Joy with the Street Cleaner
Two days ago, I went to southwest Washington, D.C. to clean out a crawl space. Because the space had only about 6 feet of clearance above, and I am 6’3″ tall, I had my buddy climb down the steep stairs and toss boxes and other junk up to me. It was then my job to haul it outside to the truck, which was parked in front of the row house. I didn’t know I would soon find joy with the street cleaner!
What I Noticed
After making a number of trips to the truck, a man came walking down the street towards me. He held a trash pincher, which he used to pick up papers and other debris from the sidewalk without bending over to get it. He was moving slowly, so I knew our paths would cross soon. I said hi to him, to which he responded, “God is good!”
The Opportunity
That started off our conversation. He explained he cleaned up three times a week around the block we were on. He talked about how grateful he was in his life and how he had added a couple of extra jobs to his schedule in order to keep going during Covid-19. People who talk about God are probably open to talking more about God. There was an opportunity here.
My Surprise
Joyfully, I went to my truck to get him a Restoration card as he slowly kept moving down the street. To my surprise, I was out of cards! I went b ack inside the house, thinking I had blown an opportunity to share something special with my new friend.
Inspiration Takes Over
As I was coming back out to the truck on my next junk removal trip, I remembered I had kept a copy of the Book of Mormon on my dashboard. It had been thrown away from an earlier job we did months ago. I decided to keep it in the truck so I would have one to give away if needed. I felt prompted to give him the Book of Mormon instead of the card.
The book was already written in. Someone had put their testimony inside when they gave it to another person. That didn’t matter. I grabbed one of my old public affairs cards and slipped that inside with the book.
The Search
After finishing the job, my buddy and I got in the truck. My friend was nowhere to be seen. I was determined to find him. We drove to the next street and turned right. He was not on the block. I went to the next street and turned right again. There he was! He was cleaning up trash about half-way down the block. I drove up to him and hopped out of the truck.
Joy Takes Over
I walked over to him and gave him the book. I told him it was “…the best spiritual thing I could possibly give you.” I pointed out my card and told him my phone and email were on it. “Call me if you have any questions or if I can do anything else for you,” I concluded. He told me his name was Milton and he really appreciated my gestures.
Conclusion
That was it! He had the book. Now it was up to him. I told him, “I’m here for you, my man. I’m with you!” I drove away thrilled with the way I felt. When I got home, I grabbed another copy of the Book of Mormon and took it out to my truck the next morning. If you have something to give someone, the Lord will inspire you who to give it to you. If you don’t have it, it’s kind of hard to give away…
book of mormon, Faith, follow the spirit, hastening the work, street reacher, trash pick up, washington dc, Washington Nationals
