So it was Saturday morning at Northampton Jesus Centre and business as usual... or was it.. well not exactly... yes the JC was open, that was usual but sat in the drop in on my arrival was a small group of young men and a young woman all considerably under the age of 30. They were in good spirits, apologetic that a few of the crew were still asleep & so there were just enough of them to open up. "Tim (not his real name) is doing a ring round to get some more people out of bed". I looked over at Tim & thought "If Tim rang me & told me he was at the Jesus Centre & needed me to come in I'D get out of bed!"
(Sure enough we got two more additions less than an hour later!)
So what was so unusual about all of this? Once a quarter we invite our young people to open the Jesus Centre. It's the only time the Centre is virtually fully 'staffed' by young people under 30.
Everything was fine up until right near the end. Tim was signing people in at the window & giving out sandwiches the rest of the guys were chatting to people, playing scrabble & organising showers and clean clothes for those who need them.. there was a good atmosphere. People seemed to respond positively to having different faces around. Tim is a new volunteer but he's already got to know all the regulars and made friends.
Just as we were getting ready to close, Fred (not his real name) came in. He's a regular, in his early 50's, a drinker, not always in the best of moods or easy to please. However, on this occassion he seemed very quiet & within minutes collapsed in a seizure. Things got a bit hectic for a few minutes... we called the paramedics... cleared the drop in and made sure Fred was still conscious.
Fred had had 3 small seizures by the time the paramedics arrived. They tried to pursuade him to go into hospital, concerned that if he had another one he might bang his head on the pavement. Tim and his friend tried to talk him into going with the paramedics. But Fred was having none of it. Then suddenly Tim changed tack & said "Why don't you come back to our place* Fred.. you can get something to eat and a sleep & as soon as you feel well enough we can drop you back in town" (*Tim & his mates live in a large farm house with other Christians in intentional community). Fred had a half hearted banter for a few minutes with Tim & the paramedics & tried to get up & leave but in the end he gave in and agreed to go with Tim & his friends for a few hours.
One of the paramedics was amazed "you guys are fantastic" she exclaimed to Tim & his friends.
Nothing unusual for us.. it's part of what we do as members of New Creation Christian community http://www.newcreation.org.uk/ as an extention of our Jesus Centre project http://www.jesuscentre.org.uk/.
But there was one more thing that was unusual about that Saturday morning shift that challenged me far more than the guys taking Fred home for a few hours. It was watching people responding to Tim signing them in & giving them sandwiches.
Tim lost his sight suddenly about 2 months ago. The last time I'd worked a Saturday morning shift with him he'd been sighted. The next time he'd come in he'd lost the sight in one eye. Now that he'd begun to adjust to he couldn't wait to come in to help out in the drop in. Having experienced homelessness himself he can relate to guys like Fred. But in the midst of a tragic situation he's found hope & determination to keep living... I wish he could have seen the look on Fred's face when he invited him home....
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