Our little prayer group met again last night, and Josh joined us. Josh is a high school dropout who most of us remember from the Friday night, probably four years ago, when a huge, honkin’ sheathed knife fell out of his trenchcoat and clattered onto the linoleum floor.
Josh moved away, but now is back, and spends his days wandering Third Street as he waits to begin taking classes to get his high school diploma. He came to church this Sunday, and I invited him to come to our prayer meeting. I doubt that he’s a Christian. Likewise for a few other teenagerish young adults who have been coming regularly. But they’re trying to connect with God, and they’re definitely connecting with us five adults who attend.
My heart leaped tonight when I saw Josh sitting at the table in the back of the (sweltering) sanctuary where we meet. I walked over to him, squeezed his shoulder, and said, “Josh, you made my day!” And he did.
Another window got busted out this week, a window which had gotten busted earlier during one of our concerts. But the culprits were caught this time–from what I hear, just two young kids. The windows have all been fixed.
Since our little prayer group–never more than 11 people–has been meeting, three families have announced that they are leaving the church. Three key, active, talented families. This hurts. I can’t imagine that our prayers are driving people away. But we definitely need to pray for God to raise up more workers. Because if we’re to continue making an impact on our community, we need them.