A New Definition for Homelessness

A New Definition for Homelessness…

God has a way of placing people where they need to be, just so I can meet them, or they can meet me. The children and I were on the set of another film, where the youngest had two lines. The older were present, but did more acting than speech. They laughed.

It was cold. We redid takes, thanks to DC’s lovely Sunday traffic, but we had fun. Our fellow brothers, whose residence is where we stood, were the eggs in the cake. We moved our location for filming, where we had the opportunity to “freeze.” That took more time than we had expected, but it was fun. (The sun kept us warm as the day progressed).

While filming the “freeze scene,” a woman dressed elegantly, with a wonderful cape stood on the sides. When I got a glimpse of her, I realized that I had worked with her in a “Roll On” production. Nice. It was good to see her.

She asked me how I was doing. I shared that my living situation hadn’t changed since the last time I had seen her. Her presence and gentle conversation completed the cake. Then I said, “We’re still homeless.” We may not have a place to call our own, but we have a place to lay our heads. That place is warm in the winter and cool in the summer. We don’t have to worry about bed mites … or other creepy crawlies that bother people at night. She told me to be thankful for all of that.

I heard her … I really heard her. Homelessness isn’t being without a place to call your own. It’s not even living on the streets. Homelessness is defined as having absolutely nowhere to call home. With my faith and trust in God, and all that he is doing to continually provide for my children and me, we have a place to call home. There is Heaven here on Earth.

But where is it? Our country is at war … people are dying of AIDS … children are still killing one another, and have even taken it to the schools and football games …

Here, as all the
Earth is
Anguishing and
Vying for
Everything,
Newness comes…

It’s a change of heart. I believe that all things work together for my good, because I love God, through his son, Jesus Christ. I therefore, have a newness of mind. My outlook on life had become skewed because of how I saw and reacted to my current situation. But today (a new day) I’ve found heaven … here on earth. And as long as I’ve got Heaven in View, (as 5th El put it) I can live understanding what true homelessness is. And we are simply preparing for our next place … Wherever the Lord provides.

JW