Bobby was a quiet one. He did not talk very much and always kept to himself. Bobby looked to be in his early thirties. He had lived on the street around ten years, and to my knowledge he did not associate with any of the other homeless people in the area. I never was able to find out his last name.
Bobby never attended Church, but always came to eat every time a meal was served at the Center. Sometimes he would come early and listen to someone preach before the meal was served. When Bobby did come early, he was always one of the first ones in line when the doors to the Cafeteria were opened. The Cafeteria, Food Bank and Kitchen were located in the basement of the Church.
Bobby was one of those homeless people who lived in a world of his own. Nothing ever seemed to stir him. He never showed any emotion of any kind. I do not ever remember seeing Bobby smile. Many times I wondered what his story was. Why was he living on the street? What horrible event had transpired in his life that brought him to this place of destitution? What causes a person to be void of any sense of responsibility or feeling? What causes a person to choose to live all alone without purpose in his life? The few sermons he did listen to never seemed to have any effect on him at all. There were so many questions, but no plausible answers.
Psychologists can offer many reasons for the VAGABOND mindsets, but few solutions. Even Psychologists fall short in their evaluations and psychoanalysis of the problems. They fail to realize that the root cause of the VAGABOND problem is a spiritual one and not a psychological one. The symptoms of the homeless mindset shows up in the psychological arena, but lasting help and change can only come from faith in Christ Jesus. It was a few years before the Lord revealed the root cause and causes of this spiritual anomaly to me.
You could always see Bobby standing around outside the Church or leaning up against the wall with his bag at his feet. It was just a small bag. It couldn’t have held very much. Everything he owned on earth, except the clothes on his back, he kept in that bag. After each meal Bobby would walk over to the counter where we kept the cupcakes and other deserts and stick a couple of them in his little bag. I assumed it was so he could have a snack later on in the evening when he became hungry. Hunger and homelessness are some of the consequences of the VAGABOND lifestyle.
Bobby’s parents lived somewhere in town. I never met them personally, but sometimes I would see them driving around downtown looking for Bobby. Sometimes they would find him hanging around outside the Church or sitting on a Park Bench across the street from the Church.
Bobby’s parents occasionally brought food for him to eat if, by chance, they could find him. They would beg and plead with him to come back home, but their pleas always fell on deaf ears. If he had wanted to he could have gone back home and had his old bedroom back. I could see no plausible reason for him to live the life he was living. On his Birthday and on Christmas his parents would bring him something to eat along with a Birthday or Christmas gift. They would always beg him to come back home, but to no avail. Bobby was still there when I left the Ministry at the Church. Over the years I have often wondered what happened to him and where he ended up.
The VAGABOND Spirit is as destructive and deceptive as any of the other spirits, if not more so. This Spirit destroys the life of a person who falls under its control, as well as the people who truly love and try to care for that person. Many times the mind of a VAGABOND is unable to discern between right and wrong. Because they have a hard time focusing on the future, some VAGABONDS have a hard time making even the simplest of decisions. They are usually self-centered, self-deluded and self-promoting. Although many of the moral and emotional characteristics of the VAGABOND differ from person to person, they are always self-serving. Each person is different and their motives and attitudes differ as well.
DWELLING ON THE PAST
VAGABONDS tend to dwell mostly on the past. They rarely think of anything in the future except where they might find their next meal, next drink or someplace to keep themselves warm for the night. Many cannot forgive and forget what someone did to them in the past which caused them great anguish and grief. They always blame everyone else for their problems, but never themselves.
Some VAGABONDS dwell and live in the past so much they cannot take time to think about or prepare for the future. Their focus is more on what happened in the past than what may happen in the future. They walk the dark catacombs of the past searching for a purpose and reason for the dilemma in which they find themselves. They don’t realize that change can only come from faith, hope, self-help and self-awareness; not despair, self-pity and gloom.
As I stated earlier, many Christians will at times come under the influence of the Vagabond Spirit. Some are more inclined to walk the path of the VAGABOND than others. Because of the different lifestyles people live, the manifestations of the VAGABOND Spirit may vary from person to person. However, the root cause of their problems and shortcomings are always the same. They have allowed themselves to be seduced by the spirits of hatred, jealousy, strife, envy, seditions, drunkenness, greed, pride, idolatry and witchcraft--which are all characteristics of the VAGABOND mindset and lifestyle.
Many VAGABONDS or people with Vagabond mindsets find it hard to maintain or keep a job for any length of time. They will often move from job to job, place to place or town to town, never finding satisfaction. Many of them will WANDER from job to job because of their poor work performance and their attitudes toward others, especially toward those in authority.
Unfortunately there are many Church VAGABONDS who wander from church to church looking for that perfect place, not realizing they will never find a perfect place. They wander around looking for a church that will tickle their ears, tell them they are fine, and they are on their way to Heaven. Just drop your offering in the plate as it goes by, come back next Sunday, and you will be pleasing God. They choose to live their life the way they want to without any consequences. They do not want anyone telling them what they should or should not do. It all boils down to the fact that it is their way or the HIGHWAY. They have a lack of respect for any true godly authority.
Many Church VAGABONDS are somewhat like VAGABOND Bobby. They want to live life their way regardless of who they hurt. They are self-seeking and will listen to no one. It is their way or no way. Some of them can be reached, but most of them cannot. Therefore, they will continue to WANDER in the Wilderness of Sin seeking, but never finding, peace. Most of them will never change because of their wandering mindset. They cannot see they are spiritually blind, naked and destitute of TRUTH. Like Cain, they will not adhere to sound doctrine.
One of Cain’s many problems was his inability to recognize or refusal to recognize authority. He hated his brother and certainly did not want to be his brother’s keeper. Like Bobby, Cain was oblivious to the fact that he lacked true purpose in his life. Without PLAN or PURPOSE you have no direction in life. Possessing PURPOSE for your life should be the goal of every human being. Without purpose in life, man is destined to fail.
Cain was given the same opportunity as Abel to serve God and KEEP HIS COMMANDMENTS. Cain did not want Godly counsel and set out to do what he wanted to do regardless of who he hurt. All that mattered to him was what he wanted--not what God wanted. God demands that we love one another as ourselves. Without love for God and our brother, our joy cannot be full. John, Chapter 15, Verse 12. God has told us to love our neighbor as our self.
I tried many times to show Bobby the love and compassion Jesus had for him, but all my efforts failed. He had no desire to change. His VAGABOND mindset could not be broken. We must always show the love and compassion of Christ to the lost and destitute. However, when we are dealing with the spirit or spirits which control and drive these individuals, we must be forceful and unwavering in our attempts to help them.
People without Christ do not know or understand they are spiritually naked, poor, blind and destitute. They will WANDER aimlessly through life, while true PURPOSE and REST for their poor souls will continue to allude them. However, there is hope and deliverance available for those who sincerely desire change in their life.
We must make an effort to do all we can to share the Gospel with others regardless of what mindset they may possess. Believing in Jesus Christ and the sacrifice He made at Calvary is the only hope for a lost and dying World. We must ask the question, “Who will go and share the Gospel with them?” Who will share the Message of the Cross with them?