Hands to the Homeless

A dirty hand covered with black soot stretched out .to us for a handshake. I grasped his hand straight away and a bright smile greeted me. It took a while before he was willing to loosen his grip on my hand, and I knew that he was trying to convey his gratitude for the kindness shown through the food received.

Our ministry to the homeless at Ikebukuro station started in January 2012 when a compassionate short-term worker suggested that we do something for the homeless scattered around the vicinity of the station.

Many people do not associate homelessness with Japan—it is hard for them to imagine homeless people in Tokyo. During the 1970s and 1980s, when the Japanese economy was thriving, people migrated from rural areas and smaller outskirt towns to Tokyo for work. However, when the bubble economy burst in the early 1990s, many of them lost their jobs when companies had to axe workers. Many ended up sleeping on streets, as they could no longer afford to pay rent or mortgage payments for their apartments. Some ended up on the streets due to gambling debts at the pachinko, and they’d lost property they owned.

The process

Our food program is simple—a hot nikuman (meat bun), bread, a bottle of Japanese tea, and a banana. Warm clothes and sleeping bags are also distributed when the winter season sets in. Fifteen to twenty food bags are prepared weekly. A printout with a Bible story about Jesus, plus a map showing the location of Nakayoshi Church at Ikebukuro is included. This church has a Sunday afternoon coffee hour and all are welcome, including the homeless.

Most of the homeless people are literate and have no problem reading. Often the first thing they do upon receiving the bag of goodies is to read the printout, which enables us to talk freely about the content of the story.

Interestingly, many of the homeless people are mentally aware and alert. A few have some mental handicap, but most of the 25 homeless people we have encountered so far have strong reasoning abilities. Some with entrepreneur skills make a living by queuing up early at electronic stores to purchase electronic gadgets for Chinese businessmen, while others collect cans or ‘newly discarded’ weekly magazines from magazine bins for sale to earn some money for food and cigarette purchases.

Mr. Niko, who loves to read, was the first one to pray for salvation. He has already finished reading half the Bible! Then Mr. Namataka and Ms. Kondo believed, followed by more. By the end of the year, 11 homeless people had turned to Christ. We realized that the homeless are very open to the gospel. We talk openly about the gospel and pray for them publicly on the streets.

As we’ve reflected on what we have done, we’ve found four points are crucial.

Make it personal

We start with a simple, weekly food distribution, moving from one person to another. We either sit or squat to be at their eye level when talking to them. It takes quite a bit of courage to ignore the hordes of commuters as they walk past and wonder what we are up to. We ask for names and try to remember them. We talk to each person as much as they want to talk. We shake hands with those who want to shake hands.

Make it consistent

We make it a point to be there every Thursday night. We realized that they wait expectantly for us each week. If we are not able to make it, we inform them ..beforehand. This has helped to build trust with them.

Make it spiritually centered

They know that we care because we have been personal and consistent in our actions. There is a trust relationship, so they are always ready to listen when we talk openly about Jesus and share Bible stories. They are appreciative when we pray for them.

Make it connected

We became connected with Nakayoshi Church (Holiness) four months into the ministry. It is a blessing to have partners who share the workload of teaching and feeding the homeless. Some of the homeless people have started going to Nakayoshi Church. We are thankful for the partnership with this church, whose members are ready to receive the homeless into the family of God.

There are many pockets of homeless people around Japan. They need food and the love story of our Lord. May the compassion of Christ be a catalyst for us to reach out to them so that they will have an eternal home in heaven. 

Photo by Yazan Badran