Lisa Brom of Monterey, California, had lost her older brother, Steve, to alcoholism and was looking for something to do with her grief and the love she used to give him. “Steve was a really good guy. He tried so hard for so long to stop drinking,” Lisa recalls. “At last, he got sober, but then he had a seizure and died in his sleep.” He had just turned 50.
Lisa was on her way to work one day when she spotted a shuttle bus, one she’d been noticing lately. It stopped in the same spot at the same time every day and picked up a group of men who were homeless. They reminded her of when her brother had stayed at a live-in Salvation Army recovery program.
On the side of the bus were the letters I-HELP and a phone number. “I kept looking at the bus and just felt drawn to it,” she says. “The Holy Spirit told me to delve further.”
Lisa called the number on the bus and learned that I-HELP stands for Interfaith Homeless Emergency Lodging Program, a nonprofit that works with Monterey-area faith communities and service organizations to support unhoused people and help them get back on their feet. Local congregations provide nightly lodging and meals, and I-HELP staff and volunteers assist participants with job hunting, housing and life goals.
Lisa talked to her pastor about getting their church involved. “We put it out to our congregation, and a great group of volunteers came together,” she says.
That was in 2004. Since then, church volunteers have helped homeless men in their area. One night a month, the men arrive at their church in an I-HELP bus. The volunteers serve them a hearty homemade meal. “We pray, share fellowship, then sit down and eat together,” Lisa says.
Afterward, there’s a drawing. Every one of the men gets a gift. It might be bus passes, gift cards for food, sleeping bags, jackets, shoes—all brand-new. There’s also a table with toiletries and personal care items. The men have a safe, warm place to sleep in the church hall. The volunteers even pack them lunch for the next day.
One day, Lisa decided to include something else in those lunches. Something that would lift the men’s spirits and bring them hope. Something she’d turned to herself. Stories from Guideposts.
She’d started reading the magazine in the 1990s, after a job transfer took her far away from her family. Feeling scared and lonely, she listened to The Power of Positive Thinking, by Norman Vincent Peale. “It changed my life,” Lisa says. “So I researched Dr. Peale and discovered the magazine. From that moment on, I wanted to support the Guideposts organization, to bring hope to people at difficult times in their lives.” Since 1998, she has been donating to Guideposts to help provide magazines, booklets, devotionals and apps, free of charge, to people in need.
Lisa got in touch with our ministry and outreach team about the men in the I-HELP program. Since then, we’ve been sending her volunteer group inspirational materials, which members can tuck into the lunches they give the men. Magazines. Booklets on topics such as resilience in tough times and overcoming anxiety.
John, an I-HELP participant who’s now a staff member, keeps the booklet Power Your Life With Positive Thinking on his clipboard so he can refer to it often. “Positivity helps you see what’s possible,” he says. Another man said an issue of Guideposts gave him exactly the uplift he needed right then.
“God makes things happen,” Lisa says. “He gets the right message to people in different ways.” Because stories about people from all walks of life are featured in magazines and booklets from Guideposts, the men in the I-HELP program can find something to relate to, no matter where they might be in their journey.
“All of us could be where they are,” Lisa says of those she helps. “Take Max, for instance, who had a full-time handyman job and a nice apartment.” After a massive heart attack, he was in cardiac rehab for three months, unable to work. He lost his job and his apartment. He had no place to go until he reached out to I-HELP.
“Volunteering with I-HELP is an act of love,” Lisa says. “It’s such a rewarding experience. The men are so loving and grateful. They give you inspiration because they are smiling, even with the circumstances they’re in. It’s hard to be upset about anything in your life after hearing their stories.”
Just as Guideposts brought her hope when she needed it most, Lisa is spreading that hope to others who need it now. “And that’s a beautiful thing,” she says.
To support our ministry and outreach efforts, go to guideposts.org/give. Download our free inspirational booklets at guideposts.org/booklets, or email outreach@guideposts.org for print booklets.
For more inspiring stories, subscribe to Guideposts magazine.
