Looking into the eyes.
House to house ministry was never easy work for me to engage in at any time, but I always found it much more difficult when looking into the eyes of people who expressed grief and sadness. The first time I spoke with Jillian I detected such sadness but she gave nothing away. She told me she had, “sort of heard of Jesus when I went to school,” but that was the extent of it. The school she formerly attended had ‘Christian Girl’s College’ attached to its name, but I had long since learned that this meant very little, in fact in most cases, it meant nothing at all. Read the rest of this entry »
I was walking along the street when Maria stepped out from her gate to place something in her rubbish bin which was sitting on the strip awaiting collection. We had not met previously, but I knew who she was and her name. She and her husband had lost a daughter in a well-publicised multiple murder incident just under two years earlier. 
The moment I mentioned that I was from a local church, Mrs Stark expressed immediate anger. Standing in her doorway she told me in no uncertain terms that she was not interested in God or, “any of you people who say you believe in Him!” Not only was this the voice of an angry woman but more importantly, I heard the voice of a hurting woman. 
One day a young married mother-to-be came to the door and she had one of the most tragic stories I have ever heard since doing this work. Upon introducing myself and explaining the purpose of the visit, a fierce anger came into her eyes and flashed across her face and she told me I was wasting my time in speaking with her. 
I had just finished a time of prayer and ministry with Jean in her home when her next door neighbour Helen called in. Jean introduced me to her and explained the reason for my visit and suggested to Helen that perhaps she would like me to pray with her also. On a previous visit with Jean, she told me a little about “the couple next door” and the fact that some years earlier they had experienced tragedy in their lives. 
From the street, the home and property looked interesting. The garden was slightly over grown, the weather-board house looked to be in need of painting and maintenance in comparison to the one attached to it and I could see numerous bird cages in the closed-in veranda. The front door was open so I opened the gate, walked up the path and knocked. 
