11 Year Old Brenden Foster's Dying Wish

Today, while celebrating a belated Thanksgiving meal with homeless family, the conversation drifted not to the talk on the streets, but we marvelled at the recent words of a child.

On November 21st, reporter Elisa Jaffe for Seattle’s KOMO TV 4 reported the story of Brenden Foster, “an old soul in an 11 year old's body.”

"I should be gone in a week or so," 11 year old Leukemia patient Brended Foster said calmly.

But most profoundly, this young boy surrounded by symbols of his faith – a crucifix and statues of saints, said that his dying wish was to help the homeless.

"They're probably starving, so give'em a chance," he said, "food and water."

But Brenden was too ill to feed them on his own. So volunteers from Emerald City Lights Bike Ride passed out some 200 sandwiches to the homeless in Seattle.

Then Brenden's last wish took on a life of its own.

A TV station in Los Angeles held a food drive. School kids in Ohio collected cans. People in Pensacola, Florida gathered goods.

And in Western Washington, Brenden’s home, KOMO TV viewers from all over took part in the Stuff the Truck food drive in his honor. Hundreds with generous hearts donated six and a half huge truck loads of groceries and more than $60,000 in cash to benefit Northwest Harvest and Food Lifeline.

Brenden touched hearts all over the world. His wish came true, and he lived to see it. "He's left a legacy and he's only 11," said his mother, Wendy Foster. "He's done more than most people dream of doing just by making a wish."

Days before dying, Brenden surprised us with a sudden burst of energy. He wanted to get off the oxygen, hop out of bed and go buy a video game. Wise beyond his years, but still a kid.

When asked what made him sad, Brenden said, "When someone gives up."
______

VOTE – Scroll down & vote in the polls.
COMMENT – Daily insights, prayers, thanksgiving & praise.
SUBSCRIBE! –Top, right column.
LIST – Yourself as a blog “Follower” middle right column.
INVITE – Friends and family to Subscribe!
http://www.homelessinamerica.blogspot.com/
Visit – http://www.thisbibletalksblog.blogspot.com/

On Thanksgiving, Grace Flows from Gratitude

Did "God shed His grace on thee?" On Thanksgiving Day, the homeless in America have many things to teach us who think we are rich. When the last meal was not as good as usual, I am thankful for what I was given - grace flows from gratitude. When the house requires more work than usual, I am thankful for the shelter - grace flows from gratitude. When going to work becomes a complaint, I am thankful for the income - grace flows from gratitude. When the mattress becomes less comfortable today than it was the night before, I am thankful for my bed - grace flows from gratitude. When my companions in life seem to bring more work than they bring joy, I am thankful for friends - grace flows from gratitude. On this Thanksgiving Day, the homeless in America have many things to teach us who think we are rich.

Adapted from HIA - bottom main page

______

VOTE – Scroll down & vote in the polls.
COMMENT – Daily insights, prayers, thanksgiving & praise.
SUBSCRIBE! –Top, right column.
LIST – Yourself as a blog “Follower” middle right column.
INVITE – Friends and family to Subscribe!
http://www.homelessinamerica.blogspot.com/
Visit – http://www.thisbibletalksblog.blogspot.com/

O God, Please Hear Us!

Whosoever stops up his ears at the cry of the poor, he also will cry himself, but will not be heard. - Proverbs 21:13

For the homeless, it gets bone chilling cold and damp living under the bridges and in the alleyways of downtown Los Angeles this time of year. The chilly Pacific-driven winds and rains can last for days and catch many unprepared. On December 21st, Servants of the Father of Mercy will deliver winter supplies in conjunction with the celebration of Christmas and those homeless who are still living out Jesus’ birth; “There was no room for them in the inn.”

Within the next three weeks, we hope to gain enough winter supplies to help 150 men, women and teenagers on December 21st. By giving alms, you can help too. You may choose to assign 100% of your donation to any of the following needs:

* Sweat pants and sweat shirts
* Athletic socks and underwear
* Blankets and warm sleeping bags
* T-shirts
* Sweaters and jackets
* Tangerines
* Bottled water
* Packaged individual snacks
* Bibles and prayer aids

Also, you may wish to support SFM administrative costs that keep the organization growing and giving - for such things as phone, internet, office, etc. Indicate that as well if you are donating to help SFM serve. Please write us and let us know where you wish your alms to go. Checks may be made out to …

Servants of the Father of Mercy, Inc.
P.O. Box 42001
Los Angeles, CA 90042

Also, you may wish to participate in helping SFM to deliver the supplies. Email us at Contact@ServantsoftheFather.org in order to reserve your spot on our team in helping with this StreetReach.
______

VOTE – Scroll down & vote in the polls.
COMMENT – Daily insights, prayers, thanksgiving & praise.
SUBSCRIBE! –Top, right column.
LIST – Yourself as a blog “Follower” middle right column.
INVITE – Friends and family to Subscribe!
http://www.homelessinamerica.blogspot.com/
Visit – http://www.thisbibletalksblog.blogspot.com/

The Reality of U.S. War Veterans

Reality Bites for Approximately 700,000 Men and Women -

More troops than those currently serving in the Mid East wars and conflicts...

23% of the homeless population is made up of veterans.
33% of homeless males are veterans.
47% are Vietnam Era
17% are post Vietnam Era
15% are pre Vietnam Era
67% served this country for three years or more.
33% were stationed in a war zone.
25% have used VA services.
85% completed high school/GED compared to 56% non-veteran homeless.
89% received Honorable Discharges.
79% reside in central cities.
16% reside in suburban areas.
5% in rural areas.
76% experience alcohol, drug or mental health problems.
______

More on the Internet
http://www.nchv.org/
______

VOTE – Scroll down & vote in the polls.
COMMENT – Daily insights, prayers, thanksgiving & praise.
SUBSCRIBE! –Top, right column.
LIST – Yourself as a blog “Follower” middle right column.
INVITE – Friends and family to Subscribe!
http://www.homelessinamerica.blogspot.com/
Visit – http://www.thisbibletalksblog.blogspot.com/

May they be Imitated

Sell your possessions, and give to the needy. Provide yourselves with moneybags that do not grow old, with a treasure in the heavens that does not fail, where no thief approaches and no moth destroys. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. Luke 12:33-34

Undertaking lives of charity, the saints lived out the Lord's call to serve the poor - as a result they are not to be adored, for that is for God alone - they are to be imitated. The saints consecrated themselves to the care of the sick, the homeless, the outcast and dying. In their mercy, they were shown mercy. In return for their heroic ability to follow Christ in His poverty - the saints were blessed with many gifts and favors from the Lord. May they never be adored - but may they be imitated in all of our lives, hearts, minds and souls.
______

VOTE – Scroll down & vote in the polls.
COMMENT – Daily insights, prayers, thanksgiving & praise.
SUBSCRIBE! –Top, right column.
LIST – Yourself as a blog “Follower” middle right column.
INVITE – Friends and family to Subscribe!
http://www.homelessinamerica.blogspot.com/
Visit – http://www.thisbibletalksblog.blogspot.com/

Your Emptiness will be Satisfied

For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sake He became poor, so that you through His poverty might become rich. 2 Corinthians 8:9

All of the Christian rites and Sacraments use humble elements such as bread, wine and oil. These humble elements point to the profound humility, poverty and holiness of Christ Jesus.

We pray ...
Lord Jesus, through your humility exemplified in a manger and on the cross you revealed yourself as poor though rich. Lord you did not show us yourself as high and mighty, but as a servant. Lord, you continuously reveal yourself in the humble elements of the waters of Baptism, the bread and the wine of the Eucharist and the oil of Confirmation and Anointing of the Sick.

We reflect ...
Humility and humble elements do not make much sense to those who in their arrogance crave things of the world, riches and goods. The noisy lusts of the world deafen the soul. Our spirit hungers and it receives no relief. Many try to flee death in their arrogance by acquiring more things, by excessive work, shopping, sports and other addictions. However, these pursuits keep them from the humble knowledge of the Lord and His Sacraments. For the sick, the crushed and the poor, their humility allows them to readily welcome Christ into their lives. Their emptiness and need will be nourished and satisfied in the most humble elements of the Sacraments. These modest elements spell loss for those who are not being saved, but they are amazingly recognized by those who depend on them for eternal life.

______

VOTE – Scroll down & vote in the polls.
COMMENT – Daily insights, prayers, thanksgiving & praise.
SUBSCRIBE! –Top, right column.
LIST – Yourself as a blog “Follower” middle right column.
INVITE – Friends and family to Subscribe!
http://www.homelessinamerica.blogspot.com/
Visit – http://www.thisbibletalksblog.blogspot.com/

Is it all about me?

This is the fasting that I wish: Sharing your bread with the hungry, sheltering the oppressed and the homeless; Clothing the naked when you see them. Isaiah 58:6-7

Let us pray ...
R Forgive us our trespasses, O Lord!

For being caught up in the trap that, "life's all about me."
- that I may find a way to help the hungry and learn that life's "all about helping others." R

For being complacent with the homeless.
- that I may move out of my comfort zone and get in the zone and see how the poor really live. R

For the times when I could have given my sweater or jacket to the cold and lonely.
- that the naked will always find warmth and comfort in my charity. R
______

VOTE – Scroll down & vote in the polls.
COMMENT – Daily insights, prayers, thanksgiving & praise.
SUBSCRIBE! –Top, right column.
LIST – Yourself as a blog “Follower” middle right column.
INVITE – Friends and family to Subscribe!
http://www.homelessinamerica.blogspot.com/
Visit – http://www.thisbibletalksblog.blogspot.com/

On being William, a Teenager and being Homeless, Part IV

By William Dominguez, 18
(Final Post of a 4-part Series)

Continued from Tuesday, November 11, 2008 …

After just a week, I got picked up by the cops one night because I was falling asleep in a shopping center in West Hills. They asked, "What are those marks on your arms?" I told them I was feeling suicidal so they took me to the hospital. I was happy because I had food, a shower every day and a warm bed to sleep in.

Because of my running away and drug history, I was sent to a locked-down group home in Culver City called Vista Del Mar. I stayed there for more than a year. Sometimes I would act like I was back on the streets. I wouldn't sleep or eat for a few days and sometimes I did drugs. I still get the cravings to do drugs, but I've stayed clean.

Finally, someone believed in me!

One time when I was 18 they pissed me off to the point where I just walked out the front door. One of the staff stopped me by the gate. But they didn't kick me out. I don't know why. I guess they saw something in me. They said, "William, we know what you're going through. We're going to work with you." I guess they knew I was frustrated. I was 18 in a locked-up facility with no family, no freedom. They thought I was a good person. holy crap. That made me feel weird. If they had kicked me out, I would have been on the streets for good.

A few months later I graduated from Vista. When I found out I was going to transitional housing, which is where older foster youth live, I had nightmares where I was back on the streets. I had been a screwup my whole life. I was worried that I'd screw up and get kicked out.

In transitional living I get more freedom. I can go out for 24 hours on the weekend and spend the night at a friend's house. It's still hard because I'm not used to having a roof over my head, being able to eat three square meals a day and having people that care about me, like the staff and my friends. I still sometimes want to AWOL but I don't. I'm older and wiser. I know I have no place to go to.

For the first time, I have plans for the future. I want to go to a trade school to learn roofing. I also want to get my own place soon. Then I'll have all the freedom I want. I know I won't return to drugs. I don't want to end up like my biological father in prison.

Like they say in the movie Friday, "You win some, you lose some, but you live. You live to fight another day." My past is part of me. It will follow me wherever I go, but hopefully it will be put in the past. Sometimes I don't regret living on the streets because it made me wiser. I know what I have to do to survive. I'm going to get a job and be somebody.
______

VOTE – Scroll down & vote in the polls.
COMMENT – Daily insights, prayers, thanksgiving & praise.
SUBSCRIBE! –Top, right column.
LIST – Yourself as a blog “Follower” middle right column.
INVITE – Friends and family to Subscribe!
http://www.homelessinamerica.blogspot.com/
Visit – www.ThisBibleTalksBlog.BlogSpot.com

On being William, a Teenager and being Homeless, Part III

By William Dominguez, 18
Continued from Sunday, November 9, 2008 …

"Can I borrow a dollar?"

I had to beg for money. I would ask for 50 cents or a dollar. I'd say, "Can I borrow a dollar so I can catch the bus?" I asked guys with their wives or girlfriends because they were more likely to help a kid out. Some people would look at me and say, "What a waste" or "Get the hell away from me, you bum." The ones who felt sorry for me would give me money and say "Poor kid." On a good day, I made $40 to $60. I'd go get something to eat. Then I'd buy drugs, alcohol and cigarettes with the rest of it. I smoked a lot of cigarettes and crystal meth. Drugs were more important than food. That's how it is for addicts.

It was scary at times. One time I was hanging out with this guy who had done a stupid drug deal. Later, we were sitting on a park bench and the guy he'd ripped off came back and started shooting at us. I ducked and fell to the ground. It was an adrenaline rush. I saw my life flash before my eyes. Luckily, we didn't get hurt.

While I was homeless, I thought of myself as nothing. I had no feelings whatsoever. I couldn't see myself still alive because of all the drugs I was doing, all the stuff I was seeing, all the people I was ripping off. I was breaking into houses and robbing them. I was afraid I would get caught. I thought I would overdose or get killed. Seeing little kids with their families was hard. I wished I had a family of my own.

I don't remember exactly when or how old I was, but I moved to the San Fernando Valley because it was familiar. I also had friends from middle school there. Once or twice a week I would shower or get something to eat at a friend's house. I made sure to go to different friends' houses so they wouldn't find out I was homeless. I'd tell them, "No one's at my house and I don't have a key."

My best friend got me into a crew. A crew is like a gang but you can get out when you want and they do smaller crimes like tagging. Being in the crew meant a lot to me. They were like family. They gave me food, a place to take a shower and sometimes a place to sleep. I would sometimes tag with them. They gave me the name AWOL after I told them how I ran away.

But one day I was asleep at a park and the cops came by. They saw me and ran my name through the police computer. I came up as a runaway so they took me in. I was mad because I was used to staying on the streets and living on my own. I had been on the streets for a year. I didn't want to go back to a group home.

After that, I was in and out of 13 group homes. I'd run away or get kicked out for having dirty drug tests. Each time I left I thought, "Here we go again." I would stay on the streets for one or two months, sleeping in parks or churches, then I would turn myself in. I don't remember much about this time because I don't want to and my memory is messed up.

I do remember that I went back to my crew for help. But they turned their backs on me. They said they weren't going to help me because I had lied to them about God knows what. But my best friend from the crew, Tommy, knew I hadn't lied so he let me stay with him. But I felt like I was interfering with his life. I was wearing his clothes and eating his food. I felt bad, so I left and was all alone again.

One night I woke up in the middle of the night crying, wishing I had a family to go to. I regretted leaving Tommy's house. I thought about selling myself for food and money, but I didn't.

I hit a breaking point when I was at a party with Tommy. I got in a fight and some guy came behind me and stabbed me in the side. That was it. I called my social worker and got the number for a runaway shelter in Hollywood. I stayed there for two months. I went to Narcotics Anonymous to get help with my drug problem, went to therapy and got my stab wound healed.

Then I was put in a foster home in Pacoima near San Fernando. But my rival crew was in the area. I got into fights and got threats every day. They'd say, "I'm gonna kill you. Get the hell out of this neighborhood." My foster mom didn't do a thing about it. So I ran away from there, too.

I felt really jacked up in the head when I realized I was going to be on the streets again. I was really scared that I would go back to my old ways of drugs and alcohol. After spending so long on the streets I felt like I had lost my mind. I had been stabbed. I had been shot at. I had seen people get shot and die or die from an overdose. I was tired of it. I started stealing and cutting myself and trying to overdose. I wanted to get caught. I wanted to die. To be continued …

______

VOTE – Scroll down & vote in the polls.
COMMENT – Daily insights, prayers, thanksgiving & praise.
SUBSCRIBE! –Top, right column.
LIST – Yourself as a blog “Follower” middle right column.
INVITE – Friends and family to Subscribe!
http://www.homelessinamerica.blogspot.com/
Visit – www.ThisBibleTalksBlog.BlogSpot.com

On being William, a Teenager and being Homeless, Part II

By William Dominguez, 18

Continued from Saturday, November 8, 2008 …

I was in three group homes over the next month but from each one I went AWOL. I would hang out on the streets by myself until I got stopped by police for being out past curfew. The cops would bring me back to the group home, but the staff wouldn't take me back.

Running away was my first instinct

Then I was placed at a group home in Pasadena. It was cool because the staff listened to my problems. I stayed there for a year until I got caught with weed. They said they were going to kick me out. I thought that was unfair because it was nothing big. It was only weed. I was mad so I went upstairs, packed my bag and left. I took the bus to my friend's house in downtown L.A. As always, I didn't know how long I was going to be on my own.

I liked it at first. The freedom, drugs and everything were freakin' great. My friend's mom told me I had to get a job to help with rent. I tried to get a fast-food job or anything I could get. I filled out applications and asked if they had openings. But no one wanted to hire a kid with no education and who was a runaway. So after a few months, my friend's mom kicked me out.

I went to MacArthur Park near downtown. It was cold and smelled really bad. There were a lot of drug addicts and jumpings. I'd make friends and they would be like, "You wanna get high?" I started doing crack cocaine and other drugs like crystal meth, coke and speed. I had never used those drugs before, but when I was on drugs, I didn't worry about falling asleep, getting caught or eating.

When I wasn't high I would go to the library and go to sleep far away in the corner. Sometimes on Sundays I would go to the park and play basketball.

At night I would sleep in the jungle gym, in the slide that was a tube, because it was warmer. When it rained I would sleep under the freeway bridge. Once in a while I could get a good night's sleep. But other nights I couldn't because I was worried about getting caught by the police. Every now and then I would hear gunfire and it would keep me up at night.

My clothes were dirty and ripped. I smelled like piss and body odor. I would eat out of garbage cans or steal food. Before I started living on the streets I was a good 135 pounds. I lost a lot of weight. I looked like a twig. I would go a few days without eating. For the first couple days I would be starving, but on the third day the hunger went away and I couldn't feel anything. To be continued …
______

VOTE – Scroll down & vote in the polls.
COMMENT – Daily insights, prayers, thanksgiving & praise.
SUBSCRIBE! –Top, right column.
BECOME - a blog "Follower" middle right column.
INVITE – Friends and family to Subscribe!
http://www.homelessinamerica.blogspot.com/
Visit – http://www.thisbibletalksblog.blogspot.com/

On being William, a Teenager and being Homeless, Part I

By William Dominguez, 18
In 4 Parts

Maybe you have seen those smelly homeless guys asking for money. But did you ever stop to think that one of them might actually be a teenager? I spent a year and nine months on the streets. What I saw and experienced, no teenager should have to go through.

I grew up in an abusive family. When I was a little kid, I would stay out as long as I could around my neighborhood and at the park to avoid getting beat by my dad. When I was 5, my dad burned me on the stove and I was put into foster care.

I spent eight years in one foster home in the San Fernando Valley. I liked it. It was actually a normal family. We had dinner together. But I'd still get sick of it sometimes because I was the middle child and would get blamed for everything. I also got into fights with my foster parents over stupid things like my room being clean or homework. Sometimes I would run away for weeks and go to a friend's house. I was used to running away. The streets were like my home.

But when I was 13, I was taken out of my foster home. Social workers said there wasn't enough food or clothes and supposedly my foster dad was beating my little brother and sisters. I was sad to leave and surprised because I didn't think those things were true. I was placed in a group home where I lived with five other foster youth.

Going to a group home after spending so long in one place was hard. I didn't like how the group home staff didn't care when I told them I was getting picked on by the other kids because I was the new kid in the house. To be continued …

______

VOTE – Scroll down & vote in the polls.
COMMENT – Daily insights, prayers, thanksgiving & praise.
SUBSCRIBE! –Top, right column.
INVITE – Friends and family to Subscribe!
http://www.homelessinamerica.blogspot.com/
Visit – http://www.thisbibletalksblog.blogspot.com/

Jesus was Homeless

Jesus was both poor and for much of his life he was also homeless; practically from his birth as he was born in a barn because there was no room for him in an inn. He had a lower-class upbringing, as a cabinetmaker's son. That was a trade usually marginal and itinerant in his time. He chose his followers from the lower class, from fisher- men, dependent on the season's catch, or from a despised trade (tax collection for the Romans). There were no Scribes or scholars of the Law in his following.

Jesus not only favored the homeless, He was himself homeless, born homeless and living homeless during his public life, he said … "Foxes have lairs, and birds have nests in air, but the Son of Man has nowhere to put down his head" (Mt 8.20). He depended on others to shelter him. He especially depended on women, who were "second-class citizens" in his culture. He was not a philosopher. He wrote nothing for his followers to come. He depended on his uneducated followers to express what he meant. He knew that the Spirit moving them had no need of men with Ph.D.s or with grants from learned foundations (1 Cor 1.20). He was born homeless and on the run, fleeing Herod. He was buried homeless, in a sepulcher that was donated last minute by another. That is the true story of the Lord Jesus - stripped bare of modern trappings, crucifixes, altars, gold and mystical glamour - behold you King!

______

VOTE – Scroll down & vote in the polls.

COMMENT – Daily insights, prayers, thanksgiving & praise.

SUBSCRIBE! –Top, right column.

INVITE – Friends and family to Subscribe!

http://www.homelessinamerica.blogspot.com/

Visit – http://www.thisbibletalksblog.blogspot.com/

Let us Pray ...

But it was for our sins he was wounded, and for our evil doings he was crushed: he took the punishment by which we have peace, and by his wounds we are healed. Isaiah 53:5

Let us pray to the Lord Jesus Christ our Healer:

R Grant healing, Lord, grant peace.

* To the victims of hate, gang violence and physical abuse: R

* To the bitter, confused, anxious and persecuted: R

* To the kind who find no kindness from others: R

* To the compassionate who meet no compassion in others: R

* To the lonely and cast aside who still choose to love and forgive others: R

______

VOTE – Scroll down & vote in the polls.
COMMENT – Daily insights, prayers, thanksgiving & praise.
SUBSCRIBE! –Top, right column.
INVITE – Friends and family to Subscribe!
http://www.homelessinamerica.blogspot.com/
Visit – http://www.thisbibletalksblog.blogspot.com/

The Lord is compassionate and so we too must be the same!

Thus says the Lord, you shall not molest or oppress the immigrant, for you were once immigrants yourselves in the land of Egypt. Do not take advantage of a widow or an orphan. If you do and they cry out to me, I will certainly hear their cry. My anger will be aroused, and I will kill you with the sword; your wives will become widows and your children fatherless. If you lend money to one of my people among you who is needy, do not be like a moneylender; charge him no interest. If you take your neighbor's cloak as a pledge, return it to him by sunset, because his cloak is the only covering he has for his body. What else will he sleep in? When he cries out to me, I will hear, for I am compassionate. Exodus 22:20-27

______

VOTE – Scroll down & vote in the polls.
COMMENT – Daily insights, prayers, thanksgiving & praise.
SUBSCRIBE! –Top, right column.
INVITE – Friends and family to Subscribe!
http://www.homelessinamerica.blogspot.com/
Visit – www.ThisBibleTalksBlog.BlogSpot.com

The homeless schizophrenic man off his meds, who says he is Jesus Christ, is Jesus Christ “in a distressing disguise”

"Jesus has come to reveal to us the merciful face of the Father. In a world of suffering and violence, of injustice and pain, the love and mercy of our God is manifest to us in Christ. He has come to reveal the Father's love and mercy for all, especially those in pain and in want.

"We who are His Church are called to carry out these tasks in today’s world. The concept of a preferential love for the poor is not a modern concept. In the Gospels the poor, the sick, the marginalized, are the protagonists, and Jesus defines His mission in terms of being sent to bring glad tidings to such as these. Jesus tells us that he prefers mercy to sacrifice.

"The homeless schizophrenic man off his meds, who says he is Jesus Christ, is Jesus Christ “in a distressing disguise,” as Mother Teresa used to say. Jesus is present to us in the least of our brothers and sisters. He is with us in the hungry, the poor, the Alzheimer’s patient, the unborn, and the homeless person with AIDS, all of whom have a claim on our love. He is here where two or three are gathered in His name. Here we recognize Him in the breaking of the Bread and in His Sacraments. We recognize Christ present in His Church. We must not only look busy, we must be busy fulfilling the great command He has given us to carry on His mission."

Excerpt from the homily of Cardinal Sean O’Malley on the

occasion of his installation as Archbishop of Boston

______

VOTE – Scroll down & vote in the polls.
COMMENT – Daily insights, prayers, thanksgiving & praise.
SUBSCRIBE! –Top, right column.
INVITE – Friends and family to Subscribe!
http://www.homelessinamerica.blogspot.com/
Visit – http://www.thisbibletalksblog.blogspot.com/