Ears Wide Open

When greeting the guests each morning, you can often observe who has had a rough night, who seems to be in a cheerful mood and who you might need to talk to right away. It had been months since I had last seen Henry and he looked badly shaken. I had known Henry almost two years and I remember the first time he came through the Lamb Center doors. Henry was wearing my old Army olive-drab field jacket with four large brown and white feathers sticking out of his pocket. Henry came into the office and noticed my field jacket draped over my chair. We first talked about our wild Army experiences in Germany and all the drinking that seemed to be part of the package. The conversation then shifted to sobriety and Henry confessed that after many failed attempts to stop drinking, he was ready to try again. We talked about what it went to stay sober and how you needed to surrender to God and turn to other alcoholics for support.

Henry worked in the Army as a cook and he had years of experience in the restaurant and hotel industry he quickly found a new job at a hotel and after saving some money he was off the streets and renting his own place. In ministry, these are the types of success we long to witness. In our own lives, change comes painfully slow at times but we yearn to see the lives of our guests transformed right away. Henry seemed to embody this type of transformation as he quickly found employment and housing. At his job, Henry was quickly given new responsibilities and with it longer hours. He soon found himself isolated, tired and frustrated. He asked for fewer hours, but to no avail. Before long, Henry was drunk at work and he soon found himself out the door... (to be continued)