Stay warm. And try to get something to eat!
[Adventures in Faith: Japan; 1991] One winter night, Tom and I showed up at our old Bible Study group at the Baptist Church in Japan. They told us to “Stay warm. And try to get something to eat!”
Some of our friends in Japan asked if they could come to see where we were living, as I wrote about previously.
But not all our friends wanted to go to Kamagasaki. Most people were afraid of the poor people. The homeless people. The danger.
One winter night, we went back to our old Bible Study group at the Baptist Church.
Most of the members had known us for a long time.
They were astounded to learn that yes, we were living in Kamagasaki. They had a hundred questions for us.
And they were astounded that yes, we were homeless. It was by choice. It was a very deliberate choice.
It was an important aspect of our Christian outreach to the homeless people in Kamagasaki.
As we prepared to leave the Bible Study late that night, one of the men said to us:
Stay warm. And try to get something to eat!
The others nodded in agreement.
Then we said our good-byes and left the church.
As we walked back to the train station, we were astonished at their lack of compassion.
They knew it was winter, and that the temperature was around 40° F. They knew we were going to sleep outdoors on the ground.
They reminded us of St. James:
If one of you says … “Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it?
James 2:16, NIV translation
ADVENTURES IN FAITH
NOTE. Names, dates, and locations may have been changed.
Unless otherwise noted, all Bible quotations on this page are from the World English Bible and the World Messianic Edition. These translations have no copyright restrictions. They are in the Public Domain.