Street Pastors Hit the StreetsOn Friday the 13th, Street Pastors officially hit the streets of Islington for the first time. Carol, Fran, Roberto, Beverly, and I "patrolled" a part of our borough called The Angel; an area with a lot of pubs and clubs. We were only out for a little over three hours but met throngs of people just walking by or standing around smoking (that can't smoke indoors anymore). I was totally amazed at how many people were out late on a cold night. We also introduced ourselves to a number of bouncers and met several homeless people. We even chatted with a couple of police officers.What is a Street Pastor?One question that everyone on the street wants to know is, "What is a Street Pastor." First of all I begin by telling most people we're not street preachers and not informers for the police, though we are endorsed by the local authorities. Basically, we're a group of volunteers from local churches that are trying to be of service to people that are out late at night on the weekends between the hours of 10 PM and 4 AM.
Our A.I.M. is to assist anyone who may be vulnerable; such as a young lady waiting alone for a bus, a homeless man sleeping in a doorway, or anyone who's had too much to drink. Occasionally there are children and elderly people out late at night and we'll ask if they're OK.
We also interact with those who work through the night -- bouncers, police officers, shop keepers, etc. Most we met last Friday were happy to see us in their area and see the benefit of having us around.
Lastly, Street Pastors is an initiative to mobilise the church to get outside its walls and be of service to the community. We want to listen to what people have to say and dialogue if possible and offer a word of witness and prayer where appropriate. Prayer RequestsPlease keep praying for Islington Street Pastors. We need your prayers more than
ever as we try to build on our momentum after our launch a few days ago. The names of our current
team
members are Roberto, Carol, Fran, and Beverly (not pictured). I have two coordinators meetings coming up where I hope to learn a lot more about my role and responsibilities.
We still need one or two more recruits for the March training to give us a full team. Those that have committed to the training need your prayer support. Their names are Brian, Joanna, Szuszanna, and Geoff. Two others are almost ready to commit; Pete and Tunde.
I also spent some time this week with the alcoholic man, named Alex, you've been praying for. I'm happy to say that he has agreed to go back to a treatment centre again and is just waiting for an opening. He now has a mobile phone so I can keep in contact with him. Please pray he won't lose his phone and will get the help he needs for his addiction.
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