The power of prayer...

Last Thursday we hit the streets again fully loaded with hand warmers, gloves, hot chocolate, coffee, and snacks. May I remind you that we don't have many cold days in Texas but Thursday was most definitely an exception. IT WAS FREEZING!! It wasn't bad until the sun went down and the wind picked up. Our friend Mandy went with us to experience the joy of giving. We told her we were going to be busy and there really wasn't enough time to explain how everything works so she would just have to get out and go with the flow. She did exactly that. We went to Austin Street first and we all got out and I handed Mandy the hot chocolate and said okay, you're the hot chocolate scooper so get busy. So she went down the line and scooped hot chocolate like a pro. :)

Luckily there wasn't as many people outside as there usually is. It was a good day to throw a newbie in. We visited and prayed with a lot of the guys out there. Some for their continued success of getting back on their feet and some for strength to make it through the day. Our friend Cotton was having a really bad day. Actually we've seen his attitude deteriorate drastically since the first time we met him. The streets are really wearing him down. He said he got what was coming to him the other day. He had gone out and got tanked on Vodka and came to the shelter and was running his mouth and he got his butt stomped. He said he deserved everything he got. I asked him if he wanted us to pray for him before we left and he said yes. So we prayed for him and when we were through he was wiping the tears out from behind his sunglasses.

Before we left we went inside to say hi to Sherman and Duane. While we were in there DeAngelo (a friend we haven't seen in months) came up to me and asked if we could pray. So DeAngelo, Mandy, Scottie and I circled around and grabbed hands and someone walking by said "Hey, can I get in on that?", and then another one and another one. We just stood there holding hands as the circle grew bigger and bigger. I couldn't stop myself from smiling. We asked for specific prayer request and then jumped right in. I started the prayer off and it kept going around the circle, it was awesome. I can't think of any other word to explain it. After the last prayer was said we all said amen and DeAngelo gave us a hug and said he had to go before he started crying. He said he considered us family and he really loved us.

God was moving within those prayer circles, the evidence was in the tears.

After leaving Austin Street we went down by the Gospel Mission and handed out hot chocolate to the guys down there. Since this was Mandy's first time out we took her back to her car before it got dark and then Scottie and I hit the streets again. We went by Kenneth's usual spot so we could buy more jewelry from him and he was there waiting on us. We bought almost all he had with him and put a little cash in his pocket. He didn't have the necklace Scottie was wanting so we made plans to meet him at the Library the next day. After we left Kenneth we stopped by the Family Gateway Center and passed out stuff for about 30 mins before going to the resource center.

When we got to the resource center Scottie and I were way out numbered. It's almost impossible for two people to man that size of a crowd. We handed the first person in line a stack of cups and told them to take one and pass it back and I was the hot chocolate scooper and the cracker passer outer and Scottie was the hot water and coffee guy. When we're at the resource center we have absolutely no time to talk or pray with anyone, especially if it's just Scottie and I. Sometimes visits at the resource center are challenging physically and mentally. It's just such a demand. It can easily drain you.

We did see Terry, Tom, Jennifer, Jody and Tami at the Resource Center. They were getting in doors for the night. I was so thankful to see them there, it got down to 20 degrees that night. When we were handing out the hot chocolate I kept looking at the line getting longer and longer and knowing that we only had one cooler left of hot water and it was going fast. I kept saying to myself and really to the Lord "Fishes and loaves Lord, Fishes and Loaves." At one point a man asked if there was going to be enough water and I told him yes, just keep saying fishes and loaves. he said "Fishes and loaves, Fishes and Loaves, it fed 5000 it can give us some hot water!" I'm proud and not surprised to say we had exactly enough water for everyone. Fishes and Loaves! :)

After we left the Resource Center we went to the hospital to be with the Hulsman family while David was in surgery. David is in our youth group and had emergency surgery on his intestines. We sat in the waiting room with his parents while he was in surgery and I went in the recovery room with them to see David as he came out. So many memories and emotions came back to me going into that recovery room. The weird thing is I had peace about it all. I could see the emotions in his parents and I remember the exact feeling when I would go in to see Court. Totally freaked out but so relieved to see her. The same look was in David's parents faces. Totally freaked out but so relieved to see him. David is doing well and recovering fast.

God is good and God is SOOOOO Real. That's all I've got to say about that.

Have a great week.

Britney and Scottie

Sorry for the lack of photos, we just didn't have enough hands to do everything. We'll try to have a troop with us next time to man the camera.

PS. I leave out on Saturday to go to El Salvador on a mission trip. Please be in prayer for the team going and for us to listen to what God is saying.