Frankie's Fish

Now I don’t normally go around taking food from the homeless… but I did with Frankie.

I sat down one afternoon some time in the outside Starbucks (stupidly) in the winter, and took the opportunity to catch up on some reading in between my lunch breaks. A rugged looking gentleman sat a table away from me muttered to himself. I continued to focus on the argument CS Lewis was presenting.

Then I caught the word “Chinese” from this man’s mutterings. As I failed to concentrate to read, I stared blankly between the pages listening what he was saying.

“Maybe it’s because the Chinese have forgotten where home is for them. Maybe it’s because they don’t like the food there and they don’t want to go back. They just keep coming and taking over, and there’s the Koreans too…” he went on.

I sensed somehow that it wasn’t really him that was saying it, but a spirit inside him that was irking him to say these things. I closed my eyes and whispered to God that somehow His Spirit would intervene in this man’s life, and then proceeded to continue reading. It was only moments later that this man started proclaiming more absurdities.

“Maybe’s it’s because of the Christians…!!”

I was stunned, here I was, a small asian Christian, and had already made two very intentional attacks against me without even knowing who I am, and there I was almost certain that there was some kind of spirit in him irking him. I prayed to God in that moment for his salvation, and for an opportunity and courage to speak to him and pray for him.

A quick answer to prayer…

I continued to stare blankly at my book, and tried to gather some focus in reading when this rugged character called out to me. My attention turned and I asked if I could sit with him for a while. It was there I asked Frankie, “What do you know about the Christians?”.

He said something along the lines, that he didn’t mean to offend me, and that he was testing me. And it was then he said he was a Christian himself. At some point of the conversation it was quite clear to me that he was he most likely was an alcoholic. The white of his eyes were yellow, and the smell of stale cigarettes and a faint sweet mustiness of alcohol. It was then he proceeded to get a bible out from his guitar case. He played me and song about Winnie the Pooh and we talked.

He asked my what my favorite bible verse was, and not really being able to think of anything, I grabbed my life journal out and read something I had journaled down from a previous day’s reading. When I had explained why that passage spoke to me for that time he wept and said he was ready to die now because he fulfilled what he was meant to do. Frankie kept going in to moments where he was curse God and call him a drunkard, to moments of tears and repentant sorrow. It was there and then that I had the opportunity to pray with him… and it was after that he wanted to know how he could be saved.

The conversation seemed futile, I could see moments when I could see the real Frankie and moments when his personality would switch and all I heard was nonsense and cursing from whatever spirit was demonizing or possessing him. I left that conversation with Frankie’s snot all over my sleeve and a couple of pins he gave me from an old Winter Olympic event.

I went to my community group later that week and asked that everyone pray for him.

My Fishy Encounter

I didn’t meet Frankie again for another couple of weeks when I had an opportunity to speak to him. He was looking a lot more sober and alert, and a lot more healthier than when I last saw him. I asked where he had been and he said he had moved down to a town about 50km south. So I thought I should tell him about a new church plant in the same town. I gave him an invite card with my number on and left him goodbye.

About another fortnight went by and I didn’t see Frankie at church, but I saw him sitting outside Starbucks again in the morning when I was on my way to grabbing some breakfast. He was sitting outside in the sun and I stopped to say hi. I asked him how he was and where he’d been. He told me he went fishing at Lost Lake and caught some trout. He offered to give me a trout, and I obliged. He said he would clean it up for me and wrap it up nicely and deliver it to me later at work. I thanked him again and went back to work to carry on my day, not thinking he would remember or bother.

Frankie certainly was a man of his word. He appeared later in the lobby at work later in the afternoon and asked for me at reception. I left the office and greeted him and he invited me outside. There was a trout, freshly gutted and cleaned wrapped nicely in a BC liquor store bag. He hugged me and I hugged him back and he wished his blessings and prayers for me. I was stoked! I’m not sure who was more blessed in that moment. He told me to cook it wish some butter and it’ll be tasty, so the next day I did exactly that.

Yummy!

I baked the trout with some lemon, butter and seasoned it with a little salt and pepper.

Now this is the part that doesn’t make sense, or sounds dumb, but by accepting something I didn’t need from Frankie, I felt humbled, and it was my prayer that it was an opening to a relationship and friendship. It was my prayer that by allowing him to bless me, it allowed him to work out in faith fruits of generosity and kindness. I pray that I would be able to do the same thing for him.

Things to pray for:

• Pray that the Lord would bless Frankie and that he would know the Lord’s salvation
• Pray that the Lord would continue to provide for him materially