Latest / Our Community, Our Mission / Ep #191 - Night of Praise

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Ep #191 - Night of Praise · Our Community, Our Mission

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Heavenly Father.
• 0:01
  Speaker 1: We thank you, lord, for this day and your blessings and provisions.
• 0:03
  Speaker 1: God, thank you for this time, thank you for this podcast and thank you for our awesome guests we have today.
• 0:07
  Speaker 1: Lord, we just first want to thank you for our awesome night of worship and how your spirit moved the other night.
• 0:13
  Speaker 1: Lord, we just thank you and thank you for this time.
• 0:16
  Speaker 1: In Jesus' name, we pray, amen.
• 0:24
  Speaker 2: Hello everybody, this is Amanda Broiles, the executive director here at the Topeka Rescue Mission, and we want to welcome you now to our community, our mission, and it is episode 191.
• 0:36
  Speaker 2: Miriam, can you believe it?
• 0:39
  Speaker 3: No, I really can't you know who would honestly have thought that we would still be doing this.
• 0:44
  Speaker 2: I know After that many times that's a lot of weeks and that we're still contacted I mean almost monthly by either another rescue mission, a community partner, someone that says tell us how you're doing this podcast.
• 0:57
  Speaker 2: Absolutely.
• 0:58
  Speaker 3: Part of it is people kind of enjoy listening because we're goofballs, probably, and we just we like to have fun, and then we get serious on top of it.
• 1:06
  Speaker 2: So you know, especially when there's probably times that the mute button should be used.
• 1:11
  Speaker 2: Oh, I'm sure.
• 1:12
  Speaker 3: Especially Barry is here, I know, and since he's not here today, I can say it, we can talk about him for sure.
• 1:18
  Speaker 2: Well, you know, today is apparently one of my favorite days.
• 1:22
  Speaker 2: It is Well.
• 1:23
  Speaker 2: What favorite day is it?
• 1:25
  Speaker 2: Well, actually there's two reasons.
• 1:27
  Speaker 2: Okay, oh, god bless.
• 1:29
  Speaker 2: One is it's National Chocolate Milk Day.
• 1:32
  Speaker 2: Uh-huh, national.
• 1:33
  Speaker 2: Chocolate Milk and you're a fan, I am a fan.
• 1:35
  Speaker 2: Okay, growing up, though, it was the powdered chocolate milk, the Nestle, you know, and you had to mix it.
• 1:41
  Speaker 2: I loved it, but now, as an adult, that's disgusting.
• 1:44
  Speaker 2: I know it kind of is.
• 1:45
  Speaker 3: It doesn't really mix.
• 1:46
  Speaker 3: And it isn't, it isn't.
• 1:47
  Speaker 2: It isn't like real chocolate milk, no, no, and so now I prefer the syrup or buying it you know, but anyways, national Chocolate Milk Day, it is also National no Excuses Day.
• 1:59
  Speaker 2: Oh, that's going to be tough, though I know, so you should probably get me lunch today.
• 2:04
  Speaker 3: No excuse, no excuse, not to you know um I I there could be dead air time right now.
• 2:11
  Speaker 3: I have no words.
• 2:13
  Speaker 2: I have no words, well, just go buy me a chocolate milk and we're evil right.
• 2:17
  Speaker 2: There you go, no, um.
• 2:19
  Speaker 2: So I am joined today with Ms Miriam Crabill, uh, our deputy director of supportive services and a dear friend of mine.
• 2:26
  Speaker 2: She is on every week.
• 2:27
  Speaker 2: Um, she's got a couple of announcements.
• 2:29
  Speaker 2: We also have a special uh event that we're going to be talking about.
• 2:32
  Speaker 2: That happened this past Sunday evening, and we have two guests, um that are just incredible and uh help make this event happen, but also are just incredible men, um that support the Topeka Rescue Mission, but, even more importantly, they just support our community.
• 2:47
  Speaker 2: So we're going to get to them in just a minute.
• 2:49
  Speaker 2: But, miriam, what?
• 2:49
  Speaker 2: What announcements do you have for us?
• 2:52
  Speaker 3: Well, this time of year we've got a lot going on, yeah Right, um, we have a warehouse sale coming up.
• 2:57
  Speaker 3: People give us such amazing gifts, right, and most of them we're able to use with, um, our, when we're helping people get back into housing or if people need clothes or food or anything like that.
• 3:08
  Speaker 3: But every now and then we get things that just can't be used by our uh, guests or people in the community.
• 3:16
  Speaker 3: So we have a warehouse sale, and sale is kind of an interesting word because, it really is that people can just come see if there's things that they're they need and then give by donation, no prices on it.
• 3:27
  Speaker 3: We just want to be able to bless people the way that we are blessed, and so that's happening this week the 28th, the 29th and the 30th um, a variety of times on the 28th it's from 12 to four, on the 29th it's from 10 to four, and on the 30th it's from nine to 12.
• 3:45
  Speaker 3: And then and this is all at 206 Northwest Norris, at our warehouse.
• 3:49
  Speaker 3: We have volunteers working over there like busy beavers trying to get everything all set up, um and uh, so it will look wonderful and it'll be easy for people to see.
• 4:00
  Speaker 3: We have a lot of things to be able to, to bless people with.
• 4:03
  Speaker 3: So we, we want everybody to come out.
• 4:05
  Speaker 3: We sure do.
• 4:07
  Speaker 3: And additionally, I know drum roll right, and Christmas is coming.
• 4:11
  Speaker 3: Christmas, wish you a merry Christmas.
• 4:14
  Speaker 3: I know it's so hard to even imagine that it's still like 80 and 90 degrees outside and we're planning for Christmas, but it is coming, and so we want people to start thinking about it, both from, um, a volunteer perspective, because we need lots of volunteers during this time, uh, to help us get ready to help, then deliver gifts, all different sorts of things.
• 4:35
  Speaker 3: Right now we're looking for one special volunteer or person that maybe wants to work part time to help us plan our parties that we do for a guest and the unsheltered, our unsheltered neighbors, um, as well as then, um just helping decorate our buildings and kind of coordinating all the volunteers that step forward.
• 4:54
  Speaker 3: So this is a wonderful time to get involved with TRM.
• 4:57
  Speaker 3: Yes, um, there's one off projects and it may just hook you in so that you want to do more with TRM, uh huh.
• 5:03
  Speaker 3: So, calling Susie, our volunteer coordinator, um at uh, or going online, you can find all the different kinds of opportunities that we have.
• 5:11
  Speaker 3: Uh, but it's it's a special time and we definitely need all the help we can get.
• 5:16
  Speaker 2: Um and you know when we're talking about Christmas, um, let's just give some numbers here.
• 5:21
  Speaker 2: So, um, we do anywhere between 150 to 250 households that we help with United Way yes, from Christmas Bureau for the Christmas Bureau, and those can be anywhere from singles to several children, very large family.
• 5:38
  Speaker 2: So we have that.
• 5:39
  Speaker 2: We are averaging right now in our shelters.
• 5:42
  Speaker 2: Um, well, we're at 240 now, um, each night, but on average, about 215, 220, uh, 50 of them are children.
• 5:52
  Speaker 2: So we have that and then, uh, we usually try to um help celebrate at least a hundred to 200 unsheltered individuals as well.
• 6:02
  Speaker 2: So, if you do the math, I mean, we're looking at hundreds, if not in the low thousands.
• 6:09
  Speaker 2: And so when we say Christmas, we're talking, it is mega yes, and there are needs.
• 6:16
  Speaker 2: And then, in regards to decorating, you know, I think that that seems okay, so they're going to do some Christmas decorations, but I think we need to really remember that, especially in our shelters.
• 6:26
  Speaker 2: This is the home.
• 6:28
  Speaker 2: So what you're doing in your own home to begin those traditions and to do things to make your kids faces light up, or the things that bring you joy when you're sitting there in the evening, maybe having some downtime.
• 6:40
  Speaker 2: Our guests need that too, right, because they are guests in in our home, and so we want to do that, and so we want to make people feel like they are a part of um, just something special and something good, even if they are experiencing homelessness.
• 6:54
  Speaker 2: Yeah, absolutely, it's important, um, okay, so lots happening and I, man, I feel like we came out of the community meetings.
• 7:02
  Speaker 2: Uh, we had an initial, uh pastor luncheon.
• 7:04
  Speaker 2: We're going to be offering that to more pastors coming up.
• 7:07
  Speaker 2: Uh, we're talking about the warehouse sale.
• 7:09
  Speaker 2: We're talking about Christmas coming.
• 7:11
  Speaker 2: Another thing that we're going to be announcing soon is we're going to try to do a fall festival for our guests.
• 7:16
  Speaker 2: So that's in the works with Courtney right now.
• 7:18
  Speaker 2: So there's just a lot happening, um, lots for um, just opportunities for people to volunteer and to bless others.
• 7:24
  Speaker 2: But speaking of blessing this past Sunday evening, um, I can't already get emotional.
• 7:32
  Speaker 2: We're just starting, I know, but it touched my heart in such a big way.
• 7:36
  Speaker 2: Can you just maybe talk a little bit, miriam, about what happened Sunday night?
• 7:41
  Speaker 3: You know, sunday was an incredibly special experience.
• 7:45
  Speaker 3: We had praise bands from different churches come in and as well as another person that I'll let you introduce in a little bit, but to really come in to just honor the Lord, right?
• 7:58
  Speaker 3: Um, trm is so blessed so often, like daily, with how the Lord just brings us what we need when we need it, and whether it's people, whether it's resources, whether it's things, the Lord just shows such favor to TRM as we try to help those who really struggle with homelessness or addiction or hunger or Depression, all of those things.
• 8:24
  Speaker 3: And so Sunday night was a time for um people to come together and give God glory for all that he does and also bring awareness, though, to what Folks around us are facing.
• 8:35
  Speaker 3: That might be folks that we serve, but it might also be folks that we encounter every day in our churches, in our workplace, people that are Having a hard time finding their way, you know, or just experiencing things that Make it difficult.
• 8:53
  Speaker 3: And so we had nearly 400 people that were there to just celebrate, to celebrate, to, to show our love for the Lord, and then also to learn and to support the rescue mission financially, as well so it was just Such a special, special night.
• 9:13
  Speaker 3: It was great to be able to just stop the singing, me to stop singing and listen to the room.
• 9:18
  Speaker 3: Yes, as people were just Filled with joy in so many ways, whether they were listening to poetry, whether they were participating in the songs, whether they were participating with the poetry, I mean it was just a really, really special night.
• 9:36
  Speaker 2: You know, and I think, that life never pauses right.
• 9:39
  Speaker 2: So when people are experiencing financial difficulty, depression, anxiety, worry, trying to keep up with Job requirements, all of these things, um, I hear so often, I just wish I could kind of put, put things on pause for just a second to catch my breath, and we just.
• 10:00
  Speaker 2: That's not how life works.
• 10:01
  Speaker 2: But I do feel like we got as close to that on sunday night as possible, I know, because I think people could Just experience the moment when we were worshiping the Lord and just reminding that he's in control of it all, um, and that we really can relinquish things because he loves us and he cares for us.
• 10:23
  Speaker 2: And when we have those concerns about job loss or those concerns about living on the streets or those concerns that we don't want anybody else to know about, because there's this certain expectation that you have to have it all together, whether you're a man or a woman, um, and and it was just a time where we could say you know what?
• 10:41
  Speaker 2: There is hope, yes, and it's not anything to do with myself, my ability right, um, others around me and also, um, if there are enemies, if there is something that is against me or or is being ugly Again.
• 10:57
  Speaker 2: I don't have to lose hope right and the.
• 11:00
  Speaker 3: The other really special thing to me about to add on to everything that you just said is there is something about being in a room with the body of christ yes, right where we're all Kind of focused on the same thing, you know, and so the support that we get from the lord is amazing, and the support that we get from our brothers and sisters around us, even when they may not know exactly what's going on, you can still feel that connection.
• 11:25
  Speaker 3: You can feel that, that we are all part of the body.
• 11:28
  Speaker 2: Absolutely.
• 11:29
  Speaker 2: And so this event, really, we're gonna kind of walk through how it came to fruition.
• 11:33
  Speaker 2: But on sunday night, what really happened was um I kicked it off with just welcoming everybody and that it was going to be a time of Um joy, but also looking at things that plague our community, um and how we can join, united Um and just kindness, join in prayer, join in volunteering Um, just being a part of Um, not just individual churches or not individual agencies, but really collectively being the church to care for people.
• 12:03
  Speaker 2: And so the night consisted of uh three worship bands Um.
• 12:07
  Speaker 2: One was from tibica bible church, one was from grace point and then one was from fellowship bible church.
• 12:13
  Speaker 2: Uh, fellowship bible opened up their church to us.
• 12:16
  Speaker 2: They are always so welcoming of us, great supporters of the mission, and so Throughout the night, each one of those worship bands did their own set and um just brought their own vibe, and it was just beautiful.
• 12:29
  Speaker 2: Their song choices.
• 12:30
  Speaker 2: None of them were the same and it was just incredible.
• 12:32
  Speaker 2: And then mixed into this um was uh, just this beautiful expression done by sj hazim, which I will talk with in just a moment.
• 12:42
  Speaker 2: Um and then also uh a video of our unsheltered neighbors talking about why t r m means something to them.
• 12:50
  Speaker 2: Yeah, and we heard from everywhere of people saying I'm trying to overcome alcoholism.
• 12:55
  Speaker 2: We had someone on there say I was having a rough day and hayley, from street reach, just drove by and yelled from the truck she loved her.
• 13:02
  Speaker 2: Just how something so small to hayley was so big when it was received.
• 13:07
  Speaker 2: And so we we had this mixture of of that and personal stories.
• 13:12
  Speaker 2: And then we heard from kinny ball yeah, uh, which we've talked about and talked to, but kinny, you know, um battled with addiction for 43 years and um, he just talked about the kinny that he used to be, uh, and the kinny that he is now.
• 13:26
  Speaker 2: And then, um, god just allowed us to make the connection that if there is um, you know, this sense of um, confusion, or this attitude of, well, the Topeka rescue mission gives way too many chances, or the Topeka rescue mission gives out too many resources, those kinds of things.
• 13:47
  Speaker 2: We made the connection to say this life that has been saved, redeemed and renewed, and now he is making a difference in the lives of so many men that could have been stunted if we would have said two chances and you're done, or, in year 10 of his addiction, if we would have said this man's been addicted 10 years.
• 14:10
  Speaker 2: There's no hope for him, and that's just not how our Lord works.
• 14:13
  Speaker 2: And so thank goodness, myself included.
• 14:16
  Speaker 2: There are still some things that I wish I was doing better at, whether it's my walk with the Lord, my prayer time, all of these things and I'm still a work in progress.
• 14:25
  Speaker 2: And I just don't want people to give up on me and so we don't give up on people.
• 14:28
  Speaker 2: So a special night.
• 14:30
  Speaker 2: That kind of talks about that a little bit.
• 14:32
  Speaker 2: I wanna introduce Mr Greg Armbruster.
• 14:35
  Speaker 2: He is an incredible board member, a good friend of mine, someone that I'm very thankful for his wisdom and his leadership but, most importantly, his heart to do right by people.
• 14:47
  Speaker 2: And so, greg, welcome, thank you.
• 14:50
  Speaker 5: Thank you for having me.
• 14:51
  Speaker 2: He was on with us not too long ago when we introduced just kind of his history with the rescue mission.
• 14:56
  Speaker 2: But, greg, talk to us a little bit about the contribution committee, how you kind of got involved with that and why you think that this event was important to do.
• 15:09
  Speaker 5: Yeah, and we changed the name of our committee to the Resource Development Committee.
• 15:15
  Speaker 2: Yes it just sounds better.
• 15:17
  Speaker 2: Yes, we talked about that.
• 15:18
  Speaker 5: Yes, but yeah, when we started that committee a few months ago, I mean I was really excited about it and I offered to chair it, and so we were just meeting and throwing out ideas of how we could fundraise and develop resources for the TRM and so, yeah, I was really excited about it, and when we came up with this idea of having this praise night and use it as a fundraiser, it was amazing how I saw God working in that.
• 15:59
  Speaker 5: And this whole thing was God.
• 16:01
  Speaker 5: I take no credit for anything, but Scott May had brought this idea up.
• 16:07
  Speaker 5: He and Bill Horn had been talking about it and immediately the light came on for me.
• 16:13
  Speaker 5: I thought this is a great idea.
• 16:16
  Speaker 2: So why do you think you had peace with the idea?
• 16:21
  Speaker 5: Well, there again, it must have just been God, because it just seemed right.
• 16:25
  Speaker 5: It seemed like a way not only to raise funds but to praise God and to give him the glory.
• 16:34
  Speaker 5: I think that was a big part of it.
• 16:36
  Speaker 2: And I think too, at the rescue mission, we have a desire to bring our community together, and sometimes it's centered on homelessness, and sometimes it's just centered on hope and positivity and trying to combat the pressures and trying to combat the things that keep people oppressed, because we are commanded to love our neighbor, and sometimes that person that we're loving isn't even experiencing homelessness, but God puts them in our path and we know they're struggling, and so this event was a way that I think that we could do all of that.
• 17:12
  Speaker 2: We could raise funds.
• 17:14
  Speaker 2: We were doing it in a way, though, that wasn't mission drift it was still so connected to who we are but it was also a way that we brought hope to people, and we had unsheltered neighbors there that we shuttled.
• 17:27
  Speaker 2: We had guests there that we bust over, and then we had donors and volunteers and we had people that didn't know much about the rescue mission at all all coming together in this one room to worship, and I just think that's incredible.
• 17:42
  Speaker 2: What was a takeaway from you?
• 17:44
  Speaker 2: That you had Greg?
• 17:45
  Speaker 2: You attended the event, you worked it, you greeted people.
• 17:49
  Speaker 2: When you left, what were you thinking?
• 17:53
  Speaker 5: Well, I was thinking, here was this event.
• 17:57
  Speaker 5: We kind of started out doing it because it was a fundraiser and how.
• 18:02
  Speaker 5: It was just an event that gave glory to God and it was an event that blessed people and it was an event that gave people hope and.
• 18:15
  Speaker 5: I mean, those were all things that really was in part, maybe, of the original thinking, but how God just used that to honor him and give hope and bless people.
• 18:26
  Speaker 5: So I think that was my big takeaway.
• 18:29
  Speaker 2: And I was also just thankful for all the people who made this possible.
• 18:33
  Speaker 2: So, in addition to our staff which we're gonna kind of transition to Josh Turley in just a moment our staff worked hard.
• 18:41
  Speaker 2: We had volunteers, help from making cookies, stuffing cookies in the bags, getting the water bottles ready we had all of this happen.
• 18:50
  Speaker 2: But we also had some sponsors.
• 18:52
  Speaker 2: So, greg, can you mention maybe some of our sponsors and also just kind of express, as a board member, why you're grateful for those sponsors?
• 19:01
  Speaker 5: Yeah, and before I do that, I'd like to piggyback on what you said.
• 19:05
  Speaker 5: I had heard, and you'd always talk about in board meetings, how great the staff was and how their heart was, and I got to see this firsthand.
• 19:14
  Speaker 2: Yes.
• 19:17
  Speaker 5: When we decided to do this and came to the final decision and you and Merriam just took the bull by the horns and the staff got on board and it was just yeah, I mean, I saw in action what you talked about.
• 19:31
  Speaker 2: So that was really nice.
• 19:32
  Speaker 5: They're incredible, they are incredible, and I don't know how many of them were there at the event of your staff.
• 19:37
  Speaker 2: I don't know either.
• 19:38
  Speaker 2: I know we had at least two dozen that were there, so I would say at least 25 to 30 staff members were there.
• 19:46
  Speaker 2: Yeah, that's awesome.
• 19:48
  Speaker 5: Yeah, just to give a little background on how God worked this out.
• 19:52
  Speaker 5: As far as our sponsors, we originally as a committee hadn't even thought about doing sponsors, having it sponsored.
• 20:00
  Speaker 5: We were trying to decide whether we want to charge admission or whatever to do there.
• 20:04
  Speaker 5: And I don't know if you remember several months ago, amanda, you came to my office and made a presentation to our agents.
• 20:13
  Speaker 2: Yes.
• 20:14
  Speaker 5: And got a lot of people excited about the work at TRM through that presentation, especially our two owners, and so when I told them about our event, they immediately said you should find sponsors and raise some money that way.
• 20:34
  Speaker 5: And so they said we'll step up and be the first sponsor of 2,500.
• 20:38
  Speaker 5: Yes, and 2,500 dollars.
• 20:40
  Speaker 5: So, yeah, it was a great idea that we hadn't even thought about, and God just worked through your meeting with our agents and brought that all about.
• 20:49
  Speaker 5: So, yeah, we were able to raise about over $14,000 in just sponsorships.
• 20:57
  Speaker 2: So that was awesome.
• 20:58
  Speaker 5: Yes, totally.
• 20:59
  Speaker 2: Yes, so we have a couple of platinum sponsors.
• 21:03
  Speaker 2: We had the Coal Creek Construction, we had Mr Dwight Minkie Insurance, genesis Relitters and Dr Teggs, a Center for Nutrition and Preventative Medicine.
• 21:16
  Speaker 2: So those were our platinum sponsors.
• 21:19
  Speaker 3: It was amazing.
• 21:20
  Speaker 3: It was amazing how people just came forward.
• 21:22
  Speaker 2: Yes, and then we had Gold Sponsors, we had Silver Sponsors, we had Bronze Sponsors and then we had Media Sponsors.
• 21:30
  Speaker 2: So we were thankful for Metro Voice running an ad for us Lamar, they are so incredible with the billboards and how they put stuff up for us, not just for this event, they just rally around us and help us do that.
• 21:44
  Speaker 2: And then 13 News WIBW helped us with that.
• 21:48
  Speaker 2: So we're grateful for that, grateful for the sponsorships made a big difference and so grateful for that.
• 21:56
  Speaker 2: Grateful for our staff.
• 21:58
  Speaker 2: So I wish people could see right now, but you're just listening.
• 22:02
  Speaker 2: But I am sitting directly across from Mr Josh Turley and he does everything that is creative communications and more around here at the Rescue Mission, and so, with this being our first time to do this and needing PowerPoints, needing audios, needing programs and needing social media and media visits on the Red Couch all of that we relied on Josh.
• 22:37
  Speaker 2: Drum roll, please, right, josh?
• 22:40
  Speaker 2: And so there's so much around here where I feel like we can kind of share the weight of people and its teamwork, but so much of this was like me, myself, myself and I and it was Josh.
• 22:53
  Speaker 2: And so, josh, talk to us just a little bit about what all you put together why that's important to you, and then we can talk about how you survived.
• 23:06
  Speaker 1: I'll be honest, all of it was a blur.
• 23:08
  Speaker 1: I don't know.
• 23:09
  Speaker 2: I know.
• 23:09
  Speaker 2: Yes, that's exactly right.
• 23:11
  Speaker 1: No, it was really cool because it kind of it kept evolving, I mean, the whole time.
• 23:16
  Speaker 1: We started out with a few things here and there and then turned into kind of more videos and different things.
• 23:23
  Speaker 1: But I think the exciting thing for me was being able to see it all come together and see it all flow really well together.
• 23:29
  Speaker 1: And um, yeah, I don't know.
• 23:32
  Speaker 1: Just I just want to piggyback off of Miriam what you said about Hearing everybody all sing together.
• 23:37
  Speaker 1: That's one of my favorite parts of worship is when I stop and just listen.
• 23:41
  Speaker 1: Yes, I was in the back for one point.
• 23:43
  Speaker 1: One point I think grace point was was doing their set and I was in the back grabbing pictures.
• 23:48
  Speaker 1: And I Just stopped for a second and I was just listening and you know We've been talking a lot about unity within the community and.
• 23:56
  Speaker 1: I thought what a better example of of unity than this, right here, right now, just hearing the body of Christ, not a singular church.
• 24:02
  Speaker 1: You know different people from different denominations, different backgrounds, all coming together and glorifying God.
• 24:08
  Speaker 1: I think that's, frankly, the closest you can get to heaven this side of eternity and it was just beautiful to me.
• 24:14
  Speaker 2: So, just seeing all that you know come together, all of the the craziness that it was all come together in that one night was was, it was really special so and you know, I think, in addition to Listening and there were a couple of times where either I was on stage or coming off stage and seeing all of the differences From different ethnicities, different cultures we had some elderly there, some middle age, we had Babies and toddlers and you could tell the parents that we're having to go take their kids to the bathroom.
• 24:52
  Speaker 2: You know, it was just all of these different walks of life and it was just incredible to see that None of that mattered, and not that it.
• 25:03
  Speaker 2: I don't mean that in an ugly way, it was just we were united, we were all excited to be there, we were wanting to learn, we just wanted to be able to smile and talk to the person sitting next to us and to see that.
• 25:15
  Speaker 2: And then, personally, you know, I was sitting there with my two daughters and last week we had a rough week.
• 25:22
  Speaker 2: Sometimes I'm like, man, am I gonna survive being their mom?
• 25:26
  Speaker 2: But they're incredible kids.
• 25:28
  Speaker 2: But you know, there's there's not a book for it, right and so.
• 25:32
  Speaker 2: But just sitting there and I had my arms around both of them and then at one point I needed to take my arms off of them because they had their arms lifted and I just thought, man, if this night wasn't happening outside of our church that I bring them to every Sunday, they wouldn't have this opportunity.
• 25:47
  Speaker 2: And then they got to see Different people and all of this, and so it was just such a good experience for them too.
• 25:54
  Speaker 2: But when we got in the car, my 11 year old said Mama, are you excited about tonight?
• 26:00
  Speaker 2: And I said yes, I am.
• 26:01
  Speaker 2: I said that was great, and I said what do you think?
• 26:04
  Speaker 2: And she goes one word and I said what's your one word?
• 26:07
  Speaker 2: And she said powerful, my 11 year old.
• 26:10
  Speaker 2: And so I'm just like thank you God for that, because that's gonna be a memory she has.
• 26:14
  Speaker 2: So it's just wonderful, wonderful.
• 26:19
  Speaker 1: Can I also give a special shout out to the tech team.
• 26:21
  Speaker 1: Yes we had some tech guys from each of the churches come together and you know a lot of people don't think about it, but they were there once their church services ended.
• 26:30
  Speaker 1: So they were, they literally were going all day, from morning until the night, the end of the.
• 26:35
  Speaker 1: So they were going all day Sunday.
• 26:36
  Speaker 1: So just special shout out to the worship teams and the tech guys for, yes, help and set that up, make that all sound beautiful and work together beautifully.
• 26:43
  Speaker 2: So appreciate you guys yes, well, and Sam read from Topeka Bible Church.
• 26:47
  Speaker 2: He had the curse of having to mic me, which took a while.
• 26:52
  Speaker 2: He got me all mic'd up and then ten seconds later I messed with my hair and the whole mic came off and we had to start all over again and I said I'm so sorry, but no, they did great.
• 27:03
  Speaker 2: Josh, you are always in the background and we say that right, and I feel like, just as the director here, I always try to showcase what you do because to appreciate it.
• 27:19
  Speaker 2: But I really want us to be thinking about you differently when I say that you're in the background.
• 27:25
  Speaker 2: I think what we need to start saying is that you're a foundation, and the reason I feel strongly about saying that is because there is so much of what we do here at the rescue mission that is to tell our story, and that is not to brag, it's not to boast.
• 27:45
  Speaker 2: We are humble here and we want to remain humble.
• 27:48
  Speaker 2: But it's also a way where sometimes on social media, all there is is negativity, and for us to showcase either what God is doing so that people still believe in miracles, they still believe in things that bring hope, but also the way that we're able to talk about the good things that people are doing too, which is gonna be one of the next guests that we talk to his social media is so encouraging and it's uplifting, and so when I think about how we access the work that you do, whether it's the internal staff newsletter, the external newsletter, events like this social media.
• 28:35
  Speaker 2: We say that it's background, but I really am going to try, as your director, to be thinking about that differently, josh, and say that what you do is foundational.
• 28:43
  Speaker 2: Because even if we were able to do all of these things and then we didn't talk about it, we're really not being vessels for the Lord.
• 28:54
  Speaker 2: And then the other side is, if we did all of these operations and then we did not communicate and then stay engaged with people again, we wouldn't be being vessels, we wouldn't be those beacons of hope and light.
• 29:06
  Speaker 2: And so please know from the bottom of my heart that I'm grateful for you, thankful for what you do.
• 29:10
  Speaker 2: I don't ever overlook it.
• 29:13
  Speaker 2: But, even more importantly, god knows, he knows what you're doing and what you're doing with the right heart.
• 29:19
  Speaker 2: So thank you for all of that.
• 29:21
  Speaker 1: Well, thank you.
• 29:22
  Speaker 1: I really appreciate that, yes it's incredible, Josh.
• 29:27
  Speaker 2: Another thing in person that is incredible is Mr SJ Hazim.
• 29:33
  Speaker 5: Welcome Boop boop boop boop.
• 29:35
  Speaker 2: Hello, we were talking earlier about how, when we're doing our mic checks, anything that he says sounds incredible and the rest of us are like well we're down.
• 29:43
  Speaker 3: Check check check, check.
• 29:46
  Speaker 2: No, sj, welcome.
• 29:47
  Speaker 2: We're glad to have you with us.
• 29:49
  Speaker 4: Well, I'm glad to be had.
• 29:51
  Speaker 2: Yes, SJ, talk a little bit about your part in this evening.
• 29:58
  Speaker 2: Just what did you do?
• 30:00
  Speaker 2: What did you do to prep for it?
• 30:01
  Speaker 2: And then I'm gonna let you know just how it touched my heart.
• 30:05
  Speaker 4: Well, first and foremost, it all has to start with the meeting that I had with a lady named Maryam.
• 30:13
  Speaker 4: It always starts with Maryam.
• 30:14
  Speaker 4: Huh, it starts in the ends with Maryam, okay.
• 30:18
  Speaker 4: So basically, she wanted to grab a cup of coffee and talk about some different things and it came up this fundraiser.
• 30:26
  Speaker 4: I know there was some conversation about it in 2019, but we're looking at maybe doing something in 2020 came, and of course, we all know how that ended, but I told her I would definitely love to be a part of it.
• 30:40
  Speaker 4: It's really hard for me to say no to Maryam.
• 30:42
  Speaker 4: I don't think she'll allow it.
• 30:45
  Speaker 4: She gave me this look and I was like, okay, I think, yeah, I'm in, I'm in.
• 30:50
  Speaker 3: I didn't have to work hard at all.
• 30:54
  Speaker 4: But so from that, the preparation, when that began, I just have to be inspired by something.
• 31:00
  Speaker 4: So as I was going and I was thinking about it even before I got any of the videos, I was like I want one poem to really be almost like one word that really describes something.
• 31:10
  Speaker 4: It got to.
• 31:12
  Speaker 4: Sometimes it was two and three words, maybe even four within every line that I was doing and writing like that is not the easiest because one word doesn't always describe something.
• 31:26
  Speaker 4: But from that I also wanted to bring in a melodic form of pretty much I pulled from the movie Glory.
• 31:33
  Speaker 4: So it was like a Negro spiritual, if you will, with the chorus lines that are bringing everybody into it and it's pretty much just crying out to the Lord.
• 31:42
  Speaker 4: And with that I believe in that the Holy Spirit can understand even just grunts and noises, everything, because sometimes scream therapy is a thing.
• 31:59
  Speaker 4: And so I wanted to combine some stuff.
• 32:05
  Speaker 4: Steve Jobs talks about creativity just to combine the things.
• 32:07
  Speaker 4: So I wanted to combine that with a poem that would encompass everything that I heard some of the unsheltered neighbors talk about.
• 32:19
  Speaker 4: And then the last poem.
• 32:21
  Speaker 4: I wanted it to be a little more personal, but I also wanted it to be another melody, with the chorus that brings people in for the simple fact that sometimes people just don't have money and they still have to be responsible for people, and that feeling that you get when that comes.
• 32:42
  Speaker 4: How does that make you feel?
• 32:43
  Speaker 4: Have you ever been in that position?
• 32:45
  Speaker 4: And some, most people, are only just one major event away from maybe losing their home.
• 32:52
  Speaker 4: You could have a $100,000 saved up and still be at risk because somebody might get cancer somebody might get something and insurance might not cover it all.
• 33:03
  Speaker 4: And a lot of times people don't think about what happens when they are at a job and let me say 2020 rolls around and maybe they're protected with FMLA and everything but say they call off at a time to where some things hadn't been recalibrated as far as how much time they have off, because there may have been an event to where at that company whatever company maybe they're off for four months and they don't recalibrate what that would have been if they had those extra four months for the FMLA.
• 33:35
  Speaker 4: So anyway, I know that sounds pretty personal, right?
• 33:38
  Speaker 4: Because it's a real experience with me how I lost my job at a Fortune 500 company after being there for 13 years and normally benefits are rolled to the end of the month.
• 33:48
  Speaker 4: Well, they stopped mine that day.
• 33:50
  Speaker 4: I was going through therapy for five years, so I haven't seen my therapist since then and all benefits ended that day, went in, had a dentist appointment the day after I got fired and found out I didn't have any dental insurance anymore, which it was already paid up for that month.
• 34:09
  Speaker 4: But you get to thinking it's like this can happen to anybody at any given time.
• 34:15
  Speaker 4: So that second poem was that, combined with another melody, and I feel that although I'm not a singer, I can carry a tune a little bit.
• 34:28
  Speaker 4: So therefore that adds an extra element to the poetry and that's always important for me to say, because I didn't realize how important that was till one of the I don't want to mention the person's name but one of my elders pulled me to the side and said hey, I haven't heard you doing any melodies in your poetry in a while.
• 34:52
  Speaker 4: Don't lose that.
• 34:53
  Speaker 4: It adds a whole different element and at that point I was like I felt that God had sent her to say that to me because I was one of those kids who really didn't care for R&B.
• 35:04
  Speaker 4: I was into the hip hop.
• 35:05
  Speaker 4: So I was like, oh man, there's a nice mix here.
• 35:08
  Speaker 4: So that was my inspiration.
• 35:11
  Speaker 2: And SJ, when I, oh my goodness, when I see your talents and just how different it is and how we need to showcase it more, because so many people can relate to it.
• 35:25
  Speaker 2: And we just need to give the opportunity for you to do your thing so that people can relate and souls can be changed.
• 35:32
  Speaker 2: I also know that time is precious and I think that your talent should be respected and I know you're probably pulled with lots of people wanting you that kind of thing.
• 35:42
  Speaker 2: So can you just explain why did you agree to do this?
• 35:46
  Speaker 2: Why did you want to be a part of this night?
• 35:49
  Speaker 4: Well you are.
• 35:50
  Speaker 4: You're asking all the right questions, I'll tell you.
• 35:54
  Speaker 4: Expansion of the kingdom and also expansion of the audience, because I think that there may have only been a handful of people in that room who have ever heard my poetry and, with that, the reason I do the type of poetry I do, because it's first of all, there's something about, there's a tie in between shame and transparency, and the transparency offsets the shame and it's one of the things that when people talk to me, that's what they get.
• 36:39
  Speaker 4: I've always tried to put my finger on it.
• 36:42
  Speaker 4: Why do people actually like talking to me?
• 36:45
  Speaker 4: And when I say that it's from CEOs to just regular folk, but they're gonna get the truth.
• 36:52
  Speaker 4: They're gonna get the truth from me on how I feel in that moment, and that changes at different times.
• 37:00
  Speaker 4: But, truthfully, I don't have time to sugarcoat anything.
• 37:06
  Speaker 4: I don't have time for the how's the weather conversations.
• 37:10
  Speaker 4: I don't know how long I'm gonna be here on this earth.
• 37:12
  Speaker 4: So if I'm going to write about something or address something, I wanna do it in a way to where I can help change a perspective, and I also wanna meet people where they're at.
• 37:22
  Speaker 4: So at this point, yes, I'm a believer, but I will tell people if you're alive, god is blessing you.
• 37:29
  Speaker 4: If you're a non-believer, you're a blessing too.
• 37:31
  Speaker 4: I cover all bases.
• 37:33
  Speaker 4: That's 100% of the people at that point.
• 37:36
  Speaker 4: How hard is that?
• 37:37
  Speaker 4: Because a lot of times we feel that we have to.
• 37:41
  Speaker 4: Just we plant the seed, we water it, god gives the increase, and anybody who wants to sit here and take credit for all the souls that they saved, you know what?
• 37:50
  Speaker 4: Their soul might not be saved In stock, full stock, right there.
• 37:55
  Speaker 4: So, and what I'm saying is there could be some people get upset about that, some of the religious folk, right, that's funny, because I'm like that, I'm a religious folk, right, I'm untraditional.
• 38:07
  Speaker 4: So then, therefore, the kingdom is the world.
• 38:11
  Speaker 4: So then, therefore, when people are like the church is the community, especially if it's one church and that's the only people you're dedicated to, you box yourself in.
• 38:22
  Speaker 4: I don't think Jesus would be pleased.
• 38:23
  Speaker 4: But once again, I'm going off script here.
• 38:26
  Speaker 4: I'm just saying, if you're feeling shameful about different things, maybe you should be more transparent about it and you will grab more attention from the people and you'll then their ear, because people just want.
• 38:38
  Speaker 4: People don't have time for the fake stuff anymore.
• 38:41
  Speaker 4: They just don't.
• 38:42
  Speaker 4: If you can't be really in the conversation, especially during this cancel culture, it's a thin line we walk.
• 38:50
  Speaker 4: There's a whole lot of things that you can't even say anymore or you have to think about what is it?
• 38:56
  Speaker 4: I don't even know if I should say sir or ma'am anymore, and so and this is where I'll end it, but I won't.
• 39:06
  Speaker 4: I find it wild that, basically, we have to walk on so many eggshells when it comes to anything nowadays because everybody is so quick to judge and put you in a box so they don't have to deal with you anymore.
• 39:21
  Speaker 4: If somebody asks you who you support in politics, sometimes they might just say I'm ready to write this person off because whatever answer they get, they don't do this, then I'm doing that, and I think it's a shame.
• 39:31
  Speaker 4: I think we should meet people where they're at and stop with all the preconceived notions.
• 39:38
  Speaker 2: You know, and I think that is kind of one of the reasons why we wanted to do this event too Because sometimes we get so focused on everything that we might disagree on or everything that we're different on, and I just wanna challenge our community to say what can we agree on?
• 39:55
  Speaker 2: Can we just agree that we want our community to be safe?
• 39:59
  Speaker 2: We want our community to be a community where people look at us and say, man, they're different.
• 40:05
  Speaker 2: Why are they different?
• 40:06
  Speaker 2: And it's because of the kindness we extend or how we don't judge people for their circumstances, regardless of what it is Now from us.
• 40:15
  Speaker 2: We do that and we strive to do that because of our belief in Christ right, because he told us to love him and love our neighbor, not love the neighbor that agrees with everything you agree with.
• 40:25
  Speaker 2: Not love your neighbor who looks like you, acts like you, talks like you.
• 40:30
  Speaker 2: Love your neighbor.
• 40:30
  Speaker 2: And so we believe that when we love with no strings attached, that then we open up a way for people to understand Christ's love for us.
• 40:39
  Speaker 2: And a lot of people are struggling right now, and sometimes it's people that's on the streets.
• 40:43
  Speaker 2: Sometimes it's that person who finally took the courage to walk into the shelter, to begin walking out of their shame and transparency and beginning to walk out of this, whatever has a stronghold of them, to then begin to break those chains to say you know what?
• 41:00
  Speaker 2: I'm ready for freedom.
• 41:01
  Speaker 2: What does that look like?
• 41:01
  Speaker 2: And sometimes it's not instantly into the freedom of Christianity or a relationship with Christ.
• 41:08
  Speaker 2: Sometimes the freedom is I'm ready to break through this domestic violence.
• 41:11
  Speaker 2: I'm ready to break through this addiction.
• 41:14
  Speaker 2: I'm ready to break through the fact that I've been homeless because of this $1,000 utility bill that's hovered over my head for 12 months.
• 41:24
  Speaker 2: And then, when we're able to meet people where they are and love them the way Christ does, then they question, they say why are you loving me like that?
• 41:34
  Speaker 2: Why are you treating me with respect like that?
• 41:36
  Speaker 2: And I think that makes all the difference.
• 41:39
  Speaker 2: And, sj, I think when you talk about your personal experience, when you do your poetry and just the authentic expressions, all of that, people are drawn to that and they're not just listening to you, they are ready to be heard themselves.
• 41:56
  Speaker 4: You know what People wanna be seen and heard, so they can become known and loved.
• 42:01
  Speaker 2: Yes.
• 42:02
  Speaker 4: And that's exactly what it comes down to, and one of the reasons I was looking back at some of my old booklets and I wrote something 10 years ago called A Prayer for Humanity.
• 42:13
  Speaker 4: There was something that was in there that was very significant.
• 42:16
  Speaker 4: There was a few different lines.
• 42:17
  Speaker 4: One was we are the chosen vessel being used for God's glory.
• 42:22
  Speaker 4: Our hands are the utensils to write a story.
• 42:25
  Speaker 4: Also, there was something in it that talked about the power of belief, and whatever you believe in is what actually makes up your values and from your value, and even looking at V, going by two V's makes up your worth.
• 42:46
  Speaker 4: That's why, a lot of times, you hear old school people say well, he doesn't amount to nothing Because the values aren't there.
• 42:52
  Speaker 4: Therefore, it doesn't contribute to your worth.
• 42:55
  Speaker 4: So, and whatever you believe in, even if it's not true, will become real to you, and that's why I pray for humanity, For that simple fact.
• 43:05
  Speaker 4: There's so many ways that you could be confused and let astray.
• 43:08
  Speaker 4: There's all kinds of things out there, but a few things for sure life is hard, You're gonna die and your experiences will change your perspective, and there's all these things that you just don't know that are gonna happen in life.
• 43:29
  Speaker 4: But whatever you decide to put your belief in, even if it's false, will become real to you.
• 43:36
  Speaker 4: So therefore, when you're arguing with somebody about whatever it is, they might have a false belief and all their values are in it.
• 43:45
  Speaker 4: You're not gonna.
• 43:47
  Speaker 4: Only God is gonna be able to change that person's mind.
• 43:50
  Speaker 4: So you can water the seed, plant it and pray for them.
• 43:54
  Speaker 4: But if you decide to try to solve something or I believe most of the mental illnesses that still exist or around are because people are trying to solve unsolvable problems and they haven't let go of things that should have been let go a long time ago- A long time ago.
• 44:10
  Speaker 4: So that's, my soapbox.
• 44:12
  Speaker 2: Hey, I think it's beautiful and I think we are all looking at ways.
• 44:17
  Speaker 2: Whether it is through authentic expressions and poetry, whether it's being board members and devoting your time to notable causes, whether it's being employed by the Topeka Rescue Mission, there are great people and great organizations and great things happening in our community.
• 44:36
  Speaker 2: What we now have to do is use our platforms, whether it's podcasts, whether it's our social media, whether it's our talents to tell the good news, to tell the story, to be the kindness and love people.
• 44:50
  Speaker 2: So we hope that that's what you gathered from today.
• 44:55
  Speaker 1: Can I piggyback?
• 44:55
  Speaker 2: off your thought there real quick.
• 44:56
  Speaker 2: Sure can yes.
• 44:57
  Speaker 1: And I remember this, seeing this a little while back, and it was SJ, you were talking about the Holy Spirit leading you in your creativity, and I learned the other day do you know who the first person recorded in scripture to be filled with the Holy Spirit was?
• 45:09
  Speaker 3: No.
• 45:10
  Speaker 1: He's back in Exodus, Okay, and you probably haven't heard his name.
• 45:13
  Speaker 1: So this is from Exodus 30, or, sorry, Exodus 35, verse 30.
• 45:18
  Speaker 1: It says then Moses said to the Israelites see, the Lord has chosen Bezalel, son of Uri, the son of her of the tribe of Judah, and he has filled him with the spirit of God, with wisdom, with understanding, with knowledge and with all kinds of skills to make artistic designs for work in gold, silver and bronze, to cut and set stones, to work in wood and to engage in all kinds of artistic crafts.
• 45:41
  Speaker 1: And that just encouraged me.
• 45:43
  Speaker 1: God is a God of creativity and the first person he filled in scripture, filled with the spirit, was a man named Bezalel, and it was to create.
• 45:52
  Speaker 1: So whatever the spirit lead you to what did you to create.
• 45:55
  Speaker 1: Is he's with you?
• 45:56
  Speaker 1: Yeah, I'm sure that.
• 45:58
  Speaker 2: And wonderful way to end.
• 45:59
  Speaker 2: So if you are listening right now and maybe you do recognize your talents and you're not sure how to use them, be praying about that, because there are ways that God can use all of us and whatever yes we can say and the yes that we can do, he uses it for the greater good.
• 46:19
  Speaker 2: If you are listening right now and you're thinking you know what I don't have worth, I don't have value, I don't have talents, we are here to tell you those are lies of the enemy.
• 46:29
  Speaker 2: You matter, you're valued and if you have breath in your lungs, you were created for a purpose and you have creations that need to just come out of you.
• 46:38
  Speaker 2: So don't doubt today, regardless if you are sitting in an office, if you are the CEO or you are someone that is living on the streets, you matter.
• 46:50
  Speaker 2: We love you.
• 46:51
  Speaker 2: At the Topeka Rescue Mission, there are community members fighting for you and remember any struggles that you have.
• 46:57
  Speaker 2: There's someone else with that same struggle.
• 46:59
  Speaker 2: So we must come together, talk about it, be transparent and break the bondage of shame.
• 47:04
  Speaker 2: You are loved.
• 47:05
  Speaker 2: Thank you for joining us today on Our Community, our Mission, music Check Out.