Jesus Was Homeless is a non-denominational organization that seeks to serve individuals and families from all backgrounds. A statement of faith or participation in religious classes or services is not required in order to participate in or receive services from Jesus Was Homeless programs.

With new people wanting to help out now, we thought it would be best if we shared our purpose and the guidelines around achieving that purpose.

*OUR PURPOSE:*

To build community within our own community, from the meal makers to the delivery volunteers and to the people we serve. Our desire is to end hunger and homelessness in our community while sharing hope, love and compassion.

“It is a beautiful thing when folks in poverty are no longer just a mission project but become genuine friends and family with whom we laugh, cry, dream, and struggle.” – Shane Claiborne

*OUR GUIDELINES:*

1. ALWAYS go out in at least two’s. Safety is also in numbers. Jesus always sent his disciples out in 2 or more. Wherever two or three of us come together in community, God is there among us.

2. Deliver meals with no other agenda than to show you care and are willing to listen if needed. They WILL see God thru your actions and won’t need your words. People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.

3. Please keep the focus off any 1 particular church. This opportunity is for anybody that is willing and therefore has a variety of churches that participate. When asked what church you are from you can reply “there are several different churches helping the Jesus Was Homeless organization. I’m personally from _________ church.”

4. Be patient! It takes time to build the relationships but if you are committed weekly it will come.

5. Always be looking for God to show himself. Sometimes it comes in the ones we serve, other times it comes from the ones serving. God says to take good care of strangers, for we could be entertaining angels without knowing it (Heb. 13:2). Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me?

*Quotes from Shane Claiborne’s “The Irresistible Revolution”*

We cannot say we love God and pass by our hungry neighbor.

How can we worship a homeless man on Sunday and ignore one on Monday?

Mama T says that “we can’t understand the poor until we begin to understand what poverty is like.”

I’m not convinced that Jesus is going to say, “When I was hungry, you gave a check to the United Way and they fed me”, or “When I was naked, you donated clothes to the Salvation Army and they clothed me.” Jesus is not seeking distant acts of charity. He seeks concrete acts of love: “YOU fed me…YOU visited me in prison…YOU welcomed me into your home…YOU clothed me.”

True generosity is measured not by how much we give away but by how much we have left, especially when we look at the needs of our neighbors. We have no right not to be charitable.

The best thing to do with the best things in life is to give them away.

Christians are not called to be cool. Instead we are to be extraordinary and hang out with the not-so-cool, the people sitting in the lunchroom alone, folks who talk to themselves and have distinct aromas.

Jesus Was Homeless and Church Army of Branson will host their 3rd drug & alcohol-free barbecue Sunday, August 2nd.

The “Love Your Neighbor” barbecue is held at different weekly and extended stay motels in the Branson area and is being funded by a grant provided by OACAC of Taney County.  Michelle Harllee, a recovered addict who works with Church Army Branson, was awarded a $500 grant based on her experiences with Jesus Was Homeless and its food ministry.

“This is the second barbeque that we been able to have because of the grant.  The last one was in June at a different motel,” said Harllee.

Church Army Branson staff and clients and Bryan Stallings and volunteers with Jesus Was Homeless, will grill food and provide games.  There will also be resources for assistance with food, housing and utilities, spiritual help, drug and alcohol abuse, domestic violence, parenting classes and more.

Several hundred adults and children live in weekly motels in Branson because of lack of money and/or addictions, said Harllee. “We just want to show these people that there is hope.”  Church Army Branson is a ministry of fellowship and life instruction for people who are struggling with drug and alcohol addiction.  Jesus Was Homeless is a local outreach that delivers over 270 meals every Thursday to families in weekly rentals.  Through the “Love Your Neighbor” barbecues we are hoping to create “community within our community”, said Stallings.

The “Love Your Neighbor” barbecue will be from 5-7 p.m. Sunday in the parking lot of the Payless Inn, 1900 W Hwy 76, in Branson.  For more information, to volunteer or to donate food call Michelle Harllee at 339-3804 or Bryan Stallings 417-294-1300.

WoW!!  I can’t believe we have delivered over 4000 meals now.  What started in our kitchen at only 50 meals a week has now grown to over 270 meals a week and takes an assembly line of dedicated people to put them together.  Anytime I question whether it’s really worth the time and effort or not, God shows me something.  We delivered to an older retired vet last night who was eagerly awaiting our arrival.  Unfortunately it wasn’t to see my ugly mug, but rather it was because he had not eaten in 2 days.  Amazing!  In a town like Branson with so many restaurants we still have people going hungry.  Just think about all the food that is probably thrown out every evening off of buffets.

This same gentleman also asked me if I could get him a bible next week.  Last week another gentleman gave us an extra bible to give to someone who might need it.  I had put it in the van waiting for that opportunity and BAM!, God presented it.  He didn’t have to wait a week for that bible as we had it in the Jesus Was Homeless van.  So again, when I’m tired, worn out and start thinking about myself, God shows me something that gives me the excitement, energy and strength to continue.  If you look for it he might show you as well.

We received a letter from a gentleman that lives at one of the motels that we have been delivering food to. It was mailed to Church Army and they forwarded it to us. To me, this is what it’s about. Love, caring, compassion, commitment and fellowship.

To Church Army,

I feel compelled to let it be know that Jesus Was Homeless has done something that many have tried and failed to do. That is get my butt back into church. I met Bryan a few months ago while he and a group of caring people delivered sack lunches to the motel where I’ve lived since Feb. ’09. After the many talks that they took the time to have with me, I decided that if I was going to let God back into my life and my heart, Church Army was where I belonged.

Being raised Catholic in the Chicago area, I quickly learned that worship at Church Army was not prim-proper and each and every person was a somebody. In the text book, Mass of Catholics, it’s easy for some to get “lost in the mix.” I did not feel this way during Saturday evening worship with Branson’s Church Army. I must be honest. I was a hard nutshell to crack, but Jesus Was Homeless made me feel like somebody on the group’s Thursday visits to the motel.

To see the fellowship of the whole group was very impressive to me. So I attended my 1st service two weeks ago. Then again this past Saturday. I have no transportation but Jesus Was Homeless makes attending possible by providing a ride.

Thanks to Jesus Was Homeless I’ve conceded bitterness and re-opened my heart to the love and guidance of Jesus Christ and I’m beginning to see “the light at the end of the tunnel” within the many hardships of my life. Jesus Was Homeless makes this crazy world a whole lot easier to live in. I feel lucky their my friend. Just thought you’d like to know.

What an awesome day!!  Gable & I got to be part of Dawn’s baptism.  Dawn, her husband Randy, their kids and several friends from the motel that they live at were able to celebrate her baptism in Bull Creek.  Read Dawn’s updated story.

Homeless Life Article 5

God provided another group of “newbies” to deliver food with us this past Thursday.  We must of had about 40 people in all.  I have to say that we were totally blown away with their passion and enthusiasm.  We’ve always believed that there were many others in our own community that wanted to do “something” they just needed the opportunity.  Amy & I have the utmost admiration for people that “just do something”.  When we started this we had no idea what it was going to look like but we knew we just “needed to do something”.  Jesus Was Homeless continues to grow, reshape, minister and looks totally unlike anything we could of planned ourselves.  From the very moment the group of sandwich makers showed up to the first motel, you could tell that God was going to show up in a big way.  Our devoted friend Doug coordinates the weekly assembly of the “Happy Face Meals” and was blown away at the number of people that showed up this week to help.  Without his help and the many volunteers that assemble the meals the delivery would not be possible on this scale.  We are now delivering over 200 meals each week and they are still very much needed even in July in Branson.  At the first motel we had an older gentleman eagerly awaiting our arrival in the parking lot.  He only has about $100 a week to live on after his Veteran’s check and was out of food.  We had lots of new faces praying together and experiencing community.  If you would like to learn more or to see God in action in Branson, as always, we would invite you to “come and see” any Thursday.

Please take the time to read Dawn’s incredible stories of life in Branson motels.

Homeless Life Article 1
Homeless Life Article 2
Homeless Life Article 3
Homeless Life Article 4

What an awesome night!!!  I don’t even know how to describe what this past Thursday night food delivery was like to do it justice but here goes.  We had about 25 people go with us this week and about half of those were “newbies” or first timers.  The first 2 motels that we go to have a lot of foreign workers as well as our local workers.  We added one of these motels 2 weeks ago because we had met some foreign exchange workers at the Wal-Mart Supercenter and had given them a ride back to the motel.  In learning about them and their culture we discovered that they were primarily Muslim in their belief.  We told them what we do as far as delivering food and they asked if we would be delivering to their motel.  How could we refuse?  It might be an opportunity to show them Christianity.  One of the C of O students that went with us, Annie, shared about a lady she met last night at the first motel that is confined to wheel chair due to a car wreck and how excited she was to talk with Annie since she can’t get out much.

The second motel that we went to has a lot of our Jamaican friends.  What an experience of community.  We have gotten to know several of them now really well and plan to do a “Jamaican” meal together.  They are going to share their Jamaican culture with us by planning, cooking, and sharing with us.  We are even planning to go to Jamaica this winter to meet several of their families.  Talk about faith in Christ, they are so exciting to watch at church as they are filled with the Holy Spirit.  Our next hotel was just amazing.  A great guy by the name of Gary donated $50 to us for more meals.  He said he felt led to give it to us since we have been faithful in delivering meals to him and his family while he waited for his housing to be completed.  Our friend Tom there let a group of us pray for him as he struggles with an illness.  Tom is a great example of community.  He and another lady at this motel are using their cooking skills to provide a BBQ feast for the folks that live at this motel for the holiday weekend.  How amazing is that.  A guy who is struggling to function day to day has enough love for his neighbor that he wants to provide a meal and hang out with friends.

Through this meal delivery we have really gotten to know these people.  They have become part of our lives and the trees are bearing fruit.  We took about 10 folks last week to the “Peace In The Storm” Saturday night church service with more asking about going each week.  As I said earlier, I can’t do the experiences we have justice here in a blog but I know that we are giving a lot of people hope, love, caring and possibly leading them to Christ.  If you want to learn more I would invite you to just “come.”