Break my Heart for What Breaks Yours

Every day we do ministry in Detroit I am absolutely in awe of all the Lord does! I can't believe I am lucky enough to be part of even a small sliver of the work He is doing here. This past week I lead the prayer walks in Cass Corridor, and it was such a blessing. Cass, which for a long time has been where a large population of the homeless population of Detroit spend their time, has a very special place in my heart. It was there on my trips as a student that the Lord broke my heart for the city and people of Detroit. It has been very special to lead and watch as the Lord does the same thing in the hearts of this week's group that he did in mine 6 years ago. Somehow it never gets any easier walking the street and talking to the individuals sitting on the curb. It doesn't get easier listening to their stories through slurred words and the random irrelevant information that they sometimes include. It doesn't get easier holding their hands as we pray or giving them hugs, knowing that that may be the only positive physical contact they ever get. It doesn't get easier looking in their eyes and telling them they are loved, not only by you but by a heavenly father, and being met only by a blank empty stare, or on the other end being met by genuine tears as that is the first time they have ever been told that. It doesn't get easier praying for them, hoping that something sticks and that they seek a genuine relationship with the Lord. And it definitely doesn't get easier walking away and coming back to the Detroit Love building with a heavy sadness on your heart, hurting that our world is broken enough that anyone would have to live the lives they do. These are real people who have adapted to a normal that I never even have to imagine. Though they are no less of a person that I am, society treats them as though they are. However, sharing the hope we have in the Lord does get easier! Knowing that you have been graciously given an answer to all the brokenness the world holds makes walking up to a complete stranger to pray and share the gospel so much less scary. I am grateful for the boldness the Lord has granted me through my years of ministry here, so that I have the ability to do this as a job.

Tuesday we met a man who honestly was in the worst mental condition I have ever seen. This man walked up to us and was very erratic. Though he could somewhat hold a conversation, it never amounted to much of anything meaningful. He ended up doing most of the praying, not giving us much time to say anything impactful, and was saying things that made little to no sense. Immediately after our interaction with him we saw what seemed to be a prostitute take money from a man and go off with him. Throughout that walk we also saw multiple drug deals. The group with me that day got to see the worst of the worst in Detroit. These interactions weighed heavy on my heart, and I had a knot in my chest that was hard to shake for the rest of the day. If what we saw weighed so heavy on the heart of someone who had seen these things before, how was it affecting the people who had never been anywhere like Detroit or seen anything even close to that? This week the people on the street have been the main focus of my prayers. Prayers for peace, healing, answers, comfort, and freedom from the addictions and lifestyles that hold them in chains. These individuals are PRECIOUS to the Lord, and therefore they are precious to me. They are his children, and his masterpieces, and He loves them dearly, so I strive to love them as well. I can only attempt to love them to the degree He does, and I will never add up. However, simply listening to their stories and holding their hand as we pray shows them more love in five minutes than they are shown by those around them every day, and I need to constantly remind myself of that knowing that He is going to do the majority of the work. The group has also been in my prayers. Prayers for transformation, growth, and changed mindsets. My time in Detroit as a student in 2017, 2018, and 2019 radically changed who I was and what I wanted to do with my life. Those trips opened my eyes to things I had never understood or experienced before, and every time I went home a piece of my heart was left here. I pray that this past week's group, and every group going forward, gets to experience what I did.

Through all of this I have seen the Lord answer a prayer I have prayed time and time again: "break my heart for what breaks yours." I grew up in a place where I didn't see homelessness. That isn't to say it didn't exist, but it was something that didn't exist out in the open and honestly was something I avoided because I was told that homeless individuals were "dangerous." The Lord absolutely shattered any wrong preconceptions I ever had about those experiencing homeless, and put empathy and love in their place. I am grateful for the new perspectives I have been given through my time and Detroit, and excited about the passions the Lord has placed in my heart for the people here. Needless to say, I am going to continue to ask Him to break my heart for what breaks His!