on the rescuer. The rescuer may often feel they are the ones bestowing a blessing and it turns out that they are the ones being blessed. Many times, we feel as though we will be investing more than we will receive back, yet we do it because we believe it is a good and noble thing to do, and we feel sorry for the animal and its plight. Yet most often, it turns out that we are the ones that are blessed far beyond what we had anticipated. This was much of my motivation when I responded to the invite. I never anticipated the
effect volunteering would have on me! This brings me back under the bridge where I had joined with about seven other adults to set up dinner.
The first evening I just showed up empty-handed to help serve. Others had prepared pans of hot meals and purchased all of the other food. There are always two hot dishes, salad, bread, cookies, fruit, iced tea and water. There are tables and chairs brought in as well. I was very impressed with all of the work that went into this effort.
Before we began serving, we all stepped aside to pray and to thank God for the opportunity to serve and to ask His blessing on us and those that have come to eat. Then as we would make our final preparations, Pastor Jay would go speak a Word to the attendees. When we were ready, the line formed and people of all colors and persuasions came together to eat as one.
I recall last evening as I was filling up the paper cups with iced tea, I heard an older man laughingly say as he was being handed a cookie, “I’ve only got two teeth, but I’ll take one!” I looked up to see the biggest two-toothed smile I had ever seen. (I think the beer guy in the Wrigley field bleachers years and years ago only had one tooth, but that’s another story, and his smile wasn’t nearly as big!) It brought a smile to my face as I saw the happiness radiating from him.
There have been several times when I have had to just pause and reflect on the hearts of those we were serving. We sometimes view the homeless as just people needing a meal. But, these are people with hearts and souls, dreams and desires, and hopes that have been set aside as they deal with the struggles of just surviving. Several weeks ago, as a middle-aged woman was accepting her choice of cookies from a couple of our youngest servers (I imagine the two girls were probably just third graders) she took out two homemade bracelets and handed one to each girl. The look of joy on her face as she saw the smiles on the faces of these two young girls was priceless. Most of the people we serve have close to nothing, yet she sought to give some of the little she had to say, “Thank you” and to do what she could to put smiles on the faces of these two young girls.
I can’t help but think of the lasting impact on the girls. I think of how they will cherish not only the bracelets, and not only the smile from this lady who looked as though she has been living a very hard life, but looking back years from now as to how they were impacted at such a young age by this experience of helping others. Praise to their parents who sought to expand their child’s horizons beyond the comfort of their middle-class neighborhood. I wasn’t there the first day these girls showed up under the bridge under the interstate, but I can imagine their nervousness and apprehension as they set out to help. Thoughts of nervousness, curiosity, wonder, and yes, probably a little bit of fear too, probably ran through their minds as they sat in the car driving with mom. To think of their initial experience that first day and compare it to the smiles on their faces after receiving the bracelets must be an amazing contrast. The independence they exhibit now as they set up their cookie offerings will bring a smile to the face of all who seek to instill empathy in their kids.
A similar story evolved again last night. After I finished re-stocking my table with iced tea, I glanced across the alleyway and saw a guy in his mid-thirties finishing his dinner. I didn’t see that he had anything to drink, so I grabbed a bottle of water and headed over to him. I asked if he wanted a bottle of water and he said, “Yes, thank you.”
(I’ll take a moment here to recognize the thankfulness and politeness of many of the homeless we serve. It was not something I expected, but in all reality, I didn’t know what to expect. But so many are so determined to make an effort to say, “Thank you!” and “God bless you!”)
After I handed this man his water, he said, “I’ve got something here for you guys.” And as he stepped over to his white kitchen trash bag, he reached in and took out two pictures; they were oil on canvas pictures, about 12X12. As he took them out and started to hand them to me, he said, “I thought I was going to have a place, but I don’t.” Ouch! I asked him to hold the pictures. I told him it would mean so much to the young girls serving. I asked him if he would like to give the pictures to them himself. He said he would, so we walked over to the serving tables, he carrying his treasures. (I was impressed with the condition of the pictures, being lugged around in a thin bag as they were. He took great care of them.) I tapped the two girls on the shoulder and asked them to step out as someone had something for them. Their faces started as a look of confusion and then lit up as he showed them the pictures. It turns out he had four pictures and as the girls were choosing theirs, two young boys stepped in to see what the fuss was all about. After the girls had chosen theirs, the boys were all happy with the remaining two. Having gifted his prized possessions, I thanked him as he set off back across the road. The kids were all very excited and after they showed their gifts to their moms, one of the moms went across to say thank you. All the kids followed her. After she thanked him, she took out her phone and asked if she could get a picture of everyone together. You had to see the smile on his face! I couldn’t help but have to wipe away a tear as I watched him stand proudly behind the group of four youngsters.

Chapter 1 That First Step
“I am shocked by the return of spring. And I wonder,
Can the same thing happen for my soul?
-Eldredge, Desire

When we take small steps, they may seem inconsequential at first. Several months ago, I became aware of a group of people in Charleston, SC, (Feed a Friend Charleston) that were feeding the homeless. I became aware of this through a Facebook posting. There was an invite posted to help out and I responded that I would join them as they served dinner for about 40 homeless people under the bridge at the interstate on Friday evenings. I thought it would be a nice thing to do.
As I am writing about this experience with the homeless, it brings to mind a car sticker I see every now and then. It is a sticker of a dog’s paw, done in black and white, and it says, “Who saved who?” If you aren’t familiar with it, it is a reference to the effect rescuing animals has on the rescuer. The rescuer may often feel they are the ones bestowing a blessing and it turns out that they are the ones being blessed. Many times, we feel as though we will be investing more than we will receive back, yet we do it because we believe it is a good and noble thing to do, and we feel sorry for the animal and its plight. Yet most often, it turns out that we are the ones that are blessed far beyond what we had anticipated. This was much of my motivation when I responded to the invite. I never anticipated the
effect volunteering would have on me! This brings me back under the bridge where I had joined with about seven other adults to set up dinner.
The first evening I just showed up empty-handed to help serve. Others had prepared pans of hot meals and purchased all of the other food. There are always two hot dishes, salad, bread, cookies, fruit, iced tea and water. There are tables and chairs brought in as well. I was very impressed with all of the work that went into this effort.
Before we began serving, we all stepped aside to pray and to thank God for the opportunity to serve and to ask His blessing on us and those that have come to eat. Then as we would make our final preparations, Pastor Jay would go speak a Word to the attendees. When we were ready, the line formed and people of all colors and persuasions came together to eat as one.
I recall last evening as I was filling up the paper cups with iced tea, I heard an older man laughingly say as he was being handed a cookie, “I’ve only got two teeth, but I’ll take one!” I looked up to see the biggest two-toothed smile I had ever seen. (I think the beer guy in the Wrigley field bleachers years and years ago only had one tooth, but that’s another story, and his smile wasn’t nearly as big!) It brought a smile to my face as I saw the happiness radiating from him.
There have been several times when I have had to just pause and reflect on the hearts of those we were serving. We sometimes view the homeless as just people needing a meal. But, these are people with hearts and souls, dreams and desires, and hopes that have been set aside as they deal with the struggles of just surviving. Several weeks ago, as a middle-aged woman was accepting her choice of cookies from a couple of our youngest servers (I imagine the two girls were probably just third graders) she took out two homemade bracelets and handed one to each girl. The look of joy on her face as she saw the smiles on the faces of these two young girls was priceless. Most of the people we serve have close to nothing, yet she sought to give some of the little she had to say, “Thank you” and to do what she could to put smiles on the faces of these two young girls.
I can’t help but think of the lasting impact on the girls. I think of how they will cherish not only the bracelets, and not only the smile from this lady who looked as though she has been living a very hard life, but looking back years from now as to how they were impacted at such a young age by this experience of helping others. Praise to their parents who sought to expand their child’s horizons beyond the comfort of their middle-class neighborhood. I wasn’t there the first day these girls showed up under the bridge under the interstate, but I can imagine their nervousness and apprehension as they set out to help. Thoughts of nervousness, curiosity, wonder, and yes, probably a little bit of fear too, probably ran through their minds as they sat in the car driving with mom. To think of their initial experience that first day and compare it to the smiles on their faces after receiving the bracelets must be an amazing contrast. The independence they exhibit now as they set up their cookie offerings will bring a smile to the face of all who seek to instill empathy in their kids.
A similar story evolved again last night. After I finished re-stocking my table with iced tea, I glanced across the alleyway and saw a guy in his mid-thirties finishing his dinner. I didn’t see that he had anything to drink, so I grabbed a bottle of water and headed over to him. I asked if he wanted a bottle of water and he said, “Yes, thank you.”
(I’ll take a moment here to recognize the thankfulness and politeness of many of the homeless we serve. It was not something I expected, but in all reality, I didn’t know what to expect. But so many are so determined to make an effort to say, “Thank you!” and “God bless you!”)
After I handed this man his water, he said, “I’ve got something here for you guys.” And as he stepped over to his white kitchen trash bag, he reached in and took out two pictures; they were oil on canvas pictures, about 12X12. As he took them out and started to hand them to me, he said, “I thought I was going to have a place, but I don’t.” Ouch! I asked him to hold the pictures. I told him it would mean so much to the young girls serving. I asked him if he would like to give the pictures to them himself. He said he would, so we walked over to the serving tables, he carrying his treasures. (I was impressed with the condition of the pictures, being lugged around in a thin bag as they were. He took great care of them.) I tapped the two girls on the shoulder and asked them to step out as someone had something for them. Their faces started as a look of confusion and then lit up as he showed them the pictures. It turns out he had four pictures and as the girls were choosing theirs, two young boys stepped in to see what the fuss was all about. After the girls had chosen theirs, the boys were all happy with the remaining two. Having gifted his prized possessions, I thanked him as he set off back across the road. The kids were all very excited and after they showed their gifts to their moms, one of the moms went across to say thank you. All the kids followed her. After she thanked him, she took out her phone and asked if she could get a picture of everyone together. You had to see the smile on his face! I couldn’t help but have to wipe away a tear as I watched him stand proudly behind the group of four youngsters.

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