Homeless Youth: Spit and Freddy

This past weekend I decided it was worth driving up to my home state of Pennsylvania to do some white water rafting with some of my friends from college. It a three and a half hour drive to Ohiopyle, PA from where I am living. I used Google maps and opted to avoid toll roads to save a little money. The scenic route was beautiful and void of traffic which was very peaceful for about half of the trip. Around six or so that evening I was making my way through Cumberland, Maryland and I saw three teenagers, dressed in the same clothes they have probably been wearing for months holding up a cardboard sign that read "Traveling, Broke, and Hungry." I stared as I waited at the stop light and then drove by like hundreds of vehicles before and after me.

As I continued down the road, the excuses started flowing: "What did I really have to give them? I don't have any cash. What if they tried to take my wallet? What if they pull a gun on me and steal my car? If I give them a ride, it's a pretty huge liability." Somewhere in the next few hours, God hit me hard. I thought "if that was Jesus, I would have pulled over in a heartbeat." Right? The truth is, that was Jesus.

In Matthew 25 Jesus is talking about the Kingdom of Heaven and what it will be like. In the end he will come to separate the sheep and the goats. Picking up from v. 37-45:

 "Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?'

The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'

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.'

This passage wrecked me the rest of my trip. It's not an exaggeration to say that I spent every waking moment with those teenagers on my heart.I prayed fervently for God's forgiveness and that those teenagers would be there when I got back. I wanted so much to give them something. God answers prayers for opportunities to glorify Him.

Sure enough the next day, as I rolled through town, the teenagers were in the same location. I pulled in to the Sheetz across the street to get gas, then to the Rite Aid parking lot where they were standing. I opened up the trunk. I had some fire starters, $6 cash, a granola bar, and my Bible. I walked up and began talking with one of these teens. Her name slips my mind, but three others were there as well. The guy referred to himself as Spit and one of the other girls introduced herself as Freddy. She was married to another boy they were traveling with, but he wasn't around. I gave them what I had and asked about their lives. They didn't want to the Bible, but I offered anyway. I learned that Freddy and her husband had been traveling for about nine years. One of the other girls had only been out about a year. The group travels by hopping trains and depends on the streets near the railways to provide them with food. One group came from Michigan, another from Chicago. They had to stay out of Ohio, because they had gotten in some trouble with the law.

I learned something valuable from these teens. When I drove by them the day before I judged them I decided in those few moments that they weren't worth my time. Besides there are millions like them across the United States and all over the world. These teens have spent most of their lives ignored and neglected and they have become so calloused to affection that they enjoy their lives on the road. I believe those teenagers were more like Jesus than any Christian I've met in the church. They depend fully on each other and the world around them. They ask for help when they need it, because they know they can't do it alone. Most of the world including the local authorities, and workers of the stores where they sit on the street corners are annoyed with them, but they aren't hurt. They keep going on to the next city. They find love in each other. It's not the fullness of love offered by our Savior, but how can they begin to understand a love that has never been shown to them.

Time Magazine put out an article that in 2005 and 2006 there were about 1.5 million homeless youth in America (http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1883966,00.html).  We can only assume the number is higher now with the shape of the economy. This number can be totally disheartening and it should be, but when we make those youth a number we don't really see the pain and the abandon that I saw in the eyes of those teens. Christ has called us to serve all of his people. Some of us are doing that everyday. Some of us have found comfort in our own churches and families and don't see the need around us. I pray that our eyes would be opened, that we would see Jesus in the people that are hungry, and thirsty and we would provide for them. They might be your next door neighbor.

I don't want to stand before Jesus as he points out every time I drove by when I could have helped one of His children because the miracle of what God has created is in each and every human being no matter how young or old, rich or poor, annoying or pleasant, clean or dirty. God loves them and He wants to use us to share that love. We can't ignore what is right in front us, but we do it every day. I don't want this story to be a sap story. Yes, what I saw was terrible, but instead of dwelling on it, do something about it. Share the love. It is what you're called to do.