Watch

A resident who recently finished our 24-month Empowerment program sent me a text last month.  She asked if I would like to read her testimony about the time that she had spent at Crazy8. She had always been hesitant to share and be vulnerable, so I was quick to respond and was excited to read it. I received her testimony within 24 hours.  I opened the email and began to read.  Honestly, after reading, I went back to make sure who the sender was.  Was this the same resident who had gone through our program?  It was!  I immediately forwarded her email to her counselor and our Founder, Lisa.

I spend a lot of time with the residents who are in our program, and it is incredibly difficult not to get enmeshed with them.  The lives of those on the Housing Team are woven within the lives of those who live in our campuses.  We hang out, we talk, we eat, we seek, we cry, we plan, we watch, and we pray.   We also do a lot of watching and waiting.  As a “people helper”, you are always on the lookout for the fruit.  You want to see the fruit of your labor because the call to be the hands and feet of Christ is strong.  Am I doing enough?  Did I say the right things? Am I loving well?  You know the Lord is moving, has moved, and will continue to move.  But will you see it?  I mean, really see it?  Like HUGE see it?  Our own testimonies reveal who Christ is and we know that just as He met us where we were and led us through, we know that he will do the same in the lives of our residents.

Wait

So, we pray, and we wait.  We seek, and we wait. We watch, and we wait. Sometimes our flesh gets in the way, and we get tired and frustrated.  We know freedom is there for each of them and we long for them so much.  So, we wait.

Her testimony shared all that she had experienced during her program.  She detailed how the Lord had brought revelation to her through His word, the Holy Spirit, and those He had placed around her.   She was grateful and thankful for all the Lord had done for her and was continuing to do.  But what she was most grateful for was the time we poured into her and the time we allowed her to grow. She recognized our program as HIS provision.

I know that safe and stable housing was crucial for her.  I know that our wisdom, knowledge, and resources were valuable.  However, outside of Christ, the greatest resource we gave her was “TIME” – not OUR time, but the time we allowed for the Lord to work in her heart.

“Do not grow weary in doing good for in due season, you will reap the harvest!”