September 20th Prayer Update
“Our help is in the name of the Lord, who made heaven and earth.”
During our September 20th outreach, our teams distributed 12 English language Bibles and five compact New Testaments. We rejoice with each Bible that is accepted, knowing how precious the living and active word of God is. It is our prayer that God would enable those who read it to meet the Savior, repent and follow him.
From time to time, Hope 680 provides tents to homeless individuals who have nowhere to sleep. We recognize the fine line between compassionate care and enabling. A tent can provide immediate shelter, but it is not a pathway out of homelessness. We know that a tent sometimes reduces the urgency to seek help and shelter. It's our prayer that God direct us when temporary covering is provided. These items are used as a gospel opportunity to build relationships, trust, and demonstrate Christ's love. We affirm that lasting Biblical change is only possible through the saving work of Christ. Therefore, rather than just meeting physical needs, we aim to share the gospel and prayerfully look for change in their eternal destiny. This is why we work diligently to offer Bibles, tracts, and the gospel message to everyone we meet as our highest priority. Thank you for being a part of this gospel work!
We continue to be reminded of the importance of having bagged lunches as part of our ministry. When we offered Deborah a bagged lunch, she opened it and immediately started eating the sandwich. We could see lots of wrappers of things like chips and packaged desserts, but no evidence of protein or anything fresh. We are thankful for those of you who provide the lunches for our outreach events. The Lord is using loving care to directly impact our ministry and the ability to share the gospel with those who are hungry. Deborah shared with our team that she is a veteran of the Navy and suffers with PTSD. Based on the items around her general area, it seems as if Deborah relies on illegal substances to cope with her PTSD. Our hearts go out to her, and we desire that she can find true peace and relationship with the Lord. When we started asked her questions to lead into the gospel she told us she knew who Jesus was but wasn't open to further conversation. We left her with a gospel tract and a second lunch. It's our prayer to present the gospel again with her when next we meet.
Our Martinez team found Tommy tucked in the back of the park. We offered him lunch and started a conversation with him. He told us he had a near-death experience and believes he died and came back again. He also said he struggles with addiction and that his tent recently burned down. The team offered him a replacement tent, and provided him with contact information for the Bay Area Rescue Mission so he might seek an avenue to escape homelessness and addiction. He accepted an info card for the Mission as well as a Bible. We pray that he will read the Bible he accepted.
We've had dozens of brief conversations with Lonnie over the last few years, so we were thankful to be able to coordinate a Bible study with him, which would allow for a prolonged conversation centered on God's word. He declined to enter the Hope 680 RV and opted to have his Bible study outside. The focus of the Bible study was on sin and repentance. It is our human temptation to start to justify and compare ourselves to others when faced with the guilt of our own sin. As Lonnie spoke, it was clear he was holding onto some bitterness towards those who had wronged him. The team pointed out that God sees that bitterness and wants Lonnie to be freed from it. He confessed he should be more forgiving. The team helped him to see his to work on his own sin first (Matthew 7:1-5). That concept resonated with Lonnie, and he was moved to tears during their time of prayer together. We pray that the Lord uses that Bible study and the verses covered to break down the walls and soften Lonnie's heart toward true repentance and faith.
Our North Concord team came across Dennis and Kelly sitting in their car. After our team offered hot coffee and lunches, they asked the couple if they had any prayer requests. Kelly asked for a Bible right away and was excited to read it. While praying for their requests, our team was able to present the gospel through prayer. We've found this to be one of the most effective ways of sharing the gospel without being interrupted. A majority of folks who share a prayer request remain quiet and respectful while being prayed for and will politely listen even as the full gospel message is proclaimed. We are thankful for those opportunities and pray for those seeds as they are scattered.
Bishop shared with our team that he recently had a stroke. We noticed that the stroke has mellowed Bishop down. Rose was with Bishop and asked for prayer, and teared up when we prayed for their requests. Bishop accepted a Bible, and Rose promised to help Bishop read it.
We never want to neglect mentioning the important impact our bilingual volunteers have on our ministry, as we encounter Spanish speakers every time we venture out to share the gospel. We are always equipped with Spanish Bibles and Spanish New Testaments to distribute, but we never underestimate the effect a Spanish speaker can have when presenting the gospel in someone's native language. In the photo above, Peter was able to talk with Eddie in Spanish. Please join us in prayer that the Lord will continue to provide Spanish speakers so that each team we send can have the opportunity to spread the gospel to every nation.
Please pray these individuals read the Bibles they received.
Jack
Herb
Greg
Kelly
Rose
David
George
Antwon
Rebecca
AJ
Jack
Tommy
Pray for those who were friendly but declined Bibles.
Raynelle
King
Megan
Teddy
Timothy
Jennifer
Anna
Victor
Roy - Willing to go to church
Luke
Eliza
Mesahwn
Charles
Sean
Randy
Matt
Roger
Roy
David
Temica
Eddie
Marie
Oscar
Kevin
Nikki
Alicia
Lonni
Michael
Eric
Dennis
Bishop
Steven
Josalyn
Steve
Tommy
Deborah
Sarah
Kareem
Nacho
Jeff
Pray for those who were closed to conversation, that God would soften their hearts before our next outreach.
Jackie
JOIN US!
Our Next Outreach is October 4th 2025
Please consider serving during a Saturday Outreach in one of the following ways:
1) Prepare Lunches
2) Evangelism at the Homeless Camps
3) Volunteer Breakfast
4) Cookies for Volunteers
Our ministry is a labor of love with the main purpose of providing gospel hope through practical means to the homeless. Thank you for serving alongside of us!
We continue to pray for those who might be able to contribute a small additional monthly gift of $25 or $50 a month to help with ongoing Hope680 expenses, including our ministry supplies, offices, and RV maintenance. We are trusting God to continue to provide through you!
FYI Our Executive Staff and Leaders (including Toby and all team leaders) are unpaid volunteers - all donations go 100% towards the running of Hope680, including administrative contractors, our facilities, and RV maintenance costs, as well as ministry supplies.