Several years ago (when I was still in that special place of deep faith and trust) some friends joined us downtown to pass out care packages to the homeless. A snag in our plan resulted in us bringing these items to a homeless shelter, which happened to be across the street from what was blatantly a gang house. After parking, I got out of the car to notify the homeless shelter that we had arrived. Immediately, a man stepped off of the porch of that gang house, crossed the street, and walked toward me.
I am not a large woman by any means. I am just over five feet tall and not far past one hundred pounds. I am confident that I am not physically intimidating to anyone (including my middle school students) because the majority of the population (even 95% of them) is much larger than I am. Yet as I walked through what could be considered enemy territory, toward someone who had great potential to harm me (especially considering he was holding onto a gun that was tucked into the front of his jeans), I had zero fear. I continued on my mission; I came there to serve a community with my family and my friend’s family, and fear had no place between me and the completion of that mission.
I continued walking to the security gate of the shelter, and this man continued walking toward me. When he was within just a couple of feet of me, I greeted him and asked how he was doing. He looked at me, hand still clutching the gun under his shirt, and returned the greeting.
In the eyes of the world, what I did was senseless…irresponsible, even. When I share this story with people, they either question my sanity or are fascinated by what they call my courage. I completely sympathize with those questioning my sanity. It was obvious it was a gang house, there were multiple men posted on the front steps who were likely also armed, and there was a man who approached me whom I knew nothing about except that he had come from that gang house and that he was carrying a weapon. Yet still, I walked toward him (and subsequently, closer to the house) and initiated a conversation with him. And after that, I went about my business unloading and passing out care packages. It was an act of partially blind faith. And, to the world, partially blind faith appears senseless and irresponsible.
Exiting a vehicle when a man carrying a gun who just exited a gang house is walking toward you does appear senseless and irresponsible…until you consider what I was called to do. I was called to serve each of those homeless people, which meant that I was called to love them. Because I was called to that place to do that task, there was nothing that could get in the way of me rising to that calling…not even what the world would deem to be a potentially dangerous situation.
Because when you enter into enemy territory with the power of the Holy Spirit, everything is different.