The Christmas message, simple but profound

 

This is how I met Sharon. After the message, as I stood handing out gifts of hand knitted scarves and hats, a middle-aged woman with straggly blonde hair made a beeline towards me and asked if we could talk. I began to listen as she unveiled her story about life on the streets, being in an abusive relationship and now living in a shelter full of violence and drama.

After hearing the Christmas message she was touched by the idea of God understanding her pain and the good news of joy. Now she was ready to commit her life to God. With tears in her eyes we prayed together. When asked if she'd like a Bible her face lit up and she excitedly talked about how reading scripture will help her in the otherwise dismal shelter environment. She gave me a hug and said thank you again and again. We invited her to come back to our drop-in center and that we wanted to support her in whatever way possible.

I left that day with a reminder of the reality of Christmas. Yes, it was an event that happened many years ago. But today, God had come to earth, met with a special woman named Sharon and the angels once again proclaimed joy to the world, the Lord has come!

There are countless women like Sharon in our city, trafficked, abused and without hope. We offer nail painting afternoons, outreach to strip clubs and regular outreaches in the Tenderloin to make connections with these ladies, offering prayer, referrals to housing and safety, as well as the hope that life can be better.