we pulled up to Bobby's house and there was another man, also drunk, on Bobby's front porch. he told me that i better not let Bobby see Eddie, but i would have to knock on the door because Bobby was passed out on the couch.
as i peered through the storm door into the dark apartment, i could see the large, mostly naked drunk man lying on a couch three feet from the door. the apartment was dingy, covered in beer cans, whiskey bottles, and cigarrette packaging. There were dishes of leftover food on anything that could hold them, and the odor from the apartment was coming through the door almost visibly like something off a cartoon.
i knocked on the door. then again. he moved slightly. i knocked louder and called out Bobby, i need to speak with you. he opened one eye and looked at me. he mumbled something then went back to sleep.
i knocked again, harder and said Bobby i'm not going away until you help me.
help you?, he cursed at me and sat up. then he saw Eddie and really began to curse -- get that man off my property.
you want me to leave i asked?
yes and take that <<>> with you?
okay, after you help me help him
i told you i'm not helping that guy get off my porch
i'm not leaving until you help me
Bobby jumped up and charged at the door with his fist in the air as the storm door flew open i stepped back in time for it to fly by and hit the guy sitting on the porch. as Bobby's bloodshot eyes and red face approached my own in a furious rage, i said my name is pastor ken, i'm the pastor of sixth avenue church of God where Eddie has been coming. i need your help
as soon as i said pastor, Bobby froze. pastor? well, i fear God and i love people but i'm not helping that man.
we argued at the door for a couple of minutes and then Bobby said come on in i'm tired of standing at this door. as he sat down on his couch i stepped into his dark apartment. Eddie came in and made himself at home by taking a cigarette and lightin' up. i asked Bobby for permission to sit down in a chair next to the couch. he looked me confused, and i said Bobby this is your home, you invite me to sit down or i won't. he nodded with approval.
i continued, if this man has stolen from you i'll pay it back. whatever it takes, i need your help
no, i don't want your money Bobby said
then what? if i don't help Eddie, he's gonna die, and i'm not gonna let that happen--to help Eddie, i need you to acknowledge that he's stayed in your house overnight.
no way
by this time, Eddie's on his third cigarette and i'm running out of hope.
then Bobby said i know what i want
what? anything tell me
you
my mind began to race if i had said anything about love in a way that could be misinterpreted, i looked at the door and for another exit as i began to feel very uncomfortable in the home of a (very large, mostly naked, beligerent drunk man) what do you mean Bobby, what do you want from me?
you--i want you to come back and teach me the Bible
okay, i'll be back tomorrow
NO--TODAY--i want you to teach me the Bible today
okay--sure, do you have a Bible?
yes, around there
where Bobby, why don't you get it?
no, i can't touch it -- i got a demon in me and i can't touch it
amazed at this man's reverence, i slowly stood up--do you want me to get it?
yes, it's around there
i slowly moved further into the dark apartment, and there, around the corner was a small closet with a large, black leather Bible case, with the name Bobby Haggard engraved in golden letters on the Bible. i picked it up and went back toward Bobby, who was now beginning to cry. Bobby, this is a beautiful Bible, i said as i slowly sat down and unzipped it. what do you want Bobby, what do you want me to read?
then he said the words that echo in my heart
mercy--i want the same mercy you're showing to that guy (pointing to Eddie)--i want that kind of mercy
the Bible fell open to a card placed in John 3, how about John 3:16 Bobby. as i read it, he wept. we got to verse 19 "This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil". i said Bobby, Eddie has so much darkness in him that if he doesn't get help, he's gonna die--will you help me help Eddie?
on one condition--you have to come back
okay
everyday
okay
if you don't i'll find you -- there aren't a lot of people in this town that look like you
i know -- i'll be back
Bobby signed the paper, and we began to get Eddie help. Eddie would walk away from that help, but i would continue to walk into Bobby's house
Monday, April 11, 2005
how i met Bobby
one year ago, a man named Bobby lay in a depressed, drunken stupor calling out for God to have mercy on his life. at 57 years old, he was pleading for God to send someone, anyone to help him out of the pit he had found himself in
across town, a young pastor was trying to help a homeless man who had come to church looking for a handout -- instead, he found warm hands welcoming him in each week. some took him to dinner, others prayed intently for him and with him. Eddie was 47, an alcoholic, and more scrawny than i am. Eddie disappeared for two weeks -- we looked for him, called the police station to see if he had been picked up, even read obituaries from the area -- no Eddie.
then, the Tuesday after Mother's Day 2004, Eddie showed up at the church. Eddie usually looked rough -- but now he looked roughed up with scars, bruises, and fresh stitches. i asked him who did this? his reply, he did. he said he had passed out on the street and the police took him to the hospital. he had wanted to get out and make it home to see his mother in a nursing home on Mother's day, but a few more drinks before he left, left him passed out in a local gas station's bathroom. that's where he woke up, discouraged and at the bottom of life. Eddie pleaded for help, for treatment, for a change.
we arranged for a ministry that would keep him after he was medically cleared to go -- he was toxic at the time and first needed medical help to come down. we knew we would need his ID -- so we had to go get his wallet from his friend Bobby's house.
that was my first trip into East Acres -- a low income housing project blocks from our church. we pulled up in front of Bobby's unit -- Eddie told me to wait because Bobby may be drunk and he didn't like strangers. Eddie went to the door which was eventually answered by a large, mostly naked, beligerent drunk man. The man began to curse and threaten Eddie. As i thought about getting out to intercede, Eddie ducked under the man's arm and retrieved his wallet, sidestepping the drunk man trying to catch him as he ran back out the door and into my car.
i asked Eddie if that was his friend, Bobby? he said yes. i said, no, that man's no friend -- you're never coming back here again.
God had other plans. Eddie was homeless and all the programs we were trying to get help from required proof of residency. that's hard for a homeless person -- you need help to get a home, but you can't get help because you have no home. Eddie had given up and asked to be dropped off somewhere so he could lay down and die. finally, at my insistence for another way, one agency said that if we could provide a letter from someone who had let him stay the night, they would count that as proof of residency.
there was only one house where he had stayed the night -- Bobby's. i looked at the agency representative and said we'll be right back. i took Eddie back to the church to make a letter and to pray. Eddie said, i thought you said i could never go back. i did, but this time i'm going with you and we're gonna get Bobby's help. We printed a letter, we prayed for Divine favor, and we drove back to Bobby's
across town, a young pastor was trying to help a homeless man who had come to church looking for a handout -- instead, he found warm hands welcoming him in each week. some took him to dinner, others prayed intently for him and with him. Eddie was 47, an alcoholic, and more scrawny than i am. Eddie disappeared for two weeks -- we looked for him, called the police station to see if he had been picked up, even read obituaries from the area -- no Eddie.
then, the Tuesday after Mother's Day 2004, Eddie showed up at the church. Eddie usually looked rough -- but now he looked roughed up with scars, bruises, and fresh stitches. i asked him who did this? his reply, he did. he said he had passed out on the street and the police took him to the hospital. he had wanted to get out and make it home to see his mother in a nursing home on Mother's day, but a few more drinks before he left, left him passed out in a local gas station's bathroom. that's where he woke up, discouraged and at the bottom of life. Eddie pleaded for help, for treatment, for a change.
we arranged for a ministry that would keep him after he was medically cleared to go -- he was toxic at the time and first needed medical help to come down. we knew we would need his ID -- so we had to go get his wallet from his friend Bobby's house.
that was my first trip into East Acres -- a low income housing project blocks from our church. we pulled up in front of Bobby's unit -- Eddie told me to wait because Bobby may be drunk and he didn't like strangers. Eddie went to the door which was eventually answered by a large, mostly naked, beligerent drunk man. The man began to curse and threaten Eddie. As i thought about getting out to intercede, Eddie ducked under the man's arm and retrieved his wallet, sidestepping the drunk man trying to catch him as he ran back out the door and into my car.
i asked Eddie if that was his friend, Bobby? he said yes. i said, no, that man's no friend -- you're never coming back here again.
God had other plans. Eddie was homeless and all the programs we were trying to get help from required proof of residency. that's hard for a homeless person -- you need help to get a home, but you can't get help because you have no home. Eddie had given up and asked to be dropped off somewhere so he could lay down and die. finally, at my insistence for another way, one agency said that if we could provide a letter from someone who had let him stay the night, they would count that as proof of residency.
there was only one house where he had stayed the night -- Bobby's. i looked at the agency representative and said we'll be right back. i took Eddie back to the church to make a letter and to pray. Eddie said, i thought you said i could never go back. i did, but this time i'm going with you and we're gonna get Bobby's help. We printed a letter, we prayed for Divine favor, and we drove back to Bobby's
Thursday, March 24, 2005
where have i been
i just got an e-mail that Nick had posted a comment to my blog
i hadn't blogged in nearly a month and i had to go take a look again at what i had been writing
timing is everything under God's sovereignty
i have been gone -- physically, emotionally, and mentally -- since that last entry. we went away for a pastor & spouse retreat which was a blessing. then we took a few days just for ourselves, much needed time away (something we've really only done once in our 11 years of marriage). we returned only for me to leave a few hours later to be at a state meeting. two days later, my wife had to head to Michigan for the funeral of a family friend who has been supportive of our own ministry here in Alabama. my wife returned while we were in the midst of a family crisis here with my own family which just hit another level today. and now is Holy Week, and we have a nightly service focusing on Christ's last week before His sacrifice for us
in the midst of being gone and stuck at home with kids, i haven't been able to go see Bobby or others that i see regularly (i had usualy been going about 4 times a week). in that time, Bobby got drunk again -- really badly. he has come out of the stupor in the last week and a half. we've talked on the phone, but he's been pretty distant.
i was able to see him yesterday, and he's mad at me -- not for being gone, but for taking his gun.
several months ago, Bobby had gotten drunk thanks to a 'friend' bringing him a drink. when i came into visit him, i was more disturbed at seeing the gun, than him being drunk. i asked him where he got it and he said a 'friend' had brought it over. friends who give guns to drunks are not friends
i told Bobby i didn't think he needed to have the gun. in fact, i told him to give it to me and i would get rid of it. after some discussion, he gave it to me. i took it and turned it into the police
now, after this latest drunken spell, Bobby has used up all of his money for the month on alcohol -- if he had the gun, he could sell it and get by until his next disability check. but since i took it away, he's in trouble
Bobby's mad -- at himself, he's just found away to feel better about himself by blaming me for his predicament.
So he wants me to get it back, or give him the money he could make. i told him i wouldn't help him get it back until he was off the bottle for awhile. in the meantime, i would buy whatever he needs to make it till next month
not a good answer--he doesn't want any more Bible study until we get straight.
Pray for Bobby. Pray for me to be patient, loving, consistent, and a servant so that i can have further opportunities to disciple Bobby toward maturity.
i hadn't blogged in nearly a month and i had to go take a look again at what i had been writing
timing is everything under God's sovereignty
i have been gone -- physically, emotionally, and mentally -- since that last entry. we went away for a pastor & spouse retreat which was a blessing. then we took a few days just for ourselves, much needed time away (something we've really only done once in our 11 years of marriage). we returned only for me to leave a few hours later to be at a state meeting. two days later, my wife had to head to Michigan for the funeral of a family friend who has been supportive of our own ministry here in Alabama. my wife returned while we were in the midst of a family crisis here with my own family which just hit another level today. and now is Holy Week, and we have a nightly service focusing on Christ's last week before His sacrifice for us
in the midst of being gone and stuck at home with kids, i haven't been able to go see Bobby or others that i see regularly (i had usualy been going about 4 times a week). in that time, Bobby got drunk again -- really badly. he has come out of the stupor in the last week and a half. we've talked on the phone, but he's been pretty distant.
i was able to see him yesterday, and he's mad at me -- not for being gone, but for taking his gun.
several months ago, Bobby had gotten drunk thanks to a 'friend' bringing him a drink. when i came into visit him, i was more disturbed at seeing the gun, than him being drunk. i asked him where he got it and he said a 'friend' had brought it over. friends who give guns to drunks are not friends
i told Bobby i didn't think he needed to have the gun. in fact, i told him to give it to me and i would get rid of it. after some discussion, he gave it to me. i took it and turned it into the police
now, after this latest drunken spell, Bobby has used up all of his money for the month on alcohol -- if he had the gun, he could sell it and get by until his next disability check. but since i took it away, he's in trouble
Bobby's mad -- at himself, he's just found away to feel better about himself by blaming me for his predicament.
So he wants me to get it back, or give him the money he could make. i told him i wouldn't help him get it back until he was off the bottle for awhile. in the meantime, i would buy whatever he needs to make it till next month
not a good answer--he doesn't want any more Bible study until we get straight.
Pray for Bobby. Pray for me to be patient, loving, consistent, and a servant so that i can have further opportunities to disciple Bobby toward maturity.
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