From Despair To Hope!

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This picture is hard to briefly describe in words, because of everything it symbolizes to me! 

This man, holding his key to his new apartment, symbolizes an abundance of hope, love and a network of people coming together for him! Yes, for him....

My friend pictured here, was a symbol of utter despair and rejection: he was homeless for what seemed like an eternity (he'd even lost count of the years he's been living on the streets), he is unable to read or write, he has a devastating mental illness, a chronically bad addiction to alcohol and a ton of physical ailments due to his age, love of beer and his 2 decades of homelessness. When you consider all this, and the fact he's also been repeatedly assaulted and stomped upon, simply because of "who he is", you cannot help but see all the despair and rejection staining his worn-out body! 

This man, my friend, symbolizes and is the very picture of the fragile people I advocated for in my last post: Stomping on the Fragile! 

YET, this man, my friend, also symbolizes and pictures a reality I'm privileged enough to witness every single day: the Kingdom of God is actively working among society's "least of these" and helping them move from the curses of Despair and into the wonderful joys of Hope!

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