Entertaining Angels

After visiting Shamian Dao, a small Island that serves as a retreat for foreigners from the cities busy streets, and walking back to the Metro station to head home we stopped to give money to a young lady who was begging on the streets with he baby. My heart completely went out to her. I was trying to think what more I could do for them than give them money. I can’t speak the language so I couldn’t even ask what she really needed. I walked away disappointed that I didn’t do more. I prayed silently and asked God to send someone that could help them.

 

The whole next week I couldn’t stop thinking about this mother and child. Maybe I should have taken them to a store and bought them stuff. But there really was no stores around that would serve their needs. I would have to take them on the public transit, but because I couldn’t speak the language they probably wouldn’t come because they would have no idea what my intensions were. God what do I do. I talked with Patrick and we agreed that we would buy food and walk around giving it out to the beggars on the street.

 

In Guangzhou there are a lot of beggars on the street. So many that we don’t give to all of them. Sometimes we give and some times we don’t but we never really intentionally walked the streets to help the beggars. That Sunday after church we bought food and walked the streets. As we handed out food I was humbled by the gratefulness of most beggars. We gave food to children all the way up to grey haired seniors. My most memorable moment giving out food was one little girl. She looked so sad and almost emotionless. When I brought out the food, she was at first hesitant, but after I told her that it was for her, her eyes lit up. She gratefully accepted the orange juice, steamed bun and some small candies. She sat on the side of the sidewalk and ate with a smile. She was the last beggar that we gave food to that day. As we headed home, I thought about the scripture that talks about Entertaining Angels, I know that we didn’t really entertain any beggars, but could it be that we may have given food to an angel? It is an interesting thought.

 

After that day Patrick and I decided that we would do this again the following week after church, and we did. To our supporters, I wanted you to know that some of the monies that you generously gave us went directly to feeding the poor. We fasted a meal and fed the hungry.