"free coffee... and someone to talk to"

Saturday night was our first exposure to Room 65. The music was pretty loud, which made it a bit difficult for me to talk to people sometimes, but I got by.

A couple people I met...

Andy is a gentlemen in his 70's. I'm pretty sure he was missing his top set of teeth. He kept referring to himself as something and I couldn't quite catch it. Finally, after about the 4th time I got it... "I'm 'class' homeless." I wouldn't have guessed. His clothes were in great shape and he was clean-shaven. I wish I could have said the same for myself at the time (it had been about 2 days since my last shower... I have since showered). Andy was in the army for 6 year. He's been living this lifestyle for the better part of ten years apparently. He is retired, so he actually collects a pension of roughly $300 a week. Every Monday he goes to the bank, inserts his bank card, and withdraws his money. On the weekends he's been staying at a hostel and I think he might be able to find places from time to time on the weeknights. When he can't though, he finds the bush where he hides his sleeping bag and finds a local bench to sleep on. If it's raining pretty hard he will usually hang out in a pub until either the rain stops or the pub closes. Then he sleeps. Sometimes he bathes in the sea. Andy calls himself a Roman Catholic, though even he admits that he never bought into confessing your sins to a priest.

Kevin is unemployed. He injured himself on the job four years ago and his spine is forever curved. He was a former professional wrestler. He thought me to be mad for leaving California... "OK, let me get this straight, right? You left the sun, fantastic weather, American football, and pro wrestling for... what do we have here? Oh that's right... rain, gloom, and more rain."

When asked about his beliefs, he said he tried the church "thing" and it's not for him. If he is any religion, he likes to follow the ways of the Sith. That's right. The Dark Side of the Force. Star Wars. Because the ways of the Jedi are apparently "unnatural" and the people who follow it are just plain bonkers. I wasn't so surprised now to hear that this was the first time he left his flat in 2 days (he thought he needed a break from playing his X-BOX. His scent verified (for me) that he was probably not exaggerating.).

Kevin also believes that peace is a lie. With everything going on in this world, how can you say that there is peace? As I was explaining to him that not only do I believe you can find peace, but that I also know that I have found it, it was clear that he was not interested in it hearing about it. That night he was interested in two things... "free coffee... and someone to talk to. My teddy bear is only so therapeutic. It doesn't talk back."

I invited both of these men to come back to Room 65 while we are playing. We'll see what happens. They both heard the gospel though (it is preached several times per night).

What I have found that's interesting is that although the people here seem more apt and willing to discuss "religion" and their personal belief system (versus people in the States), these men were just as closed and hard as any I've found back home. Once again, I was struck with the fact that although the scenery is vastly different, it's the same God, same gospel, and same people as back home.

Monday night is our first time playing Room 65. Sounds like we will be playing about 27-28 songs over the course of four sets. Please pray for us... for strength, endurance, excellence, and most of all for God to receive the glory through the preaching of His gospel.

My name is Rick, and thanks for reading.