I-Help Newsletter December 2023

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I wanted more …

She was sitting alone. She came late for dinner. Sarah (not her real name) had this quick smile and a bubbly personality. This was her second time at the Desert Cross I-Help. I sat next to her introducing myself and asked, “how are you?” She said that she was fine and like so many of our guests, she was so thankful for our church and the volunteers who were serving. I asked her how she found her way into I-Help. She told me that she had been with the same man for five years who struggled with alcohol. Things were okay when he was sober, but when he drank he would become verbally and physically abusive. The next day he would plead for forgiveness, and promised that he would never hurt her again. But this promise was short lived. A few days later, she would find herself back in the same situation bleeding physically and even more so, emotionally. She cared for him, but she didn’t see a future. She wanted more. So, one night after a violent encounter she packed up her car and sought a change, a new beginning. She had heard about Azcend (the non-profit that assists people in transition) and about the I-Help program. She had been in the program for nearly 2 months. She said she especially liked churches like Desert Cross where she could take a shower and prepare herself for work. She told me that she loved her job in a big box store. She didn’t make a lot of money but she no longer lived in the shadow of her abuser. She told me that she was saving up money to rent a room. She had one possibility that would cost $400 a month. She was optimistic that something would come up, but in the meantime, she found peace in the I-Help program where she discovered kindness and people willing to assist her in her journey.

I don’t know if Sarah is a typical I-Help guest. She is bright, energetic, and very pleasant. She works full-time but left her relationship with only her clothes and her car. She felt trapped, scared, and unsure if she could do this on her own. Somehow she found a strength that she never thought she had. She is doing it. She is making it. And you could see it in her eyes that she lives with a certainty, a hope, and a pride that was not there in her former life.

Sarah has convinced me that I-Help and programs like it are exactly what Jesus had in mind when he said to love your neighbor as yourself. So many of these homeless friends come to us broken and fearful. They have been hurt and struggle to trust again. It’s been a joy of mine to sit back and watch the beauty of I-Help volunteers sitting down and loving these strangers. I especially love to hear the laughter and see faces with smiles. This Desert Cross ministry makes a difference and I am glad to be a part of it. I want to thank all of you who have volunteered, cooked, contributed toiletries and backpacks, and have supported this healing ministry. This ministry might not change the world but it could change the world for that individual person.

Glen Stadler, I-Help Coordinator for Desert Cross Lutheran Church