2035
DONNIE BRASCO [or a free supper].
The chapter for the week is Luke
14.
I finally made it into my 3rd
month in Jersey- not an easy task.
One of my favorite movies is
Donnie Brasco.
It’s the true story of the FBI
undercover agent Joe Pistone.
He was famous for being able to
infiltrate the mob- he got higher in the ranks than any other undercover agent.
In my 2 months back in town- I
have met most of the ‘main crew’ of this area.
I have learned some interesting
stuff.
Now- because I am not a Narc- and
I am not here to be a Donnie Brasco- I have to be careful telling this part of
the story.
But- to be honest- it took 2 months-
only 2 [maybe 20 days total with the street guys] to ‘infiltrate’ the local
story.
I have had friends- for many
years- who struggled with drug addiction.
Some do ‘better’ than others.
That is- they maintain a home
[apartment] and pay the bills [try] in the beginning of the month- because even
though they are addicted- they know if they don’t pay the bills first- they
will be on the street.
Others- they break the usual
rule- and they not only sell the stuff- on a fairly large scale- but they use
too.
Not everyone can do this- some can’t
resist the temptation to use their supply- and that’s when they stop being
dealers.
Okay- careful part.
I was truly surprised to see who
the main dealer in this area is.
Trust me- you would be surprised
to [by the way- It’s not the friend who I have been posting pics of].
I know of other people in the
area- actual users- who also don’t know who this guy is [I’m talking about
people who used to be users- they are now clean- they have told me this guy is
homeless- he’s making at least a few hundred a day].
He comes in from out of town- the
purchaser’s wait for him- and he must make about 300 a day.
Yet- you would think [yes- many locals
do think this] that the guy was homeless- out of everyone in the area- he
‘looks’ the part- to the tee.
It really is an intriguing ‘way
of doing business’- and I found this out by simply meeting these street guys.
Now- I am not here [Jersey] to
Rat on guys- but when you’re in the area for a while- you learn this stuff.
Okay- Luke 14.
Jesus was teaching one of his
memorable stories- what we call Parables.
He said some guy made this huge
supper- invited lots of folk.
When the intended guests- the
high class ones- received the invitations- they all made excuses for why they
couldn’t come.
The guy who was making this great
feast got mad.
He then sent the invitations to
the poor- the crippled [no legs- wheel chairs- see?] and the low class crowd.
These low life’s- well they
gladly took the invite- and partied hard.
In this chapter Jesus also
teaches that when you throw a party- when you ‘serve food’ [often a symbol of
teaching the bible- sharing the Gospel].
He said invite those who can’t
pay you back- because if you do this- you will be rewarded at the resurrection.
Pay you back?
I had another incident with the
street crew.
Now- I have been ‘on the streets’
for a very long time.
I know the scene- the way things
work/happen.
And- over time- you learn to
follow certain rules.
Rules [things I do] to avoid too
much trouble.
One of them is- I usually only
carry a few dollars.
Why?
Not because I think I’m gonna get
rolled [robbed].
But because when you are around
guys that use- they do at times ask for a few bucks [10- 15].
And I don’t give the guys money
for that.
So- I simply buy lunch- or maybe
even a pack of cigarettes- stuff like that.
So- the other day one of the
guys- who has talent- can make something good with his life.
He asked if I could ‘lend’ him 14
bucks- I had 13.
Now- I have been around- and I
know how this is.
So- with a little regret- I said
‘okay’.
He went into something about some
another family member coming to give him 20- lots of stuff I heard/seen before.
After I gave him the few bucks-
he hung out a bit- and took off.
He did call me on the cell later-
I guess he came up with the 13.
I told him I’m not even worried
about the 13.
But I told him- honestly- that he
just got his check [the guys on the streets- who get some form of govt. aid-
ssi- disability- etc.- they get paid at the beginning of the month].
And it usually lasts till at least
the middle of the month.
Some times into the 3rd
week!
But for hard users- well- it’s
all gone in the first few days.
Now- I said earlier that some addicts
simply have learned to pay the main bills- or buy whatever they need- in the
first day or 2.
Then- they know where the rest is
going.
And they wheel and deal for the
rest of the month- with the Monkey on their back.
Sad- but true.
One of the guys- the day his
check came in- spent 2oo- while I was with him.
On what?
Stuff that was good- not bad.
As we were going back to his
apt.- he spotted a nice A.C. at a garage sale.
He bought it for his daughter
[yeah- he raised her- she lives with him].
As we got back to his spot- I
helped him carry it into her room.
It was sad- this friend- who
uses- has a studio apt.
In this area- rents are very
high- and lots of people live in converted Basements.
This was one of those.
But- as we brought the a.c. into
her room- her room looked just like any other girls room.
Pink stuff- stuffed animals- the
whole nine yards.
He actually does not let the
other guys know where he lives- because he wants to keep this place as a
shelter for his girl.
Now- he spent money on this A.C.
- the first day he got his check.
And in 2 days- the rest went to
drugs.
See?
Addicts function at different
levels- he manages to pay the bills- buy stuff [on purpose- because he knows
what the addiction will do] and do this in the first couple of days.
Because by day 2 or 3- all the
money is gone.
Now- some guys will sell the AC-
or everything else in the house.
Others will rob.
But some ‘manage’ like this.
And yeah- they will even lie- or
‘bend the truth’ to get a few bucks.
Sometimes they don’t pay that
back- and you get stuck having invited someone ‘to the supper- who couldn’t
re-pay’.
NOTE- Update, yesterday my friend
paid back the 13 bucks.
As soon as he saw me at White
Castles he paid.
Let me do a short ‘version’ of
what/why I see these types of experiences as beneficial.
Over the years- with many friends
who have had addictions- I have seen a pattern take place.
That is- many of these guys have
let down family- friends- themselves- all because of their addiction.
Okay- after a while they get used
to this pattern.
Maybe they are at the ‘breaking
point’ of wanting the fix- they quickly come up with a plan to get the cash
[above case- my mom is coming to bring me 20 bucks].
Then they carry out the plan- and
after they get high- they simply wait for the aftermath.
Which- in many cases- is the
friends/family that got burned in some way- reject the person.
Now- should we let people ‘walk
all over us’?
No.
Should we try and view people in
addiction [sin] as people who are slaves to a particular bondage?
Yes- and no.
That is we realize we all have choices
in life- and if we choose wrong- we suffer.
But here’s the catch- in the
above case I chose to not ‘get my rights’ to not think ‘how dare so and so do
this…’
No- I simply viewed this silly 13
dollar thing as nothing big.
Though- in some scenarios- people
would never speak to the person again.
In Luke 14 Jesus is in the house
of one of the religious leaders.
They are all waiting to see what
he will do.
It’s the Sabbath day- and there
is an injured man there.
Jesus asks ‘is it lawful to heal
on the Sabbath’.
He heals the man- the Pharisees
are mad- and then he says-
‘Which one of you- if you’re
animal falls into the pit on the Sabbath- would not get him out’?
He was showing them that the
value of a person is much more than the value of an animal.
And that the thing they were
judging Jesus for [healing people and helping them on the Sabbath] was simply
showing the same grace to people- as they themselves showed- to their own
animals!
Jesus valued people- he saw them
as being created in the image of God- and yet afflicted with this disease of
sin, this thing that was deforming the original image of God in them.
He saw them- in a way- as the
beasts that fell into a ditch- on Gods ‘special’ day- on a day of rest
[Sabbath].
In the book of Hebrews we read
that the Sabbath day was a picture of this ‘new day’ of the Cross- the grace of
God that made it possible for all to have rest in God.
Jesus died for us all- that we
could all cease from own efforts to justify ourselves in God’s eyes.
But we can now come into Gods presence
and receive his grace freely.
That’s what the Sabbath
represents- a Day of Rest.
When he saw what sin had done to
the human race- he saw them as people who had fallen into the ditch.
People who needed a savior- but there
would be a radical price to pay- he himself would take the curse of sin- hang
on a Cross and die in our place.
He would rise again on the 3rd
day- and ascend into heaven.
Where he is seated at the right hand
of God.
He will come again to judge the
living-
And the Dead.
He came into the world- not to condemn
the world- but that the world thru him might be saved [John 3].
Yeah- he invited all types of low
life’s to the supper.
He said ‘go out into the roads
and streets- bring them all in’.
He saw them as people who had fallen
into the ditch- they needed help to get out.
He went to the Cross- he helped.
Note- Do me a favor, those who
read/like the posts- re-post them on other sites as well as the site you read
them on. Thanks- John. Don’t forget to scroll down on the timeline [FaceBook] -
I have posted lots.
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