Last month, thirty-two people died who were unhoused. Three from hypothermia. As the temperatures dipped into the teens and low twenties, staying warm on the street becomes a matter of life and death. Our street minister team passed out beanies, socks, gloves, and handwarmers. We heard stories of hospitality and community. The sharing of propane, firewood, tents, and RV’S. My homeless friends were concerned that I was out in the cold and that I didn’t have gloves on. One man looked at me with both apprehension and appreciation. “Thank you for being out here with us in this.” I reconnected with a client who, last year, had horrible frostbite on his toes. He is walking and didn’t have any of his toes amputated. He introduced me to his friends as, “the person that saved his feet.” Street ministry is about our shared humanity. The incarnational presence of Christ embodies the divine and acknowledges that every human has value. That we all deserve a life of hope and dignity. “The Word became a human being and lived here with us. We saw his true glory, the glory of the only Son of the Father. From him the complete gifts of undeserved grace and truth have come down to us (John1:14 CEV).”

Michael Cox