A story of patience, heartache, and the joy that comes from sharing Christ’s love with a hurting soul.

I still marvel at the grace of God and how he works in such mysterious ways.

A cup of coffee

The day started out rather routinely. I was preparing my sermon for the upcoming Sunday, but I was struggling to come up with an introduction. As I am prone to do, I started to wander, trying to come up with ideas. I went from my office over to the fellowship hall to grab a cup of coffee, and as I passed by the church entry door, something caught my eye.

A middle-aged homeless man was sitting on the curb across the parking lot. He was yelling and shaking his fist in the air. I thought that maybe I should offer this man a cup of coffee, start a conversation, and see where it goes.

So I went outside, and as I offered him the coffee, I could smell alcohol and tobacco. He was unshaven and unkempt. He looked up at me and said, “I can’t believe it! I just asked God to send a godly man to help me.” I felt goose bumps. I’ve heard of these things before, but I still couldn’t believe I had witnessed a prayer answered quickly by God. And to think he used me to reach Mike, a struggling Christian man, an alcoholic, a divorcé, a man with an addiction who is loved by God.

We walked together into the church to get out of the hot California sun. I shared Romans chapter 8 with him, and we both marveled at God’s grace and the love he has shown to us in Christ. I shared various psalms with him, and to this day, three years later, he still reads the Psalms for comfort and strength. Our friendship has blossomed over the years, and he has the love of Christ to help him through his challenges. Who knew that a cup of coffee would take me down a three-year journey of chance encounters, determined steps, quite a few hiccups, and a life-altering incident that has cemented a true Christian friendship that will last beyond this life into the next?

But that day just started with a cup of coffee, and I’d be lying if I said that it was an easy road. A local pastor who knew Mike and his struggle with alcohol told me, “Chris, prepare yourself to get hurt!” I didn’t know exactly what that meant then, but I learned. It was a three-year journey of rushing Mike to the doctor, sharing the Word of God with him while he cried because he had given in to his addiction once again. It was late nights rushing out to see if Mike was still alive or dead on the streets, offering him water, food, medicine, or just a pillow to rest his head. It was months of silence as he wrestled with his enemies. But he always came back to hear the precious Word of God to help him in his struggles.

I’ve learned throughout my life that the biblical term for patience is “long-suffering.” How often I had to be patient with Mike, after being let down time and time again. I realized that being patient meant I would suffer as I waited for God to answer my prayers. While I waited for God’s answer to deliver Mike from his addiction, the Lord taught me some tough lessons on what it means to show kindness, love, and compassion.

A child of God

They say that it takes hitting rock bottom for someone finally to break through. I remember so vividly when that happened for Mike. It was my birthday, and I had run into Mike once again. There was a special service at church that evening, so I told him that he should come. Due to the shame he often wrestles with, he kindly said he wasn’t ready. That night Mike got into an argument with someone who nearly beat him to death. I spent the next few months visiting Mike in the hospital. He almost lost his life, suffering from massive blood loss, a damaged pancreas, and a wound that wouldn’t heal.

You never know what opportunities God has for you, but you can be sure that God can use you and me to share the wonderful gospel love of Christ.

Mike moved to another state to find support with his family. He had some more hiccups—as any addict will tell you is par for the course—but he still calls and writes to me. I am proud to say that Mike is clean. Mike relies on the grace of Christ every single day of his life and still struggles, but he knows and believes that he has been washed clean by the blood of the Lamb. He is a child of God who believes that his Savior is the only one who can give him the strength to resist that next drink. He still falls from time to time, but God is there to pick him up. Mike relies on the forgiveness won for him by Christ.

Recovering from addictions is never easy because you have the world, the devil, and your own sinful nature waging war against your soul. They all want you to stay in your addiction. Since I met Mike, I have had many opportunities to witness to drug addicts, alcoholics, and many others through the Resilient Recovery program I bring to a local shelter. It has given me countless opportunities to reach the lost for Christ. I still remember what that elderly pastor told me: “Prepare yourself to get hurt!” But if I get hurt, that’s okay. I’m reminded daily that if I just stay the course God has set for me, it might mean saving one soul. And for one soul, isn’t the hurt worth it?

What opportunities has God presented to you? Do you have an opportunity to share a cup of coffee? Who is that neighbor, that homeless person, that family member you can reach out to and start a conversation? It’s not a program; it’s not an event. It is only a cup of coffee and the willingness to share the love of Christ. You never know what opportunities God has for you, but you can be sure that God can use you and me to share the wonderful gospel love of Christ.

Learn more about the Resilient Recovery program at restinjesus.org. Find more evangelism tips at forwardinchrist.net/series/evangelism-lessons.

Author: Christopher Hoppe
Volume 112, Number 04
Issue: April 2025