Janie’s Thoughts…
Bonnie was a breath of fresh air. She not only became a close friend, but while I was living at her home, she helped me to feel normal while going through this difficult time in my life. I could talk to her about anything without her criticizing or judging me. As a mom herself, I think she understood how difficult this trip was for me as a mom with five young children. Our children were very well behaved, but they were young children. I always felt pressure from keeping balance between quietly respecting the household where we were staying and letting my children play. Bonnie treated the children and me as if we had been long time friends. During the day, while she was at work, I would do laundry, pick up the house a little, and do light cooking.
Bonnie introduced me to several Christian ladies who were friends of hers. 
Sincere friendships by those of God’s true church made all things easier for our family, especially because of their encouragement and desire to pray and study the Bible together. It was common for all of us to meet in order to pray for each other’s needs; truly a strength that God designed for His children. “If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from Heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.”1 Our Father promises that “For where two or three are gathered together in My name, there am I in the midst of them.”2
It was a true blessing we were able to make wonderful friendships while living at Jim and Bonnie’s home. Several ladies from church encouraged us with their genuine kindness. I made another life-long friend named Teresa. Teresa, a nurse and mother of two daughters, became a close friend and prayer partner while we were in Lawson. As someone who had been through some difficult times herself, she had a lot of compassion toward our situation, and she would find small special ways to show it. Once she surprised me with a beautiful new straw hat she had purchased for me for no occasion. She wanted to bless me with something fun and impractical that I would never purchase with my limited funds. Another friend named Judy was a prayer warrior, faithful to pray with us and for us during this difficult time. Teresa also introduced me to her friend, Bernice, a hairdresser with a large family. While at Bonnie’s, Teresa brought me over to her salon for a complimentary haircut. Small kind gestures such as this can certainly make a big difference in keeping hope alive for someone homeless.
Bonnie introduced me to another friend of hers right before Christmas that had an Avon business. The next day her friend invited me over to pick up a bag of Avon samples and other small gifts that she wanted to give me so that I would have Christmas gifts to give Bonnie, her daughters, and my other newly acquired friends. It was such a surprise, such an unexpected blessing, and it showed a true heart of someone with the compassion of Christ. There were also several couples that provided genuine friendships to our family during this difficult and strange time of transition for our family. Bonnie’s pastor, Tim, was always kind and would later provide a needed dryer when we moved into a condo.
One of my new friends realized that we had very little clothing appropriate for the freezing weather and told me about a wonderful local organization that assisted families in need. This organization came to our rescue with clothing, sheets, and other necessities. It was not a church but a non-profit organization supported by private funds. Every city should have an organization like this. This organization never embarrasses families needing clothing by asking for financial information or background checks. They just allow people in need of clothing to come and get clothing, free! It was such a blessing, especially since we had entered cold country, and our winter coats, clothing, and shoes were not nearly sufficient for the temperatures we were experiencing. We were able to get nice used clothes for all seven of us. Remember, we had only been able to pack a limited supply of clothing for our trip. May God bless and prosper this organization.
Truly these people exhibited Christ’s love through their daily action and provided a powerful lesson for us to learn. When we are trying to help those who are homeless, we must realize that they are real people, with real emotions, real feelings that go much deeper than their need for food and shelter. Whether we have money, or food, or shelter to share or not, we must not forget the weightier matter, to minister to their soul and spirit with love and compassion, for doing so is ministering the life-giving compassion of Christ’s love.