A book that spoke to me

I recently read the book, Same Kind of Different as Me, by Ron Hall and Denver Moore and I will never be able to look at people the same way again.

Homeless people scare me and so I treat them differently than I treat other people, differently than I know I should. Whenever I pass someone on the street or in a store I look them in the eye and I smile. But when I see a homeless person I avert my gaze, I do not treat them as my equal, I do not have the courage to look them in the eye and smile.

When Kyle and I took the Crown financial class the teaching on this verse was very convicting to us, "Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.' "They also will answer, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?' "He will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me' Matthew 25:41-45. We felt like giving money to an organization was too easy and not all God was asking of us, so we began to carry water and granola bars in our cars that we would give to them when we saw someone hungry on the streets, but in my heart I continued to not love them the way I know God was asking me to. This book has helped me to see the homeless the way He sees them and has challenged me to love them they way I would love any other person I come in contact with.

It is one of the best books I have ever read and I couldn't recommend it more. It is an amazing true story that you cannot help but be touched by. Despite how it affected my view of homelessness, my favorite thing about the book was watching God work throughout it. I loved reading about the many ways that God spoke to these people, through dreams, prophecy, His word, and wise counsel. It was good for my soul to be reminded that God is always at work and God still speaks to us. It was a good reminder that God wants to use his people in a way that He will receive the glory, it is when we are broken that God can use us best, you don't have to wait till you become a "perfect Christian" to be used by God.

I hope that everyone reads this book, it will stretch you and challenge you and I believe you'll be better for having read it.